Something to Talk About. Joanne Rock

      As he neared her, she became aware of his presence and lowered her chin as if to keep her conversation private. He hadn’t meant to intrude on a talk he had no business hearing.

      Which made him wonder who she might be talking to. He’d never considered there might be someone else in her life. Someone she’d turned to after her husband’s death…

      And now he felt like a real jerk for barging into her personal life. He had backed up a step to leave when she pressed the off button on her phone and looked him in the eye.

      “I’m sorry if I intruded—” he started.

      Then he saw the expression on her face. The tense brow, the widened eyes, the skin paler than it should be.

      “What is it?” He stepped closer now, automatically concerned by anything that would upset her. Their attraction aside, she seemed like a nice lady who’d been through too much.

      He watched her tuck her phone into a pocket of her long skirt. She was back to work clothes today, a simple yellow blouse tucked into a red skirt with yellow tulips around the hem.

      “It’s nothing.” She shook her head. Attempted a smile that wasn’t one bit successful. “Some updates from my old neighborhood. I guess I was feeling a little homesick.”

      He gauged her tone and suspected there was some truth in the statement. He also suspected there was more to it that she wasn’t telling him. Not that he had any right to know her personal business. He told himself to back off, even as he gestured toward the path ahead so that he could walk with her wherever she was headed.

      “You’re a long way from the west coast.” He could almost feel his grandfather’s eyes boring into his back as he headed away from the training yard.

      No doubt Hugh Preston would assume Amanda had been the woman distracting Robbie today. And while that would be correct, Robbie hadn’t made up his mind to do anything about it yet. And having his grandfather pushing them together or asking her pointed questions could make the work environment damned uncomfortable.

      He had enough on his mind with his family’s vote of no-confidence on the head trainer job. He didn’t need to add complications to a personal life he’d done a poor job of managing.

      “We lived north of L.A., but I was born and raised in Orange County. I was surfing by the time I was four.” She seemed grateful for the change in topic and he was relieved to see the color return to her cheeks.