Fortunately, Paige had preloaded the coffeemaker the night before. All he’d had to do was push a single button. A good thing. For all his medical training and ability in the operating room, he was forever confounded by simple kitchen appliances. While in New Zealand a few years back, he’d nearly set his rental house on fire by trying to broil steaks.
He crossed to the refrigerator to get milk for his coffee. There was a carton in the door, but what caught his attention were the stacks of food, all neatly labeled. There were salads and casseroles, sandwiches and soups. In the freezer were even more containers.
Paige had been telling the truth about the generosity of her neighbors. Not that he’d assumed she was lying, but seeing for himself what had been delivered was overwhelming. While he knew the help had been as much for her as for him, he was still surprised that so many would pitch in for a man they’d never met.
His friend Simon had come to Fool’s Gold the previous summer for a few weeks. Like every other assignment, this one was to be temporary. But something had happened during his stay. Not only had he fallen in love with Montana, he’d found a place to belong. During their brief conversations, Simon had made the town sound like a paradise. A close-knit community where neighbors took care of each other.
Alistair had assumed his friend was exaggerating. Now, as he closed the refrigerator door, he wondered if Simon had been telling the truth. If so, he understood the appeal. This was the sort of community that he was meant to return to. A home. Something he hadn’t allowed himself to consider since the death of his child.
Foolish, he knew. Depriving himself wouldn’t return her. His baby girl was lost forever. Time had healed the raw edges of his wound, but it would always be with him.
The back door opened and a pretty, petite redhead walked into the kitchen.
“Hi. I know it’s early, but I saw the lights on and—” The woman stared at him, blinking. “You’re not Paige.”
“I am not.”
“Eek.” She took a step back. “You’re the sick British guy, right? Because if you were a strangler or a thief, you wouldn’t have stopped for coffee. At least, I hope you wouldn’t.”
“If by sick you mean ill, then that is me.” He held out his hand. “Alistair Woodbury.”
She hesitated, then shook his hand. “Annabelle Weiss. I’m a friend of Paige’s.” She held out a couple of books. “Paige called me yesterday and said you were feeling better. She asked me to bring by a couple of books for you to read.” She shrugged. “Paige said you were at that awkward stage. Healed enough to get bored, but not so filled with energy that you could do much of anything.”
An unexpected kindness, he thought. Not only Paige for asking but her friend for being so obliging. “Thank you so much for taking the time to drop these off.”
“You’re welcome. One is a history of the area. It’s interesting.” She smiled. “I have a minor in Maá-zib studies, so I’m biased. They’re the women who first settled here. A matriarchal society. Very powerful. Fool’s Gold is still matriarchal, just so you know.”
“You’re saying I should watch myself?”
“Exactly.”
“I will make sure these books are returned to you.”
Annabelle shook her head. “Not to me. To the library. I work there.”
She was shapely with eyes that teased and a very attractive smile. “You don’t look like the librarians I remember,” he told her.
“We’ve changed. There was a whole press release issued about it, but we didn’t get much media coverage.”
He stared at her. “You’re teasing me.”
“Just a little.”
Paige teased him. He had to say the women in this town were intriguing. Although his interest in Annabelle was merely academic, while his interest in Paige was designed to get him into trouble.
Annabelle glanced at her watch. “I need to get going. I’m meeting my friends for breakfast. Heidi gets up before God to milk her goats and Charlie likes to eat before going to the gym.” Annabelle wrinkled her nose. “She works out every day. What’s up with that?”
“People are odd creatures.”
“You got that right. Okay. It was nice to meet you.”
“You, too.”
With that, Annabelle turned and left.
Alistair carried the books to the table and sat down. The first was a novel—a thriller by an author he enjoyed. The second book was, as promised, a history of the area, with an emphasis on the Maá-zib tribe. He leaned back and started to read.
Some time later, he heard footsteps on the stairs. Paige walked into the kitchen.
He would guess she hadn’t been awake long. Her skin was still flushed from sleep and her eyes were slightly unfocused. With her long blond hair hanging down loose and her feet bare, she’d shifted from healing angel to sexy temptress.
Her jeans and T-shirt shouldn’t have been appealing, yet he found himself mesmerized by the way the denim cupped her curves and the soft, worn T-shirt was tight across her chest.
“Morning,” she said, sounding sleepy. “Sorry. I’m not a morning person. Give me a cup of coffee and fifteen minutes and I’ll be human.”
She reached for the coffeemaker, but he beat her to it and poured.