“Good.”
Stevie started to get up, but Stone pulled her in, pressing his mouth to hers. She surrendered to the kiss, leaning into him, teasing his silky hair as their tongues did a slow waltz.
When they finally separated a few minutes later, Stevie knew he’d successfully burrowed right back into her heart. Almost as though he’d never left.
Twenty-Three
Stone would’ve preferred to spend the entireday holed up in Nico and Stevie’s house with them, but he had things to do, so after checking with Nico to ensure he wasn’t upset about what Stone had revealed, he’d made his exit.
The first thing he did when he got home was pull out his laptop so he could work on the proposal for Curtis and Lorrie. It had been on his mind since yesterday, and though he didn’t get a firm agreement from Stevie about it, he’d come up with a better idea. Rather than go off half-cocked, he decided to put together a proposal for her as well.
Last night, when he’d been unable to sleep, Stone had run through a dozen ideas in his head, but one in particular had lingered. It had surprised him that he’d gone from wanting to raise championship bulls to tending the land to looking forward to designing a farmers’ market that the entire town could utilize. But the more he thought about it, the more he liked the idea. Plus, it incorporated Stevie’s dream, which felt right to him.
No, he couldn’t make up for leaving town fifteen years ago and leaving her behind, but he could prove to her that he wasn’t the same selfish guy he’d been back then. Plus, it was something that would benefit his hometown, which not only appealed to him greatly but would likely appease Curtis and Lorrie, too.
Granted, he still had to broach the subject with Curtis and Lorrie’s sons. There was no telling how that would go. At one point, he’d been relatively close to his cousins, but all those years away hadn’t benefited him in that regard. He no longer had the same bond he’d had back then. These days, he knew only what the annual Christmas cards told him.
Shifting his attention to his laptop, Stone cleared his head of the clutter. He could overcome all those obstacles if he simply put it all down in a manner that made sense.
He got to work.
Three hours later, Stone had just finished whipping tuna fish in a bowl when a knock sounded on the door. He looked over to see Donovan standing on the porch. Before he could wave him in, his big brother opened the door and strolled inside like he owned the place.
“Come on in, I don’t mind.”
Donovan glanced around. “I didn’t think you did. I figured you’d be hard at work.”
“Doin’ what?”
“I don’t know. Gettin’ settled, maybe.” Donovan was looking directly at the stack of boxes Stone had shoved into the corner of the living room.
“Haven’t gotten around to it yet.”
Donovan chewed on his bottom lip as he leaned against the kitchen island. “Not enough time? Or you’re not sure you’re stayin’?”
“Why’s everyone keep askin’ me that?”
“Maybe ’cause you’re actin’ like it’s a vacation.”
Stone frowned as he scooped tuna fish onto a slice of bread. “How so?”
“For starters, you’re livin’ in the barn.”
“And that bothers you?” Stone didn’t understand why Donovan thought it was a problem. Where the hell else was Stone going to go? “Shouldn’t you be at home givin’ your man shit instead of me?”
“He’s workin’.”
It was impossible to miss the disappointment in Donovan’s tone.
Stone chuckled. “Can’t convince him to quit and become your personal servant?”
“Don’t think I haven’t tried.”
Stone looked up at his brother.
“Kiddin’. It took everything I’ve got to get him to accept my marriage proposal.”
“Well, that’s—wait.” Stone stared at his brother. “He accepted?”
