A Wing and a Prayer by Christine Pope

Author:Christine Pope [Pope, Christine]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Dark Valentine Press

Interlude

Rain fell, and Beelzebub scowled at the streaks it made on his bedroom window. Wasn’t it supposed not to rain in Los Angeles?

If that was the case, then apparently someone hadn’t gotten the memo.

He closed the drapes and turned away from the window to see Rufus watching him, one ear cocked while the other drooped downward. The dog clearly hadn’t been happy to be abandoned for the evening, especially when Ben returned to the house smelling of other dogs and, no doubt, the chicken dinner he’d just consumed.

“Next time,” he said as he went to the closet and began to unbutton his vest.

Of course, that off-hand comment made him frown even more. It assumed that there would be a next time he dined at Jillian Torres’s house, and he wasn’t sure whether he wanted to commit to such a thing or not.

Not because she couldn’t cook. The meal had actually been excellent, if the fare simple. He’d been a little surprised by her expertise in the kitchen. Something about her overly casual mode of dress and off-hand manner had made him assume she didn’t have the sort of focus required to be a good cook, but his assumption had been wrong.

No, it was because….

He let the thought trail off because he wasn’t sure it was entirely wise to entertain it. Even as he tried to dismiss the ridiculous notion from his mind, however, it popped up again.

It was because he didn’t know whether he trusted himself around her.

Which he knew was ridiculous. So what if their fingers had accidentally touched when they both reached for the bottle of wine at the same time? It was such a trifling matter, he shouldn’t allow it to occupy any space in his mind. Unfortunately, the more he tried not to think about it, the more his mind wanted to dwell on that split-second of contact.

Something had passed through him as they touched. A thrill, a…a spasm. No, that was the wrong word. He just knew that this human body of his had reacted to her, and probably the best way to avoid a repeat of that unfortunate incident was to do whatever was necessary to avoid being alone with her.

That might be difficult. She did her best to act as if she could manage everything on her own — and he had to admit that the work she’d put into her house was impressive, if what she’d told him was true — and yet he couldn’t help thinking that she enjoyed having him help her with the puppies. Not in a way where she expected him to be there for her all the time, but rather that she’d feel somewhat let down if he didn’t occasionally pitch in.

The sad thing was, he rather enjoyed it as well. There was something about being around those small, helpless animals that moved him in a way he’d never expected. Oh, he could only imagine how Asmodeus would laugh at him if he ever confessed such a thing.

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