Page 45 of Rescued Love
“You ready to head out?” I’m damn proud of myself when my voice doesn’t crack, even though I feel it right there waiting to prove just how much this man has gotten to me.
Nathan tilts his head slightly and deadpans, “Not before you give me your number, Kitten.”
I laugh and tease him, “Oh? You want my number? You gonna ask for it?”
There’s a sparkle in his eye with my challenge. He lobs back, “Do I need to?”
“Nope,” I pop the p.
After we exchange numbers, the smile on Nathan’s face making my heart pound in my chest, he walks with me out to my truck. The way he has his hand on the small of my back is something I could get used to.
Just another way he’s showing me that he wants to care for me.
He makes sure I’m safely bucked in my truck, which he does himself, before kissing me until we’re both panting. I can feel his reluctance to walk away. It’s warring with his obligation to Mr. Jacobson in his eyes.
“Damn, Kitten,” he growls before giving my forehead a kiss, stepping back, and closing the door to my truck.
He strides over to his grandfather’s truck and hops inside, shooting me an expectant look that tells me he’s waiting for me to pull out first. Warmth fills me and I smile.
My smile doesn’t dim. No, it grows when I head to the rescue and then straight to Midnight’s kennel to give her the snuggles that she deserves. It’s still there hours later when I’m at my desk and catching up on some paperwork.
When my phone rings, I answer it by chirping, “Hi best friend, aren’t you supposed to be working?”
Hailey laughs on the other end of the call. “I’m on lunch right now which is why I’m taking a moment to call you. I heard through the gossip mill that a certain grandson of a certain animal lover was seen in the grocery store yesterday picking up some food and flowers. Do you know anything about that?”
“I might,” I tease her, but don’t tell her what I know she’s dying to know.
“Damn it, Kimball. Tell me everything right now,” she demands.
I do. I tell her everything while leaving out certain details that she doesn’t need. When I’m done, she sighs, and I go on high alert.
“You know I love you, right?”
“Right,” I answer tentatively.
“I’m worried about this for you,” she whispers.
I know why and I should have known my best friend would notice on the way happiness and contentment had filled every word as I recounted getting to know Nathan and spending the night with him.
“I don’t want you to be hurt.”
“I know,” I sigh and slump back in my chair. “I don’t want to be hurt.”
She gently prods, “What happens when he goes back home?”
“It’ll hurt,” I can barely get the words past the lump in my throat. “It’ll hurt a lot because, and I know this sounds ridiculous, but I’m already falling for him.”
There’s a note of teasing in her tone, “Falling?”
I huff out a laugh, but it’s a little on the hollow side. “Truth?” She makes a humming sound, and I leap. “Fallen. I’ve already fallen. Even knowing the risks. I couldn’t help it.”
“I get it,” she comforts me. “Trust me. I really do get it. I didn’t have a choice when it came to Wesley even though it didn’t happen right away. I felt the connection between us the moment we made eye contact at the Fourth of July thing at The Goose. I tried not to get involved.”
“But then your knight in firetruck rescued you from your kitchen fire and wouldn’t take no for an answer.”
“Exactly.” She sighs, “The heart wants what the heart wants and all that. When there’s something to fight for, you’re willing to do it. No matter what stands in your way. If you two are meantto be together, and it sounds like he’s just as smitten with you as you are with him, then you’ll figure it out.”
“Really?” I sit up a little straighter, hope growing in my soul.