Page 23 of Bedding the Biker Next Door

She cocked her head to the side. “Why do you say that?”

“I looked out the window and saw him. Why do you think the giant is sad?”

She struggled with what to say. She could tell Stanley that Cole’s mother had died, which meant the man was grieving, but she didn’t think that’d be the best idea. She could also tell him the truth—that the giant had said some mean things and now he felt bad. “I’m not sure,” she said instead.

“Maybe you should go talk to him. If I was sad, you’d talk to me, right?”

“Of course I would. Are you sad?” Jill crouched and looked directly into Stanley’s brown eyes. He shook his head. “You’re sure? Because you know you can always talk to me.”

He looked at her and nodded. “You should talk to that man because he’s sad.” He whirled around. “I’m going to go play now.”

And just like that, he scuttled off to play Legos with the other kids in the living room. Jill envied his ability to just shake things off and continue as if nothing happened. If only she could do the same.

She thought about Stanley’s father, Jason, again—the way he always lingered for just a minute whenever he came to pick Stanley up. At times, she’d gotten the feeling that Jason had a crush on her. She ignored it, mostly because he gave her the creeps, but more than once, she’d seen someone lingering outside after hours and wondered if maybe it hadn’t been him. She didn’t have any reason to believe it was Jason. However, she had plenty of reason to believe Cole was sad. It had nothing to do with the way she’d blown him off earlier, though that probably hadn’t helped.

Worry and guilt, my two oldest friends.

She’d spent so much of her life feeling them. Guilt as she’d watched her father deteriorate from a vibrant young man to an addled invalid practically overnight. Worry that she couldn’t do enough for him or that he didn’t know how much she loved him. Worry that she’d be walking the same path as her father someday.

She glanced out the window at Stella’s house and wondered what Cole might be doing. Probably packing his mother’s things. Missing her. It was human nature to think you had forever to say the things that needed to be said to your loved ones. Or to do the things that needed to be done.

“You should talk to that man because he’s sad.”

Cole obviously felt bad for what he’d said to her and had apologized right away, immediately afterward and then again today. It made her heart ache, remembering the way he’d looked when she’d thrown his apology back in his face. If he was over there struggling with his grief and regret, it was partly because she’d made things harder for him.

And that was a thought she couldn’t bear.

Chapter Eight

Cole sat in the middle of the kitchen floor, watching the shadows dance across the wall as car headlights passed by. It was early evening, and the sun was going down. He’d made great headway by packing up his mother’s guestroom. Now he sat surrounded by a stack of cardboard boxes and tissue paper, wrapping up dishes and pans. He hadn’t ventured back into his mother’s bedroom, figuring he would leave that room for last along with the china hutch.

His thoughts kept turning to Jill.

Just let it go, Cole. She made it clear she wanted nothing else to do with him. He had to respect that. It just wasn’t what the universe wanted from them.

A knock on the front door pulled him out of his pity party. He pushed himself up off the floor. When he pulled open the door, he found Jill standing there, holding a Tupperware container and a bottle of wine.

“Hi,” she said.

“Hey,” he said, relief washing through him.

“I should probably still be mad about what you said last night—” She looked down at the food container.

“Are you?”

“A little. You really hurt my feelings, thinking I’d try to manipulate you with sex. That’s just not me, Cole. But I thought about it, and I figured it’s not your fault. I didn’t exactly give you much opportunity to know me first.”

He leaned heavily against the doorframe. “It was still stupid of me. I’m sorry.”

“Well, I decided to forgive you, but only because I’m craving conversation with someone who has been potty trained for at least a few years.” She smiled sweetly.

He stared at her for a long time. Something about her smile made his heart clench, and he sucked in a quick breath..

“Soooo…are you going to invite me in, or should I keep standing here?” she said.

“Oh, no, come on in.” He jumped back, clearing the doorway.

“Thanks. You’d be surprised how heavy Chicken Alfredo gets after a while.” Jill stepped in and looked around.

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