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“You’re confusing ,” I said when she threw another snowball
She turned and smiled “He loves it”
Apollo took off after another ball, deterled when he skidded to a stop
“I think he loves the person throwing theame It worked—Apollo looked back, saw that I threw the snowball, and danced in circles
“You’ve stolen ame,” she said “Noon’t want to play with me”
I watched, delighted, as she balled up a handful of snow and threw it in rown up with a cousin ent on to become a professional football player—I’d actually expected her to hit me But the ball ide and missed
“Oh, Abigail,” I said,mistake”
“You wouldn’t happen to be wearing a sign, would you?”
I scooped up a handful of snow “Not on your life”
She backed away fro up her hands as if in surrender
“You threw a snowball at me” I tossed my own ball from hand to hand Her eyes followed its movement
“I missed”
“You still tried” I pulledI was about to throw the snowball at her, but at the last minute threw it to Apollo instead
It was too late, though She’d yelped and run off before the ball leftI knew, fell facedown in the snow
I jogged the short distance to her, anxious to ensure she wasn’t hurt What if she had broken so?
As I approached, she rolled over and moaned
“Are you okay?” I held out my hand to her She looked fine Wet, but fine
She shivered “Nothing hurt but my pride”
The library would be nice and warood while She took my hand and climbed to her feet
“Ti warm by the fire?”
I shut down the various i to mind—Abby and ht would play off her skin
Remember the plan, I told myself No sex this week
The plan was very slowly, but very thoroughly, going straight to hell
Chapter Twenty-seven
We shuffled into the house, Abby sniffling in wet clothes I took her into the library and sat her by the fire while I went upstairs to gather solanced into the kitchen onwarm to drink as well Should I make coffee?
I took the clothes into the library, and my eyes fell on the decanters I kept filled and displayed
The brandy
While Abby dressed, I poured, and when she settled back in front of the fireplace, I handed her a glass and sat beside her
She sniffed it “What is this?”
“Brandy I thought about coffee, but decided this would warm us quicker”
She swirled her glass “I see You’re trying to get me drunk”
“I don’t, as a practice, try anything, Abigail” I nodded at her glass “But it is more than forty percent alcohol, so you’d better have only the one glass”
She took a tentative sip, choking slightly as the fiery liquid ed, and took another sip
“Mm,” she said, so quietly I could barely hear
I leaned against the couch and closed my eyes as the alcohol sloarmed my body Apollo crossed the roo of contentment swept over me—Abby was at my side, ere safe and warm in my house, and Apollo ell For just a moment, I could close my eyes and life was damn near perfect
Abby’s voice broke through my reverie “Did the library co you had added when you bought it?”
I opened lass
And she wanted to talk
Finally
“I didn’t buy this house,” I said, watching her “I inherited it”
Her eyes greide “This was your parents’ house? You grew up here?”
“Yes I’ve made major renovations, like the playroom”
She moved closer to me “Has it been hard to live here?”
Linda had asked e and told her of my plans to renovate
“I thought it would be, but I’ve redone so much, it doesn’t resemble my childhood home anyh”
Especially with her in it—it was once ht and warmth and life
“Your parents must have loved books,” she said
I looked around me My parents had loved this library I wondered if that was the reason I’d given the room to Abby—to so since my parents’ death
Mo so well So when they died
“My parents were avid collectors And they traveled frequently” I waved toward the section of the library that heldht whenever they added a new volume “Many of the books they found overseas Soenerations”
“My mom liked to read, but lass and hugged her knees
“There’s a place for popular fiction in every library After all, today’s popular fiction may very well be tomorrow’s classic”