Instead, I wait until we get back inside. This way, she doesn’t knee me in the balls in front of onlookers.
“You’re still here?” she hollers over her shoulder when I step inside the salon, hot on her heels.
“I am.”
“But why?” she asks, disappearing into her studio without waiting for my reply.
I follow behind her, hands on my hips as I fill the doorway. “Because there’s no reason for you to do all this yourself.”
She spins around. “Why? Because I’m a woman?”
“For Christ’s sake, Charli,” I grumble, rubbing my forehead. “Because you’re sick, not because you’re a woman.”
She rolls her eyes and stuffs a few more items into a bag. “I’m not sick. I’m better.”
Cough.
“Yeah, you sound like it.”
She spins back around, trying to ignore me. Leaning against the doorframe, I continue to watch her. My pants start to grow a little tight as she bends over and makes a few adjustments on her table. I’m pretty sure she’s not actually doing anything but making herself seem busy so she doesn’t have to talk to me.
“What else do you need to take out?”
“Nothing,” she sings, keeping her back to me as she goes to her small table and perfectly aligns the waterfall feature in the center and straightens the bottles of oils and lotions on the shelf.
“You’re unbelievable,” I mutter, shaking my head.
Turning to face me, she crosses her arms and narrows her eyes. This is the Charli I know and love. The feisty one who doesn’t take shit from anyone. She’s blunt, opinionated, and sassy as hell. And do you know what? It turns me on something fierce.
“You’re just mad I wouldn’t let you exert your manliness and carry the laundry to my car,” she states, practically tapping her foot on the floor. Apparently, Miss Charlotte Miller is gunning for a fight.
“I don’t care about being manly, Charli, and you know it. I was trying to help you.”
“And, again…I don’t need your help.”
“So you keep saying, but when will you get that having someone help you isn’t a bad thing? It can be pretty nice to have someone share the load every now and again.”
She huffs and looks down. “And how would you know?”
I lift my shoulder and push off the doorjamb and head toward her. I catch a whiff of something sweet and fruity, my fingers itching to dive into the soft hair pulled back at the nape of her neck. “Well, I might not know personally, but I can’t imagine having someone share the load every now and again is a bad thing.”
Her eyes are fire, the darkest sapphire orbs burning brightly beneath the soft lighting. She turns away from me, placing a hand on the table. I step closer, worried something’s wrong. Maybe she’s overdone it carrying the dirty bedding and straightening up her studio. She should probably be home, resting still, but the woman is so damn stubborn, she never listens to reason.
Especially from me.
“All I want to do is help, Charli,” I say softly. I almost reach out and place my hand on her back, but I need both of them to work, and I’m certain she’d break it. Maybe a few fingers. “Why is it so hard for you to accept that?”
Her shoulders sag for the briefest moment before all hell breaks loose.
Charli spins around, her eyes pools of desire. She’s breathing hard, my vision drawn to the sight of her sharp intakes and exhales of breath causing her chest to rise and fall rapidly. I’m ready to back up, to apologize for pushing her when she’s still not well and clearly needs space.
But…she moves.
No, she practically leaps.
Her arms wrap around my neck and her chest slams into mine. I stumble back but quickly right myself so I don’t fall, and all of that is lost the moment her mouth presses firmly to mine.
Charli is kissing me.
