“Course.” Josh nodded vigorously. For the first time since they’d picked him up, Josh smiled as he leaned back on his twin bed and immediately clicked the remote control to a different channel and one of his favorite sitcoms.

Blue, eyeing Luke suspiciously, slunk into the room and after circling a couple of times settled on the rug beside Josh’s bed. Resting his graying muzzle on his paws, he glared up at Luke as if he were the devil incarnate.

“You be good,” Katie warned the old dog and he managed one thump of his tail. She turned her attention back to Josh. “Now, kid, is there anything else you need? How about something to eat?”

Josh’s dark eyes sparkled. Already he was getting used to being waited on. “Pizza?”

“Tomorrow, maybe. If we get the car back.”

“Papa Luigi’s delivers.”

“As I said, tomorrow.” She winked at her son. “Right now, I think I’d better scrounge something up from the refrigerator.”

He pulled a long face, which she ignored. “How about you?” she asked Luke. “I’m going to whip up some sandwiches if you’re interested.”

“You don’t have to—”

“Of course I don’t. But I do feel like I owe you.” He hesitated, then lifted a shoulder as they stepped into the hallway where the door to Katie’s room was half open, almost inviting. Inside, a Tiffany lamp burned at a low wattage, reflecting on the windows and spreading a warm pool of light over the lacy duvet and the pink and rose-colored pillows that were piled loosely against the headboard of her bed. The decor was outrageously feminine, with antiques, scatter rugs and frills. Oddly, she was embarrassed that he was looking into her private sanctuary where she worked on her columns, worried over Josh, and dreamed about her career; a room where no man had ever dared sleep. She felt her heart pound a little and when Luke’s eyes found hers again, she realized she was blushing.

“So, how about ham or turkey on white bread?” she asked blithely, as if men looked into her bedroom every day of the week.

“Sounds great.”

“Good.” She walked briskly away from her room and, once she and Luke were in the kitchen, she let out her breath again. Why seeing him so close to her most private spot in the world disquieted her, she didn’t know; didn’t want to know. But there was no doubt about it—this easygoing Texan put her on edge.

He looked awkward and big and out of place in her kitchen. “I’ll make the ice bag the doctor ordered,” he offered, as if he, too, needed something to do. “Just point me in the right direction.”