Chapter 4
HANNA
Iswear, if I didn’t have Knox’s number in my phone today, I would have thought that last night was a long, vivid dream.
A perfect first date like last night’s is from a book, not real life. Certainly not my life – but it really happened. I can still feel the tingle of his lips on mine. My breathless surge of desire as Knox took hold of me with such passion. The man is a bit wild. Untamed. A true mountain man.
I move around Myer’s Fine Footwear in a daze, buffing shoes and putting away boxes. A few farmers have come in for new work boots, and they’re always super polite. But I can't help but notice that any other man doesn't need my help today until it's time for me to ring them in.
Luckily, Aunt Blaire doesn't notice the sudden shift in the customers’ behavior. Or maybe she's just happy she can sit on her butt all day, scrolling on her phone. She rarely has to get up these days unless it's to order me around if she's changed her mind again on how she wants something done.
I quickly run an electrostatic feather duster over the window display, since the afternoon sun highlights every speck of dust. Even though I'm only in the front window for a minute or so, people glance at me curiously as they walk by.
I've heard that news travels fast in a small town, but…
Do they really know about me and Knox already? Strange.
About an hour before closing, I take a bathroom break and sneak a peek at my phone. I grin when I see Knox has sent me a text.
Knox: Hey, darlin'. May I pick you up from work and take you out to dinner?
Sure! I'm done at six.
Knox: Would it make your aunt happy if I came a bit early to buy some new shoes? Or should I wait a few weeks, so I don't look like an ass kisser?
A few weeks. We've gone out once, and he assumes that we're going to be together weeks from now. Have I fallen into an alternate dimension where I'm suddenly in a relationship with a gorgeous older man whose family practically runs the town?
Maybe wait a bit.
Knox: No problem. You know, I could cook you dinner instead. Would you like that?
I really miss cooking. Can I help?
Knox: You bet. 54 minutes until I see you.
Knox: Not that I’m counting or anything. Oh, cool. 53 now.
LOL!
My aunt must catch me grinning as I come out of the back hallway, since she jumps out of her chair and rushes over to me. “That Wolfe you met in the store yesterday – you really went out with him?”
“Yes. You saw us leave together.”
“But…” She sputters. “People are saying that you were acting like a couple last night. Is this a real thing?”
Good question. “I guess we’ll know in a few weeks. For now, we’ll have to keep having dinner until we’re sure.”
Her eyes narrow. “As long as it's only dinner. In this town, people talk."
"That's their problem, not mine."
She looks me up and down. Does she realize that I’m an adult? The last time I spent any real time with her, I was twelve, with purple ribbons in my braids. Maybe that’s why she treats me like I’m a teenager, not twenty-two. Then she stares at my chest and smirks.
"If you were going to shake those boobs to catch a Wolfe boy, you should have gone for one of the billionaire tech ones. Not a grouchy bastard from Rathlock.”
I wish I had the nerve to tell her off when she says such things. I barely knew my aunt before I moved here, but now I’m realizing why she tends not to be invited to more family festivities, and her husband barely spends time with her.
I get back to work, wanting the store to be spotless by six o'clock. When I go to lock the door, Knox is standing in front, and he steps inside. "Hey, darlin’. Ready?"
Aunt Blaire instantly comes trotting over. "I should be keeping a better eye on you, Hanna. Where did you say you were going?"
I look to Knox for help.
He nods politely. "Well, ma'am, Hanna mentioned she hasn't been cooking as much as she’d like lately. We’re going to make the most of my kitchen and cook dinner together."
"Absolutely not," she snaps. "That's too far a drive. You can't have her home that late."
"I have my own apartment," I murmur. "I won't disturb you on the way in."
Her lips purse. "Well, I need you to come to work early tomorrow. No excuses. There's a new shipment arriving and it all has to be in place by nine."
Before I can panic, Knox says, "No problem. We’ll just grab a quick bite at one of the restaurants here."
My aunt huffs away, and I grab my purse and sneak out before she can make up any more new rules. Knox wraps his arm around my shoulders as we walk down the street.
"I'm sorry…" I begin.
"Hey, I understand strange families. It's fine." After we turn a corner, he asks, "Want to go to the beach?"
Looking up at the sign, I laugh. "Sure. I've heard about this place." Sandcastles is a beach-themed restaurant – charming, and just a bit tacky in the good way.
The hostess makes a fuss about finding Knox a window table, but he asks for a booth tucked away at the back. "Is this okay?" he asks, sitting beside me on the leather bench.
"Perfect."
We order our dinner and a couple of fruity cocktails. By the time our food arrives, we're already talking about books we intend to lend each other. Reading lists we want to make for each other. Which stories should be experienced through the book first and then the movie, or vice versa.
I'm impressed that Knox reads such a wide variety of genres. After my third bite of my delicious Hawaiian burger, I say, "You don't look like you'd be into sci-fi. No offence.”
"I'm a small-town boy, " he shrugs. "I'm not one for adventure except in a book.”
"We learn a lot from stepping into the shoes of the characters. Maybe you'll discover someday that you actually want to be a skydiving mountain climbing jewel heist expert."
Knox chuckles, his hand landing on my knee again. Since he said he liked that green dress so much, I'm wearing a similar one today in midnight blue. He uses every opportunity to touch me, and I find myself edging closer and closer on the bench.
"I don't know about pulling off a jewel heist, but I've always wanted to try an escape room. We'll have to go to one sometime."
I love the way he keeps assuming our future is just going to happen.
"The only genre we haven't talked about yet is romance." He squeezes my thigh gently. "Do you read it? Do you like it? Don’t be shy."
I wonder what his point is. "You go first."
"Well… To be honest, yes. When I was twenty, I was staying at my parents’ house for a few days when a blizzard was rolling through. They were away, and they wanted someone there to keep an eye on things."
"And you thought that was a romantic setting and wanted reading material to match?"
He laughs. "No. I was alone. But the TV cut out, and I motored through the three books I’d brought in no time. So I grabbed a book Mom had upstairs."
"And?”
He shrugs. "It was some dark mafia thing. You know – the sweet young woman is married off to the kingpin's enemy to secure peace between the families. Then she actually falls for him, and he falls right back." There's a naughty sparkle in his deep brown eyes.
"And you loved it.” I laugh. “Or at least, the sexy parts."
He doesn't even blush. “Of course I did! They were hot as hell." His thumb strokes my thigh gently, his feather-light touch making my stomach tremble.
His voice drops. "But what I liked best was how the guy took one look at her and knew she was the one for him. The woman of his dreams.”
My eyes roll. "That’s great in books, but come on… Is it realistic?"
He smiles, a look in his eyes I can't quite place. "We'll discuss this again in a couple of weeks. You'll see, darlin’."
Wow. He’s not teasing. He’s certain.
All this possibility is stirring up a slew of brand-new feelings, especially desire. And hope.
Hope that this time spent on the mountain isn’t going to be just a bunch of family drama, but that it might lead to a shiny new chapter of my life.