She tilted her head to the side. “I did say I wanted you to kiss me, didn’t I?”
The cords of his throat tightened. “You did.”
“Then I must know what I want.”
Still, he hesitated. Though Lauren was on the mend, he didn’t want to rush her. “Are you certain?
“Oh you,” she said impatiently. Her arms wound up around his neck and she lifted her lips towards mouth to his.
Christopher heard a small murmur leave her mouth as their lips met. Her actions spoke louder than words. And her actions told him she did want him to kiss her. Within a heartbeat, he wrapped his arm around her, feeling the slenderness of her body against his own. A wild elation ricocheted through him as their lips met in a gentle joining. His arms tightened on their own accord, but she didn’t shrink from him.
How long they stood there, he didn’t know. If an earthquake had shaken the ground, he wouldn’t have been aware of it. All he could focus on was the sweetness of their shared kiss as well as his feelings which were deeper than he’d realized. He didn’t want the moment to end. If he could find a bottle, and place this moment in it, he would. Then, whenever he wished to relive it, he’d take out the bottle and pour it out.
But that was the thing of childhood daydreams. And yes, Lauren made him feel like a young boy again.
She pulled away from him, and he let her, albeit reluctantly.
“Thank you,” she said.
“I believe I’m supposed to be saying that.”
A light delicate color washed over her face. “Rose Red,” he said under his breath. “You’re aptly named.”
She dipped her head shyly. “We should probably get back to the house with Millie. I’m sure Esther has probably made her want to pull her hair out.”
As it was, Millie and her family had doted on the small baby, looking up in shock when they came into the house. The visit went on pleasantly as they had coffee and cake and discussed cattle and horses.
Christopher watched as Lauren’s face remained happy. She enjoyed the company. Loved being around others. It was as if she found delight in people, which translated to patience with Esther.
She wasn’t meant to be a carpenter’s wife, although she had tried her best. Her husband was in his studio building furniture around the clock and she was alone in the house. It didn’t bode well for a woman that thrived on interaction.
He thought of what she told him about her husband Jonah. The man did care about her, there was no doubt about that. Nor did she have the signs of abuse some women experienced from men who treated them as property. Jonah hadn’t been a bad husband, and Christopher didn’t blame the man for his expectations of marriage. The blame was in Jonah’s foolishness for trying to make Lauren the wife he wanted instead of the woman he married.
Using his own experience, Christopher learned to reject what people expected him to be. When he gave up being a doctor, so many had been against him.
If, and he was only thinking if, there was a chance to have Lauren… as… as…
A jolt went down his back.What was he thinking?
Soon they said goodbye and headed back towards Lauren’s house.
The ride back to Lauren’s house was quiet except for Esther’s fussing. She was sleepy, Lauren told him and bound to be cranky. He liked the way she seemed to be reading her daughter’s moods as opposed to being frustrated. That was certainly a good sign.
He escorted her into the house and waited as she changed the child’s nappy and dressed her in clean clothes. The house he noted, had signs of disarray again and he grinned. Cleaning was not Lauren’s strong point. He didn’t see it as a sign of laziness, but rather a sign of being overwhelmed with responsibility.
She needed help and he wanted to be the one to do it.
“Thank you,” Lauren said as she saw him out the door. There was a definite sparkle in her eyes. “For everything.”
“Including my kiss?” he said, wondering at his audacity but unable to stop himself from saying it.
“Especially that.”
She reached up and planted a kiss on his cheek. He wanted to turn and fit his mouth to her again but decided to let this happen the way she wanted it to happen. So, he took her chaste kiss with him on the way home and cuddled it as he went to sleep.
The next morning, he was getting dressed for the day’s duties when he heard a small knock at his door. He frowned.Was it Lauren? Had something happened?
Going over to the door, he opened, and his mouth opened. There in the doorway, stood a tall, stolid middle-aged woman, with pale skin, a pinched face, and hard gray eyes that looked him over.
