Page 48 of Burning Skies
“Not sure I can either, but I’m willing to give it a shot. What do you say, princess? Can we be friends?”
My heart thrums in my chest. This is a dangerous line to walk. But when he tugs my hair again and gives me that mischievous smile, I melt. “Do you really want to be my friend, Beau?”
He holds out his hand, palm up. “I’d be honored.”
I place my hand in his. The roughness of his skin sends chills up my arms.
But when he pulls me into his arms for a hug, I know this is a mistake.
Because now I’m not sure I want to let him go.
19
BEAU
My alarm hasn’t gone off yet,but a kitten is pouncing her way across my bed. I grab her and place her on my chest. “Fireball, why can’t I stop thinking about her? This whole thing is making me mental.”
There I go again, talking to a fucking cat.
“I need to stay busy so I don’t think about Honey.” But that doesn’t stop me from grabbing my phone and looking at her contact, which I finally got last night before I left her house.
For the sake of being friends.
What kind of bullshit is that? I can admit I was grasping for straws. She was about to kick me out of her house when I pulled that out of my ass.
After I feed the kittens, I get dressed and head for the main house, where Rhett’s having coffee with Paige at one end of their long kitchen table. “Morning. Did the kids settle okay once they got home?”
Rhett sighs. “Austin and Ella wanted to sleep with us last night. Gabe said they were being babies and slept in his room. Ella nearly kicked me in the face this morning, since she was sprawled like a damn starfish.”
Paige laughs and reaches over to kiss my brother. “That was really sweet of you to let them crash with us. Especially since you slept in the middle, between Austin and the baby.”
“That had to be something.” I pour myself a cup of coffee and lean against the counter.
“Any idea what caused the fire?” Rhett asks.
“Bacon in the teachers’ lounge microwave. But we’re not sure if there was more involved, since the damn thing exploded and there were weird markings on the carpet. It’s lucky we were there or that whole room would’ve been toast.” There’s a lot of water damage, but the wooden tables should be okay once they dry out.
Rhett shakes his head. “You know what would solve this problem? Cameras. Don’t all schools have them now?”
“Not in smaller towns with nonexistent budgets. The principal says the district can’t afford cameras. She’s hoping to do a fundraiser next year to purchase them.”
But at least this one wasn’t feet from Honey’s house. There I go again, thinking about her. I motion behind me. “I’m gonna re-shoe Prometheus this morning before I head to the car wash, so I have to get going.”
Rhett leans back in his chair. “Can I just give you a donation? ’Cause I don’t wanna wait in line with all those women caterwauling like they’re going to a Magic Mike show.”
I lift my shirt to show off my abs and swivel my hips to an imaginary song in my head. “Don’t be a hater just ’cause you don’t have any moves.”
He rolls his eyes. “I have plenty of moves.”
Jace slides into the kitchen in white socks and boxers like he’s Tom Cruise inRisky Business. “If anyone has moves, it’s me.”
Paige covers her mouth to laugh at us.
I wave as I walk out the door. “I’ll be back this evening if anyone needs me.”
It’s blissfully quiet in our old barn. I breathe in the smell of hay and leather, and get to work on Prometheus. But the entire time, I’m thinking about last night. About how beautiful Honey looked. About how good it felt to hold her in my arms. About how I didn’t want to leave her.
Prometheus nibbles on my shirt, and I chuckle and shrug him off. “What do you think, man? Should I text her?” He stomps with his foot. “I was thinking that too.”
