“How are the bee stings?” she asked Faith, ignoring Tyler.
“No sweat. Daddy got that stuff you told him to get at the drugstore and by this morning they didn’t hurt at all. You sure are smart.”
“I’m just glad I outsmarted the bee.”
Faith giggled. “Are you ready to go?”
Hailey looked up at Tyler for the first time and smiled sweetly. She was satisfied to see that her congeniality surprised him. “I’ll be just a minute.”
She went into her office to get her blazer and purse. On her way out, she issued last-minute instructions to Charlene, who would be responsible for the office until the park closed at ten o’clock. She left by a back door after checking her appearance in the lavatory mirror. She swore to herself that it didn’t matter what she looked like—she wasn’t trying to impress anyone, especially Tyler Scott.
Faith was waiting eagerly. Tyler was lounging with one foot braced on a park bench as though he had never given a thought to the possibility that she might refuse the dinner invitation.
“My car is—”
“We’ll walk you to it and follow you home. We’ll even wait if you want to change, won’t we Faith?”
“Yeah. I want to see where you live, Hailey.”
Damn! He had outmaneuvered her again by involving Faith. Hailey had planned to drive her own car to wherever he chose to eat so he wouldn’t learn where she lived. Of course, all he had to do was check her file to find her address. Still, it rankled that he had scored the point so easily.
“I live in a duplex up on the mountain, Faith,” Hailey said, deliberately excluding Tyler from the conversation. “I lease out the other side of my house to tourists. In the winter there are hordes of skiers looking for lodging.”
“That’s dangerous, isn’t it?” Tyler asked, casually taking her arm as they crossed an intersection in the employees’ parking lot. “Having strangers under your roof.”
“I’m very careful about whom I lease to.”
“But for a woman living alone, I would think—”
“I never said that I live alone.”
He halted so abruptly that the fingers around her elbow bit into her skin. “You do, don’t you?”
The fierceness of his expression alarmed her. His brows had drawn together over his piercing eyes in what could only be called a scowl. His lips were pressed into a grim line. Her newfound independence hadn’t replaced caution. She didn’t dare reply flippantly.
“Yes, I do,” she said calmly. Then she added under her breath for his ears alone, “Not that it’s any of your damn business who I live with.”
“I’m making it my business. I’m a possessive, selfish lover, Hailey. I’ll share you with no one.”
She opened her mouth, ready to set him straight on both points, but Faith’s piping voice asked, “Which car is yours, Hailey?”
Hailey shook her head, trying to clear it. Things were happening too fast and she couldn’t handle them. She wanted to tell this overbearing brute that his possessive attitude was ridiculous, but there seemed to be no opportunity.
“Its … uh … there. The blue jeep.”
“A jeep! Oh, neat!” Faith cried and raced toward the parked car. “Can I ride with you, Hailey? Can I, Daddy? Please?”
“I think you should be asking Hailey, not me.”
Faith turned pleading eyes on her, and they were too much to resist. “Of course you may, but I must warn you that anyone riding in my car has to use a seat belt.”
“That’s okay. My daddy makes me use one, too.”
Hailey unlocked the passenger door, then came around to unlock hers. Tyler placed a hand on her shoulder and said, “My car is parked back there.” He made a motion with his head. “Wait for me at the gate. I’ll follow you.” It wasn’t a request. It was a polite command that told her not to even think about leaving the parking lot without him behind her.
To soften the order, his fingers caressed her shoulder, and in the next instant, his mouth swooped down on hers to deliver a hard, quick kiss on her surprised mouth. Her cheeks flamed and she was immensely glad that Faith had already climbed into the car and hadn’t seen what had happened. Rebuking him for the kiss would only bring the girl’s attention to them.
Hailey turned away from him and fumbled with the door handle. One glance told her Tyler was making his way to his own car.