Page 131 of Pumpkin Spice Promises

Beau

Coffee.

Carson

Hypocrite.

I thought about last Saturday and the lunch we shared at the ranch. Beau sitting across from me while Meme told stories. His casual description of wanting land someday, children, and a different life than the one he lived. Things I had once believed I would have without needing to question whether my body was capable of fitting inside them.

I got into the car. My phone remained in my hand as I waited for his response. A full minute passed while I waited.

I could let the conversation end. Probably should, but I didn’t want it to end.

Carson

How bad does Jax hate me right now?

Beau

On a scale?

Carson

Sure.

Beau

7.

Meme’s lunch bought you 2 points.

I looked through the windshield toward Sugar and Pine. Through the front window, I could see Hunter sitting near the wall. Clover had joined him with two bowls of soup. She placed one in front of him, kissed the top of his head, and sat down. He picked up the spoon with his left hand. That was it.

I thought about Beau. About the way he spoke to Hunter. The way none of the Joneses treated him as fragile. A dangerous little thought formed.

Maybe Beau wouldn’t treat me like I was different either…

I shut it down immediately. Hunter wasn’t me. His story wasn’t mine. His confidence wasn’t mine. And knowing Beau could accept another man’s prosthetics didn’t guarantee anything about what happened when desire entered the equation. People were different when bodies became intimate. I knew that better than anyone.

Still, for the first time in years, the possibility existed.

I started the engine as my phone buzzed again.

Beau

Dinner with me tonight?

My hand froze on the key. I reread the message. Four words that shouldn’t have been able to rearrange my heartbeat.

This wasn’t milk deliveries, or mending broken fences, or fixing the tractors. There was no work-related reason for us to go for dinner.

I stared long enough that another message appeared.

Beau

That sounded more casual in my head.

My pulse kicked harder as I stared at the message.