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hour.”
    “With some people, thirty minutes is more than enough time for making trouble.”
    She laughed. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
    He set her foot on the ground and stood up. “I wouldn’t put too much weight on it. It might start bleeding again.”
    “Thanks for your help.”
    “Should I continue the chivalry act and carry you to your room?”
    All her appreciation vanished. Did he have to be so sarcastic about everything? “No, thanks.”
    “My advice is to wear a sock and forget about shoes for a few days.”
    Corbin left the bathroom without waiting for her reply, something he tended to do frequently. She’d never met a man so talented at getting the last word of every conversation.
    Wanting to stomp up the stairs, but knowing she couldn’t, Aubrey headed to her room at a more cautious pace. Once there, she sat down on the bed. Why did he always make her feel like a child? Cutting your foot could happen to anyone. He acted like she’d done it on purpose.
* * * *
    Aubrey didn’t sleep well that night. She couldn’t find a position where her foot didn’t hurt. When her alarm went off the next morning, she shut it off and fell back asleep. She didn’t realize what had happened until Paul came looking for her. After assuring him that she wasn’t sick, she grabbed her phone. A groan escaped her when she saw how late it was.
    “What else is going to go wrong?” she mumbled under her breath as she hobbled into the bathroom. When she caught a glimpse of her reflection, she groaned again. “It’s a good thing I don’t have to leave the house today.”
    Skipping breakfast, she went straight to Corbin’s office and started working. Several hours later, she flexed aching fingers and with due respect for her bandaged foot, walked gingerly across to the window. Not far from the water, a little boy was shoveling sand into a bright red bucket while his mother watched nearby. A small smile formed on Aubrey’s lips. It was wiped away when a lazy voice spoke from just behind her.
    “Taking a break?”
    She whirled around quickly, finding Corbin too close for any sort of comfort. As she slowly raised her eyes to his face, she tried to quiet a pulse rate that had gone off the charts. “Yes. Isn’t that allowed?” she asked breathlessly.
    He smiled slowly. “You have a habit of taking offense to everything I say.”
    Aubrey wished he would step back. “I don’t mean to. I guess it’s because we’re still getting to know each other.”
    “Are we? How long do you think it will take?” he asked softly. When she didn’t answer, he went on. “Do two people ever really know each other?”
    Aubrey looked away from him then and with a restless movement, darted around him. Only then did she dare to look his way again. “I don’t know. Did you need something?”
    Corbin accepted this change of subject with a grin. “I need you to print my original version of that article on museum preservation for Renovation Style . You’ll recall I asked you not to delete it.”
    All the way to her desk, Aubrey tried to remember if she kept the original. She could only remember making dozens of changes. She fixed her eyes on the computer screen, hoping he would walk away and leave her to it. As the minutes passed without her being able to locate the right file, helpless tears formed in her eyes. It was gone! How could it be gone? She sensed Corbin’s intent gaze from his position just a few feet away and dreaded the moment she would have to confess yet another mistake.
    “For goodness sake, what’s the matter now?” His fingers lifted her chin. “If you can’t find it, just say so. The worst thing I can do is yell, something I rarely do since it’s such a waste of time and energy.” Corbin grabbed a tissue from the box on her desk and gently wiped her face. “This is a first – I’ve never made anyone cry before.”
    “I’m sorry; I seem to be making a mess of things.”
    He folded the tissue and for some