Free Home at Rose Cottage by Sherryl Woods Page A

he still felt toward his former wife. The very last thing Melanie needed in her life was a man whose heart wasn’t free, whatever the reason.
    She ought to pack up and head back to Boston before the appeal of that one kiss made mincemeat of her common sense. She ought to go back, find her dream job, maybe move into a new apartment and definitely throw herself into enough hobbies that she’d forget all about herknack for finding the wrong men. The D’Angelo women had been taught to be independent. She didn’t need a man in her life.
    Of course, watching the way her parents still got a little gleam in their eyes when they saw each other and their freely given affection with each other had made all of them long to achieve what their parents had. Colleen and Max D’Angelo made marriage look easy.
    But even after convincing herself that it was time to go, Melanie reminded herself that it would be a shame to leave Rose Cottage before she finished doing something with her grandmother’s garden. She’d studied that photo Mike had found so fascinating, and she was beginning to envision making the yard look like that again. It was the least she could do in her grandmother’s memory.
    Of course, if the rains kept up like this, it would be summer before the ground dried up enough for her to get the first flower planted. Melanie wanted to be back home before that, making plans, embarking on her new life.
    She bit into another too-crisp cookie, then tossed it aside in disgust. If only she had Maggie’s talent in the kitchen. Instead, she was an absolute disaster. Who else could manage to destroy slice-and-bake cookies?
    Her pity party was in full swing when someone knocked on the front door, startling her. Melanie was so relieved by the prospect of a distraction, she practically ran to the door, then faltered when she glanced through the window and spotted a dripping-wet Mike and Jessie on the porch. The little twinge of excitement that formed low in her belly was a warning. She was way too eager to see these two. A smart woman would leave the door firmly closed.
    Since she tended to listen to her heart, not her head, she opened the door. “Did you two come by boat?” sheasked, standing aside to let them in. Jessie clung to her father’s hand and regarded Melanie silently.
    Mike grinned. “You sound edgy. Getting a little cabin fever?”
    “Something like that,” she admitted. “Hi, Jessie.”
    Jessie peered up at her and finally smiled. “Hi.”
    “I thought for a minute a cat had got your tongue,” Melanie teased.
    Jessie looked perplexed. “There’s no cat here.”
    Melanie chuckled. “No, there’s not. It’s just an expression. Here, let me take your coats. Can I get you something hot to drink? Maybe some hot chocolate, Jessie?”
    At last Jessie gave her a full-fledged smile. “I love hot chocolate. So does Daddy.”
    Melanie met his gaze. “Is that so?” she asked him as she led the way into the kitchen. She hung their coats on the drying pegs beside the back door, then glanced once more at Mike. The rain had put a bit of wayward curl into his hair, which gave him a rakish look that was even more appealing.
    “Are you sure you wouldn’t prefer coffee or tea?” she asked him.
    “Whatever’s easiest. We just stopped on the way home from school to make sure you hadn’t floated away.”
    “As you can see, I’m still here. Since I finished up most of the work I can do inside the house, I’ve been reduced to baking cookies.” She gestured toward the plate. “They’re a little overdone, but help yourselves.”
    Jessie gave her father a hopeful look. At his nod, she grabbed one and took a bite. Melanie waited for some comment about the burned edges, but Jessie climbed onto a kitchen chair and munched happily, seemingly oblivious to the cookie’s flaws. Melanie turned to Mike. “Whatabout you? Are you brave enough to try one? I know they don’t look like much.”
    He laughed. “Actually they look a