Nerds on Fire (30 page)

Gran frowned then and played a little
ditty on the table with her fork. “Yes. Although Rylan might not
answer his phone, since he’s involved in his own romance at the
moment.”

A coughing fit finally dislodged the
liquid so after a few wheezes and another bout of coughing, Trixi
could finally speak. “Why?”

Again, her table companions stared at
her as though she started speaking Swahili. She returned their
dumbfounded gazes.

“
Why?” she repeated when
neither of them answered her.

“
To protect you.” Gran
shared a confused look with Mark.

He leaned forward on his forearm and
elaborated. “I’m someone they don’t know. They should look into
whether I’m a good candidate to date you.”

Then he leaned back, after delivering
his news, like it was perfectly normal for her male relatives to
look into her male friends. Of course, she’d never had a male
friend like Mark before.

Gran and Mark’s easy
acceptance of Johnny and her dad digging into Mark’s life, doing
a
background check
on him, was so surprising all coherent thoughts fled. How was
pairing a background check with dating considered
normal?

“
Sweetheart, they’re
protecting you. It’s a good thing.” Gran assured her in confident
tones.

“
I wouldn’t want it any
other way.” Mark slid his hand over hers.

“
This isn’t the Victorian
era,” she remonstrated.

“
No, but you have plenty of
assets, and the men in our family understand this.” Gran patted
their hands before she asked Mark to pass her the
pepper.

He squeezed Trixi’s hand before
handing the shaker to Gran. Then he started eating again as though
this wasn’t the most bizarre conversation they had ever
conducted.

Gran scooped up some vegetables and
asked about their day.

Trixi wondered when her life had
become a romantic comedy.

“
Are you certain this is a
good idea?” Nina bit her lip as the house came into
view.

It was breathtaking, especially
because of twilight giving way to darkness. Rising majestically
from the gardens and impressive landscaping, Rylan was again
thankful to call this place home.

“
Yes, I’m certain.” Because
he felt she needed the reassurance, he reached out and took her
hand. Her chilly hand curled into his in a perfect fit. “You’re
cold.”

She nodded. “It’s cold
outside.”

“
We’ll warm you up,” he
promised as he drove around the forecourt to the garages. He parked
in his bay and then helped her exit the car, snagging her bag as he
went. Excitement percolated beneath the surface as he ushered her
inside. “Welcome, Nina.” There was promise embedded in his voice.
He wondered if she heard it.

“
Thank you.” She sent him a
wry look. “I have been here before.” Her smile was so saucy he
couldn’t resist leaning forward to taste those tempting
lips.

Bernadette cleared her throat. “Rylan,
when will you be wanting supper served?”

“
Give us twenty minutes,
please. Nina plans to spend the night. I thought she might be
comfortable in the silver guest suite.”

“
An excellent choice.”
There were questions in the housekeeper’s eyes he hoped she didn’t
ask. As a tried and true friend, she thankfully kept her thoughts
to herself.

“
The suite is
ready?”

She scowled. “Of course.”

“
Didn’t mean to cause
offense, Bernie.”

“
I’m aware of that, Mr.
Rylan.” She turned her attention to the silent Nina. “Welcome,
ma’am.”

“
Thank you.” Nina’s smile
was gentle, her tone and manner gracious and friendly.

Rylan took her elbow and led her into
the hall where they passed through several halls and doorways until
they wound their way to a quiet end of the house. “This is the
Silver Suite. It’s one of my favorites.”

He pushed open the door and was
prepared for Nina’s gasp. Called silver because of the silvery blue
silk comforter and drapes, the room was exquisite. The furniture
was all a creamy white and understated so the elegance of the room
came from the silvery blue appointments. The medium gray carpet and
accents added warmth, but for the most part the room was awash in
light colors.

“
Rylan this is
gorgeous.”

“
It’s befitting a queen.”
He hoped
his
queen. “A preference for silver and blue is a Wintermyer
trait. Supposedly because the man who built this place loved his
wife’s silvery-blue eyes.”

“
Trixi’s eyes are silver
and blue.”

“
Yes, they’re from the
Wintermyer side of the family.”

Nina touched a delicate bloom in the
fresh flower arrangement on the small table positioned between two
reading chairs. “I can’t possibly sleep in here.”

In lieu of answering, he escorted her
across the room and opened the door to the spacious closet and then
on to the door beside it. A luxurious bath was revealed in the same
silvery blue, creamy white, and warm gray colors. Nina explored the
room’s amenities with happiness.

“
Are you certain it’s okay
for me to sleep here all weekend?”

He smiled. “I’m certain.” After
clearing his throat of the sudden knot there, he added, “We have
all weekend to explore the house.”

“
Really? We can look at
every room?”

“
Yes, I’d appreciate it.
You can give me a feminine perspective on some decisions I need to
make and keep putting off.”

“
I see.” Her smile was
mysterious and feminine and he quite liked it.

Rylan left her bag in the closet. They
wandered into the morning room.

“
Why is it called the
morning room if you use it for all your meals?”

“
Because it gets the
morning sun, I suppose. It’s always been called that.” He shrugged.
“This room is for informal dining. The larger dining room is
reserved for when we have guests.” He frowned. “That’s one room
where I’d value your opinion.”

“
Okay.” She appeared to
drinking everything in as he seated her. In moments, Bernadette
arrived with the first course.

They gave thanks and then dug in. He
was surprisingly hungry. Nina appeared to be as well because she
ate with the same gusto. “I missed lunch,” she admitted after
polishing off the salad.

“
Why? Missing meals isn’t
good.”

She shrugged. “We got busy and by the
time I had a moment to think, it was too late to eat. I did have a
snack. Now what is it you’re thinking about the dining
room?”

“
It’s too formal and feels
cold.” They launched into a discussion of dining rooms and then
other public areas and it carried them through the meal.

Too bad he didn’t have the courage to
bring up the most pressing topic on his mind.

Chapter 29

The residents of Trixi’s
house all slept in a little later Saturday morning. It was amazing
how quickly he was enfolded into this house and the lifestyle of
the two women who lived here. Mark enjoyed the feeling of being
part of a family again. It was something he had taken for granted
before living in a city without them.

Now that he was here, it amazed him
how he could live with people he wasn’t even related to and yet he
still felt like he belonged. Those thoughts led to Trixi. They
never strayed far from her, but he was amazed no smart man had
snatched her up before this.

An unclaimed treasure if there ever
was one. His heart skipped a beat. Since he was dating her, he was
first in line, and that satisfied him.

He exited his bed because the longer
he spent in bed, the less time spent with Trixi. It didn’t take him
long to dress and leave his wing.

He found his quarry in the kitchen,
bent over the freezer drawer. With glee, he snuck up behind her and
patted that very enticing posterior. She shrieked and spun to face
him, and he used a foot to nudge the drawer shut as his arms folded
her tight.

“
You scared me,” she
scolded, but she settled right into his arms.

Like she belonged there.

“
You shouldn’t bend over
like that.” He ran his hand up and down her back, because he liked
the little shivers it created in her.

“
I’m trying to figure out
our meals.” Her scowl was negated when she reached up on tiptoe and
kissed him good morning. Smiling, he returned her morning greeting
and then took another one.

The second led into another
and another until the sensational woman in his arms started
purring. Wait,
purring
? He broke off the next kiss to peer down at her.

Trixi looked so much like a contented
feline he expected her tail to tap lazily against him at any
moment. “You’re purring.” He pressed a kiss to her
forehead.

“
I’m sure I’ve never done
so before.” She wriggled against him like a kitten. “It’s your
fault.”

Laughing, he kissed her
again.

“
Good morning.” Gran helped
herself to the coffee and then leaned against the counter to survey
them.

They replied in turn as he released
Trixi. Matching pink spots dotted her cheeks before she ducked into
the fridge.

He shared a quick grin with Gran, both
of them amused by Trixi’s modesty, but he was willing to bet they
were both pleased by it as well.

“
What do you two have
planned for today?” Gran reached for something over Trixi’s
shoulder. Then she carried her bounty to the table where she sat
down. He poured two mugs of coffee.

“
Lauren hopes to move into
her new apartment this weekend, so we’re moving my furniture out.”
Trixi followed Gran to the table. He followed Trixi and set her mug
in front of her.

He forgot about moving the furniture
out of Lauren’s apartment. “Do we have to?”

She sent him a speaking
look. “Yes. Since this is your fault,
you
are helping. So are your brother
and Katy.”

“
How is it his fault?” Gran
stirred chocolate syrup into her coffee.
Hey, that looked good
. When she was
finished, he grabbed the bottle and squirted some into his
mug.

“
Because he’s the one who
told her about the apartment.”

“
Have I met her?” Gran
tasted her concoction before she added another belt, followed by a
splash of creamer.

“
No. She’s a surgical nurse
and fun. You’ll enjoy her.”

Gran sampled her mocha again. She
nodded, as though satisfied. “When do I get to meet
her?”

“
Sometime this weekend, I
expect.” Trixi eyed them and the chocolate bottle. He added another
squirt to his coffee then handed her the bottle.

“
Have you been taking
lessons from Katy?” She gleefully accepted the chocolate sauce and
added what looked like the perfect amount.

That’s when he remembered Katy’s
chocolate coffee. “No, I forgot about hers.” He gestured to Gran.
“Did she learn this from you?”

“
Maybe.” Gran shrugged. “So
you’re planning to move things out of the apartment and anything
else?”

“
I have a family gathering
tonight. Trixi is expected to attend with me.”

“
What about Katy?” This
hadn’t seemed as scary when he asked her to accompany him because
back then they were still only roommates. Would dating him make a
difference?

“
I think Leo is planning to
take her.”

“
Have your family met her
yet?”

“
I’m not sure, but they’ve
all heard about her.” He grinned.

“
Leo and Katy just pulled
in,” Trixi announced from her vantage point at the sink. When had
she gotten up?

“
Better make another pot of
coffee.” Gran rose to do so. It was nice, all this domestic
tranquility.

“
I wonder if they’ve had
breakfast yet.” Trixi glanced at the fridge.

Rambling across the kitchen, he
stopped to peer out the window with her. “No need to worry, looks
like they brought breakfast.” He pointed to the large bakery box
Leo tugged from the back seat.

“
Wonderful.” Gran peeked
out a different window.

“
Should we let them
in?”

“
No, love, Katy has a key.”
Gran returned to her seat with a fresh cup of coffee.

Trixi padded to the cabinet where the
dishes were stored and started to set the table. He helped her.
They heard the key in the lock and Katy’s laughter before she and
Leo swept inside.

After hugs between the women and lots
of animated conversation, they all settled at the table. He and Leo
opted for a brotherly nod at each other, but they did both appear
to appreciate the women’s happiness.

Leo set the box on the table and after
he opened it, wonderful bakery scents wafted close.