Page 102 of Tempt
“Thank you. Did you rebook your flight?” she asked.
“Not yet.” I sat down again and started back in on my seconds. In all honesty, I wasn’t in any hurry to leave.
Once we said goodbye this time, that was it. It had to be.
“Not that I want you to go,” she went on. “I just don’t want anyone to see you. And I’m sure you have things to get back to.”
“Not really,” I said.
She looked over at me in surprise. “No jobs?”
“Nothing this week.” I lifted my water glass. “I could stay a couple days.”
Her jaw stopped chewing and she set down her fork. Swallowed. Studied her hands in her lap. “Zach. It’s not that I don’t want you here. I do. But...is this wise?”
“I could stay inside,” I said, although I had a feeling she wasn’t just talking about being seen.
She picked up her fork again and took a small bite of a meatball. “I have to work this week.”
“That’s okay. I could see you when you got home. Unless you’re busy after work too.”
“No,” she said. “If I had time, I was going to get a Christmas tree.”
“A real one?”
She nodded. “I was going to ask my dad if he could help me cut one down one day after work.” A little grin appeared. “I’m not all that handy with a saw.”
“I could do it.” I sat up a little taller, eager for this opportunity to show off how fucking handy I was. “I happen to be amazing with a saw.”
She laughed. “What if someone sees us at the tree farm?”
“I’ll wear a disguise,” I told her. “A mask over my face.”
Still laughing, she shook her head. “That’s terrifying. No.”
I thought for a moment. “Could we go to a tree farm a little ways out of town?”
“I guess we could.”
“What night do you want to do it?”
“I have those deliveries tomorrow that I think will keep me busy all day. Maybe Wednesday?”
“That’s fine.”
“And you’re sure you don’t mind staying that long?”
“I’m positive. What am I going back to in San Diego?”
Her cheeks grew pink. “I don’t know.”
I realized I didn’t either.
* * *
After tucking her back into bed, I went down to the kitchen and called Jackson.
“Hey,” he said. “You back in town?”
