Page 20 of Out of Place

I can’t lie; that look does something for me. I feel my dick twitch in my pants, which is really inconvenient right now. I’ve noticed that I get a similar feeling every time I look at her.

“What’s she doing?” Benny asks.

She’s walking down the sidewalk with her hands full of Walmart bags. That wouldn’t be unusual, except Walmart is a few blocks down. Why would she park over here if she was going to Walmart? Something doesn’t add up.

Before I think too much about it, I’m sliding out of the booth, telling my friends I’ll be right back. They call after me, but I don’t stop.

I walk out of the diner and jog until I catch up with Olivia. She doesn’t stop walking when she sees me.

“Olivia. Hey. What are you doing?” I glance down at the bags in her hands.

She looks at me like she’s never seen me before and answers, “Going home.”

“Are you walking?” I ask.

She looks down at her feet and then back up. “Looks like it.”

“Where’s Dottie?” I look around, expecting to see her somewhere, but I don’t.

“Farmers market.” That’s right. It’s Saturday. Dottie is always at the markets on Saturday and Sunday. I’m surprised she didn’t have Olivia go with her.

“She didn’t leave a truck for you?” I know Dottie has two vehicles. She prefers one over the other, but there’s no reason Olivia couldn’t have used the second.

“She did.”

I look around again. “Where is it?”

“At the farm,” she states plainly.

“Was there something wrong with the truck?” Maybe I can take a look at it. Car repair isn’t my favorite, but I’ve fixed a tractor or two on the farm.

“No.” God, she’s so infuriating sometimes. It makes me want to shake her and kiss her senseless at the same time.

“So you’re walking from Walmart to the farm? That’s like five miles,” I tell her.

“Thank you for that reminder.”

“Why are you walking?” I ask again, not giving up that easily.

“Jesus,” she groans, exasperated. “Not that it’s any of your business, but I don’t know how to drive. Aunt Dottie needed me to grab some stuff from the store, and I needed a few things, so I walked.”

I grab her arm to stop her. “Olivia. Let me take you home.”

She rolls her eyes. “I’m fine, Landon.” I think that’s the first time she’s said my name, and even with her voice laced with attitude, I like it.

“Olivia, come on. It’s hot out here. You’ve already walked this far. Let me take you back.”

She tugs her arm out of my grip. “It’s no big deal. I’m fine.”

I reach for the bags in one of her hands. “Can you stop being a brat for five seconds and let someone help you?”

It comes out a little harsher than I intended, but it gets her attention. She stops fighting me and lets go of the bags I was trying to take.

“Fine.” I lead her to my truck and throw her bags in the back before I open her door.

She looks at me like I’ve just grown a second head. “I can open my own door.”

I smile. “I’m sure you can, but my mama taught me manners, which means I open doors for a lady.”