Page 62 of Valentine's in Bayberry

She shook her head. “Things changed.”

He sensed that something was wrong. “No problem. Why don’t you let me in, and I can help you?”

She shook her head again. “I don’t think so.”

His tone softened. “Carrie, what’s wrong?”

When her gaze finally met his, he could see the anger and some other emotion flickering in them. “Like you need to ask.”

He sighed. He was too late. She’d heard about the kiss. The grapevine in Bayberry was faster than a flying snowball. “Carrie, let me explain...”

She turned and walked away.

He caught the door before it closed. He pushed it open and followed her. He had no idea what to say to her—how to explain this away.

By the time he reached her, she was using some sort of spatula to smear chocolate across a marble slab. Normally, he loved to watch her work. She was quite talented. But now was not the time to let himself get distracted. He needed to fix things withCarrie before her imagination got the best of her. Because there was only one woman he wanted to kiss.

And that woman was Carrie.

He needed to leave.

Carrie didn’t want to have this conversation. She didn’t want to let him see how much she cared. She didn’t want him to see how much he’d hurt her.

She knew better than to take their relationship beyond friendship. She’d even told him that, but somehow they’d both forgotten, and now it’d blown up in her face.

She frowned at him. “Really? You had to fall for Brittany of all people?”

“I didn’t fall for her. It’s not like they are saying.”

“I don’t know who ‘they’ are. No one told me anything. I saw you kissing her with my own eyes.”

He held up his palms as though to stop her accusation. “I did not kiss her.”

“Are you trying to tell me that you tripped, and your lips accidentally landed on hers?” Sarcasm dripped from Carrie’s tone, and in that moment, she didn’t care.

“No.” He sighed. “She kissed me.”

“And you let her.”

“I did not. If you saw the kiss, then you must have seen me push her away.”

Carrie glanced away. She didn’t want to admit that she’d been so upset about the kiss that she’d sped off.

“I didn’t,” she said softly.

He stepped closer as his gaze narrowed in on her. “Why not?” When she didn’t respond, he continued. “Is it because it bothered you to see me with another woman?”

When she lifted her head to deny the accusation, her gaze was caught and held by his intense stare. For a moment, there was an utter disconnect between her brain and her mouth. And her heart decided to skip a beat or two.

It wasn’t until she averted her gaze that she once more found her voice. “I wasn’t bothered.”Liar. Liar.“Who you kiss is your business. Speaking of business, I have to get back to work.”

He reached out for her hand. “Carrie, stop fighting it. Please.”

She wanted to yank her hand away because when he was touching her, she couldn’t think straight. Her heart told her to rush into his arms and believe every word he said. Her mind told her not to fall for whatever story he was peddling. Because in the end, he would hurt her, whether he meant to or not.

It took all of her will to pull her hand away. She forced herself to meet his gaze. “Even if I do believe you, it doesn’t change anything.”

“It changes everything.” His voice was emphatic. “Don’t you see? We could give this thing between us a real chance.”

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