Loving You (The Bridesmaids Club Book 2) (8 page)

Dylan unzipped his case and opened his laptop. He was going to ignore the blush screaming across Annie’s cheeks and concentrate on the first part of their meeting. His hand shook when he thought about what would come next.

“This isn’t going to work,” he muttered.

Annie touched the sleeve of his shirt, then pulled her hand back. “Yes, it will. There are lots of four bedroom homes for sale at the moment. The biggest factor is where you want to live.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“You’re talking about the touching thing, aren’t you?”

Dylan concentrated on his laptop. “There are things about me that you don’t know.”

“Everyone’s got parts of their life they don’t share. You don’t have to tell me anything.”

“If this is going to work, then I need to tell you some of it.” Dylan’s voice cracked. He looked at Annie, hoping she could see how much this was affecting him. How much he wanted it to work. “But I don’t know if I can.”

Annie took a deep breath. “Come with me.”

He followed her into the living room and sat beside her on her sofa.

“I want to try something.” Annie’s voice wasn’t much more than a whisper, but he could hear every word as if she’d yelled it across the room. “If this doesn’t work, we can go back to searching for a house for you.”

Dylan sat perfectly still.

“I want you to touch my hand.”

“Your hand?”

Annie wiggled her fingers in front of his chest, then put her hand on the sofa between them. “My hand.”

Dylan swallowed. “Where did you get your ring?”

Annie blinked, then looked down at her fingers. “It’s a Claddagh ring.”

“I know.”

“Are you trying to distract me so I think you’ve touched my hand?”

Dylan moved a couple of inches further away. “No, just saying.”

Annie put her hands on her lap. “I bought it to remind myself that love, loyalty, and friendship still exist.”

Dylan watched her twist the gold ring on her finger. “When did you go to Ireland?”

Annie frowned at him something fierce. It looked as though someone else had things they’d rather not talk about. “I bought it online from a store in Galway.” She glanced down at her hand. “One day I’m going there.”

At any other time, he might have asked why she wanted to go to Ireland, but his heart was beating so fast that he couldn’t think. Annie put her hand back down and the gold ring glowed between them.

“This is ridiculous,” he muttered. Before he could change his mind, Dylan grabbed hold of her hand. He held on for all of three seconds then let go faster than he’d put it there. “Done.” He glanced at Annie and waited for her to congratulate him.

“Is that it?” She still had a frown plastered across her face. But he didn’t know if it was aimed at him or herself.

“I touched your hand.”

“Only Flash Gordon could have touched my hand faster than you did.” Annie held her hand out. “Do you want to try again?”

“Not really.”

“It won’t hurt.”

It might not have been much to Annie, but for Dylan it was one of the few times he’d touched another adult because he’d wanted to. Normally he had to trip over them to make it happen.

Annie dropped her hand and smiled. “You did well. Let’s go and find a house you like.”

Dylan wiped his hands on the legs of his jeans and stood up. “Thanks.”

Annie turned from in front of the office door. “What for?”

“For understanding.”

“That’s okay. Just remember that I’ve got some redeeming qualities when I annoy you.”

Before he could tell her that he couldn’t see her annoying him, she was gone. He walked across to her office and stood in the doorway, watching her restart her computer.

He’d held her hand. He hadn’t passed out, he hadn’t vomited over her beige carpet and he most definitely hadn’t made a fool of himself. If he didn’t know better, he’d swear nothing extraordinary had happened.

Except he’d learned that a small hand could change his life, and a gold ring could change someone else’s.

***

“What do you think?” Annie watched Dylan’s face closely. He’d been away in Colorado for the last three days, looking after a county music superstar. This afternoon he was sitting in Angel Wings Café, tasting her latest creation.

He stared intently at the last scone on his plate, giving absolutely nothing away. “They taste sweet and savory at the same time.”

“That’s because they’re bacon and barbecue scones.” She tried really hard not to roll her eyes. “Do you think anyone would buy them?”

Dylan scooped another knife of butter onto the last scone and took a bite. She watched him focus on what was in his mouth, contemplating who knew what, as he swallowed the last morsel.

“They’re different, but good. I’d definitely keep the cheesy topping on them. It adds to the texture. What does Tess think?”

“She likes them. She’s just not sure anyone would buy them.”

“I’m meeting some friends after we’ve seen the houses on our list. I could take some scones to them and see what they think?”

Annie lifted her apron over her head. “Sounds like a plan. When do you want to leave?”

“As soon as you’re ready.”

“Give me five minutes, then I’m all yours.” She disappeared behind the kitchen door, threw her apron in the laundry bag and quickly bagged the rest of the scones.

Tess looked up from the griddle. “Enjoy your afternoon.”

“I plan to. Dylan’s taking the rest of the scones to his friends to see if they like them.”

“Good idea. Can you tell Kate the pancakes are nearly ready?”

“Okay. See you Monday.” Annie loved Saturdays at the café. Apart from being the end of her working week, a lot of regular customers came in. Breakfast, brunch, and lunch were some of the noisiest, fun-filled hours of the week.

Dylan’s unexpected arrival had added to the fun, especially when he’d agreed to taste test two new recipes. The passion fruit and raspberry muffins had been a surefire winner. The final verdict on the scones would have to wait for another day.

Kate was wiping down the front counter when Annie walked into the café. “Tess wanted me to let you know that the pancakes are nearly done.”

“Thanks. Have a great weekend.”

Annie smiled. “Same to you. Say hi to Dan from me.” Kate had married Dan Carter, the Deputy Chief of Police, nearly three months ago. They were madly in love, and it showed on both of their faces. Kate hadn’t stopped smiling since she’d come back from her honeymoon.

Dylan was waiting for her by the front door. “Did you hear back from the realtor?” she asked. She hitched her bag over her shoulder and passed him the large paper bag filled with scones.

“She’s going to meet us at Morning Sun Drive.”

“Isn’t that the house that’s way out of your price range?” Dylan opened the door and waited for her to bustle through. They’d been disagreeing about viewing the five bedroom home all week.

“It’s worth a look,” he said with a smile in his voice.

“I’m going to say one word. Mortgage.”

“And I’m going to say another two. Don’t care.”

Annie pulled her sunglasses out of her bag and slid them onto her nose. “It’s your loan repayments. But if you fall in love with the most expensive house we look at, it’s not my fault.”

“Got it. What time do you need to be at the bowling alley?”

“Five o’clock. I’ll have plenty of time to get there before my first game starts.”

Dylan unlocked his truck and held Annie’s door open for her.

“I can open the door myself, you know.”

Dylan shrugged. “I know, but when you travel with me, you have to put up with my Texas upbringing.”

Annie didn’t know what the difference between a Texas upbringing and anywhere else was, but it was kind of cute. She didn’t know many men who opened doors for women, but that had more to do with where she was from.

Dylan opened his door and sat in the driver’s seat. “Polly Amery is the realtor who’s meeting us.”

“You’re on a first name basis with the realtor?”

Dylan started his truck and looked in the rear view mirror. “She’s shown me a few other properties.”

As they drove across town, Annie imagined Dylan wandering through lots of homes with Polly. It wasn’t often a realtor found a willing buyer with a stretchy budget. It was a wonder he didn’t already have a huge mortgage. “Why haven’t you found a house you like?”

He glanced across the cab. “They were either too big, too small or not right.”

“You sound like Goldilocks.”

Dylan’s lips twitched. “Are you deliberately trying to make me laugh?”

Annie pulled a folder out of her bag. “No. It comes naturally.”

“I could have done with some of your natural humor this week.”

Annie glanced up from the real estate flyers she had in her hands. “Tough week?”

“You could say that. I stood in front of nine thousand screaming fans, three nights in a row, while my client sang to them. By the second night, I was wearing earplugs.”

“Is it glamorous?”

“Being a bodyguard?”

Annie nodded. “You’re working with some of the richest and most famous people in America. Do you enjoy it?”

Dylan thought about her question. “There’s a lot of work that goes into looking after a client even before we meet for the first time. I have to check where they’re going, look for any potential threats or hazards and minimize any risks to their safety. And then you get the weirdos who make everyone’s life miserable. I wouldn’t say it’s glamorous, but it is interesting.”

“How often do you look after people as opposed to objects?”

Dylan stopped for a set of traffic lights. “It’s probably a fifty-fifty split. Expensive objects are a lot easier to handle. They go where they’re supposed to and don’t argue.”

Annie smiled. “I can see the appeal.”

Dylan glanced across the cab and for some strange, inexplicable reason, Annie felt the heat of a blush hitting her cheeks. A horn honked from behind them and her gaze shot to the traffic lights. “You’ve got a green light.”

Dylan looked in his rear view mirror and scowled.

As they got closer to Morning Sun Drive, Annie pulled a flyer out of her folder. “Do you want me to read the realtor’s blurb about the property?”

“Have you memorized all of the reasons why I shouldn’t look at it?”

“I didn’t need to. The price was enough to cross it off my list of potential properties.”

“You might as well remind me why it’s not the house for me.”

Annie held the property information in front of her. “4246 Morning Sun Drive has some of the best views in Sundance Springs, overlooking acres of natural open space with majestic mountain views. A private pond is just down the street where you can swim or fish. Or if you’re a busy security specialist you can relax on the beach. It’s a beautiful home that offers an open floor plan accented by a rock fireplace, granite counters, and slate and wood inlaid floors. Beware the mortgage payments.”

This time Dylan’s mouth tilted into a full throttle smile. “I’m beginning to like your sense of humor, Annie.”

“I wasn’t being funny,” she groaned. “If you look as though you like the house, I’m going to pull you out by the tail of your shirt.”

“Could be an interesting afternoon.” Dylan stopped his truck outside a beautiful timber and stone home.

“Oh, wow.” Annie couldn’t believe how pretty it looked. “Maybe I should stay in your truck?”

“You can’t get out of the viewing that easily. I need you to tell me how wrong it is.”

“What if I like it? Then it will be partly my fault that you have an enormous mortgage.”

A zippy little red coupe stopped on the other side of the driveway.

Dylan opened his door and smiled. “Polly’s arrived. Don’t look too excited. She’ll think we’re pushovers.”

Annie knew that was the least of her worries. Dylan had smiled twice in less than ten minutes. It was enough to send her into a hormone heaven. And when he hid his laughing blue eyes behind dark sunglasses and opened her door, she knew she was in trouble.

If you added in a house that ticked all of her ‘must have’ fantasies, she was in serious trouble.

***

After seeing all three properties, Dylan knew which one he preferred.

“No, you can’t go back for another viewing. It’s selling for an indecent amount of money.”

Dylan was sure Annie’s hair must have looked like everyone else’s at the beginning of the day. Only now it was all frizzy and curly. Especially the strands that were floating around her neck. “Did you look at the homes around it?”

Annie gazed at him with a wary look in her eyes. “I did and they were equally gorgeous.”

“And did you know that the average price of the houses around the one we’re looking at is eight hundred and fifty thousand dollars?”