“That’s good because I really have to go. There’s a Keurig on the counter and the fridge has filtered water, and there are probably snacks if my family didn’t come steal them while I was away. I’m sorry about the appointment. It shouldn’t take long—just a routine cleaning—but I already rescheduled once already.”
“It’s going to be such a hardship, sitting on this porch and doing nothing but watch the river. Maybe I’ll read. Take a nap.”
“Make yourself at home, and feel free to poke around. I should warn you I have an incredibly boring medicine cabinet, but whatever you do, don’t pick the padlocks on the freezers in the basement.” When her eyes widened, he laughed. “I’m kidding. I don’t have a basement. Just a crawl space I try to avoid as much as possible.”
She smiled, then tilted her head suspiciously. “Ididnotice your garden shed is locked.”
“Expensive lawn tractor…or something more sinister?” he said in a dramatic TV voiceover way before leaning over and giving her a quick kiss. “I’ll be late if I don’t literally run out the door right now.”
He was through the sliding door and gone before she could respond, and as she heard the front door close, she pressed her fingertips to her lips and stared at the flowing river.
If Kenzie had to bet, she’d put her money on Danny not even really being aware of what he’d done. It was one of those natural things to do when a couple was comfortable together, and he wasn’t the only one who’d given in to the impulse. She’d accepted the kiss the same way it was given—easily, like it was a comfortable habit.
But they weren’t a couple, and she knew she should have turned her face to give him her cheek, or done anything other than accept that it felt completely right in the moment.
* * *
Danny had gotten halfway down the driveway before it dawned on him he’d kissed Kenzie goodbye, and he almost backed into his mailbox.
It had been a reflex—something that felt so natural in the moment, he hadn’t even thought about it. He almost went back in to apologize, but he didn’t really have time. It would be awkward and he’d try to smooth it over, but he’d have broken his word to Kenzie in the first five minutes. Plus, he’d have to find a new dentist.
But if she was mad he’d oversteppedalready, it wasn’t fair to leave her alone in his house with no way to leave if she wanted to. Once he’d merged onto the highway he’d take for two exits, he used the voice controls to send her a text.
Sorry about that. I got carried away.
He didn’t relax until the robotic voice read her response aloud.
All good. Pay attention to the road or you’ll get in an accident and your dentist will dump you.
Relieved because her sense of humor came through despite the computerized rendition, he concentrated on the drive and was only two minutes late for his appointment. Even though one of his favorite things about his dentist was her fast, no-nonsense manner, it felt like the cleaning took forever. Then he had to use the cruise control setting to keep himself from speeding on the way home.
Kenzie was still on the back porch, curled up in the chair with her feet tucked under her and an open book in her hand. She looked up when he opened the slider, her mouth curving into a warm smile.
She wasn’t mad at him.
“Did you make it in time?” she asked.
“More or less. Technically, I was two minutes late, but they didn’t call me back until nine minutes past my appointment time, so I think I was seven minutes early.” He dropped into his chair. “What are you reading?”
She held it up so he could see the cover of the book from a literary darling chosen by all the major book clubs that he’d tried several times to read. He couldn’t get through it, but he kept thinking it was his mood and putting it back on the shelf instead of adding it to the donation box.
“I picked the most well-read-looking book I could find on the shelf, assuming the cover would be tattered because you love it so much you keep rereading it.”
Danny hadn’t realized until this moment that there was a strange intimacy in a woman wanting to read his favorite book. “And?”
She wrinkled her nose. “I think it’s tattered because you bought it used, either at a used book sale or a yard sale. I don’t think you like this book.”
Even though his heart ached because it seemed impossible Kenzie could know him so well—reallygethim—and still not be the right woman for him, he managed a grin. “I keep trying because the rest of the world thinks it’s a masterpiece, but Ireallydon’t like it.”
She laughed as she closed the book and tossed it onto the table. “Good. Maybe it’s time to rehome that book and save the shelf space for something better.”
“Definitely. Did you take a peek in my office?”
“Of course not.” She looked a little offended by the question. “It’s actually kind of rude to go snooping around other people’s houses. Make yourself at home usually means you should feel free to pour yourself a drink or peek in the fridge for a snack.”
“That explains why the Wilsons never invited me back,” he joked, just to make her laugh again. “Do you want to see it?”
“Of course I do. I seem to recall being lured here with the promise of seeing your whiteboard.”
