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Chapter Twelve
The following morning, Sophie twisted and turned in the mirror she’d hung in her bedroom to check out how she looked in her work attire. She wore a black dress in a slim cut, with a square neck and three-quarter sleeves and her favorite stilettos.
She looked good, probably too urban for Revival, but she didn’t care. She dressed how she dressed, and after being out of work all this time it was nice to look like her former self.
She stared at her reflection, her mind returning to that kiss in her hallway. She touched her lips. It had been hot, desperate, and dirty.
She had no idea what to make of it.
There was a knock on the door, saving her from having to dwell on it.
The knocking became louder and more insistent. She called out, “I’m coming!”
It was probably Maddie, stopping by this morning to check in on her before she left.
She opened the door, but her friend wasn’t standing there. Instead it was Ryder, looking illegally hot in his sheriff’s uniform. He smiled at her and held out a venti Starbucks. “Good morning.”
As she stared at the coffee, her heart skipped a beat. “The nearest Starbucks is ten miles from here.” She knew because the first thing she’d done when she settled in was look at the app to see where the closest one was. She’d wanted to run back to Chicago when she saw it was way too far to go to on her way to work.
“Yeah, I know.” His gaze raked down her body. “Is that what you’re wearing?”
Still floored by the gesture, she nodded absently. “You drove ten miles to get me coffee?”
He shrugged. “You kept complaining about how far it was, and how you needed your triple-shot Red Eye every morning. I wanted you to have a good first day.”
At a loss for what to say, she took the cup. Diamonds wouldn’t have made her this happy. There was nothing better he could have done for her. There he went, being thoughtful again. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” He stepped inside the house. “You didn’t answer my question.”
God, he smelled good, like he’d come from the shower and rolled in a bucket of summer. “What question?”
“Is this what you’re wearing?”
She tilted her chin up to gaze at him. “Yes. What’s wrong with it?”
His fingers tightened on her hips. “You look like a city girl.”
“I am a city girl.”
A muscle jumped in his jaw. “You’re going to fucking stop traffic.”
Pleasure warmed her chest, making her smile. “I think that’s probably an exaggeration.”
“Nope.”
Their eyes met. Holding far too long.
To break the tension, she raised her cup. “What did I do to deserve this?”
His head tilted. “It’s a peace offering.”
“For what?” She tightened her fingers, not wanting to talk about what happened last night.
“There’s something you need to know before you go to work today.” His gaze flickered.
She took a sip of coffee. “That sounds ominous.”
He smiled, all smooth and slick. “You’re not going to like it.”
