by Rose Pressey
“No, it’s warm now anyway,” I said with a smile.
Chloe grabbed her bag. “Do you think we’ll run into those men out there? I think they may have been drunk.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t let them say anything to you.”
I pushed to my feet and waited as Chloe stood from her stool. She looked so good in her jeans and tight t-shirt. Her T-shirt clung to her breasts enticingly. Not that I had noticed much. Oh hell, I couldn’t take my eyes off her. She was even more beautiful and I hadn’t thought that possible. I couldn’t help but notice her full lips covered in whatever shiny stuff she’d put on them. She looked over at me and I averted my eyes so she wouldn’t think that I was staring. I placed my hand on the small of her back and guided her through the crowd and toward the door. I was glad to get away from the noise and crowd so that we could talk.
Chloe walked along beside me as we headed down the sidewalk. The men were lucky that they hadn’t waited around for her. I didn’t want to ruin the evening with a fight with them. I was finally getting a chance to spend time with Chloe and I didn’t want anything to mess that up.
The smell of something floral and sweet floated over to me. I knew that it was Chloe. Her smell, her smile, her voice, it was all intoxicating and made it hard for me to resist. Did she know what effect she was having on me?
The stars twinkled above in the dark expanse of sky. I couldn’t believe that after all this time I was walking next to Chloe. Had the universe brought her back to me? No, I was just being crazy. She’d come back to Belle Grove for her uncle and that was the only reason. As much as I wanted it to be more, I knew that it wasn’t. I’d take what I could get though. She was here now and that was all that I cared about. The evening was perfect and I was glad that she’d agreed to let me walk her home.
I had to use this time to talk to Chloe. Discussing why she left or what had happened would be off limits. It would just be general talk about her life now and what she’d been doing. Because honestly, I really wanted to know about her new life in Arizona. There was no need to bring up the past. I wouldn’t tell her how much I’d thought about her over the years or how much I’d missed her sweet face.
Chapter Seventeen
Chloe should have stopped at one beer
Walking next to Grant felt good. The emotions that seeing him again had brought were totally unexpected. Well, somewhat unexpected. Okay, I had expected them a little. I mean, why else had I stayed away from Belle Grove for so long? I wished I could deny how I felt at the moment, but I couldn’t. I still couldn’t believe that I’d agreed to let him walk me back to my hotel. But after the confrontation with the men, it was probably the best idea. I liked to think I could take care of myself, but I was no match for two men.
Grant’s spicy scent glided across the air and tickled my nostrils. I’d forgotten just how good-looking he was until now. I mean, I’d always remembered, but I thought maybe he’d gotten even better-looking since I’d been gone, with his strong jaw and thick hair. I forced myself to look away so that he wouldn’t catch me staring at him. If he caught me I wouldn’t be able to hide the desire in my eyes. I wondered what it would be like to kiss him again. Just one kiss and I would probably lose control of my logical thinking skills.
We walked in silence as my thoughts ran a million miles a minute. I wondered what he was thinking and if he felt the same way as me. I’d seen the way he had looked at me a few times. Was it just my imagination? Maybe he was just trying to figure out why the heck I’d come back. Although it seemed that he was beginning to believe me when I said I didn’t think my uncle had left on his own. I wished he would say something first so that I didn’t have to break the silence.
I felt Grant’s tension and noticed that he glanced over at me a few times. Finally, he cleared his throat and said, “I’m glad you came back to Belle Grove.”
I had hoped that he would break the silence with a discussion of the weather. I wasn’t sure I was ready to talk about my return to Belle Grove.
“Well, I needed to find my uncle, you know.”
When I glanced at him I noticed the disappointed look in his eyes. What had he wanted me to say? I wasn’t about to admit that I was glad that I’d come back to Belle Grove too.
He nodded. “Yes, I suppose you did need to come back to find him. Is there any other reason you came back? Did you miss the crawfish?”
He offered his dazzling smile and I couldn’t help but smile back. “I suppose I did miss that more than I realized.”
“It’s hard to find in Arizona,” he said.
I chuckled. “Yes, it is difficult to locate there.”
Silence filled the air again and I figured it was time for me to talk about the weather. Instead, Grant said, “I had decided not to bring this up, but I changed my mind. We should talk about what happened.”
I felt his eyes on me. I didn’t look over at him. I had to hide my emotions. I had to say something though.
Finally, I settled on, “I don’t think we should.”
He nodded. “Fair enough, I guess. It’s just that the way we left things… and then I don’t talk to you again for ten years. You wouldn’t answer my calls. Then suddenly you’re back in my life and I thought maybe we should talk about what happened.”
“I just don’t know if this is the right time for this discussion.”
Of course I wasn’t sure there would ever be a right time. Ignoring something for that long kind of made the topic dead as far as I was concerned. It was buried and that was where we should leave it. Something told me Grant didn’t want to leave it buried though.
“I should go. I can walk the rest of the way.” Maybe that was a stupid idea, but I could basically see the hotel from there. “Thanks for walking me this far and for taking care of those men.” I gestured over my shoulder.
“I’ve walked you this far. I don’t think it would hurt for me to see you to your door.”
He had a point, but still, I needed to put distance between us. My feelings were beginning to get away from me and that was something I couldn’t let happen. The characters in my books succumbed to romance, but that was fantasy and I was living in the real world. Things like that didn’t happen in the real world. In the real world, your boyfriend cheated on you with your best friend. If I wasn’t careful, I’d let his dazzling smile get the better of me.
“I appreciate the offer, but I should just go by myself.” I didn’t give him the chance to say anything else. I stepped away from the curb onto the street. The light was red, but would probably turn green soon, so I hurried my steps. It wasn’t like a car would show up because this town was dead after ten. Everyone was either at home or at the bar. I wished I was at home.
Just as the thought left my mind, the engine roared toward me. I’d barely turned my head to the left when I noticed it out of the corner of my eye. It barely had time to register in my mind as the chrome and black rushed toward me.
The roar of the engine filled the night air. My life flashed before my eyes, and let me tell you, I didn’t like what I saw. I heard my name called out and the next thing I knew Grant had grabbed me. He’d jumped from the sidewalk to save me from the car. Grant had risked his life for me.
I didn’t know what to think. Of course I would have done the same thing for him. I’d almost been killed. What if Grant hadn’t been there? I would have been dead. And to think I’d told him to go away.
When Grant had grabbed me we’d fallen to the pavement. He was still on top of me as my heart raced from the adrenaline.
“Are you okay?” he asked breathlessly.
I nodded and said, “I think I’m okay.” I really wasn’t sure, though. Nothing hurt but my mind was still in a confused haze.
“Does anything hurt?” Grant stayed on top of me. We were on the road by the sidewalk. The car hadn’t even bothered to stop to see if we were okay. I wondered if the driver had even seen me. Surely he had.
“I suppose we should get up,” he said.
I couldn’t stop staring at his handsome face. “Yes, I suppose we should.”
He climbed off me and held out his hand to me. I grabbed it and climbed to my feet. I wiped my hands on my jeans. “Thank you for saving me.”
He touched my arm and it was as if an electric jolt ran through me. “Are you okay?”
I nodded and managed to say, “I’m fine. What about you? I think you banged your knee when you hit the ground.”
He waved off my comment. “No, I’m fine.” He looked up and down the street. “That car came out of nowhere.”
I nodded. “I know. I was just thinking how there’s never any traffic at this time of night and the next thing I know the car is almost on top of me. I’m just glad you were able to help me.” I looked around to see if anyone was watching us. No one was there. This was a crazy thought, but I couldn’t help but being suspicious. “Do you think that car tried to hit me on purpose?” I asked. He would probably laugh at my silliness.
He blew out a deep breath and said, “I don’t know. I’d like to think it wasn’t on purpose.” That had me really in a panic. He motioned with a tilt of his head. “Let me walk you to your room.”
This time I wasn’t going to tell him no. After all, he had saved my life. I hoped that the car wouldn’t reappear in the parking lot. I had a feeling it wasn’t a coincidence that the car had shown up at that intersection. Plus, I’d had the red light and they hadn’t even stopped.
We made our way across the street, but after that I might never cross a street without having a panic attack again. The parking lot was still mostly empty. I looked over at the office and didn’t see the woman at the desk. I was glad. I didn’t want her to think I was bringing some strange man back to my room. Although it would have been my business if I had. I most definitely wasn’t bringing a man back to my room—just Grant Kenner, the man I swore I’d never speak to again. The night air was still humid and I was looking forward to the cool of my room.
We walked across the lot without saying anything. No words were needed at the moment. When we reached the room, I pulled out my key and unlocked the door. A blast of cool air hit me and I relished the feel. I knew what I was going to say next. It wasn’t as if it had come to a surprise to me, but I wondered if it would surprise him.
“Do you want to come in?” I asked.
I knew by the look in his eyes that he hadn’t expected me to ask. He should know by now that I was full of surprises. No one had ever expected that I would leave Belle Grove, but I had.
I walked through the door and Grant followed. I couldn’t lie and say that I wasn’t tense about asking him in, but after what had happened, I just wanted someone to talk to right now. I didn’t want to be alone. As a matter of fact, I was tired of always being alone. Maybe for one night I could change that. Just for one night. I didn’t want to give Grant the wrong impression though and for him to think that we had a chance.
“Would you like a bottle of water?” I asked.
He nodded. “Sure, that would be good. It’s still really hot tonight.”
I grabbed the bottle of water from the little fridge. “Yeah, I’d forgotten about the humidity, but it only took a few minutes for me to remember.”
“I don’t want to leave you right now.” Grant’s gaze was focused like a laser on me.
It was awkward now. What had I thought we would talk about?
“I’m okay by myself.” My words didn’t sound overly confident.
He took a drink from the bottle and placed it on the table next to the bed. “I’m glad you asked me to come in. I was worried about you after what just happened.”
I nodded. “Thanks for caring.”
“I’ve always cared,” he said.
I turned my attention away from him. I didn’t know what to say. “Would you like to watch the TV?”
He grinned. “Sure.”
Maybe I could find a movie that would relieve the tension and the need to talk. It would give me a chance to think of what to say to him. I flipped through the channels until I found a movie. I had no idea what it was, but it didn’t matter. Grant leaned back in the chair by the door. He looked uncomfortable as he shifted from one side to the next.
“Why don’t you rest and I’ll stay for a while?” he said.
How did he know that I didn’t want to be alone?
“Would you like to sit on the bed? You can’t see the TV from over there.” My heart rate increased as the words slipped from my lips.
I knew this was a risky move, but I wanted to be near him. I wanted to smell his masculine scent and feel his strong presence beside me. Grant stared at me for a moment and I felt the electric in his eyes. He walked over to the other side of the bed. He sat back and when I glanced over he offered a sweet smile. I offered a smile back, but I knew that I wanted him to kiss me.
Chapter Eighteen
Grant hadn’t expected this turn of events
I wouldn’t lie and say that I wasn’t surprised by what she had done. I hadn’t expected her to even talk to me and now I was sitting on the bed next to her. When she’d looked at me I’d gotten a strange feeling that maybe she wanted me to kiss her, but I didn’t want to assume and be completely off base. It was probably just wishful thinking on my part.
She laughed at something in the movie and I glanced over at her. The smile on her face sent shivers through my body. She looked so amazing.
The question I kept asking myself was if I should make a move? Right now I was just guessing that she was sending me the message that she wanted a kiss. I didn’t want to make an ass out of myself. That was something that I could easily do and would be something that would mess up any chance I had of winning her friendship again. There was only one way to find out how she felt—move in and try to kiss her. Just the thought made my anxiety spike. I wondered if she felt the same way.
As she focused on the movie, I adjusted my body on the bed. I moved a little closer, hoping that she wouldn’t notice. I couldn’t try to kiss her from the edge of the bed, I would have to be closer. This seemed so ridiculous. If she wanted to kiss she’d probably give me a clear sign. I needed to wait for that sign. Although I realized that it would probably never come. Why did this have to be so difficult? I supposed anything this important wouldn’t be easy though. I should have gone after Chloe years ago.
Why had I let her slip away? We were both laughing at the movie now. An easy relaxed feeling had fallen over us. It felt natural to be there with her. As if all those years had never happened. That was just the way that I wanted it. My leg was almost touching hers now. If she noticed she didn’t say anything or make any attempt to move away from me. I wanted to touch her hand and caress her skin. Pull her close to my body and hold her tight until the sun came up.
As we continued to watch the movie another funny scene ended with us in laughter. I looked over and Chloe met my stare. This time we didn’t turn our attention back to the TV. We stared at each other and I knew that this was my chance to move in for a kiss. If she kicked me off the bed and out of the room, well, that was the chance that I was willing to take. I had been dreaming about kissing her for years and now the time was here. My heart rate increased at the thought of her lips on mine.
Our faces were mere inches apart now and I was glad that she hadn’t pulled away. She hadn’t kicked me off the bed yet either. She stared at my lips and I was sure that she wanted to kiss me as much as I wanted to kiss her. At least I hoped that I was right. I moved a little closer. That didn’t send Chloe running, so I was feeling good about the situation. I couldn’t take my eyes off her full lips. My heart thumped as I moved my head closer to hers. She closed her eyes as she leaned in.
I closed my eyes when I placed my lips against hers. I honestly think I stopped breathing for a moment. This was the moment I had been waiting for since she left Belle Grove. Now it was finally here. I gently kissed her and then when she didn’t back away, I traced my tongue against her bottom lip. She parted her mouth and
my tongue met with hers. My whole body was excited and I didn’t want the kiss to stop. Chloe placed her hands along my face and I pulled her close. I was lost in the moment.
I pressed my body closer to hers and felt her full breasts against my chest. She ran her fingers through my hair and I caressed her cheek. I broke free from her kiss and placed my lips softly on her neck. I feathered kisses along her skin working my way down to the exposed skin on her chest. Chloe moved closer and pushed me back on the bed. When I looked into her beautiful eyes, she smiled. She pulled off my shirt and kissed my chest. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the feel of her lips on my skin.
After a few moments of kissing, she smiled and laid her head on my chest. Being with her now was pure bliss and I didn’t want the moment to end. I ran my hand through her hair as I listened to her steady breathing. Within a few moments, I knew that she was asleep. I couldn’t believe that I was with her and she was peaceful enough to fall asleep. I leaned my head back and closed my eyes. I had my arms wrapped around her. Her warm body felt good against my skin. That was the last thing that I remembered.
*
I woke up to the TV off and only the light from outside the window splashing across the room, causing a strange blue glow across the room. Chloe was no longer lying with her head on my chest. When I glanced over to the other side of the bed, she wasn’t there. I sat up in bed trying to focus my eyes. I looked over toward the table and chairs by the window, but didn’t see her there either. A panic was starting to settle in. Why was I so upset? She’d probably just gone to the bathroom.
I jumped up from the bed and moved over to the bathroom. Unfortunately, there was no light on in there and the door was open. Clearly, she wasn’t in there. I turned around and gave the room another glance. I ran my hand through my hair and released a deep breath. Had she taken off? Maybe my kiss had freaked her out and chased her away. I’d thought that she’d wanted to kiss me too, now I was having second thoughts about whether that had really been the case. Why hadn’t she woken me before she had taken off?