After we’ve finished eating, well, I ate, and she made a show of it, I take the dishes to the sink and rinse them. I don’t want her having to deal with a mess on top of all the stress she’s under. If all I can do is small things like cooking her breakfast and doing the dishes, then that’s what I’ll focus on.
She comes up behind me and I turn, expecting her to tell me I don’t have to. It’s on the tip of my tongue to argue with her, but then she gestures for me to bend over.
“Thank you,” she whispers, and presses a kiss to my cheek. Or she tries to.
I don’t realize what she’s going in for until a second too late, so I turn my head, and then our lips are connecting. It’s the softest, featherlight brush of her lips against mine, but it sends electricity dancing through my body and steals every bit of oxygen from my lungs.
She quickly pulls away and blushes. Then she ducks her head and runs out of the room before I can gather enough brain cells together to utter a single word.
I watch her go, my heart beating double time. How is it possible that one kiss could affect me so much?
Chapter 3
Lauren
I watch Bronco’s truck pull into the parking lot and hit the button on the office phone to switch to the message service. It will let callers leave a message while I go outside for a moment. I rarely turn it on, but I need a minute.
With the phone off, I slip back into my shoes and hurry out the door. The May breeze ruffles my hair as I walk, and I inhale deeply, enjoying the smell of cut spring grass. It’s a perfect, peaceful day. But I feel anything but settled as I force myself forward to see Bronco.
I kissed him.
Earlier today, I kissed him.
I didn’t mean to, but it still happened. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it, the way his beard pressed against my face. How soft his lips were. I could relive that moment over and over again for a lifetime and not get tired of it.
But I don’t want Bronco thinking that I meant to do that. He already thinks I’m his best friend’s annoying little sister. I’d just die if he thought I had a crush on him. I mean, I do. A really big one that makes my chest ache whenever he looks at me, but he can’t know. He can never know.
I reach the truck just as he steps out, hauling his toolbox with him. He’s here to finish the pipe repair, and normally, I’d talk to him when he gets into the lobby. But this conversation is already going to be too awkward. We don’t need to add a live audience to complete my humiliation.
I take a deep breath and pause. The words are stuck in my throat.
He waits for me to speak, patient as always. It’s the kindness in his eyes that reminds me to be brave. Bronco has never once been anything but kind to me. He always deals with me so gently, like I’m precious. A girl could let herself get the wrong idea if she wanted to. Fortunately, I’m not like that. Nope, no illusions here about Bronco and his perfect smile or his willingness to always come by anytime I have an emergency, no matter how minor.
Finally, I blurt out, “I didn’t mean to kiss you. Not like that anyway. I was going for an affectionate peck. You know, the kind you might give an elderly relative.”
Bronco quirks a bushy eyebrow. “An elderly relative?”
My cheeks are a million degrees. The sun must be extra hot today, and it’s burning my face. It’s not my fault I was born with fair skin. It’s my genetics. Totally nothing to do with the teasing look on Bronco’s face. “Well, you know, you are older than me.”
Only ten years older which I actually hate reminding him of. He always acts like he’s a million years older than me. When you think about it, ten years really isn’t that much. It’s just one teeny, tiny decade. I wish I could get him to see it that way.
“It’s not about age. It’s about wisdom. One day, you’ll understand.” He takes his toolbox and starts to the building. I don’t miss the slight limp.
He was medically discharged from the Marines due to a back injury, but it’s his foot that troubles me. He mentioned once that his foot is now more plate and screw than bone and tendon. But it didn’t seem like he wanted to talk about it, so I never asked what happened. If he wants to tell me, he can tell me. I wish he’d share all his secrets, let me hear every thought in his head. If Bronco opened up to me, I’d be the happiest girl in the world.
I fall into step beside me. “Is that what you’re calling it? Because even you have to admit, there’s more salt than pepper in the beard now.”
“Salt and pepper is earned, given to the distinguished few,” he mutters, holding open the door.
“If that’s your story,” I say as I follow him back to my room. I don’t plan on hanging out here all afternoon while he works. In the light of day, I have to be careful not to let my gaze go to my bed. I’ve laid there so many nights dreaming of Bronco and okay, yeah, touching myself to the idea that we could be touching.
Fortunately, Bronco doesn’t even notice my gaze straying to the bed. He gets to his knees, evaluating his prior work. “Going to need to cut the water off to your unit again. You don’t have to stick around. I know you have work to do.”
This is my moment, and I lick my suddenly dry lips. I’ve been thinking about this all morning, but I want to get it right. I don’t want to say the wrong thing to Bronco. “Last night, you mentioned a fundraiser, using Valor Ranch. Is that…is that still on the table?”
He doesn’t even glance up. “For you, anything.”
No, little heart do not fill with happiness. That’s how you end up broken. “So, then I can put it online as a petting zoo?”
