Nerds on Fire (26 page)

“
Our safety is worth your
rent.”

He stubbornly shook his head. “Trixi,
I’ve got an entire wing, including a great study only exceeded by
the one in my parent’s house. In addition to the study, I have four
bedrooms, three baths, a garage space, workbench, and access to
most of the first floor of your house. This includes the nicest
kitchen I’ve ever seen and a great family room. Then there are the
two laundry rooms, a fully equipped workout room, and you and your
Gran’s company.”

The look he sent her confused
her.

“
I’ve got it made.” Then he
quoted a rent price that made her eyes bug.

“
That’s way too
much.”

“
It is not.” He tugged out
his phone and showed her apartment prices and they were staggering.
“You’re giving me far more than any of these offer, including many
of the luxury models.”

Then he scrolled through several four
bedroom house listings. “This is what these houses are renting for.
My space is nicer than any of these.”

“
Mark, it’s way too
much.”

“
You tell me what’s
reasonable.”

He shook his head at her price. The
next number he offered wasn’t much less than his first, but it was
lower and he wouldn’t budge from it. “I already love this
arrangement and if I can help you out at the same time, all the
better.”

Chapter 25

Mark watched the stairway
entrance the next day. He had noticed that like him, Trixi
preferred the stairs. She hurried through the doorway a moment
later and caught sight of him. Smiling, happy to see her, he was
heartened when she appeared to share his sentiment. He escorted her
to the car feeling like he was made of surgical steel.

She turned to him once they were
inside. “Can we stop at the grocery store, please?”

“
Of course.” He backed out
of the space and pointed the vehicle toward the store.

“
Thank you.” She fished out
her phone to check her list.

He pulled into the grocery store
parking lot and found a spot. In moments, Trixi grabbed a cart and
headed for the produce section. He had a front row seat to one
aspect of Trixi’s psyche.

Any woman who loved to cook
as much as she did had to know her way around a grocery store. He
did
not
know his
way around grocery stores. Usually he just performed strategic hits
on various departments of interest. If there was something on his
list he didn’t know where to find, he went without it.

That probably accounted for why he
hadn’t eaten rice in a long time. He didn’t know where to find it
in the grocery stores here. The same could be said for peanut
butter. He had no idea where these stores hid the peanut butter. He
suspected it was in the same place as the jelly.

“
Do you like apples?” Trixi
asked him.

“
Of course.”

The smile she sent him heated his
insides and warmed him right there in the middle of the produce
aisle. It amazed him how this woman was now a necessary part of his
life.

After bagging some plump,
red apples, she moved on to pears and bananas. He enjoyed watching
her shop.
Was this odd?

By the time they reached the
vegetables, he didn’t care if it was because for the first time in
his life he enjoyed a trip to the grocery store. They landed at the
meat counter next. “Does anything here look good to
you?”

He nodded. “Everything.”

Trixi laughed and again he warmed. He
might be addicted to her sunny smile. “Okay, easy enough.” Then she
choose the on-sale cuts.

Trixi was not only beautiful, but also
money savvy. He liked those qualities in a woman. Or maybe he just
liked those qualities in Trixi.

After making their selections at the
meat counter, Trixi aimed the cart at the next few aisles and he
enjoyed watching a professional at work. Really, this woman seemed
adept at everything she did. And she looked good doing it. This
took talent. She was gracious and sweet to everyone she
met.

It was apparent she knew most of the
people who worked in the store. They recognized her as well, and
several of the men enjoyed teasing her, which she reciprocated.
This was a side of her he hadn’t seen before, so it was
fascinating. She was so multi-faceted, it would take his lifetime
to learn everything about her. Maybe longer than that.

At the checkout counter, Mark sneakily
managed to pay for the groceries. He completed the transaction so
fast, she had only just started to load their bags into the cart.
Glowering at him only made his grin broaden. As soon as he finished
paying, he took over loading their purchases.

No one seemed in the least
bit confused by seeing her with a man. No one sent them funny looks
or asked, “Why is that gorgeous man with
her
?” It was a nice feeling and she
relaxed as they pointed the cart toward the exit.

Before they cleared the doors, Mark’s
hand settled in the small of her back. It was becoming so familiar
to her she barely noticed. Deep inside she admitted it was nice to
have a man take care of her like this.

They loaded the groceries into his
trunk and then she steered him toward the pharmacy next door. “I
need to pick up a prescription for Gran. She said they called that
it was ready.”

Trixi didn’t want to see Warren, but
alas, this was where Gran had her prescriptions filled. Gran had
known Warren’s grandparents well. Trixi was grateful Gran never
once offered her up as a good match for her dear friends’ ferret of
a grandson.

She stiffened her spine and marched
toward the door. Before they reached it, Mark solicitously opened
the door for her. Smiling up at him in thanks, Trixi again
appreciated how handsome he was. She reconsidered a cowbell. It was
only fair to nearby unsuspecting women.

“
Trixi, it’s nice to see
you,” Warren oozed as he sauntered around a corner. He stopped when
he caught sight of Mark. Stopped and scowled at the other man.
Warren might have even bristled.

“
Hello, Warren. We’re here
to pick up Gran’s prescription.” She didn’t elaborate but instead
surged toward the pickup counter.

As though they were one, Mark moved
with her. She sent him a grateful smile.

For some reason they both stopped and
gazed at each other, his return smile chasing heady shivers up and
down her spine. It was a thrilling sensation.

“
Who is this?” Warren’s
demand broke through her exuberant thoughts.

With reluctance, she tore her
attention from Mark to gaze at Warren in bemusement.

Mark’s hand flexed before he also
transferred his gaze to the still bristling man. Really, Warren was
acting like someone stomped on his tail.

“
This is Dr. Mark de Vosse.
He’s a neurosurgeon at the hospital.” Her explanation was calm,
unlike her thumping heart.

Warren’s skinny chest
inflated.

“
I live with Trixi.” Mark’s
blandness, combined with his bald statement and the large,
proprietary hand on her, not to mention he was thoroughly trampling
her personal space, had to be the cause of Warren’s fiery red
flush. His face burst with sunburned gloriousness.

She winced, but then realized this
might be the very thing to put Warren off her. “Mark moved in
recently.”

“
I adore living with her.”
He stated this in all innocence. Mark didn’t even bother to look at
Warren, but kept his gaze on her. It was like there was a message
inside the message
—
for her
.

“
Right back at you.” The
throaty voice that erupted from her didn’t sound at all like
hers.

“
Trixi, it’s nice to see
you again.” Winona breezed out from behind the counter and then
noticed Mark. Like most healthy women, she took another look and
then her eyes glazed over.

Taking pity on her, Trixi smiled at
the stunned woman. “Hello Winona. This is Dr. Mark de Vosse. Mark
this is Winona Wychert. She’s a topnotch pharmacist and owns this
store with her family.”

Mark smiled at Winona gently, as
though not to startle her. “It’s nice to meet you,
Winona.”

Winona nodded mutely, still gaping at
him.

“
We came for Gran’s
prescription,” Trixi prompted.

That shook Winona out of her trance.
“Oh yes, of course.” Moving briskly behind the counter again, the
pharmacist sorted through the pharmacy bags and came up with
Gran’s. “Here it is.”

They completed the transaction in
little time and Trixi smiled at Winona again before turning to
leave. She nodded to Warren, but Mark drew her attention to a
display on the other side of the store. He opened the door for her
and they hurried toward the car. It took only a few moments for him
to seat her before they headed home.

She forgot all about the interaction,
with her thoughts now on whether supper was ready and what she
needed to do to complete the meal. Mark and Gran were both easy to
please, fortunately.

When they arrived home, Gran already
had most of the meal finished, and the table was set. It didn’t
take long to put the groceries away and hand off the prescription.
Gran encouraged them to wash their hands and then seat themselves
at the table. Ten minutes after they got home, they were digging
into the meal Trixi started this morning, and Gran
finished.

“
Gran, it’s wonderful to
come home to a prepared meal, thank you.”

Gran leveled her a look over the
glasses perched on her nose. “You did all the hard stuff this
morning. I just finished it.”

“
Thank you.” It never hurt
to express gratitude.

“
You’re welcome.” Gran took
off her glasses, folded them, and laid them aside.

“
I have to work on some
notes,” Mark said between bites.

Trixi nodded. “You’re excused from the
dishes then.”

“
Thank you. What time do we
leave for our meeting tonight?”

She and Gran both glanced at the
clock. “Ten to seven should give us time.” Trixi turned to her
grandmother for confirmation. Who nodded in agreement.

They finished the meal because they
didn’t have time to linger. Mark disappeared into his study. Trixi
and Gran cleaned up the kitchen and still had time to tidy
themselves before they headed to the car.

A happy thought crossed her mind that
she couldn’t have wished for two better companions.

Chapter 26

When his alarm buzzed,
it jolted Mark awake and he quickly shut the annoyance off. Shoving
the covers aside, he rolled out of bed and stretched before
throwing the covers up over the pillows. He made a cup of coffee
then set about getting ready for work.

When he arrived in the kitchen, nearly
empty coffee mug in hand, it was to find Gran parked in front of
the coffee maker, also holding a mug. She watched the dark liquid
fill the carafe with a concentrated frown.

Trixi’s light footsteps sounded behind
him. He turned to greet her and his heart clenched at the sight of
her sweet face. He took a moment to count the freckles on her
nose.

“
Good morning,” she
said.

Mid count, he realized he could listen
to the sound of her voice for the rest of his life. This wild
thought threw him off count.

“
Good morning.” Gran
continued scowling at the coffee pot.

Mark offered a greeting since it was
the polite thing to do, but internally, he grappled with where that
had come from. A mild panic attack loomed, so he battened it
down.

“
That’s brewing slow.”
Trixi’s comment broke through his thoughts, and he appreciated the
picture of her and Gran standing in front of the coffee maker,
watching it trickle.

Gran snorted. “Yes, I’ve been here all
morning waiting.”

“
Luckily for you, it’s
barely morning then.” Laughter threaded Trixi’s tone in generous
proportions.

“
It shouldn’t run this
slow,” Gran declared.

“
No, it needs
cleaned.”

At Trixi’s statement, both he and Gran
turned to her with twin blank expressions.

“
Hard water is classified
as so because of the high mineral content. Those minerals, over
time, clog things. The remedy is to run vinegar and some seltzer
through to dissolve said minerals.”

He liked being lectured by a cute,
freckled woman.

Gran got right down to business. “Do
we have vinegar and seltzer?”

“
Yes.” Trixi opened the
cupboard below the slow coffee maker. “You’ll find them here. I
remember to clean it about once a month.”

“
I’ll take care of this
after breakfast.”

Trixi’s smile was glorious, and Gran
must have appreciated it as well, because she patted her
granddaughter’s smooth cheek with a beautiful hand.