He sighed and filled his plate. “It doesn’t change my rationale.”
“It wouldn’t mine either.”
He took a few bites and appreciated that Gale just let him have that quiet to gather his thoughts. “I don’t just dream of Rene—she talks to me. Like her ghost is still here and she wants me to find who did this to her.”
Gale stopped chewing and gazed into his eyes. “Do you think it’s your subconscious or she’s really visiting you?”
“I thought it was the first and now I believe it’s the second. My mother confessed the same thing to me a few years ago.”
She put her fork down. “Now that is cool. Sorry, but it really is. Does she still pick on you like she used to? I hope she does.”
“Oh, she does,” he said, smiling, his heart racing but for another reason. This time he was going to really confess it all. What he was feeling when the tears came to his eyes. He’d come this far and wouldn’t back down now.
“I find that sweet. I’d do that to my brothers if I could.”
“It kills me to think she’s stuck here,” he said. “And I wonder if that is why she’s pushing.”
“I read one of your books,” she said. “It had a ghost in it talking to a relative. Do you always do that? Or write about that?”
“Sometimes. I write what I feel and what comes to me. That felt right,” he said. “Just like it feels as if you being here and helping me does too. When I turned around and saw you close tome, as if you were going to hug me, it’s like Rene was whispering in my ear to be me to help her.”
This time Gale’s eyes watered. She didn’t fight it back though. One big fat tear rolled down her cheek, then she stood up and sat on his lap.
“I should stay over there, but I feel as if you need a hug as much as I do.”
His arm went around her, her head on his shoulder as he wrapped her up tight.
They didn’t speak. They didn’t need to. They just needed to be there for the other.
When she leaned back, he foolishly felt a draw closer to her and found his mouth just an inch away.
“Tell me no,” he said. “It’d be better for us both.”
“You don’t know that any more than me,” she said, her mouth pushing the last distance to make them one.
The kiss wasn’t rushed or desperate. It wasn’t deep or demanding.
It was soft, testing, and the kind of sensual tease that slipped past every wall he’d built.
His heart slammed like a jackhammer screaming that this was a mistake, but her arms clung to him like she couldn’t care less.
And God help him, he was ready to throw himself on that train with her, no brakes and no hesitation.
The time seemed to glide by, but he was positive it wasn’t even a minute before she lifted her head and then stood up and returned to her seat.
Maybe she didn’t feel the same as he did.
“Do I apologize again?” he asked after five seconds.
“Yes, you do. Because now I’m worked up and don’t like that feeling when I know there won’t be any relief in sight. So thanks for giving me a sleepless night.”
The humor in her tone and eyes was exactly what he needed.
“The same,” he said.
“Then I’m sorry I crawled on your lap. Or maybe I’m not. I think it was inevitable and I’m glad we did it.”
“Me too,” he said and returned to eating.
