Page 62 of That One Night
“You can’t add something to the list after you wrote it,” Emery protested. “That’s not how it works.”
“Yes I can. It’s my list and I can do what I want. Number eight, tell Hendrix that you’re not engaged.”
Emery’s mouth turned dry.
“I’m serious, Em. You said yourself that the guy’s out there thinking he kissed a taken woman. The least you can do is let him know he hasn’t.”
And there it was. Her friend had found her weak spot. The part that was worrying her the most. Because she was stillthe good girl she always was, even when she played at being bad. And she hated the thought that her actions had affected someone else.
No, that they’d affectedhim. He didn’t deserve to be lied to. Not after he’d helped her so much.
He deserved so much better.
She looked out of her window at his farm. He still wasn’t there. But he would be later.
She owed him an explanation. She owed him the truth.
But the thought of telling him made her want to hurl.
Hendrix had spent most of the day in his uncle’s fields, finishing the bailing he’d lost time on yesterday with the repairs. And yes, technically he was only supposed to work until lunchtime on Saturdays, spending the rest of the time on his own farm.
But he didn’t want to go home. And yes, he was avoiding Emery Reed. Because he was a damn pussy.
And maybe he preferred beating himself up to looking her in the eye, knowing he couldn’t have her.
Last night, that kiss… he shook his head, because he didn’t have the words to capture how he was feeling at the memory of it. All he knew was that as he lay on top of her sweet body, his mouth taking hers, he was a breath away from pulling her panties down and making her his in the sweetest, most delicious way.
Christ, the memory of her lips was making him hard. He could almost feel the silk of her skin against his palms, feel the way her legs parted for him as he slid his hands down them.
Her eyes had been wide, her breath had been short, and she hadn’t tried to stop him. No, she’d encouraged him, kissing him harder, scratching her nails against his scalp.
She’d been as needy as he’d been hard.
“Don’t you have a home to go to?” a voice shouted.
He blinked away the thought of Emery’s curves, looking up to see his dad walking toward him.
“Hi.” He forced a smile on his face, shutting off the engine to the bailer, climbing down from the high seat to hug his father. “I didn’t know you were here.”
“Just came to talk to Logan. Your mom wants to hold the launch for the charity here. I wanted to make sure it was okay with him.”
“When is it?” Hendrix asked. He knew how excited she was about it. How nervous, too. His mom rarely made public appearances. She hated being in the news. But this launch would involve both, and he felt for her.
“In three weeks. We were planning to do it at our place, but you know what’s she's like. Over thinking it. I said I’d ask Logan. He’s good for us to do it at the restaurant.” His dad smiled softly. His parents’ love story was so clear to see in everything they did. From the moment he could see, he knew how much they cared for each other.
They were a good team. But where his dad loved the limelight – as a rock star he yearned for it, and even now that he was retired, he wasn’t exactly a shrinking violet – his mom hated it.
The only reason she was dealing with a PR company and the media over the charity was because she was determined to get the right people applying for grants. He admired her for doing it, too. She was a good woman through and through.
“You’re gonna come to the launch, right?” his dad asked.
“Of course.” Hendrix nodded. “I wouldn’t miss it.”
“Good.” His dad patted his arm. “It’ll mean a lot to your mom, having you all there. She needs our support.”
“She’s always got it.”
That was enough to put a smile on his dad’s face. “Well, I’d better go home and tell her the good news.” He tipped his head to the side. “Come over and see her soon, okay?”
