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“Yep,” Stacey agreed. “Sure was.”
Adler held his gaze on Tristan and lifted his brow.
Tristan sat on the edge of the chair and leaned forward. “Seriously bro, you were happy. That’s what I noticed. You were having a good time and really seemed to enjoy being with Leila and Skylar.”
“And . . .” Stacey added, “you looked natural and comfortable with Skylar. With both of them.”
Adler was quiet as he thought back over the night. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had such a good time with a woman. Just plain fun, outside, hanging out. Without sex.
He took another sip of water. “Maybe this isn’t the right thing to do. Maybe I’m crazy. Or maybe I’m just crazy about Leila.” He sat up and leaned forward like Tristan but stared at the floor. “I’m crazy about her. She’s fun, easy to talk to, beautiful, and calls me out on my shit.” He stood. “Skylar’s just an added plus. Thanks, y’all. Good night.”
Chapter 16
Saturday morning, Leila drove down the interstate toward Adler’s. The sun was bright, and thoughts of seeing him made this beautiful day even better. Friday was a long day of work, a doctor’s appointment for Skylar, and a meeting at the pregnancy center for the fundraiser. Everything was coming together for the auction, so as long as Adler had the tents squared away, she could sit back and relax for the next two weeks.
She pushed the intercom button at the gate when she arrived. Talk about crazy. One day she found herself homeless and hoping that a father she hardly knew, and his wife would take her in, now she had a guy interested in her and her daughter and he lived behind a large iron gate which opened slowly, allowing her to drive through. Life was strange sometimes.
She drove up the long, winding driveway and went all the way back to the guest house. Adler was waiting for her, and her insides became a jumble of a churning stomach and throbbingheart. He was leaning against a black ATV in tight, faded jeans, a faded red T-shirt which hugged tightly to his body and showed off that sexy-as-hell eagle tattoo, and cowboy boots.
Damn. If she was a dog she'd be drooling. “Stay focused on the auction, Leila. Business first,” she whispered as she pulled up. Maybe she could force her mind to concentrate on the right thing, not on the hot thing standing there with his hands in his pockets, a grin growing on his face, and those dark, sexy eyes . . .Enough. Focus.
He was at her door and had it open as soon as she put the car in park.
“Hey,” he greeted her.
She found it hard to breathe. He was so close, all man and muscle and pure sexiness.
He grabbed her hand, pulling her away from the car, and closed the door. “Okay. Hop in and we’ll go see the tents.”
Nothing like getting right to the point.
He led her to the ATV he had been leaning on earlier. “Everything’s set up. We’ll make sure it’s all you want and need, then I want to take you to see the horses and maybe we’ll get a ride in.”
“Sounds good.” She hopped in the passenger’s seat and held on to the bar in front of her as they bumped along the uneven ground. On the short ride, Adler was all business. He explained what he’d done, some changes he’d made, and what they were going to see.
He was right. Everything was perfect. They walked through the tents, and it was obvious he knew what he was doing. The few changes he’d made would work well. There was a stage for the auction, an area on the other side of that tent for the silent auction items, and the second tent was for dinner and dancing. She hadn’t thought of dancing, but like he said, it gave everyonea reason to hang out longer, which would increase the silent auction totals.
He’d thought of everything. “It’s perfect. I can’t think of anything else we’d need. It’s like you’ve done this before.”
“You could say that. I’ve been to more than my share of fundraisers. Honestly, they tend to get boring. This one though seems like the best one yet.” His eyes smoldered as he looked at her. Her heart and stomach, which had just gone back to normal, started up all over again. “Let’s go. They’re calling for storms, but it looks like it should be fine.”
“Yeah, one thing I’ve learned during my first summer in Tennessee: You can never count on the weather. It can rain across the street and be sunny at your house. This weather is crazy, and I’ve lived through hurricanes.”
“Yeah, we’ll keep our eyes on the sky anyway. Right now, though, it looks perfect.”
She glanced up, and he was right. The sky had a few puffy clouds, but it was a beautiful blue color. Didn’t look like a storm was brewing except far off in the distance. They should be fine.
They hopped back into the ATV, and he took her past the guest house and farther down the driveway. “Have you ever been riding?” Adler asked. His hair whipped wildly in the wind.
“I told you, a little. Never anything serious. Just on trail rides with groups. I’m not a professional or anything.”
He chuckled. “That’s fine. You’ll ride Dandelion. She’s the sweetest horse we have.”
Just then, they rounded a curve and her mouth dropped as the largest horse barn she’d ever seen came into view. Not that she’d seen that many.
Adler pulled up in front of the large white barn doors, and Leila’s head moved as she took the barn in. “This is beautiful.”
“I know something more beautiful.”
