Rina and I have been going at a much slower pace as well. I think the other night freaked her out, and I understand her reasoning for wanting to take things slower. She may have mostly forgiven me, but that doesn’t mean we can just pick up where we left off. We’ve been talking, texting mostly, about everyday life, but nothing past that. No other mentions of the past, of us being married, or the future. However, tonight, we’re going on a date.
And I’m nervous as hell.
One wrong move could topple this carefully held together truce, and that’s the last thing I want to happen.
My phone pings, and I sigh as I pull it out, expecting it to be Audrey again, yelling at me that the meddlesome trio is bothering her about my whereabouts again.
Rina:
How long are we going to pretend you aren’t sitting outside in your truck all day, every day?
Busted.
Me:
Umm…
Rina:
You should just come work at the desk in my workshop. That’s if you can deal with the sounds of power tools… On second thought, that’sprobably obnoxiously loud. You could work in the house?
Adorable; she’s completely adorable when she rambles.
Me:
The desk sounds perfect. I’ll be there in a minute.
I would pay good money to have my workday be in the same building as Rina. I probably wouldn’t get much done, but the life of a small-town sheriff isn’t all that busy to begin with. Watching my wife work her magic on some planks of wood? Definitely sounds like a great day to me.
I grab my laptop, phone, and bottle of water before heading to her barn workshop. When I step through the door, my teeth grate at the knowledge that anyone could just walk in here. Closing the door and locking it behind me, I finally take in the view in front of me.
Rina’s wearing dark purple leggings and a grey tank top. Her hair’s plopped on the top of her head, and she’s wearing safety glasses that somehow look endearing on her. There’s also a sexy-as-fuck smirk on her face that I would give anything to wipe off her face with a couple of orgasms, but work needs to come first right now.
“How long would you have kept up your watch dog act?”
“As long as it takes to make sure you’re safe,” I say. “Although, I’m disappointed I wasn’t more discreet.”
“You were. I just seem to have an innate sense of you whenever you’re close by.” She shrugs.
Warmth blooms in my chest at her words. It’s starting to feel like we aren’t as far away from my ultimate end goal as it seems. That’s not to say I won’t continue to work my ass off to be deserving of her because I know it will take continual work on my end. But her words, no matter how much of a smartass she tries to be, give me endless hope about the future.
“Good to know if I ever want to surprise you,” I say quietly.
Rina clears her throat. “I don’t have a ton of work left, but I will be sanding a ton and ripping some larger pieces of wood. Is that going to be okay?”
“Absolutely. Pretend I’m not even here.” I set down my stuff at her desk as she stares at me with a look I can’t decipher.
“Yeah, super easy. I’ll just ignore the tight jeans and baseball hat. Let’s not even mention the tights-as-fuck sheriff shirt that shows all your muscles.” Her murmured tone is almost too low for me to hear but not quiet enough.
I grin. I can’t help it. “What was that?” I ask like the asshole I am.
“Oh, shut up. You heard me. If I cut myself today because I’m distracted, it’s all your fault.”
“I can take the T-shirt off if it’s too distracting,” I offer with laughter.
She narrows her eyes at me before spinning on her heel and going to the opposite end of the building.
Within twenty minutes, she’s working away like I’m not even here while I’m stuck staring at her, mesmerized by her capabilities. Seeing the end product is so much different from seeing her actually build them. Logically, I know she’s good at her job and she makes beautiful things, but watching her process and how she can turn raw wood into works of art is truly something to behold. I don’t think I’ll ever get over it.
