Free Designed by Love by Mary Manners Page B

strong and without much warning, she could have suffered much, much worse.”
    As the doctor signed the papers to release Traci from his care, he continued to reassure Dylan. Traci needn’t spend the night, she required only close supervision at home in case her condition changed.
    Dylan promised he’d see Traci was cared for and silently thanked God she’d soon be good as new again.
    Now he scrubbed sleep from his eyes and stretched the weariness from his limbs as he eased from the recliner and padded to the kitchen to brew a pot of coffee. He was loath to leave Traci and return to his own cottage last night after he returned her home and tucked her into her couch beneath a mound of blankets. But Kaci had arrived as soon as she heard the news and promised to spend the night to keep a close watch. She’d call if anything changed.
    And Dylan had promised to return at first light so Kaci could get to work in her classroom at Angel Falls High. It was finals week, after all.
    He splashed water on his face while the coffeemaker gurgled and spat, then dried himself with a hand towel and filled a thermos to cart next door.
    Somewhere between the kitchen doorway and the front porch, he froze as a realization hit him with a force greater than last night’s thunderstorm.
    He cared about Traci…loved her.
    Rephrase that—he was completely and irrevocably in love with Traci Stanton.
    Now, the only question that remained was…did Traci feel the same. And if she did, what were they going to do about it?
     
     
     
     

9
     
    Dylan returned to Traci’s cottage after delivering his music equipment to the big house. It had taken him longer than he’d planned to set up, and then Kevin had needed help with last-minute details on the arbor. The wedding cake was already displayed in the great room, taking the honors as the centerpiece of the sweets table. He’d helped Traci deliver it earlier that morning.
    He climbed the stairs to find Traci, thinking once again of how they made a good team. She’d been a little shaky in the days following the storm and the resulting bump on her head, and Dylan kept close watch over her. He'd enjoyed spending the extended time with her and helped keep her business going, working at her side to fill a string of orders. After assisting Traci in filling the orders for two-dozen or so cakes, Dylan by no means considered himself to be an expert in the cake-baking department, but he certainly knew his way around a roll of fondant.
    He knew it made Traci proud. She’d gloated to her customers, much to Dylan’s chagrin. He’d rather keep things on the down-low, as far as the baking went. At least he’d talked Traci into a few plain, white chefs’ aprons which were more suited to his taste than the candy-apple appliques she sported. That was certainly a plus.
    Dylan opened the front door and entered Traci’s living room without knocking, as had become a habit. He called her name, grinned when she called back. Then, as he rounded the corner toward the kitchen, she took his breath away.
    “Wow…” Was all Dylan could manage as he gaped, mouth dropped wide as a fly-catcher. She’d exchanged her flour-dusted work clothes for a silky dress in a shade of buttercream that accentuated her curves and complemented the bright green hue that her hazel eyes had chosen for the day. Her hair was a mass of sunlit blonde waves that caressed tanned shoulders.
    “Perfect timing, as usual.” The dress’s hem kissed Traci’s calves as she turned away from the fridge. She held a pitcher of tea garnished with orange slices in one hand as she smiled. “So, you like my dress?”
    “That’s an understatement.” Dylan struggled to retrieve his tongue from his throat. “You look…lovely.”
    She pirouetted before pausing at a cabinet to retrieve a pair of tall glasses. “How are things shaping up at the big house? Do we have enough time for a glass of sweet tea?”
    “That sounds great. It’s hot outside, but not