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Footsteps pulled me from my thoughts to see Killian. I wondered if there would come a time when I saw him, and my heart didn’t trip. I kind of hoped not. But it wasn’t even his looks that drew me in. It was his quiet presence. He didn’t say much, but he didn’t have to. I was curious about him, a bar owner, a carpenter and a sheriff. What other hats did he wear? Somehow, each one fit him.
“Hey. I didn’t think you were coming today,” I said, by way of greeting.
“Heard settlement is scheduled for the tavern,” he said.
“Yeah.” I stopped working and asked, “You’re still cool with all of this, right?”
“Yeah. I never wanted the bar, but I didn’t want Liam to lose it.”
That didn’t surprise me. There were those who looked out for others; Killian was one of them. My thoughts drifted to how it would feel to be his. All that quiet intensity directed at me. I saw him with Cooper and Max. I could admit I was envious because I wanted some of that focus, attention. I wanted him. It was stupid to deny it.
“What are you making?” he asked.
Grateful for the change of subject, since I knew what I was thinking would be easy to see, I said a little breathlessly, “A sundress.”
“Your design?”
He remembered. That didn’t surprise me either. “Yes.”
Silence settled between us for a few minutes, the sewing machine the only sound, then he surprised me when he said, “How about I take you to dinner and you can wear your new dress?”
Was he asking me out because he wanted me too or because he wanted me to have somewhere to wear my dress? I wanted it to be the former, but suspected it was the latter. “I’d like that.”
“Friday night.”
I almost said it was a date, but I wasn’t sure it was, so instead said, “Sounds good.”
“I better get out there or Graham is going to dock my pay. Later.”
“Later.”
He walked away, and I watched him go, because I wasn’t sure what was better, watching him coming or going. We were going to dinner. My hands were shaking from excitement. It had been so long that I’d forgotten what it felt like.
I stood infront of the full-length mirror. I turned this way and that and just loved how my sundress turned out. I’d done some pleating with the layers, so the skirt was a little full, falling to my mid-thigh with a form fitted halter-top and bare back. The colors were bright, eye catching and so reminiscent of my younger self. I even dug into my boxes and found my sneakers, the ones covered in buttons. They still fit and looked really cute with the dress. I pulled my wild curls into a knot, but as usual, some curls would not be tamed. Tears burned my eyes because I hadn’t seen this Cedar in a long, long time.
The bell had me moving to the door, stopping when I saw Lucifer on the back of the sofa. I approached him, tried to pet him and he hissed at me.
“One day you’re going to let me touch you.”
He turned, his tail going in the air. I could practically hear him saying, “In your dreams.”
I was grinning when I opened the door. The humor turned to something sweeter seeing Killian standing on my front step. He was wearing faded jeans and a Henley shirt that was the same color as his eyes. His hair was still wet from his shower. My hand tightened on the doorknob, hoping I didn’t lose my balance, but damn, the man hit all my buttons.
So busy ogling him, I didn’t realize he was doing the same, taking his time moving his gaze up my body. I felt that look, little fires sparking to life under my skin. By the time his gaze lifted to mine, I was about to go up like a roman candle. Maybe thiswasa date.
“Like the dress,” he said, but it was how he said it, all rough and gravelly. I was glad I was wearing sneakers because I didn’t think I could manage in heels.
“You ready?” he asked.
There was a good chance I wasn’t going to survive the evening. My body was going haywire, but what a way to go. I grabbed my purse, locked the door. He led me to his truck, opened the door, but didn’t wait for me to climb in. He lifted me like I weighed nothing; his hands lingered on my hips after my ass found the seat. He was so close I could smell his spicy scent, which only added fuel to the fire. Those eyes, damn, I could get lost in them but that mouth. I wanted to feel those lips on mine, wanted his taste on my tongue. His eyes grew darker, his focus shifted to my mouth. I wasn’t alone in the feeling and that only amped me up more. He closed the door; I closed my eyes and sought for calm because, at this rate, I was going to expire before we even reached the restaurant.
He climbed in, and I had never been so aware of someone. He started the truck, glanced over and asked, “Temperature good?”
I could be in a bath of ice water, and I still wasn’t cooling off being so close to him, but it was a good burn. “Yeah, feels good.”
He turned his truck around, started down my drive. “Where are we going?” I asked.
He glanced over again. “You’ll see.” This time, his gaze lingered a beat longer and drifted down. He was not helping the situation, but I wouldn’t change a thing.
