“Sounds great,” I said, squeezing his arms. “But you’ll have to wait until tomorrow night. I have dinner plans with my parents tonight. You’ll just have to suffer through without seeing me this evening.”
Declan chuckled. “Hopefully, I can handle that.”
I stood up on my tiptoes so I could be equal to his height. “And just so you know, you’re taking me to the most expensive restaurant in town. Then, afterward, you’re taking me for ice cream.”
He leaned in and kissed me, his lips warm against mine. The weakness came back in my knees, and I couldn’t stand on my tiptoes any longer.
“I look forward to that,” he murmured against my lips.
Slowly, he stepped back and my hands slid down his arms. “What are you doing for the rest of the afternoon?” I asked him.
He winked at me. “Cutting my grass.”
I gasped. “It’s not Friday!”
We both laughed and he nodded. “Yeah, I know, but I figured I’d be safe since it’s not Friday. I don’t have to worry about you storming over and telling me to be quiet.”
I smacked his arm. “My ears might not be safe. Did you get your clunker of a mower fixed?”
Declan shook his head and laughed again. “Not yet. Think you can handle the noise one last afternoon?”
“I guess,” I said, kissing his cheek. “I’ll just put in some earplugs.”
Declan gave me that devilish grin and slowly moved back toward the stairs. “Have a good time at your parents’ tonight,” he said, never taking his eyes off mine as he walked down the stairs. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“See you then,” I called out. He turned away, and I watched him until he disappeared to his side of the fence. The anticipation of tomorrow night was so exhilarating. I didn’t even know that kind of excitement existed.
My phone started to ring, so I pulled it out of my pocket and saw Kat’s name.
“Hey, girl,” I answered, not able to contain the happiness in my voice.
“Well, hello,” Kat replied. “You sound awfully chipper today. Did you have a good July Fourth?”
My cheeks already hurt from smiling as I sat down on the swing.
“Yes, I did. And I have so much to tell you.”
Chapter 12
Declan
If Ayla and I hadn’t met yet, today would’ve been the day she would have come over and killed me. The lawn mower was louder than it’s ever been. I’d managed to finish the whole yard before it died on me. Now, there was a cloud of smoke surrounding my house. I sat down on the front porch so the mower could air out before putting it into the garage.
Through the smoke, I could see Linda strolling down my driveway with a plate of something in one hand while the other waved away the plumes of gray.
“Are you trying to make me fat?” I shouted.
Linda squinted through the smoke and beamed when she saw me. “Ah, there you are,” she laughed.She waved her free hand more dramatically in the air. “Couldn’t see you through all of this.”
I stood and met her in the driveway. She held out a plate that was filled with lemon bars and I took them.
“There’s nothing wrong with putting a little meat on your bones,” she said, patting my arm. “My George didn’t have the muscles you have. I tried to fatten him up, but he was always on the go. The man could never sit still.”
Chuckling, I pulled back the plastic wrap and grabbed a lemon bar. It melted in my mouth. “These are amazing, Linda. Thank you for making them for me.”
She reached up and pinched my cheek. “You’re welcome, darling. I haven’t figured out what I’m making you next week. It’s either going to be a coconut cake or triple stuffed brownies.”
My stomach growled just thinking about it. “I love me some coconut cake. My grandmother was hands down the best at making them. I have her recipe in a drawer in my kitchen, but I’m not a baker. My expertise is the grill.”
