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I turned away, but he reached out to grab my hand and pulled me against him. My heart stuttered when he kissed me, warm and gentle. Unable to stop myself, I returned the kiss, mutual chemistry spiking into hard passion with a succession of nips, laves, and twirls of tongue. I sunk my fingers into his hair and his arms tightened around my waist, and I suddenly became a little too conscious of his bed less than twenty paces away.
I broke the kiss and pushed him away, face burning. My body had tuned into his, molding together, wanting to be complete, and it was such a bad idea. I reminded myself I’d be leaving at year’s end, and I couldn’t hurt him. Deep inside, my mind whispered we were moving beyond that point and very quickly, at that.
He stared back at me, eyes wide and dark. “I’m … sorry, Klahanie. I didn’t mean…”
I shook my head, searching for my voice, found it, but could hear the harsh rasp in it. “No, Noah. It’s okay. Really, it’s fine. I probably need to get back soon, though.”
He dropped his gaze to his feet, nodding, but looked back up a couple moments later. His smile had returned, the earnest puppy appeal. “Did you still want that tour, such as it is?”
I hesitated, but only for a moment. “I’d love a tour.”
“Cinnamon rolls first, though.” He waggled his brows.
“Of course.”
Noah walked me to my Honda, both of us quiet. I wanted to regret the kiss, but couldn’t. Despite everything, we fit as we always did, even more so with maturity adding balance. I should have been upset, considering a relationship with Noah would put a huge crimp in my plans, but that wasn’t there either. At this point, confusion was at the top of my list for the day.
“You have more guests coming in?”
I turned to face him. “Not today. We have several check outs on Sunday, and more coming in on Monday. Going to be a busy couple of days for me.”
“Yikes.” He cringed. “I never thought I’d say this, but if you need a hand, I can hold my own in the housekeeping circuit.”
“And I may just take you up on it,” I grinned, but focused beyond him a second later, and jerked my chin past his home. “Hey, I meant to ask. Is that some kind of guest house you have back there? Seems like it would be a great opportunity for a vacation rental.”
“Damn, girl. You sound like a professional hotelier.”
“Ha ha.”
He laughed, but shook his head. “I agree. It probably would, but unfortunately, it’s not structurally sound. The stilts are rotten through. I could knock them down myself, if I wanted to wear the cabin as a party hat. Hell, a good sneeze might even do it. Needless to say, I’ll be gathering the troops for a spring dismantling.”
“Ah. Well, that’s a bummer.” My brain fired down another avenue. “Hey, while I think about it—Dani invited me to karaoke night at Salty’z. I will forever be in your debt if you come with me.Pretty please.”
His expression shifted from ‘deer in headlights’ to utter horror, but he managed a reluctant nod. “This is a debt you will never be able to pay off. You know that, right?”
“Yeah, I know.” I gritted my teeth at him in a cheesy smile.
Chapter Twenty-Three
The man would never acknowledge impatience. That was a sign of weakness and loss of control. Regardless, the need was growing and biting at him. At times, it felt like a wild animal barely contained within his skin. Before the island, it hadn’t been an issue to take a trip, exorcise his demon, and return with the gift of a clear mind.
Now it was a little more complicated.
He drove along Central toward town, pausing with an uptick in his heart rate when he saw the woman on the bicycle. He remembered seeing her on Thanksgiving, and judging from the interaction between her and Klahanie, he figured she had to be a guest at the farm. He slowed next to her and rolled down his passenger window. “Good morning! How you doing?”
The island had a reputation for safety and friendliness, so the woman didn’t seem a bit wary. She stopped and smiled with a face that looked a little too long for the rest of her. Kind of like a horse. He bit back the urge to giggle.
“I’m good! This island is gorgeous. Y’all should be proud!” The woman centered her backpack and adjusted her ball cap. Long golden hair had been siphoned through the back into a neat ponytail.
Kind of like a horse’s tail. She even had a slight southern accent. The man bit back another giggle, a little surprised and annoyed with himself. “You staying at the Holt farm?”
“I am! They’ve all been lovely. I’m a writer doing some research on tiny communities. I think I’m going to have a lot to say!”
Huh. Some kind of journalist. He contemplated offering her a lift, and considered the ramifications of his process. If he helped himself to this opportunity, did he endanger his prize? He’d been keeping an eye on Klahanie since the night of her blowout. In the beginning he’d regretted not grabbing her then and there, but now found he enjoyed keeping up with her. She seemed like a self-assured free spirit in danger of becoming chained to the island, and he found it fun to watch her conundrum. If he overstepped with this stranger, and made a mistake, unlikely, but possible, the island would go on lockdown.
Well, shit.
It had become hard enough figuring out a way to get close without anyone else being around. Satiating himself now could only screw things up for him later.
