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“Really?”
He nodded. “I replaced everything as the parts were pretty old.”
He had a feeling the plumbing he’d just replaced was indicative of most of the things on the island. And if that was the case, Lea was in bigger trouble here than she knew. As his gaze moved to her slightly rounded midsection, he decided not to enlighten her about how extensive the repairs could be. She already had more than enough on her mind.
“Oh.” She looked a bit flustered as though she didn’t know what she should say next. “Thank you. You really didn’t have to do all of that.”
“I didn’t mind. I told you I want to help you succeed.”
Just then there was a flash of lightning quickly followed by a loud crack of thunder. Lea jumped when the bungalow shook. Xander’s gaze moved to the window, noticing that it was dark as night outside.
With a hand pressed to her chest, Lea said, “That’s why I stopped by. I wanted to warn you about the approaching storm. But it was moving faster than I thought.”
Xander closed the toolbox and stood. He moved to the front door and stared out as big fat drops of rain started to pelt the ground. “Looks like we’re stuck here for a bit.”
When Lea didn’t say anything, he turned to check on her. Her gaze didn’t quite meet his. Ever since he’d surprised her by showing up on the island after learning he was going to be a father, there had been a wall between them. And he really wanted to get past it.
Another strike of lightning lit up the sky followed by a crack of thunder. At the same time, the power flickered and went out. A few seconds later, the lights came back on.
“It’s been a while since we’ve had a bad storm,” Lea said. She moved to sit on the couch. “With all of the lightning, we should wait out the storm in here. Normally I’d sit on the porch and listen to the rain. It’s just so relaxing and I love the smell of rain.”
“The smell of rain?”
She nodded. “It’s a fresh scent, unlike any other.”
Not wanting this peaceful moment to end, he moved to the couch, leaving a respectable distance between them. When the thunder once again rumbled through the room, Lea jumped. He wanted to reach out to her, but he resisted the urge.
“I take it you don’t like storms,” he said, struggling to make light conversation.
“Rain, yes. Storms, not so much.”
He had a feeling there was more to her discomfort than she was saying. He wasn’t sure if he should ask about it or not. But if they were ever going to break through this wall standing between them, they had to start taking some risks instead of politely dancing around each other.
“Did you have a bad experience with storms?”
She nodded as the sky lit up again. Rain beat off the roof and echoed through the bungalow. “It was a long time ago. I’m not sure why it still gets to me.”
Bit by bit, he could feel the wall starting to come down. He had to keep the line of communication open. “What happened?”
She glanced at him. “You don’t want to hear this.”
“Sure, I do. If you’re willing to tell me.” He realized in that moment that he wanted to know anything and everything about Lea. She intrigued him more than anyone else in his life ever had. Right now, she could tell him the story of her life and he’d hang on every word.
She turned her gaze to the front door that stood open. Only a screen door stood between them and the outside. A cool breeze rushed in, sweeping over them. But neither of them made any motion to close the door.
She stared outside. “I was only nine at the time, but I recall it so clearly. My family, we lived just outside of Seattle. It was late at night and I was asleep in my bed until a loud crack of thunder woke me. Until that point, I’d always been drawn in by storms. I thought they were so amazing, so powerful and so beautiful with the way the lightning would slice through the dark sky.”
“I have to admit that I like stormy nights.”
“After I was awakened that night, I couldn’t go back to sleep. I moved to my bedroom window and while sitting there I saw the brightest light I’ve ever seen. It lit up the entire yard just like it was daylight out. Lightning struck the huge tree near our house.”
