She stood because if she didn’t, she might say something she’d regret. “I’ve got a meeting with your office at eleven and then a ton of things to do for my fundraiser after that. Fletcher and Baily said I can store some things at the Crab Shack as well as the stuff I already have at the marina.” She had no idea how either of them did it between owning the marina, being part owners in the Crab Shack and Everglades Overwatch, and being parents. She was exhausted just thinking about it.
““I can help. I can carry heavy things.”
“You don’t have to?—”
“I know how to lift boxes and arrange storage stuff.”
She glanced around at all his boxes. “I have my doubts.”
His mouth tipped upward into a quick smile before fading just as fast. “Don’t forget to send me a copy of that text.” He took her hand and led her to the door. He released his grip and placed his hand on the frame, as if he didn’t want to touch her multiple times in the same morning. “If you see that Charger again?—”
“I’ll call you,” she said. “Before I pretend it’s nothing.”
“Good.”
She reached for the door, but he stepped in front of her and gripped her hips.
“I’ve been attracted to you since we first met.”
Her stomach dropped. Or lifted. She wasn't sure which, only that something in her chest went sideways and her breath caught somewhere between her lungs and her throat.
“I can list a dozen reasons why I’ve kept my distance—the Ring Finger case and all the other cases that brought me to town. I was here for a job, and it was temporary. I lived an hour away. I’m a little over ten years older than you. I’ve had one failed marriage and a couple of relationships that?—”
“You don’t have to explain. We’re friends. I get it.” Of course he had a list of all the reasons why he wouldn’t act on whatever he was feeling. He was good at making lists.
“It’s not an explanation. It’s more like a… oh hell.” He yanked her to his chest, wrapping his strong arms around her waist. His gaze was so intense, it burned through her like a pod re-entering the earth’s atmosphere. His lips crash landed on hers in a wild kiss.
She gripped his shoulders, letting the rush of adrenaline flowing through her body take over.
His tongue twisted and twirled around hers. He tasted like coffee, oat milk, and sunshine.
When he pulled away, she wondered if he was going to regret that one, too. But instead, she was greeted with a smile and his fingers threading through her hair. “You'd better go. Otherwise, you’re going to end up being late for your meeting with Sterling and Dove.” He turned and opened the door.
She struggled to swallow. To breathe. To collect her thoughts, which pooled at her feet.
“I’ve got calls, so I won’t be attending, but I should be done by the time your chat with my colleagues ends. I can follow you to the Crab Shack,” he said.
“Okay.”
She stepped into the bright Florida sun with her heart pulsating in her throat. The sign in front of Harvey’s Cabins across the way blinked OPEN at no one in particular. A hose hissed. Somewhere, a kid squealed—the kind of sounds that made her wish summer was a thing she could bottle.
She touched her lips, wondering what the hell had just happened, and what it meant.
Scurrying between the yards like a teenager racing home after her first kiss under the bleachers, she headed for home. Once safely tucked inside her kitchen, she leaned against the sliding glass doors and let out a breath.
Of all the things she thought, or expected, could happen this morning. That kiss wasn’t it.
Her phone vibrated in her back pocket.
Buddy: Don’t forget to send that text. Muffin was delicious. Company was better.
She blinked. The room spun. Jesus. She was a fucking grown-up. Thirty years old. Kissing a man wasn’t a big deal. Hell, she’d lived with a guy for a few months. Didn’t matter that she didn’t love him in a romantic way. Trent had been there for her when she needed someone the most. That counted for something.
But this was Buddy Ballard. A man she’d been fantasizing about for years, and that turned her insides to mush.
She fumbled with her phone, found the text image, sent it to Keaton and Dawson with a quick note about what had happened, then attached it to a text to Buddy.
Fallon: Sent to Keaton and Dawson. Here you go. See you soon.
