Page 68 of Thaw My Heart

Damn, he’s cold. “No, he can’t,” I stamp my heel.

Kit lets out a deep exhale, flipping the papers back on the clipboard, nodding to Wes beside him to leave. Wes gives me an apologetic look with a tilt of his hat before briskly walking away.

“What do you want?” His eyes narrow on me.

I step closer, feeling my pulse burn in my chest. “I want you to ask me on a date.”

The harsh expression on his face dissolves, leaving him in shock as blush fills his cheeks. Stepping towards me with a look of confusion, like he’s misheard me. “Excuse me?”

“Ask me on a date, Cowboy.”

He laughs nervously. There are plenty of other workers still in the barn, and he’s very aware of it. “I’m your boss now, Sadie.”

“And?” I challenge.

He looks up, making sure no one is watching. But everyone’s watching, smiling at us, and whispering to each other. Doesn’t bother me in the slightest. In fact, I like the confrontation, but I can tell Kit doesn’t like the pressure.

“Fucking hell,” he murmurs, grabbing my hand.

He pulls me into the tack room, closing the door behind us as my back hits the wall, sending a jolt of fear through me. “Last I checked, you were dating Blake.”

A wave of warm emotion releases under my skin, slowly replacing the fear in my veins. He didn’t say I’m not interested in you, or I’m not attracted to you, or even I hate you. He’s downright jealous. Blake was right.

“Blake and I… we didn’t work out,” I slyly smile, very aware of the small space between us, and the fact that we’re alone. Maybe it should scare me, intimidate me, but my body wants this man more than my mind can comprehend.

“I’ve got things to do.” He reaches for the door, but I grab his forearm, pulling him back.

“Stop running from me,” I snap, sick and tired of his shit attitude towards me. Of him pretending to hate me.

“I will not be your second choice, Sadie,” he barks.

“What?” I blink. “Is—is that what you think?” Is this why he’s been so angry? Why he’s been acting like he hates me? Because he thinks he’s my second choice?

“It’s a fact,” he states, like it’s the truth cemented into the floor. A line between us that he fabricated.

I can’t believe he thinks that those words are true. “You were never my second choice, Kit,” I say firmly, taking a step into him. And damn, I forgot how good he smells, like fresh pine trees and rain. “But you kept pushing me away.”

For too long, he’s been denying this thing between us. Teetering on the edge of desire and control. My hand lands on his strong chest, feeling his heart race beneath my palm, mimicking my own. He tracks my hand, and those rigid blue eyes soften to my gentle touch.

“I wanted you from the start,” I murmur.

His throat bobs. “You’re a good liar, Sadie.”

“I’m not lying. But you are not an easy man to like.”

A muscle flickers in his jaw. “I could say the same.”

I step closer, feeling the heat from his body. My pulse accelerates. “And you like me too, don’t you?” His gaze falls to the floor with a flicker of sadness. My hand brushes his scruffy jaw, forcing his eyes back to mine. “Don’t you?”

A shallow breath escapes his mouth, but he doesn’t respond.

“Tell me the truth, Kit.”

“Why?” he asks. “Why does it matter?”

“Because what you want matters. At least it does to me.” And it always has.

He pauses, eyes dropping to my lips. “I would have been devastated if you drowned,” he murmurs.