Page 30 of Enticed
When our food arrived, all discussion of Gabe’s love life dissolved. Hazel and Fern inquired about my barrel racing competitions while we enjoyed our brunch. I indulged their curiosity but left out any mention of Gabe traveling with me. I wasn’t prepared to answer any questions about that.
Once our plates were cleared away, the ladies pulled out their current projects and began working on them. Fern rested a blanket in her lap that boasted an image of a gorgeous buckskin horse with its mane blowing in the breeze. My grandmother worked on a small lamb while Hazel knitted a matching hat, diaper cover, and booties in the smallest size I’d ever seen.
“They’re for the NICU babies,” Hazel explained when she noticed me watching.
“These will go to the kids at the children’s hospital,” my grandma added, motioning to the bag full of miniature stuffed animals. There were bunnies, bears, dogs, and horses.
“Could you teach me how to do this?” I asked, plucking a bunny from the bag as an idea began to take shape.
“Sure,” she replied, her eyes lighting up. Something about how elated she was for me to take an interest in learning her hobby filled me with both joy and guilt. Why had it taken so long for me to realize that she just wanted to share this with me? It was a way for us to bond, and I’d always shot down her offers to join them. “Is there something in particular you’d like to make?”
“A chinchilla,” I answered casually, hoping she wouldn’t try to figure out why.
She stared at me for a moment before blinking away her surprise. “Okay,” she drew out, then reached into her bag to pull out a spare set of knitting needles and a ball of yarn. Placing them on the table, she went over the basics before showing me how to start my first cast on stitch. I repeated the process several times before moving on to the next step, and soon I had a six-inch long knit stitch. The process was oddly soothing. I felt my tense muscles relax more with each row I knitted.
“You know,” Gigi began, leaning in to speak quietly so only I could hear, “you can talk to me … about anything. If you ever need advice or just a listening ear.” Her genuine openness warmed my heart. It nearly loosened my tongue, but what was there to say? I was developing feelings for a man who’d given no indication that he was interested in pursuing a relationship with me. Even though there was chemistry and mutual attraction—something Gabe refused to admit out loud—nothing had actually happened between us.
Still, it meant a lot to me that she was willing to listen and offer support. If anyone was going to be on my side, it was her.
“Thank you, Gigi,” I said, resting my head against hers affectionately. We stayed like that for a long moment, and I soaked up the silent comfort she offered. Then she kissed my hair and assessed my progress.
“So you want to learn how to make a chinchilla?” she asked.
I nodded excitedly, hoping it wouldn’t be too complex. It would probably take a while, and I’d most likely need some help, but I was determined to create something special for Rory.
“Let’s start with the basics. You’re going to make a scarf.” I groaned and slumped back in my chair. “You’ve got to learn to crawl before you can walk,” she advised.
An hour later, my fingers and back both ached from where I’d been slumped over my work. Everyone had made incredible progress on their respective projects.
Everyone except for me. I was maybe one tenth of the way through my very basic pink scarf when they decided to call it a day.
“You’re doing great, dear,” Fern commended, and the other two agreed. We packed up and slipped out just in time to avoid the lunch rush.
“Should we be letting them drive home?” I asked as we waved goodbye to Fern and Hazel. We’d been at the cafe for quite some time, but still, they’d been drinking.
Gigi scoffed. “I’d like to see you try to stop them.” I gave her a flat look, and she rolled her eyes. “They each only had one drink. They’ll be fine,” she said, waving off my concerns. “Me, on the other hand, I’m still pleasantly buzzed,” she announced with a giggle, and I realized those other four empty glasses had been hers.
“Get in the car, you lush.” I chuckled as I opened the door for her. Once she was secured, I rounded the hood to the driver’s side.
I was reaching for the door handle when I heard a deep, masculine voice shout my name, and I turned just in time for a body to slam into me.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
GABE
“Can we get ice cream?” Rory asked as she skipped out of the pet store. I tucked the bag of chinchilla food under my arm and pulled out my phone to check the time. Since Jasmine was out of commission—no matter how hard she tried to convince me she was fully recovered—we’d decided to hit up the matinee at the local movie theatre in lieu of riding lessons. I had some errands to run in town, so we’d kill two birds with one stone.
“Sure, Pumpkin. We can make that work.” I would just have to wait until after the movie to stop by the hardware store. “Let me put this food in the truck, and we’ll walk over.” That was the good thing about living in Poplar Ridge. Everything was right there on Main Street. You could go to the bank, pick up your mail, eat lunch, get your hair cut, and stop for ice cream all on the same half mile stretch of road.
Stopping at my truck, I opened the back door to toss the food inside. The sound of Rory’s gasp drew my attention back to the sidewalk. “What’s wrong?” I asked, gaze darting around to assess for any threats of danger. She was off before I could stop her.
“Rory,” I called, but she didn’t stop. “Aurora,” I said, this time with more authority. She didn’t slow down. In fact, she was barreling straight toward a young woman with an achingly familiar silhouette. I’d recognize those long dark tresses that hung nearly to that heart-shaped ass anywhere. I didn’t need to see her beautiful face to know who she was. Her back was to Rory, who showed no signs of slowing down. She was about to bowl Jasmine over, and I needed to warn her. I took off after Rory, cupping my hands around my mouth to amplify my voice.
“Jasmine,” I called in a panic, worried Rory would knock her off balance with her injured ankle. She turned at the sound of my voice a second before Rory slammed into her, wrapping her arms tightly around her waist. I winced as Jasmine stumbled back against her car, the shock registering on her face.
For a moment, I feared she was hurt, but then something beautiful happened. Her gaze dropped to my daughter and her eyes lit up, a joyful smile spreading across her face. She curled her arms around Rory’s shoulder and hugged her back, pressing her cheek against the top of Rory’s head. My breath caught and emotion clogged my throat at the sweet gesture. The warmth with which she embraced my child was a balm to my soul. She was genuinely happy to see her, and it showed in the look of contentment she wore.
I slowed my approach, not wanting to spoil the moment. Jasmine’s gaze lifted to mine, and her eyes flared as they drank me in. When she looked at me like that, it made me want to throw her over my shoulder and carry her off to do wicked things to her. I tried to keep my expression even so she wouldn’t know just how that look affected me.
