Page 27 of Love and Lattes at Pumpkin Hollow
‘You told me passion is overrated,’ I reminded him as our eyes locked.
‘Because I had never really felt it, but that day, when you challenged me to make that pact with you, I felt it then.’
I chuckled. ‘Yeah, we really wound each other up that day. And quite a few times since. You push my buttons, Dylan Henderson.’
‘I can’t stop thinking about you,’ he murmured.
‘You can’t… huh?’ I spluttered, confused. ‘We’re enemies,’ I said, freaked out by the way he was looking at me – all soft and tender. ‘You hate me. Um… don’t you?’
‘All I know is I really want to kiss you.’
‘Me? A farmer,’ I said, shaking my head. ‘I’m nothing like the women you usually go for, I know that.’
‘I told you – I’ve never met anyone like you before.’
‘You’re nothing like the men I go for,’ I told him a little bit harshly. ‘You turned up all preened and clean and tidy, and tailored in that fancy suit in your fancy car with your perfect hair and those bloody blue eyes that I could get lost in…’ I said angrily, my chest heaving, the words escaping my mouth like they had been desperate to get out since we met. ‘It’s so… annoying!’ I jabbed a finger towards him but he grabbed it and pulled me closer, his hand wrapping around mine. My breath hitched as our faces drew even closer.
‘Why can’t you stop thinking about me too then?’ Dylan challenged, sounding just as breathless as me.
‘I don’t know,’ I said helplessly.
His eyes lit up like I’d told him a precious secret.
And maybe I had.
Dylan drew me even closer and let go of my hand, his hands reaching down to cup my face gently. ‘I might not be like the men you usually go for, Willow. But I can be just as passionate as them. Maybe even more so,’ he said, his voice husky and urgent as his eyes looked deeply into mine. He leaned down and touched my lips ever so softly like he was waiting to see my reaction. I gave him a small smile and his eyes flicked from my eyes to my lips back to my eyes and then he leaned down again and this time, he kissed me properly.
And he made good on his promise. His lips met mine with fire and soon, his hands moved from cupping my face to the back of my head as his mouth moved urgently on mine. I murmured, wrapping my arms around his shoulders, pulling him closer to me as he caressed my tongue with his. He pulled back to search my face with his eyes. ‘Are you okay with this?’ he murmured.
I dropped my hands from his shoulders and grabbed the sides of his coat, drawing him back down towards me. ‘Kiss me again,’ I demanded and we both smiled before our lips came back together, desperate for another taste, the kiss sweeter and much more satisfying than the apple pie and whipped cream we’d just eaten.
‘Did you enjoy it?’
‘Huh?’ I stared at our waitress in surprise when she came over to clear our table. After we had both started shivering, we’d reluctantly let go of one another by the river and come back inside the inn. When the waitress asked me that question, my eyes had flitted straight to Dylan’s lips involuntarily. ‘I did,’ I said, earning a smile from Dylan. He had nice lips. He was a good kisser. Quite possibly the best I’d ever had, which was extremely confusing when I thought about what an unlikely couple we made. We didn’t make a scrap of sense on paper but that kiss had had boatloads of passion in it. I had definitely been wrong about Dylan not being passionate. He claimed I brought it out in him, and that made me feel good even though it really shouldn’t have done.
‘Can I get you anything else?’ she asked, clearly missing the fact we were just staring at one another across the booth, not paying her any attention.
‘I think we’re okay. It’s been a long day; we’ll go up to our rooms soon, I imagine,’ Dylan told her.
She bounced away with our empty dessert bowls and glasses, leaving us alone, the table empty.
‘We have to be up early,’ he reminded me.
I nodded. Dylan had one more meeting to do for his brother and I had arranged to go to a farm owned by an old family friend of ours. Brian had known my parents for years and his farm was nearby to where we were so I was hoping I could pick his brains as he was so experienced. Plus, Dad said he always had an abundance of hay, which would be really helpful as a floor inside the polytunnels.
Then I needed to hit the shops nearby as they had several large home stores that might have some props for the autumn trail I wanted to create through the polytunnels. I then had arranged to meet one of our summer workers to ask for his help.
So, Dylan was right; it would be a busy day. It was just that I was finding it hard to stop thinking about his lips. ‘We do. Let’s go to bed.’ I coughed. ‘Separately, of course. Get some sleep.’
‘Some sleep,’ he agreed with a nod. We got up and headed upstairs. ‘So, you said you’ve been thinking about what you want to put in the tunnels along with the pumpkins?’ he said as we walked towards our bedrooms. The inn was quiet now, lit dimly upstairs, and I wondered if we were the only ones who would be sleeping here tonight.
‘I want lots of photo opportunities as people love that, plus it helps publicise the patch if we can get people to tag it on Instagram or something. I was also thinking of fun things for kids to do as they walk around,’ I mused, my eyes lighting up as I thought about it. ‘I’m hoping I can find some props tomorrow. Maybe like an autumn section with scarecrows, autumn leaves, hay bales and corn, then a Halloween area with skeletons and witches and cobwebs, more of a spooky vibe…’ I babbled. We reached the doors to our rooms. ‘What do you think?’ I asked, turning to face Dylan.
‘I never thought I’d become so invested in autumn and pumpkins and Halloween,’ he said, smiling at me.
‘I’ll make an autumn lover out of you yet,’ I joked but then my smile faded at the hungry, hooded look in his eyes. ‘What are you thinking?’ I asked him, my heart pounding inside my chest.
‘I’m thinking I really want to kiss you again.’
