A loud pop fills the room. Followed by another. And a dozen more.
But with Sawyer’s gaze on mine, focused and intent, it might as well be a million miles away.
“This is going to be hard.” He reaches up and runs one of his fingers over the curve of my jaw. That desire I felt earlier kicks into overdrive.
“What is?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.
“Being just friends when I’ve finally admitted that I want so much more.”
Chapter 9
Sawyer
“You’re happy even by your standards,” Garrison says as he paddles his kayak just behind mine.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“That you’re obnoxiously upbeat in the worst of circumstances,” Weston adds. It’s a rare occurrence that he comes out with us, but I’m glad he’s here. Guy is way too uptight for his own good. He could use some peace more than most.
“This coming from Mr. Always Moody? I’ll take it as a compliment.”
Weston grumbles something, but it’s not quite loud enough that I can hear him from my kayak.
“It’s a good day. The sun is shining, birds are chirping. What’s there not to be upbeat about?” I’d had a wonderful time with Anastasia last night, and then a fantastic meeting with Pastor Reeves this morning. I’m even thinking this Sunday might be the first time I attend because I want to, and not because someone’s pushed me into it.
“Sure. Or it could be the date you had with Anastasia last night,” Garrison calls forward.
“About time,” Weston snaps from where he trails behind Garrison.
“It wasn’t a date.” But it sure is a good thing they can’t see the dopey grin on my face. After that moment in the kitchen, when I very nearly ignored the promise I made to myself and kissed her senseless, the rest of the night was charged. We ate popcorn and laughed through the show, but she sat closer to me.
Her knee brushed my thigh when she folded her legs up on the couch.
Our fingers brushed multiple times as we both went in for popcorn. Truth is, I’d had my fill of food before we even started, yet I kept eating the popcorn for the sheer chance of touching her.
Just thinking about it gives me a rush all over again.
“From what Katelyn said, it was,” Garrison counters.
“We’ve watched TV and eaten dinner together hundreds of times,” I tell him.
“Except she just turned down a proposal. During which, might I add, she made intense eye contact with you.”
I should have known he would have caught it, too. They probably all did. When you train to catch even the slightest changes in behavior, it’s hard to miss much.
“She was nervous. The guy just proposed marriage to her, and she wasn’t ready.”
“Because she has feelings for you,” Garrison counters.
“She could do worse,” Weston offers. Since he grew up here in Stormwatch Landing, and he and Zane have been best friends since childhood, Anastasia is a sort of surrogate sister to him. After his own sister was murdered, he became even more protective over Anastasia, his way of making sure nothing ever happened to her.
Which makes his comment a total compliment.
“Be careful, Cowboy, you’re starting to show your softer side.”
“I don’t have a softer side,” he replies.
I laugh. “Yeah, okay.” The fact that he took a local troubled teen, Kyle Harding, under his wing a few months ago, giving him a job at the ranch, says otherwise.
