Suddenly in Love (Lake Haven#1) by Julia London Page B

tile as she hurried away from him, heard the front door open, heard it close behind her.
    Brennan remained seated, staring at the space where she’d just been. He couldn’t smell himself. But his hair did feel a little slick. He glanced down at his clothes, grabbed a fistful of his T-shirt, and bent over to have a sniff.
    God ,that was awful.
    Brennan tried to remember the last time he’d showered. Day before yesterday? Three days ago? Longer? Wow . He used to be fairly fastidious about hygiene. But since he’d slid into this dark hole . . .
    Crazy, stinky, and rude.
    A smile slowly spread across Brennan’s face. He could feel it cracking him open bit by bit, a screwdriver to the lid of a rusty old paint can. When was the last time someone was completely straight with him? Or someone didn’t have an agenda? The woman in the knit hat had made him smile.
    Yeah, he was going to go get something to eat, drive around a bit. But first, he was going to take a shower. He thought of Mia again, of how angry she’d been with him for looking at her sketches—which, admittedly, he deserved. That was rude.
    But then he thought of the knuckle-dragging ape she’d drawn and chuckled.

Seven
    Mia waited outside the gate so she wouldn’t have to chat it up with Drago while she waited for Wallace. Not that she minded talking to him—but today, her head was spinning around Brennan Yates. Mia had known a lot of summer people in her life, but she had never known one who was so disgusting and rude . . . and yet, could be so hot if he would clean up a bit. How did that happen, anyway? How did a man with privileges that most people only dreamed about end up looking like a street bum?
    Whatever the reason, Mia was done with the Ross house. She wasn’t coming back here. She didn’t feel at all comfortable with George of the Jungle hulking around in the shadows.
    She could hear a car coming up Juneberry Road, and stood up, expecting it to be Wallace. But a white Range Rover appeared and slowed as it reached Mia. A dark window rolled down. “Hey girl!” Nancy called out cheerfully, as if they were chums. She was wearing tennis togs and a sun visor, although Mia could have sworn she’d left Ross house this morning in a dress and sandals. “Are you finished so soon?”
    “Yes, ma’am. I just had to get a couple of pictures, that’s all.”
    Nancy’s smile faded. “What’s wrong?” she asked. “Something’s wrong, isn’t it? You look very unhappy.”
    “I do?” Mia asked, surprised.
    “Terribly,” Nancy said, nodding. “I hope none of the workers or Drago—”
    “No, no,” Mia said quickly. The workers she’d encountered the last few days had all been very polite to her, and Drago had never been anything but completely respectful. “It wasn’t any of them.”
    “Then who was it?” Nancy asked, her gaze narrowing.
    Oh, Mia was so stupid. Why hadn’t she just said no? “Ummm . . .” She glanced back at the house. She might as well say it. Might as well put it out there so Nancy would understand when she didn’t come back. She winced a little as she turned to Nancy and said, “I hate to say it, but I had a little run-in with your son.”
    “Oh Lord ,” Nancy said, and suddenly dropped her head to the steering wheel. She sat up again. “You know, I should have told you he was passing through. My bad,” she said, patting her chest. “I didn’t think he’d be here this long, you know? He never stays so long. But . . . well, just between us girls . . .” She paused and looked through the gates at the house.
    Mia did, too, if only to assure herself Crazypants hadn’t walked up and heard her.
    “He’s not himself,” she whispered very loudly. “He didn’t say anything, did he?”
    “Say anything?”
    “About . . . anything,” Nancy said vaguely and dramatically, as if he were hiding a body up there. Nothing would surprise Mia at this point.
    He’d said a lot—but not about anything that Mia