Page 4 of Falling For The Enemy (The Gilbert Curse)

“I saw nothing of the sort. You handled yourself beautifully, standing up to your brother and championing your cause. Then when it was over you just needed some recovery time.”

She let out a long, slow breath and nodded over at him, the smallest smile playing around her full mouth.

“I think I’m going to like having you as a neighbor, Kit,” she said.

“I think I will like being neighbors, too.”

They agreed to meet at two that afternoon for coffee, and as he watched her walk back to the movers, an uneasy feeling settled in his chest. He knew that he was going to have to tell her who he was, but at this point in time, he knew it wouldn’t help her. Of course, it wouldn’t help him either.

Two

Indy Belmont was Rory’s soon to be cousin-in-law. But she was also instrumental in revitalizing Gilbert Corners. She’d moved to this town about two years ago and brought her popular showHometown, Home Again, which aired on the Home Living TV network, here to film. She’d started with Indy’s Treasures, her bookshop on Main Street, and had slowly been working to get other projects off the ground.

When Rory had decided she had to leave Gilbert Manor, Indy and Elle had been her biggest supporters. And it had been Indy who had suggested possibly buying one of the Victorian-era duplexes and redoing it to help Rory adjust to being back in the world.

So, because she had a lot of love and respect for Indy, as soon as the movers left and she was alone in her new home, she was tempted to call her. She needed advice about Kit.

Kit.

He had the dreamiest brown eyes and she couldn’t stop fantasizing about how his thick dark hair would feel beneath her fingers. She remembered when he’d wrapped his arms around her and helped calm her down with the soothing, deep timbre of his voice. His body had felt solid against hers...and she hadn’t panicked.

She’d been so afraid she would when a man held her because the last memory she had of the night of the car crash was being forcibly kissed and held against the wall by Declan Orr, the man who had died in the car crash that had left her in a coma.

But in Kit’s arms she hadn’t felt scared. Maybe it had been his voice or the woodsy scent of his aftershave. Or perhaps it was the solid beating of his heart, which she had heard under her cheek. Whatever the reason...she couldn’t stop thinking about him.

She was a bit bummed that he wasn’t from the agency she’d hired, because the person they were sending was supposed to help her figure out how to kiss and have sex. All of her knowledge of that stuff had been a few brief make-out sessions in high school and then that one sexual attack that had scared her.

What was she going to do? Maybe this entire plan to meet Kit for coffee and talk to him again was a mistake.

But Elle, who was also her doctor, had said that mistakes were bound to happen. And that Rory would learn from them and become stronger by making them. Also, what was the worst that could happen?

That was what Conrad said to her every time they talked. Her cousin had been in the same car accident as Rory, and recovered, though it had left him badly scarred. He had confessed that it had taken him years to feel anything close to normal and he liked to do things that scared him. His advice to her was to go for anything that wouldn’t land her back in the hospital.

So, what was the worst that could happen if she met Kit?

He might not show up. Fair enough and that would be fine. But, on the flip side, he might come through for her and prove to be that kind of man who could be an ally. Also fine.

And if hedidshow up, they might hit it off and then she’d want to kiss him and... Her mind whirled with the possibilities. She’d be in his arms again and this time their lips would meet. And that would be more than fine. She figured she had to have a firstrealkiss... Why not Kit?

Though he might not want to be her first-time guy.

It would not be the end of the world if that happened, but she wondered if she’d have the courage to ask someone else. But she was also supposed to be doing things that scared her, so in this case she was going to do it.

Rory got dressed, taking her time. She had a long, jagged scar on her leg. Things were different now, and she was trying to come to terms with the body she’d woken up in. So of course the scars were to be expected. But they just made her feel less like herself. The Rory she remembered had long, slim legs. These were flabby with cellulite on her thighs that Indy had reassured her everyone had.

Rory stood in front of the mirror in the wrap dress with the skirt that ended at the top of her knees. She saw the imperfections but shook her head, pushing those thoughts firmly out of her mind. She couldn’t hate the flaws, because they made her who she was, and if Kit did...then he wasn’t the man she was hoping he’d be.

She grabbed her purse, put on her sunglasses and blew herself a kiss in the mirror before opening the front door and stepping outside.

This was it. Her new life started today and she was going to seize every opportunity that came to her.

No more hiding in her bed and being afraid of the outside world.

Kit slid his car into a spot in the public parking lot near the park that was across the street from the train station. Behind the park were the shops on Main Street. He had contemplated not coming to meet Rory. But the truth was hehadto.

Whatever fantasy he’d entertained about her over the years had paled compared to what he felt when he’d held her. It was sexual, but more than that. He’d never allowed himself to think of the future or to really have a permanent relationship with anyone because he’d been so focused on vengeance. But one moment with Rory and now he was questioning it? Was it just the remembered childhood feelings of friendship or something more?

He couldn’t deny he was excited just being with her. His phone pinged and he glanced down to see it was a text from his aunt Mal. Mal was his father’s sister. The two of them were all that was left of the family and they had been working together to restore their fortunes—which they had—even though Dash Gilbert hadn’t left them much to rebuild with.

---