Chapter Three
Dasher adjusted thethrottle on his bike as he waited outside the hardware store, glancing at his phone for the time.Ellie was late only by three minutes, but he noticed.He always noticed everything about her.
He spotted her silver sedan pulling in, the same car she’d probably had since the last time they were in each other’s lives.A sensible car for a sensible woman.Except Ellie had never been just sensible.
She was passion, fire, grit wrapped in a pretty bow.And she was walking toward him now with that same purposeful stride that had once made his pulse jump.She pushed her sunglasses up onto her head.
“Sorry.Traffic near the high school was a mess,” Ellie said.
Dasher nodded, a small smile tugging at the edge of his mouth.“You’re here.That’s what counts,” he told her.
She gave him a look, the kind that probably worked wonders on her daughter when Maddy didn’t clean up her toys.“Don’t charm me.We’ve got seven days to pull this off,” she reminded him.
Dasher lifted a brow.“Didn’t say a word.”
She snorted, and damn if the sound didn’t squeeze something warm in his chest.
The two of them walked in, side by side, and were greeted by the store manager.Dasher let Ellie take the lead.She was good at this, polished and firm without being cold.
He watched her negotiate, offer up flyers, explain the toy drive, all while flashing that earnest smile.By the time they left with a promise of a donation and a stack of coloring books, Dasher was impressed all over again.
“You’re good at that,” he said as they stepped back into the sun.
Ellie gave him a wary glance.“Good at begging for help?”
“Good at making people care,” Dasher said.“Takes heart.”
She faltered for a second.Just a flicker, but he saw it.Her guard came back up just as quickly.“We’ll need it.We’ve got five more stops today, right?”she asked.
He nodded, but didn’t miss the way her shoulder brushed his when they walked.That part hadn’t changed either.The way her presence filled a space, seeped under his skin.It used to make him reckless.
They hit a grocery store, a bookstore, and the local diner.Some owners gave cash, others small toys, and a few flat-out said no.Through it all, Ellie stayed determined, organized, and unflinchingly polite.
Dasher admired the hell out of her grit.Somewhere between the diner and the bookstore, he stopped pretending this wasn’t affecting him.Because the heat between them hadn’t faded.It just simmered now, low and steady, waiting for the right spark.
They paused in front of a bakery next, and Dasher finally said it.“You ever think about the past?”
