Page 61 of Smoke Screen
“Phin?”
He snapped to, shifted his feet, and searched the hallway.Come on, man.When Rohan didn’t magically appear, he went back to Maddy. “Uh, sorry.”
“I asked if you wanted to come in.”
He should walk—no, run—screaming. He was already on thin ice with Zeke. If he stepped into this room? With all the damned security cameras in the common areas? Forget it. Totally screwed.
But itwasa great night with a sky full of stars. And who said anything would happen? They were both adults capable of controlling themselves. Well, maybehewasn’t, but Maddy? Definitely the responsible one.
He slid his gaze to her hand, holding that damned door open.
Walk away.
He checked the hallway again.
Nothing. A sign from the universe, perhaps?
You betcha.
“Sure,” he said, wasting no time stepping into the room and flashing a smile. “Can I trust you? I mean, you’re not gonna get handsy, are you?”
She burst out laughing, the sound demolishing every ounce of tension locking up his shoulders.
“Somehow, Charlie Charm, I think we’ll manage.”
He waited just inside the doorway for her to close the door and then didn’t move.
She waved her hands, shooing him from the entry. “Come in. It’s your house.”
“But it’s your room.”
She studied him for a second. “I guess it is. Thank you. You’re a good man, Phin Blackwell.”
No, I’m not.
He gestured to the patio doors. “Outside?”
“Yep.” She bypassed the seating area, her steps way too springy after the day she’d had, and unlocked the doors, waving him through. “I think there are a million stars tonight. We need a telescope.”
“I have one.” He stepped outside, taking the high-backed chair on the left, leaving the one closer to the door. “It’s in my room. I can bring it down for you tomorrow.”
“I’d love that.” She sat, sinking into deep cushions and peering out at the darkness. “These chairs are amazing.”
“Yeah. Mom drove us crazy. She wanted high-backs with the right amount of curve so you could look up.” Phin laughed at the shopping memories. “We must have gone to a hundred stores. One thing about my brothers, they hate shopping. Me? I don’t mind, so I drew the short straw each time. She sat in every chair, tipping her head up to see how comfortable they were. If the chair back was too straight, she balked. Too curvy? No good. It was freaking exhausting. Cruz went once and nearly had a breakdown.”
“Breakdown or not, it was worth it.” She snuggled deeper into the chair, drawing a long breath. “It’s beautiful here.”
“Thatit is.”
“Did you grow up here?”
He shook his head. “Same town. Different house. When the business grew, we found this place. The church camp owners couldn’t maintain it.”
“That’s too bad.”
“For them, yeah. For us? Terrific opportunity. Where we’re sitting didn’t exist. It was only that main part of the house where the kitchen is.” Phin pointed to his left. “There’s a chapel just down the road. It wasn’t in great shape when we moved in, but Mom wanted a quiet place.”
“With five boys, I could see why.”
