Instead of stepping closer, she cleared her throat and jerked back. “I guess you’ll need book four, then?”
I deflated a little with disappointment but managed to nod and even send her a smile. “Sure. That’d be great. Thank you.”
With a nod, she turned away and hurried off. I nearly had to jog to keep up. She didn’t speak again for the rest of the trip to the kitchen, and I didn’t trust myself to say anything either.
When we came to an opening in the hedge path, we ended up on the patio where I’d first met Kit. Isobel approached the back door and went inside, leaving it open for me to follow.
When I did, I was surprised to see Mr. Nash in the kitchen, sitting at the table and eating his breakfast. I hadn’t seen him eat in the kitchen since I’d come to work here. Granted, most days, except Saturdays, he was gone by the time I arrived. But the last two Saturdays, he’d just had a tray brought to his office for meals.
He looked up and smiled. “Morning, sweetheart. Did you have a good…?”
His voice died off as I entered and quietly closed the door behind me.
Mrs. Pan turned from the stove where she was flipping pancakes, and Kit, who’d been sitting across from Mr. Nash, dove under the table at the sight of Isobel.
“Shaw!” Mrs. Pan exclaimed. “What’re you doing here so early?”
She stood frozen, spatula in hand, waiting for an answer, while Mr. Nash seemed similarly struck.
I swallowed, not realizing until that moment how it might look to spend time with Isobel outside work hours. But there was no way to hide it now. Besides, there was nothing seedy to hide.
Still, I couldn’t help but send her a seeking glance to make sure she was okay with me outing our jogging sessions before I said, “I decided to go running with…” It was on the tip of my tongue to be formal and call her Miss Nash, but then I thought, why bother? I wasn’t hiding anything, so I finished with, “…Isobel.”
Both the cook and Isobel’s father seemed startled. I wasn’t sure if it was from the informal address or the fact that I’d run with her.
Isobel cleared her throat. “Since he came in so early, I told him he could work from six to two today, instead of his usual nine to five. That’s okay with you, isn’t it, Dad?”
“Uh…” It took her dad a few more seconds to close his mouth before he slowly gave his head a dazed bob up and down. “Sure,” he managed to answer. “Sure. Whatever you think is best, sweetheart.”
Isobel nodded too. “Good. I’m going to go take a shower.” She paused by her father to kiss him on the top of his balding head. “Have a good day,” she said before sailing from the kitchen.
Mrs. Pan and her dad both blinked before they swung their attention back to me. “I…was that okay?” I asked, now that Isobel was gone. “Running with her, I mean.”
Jarred from his shock, Mr. Nash jumped and immediately began to nod. “Yes, yes. Perfectly fine. I just…I didn’t realize you two had…”
I drew in a breath. “We, uh, well, we talked quite a bit on Saturday while we were discussing bookshelves.”
“Well…” Mr. Nash murmured. “That’s…that’s lovely.”
His eyes glittered with an eagerness that made me uneasy. I suddenly wished he’d never