Part 8 (1/2)
Kelsey entered Mitch's apartment, noting the piles of papers and pictures on every available surface. She didn't bother to ask why they weren't working in his office; she'd cleaned in there a few times while he was gone and, if anything, that room was even worse.
”What do you need me to do?”
”Actually, I really need help putting this stuff in some kind of order. I had several rolls of film developed, and I've listed the subjects in my journals. Could you match the rolls with the notes? It would be a big help.”
Kelsey sat on the sofa and picked up a packet of pictures. ”I can do that. Are these pictures going to be in the book?”
He wryly shook his head. ”No way. This is a collaborative effort. The publisher has professional photographers, graphic artists, even other writers for certain sections. These are just for my notes...and my memories.”
Mitch surrept.i.tiously watched Kelsey work. Her tawny hair swung forward, covering her cheek, and he took advantage of the moment to drink her in with his eyes. This ”friends” thing was playing havoc with his peace of mind. He grinned, teased, talked about his trip and answered her endless questions, carefully hiding the fact that he wanted to strip off her fluffy sweater and lick her collarbone.
”Who are these children?” she asked.
Glad she'd distracted him from his wandering thoughts, Mitch glanced at the photos she held. Gazing at the eager faces, he smiled. ”These are China's little angels. They're the unwanted ones. The baby girls who've been abandoned and are raised in state homes.”
Mitch saw a frown cross her face. Her shoulders drooped as she sat cross-legged on the floor, next to the sofa.
”Oh, of course, I remember reading your articles in the Baltimore paper a few months ago. These are the girls who are suffering because of China's one-child policy. Now I understand why there are no boys,” she said softly.
”You don't usually see boys in these places unless they're ill or handicapped.” Mitch set the pictures on the table. ”Boys are a valuable commodity in a land where parents are punished for having more than one child. If a couple has no son, there's no one to support them in their old age. Baby girls are found abandoned every day, and they're usually taken directly to an orphanage. Officials seldom even try to find out who they belong to.”
”How could parents do that to a child?” Kelsey asked in dismay.
”Chinese parents love their children as much as we do, Kels. They're in an untenable situation, and are forced to do something morally repugnant to survive. I'm sure most Chinese mothers mourn the loss of their daughters all their lives.”
Kelsey stared at the pictures on the table, captivated by the faces, the bright-eyed optimism of the beautiful little girls.
”Your articles helped them, you know,” she said softly. ”I read that there has been a recent surge in foreign adoptions.”
He nodded. ”That makes it worthwhile. Believe it or not, I even thought about it myself while I was there. For the first time in my life I thought long and hard about becoming a father, even though I'd never believed that would happen.”
Kelsey quickly looked up at him. ”Why not? I'm sure you'd be a great father. What kid wouldn't want a dad who knows how to hot-wire a car?”
He shook his head, chuckling, and replied, ”I've come a long way from those days. It's funny when you think about it. I grew up resentful as h.e.l.l toward my parents, and ended up a lot like them...a little introverted, a little selfish. I travel all the time. I'm not cut out for home, family and kids. The only times I ever felt a family connection were when I was staying with your parents.”
She gave him a sour look. ”You sure were around enough to be a Logan!”
”To me, you were like a television show from the fifties that I could step into and pretend I was part of for a little while. But I never felt I was really one of you.”
She stared at him, knowing what he said was true. Mitch had always been a little removed from them, always prepared for the rug to be pulled out from under him. At first it was evident in his rebellion, later in his self-imposed isolation.
”Anyway,” he continued, ”I'm not really cut out for kids, just as my parents weren't.”
”I'm quite sure your parents love you, Mitch. But admit it, you weren't the easiest kid to deal with.”
She saw his wicked grin and knew he was indulging in a little reminiscing about his h.e.l.lion years.
”I know you're right,” he said. ”I was totally out of their realm. I got more interesting to them when I was older, once your parents helped me overcome my tendency toward self-destruction. And they're certainly pleased I ended up so respectable respectable.”
He said the word as if it pained him, and Kelsey grinned. ”I somehow suspect they know you well enough to be aware that the bada.s.s in you is always lurking just underneath the surface.”
He shook his head ruefully, leaned back on the sofa and said, ”Kelsey, until you moved into my life, I would have sworn that bada.s.s bada.s.s was long gone!” was long gone!”
”Gee, that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me, Mitch,” she said with a self-satisfied smirk.
”Don't let it go to your head.”
Kelsey slid up on the sofa to sit next to him. Papers and books covered two of the three cus.h.i.+ons, and Kelsey nudged Mitch with her hip until he made room for her. He gave a loud, theatrical sigh as she sat down.
”Admit it, I'm not so bad to have around.”
He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. ”There are a few definite benefits to having you around, Kels.”
She liked the sound of that.
”Mainly, it earns me points with your family.”
She elbowed him in the ribs. ”Not funny.”
Kelsey reached out to retrieve the stack of pictures on the table, slowly flipping through them again. She sensed Mitch watching her. His body was pressed against hers, from hip to knee. When he stretched his arm across the back of the sofa behind her, she curled up into the crook under his arm. He didn't pull away. Kelsey closed her eyes briefly and savored the heavy weight of his arm on her shoulders, and the faint scent of his cologne. His neck was inches from her face, and the urge to press a kiss below his right ear was nearly overwhelming. She resisted it by focusing on the pictures. He took a few from her and glanced through them himself.
”You're wrong, you know,” she said as they finished going through the stack. ”You have a huge heart, Mitch. You are not destined to be alone.”
She turned her face up to look at him, staring intently into his dark blue eyes. He didn't say anything. Kelsey couldn't stop looking at him, knowing she wasn't quite staying within the ”friends” boundary they'd decided on. She didn't care. She'd be willing to bet money that he didn't, either. Especially when she realized he was going to kiss her.
He leaned forward slowly and brought his lips to hers. He kissed her sweetly, lovingly, and Kelsey nearly melted. This wasn't mindless pa.s.sion, the heated exchanges they'd shared in the stairway, but instead a kiss of comfort and longing and sweet seduction. She opened her mouth slightly, inviting him to further the intimacy, and he complied, his tongue engaging hers in a slow, seductive dance.
Kelsey didn't want the kiss to end. But when it finally did, Mitch didn't jerk away from her. Instead he closed his eyes and moved slightly so his cheek rested against her temple. She felt his heart pounding under her fingertips, which had somehow found their way to his s.h.i.+rt-clad chest.
”Mitch?” she whispered against the side of his neck. ”Is that how friends usually kiss?”
”I think that's possible,” he replied softly.
”Then I'm awfully glad you're my friend.”
”WE NEED TO TALK.”
Kelsey didn't look up from the pile of correspondence she'd been sorting through. Mitch was obviously trying to keep busy, to cover up the awkward silence that had ensued after their kiss.
”I'm so sick of talking,” she replied.
Mitch had been brooding for the past half hour, ever since he'd finally moved away from her and gone back to work. She knew he was trying to figure out what to say, how to rationalize that kiss, and she did not want to hear it.
”We kissed. Friends kiss all the time. You said so yourself. Besides, I think it was natural for us to seek a little emotional release after talking about something so draining. Let's not make more of it than it was, all right?”
Mitch didn't let it go. ”Look, Kelsey, there's something happening here, and we need to sort it out.”
Kelsey nodded, sighing, giving in. They'd have to have this conversation sooner or later. ”I understand, Mitch. I think, for the first time, I truly understand what you're feeling.”