“Nutty as a fruitcake,” he mutters, but his lips are definitely tipped upward as he turns back to the ocean.
And because he’s at least listening, I do tell him the truth. “Actually, we broke up a long time ago, but he just can’t stop being an asshole around me. I mean, I caught him cheating with that tramp, yet he has the gall to be pissed at me for breaking up with him. How’s that not the definition of insanity?”
Kyle doesn’t respond for a moment, but then he says in a low tone, “I imagine his insanity is in the fact he cheated on someone like you with that tramp.”
And wow… just wow. That was really nice. And sweet. His voice was all kinds of sexy with that deep rumble, and it really sounded like he meant it.
I want to hear more, so I prod him. “You can’t say that. I mean… you don’t really know me or anything.”
“Know enough,” is all he says, which does nothing to continue to stroke my bruised ego.
“Well, I know absolutely nothing about you,” I say, taking the opening that he just gave me. “Except that you were born in Maryland.”
To my immense surprise, he asks, “What do you want to know?”
“Are you married?”
“Nope.”
“Ever been married?”
“Nope.”
“Do you speak in more than one-word sentences?”
“Sometimes.”
I giggle and then ask, “Okay, serious question… how old are you?”
“Thirty-four,” he says, and then actually extends his sentence. “How old are you?”
“Twenty-six,” I tell him, pleased he’s interested in something about me personally. “I’ll be twenty-seven in November.”
“A babe,” he says gruffly.
“Not really,” I disagree with him primly. “I know things.”
For the first time, Kyle gives me a genuine smile as he turns to me and asks, “Oh, yeah? Like what?”
“Hmm,” I ponder thoughtfully, tapping my index finger against my chin. “Well, you’re a very interesting guy. You’re dark and mysterious. Reclusive yet very intriguing. I’d say you’ve got a haunted past, and I’m kind of drawn to that.”
Kyle’s eyes burn into mine. “Why would you ever be drawn to that?”
I shrug. “Because I want good things for good people, I guess.”
“You want to try to fix me?” he asks blandly.
“Maybe,” I say with a grin. “Can I borrow your tools?”
The minute those words are out of my mouth, my face flames red at the innuendo I just innocently uttered. “Oh, shit… I didn’t mean anything dirty by that. I mean… well, you have tools. You used them to shut off the water. I was talking about those types of tools, not like… your tool. And oh, God… I’m going to die right now from embarrassment.”
I must be positively adorable in my embarrassment because Kyle just shakes his head with a smirk on his face, and we lapse back into silence for a while.
I finish my beer and open another, because I’ve made real progress here tonight. He does the same.
The sun, which is behind us in the west, fully sets. Our view of the ocean gradually declines until we see only a faint glimmer along the water every time the light in the tower spins to alert boats of the jetty.
It’s nice. Maybe a bit awkward since I like conversation, but I can’t think of another place I’d want to be right now.
“Jane?” Kyle says quietly, and I let my head roll to the right to look at him. “Just so you know, I can’t be fixed. So don’t even go there, okay?”
“Okay,” I murmur to reassure him of my good intentions, but now I’m committed more than ever to figuring out this mysterious man.
CHAPTER 9
Kyle
My shoulders burn and ache, but still I go harder, running the sanding paper briskly over the last picket on the fence that borders the walkway from my cottage to the lighthouse. The fence needs a new coat of paint. I could have taken the easy way out and just painted over the existing paint. It was in fairly good shape, but it definitely needed freshened up. But because I’m bored and feeling like a slug, I decided to sand the entire thing down by hand first. I could have also taken the easy way out and rented an electric sander from Chib at the hardware store, but it felt like a day where I should do something to expend all this excess energy I have.
I’m feeling restless from being cooped up for the few winter months I experienced here.
Anxious over the fact I’ve got a few more months left of hiding out. The days seem to go by slower than ever.