Page 136 of You Found Me

“It’s fine.” If she kept standing there, he wasn’t going to be able to stop himself from doing something insanely stupid. “What is it?”

Her gaze drifted down, then snapped back up to his face. Her cheeks flushed. “I had a really great time today, or I guess yesterday now. I know it was a lot of extra work for you, but you did it anyway. I just wanted to say thank you. It meant a lot.”

“Not a problem.” He waited a beat. “Is that it?”

She nodded and half turned as if to go back to her room, then stopped and turned back. “Actually, no. I also wanted to thank you for bringing me here to Wires Crossing. I know hanging out with me wasn’t high on your list of things to do. I was a giant pain in the ass when we met. I resisted every step of the way, and I did some stupid things, and I made it all a lot harder for you.”

He should argue with her. It was only polite to tell the client they weren’t a pain in the ass, but before he could say anything she continued.

“But then you brought me here and you shared your family with me when I couldn’t have my own. You didn’t have to do that. You could have hidden me away in a cabin somewhere, but you didn’t.”

His lips twitched. “I considered it.”

A ghost of a smile crossed her face. “I’d have deserved it. Anyway, I know I’m just a job to you, but you’ve really gone out of your way to make things easier for me.”

“You’re not just a job.” He shouldn’t have said that. But it didn’t seem fair to let her think the last few weeks had been all about work. It had stopped being just a job the minute he’d introduced her to his family as his girlfriend.

Hell, if he were being honest, his feelings had started shifting the day he saw her riding that asshole in the pool.

Her self-deprecating half smile told him she didn’t believe him. “Yes, I am. I’m a paycheck to most of the people in my life. I know what it feels like.”

“Lucy…”

“It’s okay. I get it. I’m used to it.” She looked down at her hands. “It seems ridiculous to say, considering the reason we’re here, but this experience has been…well, really special. For the first time in a long time, I feel grounded. Is that stupid?”

“No.” He tightened his grip on the doorframe. She looked so vulnerable that he itched to put his arms around her.

Della locked her gaze on his. It was like a punch in the chest. “I’ve only been here a month, but I love this town, and I loved getting to know your family and friends. I’ve even loved waiting tables, which is something I’m surenobodyexpected me to say.”

The wood creaked under his hand. He forced himself to relax his grip. “Lucy…”

She wrapped her arms around herself. “I spent all week thinking about this, and you were right about the kiss. We’re just two people who got stuck together, not two people who found each other. Life doesn’t work out like it does in books, no matter how my sisters might make it look. I get that. It’s okay. But for what it’s worth, I’m happy you brought me here, and I’m glad I got to hear Mason sing, but most of all, I’m really, really glad Igot to spend time with you. Even if you’d rather not be here with me.”

Her sad ghost of a smile twisted his heart.

“So, anyway. That’s it. I just wanted to say thank you. For everything.” She turned to walk away.

Something he’d been trying desperately to control roared to life and pushed past all the rules, all the objections, and all the reasons why. None of it mattered.

He couldn’t let her walk away.

“Della.” Her name tore out of his throat. He reached her in two strides, and then she was in his arms. “You’re not just a job. Not to me.”

His lips crushed hers, and it was like finding water after a long, long time in the desert.

She let out a squeak of surprise, then threw her arms around his neck and kissed him back.

Chapter Twenty-One

Della dove into Ward’s kiss and drowned.

His lips were hard, insistent, and greedy, and he held her so tight she couldn’t breathe. She had a brief second to wonder what had pushed Ward across the line to this head-spinning, soul-filling kiss, and then she was lost.

She wrapped her arms around his neck to pull him even closer. His mouth was hot, and his tongue was rough. His hands worked the muscles along her back and ignited flares that raced straight to her core and set it on fire.

Someone groaned. It might have been her.

“Say it again. Say my name. My real name.”