Before We Kiss (Fool's Gold #14)(89)

She had more, but Sam didn’t seem all that interested in the story. Instead he was drawing her away from the growing crowd. When they were by the front door of the convention center, he lightly kissed her.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “About assuming the worst when it came to Simone. That was more about her powers of persuasion than you, but I was wrong to doubt you.”

A weight she hadn’t been aware of lifted. “I’m glad,” she told him. “I would never have told her anything.”

“I know that now and I promise to never doubt you again.”

She smiled. “While I like the sound of that, don’t get too cocky with your promises.”

“Are you going to let me down?”

“No.”

“Then I don’t see a problem.”

He kissed her again, lingering this time. She kissed him back and wished they could be transported to her place or his place and practice whatever new technique his mother had emailed him.

He drew back. “You have cats,” he said. “How can I help?”

“Foster a couple of them.”

She expected him to recoil or explain why that wasn’t possible. Instead he shrugged. “Sure. I don’t know much about cats, so I’m going to need some instructions.”

“Seriously? You’ll take in cats?”

“Yes. Like I said, Larissa’s causes are usually Jack’s problem, but I don’t mind being sucked in now and then.”

“They shed,” she told him.

“They have fur. I expect shedding.”

She was still having trouble taking it all in. “Just like that?”

“I’m fostering them. This isn’t a lifetime commitment. Yes, I’ll take two cats.”

First he’d apologized and now this. She’d loved Sam for a while now, but she hadn’t expected him to be one of the good guys.

Emotion blossomed inside of her until speaking the words was inevitable. “I love you.”

He froze. “What?”

She sighed happily. “I love you. You’re a great guy and now you want to foster cats. How could I not?” She touched his hand. “I remember everything you told Fayrene, about being honest with Ryan. So I want to be honest with you. I love you.”

Sam took a step back, then another. Before she could figure out what was happening, he’d turned his back on her and walked away.

CHAPTER TWENTY

OVER THE NEXT couple of days Dellina learned that cats made pretty good roommates. The two she’d taken in to foster were quiet and clean. Best of all, they didn’t seem to mind when she cried herself to sleep. The smaller of the two, a little short-haired marmalade, had even jumped onto the bed when her tears had turned into sobs. He’d cuddled close and tried to soothe her with his purr. Unfortunately cat support wasn’t the same as being with the man she loved, but she was going to have to learn to make do.

After fixing her morning coffee, she carried a mug into her office. The cats were already fed and were now sitting in her east-facing kitchen window. Apparently daily grooming was best accomplished in sunlight.

She sat at her desk and turned on her computer. There were several emails from Larissa. The sick cats were still with Cameron while the rest had been sent to their foster homes. She was taking applications for permanent adoptions and would be setting up a booth at the upcoming Book Festival.

There were other emails from clients and a note from Fayrene, who wanted to set up a time to talk about her wedding. Dellina scrolled through the list again, but there was nothing from Sam. She’d already checked her phone and he hadn’t left a message or sent her a text.

Not that she had expected he would. But it would have been nice to hear from him.

One of the cats rubbed against her leg. She bent down and petted him, scratching behind his ears.

She wasn’t sorry for telling Sam the truth—despite the outcome. Mostly because she’d been brave. She’d put her feelings into words. She’d been honest and if he was too stupid to figure out she was a prize worth pursuing, then she was better off without him.

“Or not,” she murmured. While she wouldn’t take back telling him what she felt, she sure would have liked a better response. Something slightly more neutral than disappearing from her life.

She brushed away tears she hadn’t realized were falling, then turned her attention to her email. She had a business to run and a life to live. She needed to get on with things. As for her broken heart... Well, that wasn’t going away anytime soon, but she would figure a way to deal. She always had before.

* * *

SAM HAD DONE his best to figure out a way to avoid his second lecture on finances and small businesses. The last thing he’d wanted to do was have to face people who would be angry with him because of Dellina. He wasn’t sure which was going to be worse. The accusations or the fact that so many people knew about what had happened.

But no one had said a word. The crowd was larger this time. He’d kept his lecture short and gone into the Q and A. Now nearly an hour into answering questions, he finally accepted that the reason no one was saying anything was that no one knew. Dellina hadn’t told anyone.

“Yes, online banking is safe,” he said. “Just make sure you follow all the protocols. Also, you want an extremely secure password. That means avoiding passwords that are your business name or your kid’s birthday. Anything else?”