Graham chortled. “Well, that would be different, I’ll give you that.” He took my hand in his. “So if you’d already told him that you didn’t want to marry him, why was he here?”
“Ali doesn’t like to take no for an answer. He’s sent me texts, emails, and called me. Now I wished I hadn’t given him my number. I had no idea he had marriage on his mind when he’d first asked for my number. It just seemed like it would have been cool to have a friend on the other side of the world. He’d seemed really sweet when I first met him. But this is the first time he’s actually come here. I don’t know what to think.”
“I do.” Graham flexed one hand into a fist and back out. “Like you said, he’s not giving up easily.”
“I was afraid of that.”
“Seemed like your dad kind of…”
“Handed me off to you? I know. Did that make you feel weird?”
“No.” He reached up and touched my face with his finger, gently stroking my skin. “It felt right somehow. You?”
“Yeah, me too.”
He smiled. “Wanna go for a drive, Addy?”
The tension was already easing, and I nodded. “Let me get my purse and shoes, okay?”
Graham glanced down. “I like you in bare feet.”
“You do? Why?”
He shrugged. “Don’t know. Just seems to fit you somehow.”
“Barefoot? Like a hillbilly?”
“Not exactly.”
I smacked his shoulder and giggled. “Then what?”
“You’re just so down to earth. Going without shoes is so you.”
“Now you know my secret.”
“Secret?”
I grimaced. “I hate shoes.”
“But I thought most girls loved shoes. Had a closet full of them.”
“I’m not most girls.”
“That’s a good thing.” He winked.
“Glad you approve, Mr. Stewart.” I heard a mew and turned. “Oh, there you are.” My black and white tuxedo cat leaped up onto my lap, turned in a circle and lay down, purring all the while.
“And who might this be?”
“This handsome gentleman is Romeo.”
“With a name like that, should I be jealous?”
“Nah. He sleeps with me but we’re just friends.” I gave Graham a sly grin. “Do you like cats?”
“Love ’em.” He grinned. “My mom has always had some around the house and there are lots at my uncle’s farm, of course.”
I ran my hand down Romeo’s back. “I didn’t see any cats at the farm.”
“I think you were too preoccupied with the cows.”
I shivered. “Cows are scary.”
“Cows are just nosy. They wouldn’t hurt you.”
“You didn’t see the gleam some of them had in their eyes when they stared at me. I’m pretty sure they were plotting something.”
“Like what?” Graham ran his thumb across the fur between the cat’s ears.
“One of them whispered to another that no one would have you but her. I think she planned to do me in, Graham. Death by cow glares.”
He sputtered out a laugh. “Well, I wouldn’t worry too much about that.”
“Why not?”
“I’m not into multi-colored cow hair. I like brunettes.” He reached out and tugged on a lock of my hair. Romeo took notice and batted at the hair with his paw.
“Ow! Romeo’s claw is stuck in my hair. A little help?”
A deep sigh came from Graham. “I think I’ve found my new full-time job.”
“And what’s that?”
“Rescuing you.”
“It’s much appreciated. Though it doesn’t pay very well.”
“Trust me, Addy. I’ll get payment from you.” He gently unwound my hair from the cat’s paw.
I sat up and smoothed my tangled locks. “And just what kind of payment are we talking about?”
“Remember when you said you couldn’t tell me your full first name without some kind of guarantee? So I wouldn’t tell anyone else?”
“Yeah…”
“And, remember what that something was?”
I nodded, feeling that kiss again as if Graham were actually pressing his lips to mine.
“It will require something like that.”
“I see. Pretty sure of yourself, huh?”
Graham leaned toward me and took my chin in his hand. “Honey, where you’re concerned, I think I’ve already won.”
The back door slammed shut. Graham and I parted, and I stood up. “That will be my mom home from her errands. This might be a good time for us to hit the road.”
Graham shook his head. “Not the hitting of a road again. That poor piece of pavement is going to start bruising soon.”
I giggled as I ran upstairs to get my shoes and purse. I grabbed my sandals and shoved them on my feet and then picked up my purse from my desk on the way out.
Graham took my hand as we walked down the driveway to his truck. By now, I’m sure I could have climbed in the truck by myself, but I didn’t want to. Having him lift me was way more fun.
“Up you go, Adelaide.”
“Hey. Now where did that come from?”
“Just making sure you were paying attention.”
“You don’t have to worry about that.”
He grinned and then got in the other side. “Where to?”
I shrugged. “Doesn’t matter.”
“You are not like other girls. Usually guys have to kowtow to their every whim.”
“Cow-tow? No. Nothing with cows, please.”
“Kowtow with a K.”
“A new breed of bovine?”
He let out a sigh, but was smiling.“This is getting sillier by the minute.”
“Hey I can just stay home, you know.”
Graham grabbed my hand. “Not happening.”
I leaned over and kissed his cheek. “So, you pick where to go.”
“As you wish.” We left my street and turned right.
Chapter Twelve
Graham
I pulled onto the long lane that took us to the waterfall. It wasn’t a big one, by any means, more of a trickle when we were in a drought, but it was a nice place to go even then.
Addy pointed out her window. “Hey, I think I was here a long time ago with my family. I remember splashing in the water near those rocks.”
“Shoot. I was hoping you’d never been before.”
“I’m pretty sure this visit will be different than when I was six. My brother pulled my hair and made me cry.”
“We can hope.” I cracked up when she slugged my shoulder. I got out of the truck and walked around to help her down. When I lifted my hand to take hers, she shook her head. “What’s wrong. Addy?”
“Stand right there.”
“Should I be scared?”
“Of course. You should always be on your guard around me. Now, don’t move.”
I held up my hands in mock horror as if I was trying to ward her off. “Now I’m terrified.”
“Ready?”
“I don’t know what for, but I guess so.”
She stood up next to the seat and jumped into the air, landing hard against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her and held her tight.
“You caught me! Yay!”
“This surprises you?”
“Well, I had hoped.”
“And if I hadn’t? What then?”
“Guess I would’ve landed on my face.”
“That would have been a shame.” I kissed her forehead, then her check.
“You’re completely missing it.”
“It?”
Addy pulled on the back of my neck and drew my face to hers. Her lips, warm and moist, sought mine.
I kissed her for several seconds before slowly letting her slide down until her feet hit the ground. “Maybe we shouldn’t be doing that out in the open.”
“Don’t you think I looked around before I did it? Check it out. Nobody else is here.”
I led her down rocky steps and over a small bridge. Once we reached the other side, more steps led to the water’s edge. A cool breeze floated down from the waterfall, which today was fairly strong. Small, cold droplets of water splashed us from the falls.
“Yikes! That’s cold.” Addy rubbed her hands over her bare arms.
“Come on city girl, it’s not that bad.”
“Prove it.”
“Huh?”
“Take off your shoes and wade into that water. I dare you.”
“For your information, farm boys, at least this one, don’t like to go barefooted like a certain girl I know.”
Addy crossed her arms. “I think you’re chicken.”
“Did you just call me a chicken?”
“If the feather fits.”
“Well you’ve done it now.” I sat down on a rock and whipped off my tennis shoes and white socks. Then I rolled my jeans up to my knees. When I stood up, I stared her down. “You next.”
“What do you mean? You’re the one who’s chicken.”
“If I’m one of those, then you’re a scaredy-cow.”
“Did you just compare me to a cow?”
“If the bell fits.”
Addy giggled and put her hand on my arm as she used her other hand to flip off her sandals. They landed in a heap along with my stuff. “There. Now what?”
“Now we’ve proven we’re not those particular farm animals previously mentioned. Ready?”
She took a step back. “You’ve got a dangerous gleam in your eye, Graham. Not sure I trust you.”
I opened my arms to her. “Oh come on, Addy. I didn’t drop you when you jumped from the truck, now, did I?”
She tilted her head. “Well, no. That’s true.”
“Come on, then.” I leaned down, caught her behind the knees and around her back, scooping her up.
“Hey, now.” She laughed. “What’s all this? I thought we were just going to stick our feet in.”
“I’ve got you now. So what are ya gonna do, hmm?”
“Who knew you had an evil streak? And here I thought you were a sweet guy.”
“Can’t a man be both?”
She narrowed her eyes and glanced at me slyly. “To be honest, I’m glad you’re a little of both.”
“Is that so?” I loosened my grasp but didn’t drop her. She fell about three inches before I caught her again.
“Eeek! Watch it!”
My laugh echoed off of the rocks surrounding the stream. “Be careful what you wish for.” Addy clenched her hands tight around my neck and I tilted my head. “Do you really think that will keep me from dropping you if I want to?”
A slow smile spread across her lips. She batted her long eyelashes. “Graham, you wouldn’t really let me get all wet, now would you?”
“Guess it depends on which side of me you’ve got right now. The sweet or the…” I let that hang there for a minute.
She dropped her lower jaw and gasped. “You wouldn’t.”
“Wanna bet?”
“Graham, no!”
I stepped out into the water, shocked at first by the cold temperature, but after a few seconds, it didn’t feel too bad. Guess the warm summer sun was doing its job.
“What are you going to do to me?”
I let out an exaggerated evil laugh. “Oh wouldn’t you like to know?”
“Graham, no… wait. Wait! I don’t want to get my hair wet.”
“Then you’d better hold it up outta the way.”
She ran her hand down her hair, making a kind of ponytail using her hand. “I can’t believe you’re going to—”
I stepped in farther, causing a small splash with my foot.
“Oh, that’s cold!” Addy flipped some water from her arm.
“It’ll heat up. Trust me.”
“Trust you?” She raised one eyebrow.
I gave her a grin. “What choice do you have at this point?”
She huffed out a breath. “You got me there.”
“Yeah, I’ve got you.” I stepped out into the middle of the stream, knowing it never got very deep. The water only came up to my knees. But man was it cold for a minute. I acted like I was going to drop her.
“Ahh!” She pulled herself up higher against my chest. For a second there, I thought maybe she’d end up on my shoulders.
I pulled her tight again and slowly lowered us both into the water.
“No, what are you doing?”
My answer was just an evil grin and I kept on going. I crouched down like I was going to field a grounder, one knee on the bottom of the stream.
Addy yelped, so I knew when the water had hit her butt. “Graham!”
“What?” I said, trying to look innocent.
“What are you doing? I’m getting all wet.”
“Yeah, that was the general idea.”
“But why?”
“I don’t know. Just seemed like the thing to do.” I sat down, stretching my legs out in front of me, but I still held Addy. Now we were both soaked up to the waist.
“So we’re gonna have to go home all soaking wet?”
“I have towels behind the seat in my truck.”
“You planned this? You sneak!” She smacked my chest.
“A guy’s gotta have a few secrets, right? I mean you have yours about hating shoes and all.”
“But that’s different.” She shivered and pressed close to me. “So what happens now?” Her eyes opened wide. The sunlight shone down on her hair, bringing out reddish highlights I’d never noticed before.
“How about this?” I lowered my face to hers and kissed her temple, cheek, and then her lips. “You taste so good, Addy.” I nuzzled my face in her hair which she’d stopped trying to hold up out of the water.
“So do you.” Her hands pressed against my face, her thumbs making lazy circles on my cheeks. I closed my eyes. A groan came from one of us, not sure who. She kissed my mouth, the tip of her tongue running across my lips, practically igniting me.
I removed my hands from her back and instead, ran them from her shoulders down to her elbows. She sighed, but kept on kissing me. In the back of my mind, I realized that the water didn’t feel cold any more. It was heating up.
And so was I.
“Oh, Graham.” Her words came out as a whisper, blowing her warm breath across my chin. “I’ve never felt this way about anyone. Ever.”
“Same here.”
Addy pulled back. “You mean that?”
I nodded. “Can’t you tell by the way I kiss you, Addy? How much I care? How much I…” The words want you sat on the tip of my tongue, but I didn’t want to scare her.
She shrugged and glanced away. “I don’t know how many… girls you’ve kissed.”
I took her face in my hands, gently caressing her soft skin. “Know this, Addy. In the short time I’ve known you, you’ve gotten under my skin. Even when we’re not together, I feel you, hear you, see you. You are without a doubt, the most beautiful, desirable, funny, sweet—”
She angled her upper body, leaned against me and pressed her breasts to my chest. A whole new kind of heat shot through me, landing just below my belt. “Addy…”
Then she turned, no longer sprawled across my lap. She fully faced me now with her legs wrapped around my waist. I was afraid I would ignite right then and there. I kissed her hard, pulling her so tight I thought we’d end up totally submersed in the stream. But at that point I doubt either of us would have cared. I could envision steam coming off of us as we hit the cold water.
I ran my tongue down the side of her neck, and nibbled on her collarbone.
She giggled.
“Ticklish are we?”
She tried not to smile, but it wasn’t working. “Um… no.”
“Really?” I ran my fingers down the side of her breasts and along her ribs. She practically collapsed again
st me, her forehead on my chest.
“Stop! Please.”
“Do you admit you’re ticklish?”
“Yes!” She lost it again. “Yes, just don’t tickle me.”
“Ah, so nice to know I have more ammunition to use against you. If you ever cause me any trouble, I’ll just tickle you.”
“No… I won’t cause trouble. I’ll be good.” She raised one side of her mouth in a wicked grin. That girl wanted to be anything but good.
With a feather-light touch, she ran her finger down my chest. “So just how many girlfriends have you had, Graham?”
I gave a shrug. “Not too many.”
“How many is not too many?”
“A few.”
“Can’t you be anything other than vague?”
“I don’t know. Let me think about it. I could try, I guess.” I chuckled. “Darlene was my most recent. She and I dated for two years.”
Her mouth dropped open. “Two years? That’s forever. What happened?”
“I’d known her for a long time, and we have a lot of the same friends from school, so we were together a lot. We did all the usual stuff.”
She raised one eyebrow. “And what kind of stuff are we talking about?” She pressed her lips to mine and pulled back.
“A little of that.”
She opened her mouth but stopped when I held up my hand in front of her, palm out. “No, Addy. I mean yes, we kissed but—”
“But what?”
I swallowed. “Addy, I’ve kissed girls before. I mean it would be weird, me being twenty-one if I hadn’t, right?”
“Right. Especially since you’re so hot.”
“I’m hot, huh?”
“Uh, yeah.” She rolled her eyes.
“Anyway, I’ve had a few girlfriends, but to be honest, I dated Darlene for so long, there wasn’t a chance to date very many.”
Addy ran her fingers along my check, but didn’t quite make eye contact. “Do you miss her?”
“No.” Not even a little.
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