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Chapter Ten
Y’all—don’t even get me started on weird customers.” June held a hand in front of herself, palm out.
Zoe raised a brow and took another sip of her wine.
Ten minutes into Han’s dinner party, she, June, and June’s friend Bobbi were standing around the island in the center of the kitchen, trading work stories. Over by the stove, Han prepped ingredients while trying to keep Ling-Ling from stealing any of them—with mixed success. Between fond rebukes to the dog, he kept a light conversation going with Clay, Bobbi’s girlfriend, Caitlin, and a couple of guy friends.
“Ooh.” Bobbi rubbed her hands together. “This is going to be good.”
June smiled. “Let’s just say there’s a reason the Sweetbriar Inn now has an official policy prohibiting birds.”
Zoe snickered, but before June could dive any deeper into whatever guest at her family’s B&B had prompted that new rule, the doorbell rang, setting Ling-Ling off.
Zoe’s pulse raced, and she put her glass down with a thunk. “I’ll get it!”
“Seriously,” Han called after her, “nobody’s fighting you for it except the dog.”
And okay, yeah, she was a little eager, racing to get the door each time a new person arrived. But this time, she had extra reason to run. Devin was the only person they were still waiting for. This had to be him.
She skidded to a stop in the entryway, making sure her body was blocking Ling-Ling from getting out before flinging open the door.
And there Devin was. All six-foot-something glorious inches of him, his cheeks flushed from the chill outside, his blue eyes sparkling, and what was it about the way he lit up when his gaze fell on her? Her heart pounded, her ribs squeezing around it.
Her over-the-top reaction made no sense. He was just a guy, and she was in a weird, temporary place in her life. They’d basically agreed that whatever they were doing together was just for fun. The very sight of him shouldn’t turn her to goo.
But she liked him so much.
She cast one backward glance over her shoulder before closing the door and launching herself at him. He caught her in his arms. Pausing only to set down the six-pack he’d brought, he pressed her into the freezing-cold siding of the house, and she didn’t care about the temperature or the fact that he was so worried about getting caught.
His mouth was hot as it covered hers, his tongue commanding. She kissed him back with a hunger that had nothing to do with the promise of the upcoming meal. Running her hands through his hair, she soaked up every second of contact with him.
It wasn’t enough. He jerked away, his breath coming fast, the darkness in his gaze pure torture considering what was coming next. “We should—”
“Go make out some more in your truck?” she suggested helpfully.
He buried his face in her shoulder, and she wrapped her arms around him as tightly as she could. “Don’t tempt me, woman.”
“Why not?” She gazed up at the stars and breathed him in. “It’s so much fun.”
“For you, maybe,” he said, but there was a hint of darkness in his tone.
The corners of her mouth turned down. “I was just messing around.”
“I know.” Did he, though?
The mood broken, he gave her one last quick peck before letting go.
Stepping away, he gestured at his face. “Do I have any…?”
“Just—” She reached up on her toes to swipe at the little smudge of lipstick at the corner of his mouth. Considering how they’d just been sticking their tongues down each other’s throats, it wasn’t bad. This long-wearing stuff was the best.
“Thanks.”
“No problem.”
He picked up the beer he’d set down and they headed inside. She stole another glance at him under the entryway light as he stopped to give Ling-Ling a quick scratch behind the ear. There was no sign that anything was amiss. The way she’d run her fingers through his hair could have easily been the wind. No one would know.
She tried to remind herself that that was a good thing.
