I left her office and went to clean the coffee machine, thinking grimly that anything Vanessa Flint could dish out, I could take.

CHAPTER NINE

Vanessa's warning about staying away from the tenants hadn't been necessary. I had already decided to take Todd's assessment of Hardy to heart. I wasn't going anywhere near him. My rebound guy, when and if I found one, was not going to be manipulative or twisty twisted. He was going to be someone I could handle, someone who wouldn't overwhelm me. And although Hardy was only about seven or eight years older than me, he'd had infinitely more experience in just about every way. As far as sex was concerned, he'd gone "around the sugar bowl," as Aunt Gretchen would have put it, just a few too many times.But the day after Hardy had moved into 1800 Main, I found a wrapped package on my desk, tied with a neat red ribbon. Since it wasn't my birthday or any gift-giving holiday I could think of, I was mystified.

Kimmie stood at the entryway of my cubicle. "It was dropped off a few minutes ago," she said, "by one of the cutest guys I've ever seen. All blue eyes and bronzy muscles."

"I think it was the new tenant," I said, approaching the package like it might contain a bomb "Mr. Cates."

"If that's the kind of tenant we're attracting," Kimmie said, "I will work here forever. For no pay."

"I'd steer clear of him if I were you." I sat at my desk. "He's no respecter of women."

"One can only hope so," she said.

I shot her a distracted glance. "Did Vanessa see him bring it in? Did she meet him?"

Kimmie grinned. "Not only did she meet him, she was smacking her lips over him, like Samantha and I were. And she tried her best to find out what was in that package, but he wouldn't tell her."

Great, I thought, and repressed a sigh. It didn't take a genius to figure out I'd be cleaning the coffee machine at least ten times that day.

"Well . . . aren't you going to open it?"

"Later," I said. God knew what was in that box — I was going to wait until I could unwrap it in private.

"Haven . . . you're crazy if you think you can take that present out of the office without letting Vanessa know what it is." Although Kimmie seemed to like our boss, it was common knowledge that no detail of what went on in the office escaped Vanessa's notice.

I set the wrapped box on the floor. It was heavy, with a metallic rattle coming from inside. Was it an appliance of some kind? God, please let it not be some bizarre sex toy. "I don't have to let her pry into the details of my private life."

"Uh-huh." Kimmie gave me a skeptical glance. "Wait until Vanessa gets back from lunch. Your privacy will last about as long as an ice cube in Brownsville."

It was no surprise, of course, when Vanessa came straight to my cubicle when she returned. She was dressed in a pristine white skirt suit, with an ice-pink blouse that matched her nails and delicately glossed lips. I tensed as she half sat on the edge of my desk, looking down at me.

"We had a visitor while you were out," she remarked with a smile. "Apparently you and Mr. Cates have gotten friendly."

"I'm friendly to all the tenants," I said.

She looked amused. "How many of them are you exchanging gifts with, Haven?"

I stared at her without blinking. "Mr. Cates and I are not exchanging gifts."

"Then what is that?" She pointed to the box beside my desk.

"I assume it's a thank-you gesture. Because I recommended the interior decorator."

"You assume?" She laughed gently. "Well, let's stop assuming and find out what it is."

I fought to keep the desperation from my voice. "I'm too busy to deal with that right now. I've got a lot of — "

"Oh, there's always time for presents," Vanessa said brightly. "Go on, Haven. Open it."

Silently I damned her, myself, and most of all Hardy Cates for putting me in this position. Reaching for the box, I hefted it to my lap. At the first sound of ripping paper, the other employees, including Kimmie, Rob, and Phil, appeared at the entrance to my cubicle. I now had an audience.

"Hey," Kimmie said with a grin, "you're finally opening that thing."

Grimly I tore off the wrapping, wadded it up and deposited it in the wastebasket. The gift, whatever it was, was inside an innocuous white box. If it was something embarrassing, I thought, I was going to kill Hardy Cates within the hour. Holding my breath, I lifted the lid and discovered a case of sturdy pink molded plastic. There was a tag tied to the handle, with a few words:

Hope this will come in handy.

— H

"Is it bath stuff?" Kimmie prompted. "Makeup? Jewelry?"

"Jewelry, in a box this big?" I unfastened the silver latches.

"This is Texas," Kimmie said reasonably.

"Go on," Vanessa prompted, as I hesitated before lifting the lid.

Before I could stop myself, a huge, irrepressible smile spread across my face as I opened the case. It was a tool kit complete with a pink-handled hammer, a tape measure, a screwdriver, and a set of wrenches.

"A tool kit?" Kimmie asked blankly. "Well. That's different."

Even Vanessa looked disappointed. No doubt she had been hoping for something scandalous or compromising, or at least expensive. But the gift of a tool kit was hardly something to indicate a hot affair.

Unfortunately in my case, this was more effective than a trunkload of diamonds. It suggested that Hardy Cates understood me, got me, in a way no man ever had. Not even Nick. That scared me almost as much as it pleased me.