Reluctantly, the group parted for them to leave after a promise to return soon. As Owen and Carly exited the brick and Texas limestone library, she linked her arm through his. “Can you make it to the truck? I wish you’d said you were tired sooner. I was afraid this would be too much for you.”
He smiled at her concern. “I’m fine. I was worried if I left it to you, we’d never leave.”
She pulled her hand away, froze, and stared at him. “You lied to those sweet retirees?”
“No, technically I told the truth. We needed to go, and I don’t have my strength back. They assumed the two were connected.”
“Like you knew they would,” Carly teased with a grin and a sparkle in her voice.
He nodded. “I couldn’t very well say they’d talked my ears off and I’d had all I could take.”
She playfully swatted his arm. “No, you couldn’t. That would be bad.”
“Do you have to hang around like that afterwards all the time?”
She nodded and the light in her eyes dimmed. “Unless I have another pressing engagement. Socializing and answering questions afterwards is part of the job. Usually, I get invited to dinner with them.”
“And you feel obligated to go?”
She shrugged. “I can’t risk offending an organization by turning down their invitation without a legitimate reason.” She stepped closer and wrapped him in a giant hug. Her sunglasses poked into his nose, but despite that, her firm body pressed against his sent desire bolting through him. “Thank you for everything you did today. I’ve never had a speaking engagement go so well, and it was all because of you.”
When she released him, her eyes glowed from her accomplishment. He smiled at her sheer joy. Had he seen Carly this open, this real since returning? Maybe when she’d been ticked with him, but otherwise she’d been the executive director. Lord, Carly was breathtaking like this. His body shifted into a new gear, and he shoved his hands into his pants’ pockets.
How would the look on her face now compare to the one when she reached fulfillment when he made love to her? Needing to cool down the thought visualized Texas-size cockroaches. Finding hair on the shower soap. Nuns in miniskirts. That did it. Desire no longer a problem.
The bright Texas sun shone on him, warming his skin as he pulled his aviator sunglasses from his shirt pocket and slipped them on. “We did make a damn fine team.”
“Oooh, you look soTop Gun.”
“Wrong branch of the service.”
She chuckled as they walked toward her truck. “You know what I mean. It’s a good thing the ladies didn’t see you in those. We’d have had to call the paramedics when they swooned and fell off their chairs. As it was, a couple times I worried Mable Swanson’s eyes would pop from her head.”
“You’re just jealous because my jokes got more laughs than yours.”
When Carly fumbled in her presentation or grew long-winded, he eased in with a story illustrating a tough reality or one with humor to lighten the mood. Then if he lost his train of thought or couldn’t recall a word, Carly bridged the awkward silence, usually with facts and figures, until he recovered. Lord, the woman loved to spout statistics.
“With the way those women fawned over you, I’m thankful they noticed I was there. I bet they only heard every other word I said.”
“Let’s go out to dinner to celebrate.”
Carly’s smile faded. “I’ll have to take a rain check.” One he suspected she’d never collect. “I should work on the building fund proposal for the board on Thursday. So far, it consists of winning the lottery.”
“You have to eat, but if you’d rather nuke leftovers and eat alone at the dining room table while working on a Friday night, that’s your choice.”
She scowled. “That’s not what I was going to do.”
He chuckled, and her scowl deepened. She crossed her arms over her chest, and pinned him with a fierce glower, but he shook his head. “Woman, I’m a military man. It takes more than that to intimidate me.” He rubbed his chin. “Which part did I get wrong, the leftovers or eating at the dining room table? Or is there a reason you don’t want to be alone with me?”
Her exaggerated huff didn’t fool him. “While I’m not admitting you’re right about anything, I’ve reconsidered. Not only that, but I’m in such a good mood, you can choose the restaurant.”
“I’ve been craving a True-Blue burger all day,” he said as they reached her truck, referring to their favorite hangout during high school and one of the town’s handful of restaurants.
“You sure you don’t want to go somewhere quieter or fancier?”
He raised an eyebrow at her comment.
“Fancy according to Service standards,” she clarified.
