The bell to the shop rang and Wendy ducked out of her office. Sebastian stood near the door and when she came into view he beamed at her. “I’ve got that end table all done.”
She grinned. “Really?”
He nodded, pulling off his cap and running a hand through his hair before replacing it. He was about half a foot taller than she was and lean. Once upon a time she’d thought there was nothing cuter than his brown eyes when he let out a genuine laugh. But now, all she could think about was Tripp’s dark, soulful eyes.Sebastian thumbed over his shoulder. “It’s in the back of my truck. Where do you want it?”
Wendy leaned over her checkout counter and grabbed a pair of keys. “Can you help me put it in the back of my delivery truck?”
“Sure thing.”
In no time, the end table was loaded, Wendy was behind the wheel, and she was on the road.
It wasn’t until she got closer and closer to her destination that she realized there was only one place she could be going.
Sagebrush Ranch.
She rationalized that it was a big place. There were lots of people who lived here. And the moment she pulled in front of one of the smaller homes on the property, she wished she’d written down the name of the person who’d called her. Heck, she should have looked at the invoice better before she came to see who’d paid for the piece of furniture.
Please be one of his cousins.
Wendy came to a stop at the house and glanced around the small cul-de-sac. One of these homes belonged to Tripp and his family. At any moment he could come or go from one of them and she’d have another awkward encounter.
Now that she knew she had Olivia’s blessing, that thought filled her with more trepidation than she wanted to admit. Straightening her shoulders, she marched up to the house and knocked. Normally, she’d have someone deliver this for her, but they were out sick. Maybe she should have just waited until they were back at work.
Regrets flitted away the second the door opened revealing a familiar woman about her height. She had dark hair and dark eyes. Wendy had seen her around, but she didn’t know how she was related to Tripp.
“Wendy?”
Her blood ran cold just as Tripp came into view from behind the woman. He smirked and that smile alone had her body going weak. Of course this was his house. The universe was laughing at her.
The woman glanced over her shoulder to her son, then to Wendy. “Oh, are you here for?—”
“The end table you ordered. The restoration is done,” Wendy blurted. “I just came to drop it off.”
Before she could say anything more, Tripp gently moved his mother out of the way. “I’ll go grab it.”
Wendy stepped back a little too suddenly to allow Tripp passage. She watched as he headed for the truck and when he gave her a strange look, she lurched forward to unlock the back. Tripp made it look so effortless—to pick up the bulky item and carry it toward the house.
Reminding herself not to stare, Wendy turned and retrieved the delivery paperwork. When she reached the front door, Tripp’s mother was no longer in sight. She handed the documents to Tripp and turned to leave, but his hand wrapped around her wrist and he tugged her to a stop.
“Wendy,” he whispered.
Slowly, she lifted her eyes to meet his. “It was nice to see you, Tripp.”
“Go out with me.”
She stared in stunned silence, his request hanging in the air between them.
“On a date,” he whispered. “A real one.”
Blinking, Wendy attempted to make sense of what he was saying.
“Please?”
Shaking her head, she let out a startled laugh. “No.”
His brows lifted. Of course he expected her to agree. That was who he was. “Really?”
“Tripp, we agreed?—”
