In the parking lot they belted Tadd and Penny into the back seat of the Jeep Grand Cherokee, which he’d borrowed from the local branch office of Triple M Transit. It was convenient being one-third owner of a business that provided service over most of Alaska. Whenever he visited from his home on the Kenai Peninsula, he was able to have his own ground transportation in Fairbanks.
He’d reached to open the passenger door when Jodie shifted her feet uncomfortably. “Uh, Donovan?”
His hand dropped. “Yes?” he asked cautiously.
“About what happened at the terminal…?”
“Yes?”
“I was just trying to be spontaneous. And I thought you were Cole, so I thought a kiss would be an icebreaker.” Jodie stopped, deciding her explanation was just making matters worse.
“You don’t want me to tell Cole, is that it?”
She gave him an annoyed look. “That isn’t ‘it’ at all. I just didn’t want you thinking I went around like that, kissing strange men.”
“Boy, that hurts.”
He sounded serious and she frowned. “What hurts?”
“I may be frustrated some of the time, but I’m not strange.”
Irritation tensed her jaw. “You know perfectly well what I meant.”
His golden-brown eyes laughed at her. “Your secret is safe with me.”
Jodie’s fingers tightened on the strap of her purse. It wouldn’t be civilized to hit him over the head with it, but she was tempted. “Would you stop…It’s not a secret.”
“You worry too much. It’s no big deal. And I’m to blame—I should have said something when Penny ran up calling me ‘Daddy.”’ He opened the door and bowed, sweeping his arm down and around in a grandiose gesture. “I bet my mother is planning a great dinner to welcome you to Alaska, so we’d better head out.”
Still glaring, Jodie hiked her slim-cut skirt up a couple of inches and climbed into the high seat of the vehicle. She should have worn slacks for the flight, but feminine vanity had won out over common sense.
It’s no big deal.
In all honesty, she wasn’t so upset about the teasing, it was the way he’d brushed off their kiss. Her lips still tingled from the brief contact with Donovan’s mouth, but he said it wasn’t a big deal.
Jodie drew a deep, calming breath into her lungs. She needed to get a grip. Women invested too much meaning into things like kisses. Men were better off without the kind of feminine second-guessing she went through.
Like now.
She twisted in the bucket seat of the vehicle, wishing life was a little simpler. It had seemed simple, coming to Alaska. She could get her children away from the stifling life on an air force base, give them a father and build a new life in a place she’d loved as a child.
Simple.
Until she’d mistakenly kissed her fiancé’s brother and gotten more confused than she’d felt in a long time.
Jodie looked around with restless energy. Donovan stood just outside the driver’s door, talking on a cell phone. She surreptitiously studied him, trying to understand the reasons he’d affected her so strongly. Anticipation? Perhaps that was the answer. For weeks she’d anticipated meeting Cole, hoping they’d like each other in person as much as they’d liked each other in their letters. The kiss was just a culmination of all that expectation and hopeful thinking.
Donovan punched a button, then dialed another number into the phone. He said a few words, waited, then said something else, his mouth tight with apparent irritation. After a long moment he nodded and opened the door.
“It’s Cole. He wanted me to call once you got here,” he said, handing over the phone.
Jodie swallowed and took the cell phone. Ah, the miracles of modern life. A man could take off for a climb on Mount McKinley and still apologize to the woman he’d promised to meet.
“Hello?” she murmured into the receiver.
“God, Jodie, I’m so sorry,” Cole exclaimed, his voice eerily similar to his brother’s. “I didn’t mean for this to happen, I swear. But they would have been forced to cancel the expedition if I didn’t go.”
She bit her tongue, literally, not wanting to say something she’d regret.
“You there, Jodie?”
“Yes. I understand this was the opportunity of a lifetime,” she murmured, congratulating herself on her steady tone. “I’m glad you were able to join the climb.”
“That’s great of you. I’ve go—”
Static crackled the line and she waited, wondering what else needed to be said. “Cole?”
“Sorry. This damn phone doesn’t get good reception up here, and it’ll be worse the higher up we go. I can’t talk long, but how did the kids take the trip? It’s a long way from Florida.”
“They’re fine. We stopped over in Denver for a couple of days.”
“That’s why I couldn’t reach you. Well…” His voice trailed and she could hear the sound of impatient voices in the background.
“You’d better go. We’ll talk when you get back,” Jodie said.
“Okay.” Another crackle of static followed, then silence.
She handed the phone to Donovan, who slipped it into his shirt pocket. “Did Cole straighten everything out?”
“What’s to straighten out?” she asked evenly.
“You know what I mean.”
Yeah, she knew. Donovan might be easygoing and laid-back the way Cole had described, but nothing seemed to escape his notice. Donovan realized she was upset that Cole had left, and that she was upset because she ought to understand his dream of climbing Mount McKinley. And she did understand, except now she had to question all over again whether Cole was the right man for her to marry. Men who craved dangerous challenges didn’t make ideal husbands.
“I think this is something between Cole and me,” she said firmly. It didn’t do any good to avoid Donovan’s knowing gaze, so she met it squarely.
“Fine.” Donovan started the engine and drove out of the lot.
Jodie glanced into the rear seat. Tadd and Penny were gazing around, curiosity in their eyes. Despite the turmoil in her thoughts, Jodie smiled at the way Tadd held his sister’s hand in a protective grasp.
It had always been that way. Since the moment Penny was born, her brother had assumed the role of protector. Though hardly old enough to understand, he’d realized she was small and defenseless. For an instant her smile wavered. She’d been pregnant with Penny and had almost lost her in those terrible months after Mark died.
“Hey. It’s not so terrible,” Donovan murmured, watching her face. “I’m sure Tadd will decide that a mountain climber is almost as good as a pilot.”
Jodie stiffened. She knew Donovan was just teasing her again. He didn’t know her husband had been killed in a plane, so he couldn’t understand how she felt. How could he? He was a pilot, just like Mark. And if Mark had survived that damned crash, he would have climbed aboard another jet as soon as he was able.
“Jodie?” Donovan’s teasing smile faded into concern. “I didn’t mean to say anything to upset you. Honest, you can’t take me seriously. I joke around too much.”
“Don’t be silly. I’m sorry Tadd was rude,” she said quietly, still keeping one eye on the