After three days of being carried around, Kate finally managed to argue her way into getting back to work. She wasn't in a hurry to return to the office, but as long as she stayed at home, Tyler was there with her. She needed him away from the mansion so that she could work on his present.
"Eve, may I borrow your car?" Kate leaned against the entrance of Evelyn's office and asked as sweetly as she could.
"Why? I thought you're not supposed to drive yet."
"Ty's being overboard. Please?"
"Are you sure you can drive? Because if anything happens to you, I'm pretty sure he'll come after me."
"Then Dan will protect you."
Evelyn's face went still, removing all hint of emotions. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said and threw the key over. "Don't crash."
"I haven't seen Dan around the mansion recently, and I haven't heard you mentioning any guy for quite a while."
"That's because you have been too busy with Tyler to notice."
Kate smiled and gave Evelyn a half-hearted shrug, ignoring her jibe. "Really? Tell me, then. How many cute guys have you met recently?"
Evelyn turned back to her computer. "Don't you have someplace to go?"
"Don't let him fall in love with you unless you're ready for a relationship. Oh, and can you ask him what they normally do for Tyler's birthday? I'll appreciate it if you don't tell Dan or mention to anyone else that I'm leaving the office during office hours."
Evelyn waved her away. "I guess this has something to do with the paints, brushes, and other stuff you told me to buy?"
Kate's brows flickered up as a corner of her lips curled.
"My lips are sealed. Have fun and don't crash my car."
She had to admit it was rather difficult to drive with one ankle wrapped up in bandages. And since it still hurt whenever she applied force on her right foot, she had to drive with her left foot, shifting it between the gas and brake pedals.
She couldn't be certain if Marianne had super-hearing powers or if Evelyn's car was too noisy, but Marianne opened the door to the mansion even before she could get out of the car.
"Are you all right, dear? Is your leg hurting? Why are you driving? You should've stayed at home. I know you think Tyler's overreacting, but you're injured—"
"My leg's fine, Marianne. It isn't hurting much. I need to go down to the shed. Can you lead me there? I'm not sure if I still recognize the way," she said as she made her way into the house and toward the kitchen. "Let me grab a bottle of water first."
"I'll get it for you," Marianne said. She pulled Kate to a stop and helped her to the couch. "Sit. I'll get it."
As Marianne disappeared into the kitchen, Mr. Sawyer strode out. "Hi, Miss Mitchell."
"Mr. Sawyer, how's life without work?"
After working so hard for such a long time, Mr. Sawyer had decided to take a break. His doctor had told him that his heart wasn't as strong as it used to be, and he should consider slowing down.
"Good."
She smiled politely and turned her attention to Marianne as she came hurrying back.
"Why do you want to go down to the shed?"
There wasn't any way she could hide it from Marianne. She had to tell her; otherwise, Marianne might let it slip in front of Tyler.
"The paintings inside have faded quite a bit. I want to restore it. It'll be my birthday surprise for him."
The frown that Marianne was wearing disappeared. "That's a great idea. I'll be sure to keep my mouth shut, but are you sure you can make it down to the shed like that?"
"Oh, it doesn't hurt anymore."
"But there's no reception there. If anything happens ..."
"I can accompany you. I'll bring my book along." Mr. Sawyer offered.
"No, I'll be fine. Tell you what, if I'm not back in two hours, then come look for me." She continued when Marianne pursed her lips. "Please? I don't have much time. His birthday is two weeks away, and I can only work on it during lunch."
"Oh, all right."
It wasn't easy getting to the shed on one leg, but she didn't complain. She didn't want Marianne to drag her back before she could do anything.
Once she was inside, she started work immediately. She set a countdown alarm for an hour and a half, making sure she had ample time to head back to the mansion before Marianne got a panic attack.
She shook her head when the alarm rang. She'd only completed a small portion of the train tracks, and she wondered if she could complete the whole shed in time.
She was tempted to stay longer. But since she couldn't call Marianne from the shed, she didn't want to risk having a rescue team haul her back.
Half hopping and limping back to the mansion was much easier without all the paints and brushes. She would still need them anyway, so she might as well leave them in the shed.
She got back to the mansion in twenty minutes. Once she greeted Marianne to show her that she was still alive and well, Kate washed up and headed back to the office.
"You have flowers." Evelyn walked in with a bouquet of tulips. "Your favorite flowers."
Smiling broadly, Kate told her to put them down by the couch.
"By the way, they were hand-delivered."
That statement immediately took the smile off. "Ty was here? What did you tell him?"
"I told him you were with a client and shooed him off."
She nodded gratefully. "Good, thanks."
"So, are you going to tell me what you're doing?"
"As long as you tell me what's going on with you and Dan."
Evelyn shook her head. "We're just friends. We hang out, have dinner, and sometimes lunch. That's it."
"That's it? Dinner and lunch?"
"Yeah."
She shrugged and proceeded to fulfill her end of the deal, telling Evelyn what she was doing.
"Right, that reminds me. They usually just go over for dinner. He asked if I wanted to chip in for the present, and I said yes. We're getting him some high-tech watch. Do you know your boyfriend is a geek?"
"He's not my boyfriend. We're friends."
Evelyn rolled her eyes. "A friend who's causing you to rush to and from work in your condition and to brave the jungle in order to restore something his mother did for him," she said. "You're not just friends. When you laugh, you move closer to him without thinking. And when you're afraid, you lean toward him. I've never seen you do that with anyone."
"How did you know I lean toward him when I'm afraid?"
"Dan told me about the movie night and Ryan's prank. Don't worry, I gave him a hell of a lecture."
Laughing, Kate said, "Thanks. Did he tell you what Ryan said? Brought episode one just for me." She threw her hands in the air.
"So there's something?" Evelyn pushed.
"No, there's nothing. We're housemates; we can't be more."
"Can't?" Evelyn raised her brow. "Meaning you want more, but you're afraid that things won't work out and he'd end up losing the mansion? Kate." She paused. "I'm asking if you feel anything for him. Forget about the mansion and the situation you guys are in. Just think about what you want." She stood and walked out of the office, stopping right outside her door. "Oh, he's fetching you tonight. You know that, right?"
"You're not coming for dinner? Will Dan be missing from dinner, too?"
"Think about it," Evelyn said and closed the door behind her.
For the rest of the week, Kate rushed between work and the mansion. She tried to keep within the two-hour limit, but Tyler's birthday was getting closer, and there was still so much to be done.
In the end, she ended up leaving at lunchtime and returning to her office only to pack up and head back to the mansion.
And with that, her own work began piling up. She had no choice but to bring her work home, retreating into her room once she was done with dinner.
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