Man Shy (6 page)

She nodded.

“
On the entertainment scale, I
’
d rank that right up there with an infomercial marathon.
”

She laughed.
“
It won
’
t be that bad. Aunt Chloe talks too much, but Uncle Toby
’
s fun. The only part I dread is dealing with the whispers and sympathetic looks. You
’
d swear Lindsey had stolen my last functioning kidney instead of my boyfriend.
”

“
What if you brought a date? Would your relatives see you in a different light then?
”

“
Oh, Brody, that would solve everything. But I can
’
t ask you to do it.
”

“
You didn
’
t ask. I
’
m offering. Think of it as a dry run for the wedding. What time should I pick you up?
”

“
Seven?
”

“
I
’
ll be there. And Mallory
c
?
”

She tipped her face up expectantly.

He leaned down, shoved her glasses back up to the bridge of her nose, and brushed her lips with his.

The light pressure of his mouth barely qualified as a kiss, but it was enough to send her blood pressure soaring. Her heart raced. Heat enveloped her. Yet somehow, in the midst of all the physical turmoil, her confusion evaporated. She stared at Brody and saw the truth in a moment of crystal clarity.

“
You
’
re not gay.
”
The words emerged in a nearly inaudible whisper.

Brody smiled and her poor, overworked heart skipped a beat.
“
No, I
’
m not. See you tonight.
”

Dumbfounded, she watched him saunter to the door. The man practically oozed testosterone; she wasn
’
t the only woman in the diner with her eyes glued to his backside. Why had she believed for one second that he was gay?

Because of Kyle, she realized. And speak of the devil
c

Kyle strolled in just as Brody was leaving. They exchanged a few words and Kyle shot her a wary look.

You should be leery, old buddy
. While they shopped for the perfect dress this afternoon, she intended to chew him up one side and down the other.

Brody rang Mallory
’
s doorbell at a quarter to eight. He
’
d been running a little behind all day.

“
You
’
re late,
”
she said in lieu of hello.

“
Sorry. Time got away from me.
”
He smiled.

She didn
’
t smile back. She didn
’
t ask him in, either. She just stood there in the doorway, staring at him as if he were something that had oozed up out of the sewer. Doggone it, she wasn
’
t just irritated. She was mad. Nail-spitting, tooth-gnashing, foot-stomping, ass-chewing mad.

On to Plan B
. He pumped up the wattage on his grin. Times like this he could use a nice set of dimples.

“
For you,
”
he said, and presented her with an armful of red carnations. The way he figured it, she
’
d be less likely to deck him if her hands were full.

She frowned.
“
Thanks. But if you think a few flowers are going to get you off the hook, then you
’
d better think again.
”

“
I should have called.
”

“
Yes, you should have.
”

“
In a way I
’
m glad I didn
’
t, though, or I
’
d have missed this.
”

She raised an eyebrow.
“
Missed what?
”

“
Your temper. You
’
re damned cute when you
’
re ticked off.
”

Her expression fluctuated between pleasure and irritation before finally leveling off somewhere around tolerance. She stepped back out of the doorway with an exasperated sigh.
“
You may as well come in.
”

He walked across the threshold, waving a box of chocolate-covered macadamia nuts like a white flag.
“
Just in case the flowers didn
’
t get me through the door,
”
he explained, and was rewarded by a reluctant chuckle.

“
You
’
re a
—”

“
Man in a million?
”
he suggested.

“
Sure. If that
’
s a synonym for pain in the rear.
”
Mallory buried her face in the flowers, breathing deeply.
“
I guess you
’
re off the hook, though. Carnations are my favorites.
”

They
’
d been Jenna
’
s favorites too.
“
I thought they might be. You remind me of someone I used to know, someone who loved carnations.
”

“
Someone you cared about?
”
Those eyes of hers saw too much.

“
Yeah.
”
He didn
’
t want to talk about Jenna, so he laid the candy on Mallory
’
s trunk-slash-coffee table and forced a smile.
“
We
’
d better get going. I
’
d hate to make a bad first impression.
”

“
Too late. When I called my mother fifteen minutes ago to tell her we
’
d been unavoidably detained, she muttered something about curdled hollandaise and rude, ungrateful guests. The woman is not a happy camper. Maybe you ought to save the flowers to pacify her.
”

“
Got it covered. Hers are in the Jeep.
”

Mallory shot him a calculating look.
“
Sounds like you
’
ve had a lot of practice soothing ruffled feathers.
”

“
Some,
”
he admitted.
“
Shall we go? I
’
d hate to miss dessert.
”

“
Just let me take care of the flowers first. Even if they are just a guilt offering, they
’
re beautiful, Brody. Thank you.
”

She moved with a graceful economy of motion, arranging the carnations in a cut-glass vase, filling it with water, then collecting her coat and purse.

“
Ready?
”
he asked, taking her arm.

If he hadn
’
t been looking for it, he wouldn
’
t have noticed her slight flinch. But she recovered quickly. The next instant a teasing smile tilted the corners of her mouth.
“
I
’
ve
been ready for ages.
”

He pressed one hand to his chest in mock pain.
“
I thought you said I was off the hook.
”

“
That just means your transgression
’
s forgiven, not forgotten.
”
She flipped on the outside lights and locked the front door. Then they walked side by side toward his Jeep. He liked the feel of her next to him, soft and warm and feminine.

“
That
’
s odd.
”
She paused on the curb.

“
What is?
”
Brody hoped she wasn
’
t referring to the abnormally rapid cadence of his breathing. Touching her
—
even touching her through all those layers of clothing
—
triggered some pretty powerful responses.

“
There
’
s a light on at the Yanos
’
.
”
She gestured toward the house across the street.

“
It
’
s dark out, Mallory. People generally do turn on the lights at night.
”

She steered him across the pavement, avoiding a pothole half-full of water.
“
Not when they
’
re on vacation in Barbados.
”

He placed his hand over hers.
“
You realize it
’
s probably just someone who
’
s come in to feed the cats and water the plants?
”

“
They don
’
t have any cats. And I
’
m the one they asked to water the plants. I
’
m the one with the spare key.
”
She dug it out of her bag.

“
This isn
’
t very smart,
”
Brody protested.
“
If it
’
s some other friend or relative, you
’
re going to feel like a fool, and if it
’
s a burglar, you
’
d be smarter to call the cops.
”

“
Hey, Brody!
”

“
What?
”

“
You
’
re
a cop. Consider yourself called.
”
With a nimble twist of her supple body, she slipped from his restraining grip and dashed across her neighbors
’
lawn.

Brody damned near tripped over the curb trying to catch up. He grabbed her arm, forcing her to a halt on the front step.
“
Look, this is no joke. If you suspect wrongdoing, let the professionals handle it. Don
’
t put yourself in danger.
”

She stared expressionlessly at his hand on her arm. Her body quivered almost imperceptibly, as if she fought a private battle there in the shadows.

Brody couldn
’
t tell what she was thinking, but he suspected it had little to do with the lights at her neighbors
’
house. Depths. Oh, yes. The lady had depths.

Suddenly Mallory cocked her head to one side.
“
Did you hear that? Someone
’
s moving around inside.
”

“
I heard it,
”
he whispered.
“
And whoever
’
s inside is going to hear us if you don
’
t lower your voice.
”
He tightened his grip on her arm, half-afraid she
’
d use her key to sneak inside if he let her go.

“
What should we do?
”

“
Not one damn thing without backup. Go call nine-one-one. I
’
ll keep an eye on things here.
”

The lights went out, and he swore under his breath, pulling Mallory into the deeper shadows behind a bushy mugho pine.

The door opened a cautious inch at a time, and a man emerged. A big man. A bulldozer of a man. Taller than Brody and a good eighty pounds heavier. He probed the shadows with a flashlight.
“
Nobody out here,
”
he called to someone in the house.
“
Must have been your imagination.
”
He retreated into the house, closing the door quietly behind him.

“
Big boy, huh?
”
Brody whispered.
“
Could you see his face?
”

Mallory shook her head.
“
No, and I
’
m betting the Yanos never have, either. Should I call nine-one-one now?
”