She smiled. “I can’t wait to see that headboard against your wall. It’s going to be stunning.”
He nodded, digging into his chicken.
She chewed several delicious bites before switching the subject. “And even though Dale and Cooper didn’t have much on the envelope, at least we’re narrowing down the families involved. It feels like we’re getting closer.”
“I agree,” he said. “Maybe we’ll learn something new if we read the next few pages in the diary.”
For the first time since arriving at the ranch three days ago, trepidation tightened her chest. Harper hadn’t opened the diary at all during her stay. She wasn’t sure why. Probably because she didn’t want to interrupt her newfound peace.
But Caspian was right. There were undoubtedly clues in it, clues she could’ve easily uncovered by reading the diary straight through the day she’d found it. Or giving it to Sadie to read, although her cousin had stated it felt like it was meant for Harper to find, and therefore read.
Even so, she’d only managed to read a little here and there because fear of the unknown held her back. Well, not anymore.
She nodded. “Maybe we will.”
For the next few minutes, they ate the rest of their meal in silence, each lost in their own thoughts.
“Well, I know one thing for certain,” he said, taking the empty plate from her hands, and stacking it onto his, before placing them on the nearby table. “We got a lot done on the headboard already. Not bad for a day’s work.”
“True,” she said, with a grin. “We make a pretty good team.”
“Best I’ve ever been part of,” Cas murmured, closing the distance between them.
They laughed before his lips met hers with a warm, lingering kiss. As always happened when they kissed, Harper melted into the guy and eagerly responded, wanting, needing to feel more.
She slid her hand under his shirt, loving how his hot, hard, body quivered under her touch. And he was touching too. He had one hand cupping the back of her head and the other under her shirt just beneath her bra.
Unable to help herself, Harper brushed his lip with her tongue, and a sexy sound rumbled in his throat just before his tongue dipped into her mouth.
Her heart was beating like crazy in her chest while heat rushed through her body to all her good parts. Parts that had been dormant for so long.
Just as she was about to straddle him, Cas ended the kiss, draping his arm around her shoulder before tucking her against him while they worked to catch their breath. For a second, she debated what was more important—her disappointment or her need for air.
Since she needed the latter to form a coherent thought, Harper leaned her head against his chest and listened to the strong thudding of his heart. As they sat there, working to get their breathing under control, sharing the stillness of the evening, Harper realized that she hadn’t felt this at home in, well, ever.
She also hadn’t ever felt this turned on, either.
Harper drew back slightly, the soft creaking of the porch swing mingling with the evening breeze as she met his gaze. She wanted to feel that connection again, to lose herself in another kiss that felt so easy, so right. But just as her lips were about to brush his, Cas gently shifted her aside, his expression unreadable.
“I should probably clean up,” he said, grabbing their dishes with a quick, almost forced smile. Before she could respond, he was already up and heading inside, disappearing into the house.
What just happened?
Harper sat there for a moment, the sting of disappointment mixing with a hint of amusement. She hadn’t expected him to pull away, not after the easy flow of their day, but there was something in his eyes that told her this wasn’t just about the dishes. Pushing herself off the swing, she followed him into the kitchen, finding Cas at the sink, his back turned to her.
“Cas,” she said softly. “What was that about?”
He glanced over his shoulder, then set the dishes down, turning to face her fully. “I just don’t want to rush you.”
She tilted her head and blinked. “Rush me? Cas, I’m the one trying to kiss you. I’m not exactly going slow here.”
He chuckled, running a hand through his hair. “I know, and believe me, resisting you is hard as hell. But I care about you, Harper. A lot. And I don’t want us to jump into something before you’re ready. I’m not going anywhere, and you’re not going anywhere. We’ve got all the time in the world.”
Her mind could barely compute those words coming from Caspian Taylor, the gorgeous, carefree, almost cocky Romeo she used to watch at the McCall’s corral. To be fair, this Cas, the one she’d met in her cousin’s driveway last week, was not the same Cas from her youth. He had a confident, more serious, mature air about him with a few shadows in his eyes, no doubt from things he’d experienced as a SEAL, and, yeah, the guy was loads sexier now, too.
Heaven help her, she found this version of him way more attractive.
Her heart softened and cracked open a little at his words, the honesty in his voice wrapping around her like a warm blanket.
