Chapter Fifteen #2
Wade glanced at her pale face and the pinched corners of her mouth. “Are you having cramps again?”
She seemed offended by the question. “I’m fine.”
They didn’t speak for the rest of the drive home. As soon as they arrived, she hopped out with Daisy. The pair visited King in the dog run, as if to soothe any worries he might have, before heading inside the house.
Wade retreated into the barn, feeling surly.
He stripped out of his uniform and donned a pair of shorts.
Although he was tired, he wasn’t relaxed enough to sleep.
His previous apartment complex had included a basketball court and gym, which he missed dearly.
He picked up his dumbbells and settled into the only chair available, a metal barstool.
He started some quick reps in hopes of erasing Mary from his mind.
She knocked on the barn door a moment later.
Wade smothered a groan. How was he supposed to ignore her, and keep his distance, when she insisted on seeking him out?
“Come in,” he grunted.
She slipped inside the door and stayed there, near the threshold.
She held a wad of cash in one hand. He noted every detail of her appearance, from her loose hair and soft mouth to her scuffed boots and sturdy jeans.
The effect was unintentionally sexy. No-frills workwear on an exquisite female form.
He didn’t stop lifting weights. “I don’t want your money.”
“Too bad.”
“Does my mother pay you minimum wage and no benefits?”
“None of your business.”
She stood quietly while he completed some more reps. It was rude of him to disregard her presence and continue the exercises, but he didn’t care. This was his space, and he needed to relieve some tension. He wasn’t going to take the money from her hand. If she didn’t like it, she could leave.
She didn’t leave. She watched him strain and heave in rhythmic motions.
Sweat broke out on his skin and his heart thundered in his chest. His gaze locked on hers in an unspoken challenge.
He could lift the dumbbells for a long time, though they were heavy.
Her attention strayed to his torso, which only encouraged him to pump harder.
She ran out of patience before he ran out of energy, but it was a close match. She stepped forward to place the money on the table. He set the weights down and rose to his feet. Her refusal to let him cover the vet bill annoyed him.
She stood her ground with a defiant expression. He drew in several ragged breaths, struck by her stubbornness, her bravery, and her unfiltered beauty. Her eyes reminded him of a dark forest, quiet and deep and guarded.
She didn’t back away as he approached her. He grabbed the pile of cash, noting the mix of small and large bills. He wondered if this was all she had. The sight of it both angered him and humbled him. It reminded him of the obstacles she’d overcome to arrive at this moment.
She was a hardscrabble woman, and he admired that.
He admired her strength, her loyalty to his mother, and even the way she took care of her pain-in-the-ass dogs.
He admired everything about her. He studied the faint scar beneath her full lower lip, his blood thickening with desire.
Her money felt dirty in his hand. He wanted a different kind of exchange with her, one that would satisfy them both.
Wade didn’t try to make a move, however. She might rebuff his advances, regardless of the attraction between them. There was something special about her, something real and true. The urge to reach out to her, to protect and comfort her, was overwhelming.
“What are you doing Saturday?” he asked.
She blinked at him in confusion. “Nothing. Why?”
“Let’s go out.”
“Go out,” she repeated as if the words didn’t compute.
“On a date.”
“I don’t go out.”
“Would you rather stay in?”
She moistened her lips, frowning.
“I need to go back to that trail by Lost Creek and check it out,” he said. “We can have a picnic, and I’ll look for evidence.”
“A picnic?”
“Yes, Meadows. A picnic by the lake. Is that okay with you?”
“I’ll think about it.”
Wade smiled at her vague response. He’d made the offer on impulse, and an evidence search wasn’t the most romantic idea for a date.
Even so, she hadn’t said no. He knew she enjoyed physical activity.
She liked helping people, and she liked being outdoors.
They had those interests in common. Feeling optimistic, he went to put the cash in a nearby drawer.
What he saw inside made him do a double take.
He tossed the money down and picked up the pale pink bar of soap. “Is this yours?”
Color rose to her cheeks. “I thought you wanted it.”
“For what?”
“For washing, or whatever.”
Wade arched a brow. Was she insinuating that he use this soap for intimate purposes? “There’s no running water out here.”
She held out her hand. “Then give it to me, and I’ll use it.”
Wade let his gaze drift over her fully clothed form. His imagination supplied a vivid picture of her naked in the shower, touching herself with soap-slick fingers. “After you’re done, will you tell me all the details?”
Her flush deepened. “Keep dreaming, Hendricks.”
He returned the soap to the drawer. He wasn’t giving it back. She’d stashed it in there on purpose. He couldn’t wait to think of her while he did whatever. “If you prefer, I can go first and tell you the details.”
“I have a better idea,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. “You can stick that soap where the sun don’t shine and shut up about it.”
He threw back his head and laughed. She delivered the line like a native Texan would, all sweetness and sass. Instead of responding in kind, he let her have the last word. When she turned on her heel and left, he followed her to the doorway. He didn’t try to stop her, though he wanted her to stay.
“Let me know about Saturday,” he said.
“Are you serious about the picnic?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“Is it just a ploy to get me in bed?”
“No.”
“You won’t expect…”
“No.”
She examined his face, as if judging his sincerity. “I don’t need a pity date.”
“Are you familiar with men? We don’t do pity dates.”
“I’m just trying to understand.”
“There’s nothing to understand. I like you.”
“You said you didn’t want to start anything.”
“That was before you kissed me in the kitchen.”
“You kissed me in the kitchen,” she said.
“You said you liked me.”
“I was on drugs.”
“Yeah, but you meant it.”
She fell silent, refusing to admit the truth.
He chuckled at her obstinance. “I’m not suggesting we get married, Meadows. I’m inviting you on a casual outing. You don’t have to tell my mother about it, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
She nodded a curt acknowledgment before she walked away.
Wade watched her go, his blood pounding with adrenaline and another, more disquieting feeling.
He wasn’t sure how to categorize the connection between them.
In truth, he’d never put much effort into female companionship.
Official dates weren’t required. He didn’t ask women out unless he wanted to spend time with them.
The fact that he’d taken this leap with her felt both inevitable and foreboding.
It was like jumping off a cliff without knowing what troubled waters lay below. He couldn’t resist taking the plunge.
Maybe she’d reject him, and they could avoid catastrophe. He didn’t think she would, though. She’d been tempted two nights ago, after that soul-wrenching kiss. He’d been dying to touch her ever since. They were on an emotional collision course, and he couldn’t stop it. He didn’t want to stop it.
He had to have her.
They were both harboring dark secrets, and carrying a ton of baggage, which made them ill-suited for romance.
This didn’t matter to him anymore. He wasn’t concerned about her past, or worried about his own.
He wasn’t afraid of getting hurt again. The desire thrumming through his veins drowned out everything else.
Wade understood the risk he was taking. Whatever happened between them, he wouldn’t escape from it unscathed.
He wouldn’t escape from any of this unscathed—and he did not care.