Page 78 of The Cowgirl's Forever Love
Other than messages on his phone, and the very sweet handwritten note he’d found tucked under his windshield wiper, he’d been home too late and too exhausted to talk in the evening. It wasn’t nearly enough.
It appeared someone else was determined to ensure they connected.
Lisa:Ollie is here again
Lisa:I can drop her off at your place
Lisa:How on earth is she finding her way over to Silver Stone?
Josiah wasn’t sure, either. When he had more time, he would love to follow the creature just to figure it out, but he was still behind because of the emergencies piling up on his plate.
The opportunity to get together with Lisa was too strong to miss.
Josiah:If I swing by the house, can you come with me to Sonora’s for a while?
Lisa:YES. Tamara is ready to kick me out of the house. Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You’re my only hope.
He laughed and messaged back quickly:Han shot first
Lisa:Of course he did
She and Ollie were waiting for him on the porch as he drove up. A Chinook wind had arrived and the warmer air had turned the deep snow into messy clumps of slush everywhere.
Ollie reached him first, tail wagging so violently her back legs slid out from under her before she recovered, tongue at the ready for a sneak-attack lick when he bent to ruffle her fur.
“I don’t know why I’m petting you, brat,” he grumbled before lowering his voice and quietly telling her “thanks.”
He rose to his feet in time to catch Lisa and spin her feet off the ground, holding her against his body as he gave her a welcome kiss that got his blood boiling.
Lisa stepped away and jammed her hat back into position, whistling happily as she crawled into the truck cab. “Well, now.Thatwas pretty awesome. Ready to go? Sounds as if you don’t have much time.”
She sat next to him, thigh tight against his as Ollie reluctantly sat on the floor, staring at them pleadingly.
“I’ve been busy,” he admitted, “but it pays the bills.”
Although that wasn’t really a worry. His trust fund was more than enough, but he was trying hard not to touch the principal. Heck, he was stubborn enough to try to save the interest as well.
Lisa tugged off his glove and slid their palms together, linking their fingers as she stared up at him, all big brown eyes and contented smile.
“So, to catch you up. Tamara has decided being postpartum is the greatest thing since sliced bread. She barely needs any help—you’d think she’d take advantage of me being around, but she’s up doing laundry before I can get out of bed. Said she’s got nine months’ worth of cooking she wants to catch up on as well.”
“If she needs a challenge, she’s welcome to come over to my place to cook,” Josiah offered. “If it would help, of course.”
Lisa grinned. “You’re all heart.”
He stroked his thumb over her knuckles. “I’ve missed you. Texts are all good and well, but not the same.”
She wet her lips. “Me too. Missed you, that is.” She twisted until she could rest her head against his shoulder. “On the other hand, I have gotten a whole bunch done on the fundraiser, since Tamara is busy doing my work and hers. I’ve seen Sonora a couple of times and we’ve talked about a May twenty-fourth event. If you like the ideas we’ve collected, we can get things rolling.”
A deep shot of guilt hit. “I’m sorry. I was supposed to help you with that.”
She shrugged. “There’s plenty to help with. We only started. It’s not as if you can guess when you’re going to be busy.”
No, but him being busy right when she had tons of time on her hands wasn’t a great way to make it clear there were good reasons for her to stick around. He kicked himself for screwing up again.
Especially when she continued cheerfully, “Ended up having lots of time to research, so my travel notebook is getting full. It’s kind of fun to write down a whole bunch of ideas that lead from one to the other. I know most of them are impossible, but it’s a great exercise.”
He was turning in the driveway to Sonora’s, so he squeezed her fingers before putting both hands back on the wheel. “Who’s to say anything is impossible? Dream big. You’re an amazing woman—I bet there’s nothing you couldn’t do if you put your mind to it.”
