Page 53 of A Tempting Seduction

“Junk drawer, next to the silverware drawer,” she mumbled, already half asleep.

I kissed her forehead gently.

“Get some rest. I'll call you tomorrow.”

Ruby was already curling up on the bed, not bothering to change out of her dress. I found a throw blanket and tucked it around her, then stood for a moment watching her sleep.

Beautiful. Vulnerable. Still hiding so much from me.

I made my way back to the kitchen and began the methodical process of cleaning up. Washing dishes, putting away leftovers, wiping down surfaces. The domestic routine gave my hands something to do while my mind processed everything that had happened tonight.

Ruby had finally opened up about her past, but I could tell there was still so much she wasn't telling me. The way she'd reacted to my suggestion about opening a restaurant. Her comment about not wanting attention. The careful way she deflected questions about her family.

There were secrets there, layers I was only beginning to understand. But as I dried the last plate and put it away, I realized something important.

It didn't matter.

Whatever Ruby was hiding, whatever had driven her to Jasper Creek, whatever walls she'd built around herself, none of it changed how I felt about her. I was falling hard for the woman who made incredible coffee and took care of everyone around her. The woman who visited elderly couples and quilted with church ladies. The woman who could cook like an angel and kissed like sin.

I found the spare key in the junk drawer exactly where she'd said it would be. As I turned off the lights and locked the door behind me, I felt something settle deep in my chest.

I'd finally found her. The woman who'd knock me flat on my rear. The woman worth fighting for.

Ruby Miller, with all her secrets and walls and careful deflections, was the woman I wanted to build a life with.

I slipped the key under the door and walked to my truck, already counting the hours until I could see her again.

Chapter Eleven

I woke up to sunlight streaming through my bedroom curtains. I felt great. I couldn’t remember the last time I slept so good. I stretched my arms up.

What the heck? Why was I sleeping in my dress? Memories swept through my mind.

I didn’t.

I couldn’t.

I did.

I slammed my face into my pillow and screamed.

How had I fallen asleep when the sexiest man in the world had just given me an orgasm? How could I be so lame?

How could I have let Ford carry me, for goodness sake? Did I want to give the poor guy a hernia?

Slow your roll, Ruby, he carried you like you were light as a feather.

How could I have told Ford about freaking Carla and what she said? And Lance! I told him about Lance.

I moaned into my pillow.

I was never going to leave my house again.

And he saw my panties. The ones I bought in the three-for-ten-dollars package from Target.

Oh joy.

Screw never leaving my house, I’m never leaving my bedroom again.