Page 22 of The Reluctant Roommate

Morgan chuckled. “Nice of you to say so.” Her hand relaxed enough that her fingers rested on Heidi’s upper arm.

“Maybe we could come back here another time, go see the dinosaur tracks.” Heidi shuffled on the bench seat, telling herself that if she brought herself closer to Morgan, she was only trying to keep warm. “I think I need a thicker jacket.”

“You do. This is positively balmy compared to how cold it will be later in the year. Let’s go and have hot chocolate at the Trading Post.” Morgan unwound herself and stood, holding out a hand for Heidi to take. Her grip was tight, even through the two layers of gloves. Firm, like Morgan herself.

Back at the Trading Post, they found a seat at the café and ordered hot chocolate. “I’ll get these,” Heidi said. “After all, you drove.”

Once back with the drinks, she propped her elbows on the table. The view over the Denver metro area was magnificent, the red rocks behind them even more so. But it was Morgan who captured her attention. Her cheeks glowed pink from the chill, and her long fingers wrapped around the mug of chocolate. No cheap powdered mix for Morgan—she’d ordered the custom one with melted bittersweet chocolate and vanilla bean extract whisked into hot milk. Heidi raised her own mug of generic hot chocolate. Still, it was warming, and, honestly, simply being here with the view was the best experience, not the chocolate.

And being here with Morgan. Away from her home, the tightness in her posture had eased; her body seemed looser.Although maybe that was the exertion of the hike. Short as it was, Heidi was feeling the effects on her body. And the music venue.Just wow.It was all a long way from cover bands and the indie music scene in Australia.

“If this is life in a major city, I can take it.” She raised her mug in salute.

“I guess. Denver doesn’t feel like a big city to me. But it’s home now.”

“It’s massive to me. And I hope it will be home to me too. At least for the next while.” Heidi tilted her head. “Thanks for swinging the time away from work to come with me. You must do long hours. Do you go into the office much?”

Morgan swallowed a mouthful of chocolate. “Not much anymore. There’s no need.”

Heidi huffed a laugh. “I guess. Not like bartending. I can hardly work from home doing that.”

“I’ll put a bar in the basement. You can manage it.”

So Morgan wasn’t totally buttoned up. Heidi grinned. “Morgan’s Hideout. Free beer tomorrow.”

“I think the homeowners association would have something to say about that.”

They finished their hot chocolates, and Morgan stood. “If you want to get your groceries on the way home, we’d better go.” She held out a hand.

Heidi took it and let Morgan haul her to her feet. For all that she was slender, there was a wiry strength to her, and Heidi stumbled over her own feet. She tipped forward, her chest brushing Morgan’s upper arm.

For a second, Morgan froze. “You okay?”

“Yeah. Sorry, just clumsy.” Her voice croaked. It was an accidental contact, easy to do and way less than her not-so-accidental snuggle earlier. Her chest still touched Morgan’s arm. Between them, there was a layer of cotton bra, a merinowool T-shirt, shirt, and the thickest fleece that would make any sheep jealous, plus Morgan’s clothes; yet her nipple tingled as if Morgan had squeezed it between her fingers. She glanced at Morgan’s face; her cheeks had a faint pink flush. Heidi took a step away before she made Morgan more uncomfortable. “I’d like to hike more of the trails here.”

“There’s more Front Range hiking than just RedRocks. I need to get fitter, though, before attempting some of them.”

Heidi raised her eyebrows. “You left me in your red dust. I’m the lowlander who needs to work on her cardio. Maybe I should do step aerobics behind the bar at the FlyInn. Put all the free pour bottles on the top shelf.”

“Not very OSHA compliant.”

“The entire place isn’t. So aerobics behind the bar won’t make much difference.” Again, she thought of the bar and grille Morgan had mentioned. But she was still on the trial period with Morgan. What if in another two weeks, Morgan kicked her out? Maybe she’d better wait before applying, in case she ended up living on the far side of town.

They returned to the car. Morgan was silent on the drive back, concentrating on the heavier traffic. When they were nearly home, she indicated a King Soopers ahead. “Will that do for your grocery shopping?”

“That’s fine.” Another reason to get a car. Dragging groceries home in the snow on foot made her feel like Little Orphan Annie, but without the songs and perkiness.

Morgan followed her into the store and got her own cart. Heidi raced around, getting the ingredients for her chicken dish and some food for the week. As long as Arnie kept slipping her a meal every shift, she didn’t need to spend much. She snuck a look at Morgan’s cart. More vegetables, lean protein, less junk food—but also three family-size bars of premium darkchocolate. Heidi smothered a grin. It seemed everyone had their weaknesses.

Chapter 14

Harmony Unpicked

The sun was setting behind the mountains when they arrived home. Heidi kicked her shoes off at the door and carried the groceries through to the kitchen. “I should have bought a bottle of wine. A glass as I cook dinner would be perfect. Or while sitting on the back patio and watching that sunset.”

Morgan disappeared into the walk-in pantry. A minute later, she reappeared, a bottle of California red in her hand. “That sounds perfect to me. Let’s open this.”

“No argument from me.” Heidi opened cabinets in turn, looking for glasses, and then put two on the counter.