“Are you kidding? I loved every minute of it,” she said, then looked slightly appalled that her spontaneous, enthusiastic response had slipped out before she could temper it. “I mean, it was a fun day, considering I spent a good part of it with an old dude like you.”
Jason laughed, knowing she was teasing him. In their dinner conversation, they’d discovered she was eight years younger than he was. “I’m ancient compared to a young thing like you.”
Lainey made a noise somewhere between a snort and a laugh, then covered her mouth as her cheeks bloomed with color in the light of the lamppost she’d parked beneath. “You keep saying things like that, Mr. Price, and it will go straight to my head.”
“Good,” he said, taking a step closer to her. The need to kiss her, to taste the lips that had intrigued him all evening, was too great to ignore.
He cupped her cheek, acutely aware of how silky and soft her skin felt against the rough, calloused skin of his hand. “Lainey, I—”
“Isn’t it hours past your bedtime?” Cooper James asked as he walked around the end of the van and thumped Jason on the shoulder with a teasing smirk. “If you stay up any later, you’re going to be pushing into the danger zone of turning into a rotten pumpkin.”
Jason glowered at the man who had a knack for popping up at the most inconvenient time. He took a step back from Lainey and dropped his hand. “Night, Lainey. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
He started toward his trailer but couldn’t keep from glancing back to see Lainey standing there, watching him.
Two days later, dawn had yet to lighten the sky when Jason tapped on the entry door of Lainey’s van. He knew she planned to leave by six that morning, and he didn’t want to miss her.
He figured a few minutes of sharing coffee and doughnuts were better than not ever seeing her again. She’d promised to keep in touch, and so had he, but life got busy, and he was acutely aware of how hard long-distance relationships were to maintain.
Despite all that, he just wanted to have more time with Lainey.
Yesterday had been amazing, spending a good portion of the day with her. He’d introduced her to the Rockin’ K crew and several people he knew. She took photos of some of them, but mostly seemed interested in being with him. After the rodeo, they’d walked hand in hand to the Italian restaurant and lingered for hours over a meal eaten slowly while Jason felt like he was in a freefall that he had no way to stop, even if he’d wanted to.
Something was happening to him. Something unexpected and a little frightening that felt a whole lot like love.
It had been so many years since he’d fallen for Judy, he barely remembered the sensations, the feelings, or the fears it had created.
Last night, when he’d walked Lainey back to her van, he’d hoped to find a quiet, private moment to steal a kiss, but people were milling around, and he felt many eyes watching them as he tipped his head to her and bid her a quiet good night before heading to his trailer.
Which was why he was determined that, before Lainey left today, he would get a taste of the lips that had taunted his dreams last night to the point he’d barely slept.
He reached up to tap on the door again, but the black cloth that covered the window lifted, and Lainey peered out.
She smiled and unlocked the door, then pushed it open.
“Hey, stranger. I didn’t expect to see you this morning,” she said as Jason stepped inside, looking around the compact but tidy space. A sofa he was sure folded into a bed was already neatly stowed. It appeared Lainey had been making final preparations to hit the road.
“I thought you might enjoy coffee and a cinnamon twist,” he said, holding up a box of doughnuts and a cardboard holder with two cups of coffee. Lainey had mentioned she loved anything with cinnamon, so he’d rushed to a nearby convenience store to get the coffee and doughnuts, hoping he’d have a few minutes with Lainey before she left.
“You are officially my favorite human today,” she said, reaching for the coffee but pausing before she grabbed one. “Are they the same?”
“Yep. Both black and hot.”
“Exactly how I like it,” she said, lifting a cup from the cardboard tray and taking a tentative sip. “Mmm. Perfect.”
She took the doughnuts from Jason and set them on her small counter, then got out a paper plate and warmed them inthe microwave just enough that they tasted fresh instead of a day old. After Jason offered a brief word of thanks for their meal and time together, they sat on her sofa and ate the doughnuts, neither saying anything, lost in thoughts of goodbyes.
“I didn’t mean to intrude on your day, Lainey, but I just couldn’t let you leave without seeing you one more time,” Jason admitted quietly.
“I’m glad you came. I never turn down hot coffee and doughnuts,” she said with a smile, then took another bite of her cinnamon twist. “I’m really glad I decided to stop by the rodeo on my way to Oregon.”
“Me too.” Jason didn’t think he could express how pleased he was that he’d bumped into her again. The past two days had been some of the best he’d had in years, all because of Lainey.
“Will you leave tonight or wait until the morning?” Lainey asked, knowing today was the final performance of the rodeo.
“We’ll probably pull out tonight as soon as it ends. If things go smoothly, we can be back at the Rockin’ K around midnight or so.”
“Oh, then it makes sense to leave. Do you and Shaun stay in Twin Falls with the rest of the crew or drive to Baker City?”
