Page 37 of When You Stayed
The air grew warmer and silent as he watched me with a small smile gracing his handsome face. He really was striking. He was like one of those male models, posing in a dramatic scene that felt vulnerable and dreamy. The kind you didn’t want to look away from for fearyou’d forget how their jaw was carved or how the shape of their nose seemed to fit their face, or how that one piece of hair fell across their brow just so.
His question pulled me out of my thoughts. “So, can I have it?”
Jolting forward, I nearly tripped as I came back to the moment. “Right. Yes.”
His hands came underneath the basket, covering mine, which reminded me of when they’d grazed each other while we had pet Gus. Our eyes met, and while I had expected him to pull away again, he remained in place. His gaze hooded in a way that made me wonder what was going through his mind.
I had to snap out of it. Ford was a brute and had only proven as much the last few interactions. “This is mostly for Gus, but I added in a few cinnamon rolls from the Drip and some organic beef sticks to maybe munch on while you’re at work.”
As I said it out loud, I felt silly for thinking he’d like it.
But he took the basket from me and began inspecting it under the clear plastic.
“You didn’t have to do all this.”
“I know.” Glancing to the side, I nodded. “I like creating gift baskets, though. I do it for the bands that come to play, so it’s sort of second nature for me.”
Ford tilted the container to the side and smiled. “You put in a few bags of peanut butter M&M’s.”
“That was always your favorite, right?”
His small nod made something flutter in my stomach. I brought my arms in over my chest, as if I could protect my heart from him finding a way inside of it.
“I didn’t think you noticed me enough to know my favorite candy.”
That was stupid. “I noticed everything about you, Ford.”
His head snapped up, and those eyes branded me so severely I wondered if when I got home I’d have shades of amber and green highlighting my skin. To prove my point, I began listing a few facts I knew about him.
“You like turkey sandwiches but hate mayonnaise. So, you useDijon mustard and fake cheese so it’s not super dry. You prefer purple-flavored Gatorade. You’re insanely good at fixing things, and you have a humble confidence. You dress modestly because you don’t place any pride in materialistic things. Your favorite Christmas movie is Gremlins. You hum to soothe your anxiety…or at least you used to. You turned down a full-ride scholarship to one of the top tech schools in the country to stay home and be near your family.”
Was that too much? I probably freaked him out. His jaw was still bruised from when my dad hit him, which I noticed because a muscle inside it fluttered while he twisted to set the basket next to him.
“You think I stayed to be near my family?” His question was made up of mostly curiosity, like he was shocked that I had chosen that lie to believe of all things. What good would come from him explaining some other reason, like a girl or a relationship I didn’t know about.
“So, about that truce?”
“Consider the white flag waved, Royce Quinn.”
My nose crinkled as I worked through that. “A white flag means surrender.”
“Same thing in this situation,” he smiled at me, and it was the kind of smile I had witnessed him give my parents that one night. The kind he reserved for everyone else.
“Should we hug or shake hands or something?” I asked nervously.
Ford’s smile remained in place, but his head shook back and forth.
Rude. “Why not?”
He remained where he was, staring at me, even letting his gaze linger on my lips, and then he rendered me speechless.
“Because if I touch you, even once…I won’t stop.”
My face flushed, his eyes seemed to sparkle with something that fizzled inside my chest, and right as I opened my mouth, his trailer door burst open.
“Boss, Banner just about cut his whole goddamn finger off!” Johnson yelled in a panic.
His gaze flew to me with a bit of a wince before returning to Ford.
