“Is this a place we want to go?” Sully asked.

She didn’t hesitate.

“Yes.”

“You sure you’re not confusing gratitude for something else?” he asked.

Melissa frowned. “I’ve been grateful to a whole lot of people in my life, but I never wanted to kiss them. However, if none of this plays into your plans, just say so. I’d like to think another man might love me some day, but I don’t need it to survive.”

Sully’s gut knotted. He wasn’t sure what had happened, but it felt like she’d just climbed back over that wall behind which she’d been living.

“Don’t, Missy. I wasn’t rejecting you. I was protecting myself. It’s hell to be attracted to someone who doesn’t share the same feelings.”

Melissa suddenly shivered. “Are you attracted to me?”

A slight smile shifted the contours of his face. “I guess I am. So how does that fit into your schedule?”

She grinned. “I can move some things around.”

He laughed. “There’s that sass, and thank you for making time for me. How does your day look tomorrow?”

“While you’re waiting on your researcher for new leads, I could use a ride tomorrow.”

“I happily volunteer,” Sully said, and grinned.

Melissa poked a finger against his chest. “Don’t make fun. The need is real. I have to get a new insurance card, so I can get my driver’s license replaced, so I can rent a car. They’ll take another picture when they replace my license. Just look at me! Women fret about their hair and makeup when they have to renew their license. I have a purple face.”

“As soon as the bruises fade, you can get the purple-face picture replaced. And since you’re in the business of washing and cleaning clothes, and I have clothes needing to be washed, how about I pick you up tomorrow. You take me to your laundry so I can drop off my stuff, and I’ll take you anywhere you need to go. And if some kissing and hugging happens between the two of us during the day, we’ll just enjoy the heck out of it.”

Melissa grinned. “I know a good deal when I hear one. I’m in.”

Sully laughed. “Awesome. Clean shirts and a hot babe in the seat beside me. What time do you want me to swing by?”

“Anywhere between eight and ten okay?”

“Yes,” he said.

“Thank you, Sully…so much.”

He brushed a kiss across her lips. “It’s all my pleasure,” he said, and then he was gone.

Melissa locked the front door and went back to the kitchen. It felt so good to do things for herself again that she put a load of laundry in to wash, cleaned the downstairs bathroom, and was sitting in the living room with her feet up when her doorbell rang. She saw Rachel’s car in the driveway, and Ruby’s car right behind it, as she hurried to the door.

“Hello, hello!” Ruby said.

“Evening, honey,” Rachel added. “Lead the way to the kitchen.”