“What was that all about?” I asked. “Who’s Joss?”
Before he could answer, another tall, handsome man came bounding through the front door.
“Beautiful, sweet Rose,” he called as he caught her a few feet from her desk, twirling her around and dipping her as though they were on the floor of a ballroom dancing competition. “How are you, my gorgeous lady?”
Rose blushed, but her tone was stern when she said, “I told you to cut that out, Kirkland.”
“You’ve told me many things, my sweet Rose. But it seems you protest much too much.”
She slapped his arm, but it didn’t seem like there was much power behind it.
The man she called Kirkland spotted Donovan and me. He smiled brightly, practically prancing as he crossed the room.
“Donovan, my brother,” he said, slapping Donovan on the back. “How’s it hanging? And who is this exquisite creature?”
“Ignore him, Kate,” Donovan said. “He’ll eventually go away.”
“Like an annoying bug?”
“Exactly.”
“Oh, come on,” Kirkland said, settling in the chair that separated Donovan and I. “I’m Kirkland,” he said, offering me his hand. “Donny and I have been working together forever. Doesn’t that give me some cred?”
I couldn’t help but smile. And it didn’t hurt that he had one of the most charming smiles I’d ever seen. He reminded me of Matthew McConaughey. He had that sort of southern charm that was so hard to resist. But in the looks department he was more of a younger, taller version of Michael Ealy. Absolutely gorgeous.
Where did Ash find these guys?
“I’m Kate.”
His smile widened as he took my hand between both of his. “It’s a joy to meet you, Kate. How did you happen to meet our Donny here?”
“Kirk,” Donovan said in a tone that could only be described as a warning.
“She’s a client,” David said, rolling into the kitchen almost silently in his fiberglass wheelchair.
“A client?” Kirkland looked me up and down, then leaned close and whispered in my ear, “If this one can’t keep you safe, you’re more than welcome to come seek me out, darling.”
I giggled because it just seemed almost comical. “I will.”
“Good.”
Donovan stood and came around to my chair. “I think it’s time to move on now.”
But before we could even leave the kitchen, a tall, shapely blond came falling through the front door, her hand pressed to her head like she’d had a few too many last night.
“Can I help you?” Rose asked.
Kirkland jumped out of his chair, the charm gone from his smile.
“I got it, Rose.”
“I thought Ash told you about bringing your ladies home, Kirkland,” Rose said, disapproval very clear in her glare.
“I know, I know,” he said, taking the girl’s arm and turning her to the door, going back the way she’d just come.
“That happens a lot?” I asked.
“At least twice a week,” David said.
I watched them go through the windows, headed down a narrow trail that snaked around the left side of the house. I almost envied the girl who finally won Kirkland’s heart. He struck me as the kind of the man who would fall hard when he finally allowed himself to fall.
Donovan tugged my hand and led the way through the living room again.
“You should go rest,” Rose said.
“I was going to take her up to one of the spare rooms.”
“Ash said he wanted you to stay with her.” Rose glanced at me, again making me feel as though I was being assessed. Or judged. “You should go to your place. You’d be more comfortable there.”
Donovan nodded. “Okay. You’ll come get us if—”
“You know I will.”
***
Donovan’s house wasn’t even big enough to really call it a house. It was a box with a couple of windows, a door, and less than a thousand feet of living space. There was a small living room where he’d crammed a couch and a recliner in front of a flat-screen television, a kitchenette that was only big enough to hold a full-sized refrigerator, a two-burner stove, and a bar sink. The bedroom and bathroom were tucked into the back. There was a queen-sized bed and a small dresser in the bedroom that you could walk past if you turned sideways. The bathroom was the only truly spacious place in the house with both a shower and a separate tub, but even in there you had to really be conscious of the way you walked around or you’d slam your shin against a bit of porcelain.
“Take the bed,” Donovan practically ordered.
“It’s your bed.”
“I’ll sleep on the couch.”
The way he was looking at me, I knew there was no point in arguing, but some part of me really wanted to. I bit my tongue and settled on the edge of the bed, watching him shove the few discarded items of clothing that had been lying around in their proper places.
“Not as tidy as your bedroom back at your parents’ place.”
“Don’t have a compulsive maid following me around this place.”