Page 24 of Wilde Ride

Emeline’s smile faded somewhat as she glanced down at the table and cleared her throat. “No. She’s single.”

Lucy brought our lunch over and set it down just at that moment. The bacon smelled heavenly. “Anything else I can get you?” she asked.

“I think we’re good, thank you, Lucy,” Emeline replied, her voice a bit more subdued.

“Her name…Lilibeth. That’s kind of like the nickname for Queen Elizabeth. But her nickname was Lilibet, right?”

Emeline nodded. “I’m impressed. Yes, it is, and she was named after said queen. Her mother didn’t like Lilibet, so she changed that part to Beth. And her middle name is actually Elizabeth. So, it’s Lilibeth Elizabeth.”

I screwed up my face. “Twists the tongue.”

She grinned, but I could tell it was forced. “It does. But it’s different.”

We ate in silence for a few minutes before Emeline broke it.

“Are you going to start dating soon?”

Her question took me off guard. “What?”

“You asked whether Lilibeth was single. I just assumed that meant you’re going to be jumping back into the dating pool.”

I laughed awkwardly. “No, I was more curious than anything. Just trying to get to know all the people in town.”

Emeline’s mood had definitely changed. And now she suddenly went into business mode. “When did you want to discuss the schedule for your volunteering? We should also decide which camp you want to sign Rhett up for. That is, if he wants to attend.”

After wiping my mouth, I set my napkin on the table. “I know you brought your calendar; we could do it now. Or I could stop by the ranch tomorrow and sit down to really take a look, unless you’ll be busy. If we wait until tomorrow, I could bring Rhett with me.”

She thought for a moment. “Is tomorrow at two okay?”

“Two works great for me.”

She nodded as she pulled out her phone. “Then I’ll add it to my calendar.”

Lucy came by a few minutes later and took our plates.

“Let me get this, since I invited you.”

Emeline winked. “Who am I to complain about a free lunch?” It seemed her friendly mood had returned.

“Did you need to get back to the ranch right away?” I asked.

She shook her head. “What did you have in mind?”

Leaning in and lowering my voice, I said, “I’m really intrigued to see Lilibeth’s store.”

Emeline sat back and cleared her throat. For a moment, I thought she was going to say she needed to get back to the ranch after all. But instead, she smiled. “Why, Levi Tucker, I do believe you’ve just painted a perfect way to end our lunch date.”

I smiled. “Date?”

Her eyes widened and her cheeks turned pink. “I didn’t mean it that way. I should have said business lunch.”

She bit her lower lip, and my eyes instantly tracked the movement. A strange sensation of warmth filled my chest, and I almost had the urge to reach up and rub it. Instead, I jerked my gaze back up to hers…but it slowly returned to her mouth.

I had the most insane desire to kiss Emeline in that moment.

“We should go,” she said, quickly sliding out of the booth, and I followed.

I glanced around the café as we left. A few people gave me curious looks, while others smiled. I sighed internally. The Daily Dirt was going to have a field day with this, and they certainly wouldn’t call it a “business lunch,” that much I knew.