CHAPTER 7 #3
Jannie’s gaze met Adam’s. He looked at Ian, studying him far more closely than he cared to be scrutinized.
“Well, now, let’s see. Out of the blue, you ask me to fly you to Orlando.
You don’t spend any time at Jannie’s but ask to borrow her car for a few days and bring it back a couple of hours later.
” His eyes homed on the frosting stain. “What’s that on your pants? ”
Without replying, Ian went around to open the trunk and retrieve his suiter and duffel, then punched the button to close the hatch, listening to the beep and watching it lower and latch.
He passed Jannie the key. “Thanks for trusting me with her.” The Porsche had been her ex-husband’s, and Jannie still had it, even though she kept saying she’d trade it in for an SUV.
Jannie nodded, her fingers closing around the orange fob, but Adam ignored his attempt to change the subject and continued.
“Then, you decline lunch with us but want to go straight back to Fargo the same day, covered in hives and looking like you want to punch something. Which, in my experience, can only mean one thing.”
Jannie crossed her arms. “A woman.”
Adam pointed at her. “Bingo. And I am willing to bet it’s that knockout redhead that had him sweeping the floor with his tongue at the Lark the night of Jonathan’s non-wedding party. Buck’s been weird ever since.”
Ian felt his jaw clench. If there was a disadvantage to having a close-knit family, it was the impossibility of hiding anything from them, even if they lived in different cities. Maybe he should FaceTime them less often.
He looked from one expectant face to the other, and, finally, he shrugged. They wouldn’t stop until they got it out of him, so he may as well fess up and get it over with. “Yeah, I liked her. She didn’t leave contact info, so I found her. And I thought …” He shrugged.
Jannie’s eyes turned sad. Given her crazy relationship with her ex-husband, who had knocked her up with twins and hadn’t returned to her but continued the booty calls, Ian wasn’t surprised that she’d be sympathetic.
“You flew here just to see her, and she blew you off?” Adam asked.
“More or less.”
“She only wanted a one-night stand, I take it?”
Ian grimaced. “She said she doesn’t want a long-distance relationship.”
Adam raised a brow. “I fail to see the problem.”
Was he kidding? “The distance between Fargo and Orlando is over 1,300 miles.”
Adam looked him in the eye. “So, close the distance.”
Ian just stared at him. Then, he looked at Jannie, whose face told him she was in complete agreement with Adam’s outrageous suggestion.
“You guys are serious.”
Jannie tipped her head. “Let me ask you this: how did she react when she saw you? Was she creeped out? Because, in all honesty, what you did was kind of stalkerish.”
The memory of Claire’s expression when she saw him made him smile.
Jannie’s answering smile was coy. “Wow, OK, I guess she didn’t think you’re creepy.
Then why don’t you move in with your pregnant sister for a while so that she won’t be all alone in that huge-ass house in her delicate condition and without help?
Maybe if your lady friend sees enough of your ugly mug, she’ll decide you’re not insufferable after all. ”
Ian almost snorted. Jannie was the last person he would ever consider delicate. However, she was pregnant with twins; he knew that wasn’t easy. And if she happened to have an emergency, it was true; she shouldn’t be in that big home by herself.
“I seem to recall a certain person advising me to go after what I want,” Adam said. “Same guy who said he wasn’t looking, then flew halfway across the country to go look.”
Damn. He hated how his older brother never forgot anything anyone said and always seemed to be right.
“Just how much do you like her?” Jannie quietly asked.
A lot.
Truth be told, he thought he’d hit the jackpot that night. He’d never experienced such a mind-and-body connection with any woman, ever.
He’d never met anyone like Claire Burns, and he doubted he ever would again. What he knew for sure was that every woman, from that night on, had failed to measure up.
“Well?” Adam asked.
Ian looked from Jannie to Adam. “I like her.”
“That’s how it starts.” Adam gave him a half-smile. “What’ll it be, man? Stay and fight, or tuck tail and leave without even shooting your shot?”
Well, put that way … He did have a ton of vacation time accumulated. He could also work from anywhere, if need be, and the thought of getting out of that stifling Fargo office for a while was quite appealing.
They were right. If he didn’t at least try, he’d always wonder.
Ian opened the hatch, feeling a smile spread across his face. He picked up his suiter and tossed it into the back, quickly followed by the duffel.
He punched the button again to close the door, feeling suddenly buoyant.
He had to grin in answer to his siblings’ beaming faces.
“You drive.” Jannie tossed him the key, and he caught it in one hand. “I feel like being chauffeured.”
“You got it.” His stomach growled, and Ian suddenly realized he was ravenous. “How about Mexican for a late lunch?”
Adam opened the rear door and somehow managed to fold himself into the back passenger seat. “You buying?”
“You’d better believe I am.”
Ian started the engine and grinned at the satisfying growl. Nothing sounded better than a V8 GTS.
Except, perhaps, Claire, when he got his hands and body on her again.