The Elephant Gate

Once they hit the busy roads, the drive was relatively quiet as Rose concentrated on moving her behemoth through the narrow streets of Colonial Village back to his Georgtown home. She appeared to like contemporary jazz, which was not his thing, but the hum of the truck tires and the piano notes combined into a soothing background, and he found himself dozing off again.

He woke up when they reached his home and she turned off the diesel engine. He gave her an inquiring look, and she shrugged.

"Anne told me under no circ.u.mstances should I allow you to stay awake. Therefore, I have been charged with making sure you shower and go to bed."

She smiled and a tiny dimple flashed. "So I have to do my duty. Come on." With that she got out of her pickup, and opened the rear door to retrieve his things from the hospital.

"Are your keys in one of these bags?"

He was just closing the passenger door, and felt around in the pockets of his jacket. He pulled out a small key chain with an elephant charm and jingled them.

"I've got them right here. And you don't really need to come and babysit me. I'm fine on my own."

The grumpiness in his voice elicited a snort out of her, and it was clear that he had had run-ins with his boss before.

She shook her head, and the red highlights flashed in the morning sun. He was entranced but mentally shook himself, even as his mind entered perilous territory. It wasn't ever a good idea to even think about an involvement with someone you were working with. Still, she intrigued him on many levels, and he found he didn't want her to leave just yet.

Rose thought that this man became even more attractive when his forehead smoothed and the frown lines disappeared. It didn't help that the day-old stubble gave him a slightly dangerous air.

She decided it would be best to leave before her hormones got any more spun up. His voice brought her up short.

"Come on in."

Instead of leaving, she followed him up the flight of stairs to the front door.

Kevin Hunter lived in a recent c.o.n.d.o.minium/townhouse development in Falls Church. The heavy wooden door was painted a dark red, almost the color of her truck, with a frosted transom window. He unlocked the door and step back to allow Rose to enter first.

Beige walls, beige carpet, and white trim greeted her. But the pecan wood tones of various tables, and a sage sectional couch drew the eye to the center of the room.

"Come on upstairs to the kitchen." The second story was similar, with an L-shaped kitchen of white cabinets and appliances. Here the dominant color was cobalt, with a series of blue pendant lights over the breakfast bar. Blue and green woven place mats and other colorful items were scattered around the counter-tops. The only appliances were a large coffeemaker and a convection/microwave unit, both in blue.

The stove was gas / electric combination and immaculate, and Rose was amused. "I guess you don't cook much. Your décor taste is very nice."

He grunted. "That's my mom. I let her plan this floor. It made her happy." Rose inwardly smiled. So he was a momma's boy. Still, it looked warm and inviting.

He bustled around the peninsula, grabbing a couple of large coffee mugs. "Tea or coffee?"

Rose couldn't resist a dig. "Did your mom purchase the coffee?" She got a quick glare before he growled, "Coffee it is, then."

At her laugh, he turned and stared. It seemed too big for such a small frame. She saw his face and quickly sobered, but the merriment still danced in her eyes.

"Coffee would be lovely, thank you."