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“I have it on good authority that she’s secretly loved him for a long time now and…”
Michael kissed her again.
CHAPTER9
MICHAEL
He was sucha nerd with zero coolness when it came to anything regarding Ruby. It was like she walked in the room or occupied a thought – and his brain shut down. He’d been near her for hours and blabbed that he wanted her close to him if he got stationed here in the United States… and then blabbed his feelings, asking her to wait for him.
Zero. Tact.
… Yet somehow?
Ruby seemed absolutely okay with everything he said, and discovered that she was thinking about a future together, too. He nearly fell off the picnic bench when he found out that she was looking into what it would take to get her teaching license in other states.
He’d invited her to West Point in the future to see his graduation, wanting to show her around the area where he’d lived for several years… and she accepted. It was like all the puzzle pieces were finding their places, learning how to fit, and it was a miracle to him.
… And oh gosh – that kiss?
Michael was pretty sure his spine had melted and fused together from the sheer electricity that shot along every nerve. Just holding her hand gave him a thrill, dancing with her made everything tingle, but kissing her? He knew what a lava flow felt like now… and craved it.
They left the parking lot of the ice cream shop in Ember Creek and literally moved to another lot, wishing they had someplace to go to be alone. If they went to his parents’ home, they would be hovering and listening to everything… and if they went to her home – well, it would be the same. Instead, they sat there with the doors locked and leaned back the seats slightly, holding hands.
“Do you still volunteer?” he asked, wanting to hear her voice and to have it fill the silence.
“Yes,” she smiled, tracing her fingertips over his palm and making him shiver. “Sometimes it’s the kitchens in Tyler, but I really enjoy working with my hands for Habitat for Humanity, and that happens a few times a year in the area. I’m on a message thread and will get a notification that we are building in a certain area. You show up with your tools, they tell you where you are needed, and you simply work. It’s peaceful, and makes you feel good to give back.”
“I think that’s incredible and would love to help,” he admitted. “Maybe it’s something we can do together one of these days. I don’t know how handy I am, but…”
“Michael, I think that would be wonderful,” she smiled at him – and he immediately moved to kiss her again. Just the feeling of her close to him, the faint smell of her perfume, and the way her breath caught, was doing things to him.
He couldn’t help savoring the feeling of his cheek against hers, brushing his lips softly across hers, and marveling at the way she reached for him. Her hand came up and her fingers laced in his hair, holding him close as he leaned over the gearshift of her car, needing to be closer.
… And laughed softly against her cheek.
“What?” she asked, smiling at him.
“Nothing…”
“It’s not nothing if you are laughing when you kiss me.”
“You want the truth? No judgement – and no laughing?”
“You are laughing at me…”
“I’m not laughing at you – I’m laughing at me,” he chuckled nervously, brushing a lock of pink hair off her forehead as he gazed at her. “So, when I was seventeen, my father figured out that I was interested in you…”
Ruby backed away and looked at him, shocked – yet smiling.
“What?”
“I guess I did something or said something to give it away,” Michael admitted nervously, meeting her eyes. “He used to tell me, ‘Boy, you are like a dog running after a car – Do you even know what to do when you catch it?’… and I would sit there and think about it, confused, because what did a dog do with a car it was chasing down the street?” he grinned as Ruby laughed softly, smiling at him.
“Gosh, I love your smile,” Michael whispered openly – and leaned a little farther over the center console, ignoring how it dug into his side, and wanting to kiss her once more. “Hang on…”
He opened the car door, glanced at her, and moved the seat all the way forward – climbing into the back seat… only to see Ruby do the same without prompting. Laughing together, he welcomed her in his arms, kissing her passionately and savoring the feeling of her being close. Moments later, he was dropping soft kisses along her jawline and her neck, before chuckling once more…
“Thisdogknows what to do with the car now,” he said huskily – and heard Ruby’s warm laughter…
