Page 23 of Down & Dirty (Holden Cove #1)
CHAPTER 23
SKYLAR
“ W hat’s that?” I asked as Cory and I got out of the car he’d hired to take us to the airport.
He gave me a half smile, laughing under his breath. “It’s a coat, Sky. Have you been in California so long you’ve forgotten they make these?”
“No, jerk. I know what a coat is. But that looks like a woman’s coat?” And it was the second one he had draped over his arm while the driver pulled the rest of our bags from the trunk. Even my earlier version of Cory, vain as it was, wouldn’t have needed two coats for a five-day trip.
Cory paused to hand the driver a tip and thank him before he turned back to me. “Did you bring a coat Sky?”
It was with tremendous restraint that I released a long breath, instead of letting my frustration get the better of me. It was too early in this trip to start fighting with him.
“Of course,” I said calmly, holding up the jacket in my hand.
He nodded, stepping up onto the sidewalk beside me. “Yes, I saw that. It’s a very nice fall jacket. Almost a shacket, if you will. Shirt, jacket combo.”
“I know what a shacket is.” I ground my teeth at the arrogance in his tone. And on his face. But even still, there was a playfulness in his eyes that kept my temper from truly building.
“Well, I hate to break it to you babe, but that thing isn’t going to cut it where we’re going. And since I don’t fancy a trip to the ER with you for hypothermia or frostbite, I figured I’d make sure you were properly equipped.”
He held the coat up by the shoulders, letting me see how nice it was. Thick cuffs at the sleeves, with little thumb loops. Dense down filling and a hood with faux-fur edging. The thing was long, as if he expected us to be going to the artic or something. But all my irritation quickly evaporated.
He’d brought me a coat.
“That was,” I looked down, a little embarrassed I hadn’t planned better. After packing for Micah’s trip with Tommy, I’d barely given a thought to the weather in Maine. I’d been too worried about making sure I had outfits that would look good on camera. And quite frankly bulky sweaters are hard to style. “That was very thoughtful of you. Thank you,” I finished, looking up at him apologetically.
He dropped the coat down and reached for me, cupping my cheek and tracing his thumb across my blush. “No worries. I just wanted you to be comfortable.”
It might have been in reference to the weather, but I got the sense he meant more than that. He was just as nervous about me coming home with him as I was. And I appreciated that too.
“I will be,” I reassured him, holding out my hands for the coat. He handed it over, a triumphant grin on his face as we gathered the rest of our things and headed for the entrance.
“There are gloves in the pockets,” he said coyly as the doors slid open.
I could only laugh. He thought he was so cute. And dammit, he was.