She would enjoy seeing the way that worked. “Roughing it, I see.”
He chuckled. “There’ll be a lot of tents out here tonight, but I’ll be in the bed. I won’t be the one complaining.”
She opened up her door and turned to face him. “Thank you again for inviting me.”
Ken stepped forward and surprised her by cupping her cheek with his hand. She could feel his rough palm against her skin. “I had a selfish reason.”
“Selfish?”
He nodded, his eyes never letting hers go. “I’ve wanted to kiss you since last night.”
She gasped, imagining it as she had hundreds of times. In an unusually bold way, she asked, “What’s stopping you?”
Even in the darkness, she could see the flare in his eyes. Seconds later, his mouth covered hers. The feeling of his lips against hers stunned her, sucked the breath right out of her body. She put a hand on his chest and just left it there, unable to move, just feeling his heart pound against her palm. He ran his hand down her neck, and she felt his touch all the way through her chest and down her body to her toes. She relished the feel of his lips, the smell of him, the taste of him.
When he lifted his head, she realized she clutched his shirt in her hands. He looked down at her face and gently brushed the side of her cheek. “Can I see you tomorrow?”
“Yes.”Yes? Yes? What do you mean yes? Are you crazy?“Yes. I hope so. I should be free by late afternoon.”
She knew she shouldn’t see him ever again. But somehow, standing up here on the very peak of the mountain, her heart once again overrode her brain. Then he gave her one more hard kiss that stole her breath and every thought. He stepped back and said, “Please let me know when you get home.”
As she drove away, she brushed her lips with her fingertips, trying to remember how it felt to have Ken Dixon kiss her. As many times as she had imagined it, nothing compared to the real thing. Nothing. She could lose herself in kisses like that.
She looked at her reflection in the rearview mirror. “You are absolutely insane, Daisy. You cannot keep doing this.”
She looked back at the road, shaking her head. Her mouth tingled with the taste of Ken Dixon’s lips.
Theclock on the coffee maker read four-thirty. Ken hit the button, and the sound of beans grinding filled the little kitchen. While the coffee brewed, he slid his Bible across the table and found the spot where he’d left off yesterday.
As he stared at the paragraph he’d just read three times, he couldn’t remember what it said because kissing Daisy good night on Saturday night overwhelmed his thoughts. Nothing had ever felt so good and right as that kiss, as if he’d waited his entire life for that single moment in time.
He lived life as a cautious, careful man. Ken was the brother who didn’t jump his bike over homemade ramps and break a leg or impulsively talk back to adults. He made sure to make every move careful, methodical, concise. He made plans, wrote lists, and systematically managed every minute of his life, content and at peace.
Ever since Daisy came around that corner of the cubicle, chaos suddenly interrupted his perfect order. His thoughts weren’t clear. He had a hard time staying on task. He just wanted to call her and listen to her voice.
And kiss her.
He could feel her hesitation to date him, and he could sort of understand. The idea that some other man had used her so deviously filled him with anger. Even though he wanted to know more about it, he didn’t want to pry or press. He hoped she would eventually trust him with the story on her own. If he had the responsibility of a woman’s heart, if she loved him, he would do everything in his power to protect her and everything he could to prevent harm from ever coming to her. He would never use her and discard her.
He also couldn’t help but think about the wife of that man. What would it be like to have a spouse who could treat other people that way? Personally, he held his integrity to very high standards, and he just naturally expected all men to do so as well.
Maybe the problem lay in his expectations.
Either way, he needed to figure out how to break through the barrier that Daisy had put up because of that other man’s actions. He wanted to make sure she knew she could trust him and that he would never do anything to hurt her. It certainly had become a matter for centered prayer for him.
He closed his eyes and tried to focus on this time he had set aside to spend with God, not to get distracted by chaotic or judgmental thoughts about another human being. He needed this time to center his day and set his focus. Feeling more in control of his mind, he went back to the spot he left on in the book of James and continued reading.
An hour later, as he raised his head from his prayer, his phone rang. Only one of his parents or brothers would call this early, and they often did. “Hey,” he said to Jon.
“Hey. The Nashville tornadoes destroyed the home of an employee last night. Can you put her into one of your apartments since you haven’t closed yet?”
He thought about the empty units in building three. “Yeah, sure. If she signs a lease, we can make her part of the closing agreement. We’ve had people moving in as each building gets finished. I have eight apartments ready to go right now.”
“Thanks. She’s a good kid. She just needs a break right now.”
“Being a Dixon Company employee just became that break,” Ken snorted. “We can throw in furniture and put her up rent-free for the first sixty days.”
“You’re way ahead of me. Thanks, Ken.”
