Page 40 of Forever Enough
“Evening,” I said as I passed by a stall. A paint bobbed her head and greeted me with a kick on the stall door. From the corner of my eye, I saw Pickles come bouncing sideways toward me, and I started to laugh. She was dressed in another set of Christmas pajamas, and damn if she wasn’t cute as hell. No wonder my dad liked Pickles.
“There you are.” Crouching down, I pulled a plastic bag out of my front pocket and took out the two slices of apple. The goat ate them right up, then went back to bouncing around the barn as if she was the happiest thing in the world.
“Free rein of the barn, huh? I see Kenzie plays favorites.”
“I do not.”
The sound of her voice caused me to stand immediately, only to have my knees go weak at the sight before me. She was wearing a light blue sweater dress that stopped right above her knees, long black boots, and her hair was pulled up into a bun with curls framing her face.
“You look beautiful.”
She smiled shyly as she glanced down at her dress, then back to me. Her eyes moved slowly over me before they rested back on my face. “How does one guy look so handsome?”
“It’s the cowboy hat,” I said with a wink.
She chuckled. “I think it is. The black makes your eyes seem…darker.”
“Avery told me to wear the hat. Something about women liking it.”
“She’s a smart girl, you should always listen to her.”
That caused me to toss my head back and let out a hearty laugh. “I think I’m going to ignore that piece of advice.”
Kenzie shrugged. “What’s in your hand? I mean, I see the flowers, which are beautiful.”
Glancing down at the bouquet, I said, “Shit. Right. These are for you, and the apple pie is from my mom.”
When she took the flowers and buried her face in them, my heart tripped over itself. Why would a woman smelling flowers make me feel like a young boy with his first crush?
Her eyes lifted to mine. “The flowers are beautiful. Thank you.”
All I could do was nod and manage a smile.
“Well, we could stay down here and chat with the animals, or we could head on up. I made my specialty.”
“Wow. Then I say let’s head on up and sample your cooking.”
“Come, Pickles, off to bed for you!” Mackenzie said as the goat bounced behind her and went straight to his bed. She did a few circles to the right, then a few to the left, then settled down in the lush bed.
“I swear, sometimes she thinks she’s a dog.”
Glancing at the goat, I chuckled. “Well, she is in a dog bed, so…”
Kenzie nodded in agreement before heading up the steps to her place. I followed and tried like hell not to stare at how amazing she looked in the form-fitting dress.
Once inside her place, I found Mr. Whiskers curled up on the sofa, sleeping peacefully. I set the pie down on the counter and took in the smell of fresh bread baking in the oven.
“I smell bread.”
She grinned. “It’s not homemade, so don’t get all excited. It’s frozen rolls that I found, and they’re amazing.”
I held up my hands. “No judgment here. I usually eat out when I’m on the road, or buy a frozen meal at the store and eat it in my room.”
She crinkled her nose. “Gross.”
Laughing, I said, “Agreed. But some days I’m so tired it’s the best I can do. Sometimes I’ll go to the hotel restaurant, but usually later, when I don’t think anyone will be there. Or order room service.”
She picked up two oven mitts and moved to a large pot of pasta.