Page 34 of Porter's Angel

Angel had agreed without asking for the details? Dang! Maybe she reallywaslooking for an excuse to get out of the house. “Saturday,” he said, and then pushed his luck. “All day.”

Her forehead rose in surprise. Funches wanted a NASCAR night, and Grey needed his cabins painted, and then as their reward, they could test out the finer parts of the resort that his friend was building, especially those hot springs, though the cool springs on the property sounded more tempting with this heat. Porter couldn’t wait to get Angel to himself. Grey might have even found out more about this stunning beauty with his intel-gathering skills.

“Can I trust you to behave yourself?” she asked.

He was taken aback. “Definitely,” he said. “You’re safe with me.”

Not really… although he’d protect her with his life, he guessed that wasn’t what she meant.

Porter reached over her to get her door—perhaps that was the lazy man’s way, but well… it was. His father would have his head for breaking gentleman protocol if he spied him, so good thing he wasn’t here. Porter only wanted the excuse to touch her again. Angel froze when his hand slid past her arm—a very smooth, soft arm. He jerked down the handle, his eyes going to hers.

Angel’s breath caught. Her gaze slid to his lips.

He knew it! She wasveryaware of him. He was glad because all he could think about was her, too. If he just turned his head a little, he could kiss her, but… it was too soon for that. No, he’d get to know her better on Saturday and then? Well, he’d see about trying his luck.

He’d probably be cursing his decision to wait until then, but it was best that she knew who he really was before kissing him. That seemed only fair.

Porter pushed the door open and met those amazing eyes again. They glistened with emotion. Angel’s breaths came out heavily. Resisting his every instinct to draw her to him, he dragged himself back from her with a heavy groan. “I think you can take it from here.”

She hesitated for a moment before getting out. This time, she took it slow. Her fingers bunched over the skirt of her dress like a princess. He caught a glimpse of her knee as she slid down to the sidewalk. As soon as Angel found her footing, she turned, moistening her lips. His whole stomach tightened at how beautiful she was.

“I just got out of something.” Her voice was husky, and she tried to clear her throat, but it was no use. That girl was full of emotion, and he watched it boil to the surface right in front of him. “And you know exactly what I’m going through! So, don’t–don’t push me, okay?”

He raised his hands. “I’d never!”

“Don’t you ‘Scout’s honor’ me again! I don’t care how cute you are—I don’t trust you! You got that?”

His heart took a spinning leap into the air. “You think I’m cute?”

“Is thatallthat you heard?” She tossed that glorious hair again, her eyes running over his dust-covered jeans all the way up to his smirking face. “Go home and get cleaned up, cowboy. The range made you a dirty mess.”

“Would you say a hot one?”

She growled out and slammed the door on him. Porter stared after her, watching her swinging hips as she disappeared behind that cheerful yellow door. Angel held his rose the whole time! Yeah, he’d tell her who he was on Saturday, and hopefully by then she’d return the favor.

There were more mysteries to her that were left for him to untangle.

He couldn’t wait.

Chapter Twelve

He was a hot mess? Porter actually had the nerve to ask that? Yeah… maybe he was a little bit of one. So what! It was like he was reading Cadence’s mind. He always said the quiet part aloud.

So annoying.

Had he really almost kissed her? Her heart jostled around like a rock in a tumbler as she pushed through the apartment, searching for a vase to put this rose. She didn’t understand why Porter was being so cute all of a sudden, or why she was falling for it.

There was something about the way that his eyes crinkled up at the corners and his concerned expressions as he watched her when he thought that she wasn’t paying attention, almost like he was a completely different man than the one at Lacy’s party.

Can someone change that much?

No, no, they couldn’t! Now to transplant that logical message from her brain into her heart. Porter had been that close to making his move. She’d read that stormy cloud of emotion in his expressive eyes, and she… well, she might’ve returned his kisses if he hadn’t miraculously stopped himself.

Who was she kidding? She most definitely would’ve returned that passion—it burned through her at his every touch, especially in that moment, and… that was not responsible thinking at all.

Cadence had someone else to think about besides herself!

She was done playing. She meant what she’d told Porter about being responsible. And besides, why did she deserve to have a chance at love anyway? She’d accepted her life was going to change and she was going through with it.