Read Online Shelter in a Soldier's Arms by Susan Mallery - Free Book Online Page B

She hung up and started her shopping list. She would make sure that Jeff understood everything when he got home.
    *
    The chocolate cake turned out perfectly. Maggie insisted on helping with the frosting, which meant there were uneven patches and more sticky chocolate on her arms and face than on the cake itself. Ashley had settled on meat loaf for dinner. It was easy and something most people liked. Plus she had a limited supply of cash that wasn’t going to cover anything expensive, such as steaks.
    She checked the potatoes and steaming green beans, then glanced at the clock. Jeff was due any second.
    “Just enough time to get you cleaned up, young lady,” she said, taking the rubber spatula from her daughter’s hand and urging her toward the sink.
    Just then Ashley heard the door to the garage open. Unexpectedly her heart rate doubled and her throat seemed to close up a little.
    His footsteps sounded on the wood floor. She froze in the center of the kitchen, not sure if she should dash for cover or brazenly stand her ground and greet him. The confusion didn’t make any sense. Why was she suddenly nervous? Nothing had changed.
    Jeff entered the kitchen. He glanced at the pots on the stove, at the cake, then looked at Maggie, covered in chocolate frosting and grinning.
    “We made you a surprise,” the four-year-old announced.
    “I can see that,” he told her, and turned his attention to Ashley. “How do you feel?”
    She swallowed. It was as if he could see through to her soul, she thought, wondering if she would melt under the intensity of his attention. Heat flared again, but this time it wasn’t just on her face. Instead her entire body felt hot. As if she’d just stepped into a sauna.
    “Better, thanks,” she said, hoping her voice sounded more steady than she felt. “I, ah, slept a lot, and studied. The worst of the virus is over.” She forced herself to smile, then motioned to the stove. “I made dinner.”
    “You said you were going to when you called Brenda.”
    She ducked her head. “Yes, well, I didn’t think before I called. I’m sorry. That was really dumb.”
    “Why?”
    She glanced at him from under her lashes. She had a sudden awareness of him as a man. Had his shoulders always been that broad? Why hadn’t she noticed before? Was it her illness? Had the flu blunted his effect on her, and if so, how could she get immunized against Jeff Ritter’s appeal?
    “Ashley?”
    She blinked. Oh. He asked her a question. Yeah. Dinner. Why cooking it was dumb. “I didn’t want you to feel obligated to come home.”
    One corner of his mouth quirked up. “I live here.”
    “I know that. I meant for dinner. You might have plans, or not want to eat with us. The cake was Maggie’s idea.” She glanced down at her daughter and saw that her four-year-old was following the conversation with undisguised interest.
    He smiled at the girl. “It’s a beautiful cake. Thank you.”
    Maggie brightened. “It’s really good. Mommy won’t let me eat the batter ‘cause of eggs, but I licked the frosting and it’s perfect.”
    “Good.” He looked back at her. “So what’s for dinner?”
    “Meat loaf. Mashed potatoes and gravy. Green beans.”
    “Sounds great. Let me go wash up and I’ll join you.”
    “You will?”
    “Unless you don’t want me to.”
    She forced herself to take a deep breath. “No. It would be nice to have you eat with us. Really.”
    He nodded and left the room. Ashley groaned softly. When had she turned into an idiot? Just this morning she’d had a completely normal conversation with the man. Now she was acting like a freshman with a crush on the football captain. She’d lost her mind, and if she wanted to act like a mature adult, she was going to have to find it again, and fast!
    *
    Jeff focused on the report in front of him but he couldn’t force any of the words to make sense. He would swear that even from half a house away, he could hear laughter drifting down the stairs