My gaze skims across him, and it’s as if time stands still. He’s wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist, and holy fucking shit does this man have abs. Like,abs. Like, abs I’ve never seen on a human being before. He’s close enough to touch, and my brain is so frazzled from the day, that I almost do just that before stopping myself.
His chest is chiseled and wet and glistening, and his arm is frozen in the air, his hand running through his wet hair. He slowly lowers it, his eyes on me.
“Sorry, I—” I swallow thickly. “I didn’t know you were in there. I just got home …” I take a small step back.
“Yeah, I wondered where you were,” Theo answers quietly.
I nod, avoiding his eyes. And his abs, the towel wrapped around his waist … “There was another calf birth.”
“You must be starving,” he says.
“I am, actually, yeah …” I’m still avoiding his gaze, feeling a small flush in my cheeks.
Theo steps around me, out of the bathroom. “Take your shower. I’ll make you dinner.”
“Oh, you don’t have to—”
But Theo is already disappearing into his room.
I stand in the hallway for a few seconds, mouth still open, my brain shot. Theo Strickland has never been hot. I mean, not that he’s not attractive or good looking or a catch or anything, but Theo Strickland has never been hotto me. He has no business being hot to me.
And now a hot, shirtless Theo Strickland is going to make me dinner.
I swallow, hurrying into the bathroom and shutting the door behind me. Hopefully he’ll have the decency to be fully clothed while doing so.
Chapter eight
Theo
Thepurplelightsofthe honky tonk bar are blinding as they shine down on the dancefloor just a few feet away. This is one of the few—if only—places in Cedar Ridge to go out on a weekend. They have bar food, drinks, and, of course, line dancing.
It’s a place I’ve been countless times, even with the same three people I’m with now. Only this time, it’s different. This is my and Cora’s firstofficialdouble date with Cruz and Addison. And on the surface, it’s truly not that different. The four of us are sitting around a high-top table by the dancefloor, nursing beers and chatting.
Only this time, the topic of conversation isus.
“When did you know you were in love with her?” Addison asks me, elbows propped on the table as she stares at me intently.
Fuck. I take a sip of beer to try to buy some time. “I guess, uh … not that long ago?” I shrug.
Cruz rolls his eyes. “Come on, man.” He gives me a look.
I wish I could punch him in the face. “Okay, well … maybe ...” I trail off.
Addison makes a face. “Theo, I don’t want a timeline, I wantthe story.” She widens her eyes at me. “What was it that made you just know?”
I glance sideways at Cora, but she’s refusing to look at me, instead seemingly incredibly interested in her beer. In fact, she’s seemed increasingly interested in pretty much anything other than me since we had our little post-shower run-in earlier in the week. I’m trying not to think too much into it, that she’s just adjusting to this new life change and all, but things just feel … off.
I clear my throat, coming to the realization that I’m not getting off the hook on this one. I wrack my brain, torn between honesty or something that just seems plausible. “I guess it was earlier …”
Addison makes anI knew itface.
“Three months after she started working on the ranch,” I go on. “It was raining that day. Not pouring, just drizzling. I was in the mess hall having lunch, and Cora walks in, her hair frizzy, her eyelashes wet, this huge smile on her face. It took me a full ten seconds to realize she was holding a kitten—one of the barn cats had had a litter. Said she’d found it wandering alone and that she’d bring it back to its mama after lunch. So we spend lunch eating and chatting and playing with this kitten and … I don’t know, I just knew.”
Silence settles over the table for a heartbeat, and then Addison is clasping her hands together and awing.
“Now that I believe,” Cruz says with a smirk.
I brave a glance at Cora, and to my surprise, she’s looking at me this time. Her eyebrows are drawn together ever so slightly, and she meets my gaze for a few seconds before looking away.
