Hard Habit to Break Read Free

his long hours of research into weather conditions, the market, and government directives that had made him successful.
    It had been years since he had wanted a woman to like him for his physical appearance. But he wished Liz did. At this point he wasn’t above using any and everything to get a positive reaction from her.
    “Here’s your sugar,” she said as she walked back into the room.
    Smiling broadly, he took the filled bowl from her. “Thanks. You’re a life saver.”
    She smiled back, and he decided to do his damnedest to insure they’d be more than just neighbors.
    “How about steak on the grill?” he asked.
    She blinked. “Steak?”
    “Or chicken. Whatever you want.”
    “What are you talking about?”
    He chuckled. “Dinner on Tuesday. Bring your empty stomach, and I’ll burn something on the grill.”
    “Ahh … dinner.” Her cheeks seemed more rosy, and she shifted her eyes away from him for an instant before adding, “That’s very kind, Mr. Callahan.…”
    “Matt.”
    “Matt. But you’ve probably got a lot of unpacking to do.”
    “And dinner with you will be a nice break.” He reached out and took her hand, then lifted it to his lips and gallantly kissed the back of it. “Have pity on an overworked man, Liz, and come to dinner.”
    “But …”
    “I promise not to say a word if you smoke.”
    “It isn’t that—”
    “Good. Three a day is quite an accomplishment after thirty.”
    He turned her hand over and planted another kiss on her sensitive palm. To his elation, he heard a tiny moan from deep in her throat. She did feel something too. But he also sensed she was holding back. He wondered if her divorce had left deep scars that he’d have to overcome.
    Suddenly and fiercely he wanted to remove those scars and insure she would never have an unhappy moment again. Then another equally strong urge shot through him. He’d love to punch her ex-husband in the mouth.
    His violent reaction took him by surprise, and he kissed her hand again, tasting the soft skin more fully this time. He raised his head and gazed into her wide gray eyes.
    “Dinner on Tuesday, Liz. I absolutely insist.”
    She hesitated, and Matt knew if he gave her a chance, she’d say no. He quickly walked over to the front door.
    “Thanks again for the sugar. I’ll see you at seven on Tuesday.”
    He stepped outside and shut the door behind him, not noticing the swaying curtains at three houses across the street. He grinned into the dark night and half-ran across the lawn to his large gingerbread-laced Victorian home.
    Maybe he’d cut that hole in the hedge tomorrow.

Two

    “He’s gorgeous!”
    Seated behind her desk, Liz bent her head even lower toward her paperwork and moaned silently. Her own words had returned to haunt her. Her bank tellers had gossiped all morning about Matt, and they were still at it.
    “I wonder why he’s not married,” one said.
    “Maybe he’s divorced,” another replied.
    “Maybe he just wants a weekend place in the country. We’ve got lots of part-timers around here.”
    “Who cares? He’s the handsomest man to ever live in Hopewell. Part-timer or not.”
    Firmly ignoring the growing urge to scream, Liz prayed they’d stop soon. They had to stop talking about Matt sometime, she thought without much hope. And she couldn’t reprimand them for it. She’d always allowed the girls to chat together as long as they waited on the customers and did their paperwork right. To speak to them now aboutgossiping would only have them wondering what was wrong with
her
.
    It wouldn’t take them very long to find the answer. Liz sighed, knowing she was trapped. It was enough to make her want a cigarette.
    Her gaze remained unfocused on the deposit reports she was supposed to be coordinating for the bank’s central office in Swanton. She wished she had a whole pack of cigarettes in her hands. She’d light all twenty at once. Tonight she had to face Matt and tell him she
wasn’t
dining