Free Her Charming Heartbreaker by Sonia Parin Page B

She
didn’t know for sure what he’d been grateful for. Maybe her
reasoning had pulled him out of a mental rut. But how could she
explain the real kiss? The one that had made her heart fill up like
a balloon, sending her into a floating swirl...
    “I think we should give
him a bout of food poisoning.” Joyce shot to her feet. “On second
thought, it would be more cruel to ban him from the café.”
    “He’ll be gone
tomorrow.” Eddie chuckled. “Stick with the food poisoning.” She
pressed her hand against her churning stomach. “You know that
saying about feeling wrung out? All this thinking has exhausted me.
I can’t figure him out.”
    Joyce nodded. “If it
makes you feel better, your hair looks great. It’s all shiny
and—”
    “Wait until it catches
up with how I feel inside,” she said and threw her hands up in the
air. “I’m never talking to men again. Especially not men I enjoy
talking to.”
     
    * * *
     
    Theo stretched and took
stock of the damage he’d incurred from one night of utter
recklessness. He would have fared just as badly if he’d slept on a
bed of jagged edged rocks.
    “Good morning.”
    He lifted a hand and
waved to Claire.
    “Oh good, you can move
your hand. I’m not going to ask if you slept well. That would make
a mockery of your injuries. And yes, I heard you moaning. But I did
warn you. That sofa is a health hazard. At least you haven’t been
completely crippled.”
    “I haven’t tried to sit
up yet,” he admitted. Claire sounded slightly on edge and he didn’t
blame her. After the long talk they’d had last night...
    He brushed his hands
across his face.
    “I should have asked
you to sign some sort of waver.”
    “Don’t worry, I won’t
sue you.”
    “That’s a relief to
hear, but I’ll wait out the statute of limitations period.” She
shrugged. “Sorry, I’m a natural born cynic.”
    She’d given him the
same explanation the night before when he’d asked point blank about
Ben’s parentage.
    A brother. He had a
brother. A nine-year-old brother. Jon had another son...
    “I’m about to prepare
breakfast, but I’m not sure what you like.”
    “That’s very kind of
you. I think I’ll stick to my regular schedule.” He could do with a
cup of Joyce’s coffee and some time to let everything sink in. It
hadn’t been his place to challenge Claire Muldoon’s decision to
keep Ben’s existence a secret. But it still affected him. A
brother... “Unless you think I should hang around and spend more
time with Ben.”
    They’d spent the
evening together getting to know each other. After reappearing on
her doorstep, he hadn’t given Claire the option to turn him away.
Two could play at being stubborn. Armed with a load of suspicions,
he’d been wary of spooking her again. It had been a risk to mention
Ben’s age, but it had been enough to gain him entry.
    Claire had crumbled and
after they’d established a few pertinent facts, he’d made an inroad
into convincing her to take up his offer. He wouldn’t tell Jon
about Ben. That was her job...
    After Ben had gone to
sleep, they had stayed up and had tackled the logistics of going on
a trip at short notice and leaving Theo in charge of her son. When
he’d finally made a move to leave, he’d been surprised to find it
was two in the morning so he’d taken up Claire’s offer to use her
couch.
    “Ben has school.”
    “I can pick him
up—”
    She shook her head. “He
has a schedule too. After school activities followed by a study
group. I pick him up after I close up the salon. We’ll work on a
list tonight. Meet us back here at six. It’s pizza night.”
    “Sounds good.” He
brushed his fingers through his hair. “Don’t take this the wrong
way, but I’m going to spend the day shopping for a couch.” Seeing
her about to protest, he lifted a hand. “I explained about Jon’s
parting gifts to his… friends. You left him before he had the
chance to give you anything. This is the least I can do