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that kind of agony. “I’m sorry,” she apologized. “Sometimes my curiosity gets the better of me.”
    “That’s all right. I expect a woman like you to ferret out whatever interests her.”
    She lifted her chin, meeting, holding his azure gaze. “Tell me,” she asked, “are you always so gentle with people who have hoof-and-mouth disease?”
    A grin crept back onto his face. “With most people, I am. Why?”
    She gave a small shrug. “I wish I had some of your patience and understanding of people. You had every right to tell me to mind my own business.”
    Sam took the check, pulled out his credit card and handed them both to the waitress. A glimmer of humor remained in the depths of his eyes. “Well, you’re bound to find out sooner or later anyway.”
    Perplexed, Kelly asked, “What are you talking about?”
    Sam signed the credit card receipt and thanked the waitress. He returned his attention to her. “Anyone ever connected with me knows I have a decided weakness for redheads. I love redheaded women.”
    She stared blankly at him for a long moment. Then her lips thinned. “Is that a statement or a challenge?”
    Sam grasped her elbow and helped her to stand. He guided her noiselessly out of the restaurant. Despite the large roughout boots he wore, he made no sound on the tiled floor. “Take it any way you want, Kelly Blanchard,” he taunted, his mouth near her ear.
    Kelly shivered inwardly at the purr in his voice. She pulled her elbow from his grasp, giving him a sharp glance. “Why do I have the feeling you’re the cat and I’m the mouse?”
    Sam laughed softly as he opened the door for her. “I just hope that when the next fire call comes in, I’m chosen for the team. It will be interesting to watch a redheaded woman dealing with that kind of stressful situation. My bet’s on you, by the way.”
    She couldn’t help smiling. His teasing was without rancor. Sam Tyler, in his own special way, was boosting her confidence. If there was a mean bone in his body, she didn’t know where it might exist. He was so different from Todd. Different and refreshing.
    * * *
    It was late Saturday morning and Kelly didn’t want to work anymore. She sat in the cozy breakfast nook surrounded by several hanging green plants. A smile crossed her lips. Her father had always loved greenery of any kind and his house certainly attested to that. Along the sills of each window were a myriad of bright, flowering plants ranging from cactus to African violets.
    Moments later, her father’s housekeeper bustled in with a breakfast tray. “And here you are working, Miss Blanchard!” Hattie chided, placing a plate filled with eggs, bacon and potatoes in front of her. “Come on now, don’t give me that look! You need to eat!”
    “This is too much food!” Kelly protested lamely.
    Hattie, who had been her father’s housekeeper for almost thirty years, patted Kelly’s shoulder. “Now you look here, Missy, you eat! And I don’t want another word from you until then. Just put all of this paperwork aside and stuff yourself.”
    Kelly did what she could, but she barely made a dent in the delicious food. When Hattie returned she glared at the half-filled plate and grudgingly replaced it with a cup of steaming coffee.
    “Just like your father,” Hattie grumbled, and then marched off to the kitchen once again.
    Kelly rested her head against her hand, staring out the window. It was lovely outside. She could spot a blue jay bickering with a blackbird in the trees around the swimming pool. Glancing at the stack of work before her, Kelly forced herself to get busy. Her head wasn’t into it, and her heart…well, that was lingering on Sam Tyler. It shouldn’t be, she told herself sternly. But it was.
    With a sigh, she opened up the first document and forced herself to begin reading.
    The doorbell chimed. Kelly looked toward the kitchen. Hattie stuck her head out the entrance, puzzlement written on her dark features.
    “You