Page 17 of The Weight of Love
I reach out and steady her with a hand on her waist, catching the box she was carrying. My eyes lock with hers, and I’m gone for a minute. Her eyes pull me in, and I feel like I’m just as likely to be wrecked all over again.
She smells amazing. A perfume she doesn’t wear at the gym invades my brain and makes me want to bite at that sensitive part of her neck again. I shift awkwardly, trying to mask my dick’s response to her nearness.
“Stel, what are you doing here?”
Why does she do this to me?
“I could ask you the same, Cowboy. I’m here with my daughter, Riley. We’re doing stage makeup for the fall pageant.”
My eyes follow her nod to the girl talking excitedly with Graham’s daughter, Annie, over in the corner.
“Ah, this is my Gran’s church, and my friend Graham wrangled me into the construction crew for the day. Small world.”
“Oh, Graham, hey.”
She tosses a wave, and he gives her a solid nod, seeming to recognize her.
“Hey Williams, long time no see.”
“Yeah, I moved back recently.”
“Always good to see you around.”
Graham walks away in search of something, and I’m grateful for the moment to have her all to myself.
She hasn’t stepped out of my arms yet, and I am steadying her. Her eyes trail slowly down to the tank top I’m wearing since it’s still hot and in the upper eighties. She bites her bottom lip with a nod of appreciation, and a low groan escapes me.
“Construction may suit you a bit.”
My inner lust-driven teenager brain that seems to come back out around her is all over the idea of finding somewhere to repeat our last more interesting encounter.
What is wrong with you? This is a damn Church event. Great, now you’re blasphemous too.
“Clarkie, who’s your friend?”
My grandmother’s sweet, raspy voice sends my guilt skyrocketing. I step back from Stella as if I had just got caught making out in my bedroom.
It’s like she knows that I’m a sinning, man slut. She must read minds, I swear.
“Gran,” I turn and give her a sideways hug, awkwardly trying to hide my evident arousal, “This is my, well, my friend from the gym. Stella.”
“Nice to meet you, sweetie. You look like you go to the gym a lot. Look at you! You must do a lot of cardio to stay so fit.”
I blush furiously at the mention of cardio, look from Gran to Stella, and am surprised to see that Stella seems as cool as can be.
“That’s so nice of you, ma’am. I try to fit in cardio every chance I get, but weight training is my favorite. Sometimes, I struggle to get myself to do cardio. Thankfully, your grandson is willing to put up with me as a workout buddy.”
Stella’s eyes are dancing with mischief as my skin flushes the deepest possible shade of red, and my heart beats out of my chest.
“Clark, why don’t you and your friend help me unload those pastries and candied apples from my car? I need to talk to Graham about where we will put them all.”
Gran leaves no debate about it before marching off in search of Graham. Stella takes the box of costumes and makeup back from me and hands it to what must be her daughter. Other than a shock of dyed black hair on her daughter, they look so similar I’d have thought they could be sisters.
“I’ll be there in a second, Ry. You get started, and I’ll help bring this stuff up quickly from the parking lot.”
Her daughter is excitedly talking to Graham’s daughter and seems to have barely registered that anyone is talking to them as the girls turn and head off.
“Guess it’s you and me, Cowboy.”