His voice should come with a warning label: may cause spontaneous orgasm.
“Hi, Reid.”
“I gotta say, it was quite the surprise seeing you today.” He sounds amused, and a lot more relaxed than I feel, but I try to calm myself down. This is just a conversation. That’s all.
I let out a small laugh. “At least you weren’t the one wearing muddy boots and probably smelling like a barn.”
“You made those boots look good,” he flirts and I’m instantly transported back to the night we met, the night when I was just Abby and he was just Reid. Two people interested in each other, spending an evening flirting. I can almost forget the complicated situation between us now. “In fact, I was hoping I could see them again.”
My smile fades. Crap, did I read this entire thing wrong? He wants to see my boots, does that mean he really does just want to talk about more field trips….
“Oh. Umm…well, yeah, we can definitely make that happen. But once the Christmas tree sales pick up we won’t really have time for any school tours. Can we do it in the—”
“Abby, no, I don’t mean…shit, I’m messing this up,” Reid says with a low groan.
“What do you mean?” I ask cautiously, trying not to get my hopes up again.
I hear a deep inhale over the phone. “I swear I’m not normally this awkward when I’m asking a woman out on a date.”
The breath I didn’t realize I was holding comes out in a whoosh. “Oh my God, youarecalling to ask me out.” I smack my head. “Okay, can we pretend I didn’t just say that? This has to be the most messed up conversation I’ve ever had.”
Reid’s deep laugh settles my nerves like a warm blanket. “Sweetheart, trust me, no one is more embarrassed by how ridiculous this has gone than I am. Can we start over?”
I giggle. “Sure. Hi, Reid.”
“Hey. It was really great seeing you again today.” I can hear the smile in his voice, and knowing that he’s calling because he wants to see me makes me feel lighter than I have in a long time.
“Yeah. It was a surprise, but a good one.”
“A really good one. Can I see you again sometime soon? Maybe not at the farm or the school?”
At the word school, I pause. I need to see his face. Without giving myself even a second to overthink it, I click the video icon to switch from a voice call to a video one. When his face fills the screen, I see a smile stretch across it.
“Hey, pretty lady.”
I watch as Reid leans back against whatever he’s sitting on, putting that muscular torso of his on a little tease of a display.
“Reid, what are we doing? Can we even date? You’re my kid’s principal. Isn’t that illegal? Not illegal. Against the rules?” I’m babbling and I know it, but he’s just so handsome, and I want to give in to temptation, just this once. I want to take something just for me, and say screw the consequences. But I can’t do that to Layla….
Reid sits up and looks at me through the phone. He’s still smiling, but he also looks serious, thoughtful even.
“Abby, I would never do anything that might jeopardize the safety, happiness, or well-being of one of my students. If it was against any rule or guideline for me to ask you out, I wouldn’t, no matter how much I want to. But I’ve checked, and it’s fine. No rules are broken if I take you to dinner.”
I nod slowly, and he continues. “The only question I have is, how do you think Layla will feel about me seeing you?”
I take a minute to think about that. She’s had nothing but good things to say about Dogwood Cove and her new school, but this is definitely something new we’ve never had to deal with before.
“I don’t know. I think…I think I should try to talk to her about it first.”
He smiles at me, and I know he accepts and understands that. “No problem. For what it’s worth, I’ve never gone out with a parent from my school before. Hell, I’ve never gone out with a parent, period. So this is all new for me. But that night we met, after you left, I kicked myself for not getting your number. There’s something here, Abby, something strong. And I don’t want to ignore it.”
“Neither do I,” I answer honestly. “I just need some time to talk to her. Feel her out about it, about us.”
His eyes light up with anticipation, and it makes his whole face look more youthful with the excitement and happiness I see there.
“Yeah. Of course.”
I can feel my answering smile stretch wide across my face. “Great. Well, I should go, life on the farm starts early.”
