“Oh!” Her eyes went wide as she took in the sight of him standing in front of her in nothing but his boxer briefs. His hand went to his head, his fingers shoving into his hair, and her eyes zoomed wider still. Then her sweet, sexy little mouth split into a big, wide grin. “Uh, good morning.”
It most definitely was with Kerry on his doorstep. She looked good enough to eat, in black leggings and a soft, touchable tunic sweater in a dark orange that made her eyes look like they were flecked with gold.
“Coffee?” She had two travel mugs in hand.
He stepped back. “Absolutely.”
“I won’t stay long, I know this is your first day off all week, but I made myself a latte for the road and thought I’d drop one off for you, too.” She gave him a sly smile. “I didn’t realize I’d get such a nice show for my effort.”
Owen felt himself blush, and since he was mostly naked, there was no hiding the way his neck went red and it crawled onto his chest. “Come here,” he said gruffly as she laughed. He kissed her forehead. “Tell me again where you’re going? Did you already tell me about a road trip? I’m still waking up.”
“It’s not a road trip. I overstated the ‘for the road’ bit, probably. There’s a farmer’s market down the highway, but I’ve learned I need to take my own lattes with me.”
Owen knew the farmer’s market well. It was popular with the same people who had flocked to the corn field the day before.
“You’re welcome to come with me if you want.”
“Yeah,” he heard himself saying. “Of course. Let me go brush my teeth and maybe put on clothes. You want to follow?”
She kicked off her boots and set the coffee mugs down on the little table in his vestibule. This was the first time she’d been in his house since those home visits after Becca gave birth, and now they were alone. He gestured to his bedroom as he headed into the bathroom to wash up.
When he came back, Kerry was looking at the photos on the wall. It had been a project he’d done a couple of years ago, although he’d recently added a picture of Charlie, too. Every picture was in a black frame, but that was the only rule. It had started with a cluster in the middle—him and Becca, a photo of his brothers when they were younger, and an even older picture of his parents. Since then he’d added photos of him in his uniforms, both army and paramedic, and Becca featured heavily, too.
Kerry pointed at one of the army photos. He was in the field, all “cammed up” with scrim on his helmet and green and black paint distorting his facial features. “Where was this taken?”
He laughed. “The training base in Meaford.”
“Oh!” She looked surprised. “I thought maybe you went overseas. It looks so intense.”
“That’s the point. But no, I’ve never gone away. I had too much going on here at home.”
“Lore says you’re still in the army?”
He nodded. “The reserve, and I do the bare minimum these days. But it’s good to have a medic on staff, so I try to make as many weekend exercises as I can. It works out to once every other month most of the time, and a few ranges to stay qualified on the various weapons.”
“Wow.” She turned, her gaze following him as he went to the dresser and pulled out a long-sleeved shirt and a pair of jeans. “Have you ever been to this farmer’s market before? I’ve heard good things.”
“Nope.” He popped his head through the neck hole of his shirt. “First time. Can’t wait.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“I don’t know.” She scooted closer as he stepped into his jeans. “It was on a list of the top ten not-to-be missed places this fall.”
“For locals, those lists are places to avoid,” he said dryly.
“Oh!”
He hooked one arm around her hips and pulled her in close. “But to spend a bit of time with you, I will brave the hoards of tourists in search of artisanal honey.”
“How did you know that’s what I wanted?”
He laughed as he kissed her. “That’s what everyone wants. Wild leeks, smoked rainbow trout—”
“The trout was mentioned in the article!” Kerry groaned. “Is it going to be very busy?”
Distressingly so, Owen was sure. “It’ll be fine. We’re armed with the best lattes on the peninsula, right? And it looks like a beautiful day out there. Let’s do this.”
