Almost Home Part 6

"Why should it?"

"Well, it doesn't mean I care any less about you."

"Of course it doesn't."

Mitch.e.l.l was being so reasonable, so objective, so dispa.s.sionate, Katherine wanted to scream. She knew it didn't make sense, but part of her wanted him to care, to be angry, to feel jealous of her search, because that would mean he wanted her affection, her love, her loyalty.

"Have you found him yet?" Mitch.e.l.l asked.

"Not yet."

"What about your job?"

"I'm taking a few days off."

"Well, you take all the time you need. One of the benefits of knowing the boss."

Knowing the boss, not being the boss's daughter. Somehow there'd always been a distinction. "Thanks, I-"

She waited as he once again conversed with someone, Cecily perhaps, as they seemed to be discussing weekend plans, golfing and tennis-or was it tennis and golfing?

"I have to go, Katherine," Mitch.e.l.l said abruptly. "Call us in a few days, won't you?"

"Sure. You know I love-" Her voice was cut off by the dial tone. "Love you," she finished, hanging up the phone. It had always been this way, her needing their love far more than they'd ever needed hers. Well, no matter. Talking to Mitch.e.l.l only made her more determined to find her real father. Someone who couldn't possibly ignore her...

Chapter 5.

He was weak, Zach told himself as he parked his truck across the street from the Paradise Inn. He'd finished his business at the hardware store, and it was almost one, past time to be getting back to the farm. But he figured as long as he was here, he might as well check on Katherine, make sure she wasn't suffering any side effects from yesterday's accident.

She'd told him she wasn't his responsibility, but there was something about the proud, vulnerable light of battle in her blue eyes, the upward tilt of her chin, that made him feel ridiculously protective. Was he ever going to forget her face?

As he walked toward the hotel, he prayed she was already gone. Then she'd be out of his sight, off of his conscience, and a good, safe distance away.

A statuesque redhead dressed in a gray trench coat that seemed completely out of place on a warm April afternoon came out the front door of the hotel and paused to take her sungla.s.ses out of her purse. She slipped on the pair of skinny, gold-tipped gla.s.ses and sent him a saucy look.

"Well, h.e.l.lo there, Mr. Tyler. How nice to see you," she drawled in a voice dripping with insincerity.

Leeanne Brooks Callaway had grown up in Paradise, one of four children born to Bernadine and Benjamin Brooks, owners of the third largest stud farm in the area. Leeanne's three brothers ran the stud farm now and were intensely compet.i.tive. Usually they were their own worst enemy, fighting amongst themselves instead of fighting the other farms for business.

Zach had met Leeanne a few times over the years. She often stopped by the big house to see Claire and Harry. Claire treated Leeanne like a daughter and had told Zach that the redhead's wild side was a cover for a deep-buried insecurity. Zach didn't believe that for a second. He knew wild when he saw it, and right now he was looking at it.

Leeanne was married to Jimmy Callaway, president of the First American Bank. She had three grown children, lots of money, social standing, a good family background, and a beautiful house. But she was itching for something, and Zach didn't intend to scratch that itch.

"Mrs. Callaway." He tipped his head in greeting.

"What brings you to Paradise this morning?"

"Business."

"At the hotel? That sounds like funny business to me." She sent him a wickedly inviting smile. "My favorite kind."

"You? I'm shocked."

"You'd be surprised what goes through my head sometimes."

"I'm sure I would be."

She tilted her head to one side. "I suspect you're visiting that lovely little blonde up on the third floor. Maggie Harper told me Miss Whitfield has been holed up in there since J.T. threw his drink at her last night. I must admit I'm dying to meet her. I heard she ran into you yesterday afternoon. Seems like she's stirring up all the men around here."

Leeanne Callaway didn't know the half of it. "I wouldn't know about that," Zach said. "You have a nice day."

"I bet it won't be as nice as yours," she said as he moved past her. "You be careful now, Mr. Tyler. You know what happened the last time you went visiting a beautiful blonde."

Zach opened the front door of the hotel and shut it quickly behind him. The last thing he needed was a reminder that Katherine was probably not all that different from Crystal. They both came from money, from the big city. They were both blond, restless, and looking for something in Paradise that probably didn't exist outside their imaginations.

Zach didn't intend to let himself get sucked in again. He had a plan, and he'd stick to it. He didn't need a woman in his life. He could get s.e.x when he wanted it. And he didn't care about companionship, affection, love and faith, and all that nonsense. He didn't need to sleep with his arms wrapped around someone or listen to her breathing through the dark of the night. He didn't need hands to rub his shoulders when he was tired or express sympathy with a smile. Because the smile could turn at any second. The hands could stop. The love could end. And having it and losing it was far worse than never having it.

Zach walked over to the courtesy phone at the end of the hotel registration desk. Before he could pick up the phone, Maggie Harper looked up from her computer.

"Mr. Tyler," she said in a voice that seemed a mix of awe and dislike. "What are you doing here?"

She acted like he was about to rob her. "Ring Miss Whitfield's room for me, would you?"

"Oh, I don't know. Miss Whitfield said she didn't want to be disturbed."

"I'll let her tell me that, if you don't mind."

Maggie reluctantly reached for the phone on the desk. Before she could dial, Katherine's voice rang across the lobby.

"Zach? Zach."

Zach turned to see her waving to him as she stepped off the elevator.

He'd thought she was pretty yesterday, but today she was awesome. When she walked across the lobby, everything went from black and white to vibrant, beautiful color. Wearing a short red and black floral skirt that showed off long, slender, tanned legs and feet encased in strappy high-heeled sandals, she looked like the typical California girl. Her knit top clung to her full b.r.e.a.s.t.s, and her blond hair fell loosely about her shoulders.

He wanted her.

The realization almost knocked him off his feet. He couldn't rationalize it away. It was all he could do not to reach for her, not to cup her sweet face and kiss those soft lips and pull her down to the floor and...

He felt a rush of heat sweep through him. So much for not wanting a woman. h.e.l.l, he had to get out more.

"Zach," she said again, a curious but wary gleam in her eyes. "Were you looking for me? I'm just on my way out." She moved quickly to the front door, not caring for Maggie's questioning gaze.

Zach followed her onto the front porch where she slipped on a pair of sungla.s.ses to protect her eyes from the bright sunlight. "That's better," she said. "So, did you come to check up on me or try to convince me to leave town again?"

"Well, I can see you're fine, and I doubt telling you anything is going to accomplish much. Where are you headed this morning?"

"Golden's."

"Ah-returning to the scene of the crime."

"Hardly a crime, and I never really saw the place." She checked her watch. "Since it's just after one, I'm hoping there won't be any fights in progress."

"Probably not. Especially since I'm not there, right?"

She walked down the steps in front of the hotel and paused to lean over and inhale the scent of a blossoming pink rose dangling over the walkway. "Mm-mm, lovely," she said. "Smell it. It's gorgeous, a princess rose, I think."

Zach leaned over obediently, but he was so close to Katherine, he couldn't smell anything but the gardenia scent of her shampoo, the vanilla fragrance of her skin, the minty coolness of her breath. She was one tantalizing woman.

"There's nothing better than one perfect rose." Katherine stood up straight. "Don't you agree?"

"I can think of a few things that would be better." Like Katherine naked in a bed of rose petals. He cleared his throat.

"You don't like flowers?" she asked, sending him a quizzical look.

"Not as much as you, apparently."

She sent him a dazzling smile. "I always wanted to be a florist. I'd love to have my own little shop somewhere, spend my days designing bouquets to celebrate the special occasions in people's lives. I think that would be the best job." Her smile faded and a bleak look came into her eyes.

"Why aren't you a florist then?" he asked.

She hesitated. "It's complicated. I felt a responsibility to my stepfather, to work in his investment banking company."

Zach raised an eyebrow. "You don't look like an investment banker."

"I'm not very good at it either," she confided. "I've been learning the business from the ground up, but to tell you the truth, I'm not sure I'll ever know what to do."

"Why don't you quit then?"

"I don't know. It makes Mitch.e.l.l happy to have me there." Actually, she wasn't sure Mitch.e.l.l really cared one way or the other, but she'd always felt that working together somehow kept them together.

"And what is Mitch.e.l.l doing while you're here in Kentucky?"

"He's resting up from a cruise to Mexico."

"Tough life. Still, maybe you should go home and keep the business running until he's ready to come back to work."

She shook her finger at him. "Nice try, but I already put it on the list, so you're not telling me anything I don't know."

"The list?"

She reached into her purse and pulled out a small spiral notebook. "I've been writing them down." She flipped open the notebook and leafed through a dozen pages, before settling on one filled with script. "So far, I have ten reasons to leave and only one reason to stay."

"Let me see that." Zach took the notebook out of her hand and skimmed the pros and cons. She'd done a good job at detailing all the reasons why her search was hopeless, yet she was still here. Before handing the notebook back to her, he turned the page back, then another and another, his smile growing with each new list.

Katherine tried to grab the notebook out of his hand, but he held it away from her. "Look at this, ten reasons to go out with Marc Stafford and five reasons not to go out with him. Ooh, bad hair. That's pretty critical."

"Zach, give it back."

"Oh, and here's ten reasons to get a cat and ten reasons not to get a cat. I really think you should go with a dog."

She crossed her arms in front of her and scowled at him. "I got the cat. Are you finished?"

"You have a list for everything."

"So what? It helps me organize my thoughts."

"Don't you ever just do what you feel like doing without thinking about it?"

"That's how I ended up here," she said with a sigh. "I didn't start making the list until last night."

"If you had, you wouldn't have come."

"Probably not. I guess that's why I didn't do it." She looked at him with a wry smile. "Too bad for you, huh?"

"Why are you still here when you have so many reasons to leave?"

"I'm trying to learn how to color outside the lines."

Zach laughed. He couldn't help it. She was so genuine, so honest. He'd never met anyone like her.

"You must get hurt a lot," he murmured.

She looked at him in surprise. "Why do you say that?"

"Because you don't hide anything. You put yourself out there for the world to like or dislike."

Her face paled and her eyes glittered with emotion, but he wasn't sure if it was anger or that very hurt he'd just mentioned. "You don't like me?"

"I didn't say that." He caught his breath as a slight breeze lifted her hair and brought a strand across her eyes. They both reached for it at the same time, their hands colliding.

He could feel the softness of her cheek and a tingle in his fingers when her hand touched his. Sparks. He'd heard of it happening, but he'd never felt it before-until now. He let his hand fall back to his side, and Katherine hastily tucked the hair behind her ear. She looked as stunned as he felt, as if they'd both touched a hot stove and hadn't expected to get burned.

Zach looked away from Katherine, letting his gaze drift along Main Street . Everyone was going about their business in the bright April sunshine, enjoying the nice weather, the green canopy of trees along the sidewalks providing welcome shade and coolness. The birds were singing. The flowers were blooming. And not one person looked like the world had just turned upside down, but it had. He'd felt it right down to the tips of his toes.

"I better go," Katherine said, heading toward the sidewalk.

Zach followed her, thinking he would leave, get in his truck and go home. Then she turned and smiled at him once more, and he felt like he'd been sucker-punched.

"Thanks for checking up on me," she said. "That was nice of you."

"I told you I'm not nice. Ask anyone."