Page 61 of Love’s Silver Bullet

Sheridan sagged against the headboard, hoping her friend was right. “I suppose …”

“Wait—did you hear that?” Kathy Jean raised a palm to still their conversation.

“Hear what?” Sheridan whispered.

Clink.

All but vaulting off the bed, Sophia darted over to the window. “Uh-oh,” she said with a soft chuckle, “if you think you feel guilty now, chiquita, just wait till you see this.”

Sheridan bounded off the bed along with Kathy Jean, the three of them peering into the Edward’s backyard.

Where Clay Morgan stood in the light of the moon.

Wreaking havoc with Sheridan’s pulse.

“How on earth did he know I was here?” Sheridan whispered, wondering how a man so handsome could look even more so in the moonlight. She put a hand to her flushed face. “Or even know which room I was in?”

Sophia pinched Sheridan’s waist. “Because he’s not only handsome and smart, chica, he is smitten. Besides,” she said with a droll smile, “it is past ten, so we are probably the only light in the house, no?”

Kathy Jean nodded. “Most likely, because Mama and Papa go to bed early.” Her eyes grew as she peeked out the window. “Oh no—he wants you to come out.” Her whisper was a shaky rasp while Clay waved Sheridan down, her anxious tone clear evidence she was not the bravest of the three.

But then, neither was Sheridan. “W-What do I do?” Sheridan stuttered, well aware it was wrong to even consider sneaking out.

“Ay-ay-ay!” Throwing her hands in the air, Sophia butted both girls out of the way as she threw up the sash, holding up a single finger. “Hello, Clay,” she whispered loudly, “un minuto, por favor.” She turned to latch two hands to Sheridan’s shoulders. “You go down to see what he wants, chica, then come right back.”

“B-But my parents wouldn’t like that,” Kathy Jean said, wringing her hands.

“Nor would Uncle Finn.” Sheridan stepped closer to Kathy Jean.

Sophia arched a dark brow as she folded her arms, toe tapping. “And did that stop you before?”

Sheridan blinked, thinking Sophia had a point. “Well, no …” She glanced down at her cotton nightgown. “But I’m not dressed.”

“Sheridan …” Clay’s whisper rose in volume.

“Shhh!” Sophia hushed him with another finger. “Un minuto, Clay.” She turned back to Sheridan with a parental smile. “So, get dressed, chica, and go down to see what he wants, si?”

“Okay.” A little-girl whisper parted from her lips as she hurried into Kathy Jean’s closet to change back into her clothes. She stepped out with a chew of her lip. “I’m ready. I think.”

“Please be quiet,” Kathy Jean begged, fanning her pink cheeks.

Sophia gave her a quick squeeze. “A kiss or two, then you come right back, si?” She winked. “After all, you are not Lolita Lopez, eh?”

No, she was definitely not Lolita Lopez. Or even Sophia for that matter, Sheridan thought as she tiptoed down the staircase, or her legs wouldn’t be wobbling quite this much. Slowly unlatching the bolt on the kitchen door, Sheridan eased it open with nary a squeak, carefully closing it again as she stepped out on Kathy Jean’s back porch.

“Oh!” Her surprise squeaked out when someone pinned her to the wall with a kiss that all but melted her into the siding.

“Holy thunder, Do you have any idea how much I’ve missed you?” Clay whispered as he pulled back to cup her face in his hands. “Not seeing you for an entire week?”

She offered a wobbly smile. “A little.”

He drew her into a tight hug. “I’m crazy about you, Sheridan, and I’m not about to let you go.”

A little-girl giggle tripped from her throat as the scent of bay rum filled her senses. “You have to, Clay, because I’m leaving tomorrow.”

“True,” he whispered, pressing a kiss to her ear before he held her at bay, “but guess what I just realized?” He grinned like a little boy at his very first rodeo. “We have a six-month break after our tour in New York, where I just happen to have a cousin who’s been begging me to stay.”

She blinked. “You’re going to be in New York?”