Page 9 of Tanner
She pulls her hand from mine and reaches down for the tote bag sitting on the ground. I watch curiously as she pulls out a stack of something.
"I figured you wouldn't be going back to work at the firehouse any time soon, and you could use some light reading." She hands me two weeks' worth ofThe Financial Times.
“You didn’t have to do this.”
"It's no problem." She chuckles quietly to herself. "It's not like anyone else in this town is going to read them."
I laugh at the truth in that statement.
When I first got to town, I remember stopping at Rachel’s book store and asking if she had a copy. The face she made when she thought about it was comical before she shook her head no. I settled on the local papers and whatever else was available until one day I came in, and there was one copy available on the stand.
“Thank you,” I tell her softly.
“You’re welcome,” she whispers back.
The pull between is undeniable, and I know that I can't not kiss her. I lean in slowly, not wanting to scare her off if I’m reading the situation wrong. But she closes her eyes and tilts her head to the side. I’m so close I can feel the soft puff of her breath against my lips.
“There you are!” Rhodes calls out, shattering the moment. He yells back to someone inside the house, “He’s out here!”
I could kill him at this moment. I could actually kill him with my bare hands, but Rachel just chuckles to herself quietly.
“Come inside, you two."
Rachel starts to stand, but I put my hand over hers to stop her.
“Before we head back inside, I have to ask. Will you have dinner with me tomorrow night?”
Chapter 6
RACHEL
I’m so distracted thinking about my date with Tanner tonight that I make the wrong change with several customers, and Colt has to take over the register. Forcing me to take on the tedious tasks around the shop that I can’t possibly mess up, like dusting the bookshelves and clearing the small tables in the café corner.
My gaze keeps darting up to the clock mounted on the wall. It’s moving at a snail’s pace, and on more than one occasion, I stare at it for a full minute to make sure that it's still working.
It’s been a while since I’ve gone on a proper date.What if I do or say something that is going to mess this up?
“You won’t mess it up,” Colt says. I stare at him in confusion. “Your inner monologue for the last ten minutes hasn’t been soinner.”
“Oh god, what was I saying?”
“Something about what you plan on wearing on your date, how you want to give me a raise, and then your concern about not being on a proper date in a while.”
He thinks he’s so slick sliding in that bit about a raise.
“Well, I appreciate your confidence in my ability to pull, not making a fool of myself tonight, you still aren't getting a raise."
Colt shrugs. “Worth a shot.”
The lights flicker overhead again.
“I thought you said you were going to call the electrician.”
Colt shakes his head. “No, you said that you would.”
“When?”
He holds up the post-it note I wrote myself a few days ago that says, “Don’t forget to call the electrician.”
