Promises (7 page)

“Still, it’s a shame.”  Mikki gave a wistful sigh.  “He’s cute, in a rough, tough kind of way.”

Couldn’t argue that, Izzy thought.

“He’s tall, too, which I like.”

“Maybe you should ask him out then.”

“His house is haunted,” Mikki stated, like that explained it all.  At Izzy’s blank look, she clarified, “The ghost has probably attached itself to him by now.”

“That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”

“Don’t be so sceptical.  There are plenty of stories of people buying furniture and finding they’ve inherited a ghost attached to it.”

“Are you serious?”

“Dead serious.”  Mikki guffawed suddenly.  “Oh! 
Dead
serious!  Get it?”

Izzy rolled her eyes.  “I get it.”

“C’mon, don’t be such a wet blanket.”  Mikki slid the gear into reverse.  “Gotta go.  Aunt Elspeth is expecting me to take her shopping.”

“Your Aunt lives in an old house.  Maybe that’s haunted, ever thought of that?”

“Oh, it’s haunted all right.  She has a lamp that switches itself on and off.”

“Faulty wiring.”

“That’s what all sceptics say.”  With a cheerful wave, Mikki backed out and took off down the road.

Turning, Izzy caught sight of Jason on his veranda. Looking up from the newspaper he was pulling the plastic wrap off, he spotted her.  His eyes narrowed a little, his mouth opening, but before he could yell Izzy ducked her head and hurried inside.

Geez, just the memory of being sprung discussing picking the lock of his door was enough to make her cringe in shame.  No wonder he didn’t look pleased to see her.

“It’s your fault,” she told Arnie as she shut the security screen behind her.

Sitting on the small hall side table with one dark paw in the china bowl in which she kept a few coins and the car keys, he blinked big blue eyes at her.

“Cut the innocent look. 
You
got on his balcony and
you
were in his house.”

Still looking up at her, he lifted his paw with her keys hooked on one claw and held it there as though he didn’t even notice he’d done it.

Laughing, she unhooked the keys, only to hold him back as his eyes brightened and he reared up, his paw batting out to grab the keys.

“You villain.”  Swooping him up, she snuggled him close and gave him a kiss between his big ears.  “I need to find out how you escaped the house, though goodness knows Mikki and I searched high and low.”

Arnie laid back in her arms, tummy up, paws paddling the air in bliss as she gently rubbed his belly.

“It’s your own fault that you were locked in my bedroom with me for the rest of the night.  Until I can find out how you got out, you, young man, have to be locked in a room at night.  No more escaping and getting me into trouble.”

She was still rubbing his belly when a brisk knock on the security screen door had her turning with a smile on her face.  Until she saw Jason standing there, long legs braced apart, big boots on the boards, hands in his pockets as he looked to his right, leaving his face in profile.

It was a nice profile.  Firm lips, straight nose, tousled brown hair that curled around his ears and brushed his collar.

A flush crept up her cheeks.  Crap, he was probably here to tell her off or something.  Maybe he hadn’t seen her, maybe she could back into the room and slink away, pretend she hadn’t heard him and-

“I know you’re in there,” he drawled, turning his head to look at the door.  “I heard you talking to the fur bag.”

Izzy glanced down at Arnie to find him watching Jason with big eyes and whiskers quivering.  “Behave yourself,” she muttered, stepping forward to gaze out at Jason through the security screen.  “Can I help you?”

“About last night-”

“Look, I’m really sorry, okay?  It was stupid.  I promise we won’t bother you again.”

Jason squinted.  “Can you open the door, please?”

“I’m sure you can yell at me perfectly well through it.”

One eyebrow went up.  “I’m not going to yell at you.”

“Then I’m sure you can tell me off perfectly well through it.”

“I’m not going to yell at you, tell you off, or rant and rave,” he responded patiently.  “Can you please open the door so I can see you?”

Unsure what to expect, Izzy unlocked the door and swung it open, leaning her head against the frame as she looked questioningly up at him.

Jason’s lips quirked slightly in amusement as his gaze went from her face to Arnie.  “Is this your guard cat?”

Relieved to see the flash of humour, Izzy replied, “No, my escape artist.”

“Hmm.”  Reaching out, he let Arnie sniff his finger before rubbing the tip of it between Arnie’s big ears.  “He is a bit of a problem child, isn’t he?”

Not sure what to make of this unexpected action, she nodded.

Still rubbing Arnie, who purred loudly, Jason switched his gaze to Izzy, studying her intently.

Uneasily, she looked down at Arnie.  “So, what can I do for you?”

“Look me in the face to start with.”

Startled, she complied.

“I like to see a person’s eyes when I’m talking to them,” he said.  “Lets me know they’re listening.”

“I’m listening,” she replied a trifle tartly.

The corners of his eyes crinkled a little.  “Are you uncomfortable, Izzy?”

“Of course I’m uncomfortable.  You caught me and Mikki contemplating breaking into your house.  That doesn’t make for a comfortable situation.”

“I agree.”

What on earth was he doing here?  She’d been expecting him to rip her a new one like Jarrod would have done.  He had every right to complain to the police about her but it appeared he hadn’t, so if he wasn’t going to yell at her or dob her in, then maybe he was expecting something else in return for him keeping quiet?  Fat chance.

As Jason studied her face, a slight frown creased his brow and he dropped his hand from Arnie’s head back to his side.

Inwardly, Izzy steeled herself while straightening from her slouch against the door.  Great, here it came, the big verbal blasting with a lot of swearing and accusations.  But when he simply stood there watching her, she wasn’t sure what to do except to watch him warily in return, waiting for the verbal hammer to fall.

His eyes narrowed, his weight shifted, and quickly she placed Arnie on the floor, shifting back a step as she did so.

“Shit.”  Jason uttered it softly, angrily.

Her gip on the door tightened.  “I really need to go-”

“Who hit you?” he asked abruptly.

It was so unexpected that it left her stammering, “W-what?”

“Who hit you?”

“Hit me?”  Bewildered, she shook her head.  “No one hit me.”

“Is that right?”  Bracing one hand on a lean hip, he bent down to look her right in the eyes.

Whoa, his had actually deepened with anger.

“No one hit me.”

“Don’t lie to me.”

“I’m not.  No one hit me.”

In a move that startled her, he reached out suddenly, thumb and forefinger catching her chin.  Hold firm yet gentle at the same time, he angled her head back slightly and turned it from side to side, studying her features as though looking for something.  “Someone hurt you.”

Yeah, he was right, someone had, two of them in fact, but not in the way he meant.  Cripes, he was looking for bruises.

Capturing his wrist, she pulled his fingers from her chin.  “No one hit me.”

Jason’s head tilted a little as he peered searchingly into her eyes.

“I swear, no one hit me.”

“Izzy-”

“It’s true.  Really.”  Off-kilter by his reaction, she sought to break the tension by joking, “If anyone does, I’ll call for you, okay?”

After another intense few seconds, he reached into his back pocket and withdrew an old wallet, opening it and pulling out a card which he held out to her.  “You do that.  You call me on that mobile number if anyone lifts a hand to you.”

Dumbfounded, she looked at the card in his work-roughened hand.

“Take it.”  His tone was brusque.

“Um…okay.”  Gingerly she took the card by the corner, getting ready to pocket it.

“Maybe you better put the number directly into your mobile.”

This just got weirder.  “I don’t have a mobile.”

That had his frown back.  “No mobile?  Who in this day and age doesn’t have a mobile?”

“Me?”  She gave a small smile.

Rather than lecture her like everyone else seemed to like doing, he simply said, “Make sure you put that number in your phone book and keep that card in your purse.”

Izzy nodded.  “Okay.”

“Promise me.”  At her surprised look, he added, “Humour me, then.”

“An Irishman, an Aussie and a Kiwi walked into a bar-”

“You can stop right there.”  With a chuckle, the tension eased from him a little, his stance relaxing.

She ventured a small smile.  “I really am sorry about last night.”

“I want to talk about last night.” 

Damn.  Izzy nodded.

“Not in a bad way, but to help us both.”  He gestured to where Arnie was rolling from side to side at her feet. “All three of us, actually.”

“Oh?”  Relief and curiosity coursed through Izzy, followed by dismay.  “You want me to keep him in?  All the time?”

“That’s not what I’m saying, but we’ll get to that in a minute.”  Jason’s expression was sombre.  “If you haven’t been hit, then why did you step back as though expecting a blow?”

She shrugged.  “It’s nothing.”

“It’s something,” he said grimly.  “What did you think I was going to do?”

“Well, I was kind of expecting you to blow a gasket at me.  You know - yell, swear, threaten.”

His eyes were direct, his jaw a little tight.  “And has that happened often to you, Izzy?”

“Not lately.”  She smiled brightly.

“But someone did abuse you.”

“I never got hit if that’s what you mean.”

“Abuse comes in many forms.  Was it your boyfriend?  Ex?”

“Afraid you’ll have to contend with a man coming at all hours of the night disturbing the peace?”

“No.  I just want to know what to expect so I can keep an eye on you.”

Her mouth fell open.  “Keep an eye on me?”

He winced.  “Sorry, bad choice of words. So I can keep an ear out to help you if needed.”

The man was full of surprises.  “Really?”

“Yeah.”  He leaned against the door again.  “Who is it?”

She could have told him to mind his business, but knowing he was actually concerned for her safety was heart-warming.

In turn, she leaned against the door frame and smiled up at him.  “No boyfriend, no husband.  No ex.  No man coming around here threatening me.”

“But something did happen.”

“Family business got a little unpleasant.”  It still hurt, like unhealed claw marks deep in her gut and heart.  That Moira would have done that to her...  She forced a reassuring expression.  “It’s all over, I promise you.”

Jason studied her for several seconds before nodding his head.  “Okay.  But you need me, you ring me, understand?”

“Aye aye, Cap’n.”  She snapped a salute.

This time his smile was full on, those amazing hazel eyes twinkling.  “At ease, soldier.  Now, about Arnie.”

Her heart fell.

“Nothing sinister,” Jason assured her.

She waited.

“I’ve searched my house, trying to find out how he got inside.”  Jason shrugged.  “It’s got me beat.  I can’t find any way for him to get in.”

Thank God he wasn’t going nuts at her.  Izzy relaxed fully.

Whether Jason saw her relief she didn’t know, for his expression gave away nothing.

“I don’t get it.”  Exasperation quickly followed relief.  Izzy shoved a hand through her hair.  “Arnie stays in every night, it’s only last night that he got out.  I can’t find out how he escaped.”

“Do you want me to look around?”

“You think you can see what I can’t?”

“New eyes.”

“All right.  You look around my place and I’ll look around yours.”  At his raised eyebrows, she added innocently, “New eyes.”

Rocking back on his heels, hands shoved deep into his jeans pockets, Jason surveyed her with thoughtful amusement.

“What?”

“You’re not what I first believed.”

Curious, she angled her head.  “And that would be…?”

“A little shy, a little sweet.”

“You don’t think I’m sweet anymore?”

“Let’s just say sweet with a little tart.”

“So now you think I’m a tart?”

That caught him off-guard.  “What?  No, I-”

“Relax.”  Laughing, Izzy stepped aside, swinging out her arm.  “Come on in.  If you can discover out how Arnie got out, I’ll even make you a cup of tea.”