Free Midnight Remedy by Eve Gaddy Page B

we were having.”
    The evening continued as it had begun. When they sat down to eat, Cole pulled his routine of not wanting his dinner. Once Piper tasted the lasagna, she couldn’t blame him. The only seasoning she’d remembered had been the salt  . . . which she’d remembered at least two or three times.
    “Ooh, gross. What is this?” Cole asked, tearing away a clear stringy substance from the top of the casserole.
    Piper stared at it and turned to glare at Charlie. “Didn’t you take the plastic wrap off before you put it in the oven?”
    Eric choked.
    “Nope. You didn’t tell me to,” Charlie said with relish. “I told you I couldn’t cook.”
    “Oh for  . . . that’s not cooking, it’s common sense. Everyone knows to take the plastic wrap off before you cook it.”
    “I didn’t.”
    The smug smile on his face made her want to bop him.
    Without a tremor in his voice, Eric said, “We can just scrape it aside, Piper. It’s not a problem.”
    She transferred her gaze to him. Ordinarily she had a good sense of humor. Ordinarily she’d have found this funny. Tonight she found the whole race of men a pain in the behind. That damned dog was male too. “Dessert is ice cream,” she said, daring them to say a word. “Store bought.”
    “Yum, ice cream,” Cole said, happy at last.
    After a rousing video game, Piper dragged Cole off to bed, leaving her grandfather to entertain Eric. When she came back, both of them were sound asleep, Charlie in his easy chair and Eric on the couch. She woke her grandfather and he went to bed.
    A smile hovering on her mouth, Piper walked to the couch. Now there’s an ego booster, she thought. Invite him to dinner and he falls asleep halfway through the evening. Studying him, she decided he wasn’t to-die-for good-looking. Not that he was ugly. Far from it. Sleep, however, hid some things about him. Such as his eyes, undoubtedly one of his best features. They changed with his mood, reminding her of the color of African violet leaves when they were gray and Jade plants when they were green. Very expressive, and, she thought ruefully, not a little seductive. His face was lean, and even-featured, like his personality. His even temperament held a reassuring appeal. But his jaw—that was square, strong, and unless she was terribly mistaken, stubborn.
    Even though he was tall and lanky, his shoulders were broad, and his chest was surprisingly hard, she remembered. With a lot more muscle than was readily apparent. She knew exactly when she’d become aware of that too. The first time he held her against him and kissed her, that’s when.
    Stop it , she told herself. You’re standing here practically salivating over the man while he’s asleep, like a Venus fly-trap lying in wait for the fly.
    “Eric.” She put a hand on his shoulder and shook him gently. He didn’t move a muscle. “Wake up.” This time she shook harder. He turned his head against the cushion and mumbled something. Her hand poised to try again, she thought about how tired he’d looked earlier. Sighing, she went to find a blanket.
    Three hours later, in her quest for a sleeping aid, she wandered through the living room. She almost jumped out of her skin when she heard Eric call her name. “You scared me to death. I thought you were asleep,” she said softly, walking over to the couch. “I didn’t mean to wake you.” In the light thrown by the moon streaming into the window she could see his smile.
    “I didn’t mean to fall asleep.”
    “Do you do this often?” she asked him, grinning.
    “Only when I haven’t slept in three days. It’s a talent, being able to fall asleep anywhere. During my residency I used to do it all the time.” He yawned. “My ex-wife hated it.”
    “What’s she like?” Piper asked, before she thought.
    “Dawn?” He considered that a minute. “Beautiful,” he said slowly. “Un  . . . ” He halted and shook his head.
    If he hadn’t been half-asleep, Piper