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Day beamed, turning to me for permission.
“Of course it’s all right,” I replied, but then I fixed Day with a motherly look, “but stay out of trouble. Don’t get in the way.”
“We won’t.” Day grinned, taking Charmaine by the hand.
I waved goodbye as the two of them walked away, then turned to head toward the paddock where I could easily access the pasture.
I had to walk right past Grant’s house to get there, and hurried my steps, ducking my head as if that would stop him from seeing me when I walked by.
I was being ridiculous. He was likely out already doing whatever it was he did in the mornings.
“No coffee today? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you without it in the mornings,” Grant said from his shaded back porch.
I stopped in my tracks, sighing deeply before turning to face him.
He lifted his coffee mug to his lips, his brow arched in invitation.
“I’m out of coffee,” I huffed.
“Well, I’m not. Do you want to come in?”
I rolled my lower lip between my teeth as I considered it. I did want coffee. I also wanted to throw my arms around him and beg him to take me upstairs and fuck me.
“Sure,” I said in a near whisper, fighting back the blush creeping over my cheeks and cursing under my breath as I trudged up the porch steps.
I walked right past him and into the kitchen, thinking he wouldn’t follow.
But then the screen door closed, and his footsteps sounded through the kitchen behind me.
ChapterSeventeen
Grant
“Isee you finally met your neighbor,” Moira said as she poured a cup of coffee. She wasn’t facing me, and I noticed the tension in her slim shoulders as I reached into the cabinet for the sugar bowl. I slid it across the counter toward her, giving her a soft smile as her eyes met mine.
“Yeah, I went over and introduced myself. She’s not half bad, but I think the only reason she even answered the door was because Day was with me.”
“She wants to be his grandma so bad.” Moira giggled, spooning an obscene amount of sugar into her coffee. She turned, settled herself in the crook of the corner counter with the coffee balanced in her hand. “Do you have any cream?”
“Yeah,” I replied, crossing the room to the fridge and pulling out the carton of half and half. “Charmaine is going to allow us to take out the fence between our properties for a few weeks. I told her I’d build her a new one once we know how the water is going to run through the ravine.”
In a perfect world, it would run directly to the dry, sunken area without a hitch, but in the event we needed to construct something to prevent the water from encroaching on her nearby house, we needed access to her property.
“I also invited her to… a party.”
“A party?” Moira laughed as she poured cream into her coffee. She arched a perfect auburn brow at me, her blue eyes shining in the morning sunlight. “Here?”
“Where else?”
“Why?”
“Fourth of July, of course. I’m inviting a few families from the area. Pete owns the bar in town and has been spreading the word. I’m hoping for a large turnout.”
“Look at you.” Moira smiled, then sipped her coffee. Her eyes closed and a grin spread across her cheeks. I swear I saw her tremble with relief after that sip of coffee, and the look of pure pleasure etched across her face did something to me.
“Just being the social butterfly you asked me to be.” I shrugged, pouring myself a second cup. “I feel like I’ve talked to everyone over the past two days, but I’ve barely seen or talked to you at all.” I brought the coffee to my lips, taking a sip before turning around to face her.
Her cheeks pinkened and she looked down at her coffee before sheepishly looking up at me. I set down my mug and leaned on the counter, crossing my arms over my chest. She’d been slinking around for over a week, being just overall… weird. It had started with the kiss, and the fact I’d pinned her to my desk hadn’t made things better, but still. I didn’t like seeing her like this, and I thought what had happened between us in my office might have changed things between us for the better.
