I laughed. I was crying too.
“Are you laughing at my truth, Caro?”
I nodded, smiling through the tears.
“Your father’s watching us,” he said.
Knee-jerk, I said, “Good. If I wasn’t still so damn angry at you, I’d tell you to kiss me for all you’re worth. He deserves it.”
Shrugging, Wyatt teased, “I could ya know, just for show.”
“I’m considering it,” I teased back.
Smiling, he said, “You’ll let me know?”
I nodded.
Then, sighing and clearly more serious, he quirked his head at me. “It’s not my business to get into whatever’s between you, but if it’s about what he said to me, you should know he wasn’t mean or demeaning and he was well intentioned, albeit misguided.”
“There’s a lot of that going around,” I smarted.
Then, as if he suddenly remembered he wasn’t expecting me, he asked, “By the way, what are you doing here?”
“I didn’t take the job.”
He looked confused. “You didn’t?”
I shook my head no.
“Why not?”
I pushed my hands into my pants pockets. “Because I like it here. I want to live here. This is my home.”
Wyatt’s eyes got glassy and his nostrils flared. “Because of me?”
I smiled. “Nope, but someone’s ego is bigger than he even realizes.”
He smiled at my smile before asking, “You sure?”
“One hundred percent. But I’m not going to lie. I think I might like it even more if I could figure out how to forgive you.”
He stood, smacking his thighs as he got up. “That’s good.”
I nodded.
He shuffled down the steps, moving to my right so that I had to turn to face him. Shifting his feet like a nervous teenager, he said, “I was thinking that I owe you a date.”
“You do, a well-planned and expensive one.”
He smiled. “I’m ready whenever you are.”
I dragged a deep breath into my lungs, then said, “I’ll think about it.”
His smile faltered just a little before he said, “Fair enough. I’ll be waiting.”
Then, without any hesitation, he reached out, pulled me to him, and hugged me, breathing me in like I was his lifeblood. I wasn’t expecting the smell of him or the warmth of his big broad chest, and the physical relief of finally being close to him again drained the anxiety and anger from my chest. Breathy, his face crushed against my hair, he said, “I love you, Caro. I promise.”
He kissed the side of my forehead before he let go and he didn’t make eye contact again. He just turned and headed for his truck. I watched him as he walked away, his thick thighs and his strong shoulders, and all I could think was that’s my man. A tiny spark of happy glowed in the center of my chest. It was a different happy than I felt when I realized that I wanted to stay in Conway. It was a happy that I only felt when I thought about Wyatt Morgan.
I called out, “Wyatt.” He turned immediately, but kept moving, walking backwards. “Pick me up at seven.” His face split into a grin—a big, wide, goofy one.
“Yeah?” he questioned, clearly elated.
I nodded.
He grinned at me some more, and then he turned back toward his truck and threw his arm in the air as he hollered, “Hell yeah!”
Then, because he was a wily thing, he stopped, bent so he could look into the window of my father’s cruiser, and hollered, “Howdy, Sheriff.”
To my surprise, my father gave him a smile and a little wave.
Maybe I’d be able to forgive them both, eventually.
21
Wyatt
I was leaning on the kitchen counter when I saw Caroline’s headlights as she turned down the road to our house. I excused myself so I could go outside and see her before my family descended on us like a pack of wolves. Sarah and Horse were home, so it was time for a family dinner again. This time, I invited Caroline.
Caroline returned from Seattle four weeks ago, and until a couple nights ago, we’d been formally dating, going to lunch and dinner, playing mini golf, seeing movies, but pretty much keeping our physical distance. She let me kiss her a couple of times, but other than that, I was in the sexual doghouse. Then she invited me to dinner with Bev and Bev’s dad at Bev’s dad’s hunting cabin. I felt like she was intentionally torturing me. Anyway, the day of the dinner, I spent an inordinate amount of time wondering how I was going to be in that cabin without getting hard in front of Bev and her dad, and then when I got there, the only car in the driveway was Caroline’s. I knocked on the door, and Caroline called out, “It’s open.”
Inside the house smelled like burgers and I could hear the sizzle. I called out, “Bev and her dad running late?”
Caroline didn’t answer until I could see her. She was in the kitchen cooking burgers and wearing nothing but an apron. “Tragically, kidnapped by pirates,” she said.
Needless to say, we ate cold burgers again.
I knew keeping me at a physical distance was Caroline’s way of protecting her heart. I understood the choice. But I was so relieved to know that she trusted me with it again. Caroline was finally mine and I was going to fucking treasure her forever, if she’d let me.
With that thought in mind, it was my need to kiss and touch her that had me hurtling for the driveway before everyone else realized she’d arrived. I closed the front door and the screen door quietly, trying not to make a sound, and then I hurried down the steps.
Getting out of the car, Caroline called out, “Hi.”
I threw my pointer finger up to my lips, shushing her.
She closed the car door and then leaned against it. She was wearing jeans, boots, and a soft gray sweater. Her hair was loose and the chill in the air made her cheeks ruddy. When I was right on top of her, she whispered, “Why are we being quiet?”
I answered, “Because once they realize you’re here, there will be none of this.” I followed the words with a kiss—a dirty, hungry one. I had no idea how I managed to act civilized for four whole weeks because now that I’d been inside her again, it was the only thing I ever wanted to do. I split her knees with my leg and hitched her up a bit so I could push my thigh against her pussy. In my mouth, she started giggling and broke away.
“Are you gonna try to do me up against my car with your family just inside?”
I nodded my head eagerly.
She laughed harder.
“What? Too exposed?” I glanced around, playfully looking for somewhere to hide. “We could go around the other side of the car.”
She smacked my bicep, giggling.
I kissed her again, less dirty but still hungry. Behind me I heard a window thrown open, and Cody called out, “Get a room.” Then the window slammed shut again.
Again, my woman was laughing in my mouth. Teasing, I said, “Stop cracking up while I’m kissing you, Caroline. It’s emasculating.” Caroline dropped her face, hiding behind my bulk. One of her hands drifted down and she scraped her fingertips over my cock and said, “Oh no, is my sweet little dicky-wicky getting angry?”