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I had to put the mental brakes on before my dick punched a hole through this fucking toss pillow and I let her know exactly what having her this close all night did to me.
“We need another holiday, Liam,” she whispered. “We both know if I kissed you right now, the last thing it would be is awkward and there’s no pass for that.”
“I’ll find one. Next time I see you, you better be ready for it.” We were playing with fire now, crossing the line between friendship and something else. But I wasn’t about to stop now that she’d given me an opening to sneak through.
Her hand on my knee crept a bit higher. Did she realize what she was doing? Somehow, I didn’t think so. “I like you, Liam, so much. This feels like the best kind of dare, and I want to be ready for it. You have no idea how bad.”
I was earnest when I responded, “I get you more than you think I do, Holly. Please believe that. I’m not in the best place in my life either.”
She drew her hand away to run through the end of her ponytail, letting out a low laugh when it got caught in the wild waves. “Maybe you do get me. I’m going to head down to Lily’s place and scrounge around for something to wear home. Showing up at Jude and Levi’s wearing nothing but your shirt and a pair of undies will give the wrong impression, and Jude has a big mouth. I tossed my leggings in your trash; I didn’t even try to rinse them last night. I refuse to attempt whatever feat of laundry expertise would be required to get all that mud out.”
“I don’t blame you, they were wrecked. You took quite a spill. Are you doing okay? Does anything hurt? I have ibuprofen in the kitchen if you need it.”
“I’m fine, nothing hurts. I think all that sleep helped. I kinda feel like a new person.”
“Good, I do too. I wish I could sleep like that every night.”
She smirked. “God, same. I’ll see you later. Don’t be a stranger at Vi’s anymore, okay?”
“I won’t.” I held my fist out for a bump and she tapped it with a grin. “I promise.”
“I’ll hold you to it. Don’t forget, I know where you work. I’ll even show up at Mom’s Sunday dinner to find you.”
“Now I know you’re serious. Take my hoodie, the one hanging by the door. It’s cold out there and it should be long enough to cover you up.”
She snagged it and slipped it on, hugging her arms around her body with a grin. “I’ll see you later, Liam. And I hope you know that I’ll be keeping this hoodie too.” She slipped into her shoes, waving over her shoulder as she rushed out the door, leaving me smiling on the couch.
She could steal my T-shirt, the hoodie too. Hell, she could take everything I owned. Why would I care about any of it when she was already so close to stealing my heart?
I ran my hands into my hair with a deep inhale and sank back into the couch. The sweet scent of her was all over me. I wanted to stay here and revel in the good feelings coursing through my body, but I had shit to do. I had to meet Jed at his ranch. My therapist recommended I volunteer out there, and I agreed that it would be good for me. Who wouldn’t feel better being surrounded by service dogs and puppies all day? Maybe it would get her out of my head for a while.
Chapter7
Holly
Hours later I was standing in front of Gram’s old bed and breakfast, wondering if I dared go inside alone. The stately old Victorian sat at the edge of town, on the corner where you’d turn to head up to Luke’s place. I could have jogged here if I’d wanted to, either down the road or on one of the forest paths. But since Lily had let me borrow one of her cars, I drove myself here instead.
The steps up to the door were rickety and as I got closer I could see how much work needed to be done. A simple coat of paint definitely would not suffice. The ornate details no longer highlighted the architecture, they aged it—like second day eyeliner on a partied-out face.
“There is no such thing as ghosts,” I muttered to myself while twisting the not-quite-rusty key in the lock of what would eventually become our apothecary shop. After stepping inside, a quick glance at the darkness beyond the foyer made me leave the door open. Sunlight was required for this first visit. I was knee-deep in dust, old furniture, and some seriously haunted-house, Scooby-Doo vibes. A flicker of apprehension shot through me as I realized what a huge undertaking I’d agreed to.
Footsteps sounded behind me, and I smothered a shriek as I spun to find Lily and Gram crossing through the open doorway. “Oh my god. You guys!” Lily cried. “You can’t open an apothecary store in here! No one will ever buy anything here if ghosts come as a bonus gift. Look at this place!”
“It’s not haunted, you wuss.” I didn’t want to be alone in here, so I adjusted my position and grabbed her arm to keep her from running out on me. “It’s just dusty and a bit run down, right, Gram? You never saw any ghosts when it was a B and B, did you?”
“No, never, not a single one. Calm your tits, Lily,” she muttered as she moved around us, eyes roving over the state of the space as she walked. “Chillax, you two. It’s fine.”
“Gram!” Lily pretended to be shocked.
Luke snickered as he joined us in the foyer. “Yeah, baby, calm your tits.”
She shot him a glare. “Whatever. I mean, look at this place! It screams haunted and is shrieking run-down hot mess. And I would not be surprised if someone dumped a body in here at some point. Do you smell that?”
“It is more run down than I thought it would be,” Gram complained with a sigh. “I thought you cleaned up, Luke.”
“No, that starts tomorrow,” he told her. “It’s going to be fine. Trust me.”
“Good thing he’s giving you two the family discount,” Lily observed. “This place has enough dust to make an entire army of bunnies.”
