Mischief in Mudbug (Ghost-in-Law, #2)(38)

She leaned into the kiss, her body perfectly molding into his. He wrapped his arms around her, and she felt the hard lines of his chest press into her. She parted her mouth, and he deepened the kiss before pulling away from her lips and trailing kisses down her neck. She sighed with pleasure, her skin jumping alive with every touch of his lips. She opened her eyes just a tiny bit, wanting to see his face, the desire that she knew would be there—and saw something move in the kitchen.

Somehow, she managed to keep herself in check, but as she opened her eyes completely, it was clear that they weren’t alone. The refrigerator door stood wide open and a huge hunk of rapidly disappearing roast beef dangled just outside of the door. Instantly, Sabine’s mind jerked back into reality. What the hell was she doing?

She broke away from Beau, her quick retreat leaving him with a confused expression. “I-I’m sorry…I can’t…” She stepped to the side, praying he didn’t turn his head or Beau Villeneuve was going to get a crash course in the “I want to believe” games.

Beau’s expression hardened. “That’s all right. I understand. You won’t have to remind me again.” He opened the door and stepped through it.

“Wait,” Sabine called after him, but he hurried down the stairs, never once looking back.

Sabine waited until the door slammed shut, then trudged downstairs to lock the door. She peeked out the front window, but Beau’s truck was already gone. Frustrated with herself, she went back up to her apartment.

The roast beef was still floating, but now a jar of mayonnaise was suspended along with it, the roast beef seeming to dip itself in the jar then disappear in pieces. “I don’t care if you’re dead—this is still breaking and entering, not to mention theft. And at the very least, it’s just plain rude, even for you.”

The sandwich stopped moving and hung in midair. “Oh, please,” Helena said, “You were so wrapped up in that detective, I could have slaughtered a cow and started a barbeque right on your kitchen table and you wouldn’t have noticed.”

“Oh really? So why is it that I sent him packing as soon as I saw you?”

“Hmmmm, guess I didn’t exactly put that together.”

“How could you? You were too busy robbing me of my leftovers.”

“Next time I’ll be less obvious.”

“Ha!” Sabine laughed. “You’re about as unobtrusive as a freight train running through here. Besides, I don’t want you sneaking, either.”

“I can see why, if you’re going to act like a hooker at your front door. Although, there’s a huge advantage to you not being able to see me. That Beau is damned good looking…almost as good looking as Maryse’s man, but she always catches me. With you, I have a really good shot at seeing some prime male behind before I leave this earth.”

An image of making love with Beau flashed through Sabine’s mind. Helena was right—his behind was grade-A prime beef. And the image would have been perfect, except for the floating buffet at the end of the bed. Sabine shuddered. No way. “From now on, you will announce yourself before you walk through the walls, do you understand me, Helena? I can still do that exorcism.”

“Yeah, yeah. Jeez, you and Maryse are such bores. It’s a wonder men are interested in you at all.”

Sabine thought about the look Beau had flashed her just before he practically ran out of her apartment. “I don’t think that’s something I have to consider any longer.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t write him off just yet…not with the way I’ve seen him look at you.” The roast beef began its journey into the mayonnaise again. “Damn! This is some of the best roast beef I’ve ever eaten. If you gave him some of this, he’ll definitely be back.”

Sabine sighed and sank into a chair at the kitchen table. “What if I don’t want him to come back?”

The sandwich stopped moving again and just hung there. Finally, it moved forward along with the mayonnaise jar and then they both came to rest on the kitchen table. The chair across from her slid backwards and the cushion flattened.

“You’re afraid,” Helena said. “You’re afraid of letting him close to you because of the cancer.”

“Maybe. Yes. Well, wouldn’t you be?”

“Probably. The question is, are you scared for him or yourself?”

Sabine buried her head in her hands, her heartbeat pounding in her temples. “I wish I knew.”

“I know my opinion probably doesn’t count for anything, but I’m going to tell you like I told Maryse. Don’t make the same mistakes I did. I lived a pretty damned long life of nothing, hiding myself from people, afraid to make connections because I might get hurt. I married a man I knew I could never love, had a child that I never could connect with, and died without a single friend to my name.”

Sabine looked across the table at the empty space, wishing she could actually see the woman who was speaking. “You think the risk is worth it? To admit your feelings for someone who might not feel the same way? To share your darkest secret knowing it could be the one thing that drives them away? Or even worse, to have them stay and love you and in the end, lose it all to a dreadful disease?”

“But you’ll never ask yourself what if.”

Tears began to form in Sabine’s eyes. “I hate it when you’re right.” She wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand, silently willing the unshed tears to disappear. “I met my family today.”