“My clothes look like someone attacked me. Again. And you somehow come out looking like you went for a run. So again, I ask. How?”
Shooting me a cocky grin, he kissed me hard as he zipped up his pants. “Just can’t seem to keep my hands off you.”
“Well, in future, perhaps you could carefully undo the buttons on my shirt. Or simply pull it over my head instead of ripping all of them. I’m running out of clothes.”
“I’ll do my best. Oh, and while we’re at it, you might want to think about locking your back door.”
“Why? Because you want it to be more difficult to get inside?”
“No, because anyone could sneak inside and steal from you. Or do something else,” he said pointedly.
“I’ve always left it open,” I shrugged. “Some people enter through that door so they don’t have to walk all the way around.”
“Seriously? Let them fucking walk. Safety is more important.”
“And while I appreciate your opinion, this is a small town, and I’ve always felt safe.”
His eyes narrowed as he shoved his hands in his pockets. “Even with what happened to Ellie?”
“That wasn’t in town,” I argued.
“Fine, then what about Bailey?”
I clenched my jaw, irritated that he was berating me like this. So, I decided to change the subject. Hopping off the desk, I walked over to my closet and grabbed a new outfit, something I’d learned to keep around.
“What are you doing for Thanksgiving?”
“Eating with my family.”
Tugging out pants and a blouse, I tried not to think about the fact that I generally wore skirts to work lately. And maybe that was because it gave Sam easier access when he snuck in.
“Well, if you want, you can come by my house. Remember, I’m cooking this year,” I winked over my shoulder.
“Yeah, I don’t think so,” he huffed.
His quick, gruff answer took me by surprise so much that I turned around. “Why? It’s just going to be my parents. It’s not like it’s a big gathering.”
“For precisely that reason. The last thing I want is to meet the parents.”
Rolling my eyes, I started stripping out of my ruined clothes. “It’s not like that.”
“In this town, that’s exactly what it is. And the moment I show up at your house, the gossip mill is gonna spin.”
“Who cares? It’s gossip.”
“It’s something I don’t want. I just want to keep this between us.”
Sure I had heard him wrong, I just stared at him.
“Look,” he sighed. “It’s nothing personal. But this town is crazy. The moment they get word of someone stepping into a bar together or sitting at the diner in the same booth, that’s it. Everyone has an opinion. They dig and dig until they know every last detail of our lives, and that’s not what I want right now.”
Yep, I had definitely heard him right.
“So, this is all a secret. That’s why you sneak in the back door and why you’ve never come to my house.”
Wow, I didn’t think it would hurt so bad to have someone say that, but surprisingly, it hurt really damn bad. I was someone’s dirty secret.
“It’s not like that,” he said, stepping forward until he was in my space, pulling me into his arms. “I can tell what you’re thinking, but I’m not ashamed of you or anything. I just want this to be between us for as long as possible. I don’t want all the questions aboutwhere this is goingorwhen are we moving in together.I just want to enjoy the moment.”
