Chapter 7
The time passed in a blur of happiness.
Ford and Skye would be home in only one more week. Laylee had missed her sister, of course she had, but with Knox staying over each night, she hadn’t dwelled on Skye’s absence as often as she’d thought she would.
She and Knox went on casual dates that included the dogs, like visiting parks, having picnics, and taking long walks. Dinners were together at her house.
Each night, one of them cooked or one of them picked up carryout. It was heavenly. They’d fallen into such a comfortable routine that she wanted to embrace it and hold on tight.
This morning she’d had two photoshoots, and Knox had a few roof repairs. The dogs had been home alone, but they were better about chilling out when she had to be away for a few hours. Fortunately, it wasn’t a long day.
She knew she had it bad.
When she was with Knox, she felt like she could conquer the world.
When she wasn’t with him, all she did was think about him.
Twice today at the photoshoot, the photographer had to remind her to hold a thoughtful expression instead of smiling so much.
She’d laughed with happiness, and for the first time that she could ever recall, she’d had to really work to get the look he wanted.
A straight face had never been so difficult.
Knox had offered to come to the house first to help her walk the dogs to the park, but it wasn’t far, and she needed the exercise. He’d meet her there with his truck and a bucket of fried chicken with sides. She was bringing treats for the dogs.
They would enjoy a picnic near a creek in a secluded section of the park. There was a picnic table situated among tall oaks, and butterflies flitted from wildflower to wildflower. They’d relax, breathe fresh air, and just enjoy each other’s company.
It was the kind of low-key, intimate date she’d never had before. But then, Knox was the kind of man she’d never experienced. With Knox, everything was new and different—and better.
Afterward, they and the animals would drive together to the store. He’d wait outside with Maybelline and Tank while she made a quick grocery run.
Seamlessly, they’d fit into each other’s lives. Their schedules meshed, they were extremely sexually compatible, and she … Well, hell. She was fast falling in love with him.
For a second or two as she headed to her car, she began breathing too fast. A panic attack? Maybe. She got behind the wheel, blasted the air-conditioning, and gave herself a second to think.
First, Knox wasn’t pressuring her. Sadly, that was both good and bad. Good, because she was only just learning about real relationships. After all, she’d been the party girl twin, not the settled and responsible one. But hey, now she had a house, and that felt pretty darn settled.
The bad part was that … she worried she might be more invested than he was.
Sure, he’d said all the right things, wonderful things, things she’d memorized …
but they’d been naked in bed together at the time.
Guys often said romantic things under those circumstances.
Of course, he’d also said some super-sexy raunchy things. She’d loved it all.
Second, even if she—or they—were getting serious about each other, no one could put them on a timetable. She could slowly grow accustomed to the idea of having him in her life.
Or … she could lose him.
Damn, she had to stop torturing herself. When her phone buzzed, she jumped. Hand to her heart, she looked around the parking lot, grateful that no one had seen her overreaction. Quickly, she pulled her phone from her purse and saw it was Knox.
Just like that, her worries faded away. She answered with, “Hey, you.”
He asked, “You okay?”
“Yeah, why?”
“You sounded breathless.”
In her sexiest voice, she purred, “I was thinking of you, actually.”
“Good. I was thinking of you, too.” Then he turned the tables on her by telling her exactly what his oh-so-explicit thoughts had been.
Laylee slumped in her seat. “No fair. Now I have to drive home, and my hands are shaking.”
Without an ounce of sympathy, he laughed. “Take your time. I’m running ten minutes behind.”
“If I get to the park before you, I’ll head to the picnic table and set things up.” She always brought an old tablecloth. Tables beneath bird-filled trees often had some surprises on them. “I’ll claim our spot, and the dogs and I will wait for you.”
“I don’t know. Should you be back in the woods by yourself?”
She huffed. “I’ll have Maybelline with me. We know she’s just a lover mutt, but others won’t. And Tank will make enough noise to annoy anyone who gets too close.”
“All right, but be careful.”
It was sweet how he still worried after the pharmacy incident. Marcus had told them the arrested men had plenty of priors, some far worse than attempted robbery, so the cops were still holding them.
“I will be. I’m on my way home now, but I should be at the park right on time.”
“See you soon, then.”
Love you. She wanted to say it; the words were right there on her tongue, burning in her throat, resonating in her heart. But of course she didn’t. Instead, she made a kissing sound, felt ridiculous, and ended the call.
On the drive home, she kept laughing at herself. And smiling. So much happiness couldn’t be contained.
Had her sister felt this way with Ford?
Did Knox feel this way about her?
One good thing about dogs, she could pour her heart out to them without fear of judgment.
The second she got home, she saw Maybelline looking out the window.
For a certainty, Tank would be at her side, jumping around in excitement.
As soon as she got the door open, they were both there, thrilled to see her.
And she was thrilled to see them, too, but experience had taught her that all those thrills needed to happen outside, so she rushed for the back door, they followed, and they did all their happy hugs and kissing in the yard—after both dogs had peed.
Knowing she had enough time, Laylee praised them for …
well, basically everything, but especially for not using her house like a toilet.
That was a biggie. After they’d played for a bit, come inside to eat, then gone out to pee one more time, she got everything together for their picnic.
The last thing she did was change into a sleeveless romper with a blue and white floral pattern, and slip-on white canvas sneakers.
She twisted up her long hair in a loose, hopefully sexy-but-casual style and finished off the look with white-framed sunglasses.
In her tote bag she carried bottles of water, portable dishes for the dogs, a few treats, and the necessary table and seat covers. Knox would bring the food, plates, and napkins. And of course himself. That was the best part.
The dogs behaved perfectly on the walk. They had almost reached the park when she ran into Paul, their friend and a professional dog walker.
He was with another guy, and at first they didn’t notice her because they were too focused on each other.
Laylee felt like teasing, so she let out a loud wolf whistle that gained the attention of both men—and the terrier they had on a leash.
Maybelline noticed the terrier then too and immediately lowered her ears and started wagging her tail. Tank, as usual, went into a fit of barking.
“You,” Paul said with a laugh, dragging along his date—and yes, she could tell he was a date.
“Um …” The other man held back as he eyed Maybelline.
“She’s a sweetheart,” Paul swore. He went to his knees to greet Maybelline. Tank was too busy yapping at the new guy.
Laylee held out her hand. “Hi. I’m Laylee, a friend of Paul’s, introduced through Ford and Knox. Do you know them?”
He took her hand. “I’m Ryan, and no, I don’t know many of Paul’s friends yet. We only met last week.”
“Ah, well then, I won’t keep throwing names at you. I’ve known Paul longer than that, and he’s been a godsend.” While Paul gushed over Maybelline, she picked up Tank and got familiar with the terrier, who had a very laid-back attitude about Tank and the noise he made.
She only spent a few minutes chatting with them before she told them she had to get going. “I want to get to the park before Knox shows up.”
“So you and Knox, huh?” Paul grinned at her from his position on the sidewalk where he continued to love on Maybelline.
“Yes, me and Knox—and it’s been amazing.”
He laughed. “Told you it would be, but did you listen? No, you didn’t.” He glanced at Ryan. “She’s stubborn, but I knew right off they’d be good together. I told her, I told him. At least he paid attention, but then, he was already on board.”
“What do you mean, you told him?”
“At your sister’s wedding? Puh-leez. Who do you think forced him to lend you a hand with everything, even though you told him you didn’t need help?”
She shrugged.
“Poor guy couldn’t take his eyes off you, so I told him to quit asking and just do it.”
Laylee gave him a mock frown. “An attitude like that could get a guy in trouble.”
“Not Knox. Not with you.” Again he looked at Ryan. “He’s a roofer, so he’s all muscle and sexy, too.”
Ryan smiled at her. “Sounds like a catch.”
“He is, and I don’t want to keep him waiting.” She bent down to peck Paul on the cheek, shook Ryan’s hand again, and got Maybelline moving.
“Have fun!” Paul called out to her.
Laylee looked back over her shoulder. “Oh, I plan to.”
Both guys laughed as they walked away with the friendly little terrier.
When she reached the park, most of the early crowd with young children had left, and it seemed to be occupied by older kids now.
She glanced around the parking lot but didn’t see Knox’s truck.
Maybelline and Tank knew exactly where they were going and led her to the trail that meandered into the woods.