“Really?” Her eyes lit up as if he’d given her a fortune.
“I don’t have a lot of time, so I can’t promise endless help, but yeah.”
“When do we start?”
“Tomorrow evening? After Trinity goes to bed. Would eight be too late?”
“No, no, that would be perfect.” She did a little pirouette, her gorgeous hair flaring out from her body. Then she did the darndest thing and launched herself at him for a big bear hug.
It was quick. It was spontaneous. It was innocent. Just a hug. That’s all.
Her fragrance intoxicated him. Roan wrapped his arms around her and held on for just a second too long.
She pulled back, blue eyes dazed, let out a long laugh, and said, “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Chapter 8
Jazzy was beyond excited. She couldn’t believe she’d coaxed Roan into giving her baking lessons.
On the following evening, by the time she parked her car in his driveway—the air he’d put into her tire had held—she was downright giddy. With Roan in her corner, she stood a halfway decent chance of winning the competition.
The air smelled of burning mesquite wood and if it hadn’t been for the curl of smoke coming from the backyard, she would have supposed the odor had lingered from yesterday’s fire. She rounded the side of the house to find Roan standing in front of the outdoor firepit.
He was feeding fresh wood into the fire and his back was to her. Snug-fitting Wranglers clung to his butt, which was very nicely shaped. He wore a long-sleeved, blue-plaid flannel work shirt, and cowboy boots. Her heart did this strange little bump and grind, knocking around in her chest.
She had a sudden urge to back out and if he hadn’tturned and spotted her at that exact moment, she might well have fled.
He raised a hand, smiled. “Right on time. The fire’s perfect.”
“Shouldn’t you have waited to show me how to start the fire?” she asked.
“We can do that on your next lesson when we have more time. Tonight, I figured I’d give you a jump start.”
“Thank you.” She stepped down off the sidewalk and crossed into an area paved with gorgeous flagstone.
He came toward her to take the grocery sack filled with baking supplies and set it on the table next to the outdoor grill. It was a lavish setup, complete with a sink and minifridge. Like something from a fancy model home.
“We used to do all our entertaining out here,” he explained.
“You don’t entertain anymore?”
“Not since Claire died. She was the life of the party. Without her...” A wistful look came into his eyes.
“You miss her a lot.”
“At first I missed her so much I couldn’t breathe,” he said, holding her gaze. “But it’s been two years now and the hole in my heart is starting to heal.”
“I am so sorry for your loss.”
He gave a slight shrug. “Everyone has loss. I’m not special.”
You are to me, she thought, startling herself. Without him, she couldn’t finally put Andi in her place.
“Are you going to be warm enough out here?” Roan asked.
“My coat’s warm.”
“It’ll get confining. I can turn on the propane heaters.” He indicated the stoves set strategically around the deck. “Although to be honest, I don’t know if there is any propane in them.”