“You kissed all the good country manners out of me.”
I laughed. His breathing slowed as I toyed with his top button again. “What now?”
Callan untangled me from the safe spot under his chin, and he caressed my cheek with his thumb as he searched my gaze for a reaction to everything that had just happened. “Want to take this slow?”
No.
I wanted to dive headfirst into more of those kisses, but… This was new. And a lot. On top of everything else in my life, adding more complications like getting naked, and sex, and huge feelings wasn’t the best idea. Not yet, anyway. I needed to wade in slowly, test the waters, and figure out how to swim in this new world I found myself in.
“One day at a time?” he prompted.
“Is that… okay?” I asked.
“Of course that’s okay. Come on.” He flopped onto the sofa and patted the spot beside him. “We’ll watch the movie.”
When I gingerly sat on the edge, still with no idea about what to do next, he rolled his eyes and scooted closer to put his arm around me. He smiled, and it was a smile I’d seen a hundred times. He was still my friend, still the same Callan, but now we snuggled on the sofa together.
His warm breath fanned my skin. “You stay close to me in the scary parts,” he murmured, peppering kisses on my neck.
Oh, and I guess we kissed now, too.
I turned, and resting my hand on his scarred cheek, I drew him closer. One more kiss wouldn’t hurt. The sensual whisper of his mouth moving with mine reassured me. No, one more kiss wouldn’t hurt at all.
17
That Sunny Afternoon in Spring
Callan
Matilda stomped ahead inher boots. The path to the river was a woven line battered by a lifetime of different feet trudging through the grass, and no doubt she could see the sunlight skipping on the ripples of cool, clear water by now. Her marching had picked up speed.
Erin’s shoulder bumped against my arm. “Regretting your decision to take us swimming?”
“Nope,” I said.
Not for a second. Erin and Matilda were a package deal.
I didn’t mind if our time together was heading to the river or if we huddled on the sofa watching a kid’s movie with Matilda like we’d done last night. Any excuse to be closer to Erin would do. An opinionated toddler with a stubborn streak was the least of my problems when the slimy ex-husband still hovered a flight away.
“A Friday afternoon by the river is the perfect way to play hooky,” I said. “I feel like I hardly got to see you this week.” Grinning, I added, “I’m not sure you packed enough food, though,” and teased her with a wink.
Erin blushed. The picnic basket was stuffed so full the lid couldn’t close, and my arm strained carrying the weight—and I was used to lugging around boxes of fruit.
“Til can be fussy sometimes,” she muttered, embarrassed.
“I love it.” I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her close enough that her hip bumped into mine. “We have no reason to leave. We can enjoy the whole afternoon together. Just the three of us.”
“You might change your mind once Til starts powering down for naptime.”
“She can’t be any worse than Mim after Christmas lunch.”
Erin laughed. “A few too many wines and Mim’s ready to let us all know what she thinks. I still remember the time she told off my parents. No softening the blow, just… ‘You two need to pull your head out of your ass.’” Her smile slipped into a frown. “Mim seemed a bit out of sorts this morning when she dropped by the house… Distracted…”
“I think she worries about Dad more than she lets on… And about the farm. I’ve asked her to slow down a bit more, but…” Shaking my head, I let out a sigh. “She sees how much help I need now that Bronte’s caught up with her renovation. Dad’s no help. Cole’s MIA. I’m already finding it difficult to take time away from the fields to do more, and when the harvest comes…”
Well, I didn’t have a solution for how I was going to manage everything. Days on the farm were long in the summer. Picking, packing, so many seasonal workers to worry about, tourists dropping in, and the cottages were booked out until autumn—there was a lot to do. Work was about to become endless.
Erin bumped her shoulder into my arm again. “I’m here if you need an extra set of hands. You’re opening the shop up when berry picking starts again next week, right? What about if I help out?”
