Husband Next Door. Anne Ha

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СКАЧАТЬ “Boring? You think he’s boring?”

      “Shhh,” he placated. “It’s just something you should consider. Remember, I’m only trying to help.” He reviewed the list again, tapping his pen against the polished wood of her coffee table. “Come to think of it, maybe this bit about him traveling so much belongs on the other side….”

      Shelly snatched the pad from him and tore off the top sheet. Crumpling it in her fist, she stared at him through narrowed green eyes. “You don’t think I should marry him, do you?”

      He considered her question. “Actually, I wouldn’t go that far. I just believe you shouldn’t marry anyone but your soul mate. If Eric is that person, then by all means rush him to the altar.”

      “Soul mate?” Shelly echoed dubiously.

      “Sure.” His eyes gleamed. “The person with whom you feel an intense connection and an unmistakable feeling of rightness. Not to mention weak knees and a shiver in your stomach.”

      She swallowed. He was making fun of her. “Modern women don’t go weak in the knees,” she said tightly. She tossed the crumpled paper onto the table.

      Aaron wagged his finger at her. “You think it’ll never happen to you…. Ah, the confidence of youth.”

      “You’re not that old yourself.”

      He laced his fingers together. “No. But you have to admit, I’ve got lots of experience.” He said it with a wicked grin.

      Shelly made a face. “Yet you haven’t met your soul mate.”

      “Not this week,” Aaron agreed. “There was this greatlooking redhead the other day, though….”

      She stared at the ceiling and shook her head. The man was hopeless. He possessed equal measures of charm and fickleness, a combination that had broken more than one unwary female heart. But not hers, fortunately. On a regular basis Shelly thanked her stars that she and Aaron were next-door neighbors. Because of that fact she’d been able to observe him in action first—before she could become an unwitting victim.

      Aaron was still talking. “Speaking of which, do you happen to have any eggs?”

      She blinked. “You’ve lost me, Carpenter.”

      He stood and walked into the kitchen. “Eggs. I need some.” Rummaging sounds emanated from around the corner. “Here they are. Mind if I…?”

      “Wait a minute,” called Shelly. “What about Eric? What about my major decision?”

      She could almost see him shrugging as he said, “Oh, I’m sure you’ll be able to make the right choice…. Can I have these or not?”

      Resigning herself to the shift in conversation, Shelly got to her feet and joined Aaron in the kitchen. “All of them?”

      “You only have six.” He displayed the open carton.

      “Breakfast for an overnight guest?” she asked sweetly. “Well, you’ll have to make do with five. I need at least one for my own breakfast.”

      “Dinner for a nonovernight guest, actually.” Aaron reached into one of her cupboards for a glass mixing bowl. He put five eggs into the bowl and returned the last solitary egg to the refrigerator, tossing the empty carton into the trash.

      Shelly plucked it out of the garbage and carried it across the room to her recycling bin.

      Aaron didn’t notice. He pulled out the vegetable drawer and pawed around. “Can I have this purple cabbage, too, Shel?”

      “Take whatever you want. Goodness knows I won’t eat it.”

      He ignored her sarcasm. “Thanks. Just eggs and the cabbage, then. It’s time for you to go shopping, you know.”

      “Yeah,” she said dryly. “I can’t imagine where it all goes.”

      Aaron feigned embarrassment. “Tell you what,” he said. “I only need half of this cabbage, so I’ll leave the rest with you.” With easy movements he took a chopping knife from her drawer, cut the cabbage in two and covered both parts in plastic wrap.

      Shelly just stood and watched. “What in the world are you going to make with eggs and cabbage?”

      “Quiche,” he said, smiling.

      “Cabbage quiche? Ick. Your poor girlfriend. Why not just tell her you’ve lost interest in her?”

      He stared at Shelly in disbelief. “But that’s not very imaginative, is it? And this—” he held up the purple vegetable “—is so much more interesting.”

      “And infinitely more cruel. Have I met the lucky lady?”

      He stopped and gave her an earnest look. “Actually, there isn’t one.”

      “Right, Aaron.”

      “Well, not tonight at least. I’m only practicing. Come on, let’s take these to my place.” Aaron grabbed his half of the cabbage and strode out of the kitchen.

      Grumbling, Shelly picked up the bowl of eggs and followed him, almost bumping into his broad back when he stopped abruptly.

      Aaron turned to face the wall. He studied a framed black-and-white poster of two Parisian lovers kissing. It was the one romantic touch Shelly had allowed herself in her apartment, but under Aaron’s sudden scrutiny, it seemed much too sentimental.

      She shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “What is it? That poster’s been there for months, Aaron.”

      He tilted his head to stare at her. “You really haven’t noticed, have you?”

      “Noticed what?” she said defensively.

      “Nothing.” He headed for the front door again.

      “What’s wrong with my poster? You think it’s stupid?”

      “No, no, of course not. It’s very tasteful. Now, if the woman’s neckline were any lower it might be a bit risqué, but…”

      Shelly groaned and followed him out onto their shared stoop, waiting while he fished out his key ring.

      He paused after unlocking his door. “Are you coming in?”

      “Not if you’re having company.”

      Aaron took the bowl from her hands and set it on the sideboard just inside his door. He faced her. “Shelly, there’s no one in there.”

      She shivered in the damp air. “But there will be, and then there’ll be a scene. It’s the same story every time I run into one of your girlfriends. They think I’m competition and they get catty.”

      Aaron sighed. “Don’t tell me you’re still worked up about Marcia. That was ages ago.”

      She kept her mouth shut.

      “Look, СКАЧАТЬ