Page 33 of Blue Jean Summer

“Practice. That’s…good…”

Catherine eased up onto her toes as I steadied her with a hand on her back. I sifted my fingers through her corn silk hair and cradled the nape of her neck. Her eyes grew heavy as her breath danced with mine. My heart thudded as my lips brushed hers. Nerves began to get the best of me. I hadn’t kissed anyone since my engagement ended. I hadn’t even touched another woman since then.

I hadn’t had enough time to think this through. To get a read on her. To analyze the situation.

I felt like Jekyll and Hyde, torn between the impulse to kiss a breathtaking woman and battling the intrinsic part of me that craved the safety of predictability rather than the possibilities that came with taking risks.

“Hayes,” she whispered.

“Yeah?” I croaked out.

The corners of her mouth lifted. “Just kiss me already.”

I swallowed as nerves snaked around my throat. “Yes, ma’am.”

Catherine pressed into me, her back curving as we tilted our heads in opposite directions, complementing each other in unspoken ways.

Her high heels hit the ground. Lithe fingers curled into the front of my shirt as we met in a chaste kiss. It was soft and sweet. Simple.

She tasted like cherries. Or maybe that was the gloss. All I knew was that I wanted to find out for sure.

We broke apart, eyes locked on each other as undeniable attraction crept through us like a fast-acting drug. The stupor passed in the blink of an eye, and Catherine beat me to the punch. She used her grip on my shirt to pull me in for another kiss. A harder kiss. A kiss that was far more desperate than the first.

I tangled my fingers in her hair, holding her head steady as I swept my tongue along the line of her lips.

She melted then, sinking into me and opening up more.

I fucking loved that cherry lip gloss.

Catherine’s hips pressed into mine, following that intrinsic pull to get closer and closer.

A loud pop echoed across the valley as a vehicle backfired, and we jolted apart.

I let out three measured breaths as we stared at each other, blinking in disbelief. “That was…”

“Something,” she said, just as breathless.

The birds singing in the trees paid us no mind.

“Right.” I wiped my thumb along my lower lip as I tried to regain my bearings. “No problems in that department.”

“So. First weekend in June,” Catherine blurted. For once, it was nice seeing her composure slip. Her cheeks were flushed, and her hair was a mess. That was entirely my fault, and I liked it more than I should have.

I nodded. “Tell me what you need and I’ll make it happen.”

“And then I get my land?”

“I’ve already got the paperwork started.”

Catherine let out a sharp breath, still off-kilter from that kiss. Frankly, so was I.

“Right,” she said. “We should probably get back up to the house. I told Hallie I’d help her make dinner for everyone.”

I bent and picked up Catherine’s high heels from where they had fallen, then took her hand. We made the walk back to the estate house in silence, sharing mischievous glances as if we had just gotten away with making out by the pond like we were teenagers.

Hallie caught us slipping through the patio doors, and her jaw dropped. “Something you two would like to fess up to?”

Catherine’s eyes went wide when she spotted her reflection in a large vase. She quickly began to smooth down her hair.