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Pulling into the parking spot under the shade of an oak tree is Gage’s old blue single-cab truck. The thin strip of chrome along the side gleams in the sunlight as he comes to a stop. The rumbling of its engine matches the one inside my chest at the sight.
I lunge for my bag to stuff all of my things inside, silently cursing myself for always feeling compelled to bring along the world’s largest variety of pens, sticky notes, and notebooks. But what if for some reason I needed the neon pink highlighter instead of the pastel one?!
Finally sliding my laptop into the front pocket, I race to the door. Before I open it, I realize I don’t want to make a fool out of myself and trip over nothing just trying to get to the truck faster than lightning.
I blow my bangs out of my face and smooth down the ends of my hair. Willing myself to fake indifference. Calmly, I open the door and waltz out in the most casual manner possible. He won’t suspect a thing.
When I’m about ten feet away, he gets out and opens the passenger door for me. He leans against the side of the truck, crosses one booted ankle over the other, and smiles.
“Hi.”
“You’re here,” I breathe out.Pull it together Captain Obvious.
“Thought I could wait until later, but I couldn’t,” he speaks low and slow.
“Wait? For what?”
“To see you.”
A flaming hot red creeps up my neck. I open my mouth to say something, but words escape me. There’s no easy way to say“I wanted to see you too, so bad, and you look so hot in your faded jeans and white t-shirt and smelling all manly. Can I please jump your bones now?”
Rather than blurting that out, I smile. A full, bright, happy smile. Suddenly, the stress of everything else in my life doesn’t seem so bad. Because getting to hear that he couldn’t wait to see me? It’s a shot of liquid heat straight into my bloodstream bringing me back to life.
I tuck one side of my hair behind my ear and rest my hand on his arm while I slide into the passenger seat. As soon as I sink back into the seat cushion, a long exhale escapes me. Between barely sleeping the last few days and how long I worked today, I could use a nap. Preferably a naked one with this guy right next to me.
“Long day?” Gage asks as he shuts his door and turns the key to start the engine.
I kick off my Chucks and bring my feet up on the seat.
“So long,” I sigh. “Lack of sleep, taking care of my Mom, and staring at a computer all day don’t mix.”
He laughs and backs the truck up, then pulls onto Main Street headed back in the direction of the ranch.
“Something funny?” I cross my arms and shoot him a teasing glare.
In the next second, my feet are swept off of the seat as he pulls them onto his lap. His thumb rubs a circle on the arch of my right foot and I nearly moan from the sensation. He applies pressure with the rest of his fingers on the top of my ankle and drags his hand down all the way to my toes. His touch is always intense and electrifying to me, but this feels less sensual and more caring. I lean my head sideways to rest on the seat as the tension leaves my feet and another wall around my heart comes crashing down.
“Can’t sleep without me, babe?” That devilish grin is all too satisfied.
“Don’t flatter yourself. For all you know, I’ve been shacked up with someone else and that’s what’s been keeping me up all night,” I quip back.
It’s subtle, but I catch the way his jaw grinds and his grip on the steering wheel tightens.
I giggle. I was hoping he’d hate that possibility. He looks at me, furrows his brow, then rolls his eyes and gives my leg a little pinch.
“Kidding.” I tap his abdomen with the side of my foot and grin wildly.
“You’re a pain in my ass,” he grumbles. But he does a terrible job at hiding his amusement.
“Uh-huh. Keep telling yourself that while you pick me up, tell me you couldn’t wait to see me, then rub my feet on the way home.”
“Got me there,” he admits.
His window is down and the air swirls around us. There’s no music playing. Just the sound of the truck and my heartbeat that won’t quiet down. I pull the plaid blanket he keeps on the seat into my lap and snuggle in. Imagine getting this every day after work. One can dream.
“How were things on the ranch today?”
He looks between me and the road and his hand curls around my calf instead of massaging my foot for a minute.
