already made his acquaintance. “Would you
mind if I spoke to Roxie for a moment? In private?”
She
slapped her dazzling smile back on her face and nodded. “Of course. You two
have fun. I’m going to head home and see if Momma needs any help with lunch.”
She strolled down the stairs, almost bouncing, and never looked back as she
made a quick getaway.
I
looked at Chase and the smile was already gone. Crap. “You’re not going to
let it go, are you?”
“Not
a chance. Why did Betty tell you to stay away from me? I mean...I thought she
trusted me. I would never do anything to harm you. Never.” He spoke so
vehemently, never breaking eye contact, and my heart filled with shame. He
thought Grandma was trying to protect me, not him. I couldn’t let him continue
to think that.
“It
has nothing to do with you hurting me,” I paused, my nerves threatening to get
the better of me. “She was worried about you getting hurt...by me.”
He
stared at me for a long moment before bursting out laughing. “Seriously? How
could you possibly hurt me?”
I
looked him straight in the eye, hoping to find the strength to answer him, but
in the end I diverted my eyes. I was not going to tell him that part. Some
things are better kept a secret. “How should I know? You know her better than
I do, so you ought to know.”
“Well
I don’t,” he replied, a smile creeping back onto his face. “I’ll talk to her
about it. Get everything straightened out, once and for all.”
“No,”
I replied quickly. I must have surprised him as he jerked back a little bit.
“Please. I’ll talk to her. Don’t worry about it.”
He
stared at me again, those blue eyes searching my face, before settling on my
lips. His eyes seemed to blur slightly as his tongue briefly flicked over his
full lower lip. As I watched him, I felt a flutter in reaction. He seemed to
realize that he was staring and rapidly raised his gaze, looking me once more
in the eyes. “I can’t promise not to worry, but I’ll leave you to it.” He turned
to walk away but turned back to face me. “And if it’s any consolation, I don’t
want you to stay away from me.”
He
smiled devilishly before sauntering off again. Whoa! Well, that was
interesting. I swear I could still feel his eyes as they caressed my face, as
physical as the touch of a hand. And those lips! When his tongue snaked out,
moistening his lip, I seriously thought I was going to melt right there.
Grandma would find nothing left of me but a quivering puddle on the front
porch. He had to know what kind of effect he had on me. Hell, the effect he
had on all females.
Something
told me he wasn’t as oblivious as he wanted everyone to believe. My interest
was definitely piqued now and no amount of scolding from Grandma was going to
keep me away from him. I would just have to keep Grandma out of the loop as
much as possible. For the entire summer, if need be.
CHAPTER NINE
The
rest of the week was a blur of sore, aching muscles from working on the farm
and long nights filled with naughty dreams, with Chase taking center stage. I
didn’t get anymore one on one time with him during the week, which I’m sure was
Grandma’s doing, but I wasn’t going to let that deter me. Katy had come around
a couple of times as well, but she rarely stayed long. She seemed focused on
Chase, and my connection with him, but I repeatedly steered her away from the
topic. Especially when Grandma was around.
With
the weekend finally upon us, I was given a brief reprieve. Evidently Grandma
didn’t believe in working on the weekend and hired people to deal with the farm
in her absence. It was a relief to be able to sleep past five for the first
time in a while. The only problem? I had no idea what to do with myself
during the day. There wasn’t exactly a roaring nightlife, not even in town,
which meant that I
mind if I spoke to Roxie for a moment? In private?”
She
slapped her dazzling smile back on her face and nodded. “Of course. You two
have fun. I’m going to head home and see if Momma needs any help with lunch.”
She strolled down the stairs, almost bouncing, and never looked back as she
made a quick getaway.
I
looked at Chase and the smile was already gone. Crap. “You’re not going to
let it go, are you?”
“Not
a chance. Why did Betty tell you to stay away from me? I mean...I thought she
trusted me. I would never do anything to harm you. Never.” He spoke so
vehemently, never breaking eye contact, and my heart filled with shame. He
thought Grandma was trying to protect me, not him. I couldn’t let him continue
to think that.
“It
has nothing to do with you hurting me,” I paused, my nerves threatening to get
the better of me. “She was worried about you getting hurt...by me.”
He
stared at me for a long moment before bursting out laughing. “Seriously? How
could you possibly hurt me?”
I
looked him straight in the eye, hoping to find the strength to answer him, but
in the end I diverted my eyes. I was not going to tell him that part. Some
things are better kept a secret. “How should I know? You know her better than
I do, so you ought to know.”
“Well
I don’t,” he replied, a smile creeping back onto his face. “I’ll talk to her
about it. Get everything straightened out, once and for all.”
“No,”
I replied quickly. I must have surprised him as he jerked back a little bit.
“Please. I’ll talk to her. Don’t worry about it.”
He
stared at me again, those blue eyes searching my face, before settling on my
lips. His eyes seemed to blur slightly as his tongue briefly flicked over his
full lower lip. As I watched him, I felt a flutter in reaction. He seemed to
realize that he was staring and rapidly raised his gaze, looking me once more
in the eyes. “I can’t promise not to worry, but I’ll leave you to it.” He turned
to walk away but turned back to face me. “And if it’s any consolation, I don’t
want you to stay away from me.”
He
smiled devilishly before sauntering off again. Whoa! Well, that was
interesting. I swear I could still feel his eyes as they caressed my face, as
physical as the touch of a hand. And those lips! When his tongue snaked out,
moistening his lip, I seriously thought I was going to melt right there.
Grandma would find nothing left of me but a quivering puddle on the front
porch. He had to know what kind of effect he had on me. Hell, the effect he
had on all females.
Something
told me he wasn’t as oblivious as he wanted everyone to believe. My interest
was definitely piqued now and no amount of scolding from Grandma was going to
keep me away from him. I would just have to keep Grandma out of the loop as
much as possible. For the entire summer, if need be.
CHAPTER NINE
The
rest of the week was a blur of sore, aching muscles from working on the farm
and long nights filled with naughty dreams, with Chase taking center stage. I
didn’t get anymore one on one time with him during the week, which I’m sure was
Grandma’s doing, but I wasn’t going to let that deter me. Katy had come around
a couple of times as well, but she rarely stayed long. She seemed focused on
Chase, and my connection with him, but I repeatedly steered her away from the
topic. Especially when Grandma was around.
With
the weekend finally upon us, I was given a brief reprieve. Evidently Grandma
didn’t believe in working on the weekend and hired people to deal with the farm
in her absence. It was a relief to be able to sleep past five for the first
time in a while. The only problem? I had no idea what to do with myself
during the day. There wasn’t exactly a roaring nightlife, not even in town,
which meant that I
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