Page 96 of Trick or Tease

My breath caught as he reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “Garrett.”

But he was already kissing me, his mouth warm against mine. I melted into him immediately. He pushed against me, causing me to stumble backward. The dried cornstalks rustled around us as he deepened the kiss, his tongue sliding against mine in a way that made my knees weak.

When we finally broke apart, we were both breathing hard.

“We should go find Billy and Lucy,” I whispered, though I made no move to step away from him.

“We should,” he agreed, but his thumb was tracing my bottom lip in a way that suggested he wasn’t in any hurry to leave.

I forced myself to step back before we got completely carried away. “Come on. They’re probably wondering where we are.”

We found Billy and Lucy at the main house, sitting on the front porch swing with steaming mugs of hot chocolate. Lucy was curled up against Billy’s side, looking tired but happy.

“There you are,” Billy called out. “We were starting to think you’d gotten lost.”

“Just doing a final sweep,” I said, hoping my voice sounded normal. “Everything’s clear.”

“Good,” Lucy said, stifling a yawn. “I think I’m about ready to crash. Today was incredible, but I’m exhausted.”

“You should be proud,” Garrett said. “The whole thing ran like clockwork. Better than some corporate events I’ve seen.”

Billy beamed at the compliment. “We couldn’t have done it without you, man.”

“It was a team effort,” Garrett said, but I could tell he was pleased to be a part of that team.

We chatted for a few more minutes about the day’s successes and what we might do differently next time, but it was clear everyone was winding down. Lucy was practically asleep against Billy’s shoulder.

“I think that’s our cue,” I said, standing up. “You two should get some rest.”

“What about you?” Billy asked. “You worked just as hard as anyone today.”

“I’m too wired to sleep yet,” I admitted. “I think I need to decompress a little first.”

Garrett stood up too. “I know the feeling. Maybe I’ll take a walk around the property, make sure everything’s secure.”

Yeah, yeah, everyone knew exactly what we were going to get up to. But thankfully, they had the good grace not to give us shit about it.

Billy and Lucy said goodnight and headed inside, leaving Garrett and me alone on the porch. The night air was cool but not uncomfortable, with more stars visible than you’d ever see in the city.

“Want some company on that walk?” I asked.

“I was hoping you’d ask.”

We wandered back toward the main attraction area. In the moonlight, everything looked peaceful and somehow magical.

“Look,” Garrett said, pointing up at the flatbed trailer we used for the hayrides. It was still loaded with hay bales and blankets. “That looks comfortable.”

“Are you suggesting we do some stargazing?” I asked with a cheesy grin. I had a feeling he saw the bed and a blanket and had something else on his mind. I loved teasing him.

“I’m suggesting we find a way to keep warm while we talk about how amazing today was.”

I couldn’t argue with that logic.

We climbed up onto the trailer. Garrett spread out one of the blankets over the hay before we settled down next to each other. The night was definitely chilly, so when he pulled another blanket over both of us and wrapped his arms around me, I snuggled gratefully against his warmth.

“God, look at all those stars,” I murmured, tilting my head back. “You forget how many there are when you spend time in places with streetlights.”

“I’d forgotten,” Garrett said quietly. “In the city, you can barely see anything. Light pollution blocks it all out.”