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"Put her down over here." Cindy's voice interrupted his thoughts, pulling his attention away from D.J.'s green eyes. Cindy pointed to an empty mat near the door, and Chris navigated a path through the sleeping bodies, then leaned down to deposit the girl on the floor. When he straightened, D.J. waited for him at the front door. |
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They said their good-byes, Cindy holding his hand a bit too long and standing a bit too close. When Chris glanced at D.J., uncomfortable with Cindy's not-too-subtle message, her mouth quirked up and her eyebrows followed suit. She'd gotten the message and it amused her. But by the time Chris followed D.J. out to the bike her momentary amusement had fled, and she'd regained her stiff posture and cool facade, the soft warmth he'd surprised upon her face now a thing of the past. |
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The trip back to his house took a few minutes. Chris slowed the bike to a stop next to D.J.'s pickup. She climbed off and handed him the helmet. |
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"Thanks for helping out," he said. "I'm afraid we didn't get much work done." |
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"That's all right. I enjoyed myself. I've never been around kids. They aren't so bad." |
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"No, they're not." He glanced up at the house, the shadows from the approaching dusk making the dwelling look even more lonely inside than he knew it to be. "I should at least offer you dinner. For your trouble." |
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D.J. had drawn her car keys out of her pocket and just fitted one into the lock on the driver's side door. She left the bunch of keys hanging in the lock as |
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