Page 14 of Worth the Trouble

He shook his head. “No. You don’t strike me as the kind of person I should be worried about.”

“Why not?”

He caught it the second she regretted her question. It was in how her eyes shuttered and the sharp little breath she took. He chuckled. “I like you, Cece.”

Once again, she gasped. “What? You don’t know anything about me.”

“I know that you like animals. That you enjoy the peace and quiet a run in the woods can offer. I know that you have excellent taste in sweets.” He winked at her. “And that you work for your family. I do too, and I think it’s important to support the people we care about.”

At this point she seemed too stunned to speak. He motioned for them to resume walking because at some point they’d stopped to speak to one another. It was easy to organize his thoughts when they were moving. And he had a feeling she’d agree. So they continued down the sidewalk, weaving in and out of other couples enjoying an evening stroll after the meeting that had been held at City Hall.

Cece remained quiet. Neither one of them was inclined to fill the silence. It wasn’t quite awkward, but it had more to it than that. There was a comfortable anticipation for what might come next.

“If you could live anywhere, where would it be?” she asked.

Jason smiled. “Here.”

“Of course you’d say that.”

“What about you?” Jason murmured.

She sighed. “I don’t know. I’ve been to so many beautiful places. I do like my home. Honest, I do. But there gets to be a point where it seems too loud.” She gave him a chagrined smile. “I think if I were to ever move away from the city, I’d like to visit every so often.”

Cece went quiet. Their hands brushed, but she didn’t pull away. He glanced over to her hand, noting how small and delicate it was. If he were to reach for it, he was certain he could swallow it within his grasp. The contrast between the two of them was stark and yet perfect at the same time.

She stole his focus again when she continued. “I suppose I’d like to live somewhere like Rocky Ridge. Maybe not so far from civilization, but somewhere with enough space to make it feel like I’ve moved to my own little world.”

He hummed in acknowledgement. What she was describing was Rocky Ridge to a T. But it wouldn’t stay that way if people like her father continued to edge into these growing towns. Already they’d become more popular due to a few of their current residents. Paige, Kelsey, and Brooke had moved to the area, and while they’d been insistent that they didn’t want to change Rocky Ridge at all, they had enough of an online presence that there had been an uptick in tourists over the last few years.

She stepped in front of him, walking backward as she kept her eyes trained on him. “Okay, how about this one? Cat or dog person?”

He arched a brow.

Cece huffed. “And no, you can’t say you’re a horse person, because,” she said, gesturing toward him again, “clearly you are. That’s no secret and it would be cheating to try to use that one.”

Jason couldn’t remember a time when he’d smiled more. “Cat.”

Her brows shot up. “Really. That’s surprising.”

“How so?”

She lifted a shoulder. “I suppose it’s because you’re this big, brawny kind of guy. I can’t see you with a cat curled up in your lap.”

“Let me guess. You’re a dog person?”

Cece snorted. “Hardly. I’m more of a betta fish person.”

At that, he threw back his head and barked out a laugh. The sound must have taken her by surprise because she stumbled a few paces before finding her footing. Then her face broke with a wide smile and it lit up the whole night sky.

Jason grinned. “You broke the rules.”

“What rules? I only said you couldn’t say you were a horse person. I never said anything about fish.”

They were both laughing and smiling wide. Their differences were no longer hovering over their heads. He didn’t need to worry about who she was related to. Cece wasn’t here to ruin their town even if Tate thought that might be the case. She was doing her job. And there weren’t any rules that said they couldn’t be friendly toward one another.

“Okay,” he murmured, “I have one.”

She fell into step beside him, all tension from her shoulders gone. “Okay, lay it on me.”