Solitary Man(28)
Author: Carly Phillips

Though she didn’t like putting him off, she figured she was allowed thinking time before verbally committing to a life-altering decision. Besides, he couldn’t be in that big a rush to make a commitment he’d avoided making before.

With scissors in hand, she headed outside. A spring breeze rippled through the air and after being cooped up for so long, the fresh outdoors felt good. Half an hour later, she’d cut her flowers and weeded a small area in the back, all without overexerting herself. Well, not too much. But the sense of exhilaration she got from good old-fashioned yard work and the hour in the sun had done wonders for her mood. The blood was pumping through her veins in a healthy way she hadn’t experienced in too long.

She headed back around front. After placing the flowers in strategic rooms around the house, she’d do the smart thing and kick her feet up for awhile. At the same time she hit the bluestone path, an unfamiliar truck pulled into the driveway.

She didn’t recognize the make or model, and Kevin hadn’t mentioned anyone coming to do work in the house. She glanced down at her dirty shirt, grass-stained knees and mud-caked hands and cringed. If she was lucky, this was a repairman Kevin had forgotten to mention, not a friend or neighbor upon whom she’d want to make a good first impression. Nothing she could do about it regardless, so she took a deep breath and walked to the driveway.

From the minute she saw her visitor up close, she knew that the man was Kevin’s father. The differences were as striking as the similarities. Same dark hair, same haunting black eyes, and same handsome features. But the older man’s looks had dimmed over the years, due less to age, Nikki suspected, than hard, unhappy living. The lines in his face, and circles and puffy bags under his eyes were glaring, as was the paunch in his stomach. Yet she found herself wanting this man to like her because he was Kevin’s father.

“Hi.” She wiped her hands on her leggings—leggings she’d begun wearing because the elastic felt better than the tight jeans. Apparently nature had taken over sooner than she’d thought. “Nikki Welles.” She held her hand out in greeting.

“Hey there.” He accepted her hand. He also looked her over from head to toe. “Max Manning. Do I have the wrong house? My boy didn’t mention any female roommates or girlfriends or anything.”

She shook her head. “This is Kevin’s house.” She didn’t know whether to be insulted he hadn’t told his father about their situation or relieved she’d been granted a reprieve. “We’re…” She decided to leave the explanations alone for now. “Kevin should be home from work soon. Did he know you were coming by?”

He shook his head. “I wanted to surprise him. He hasn’t invited his old man over and I wanted to see what he’s done with my sister’s house.”

Obviously the relationship wasn’t a close one, which Nikki had already surmised from the lack of discussion or contact between the two men since she’d moved in. “Would you like to come in and wait for him?”

She didn’t want to be rude, but she was curious about this man whom Kevin didn’t talk about.

“Don’t mind if I do.”

She nodded and led the way inside, wondering what Kevin’s reaction would be to finding his father here. She hoped she wasn’t inviting trouble, yet she could hardly leave the man waiting on the street.

“Why don’t you have a seat. Can I get you something to…” Nikki swallowed the rest recalling Kevin’s description of his father, though he seemed perfectly sober now. Besides, she couldn’t remember seeing alcohol of any kind in the kitchen. “Can I get you anything?” she asked.

“Just water would be fine.”

“Sure thing. Make yourself comfortable and I’ll be right back.” Nikki headed into the kitchen, poured water from a pitcher she kept in the refrigerator, and filled a bowl with sour cream and onion chips from the pantry.

The phone rang and she grabbed it, pleased to find Janine on the other end. She spared a worried glance at the den, then decided his father would understand if she took a few minutes to take a long distance phone call.

But Janine was full of information and a few minutes turned into ten. Nikki returned to the den to find it empty. She placed the glass and bowl of chips down on the table and shrugged. He said he’d come to take a look around, so he couldn’t have gone far. Minutes later, she heard footsteps on the stairs leading to the basement. The door opened wide and Max Manning stepped through. “Just wanted to check out the basement. See if my sister hung onto anything of interest.”

Nikki narrowed her gaze. As far as she knew, the only things in the basement were mousetraps and a… wine cellar. Damn. She studied him carefully but he looked no worse for his short visit downstairs. Perhaps she was being paranoid. Maybe there was no liquor in the basement and even if there was, how much trouble could he get into in ten minutes?

“I brought you the water and some chips.”

“Thanks.” He sat down on the couch and Nikki settled herself into her recliner. “So tell me what your relationship is to my boy.”

She raised an eyebrow. “You don’t beat around the bush, do you?” she asked.

“Can’t see any point in that.”

“Okay… we’re… good friends.” She hoped her nose didn’t start to grow. Lately she and Kevin hadn’t shared much in the way of heart-to-heart talks, so she couldn’t really classify them as friends anymore. Though that was another thing she hoped to change.

The older man’s snort told her she’d been found out. “I’ve been around the block long enough. Try again and let’s see if I believe you.” He grinned, letting her know he meant no harm, but intended to get an answer.

The sound of a key in the lock saved her from having to answer. Kevin, she thought, and held her breath, not knowing what kind of reaction to expect.

Max’s eyes darted toward the door. When Nikki heard the slam, she knew he’d entered the house.

“So you didn’t answer. What’s your relationship to my son? Girlfriend? Roommate? Lover?”

A heated blush rose to her cheeks.

“Lay off her, Max.” Kevin turned the corner into the family room. His gaze darted from Max to Nikki, to the table with refreshments, and back to Max again. “And tell me what the hell you’re doing here.”

She sucked in a deep breath and steeled herself for what lay ahead. Max had obviously timed his question to coincide with Kevin’s entry and she understood Kevin’s gut reaction to the crass question. What she didn’t understand was why Max had chosen to act out, when he’d been at least diplomatic up until now.