“What would give you that idea?”
Bailey shrugged and looked away. “It’s not anything Isaw.”
“Bailey?”
She looked at him. “The other night, when we saw Rafe and Ivy at the park, I felt something between you. And it felt like something more than friends.”
He reached over and took her hand, lifting it. He brought it closer and outlined her fingers with his fingertips. Her skin was so soft. Simply touching her made every fiber of his being tighten.
“Can I ask you for a favor?”
“Sure.”
“Could we possibly put Rafe on the back burner for a while? Not because I don’t want to tell you everything there is to know about me, but because I’d like to get to know you better, and I’m not sure Rafe has a place in that. Unless I’m wrong.”
“You’re not,” she said a little too quickly. “I mean, that’s weird, right? You, me, and Rafe?”
Her eyes widened, and her mouth opened as though she couldn’t believe she said that.
“You know what I mean. It’s … yes. You’re right. Weshouldput Rafe on the back burner.”
He noticed she said theyshould, not that theywould.
“Good. Because I can’t stop thinking about you,” he admitted, turning his attention to her small, dainty fingers. “I don’t know what it is about you.”
When she didn’t respond, Holt peered over. Bailey was watching as he glided his fingertip over her palm, following the lines.
“Tell me I’m not the only one.”
Her eyes shifted to his face. “You’re not.”
“And you’re okay with that?”
The subtle flex of her jaw and the way she swallowed told him there was something she wasn’t telling him.
“Talk to me, Bailey.”
***
From the moment Holt touched her, she’dbeen mesmerized by the feel of his fingers moving on her skin. Her entire body felt that simple caress, as though they were completely naked and he was moving over her, skin to skin.
And though nothing was stopping her from pursuing whatever this was between them, Bailey wasn’t sure she was ready for something new. Not yet.
“I might’ve heard a rumor, too,” Holt said softly.
Her gaze shifted to his face. “I’m sure you heard plenty but let me guess. You heard I recently got out of a relationship.”
His eyebrows slowly rose, and he nodded.
If only that were the issue. For Bailey, she’d left Seth behind that night and hadn’t looked back. For whatever reason, her heart wasn’t holding onto her past with him. Probably because she’d moved on from him long before it was over.
No, her hesitance had nothing to do with Seth and everything to do with Rafe. Unlike him, she couldn’t merely turn off her feelings. It didn’t matter that he’d brushed her off like a speck of lint, Bailey had developed feelings for him long ago, and they’d grown stronger as their friendship had.
But the strange thing was, she genuinely liked Holt. And she wanted to get to know him. Holding out for something that would never come seemed foolish, so why shouldn’t she do what Rafe did and move on?
“Bailey?”
If there was even a remote chance things might go somewhere with Holt, she knew he had to know the truth.
