LITMIR.BIZ

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thing she wanted was for him to see her watching him.

      The remainder of the evening was excruciating, although she did her best not to show it. After all, it wasn’t Jonah’s fault Nick DeSanto was here. But she couldn’t help wishing Jonah were different, that he didn’t wear his long hair in a ponytail, and that he didn’t look as if he were ten years younger than she. Why what Nick thought about her or her date was important to her, she didn’t know. She only knew she wished she were with someone older and more sophisticated.

      And then, just when Lorna thought she couldn’t stand another minute of pretending to be having a wonderful time, Nick and his date left. Lorna hadn’t realized just how tense she was until they walked out the door.

      Even so, the evening had been ruined for her, and she couldn’t wait until it was time to go home. When Claudia yawned and looked at her watch, saying, “It’s almost midnight, and I’m tired. Do you mind if we go?” Lorna couldn’t agree fast enough.

      There was another awkward moment when Jonah walked her to her door, when she was afraid he’d want to kiss her good-night, but all he did was grin and say he’d had fun and hoped to see her again.

      “Thank you,” Lorna said, knowing she’d make an excuse if he called her.

      And then he was gone, and she was blessedly alone. Finally she was free to think about the evening—especially about seeing Nick. She wished it hadn’t happened. She didn’t know why, but she couldn’t help feeling having Nick see her at the restaurant with Jonah had put her at a disadvantage.

      And yet there was a part of her that wondered if he’d thought she looked attractive tonight. Why she cared, she couldn’t have said. She certainly wasn’t interested in Nick. Not only would she never date someone she worked with, but Nick DeSanto was not her type.

      Not by a long shot.

      Forget about him, she told herself as she climbed into bed. What he thinks is not important.

      “Want to come in?” Cherry said in her low, sexy drawl. There was subtext written into every word.

      Nick shook his head. “Thanks, but I’m driving over to Lake Charles in the morning, and I need to get an early start.” That was true, but in the past it wouldn’t have stopped him from the spending the night with a sexy number like Cherry.

      “Are you sure?” She moved closer, putting her arms around his neck.

      “It’s tempting,” he said gallantly, “but I can’t.” For some reason, he just wasn’t in the mood tonight.

      Cherry pouted. “You’re no fun.” She continued to wheedle, but he remained firm, and finally she stopped trying to get him to change his mind.

      Later, as he drove home, he thought about how he hadn’t been in the mood for a long time now. He never would have confessed it to his mother or his sister, but Nick was tired of the dating scene. He was ready for a committed relationship, but some days he wondered if he’d ever find the right kind of woman.

      What he wanted was the kind of woman who would not only fit in with his family, but who was smart and interesting and sexy. Someone who was a match for him, who would give as good as she got. Someone he could respect.

      For some reason, his thoughts turned to Lorna Hathaway. Not that she was his kind of woman. Not even close. Still, he had to admit she’d surprised him tonight. He never would have imagined the ice queen could look so…hot. He’d noticed her long before she’d seen him. Watching her dance with that young guy, he’d been amazed. She’d shown a side of herself Nick hadn’t known existed.

      Nick fell asleep wondering how he could use what he’d learned about Lorna Hathaway tonight to his advantage.

      Chapter Three

      FROM: [email protected]

      TO: [email protected]

      DATE: 30 August

      SUBJECT: Home Yet?

      Hey, girl, it’s been a week since I’ve heard from you or seen you online. Thought you were only going to be gone a few days? Hate to admit it, but I’ve been a little worried. Hope nothing’s wrong. Everything here’s about the same, except the Little League season is finally over for our team. You know I love coaching, but I’m always glad when I get a break, especially when I have a season like this one has been. Those poor kids. They only won two games, came in last in their division. But I told them they’d be better next year and even better after that, so I don’t think they were too bummed.

      Since the season ended, I’ve been working like a dog. We’ve had all kinds of problems here, but things seem to be okay for now. Anyway, if you’re back from your business trip and can make it online tonight, I’ll try to be there by eight. If not, I guess I’ll just have to wait until I hear from you.

      Your buddy,

      C.

      Lorna felt a pang of guilt. She’d been so busy the past week, she hadn’t logged on to WordMaker since the night she’d told Coach she had to go away on business, nor had she e-mailed him. She decided to zap him a quick reply.

      FROM: [email protected]

      TO: [email protected] DATE: 30 August

      SUBJECT: Re: Home Yet?

      Hi, Coach. Sorry I’ve been gone so long. Things got hectic here and I’ve been so tired at night, I haven’t had the energy to read, let alone play WordMaker. This is the first time I’ve been on Jamboree in days. But I’ve got my life under control again—as under control as life can ever be! <g> Anyway, I’ll log on at eight tonight. Send me an IM and let me know which room you’re in.

      See you later!

      SS

      She smiled to think he’d been worrying about her. Once again, she felt bad about not telling him she had relocated to Houston. He seemed like such a nice guy. Maybe she should tell him.

      But even as she considered it, she knew she’d made the right decision. At least for now. Maybe one of these days, she’d take the plunge. But she was afraid once he knew they were in the same city, he’d suggest getting together. Even the thought of meeting him gave her a case of butterflies. She knew it was cowardly, but she wanted to hang on to her fantasy of him as a certain kind of person, and once they met, she’d finally have to face reality.

      What if she couldn’t stand him? That would be awful because right now she treasured their friendship, and she’d hate to lose it.

      Talking to Coach was like having a shrink. He was a safe place to vent or discuss things that bothered her because he didn’t know who she was and the things she said couldn’t come back to haunt her.

      But if they knew each other—really knew each other—that would all change. Their relationship might end up being better, but it could end up being much worse. In fact, she could lose him altogether.

      And that was what scared Lorna.

      Right now Coach was important to her. Meeting him at night to play WordMaker and talk was something she could look forward to, especially when she was having a bad day. She didn’t want to lose that.

      You really are a coward.

      She bit her lip. How could she ever expect to fulfill her dreams and desires if she was afraid to take a chance? The question disturbed her, because she had never thought of herself that way. In fact, until Keith had left her, she’d never been a coward. She’d been adventurous and brave. She remembered how she’d bucked her entire family and followed her first serious boyfriend to Florida State, where he had a football scholarship, instead of going to an Ivy League school, as her mother had wanted, or the University of Texas, as her grandmother had wanted.

      Unfortunately, when Keith walked out on her, he had taken a big chunk of her self-confidence with him. Suddenly, she’d questioned her entire self-worth. But she

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