"I thought the house was going to blow away."

He leaned against the counter and folded arms across his chest.

"I was beginning to wonder there for a little bit, too."

Was he actually frightened, or was he trying to make her feel better? If he had been afraid, he had given no indication. She released a heavy sigh.

"I'm glad you were here. I wouldn't have known what to do." Actually, her instincts before he arrived had apparently been correct.

He nodded, studying her thoughtfully. "I figured an L.A. born girl wouldn't have experienced anything like these storms. You don't have storms out there, do you?"

As if he didn't know. There was no point challenging him, though. Let him play his little games. As a matter of fact, right now she was glad Dad had sent him. She shrugged.

"We have storms, but nothing like this. Do you think there will be any more tonight? I heard a tornado never strikes twice in the same spot."

He chuckled. "That's lightning." He unfolded his arms and tossed some coffee into the boiling water. "But the truth is, there's nothing stopping either of them from striking in the same spot repeatedly. It isn't likely, though - for the simple reason that the odds of a tornado hitting any specific spot once are slim. You see houses a hundred years old standing in areas where tornadoes occur a number of times a year."

He found two cups and poured them some coffee.

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"It probably won't get this bad again tonight, but you can never be sure. Another cell could develop at any time and this could start again all over."

She shivered. "Gee, now I feel a lot better."

He chuckled. "I'll stay for a while longer if it will make you feel better."

"You're welcome to stay for a while, but don't feel obligated to do so because of me. I'm a big girl."

He sipped his coffee and a twinkle came into his eyes. "I noticed."

She could feel the color staining her cheeks again. What did he mean? Was he being sarcastic about the way she acted earlier, or was he referring to the feel of her body against his? Something about his expression led her to believe he was talking about the latter. At the time she had been too frightened to notice, but on reflection, being held in his arms wasn't all that unpleasant either. She blushed and changed the subject.

"I'd hate to live in this area. A few more storms like this and I'd have to buy a wig."

His eyes were soft in the candlelight as he surveyed her jumbled mass of curls. At some point it had broken its bounds and now cascaded down her shoulders and back.




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