Chapter 10 Owen
I t would be inappropriate to kiss her right now. Especially since my neck now has water dripping under my collar from this ice.
Damn bee. Normally, I’m all for the little pollinators, but it picked a lousy time to sting me. Right now, I wish I could close the distance between us and see what it’s like to kiss those rosy lips.
“Is the ice helping?” Poppy asks, reaching towards me.
“It feels a lot better.” I let her take the cup from me and I hold still as she leans in to inspect what must be a nasty lump on my neck. She presses the dripping ice back against my skin, causing an involuntary shudder to race through my body.
“I’m sorry, did that hurt?” The concern in her eyes is clear.
“It’s just cold,” I assure her. “But I might warm up nicely if you’d dance with me now.”
She glances at the tent and the little twitch is there and gone so quickly I would have believed my mind was playing tricks on me if I hadn’t been watching her today.
“What if we danced here, in the grass? Just as Poppy and Owen,” I try, not wanting this moment where she looks so free to go to waste. “We can hear the music and stay under the stars you’ve been missing.”
Her sexy smile is back in full force. “That sounds rather perfect.”
When her hand finds mine, it’s like my skin is trying to memorize her touch. Each tiny piece of contact as I hold her, lights up my nerves. Nothing has ever felt quite like this woman.
The music drifts out into the night and I pull her closer, my arm wrapping around her waist like it was meant to be there. She relaxes against me, rooting me in place automatically, like my body doesn’t want to lose any connection with her. So instead of moving around our grassy dance floor, we sway in place under the sky, looking up occasionally to take in the beauty of hundreds of visible stars that only a small town can provide.
She lets out a contented sigh and rests her head on my shoulder. “Is this okay?”
My arm pulls her closer, keeping her there in response and she lets out a sexy giggle. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
“It’s a yes, Poppy,” I murmur, resting my cheek gently on her hair. God, she smells incredible. “Without being a creep, what perfume do you use?”
“Oh man,” she groans. “You’re going to think it’s stupid.”
I look down to see her face, but she buried it in my shoulder to hide and my damn bee sting is still pretty tender. “Try me.”
She peeks up at me through her hair which has fallen over part of her face, giving her a mysterious air that had my mind spinning with how she might look first thing in the morning. Her nose scrunches up in the most adorable fashion before she replies, “It’s a poppy scent.”
“Well, it’s perfect.”
“It’s silly,” she replies, shaking her head.
“It’s you.”
Her mouth screws to one side for a moment, like she’s weighing the likelihood of me being genuine. She must believe me because she tucks herself against me once again, like she’s allowing me to keep her safe from the outside world.
It’s a stupid thought. We just met. But the underlying tension she’s been carrying today seems to be gone and I can’t help but smile.
The music changes to something upbeat and our little bubble breaks. Reluctantly, I let her take a step back and watch her gaze up at the stars once more.
“Thank you,” she says. “I didn’t realize how much I needed that.”
We sit down next to her shoes, neither of us overly graceful, but there’s a freedom in our casualness.
“I can assure you, it was no problem in the least. In fact, I might try to find you again for a repeat dance later this evening, Poppy.”
She pauses putting on her shoes and looks my way, searching my face for…something. I’m guessing that trusting someone won’t come easy after whatever her ex put her through. She seems like someone who might need to see consistency, but even more importantly, transparency. To see the real person behind the pretty words.
Something shifts in her expression as she continues to take me in. I don’t dare move a muscle, afraid I might spook this beautiful woman. Then she leans towards me, her hand that I so recently held reaching out first. It’s not until her fingers gently graze my neck that I release a sharp breath.
Damn, that still stings.
“How did I not think about this while we were dancing? The swelling went up even more and it has to feel terrible.” The concern in her tone makes her even sexier, which seems like the worst thing to notice right now.
“I mean, it’s not a lovely thing to have on my neck right now, but I was a little distracted,” I say, trying to keep a little levity.
“Well, it looks downright angry, but I have an antihistamine ointment in my bags.” Those fingers continue prodding near the most tender area with a calm confidence.
“You carry that with you?” I ask, one eyebrow raised.
“I picked it up while I was traveling, but haven’t had time to unpack my toiletries.”
“Then it’s my lucky night.”
Some of that sparkle returns before she says, “It just might be.”