“You laid the foundation for all of this,” Caleb said, bending over and placing a kiss on her temple. “That won’t ever be forgotten.”
And neither will you.
Watching Caleb handle Hattie with such finesse caused a warm feeling to flow through Sophia. She could tell from the expressions on both of their faces that they were sharing a tender moment.
Hattie’s grandson was turning out to be way different than she had imagined. Reality television hadn’t done him any favors, and she had to wonder if production had created a false narrative about him. This version of Caleb couldn’t be a cheater and a liar. He was way too sweet.
Hmm. Or was she simply ignoring her own tendency to focus on the positive. People could be a mix of a bunch of different things. Just because she wanted to believe Caleb was a stand-up guy didn’t mean he was like that in relationships. Everyone had pegged Donny as a nice guy, until he had proven them wrong.
“If you stare any harder, you might end up cross-eyed.” Patience was standing next to her, smirking.
“Shh. Someone might hear you.” The last thing she needed was for people to think she was crushing on Caleb. It was ridiculous feeling this way, since without a doubt she was crushing on Caleb.
“And so what? With the way you’re eyeballing him, I’m sure other folks have noticed by now.”
“I was simply watching him with Hattie. It’s really sweet,” Sophia said, downplaying the way she’d been staring at him. It had been a long time since someone had come along who drew her in like a moth to a flame.
“Mm-hmm,” Patience murmured. “I totally believe you. Not!” Patience stuck out her tongue.
Sophia rolled her eyes. “Why don’t you focus on your own love life?” She jutted her chin toward the bar. “Jason is staring at you. When are you going to put him out of his misery? He’s been chasing you for years now.”
Patience glanced over at Jason and waved. “I’m thinking about going out with him the next time he asks. At least one of us has to put ourselves out there.” She made a face at Sophia.
“If you remember, I did put myself out there,” Sophia responded. “It was a train wreck. Other than the part where I ended up with Lily.”
“You can’t let one bad experience take you out of the game,” Patience said. “I’ve had a few heartbreaks myself, and they haven’t stopped me from hoping and dreaming. You should try it sometime. It’ll do you a world of good.” With a cheeky wave, she took off, walking toward the bar and straight toward Jason. Sophia barely had a moment to check out the interaction between Patience and Jason when Caleb walked over.
“Hey, I have something that belongs to you.” His tone was light and flirty. But maybe she was reading into it. Perhaps she was hoping he was trying to flirt with her. She had the feeling she wasn’t the only one either, considering all the stares he was getting.
“Really? What would that be?” she asked, trying to focus on his words and not his striking features or the way his shirt accentuated his taut chest.
“The Leica. I guess you were so overjoyed to be rescued that you forgot all about it when you made your mad dash out of the attic.”
She slapped her hand to her forehead. “I keep meaning to pop over to the house to collect it, although I have no intention of ever going back in that attic again.”
“Seriously? I thought being trapped with me was a little slice of paradise.”
Sophia placed her hand over her heart. “It was actual heaven on Earth, particularly the part where the ants invadedyour pants.” Her lips twitched at the memory of Caleb discovering that he’d been swarmed by the insects.
“Ouch. Making fun of my pain. Not cool, Sophia,” he said, his eyes twinkling.
She reached out and touched his arm. “Sorry about that. Just a little carpenter ant humor. I appreciate you holding on to the Leica for me.”
“No worries. The camera is safely out of the attic. It’s only fitting that you have it in your possession, since it’s the reason we got trapped up there.”
“Well, actually it was because you closed the door behind us. Lest we forget,” she quipped.
“Tomato, tomahto,” Caleb said, showcasing a pearly toothed smile. “Let’s meet up for coffee or tea or baked Alaska so I can give it to you.”
Sophia burst out laughing. “Baked Alaska? That’s kind of random.”
Caleb laughed along with her. “Guilty as charged. But I made you laugh, didn’t I? And you have a terrific laugh.”
She basked in the compliment for a moment, realizing it had been a long time since a man had given her one.
“Let’s exchange numbers,” Sophia said, still chuckling while taking out her cell phone and handing it over to Caleb. He quickly put his information into her phone and handed it back.
His hand lingered on hers as she took the phone back. “Soft hands, warm heart,” he murmured. Their gazes locked and held. For the life of her, Sophia couldn’t look away from him.
