Page 25 of Finding Forever

For one impossible moment, Dave thought about kissing her.

He wanted to. More than he’d wanted anything in a long time. The realization should have sent him backing across the parking lot. Instead, he stayed exactly where he was.

Beth’s breath caught.

And Dave knew. Whatever this was between them, he wasn’t imagining it. She felt it, too. His gaze dropped to her mouth.

Beth swallowed. “Dave…”

The way she said his name almost undid him. He could kiss her. He was almost certain she wouldn’t stop him. But almost wasn’t enough. Not with Beth.

He eased back a step.

The disappointment that flickered across her face was so quick he might have imagined it.

“I should let you get home,” he said.

Beth looked at her truck. “Probably.”

Neither of them moved.

Dave smiled. “We’re not very good at saying goodnight.”

That made her laugh. “Apparently not.”

He liked her laugh. He liked far too many things about her.

Beth reached for the door handle, then stopped. “Dave?”

“Yeah?”

“When you said ‘that’s my girl’…”

He braced himself. “I really am sorry.”

“I know.” Her smile was soft now. “I just wanted you to know that I didn’t mind.”

For a moment, Dave forgot how to breathe.

Beth opened the truck door. “Goodnight, Dave.”

“Goodnight, Beth.”

She climbed inside and closed the door.

Dave waited until the engine started before heading toward his own truck. Halfway there, he glanced back. Beth was still sitting behind the wheel. Watching him.

She looked away the instant their eyes met.

Dave smiled to himself as he kept walking. Avoiding a mess was beginning to look a whole lot more complicated than he’d thought.

Chapter 17

Four days later, Beth knew going with Dave to Cedar Ridge had been a mistake before they’d even made it out of town. Not a terrible mistake. Not the sort that involved ambulances, lawyers, or explaining yourself to your children.

Just the kind that left you sitting in the passenger seat of a man’s truck at nine-thirty on a Saturday morning, holding two takeout coffees while he drove through Sapphire Bay.

It was as if spending several hours alone together was the most ordinary thing in the world. Which, Beth reminded herself, it was. Sort of.