Page 86 of The Wright Man

I smiled softly. "Tina always answers when he calls. No matter where she is, no matter what time. Drops everything when her twin calls."

He nodded, slowly, the corners of his mouth lifting in something sad and sweet. "That tracks."

I hesitated. "You going alone?"

He nodded again. "Yeah."

I didn't like that. I knew he could handle it—but still. That wasn't the kind of weight anyone should carry alone.

"Well..." I started, fingers curling around the strap of my purse. "Call me if you need to talk. Y'know... afterwards."

His eyes flicked to mine, something grateful in them. "I will."

Before I could second-guess myself, I threw my arms around him.

He didn't hesitate. Just wrapped those big arms around me and held on, warm and solid and familiar. I pressed my cheek to his chest and tried to pour strength into him—tried to let him borrow a little piece of mine if he needed it.

Without thinking, I reached up and cupped his face in my hands. His beard was softer than it looked. His skin warm under my palms. I leaned in and kissed his cheek.

It was meant to be comforting.

But the second our eyes met, everything shifted.

We'd kissed before. Hell, he was my first kiss. But this? This wasn't the same. Not even close.

This felt charged. Like my lips had said something my heart hadn't meant to confess.

He stared at me like I'd just set fire to the parking lot.

And to be fair... I kinda had.

My arms were still around his neck. His hands hadn't dropped from my waist. The air between us felt thick and electric.

Too long. We were standing too long. Too close. Too exposed.

I stepped back quickly, heart thudding like it wanted to punch its way out of my chest.

"Um..." I said, eyes darting anywhere but his face. "I better go. My lunch break's running long and I gotta drop this stuff off at the house before I head back to the salon."

He nodded, cleared his throat, and rubbed the back of his neck—a nervous habit I'd clocked when we were fifteen.

"Yeah. I gotta head out too. Got a ton of equipment to arrange at GhostFit. Riq and Sticks'll never let me live if I leave 'em hanging."

I laughed, grateful for the return to normalcy. "Tell them I said to leave the clowning to professionals," I said, climbing into my car.

He leaned against the door as I started the engine, still looking at me like the kiss hadn't just knocked the wind out of both of us.

"I'll text you," I said, offering a soft smile.

"I'll text back."

I don't know why, but that simple promise warmed me all the way through.

One last look passed between us. Long. Loaded. Then I pulled out of the parking space, heart thudding, smile tugging at the edges of my mouth like it didn't know what the hell just happened—but liked it anyway.

I didn't look back. No matter how badly I wanted to.

Chapter Fourteen