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blonde teasing his brother. "Or someone to lighten you up."
    It didn't matter how many grandchildren Molly gave her, he wasn't likely to get his mother off his back. Ever. Because he wasn't going to get married and start a family with anyone. And most especially not with Abby Hamilton.

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Chapter Three

     
    "So are you my chauffeur for as long as I'm here?" Abby asked as Clayton pulled into his mother's driveway behind Mrs. McClintock's mini van. She'd beat them home, with Lara in the back in the built-in car seat. Abby had wanted to ride with them, but Mrs. McClintock had insisted there wasn't room with Colleen, Molly and Rory, who'd had to come home to pack his bag for Clayton's.
    He lived in town in the apartment above the insurance agency. Abby couldn't imagine willingly leaving this home. Her heart lifted at the sight of the Dutch colonial where she'd spent so much time in her younger days. Although she suspected Rory had long outgrown it, the tire still swung from the giant oak in the front yard. The house wasn't as colorful or as big as the Kellys' Victorian, but Abby preferred its white siding and black roof. To her, it represented all the stability she'd never had in her own family. This house was why she'd packed up her apartment in Chicago. She wanted to raise her daughter in a house just like this.
    Too bad it was in Cloverville.
    "Mrs. Hild's roses and Mr. Carpenter's storefront thank you for not driving." He turned toward her. his eyes gleaming in the dim glow of the dashboard lights, as he added. "Not to mention the colonel."
    "Not to mention, and yet you did. You just can't let it go. We're both adults now. Why can't you put the past behind us?" she asked.
    Why was he so determined to think the worst of her?
    "I'm just teasing you," he claimed.
    "I'm not one of your sisters, Clayton."
    His gaze clung to hers as he leaned over the console, his face so close that his breath brushed her face when he whispered. "I know."
    Abby shivered, her attention drawn to his lips. But then he pulled back and opened his door. Her breath shuddered out. and when she reached for her door latch, her hand shook. Had he been about to kiss her? Clayton McClintock kiss her? She hated to admit it, even to herself, but growing up she had daydreamed about his kisses, how they'd make her feel...
    Wanted. She shook her head, pushing aside the old longing, which she knew would never be fulfilled. Clayton's kisses or anyone wanting her for keeps.
    "I'm sorry you had to drive out of your way for me," she said, surprised he'd come around to her side of the vehicle, as if he'd been about to open her door.
    Clayton McClintock opening her door? Clayton McClintock teasing her? Perhaps she wasn't the only one who'd changed.
    "I have to pick up Rory, anyway," he said as he headed around the SUV to unlatch the back door.
    "But he could have ridden home with you, instead of your coming out here." Her face flushed as she realized who had maneuvered the passenger lists. "Your mother..."
    "She's not exactly being subtle," he said, with a short, bitter laugh. "She thinks you'd be good for me. That you'd lighten me up."
    Abby snorted. Mrs. Mick playing matchmaker for her and Clayton?
    "Exactly," he agreed with her snort of derision. Too quickly. Obviously he had no interest in her, despite his teasing. "She doesn't understand. You've always brought out the worst in me."
    If she'd only seen his worst, what was Clayton's best?
    "How long are you staying here?" he asked as he hefted her bags from the back. She'd certainly packed more than a couple days' worth of clothes. But then she had a daughter, and he had no idea how much stuff one needed with little kids. And he never intended to find out. He was still raising one family, and he had no intention of raising another.
    A mocking smile tugged at her lips. "Don't worry, Clayton. I'm not going to be here long enough for your mother to get us to the altar."
    He refused to take her bait. She was much better