But she wasnt going to be chased away by the yappy little pom-pom queen. And she wasnt going to be frightened off by some hell-bent sorcerer.

They had a lot in common as far as she was concerned. They were both riddled with petty jealousy that lashed out and caused pain.

Jealousy, she thought, pursing her lips. It was, in a way, the opposite of love. As lies were to truth, as cowardice to valor, and so on. Another angle, she decided, and detoured to grab a copy of Othello, the king of stories on jealousy.

As she carted her load to checkout, Dana worked up a smile for one of the women shed worked with for years. She dumped the books on the counter, dug out her card. “Hi, Annie. Hows it going?”

“Good. Fine.” In an exaggerated motion, Annie slid her gaze to the right and cleared her throat.

Following the direction, Dana spotted Sandi, arms crossed, lips tight, watching. “Oh, for Christs sake,” Dana said under her breath.

“Sorry, Dana. Sorry about everything.” Keeping her voice low, Annie scanned the books, stacked them.

“Dont worry about it.” After jamming her card back in her purse, Dana scooped up her armload of books. She sent Sandi a wide, wide smile and walked out.

* * *

ONE of the perks of having a mature adult relationship with a woman, to Flynns mind, was coming home from work and finding her.

The smell of her, the look of her, the simple presence of her, made everything just a little clearer.

And when that woman, that pretty, sexy, fascinating woman, was cooking, it added just one more delight to the day.

He didnt know what she had going on the stove, and he didnt care. It was more than enough to see her, stirring something in a pot while Moe sprawled under the table, snoring like a freight train.

His life, Flynn thought, had found its true rhythm when Malory Price had walked into it.

He stepped up behind her, wrapped his arms around her waist, and pressed his lips to the side of her neck. “Youre the best thing that ever happened to me.”

“I certainly am.” She turned her head so she could meet his lips with hers. “How are things?”

“Things are good.” He nudged her around for a longer, more satisfying kiss. “And better now. You didnt have to cook, Mal. I know you were working all day.”

“I just punched up some jarred spaghetti sauce.”

“Still, you dont.” He took her hands, then frowned as he turned them over. “Whats this?”

“Just some blisters. Im telling myself theyre good for me. Shows Im pulling my weight.”

He kissed them. “You know, if youd wait for the weekend, I could give you a hand with the place.”

“We really want to do it ourselves, at least start on it ourselves. Ive got a few blisters and pretty much ruined a pair of jeans, but we have the most beautifully painted porch in the Valley. I wouldnt complain if you poured me a glass of wine, though.”

He got out a bottle and two of the wineglasses shed bought. It seemed to him there were more glasses in the cabinet than there had been the last time hed looked.

She was always slipping things in.

Glasses, fluffy towels, fancy soaps that he hesitated to actually use. It was one of the oddities and interests of having a woman around the house.

“Jordan told me what happened with Dana.”

“I thought he would.” Though it wasnt quite dark, she lit the long oval candle shed picked up for the table. “We both know how horrible it must have been for her. I know how much you love her, Flynn. I love her too. But we cant shield her from this as much as we can just be there for her.”

“Maybe not, but Jordan had an idea that might do a little of both.”

He poured the wine, told her about using Moe.

“Its brilliant,” Malory decided, then laughed down at the still snoring Moe. “Shell certainly agree to it, and if nothing else, she wont feel so alone at night.” After a sip of wine, she moved to the sink to fill a pot with water for the pasta. “I suppose Jordan told you theyre going out Saturday night?”

Hed been staring at the candle, thinking how odd it was to see it flickering away on the ancient picnic table he used in the kitchen. “Whos going out?” As it hit him, Flynn swallowed wine in one hard gulp. “Jordan and Dana? Going… out?”

“So he didnt tell you.”

“No, it didnt come up.”

“And,” she concluded as she set the pot on the stove, “youre not too keen on the idea.”

“I dont know. I dont want to get into it. Damn it, I dont want them messing each other up again.” Knowing that Jordan was working upstairs, Flynn glanced at the ceiling. “Its the person who ends up in the middle, and that would be me, who gets his ass kicked from both sides.”

“She still loves him.”

“Loves who?” Shock jumped into his eyes. “Loves him? Jordan? She loves him? Shit. Shit! Why do you tell me these things?”

“Because thats what people in love do, Flynn.” She got three woven place mats from a drawer he wasnt sure hed known was there and set them neatly on the table. “They tell each other things. And I dont expect you to go running to Jordan with this information.”

“Man.” Pacing now, he shoved a hand through his hair. “See, if you didnt tell me, I wouldnt have to think about not saying anything to him, or not saying anything to her. I would just exist in a nice bubble of ignorance.”

“And I thinkZoes interested—extremely reluctantly— in Brad.”

“Stop it. Stop this flood of information right now.”

“Youre a newspaperman.” Enjoying herself, she pulled out the salad shed put together and began to dress it. “Youre supposed to thrive on information.”

Hed never seen the salad bowl before, or the wooden things she was using to toss the greens. “Im going to get a headache.”

“No, youre not. You want your friends to be happy, dont you?”

“Sure.”

“Were happy, arent we?”

Cautious now, he replied, “Yes.”

“Were happy, and were in love. Ergo, you want your friends happy and in love, too. Right?”

“This is a trick question. So rather than answer it, Im going to distract you.”

“Im not making love with you while dinners cooking and Jordans upstairs.”

“That wasnt my idea, but I really like it. Im going to distract you by telling you that the kitchen guys are coming on Monday to start the remodel.”

“Really?” As hed planned, every other thought spilled out of her mind. “Really?” she repeated and leaped at him. “Oh, this is great! This is wonderful!”

“I thought that would do it. So, are you going to move in with me?”

She touched her lips to his. “Ask me again when the kitchens done.”

“Youre a tough one, Malory.”

* * *

AFTER a day of manual labor, Dana longed for a soak in a hot tub before she dived into her new resource books. But she lacked the courage to do it.

Since that realization was too mortifying to dwell on, she fantasized about the house shed buy one day. The big, secluded house. With a library the size of a barn.

And a Jacuzzi, she added as she pressed on the ache at the small of her back.

But until that happy day, she would settle for her apartment. Eventually, for all the rooms in her apartment, which included the one with the tub in it.

She could join a gym, she thought as she settled down to her books for an evening of research.

She hated gyms. They were full of people. Sweaty people. Naked people who would insist on sharing her Jacuzzi time.

It just wasnt worth the aggravation. Better to wait until she could afford her own place. Of course, when she could afford her own place—with Jacuzzi—it was unlikely that shed be spending eight hours scraping and painting until her back ached.

Ordering herself to settle down, she started on Othello . She had her own copy, of course. She had a copy of everything Shakespeare had written, but she wanted a different volume. A kind of fresh look, she thought.

It was jealousy and ambition that had drivenIago , she mused. He had planted “the greeneydmonster which doth mock the meat it feeds on” in Othello, then had watched it devour him.

It was jealousy and ambition that drove Kane, and so he watched as his monster devoured.

She could learn from this, she thought, of what made a man—or a god—soulless.

Shed barely started when the knock on the door interrupted.

“What now?” Grumbling to herself, she went to answer it. Her irritation only increased when the door opened on Jordan.

“This had better not become a habit.”

“Lets go for a ride.”

Her response was to slam the door, but he anticipated her, slapped a hand on it, braced it open. “Let me put that another way. Im heading up to Warriors Peak. Do you want to come?”

“What are you going up there for? Youre a bystander in this deal.”

“Thats a matter of opinion. Im going up because I have some questions. Actually, I decided to get out of Ryans place after dinner. To give the lovebirds a little space.” He leaned comfortably on the jamb as he spoke but kept that hand firm on the door. “Found myself heading out of town and up the mountain road. Figured I might as well keep going, have myself a chat withPitte and Rowena. Then I thought, You know, its just going to tick Dana off if I do that without running it by her. So I turned around and came back. Im running it by you.”

“I suppose you want points for that.”

His mouth curved. “If youre keeping score.”

“I dont see that you have anything to talk to them about.”

“Lets put this one more way. Im going, with or without you.” He straightened, let his hand drop from the door. “But if you want to come along, you can drive.”