Page 39 of Unexpected Temptation
Kane came around the counter and held out his hand to Jaylen.
Kane felt Jaylen studying him as he shook his hand.Besides being happy to see them, he didn’t show any desire for Amelia.
Kane looked down at Amelia.He reached out and tapped her nose with a finger.
“How are you doing, Sprite?”
Amelia scrunched up her nose.
“Sprite?”
Kane chuckled.She couldn’t get any more adorable in her jeans, tennis shoes, and what looked like Jaylen’s flannel shirt tied at her waist.
“Yeah, that’s what I’m going to call you.”
Amelia frowned at both men when they laughed.
“Do you really have to?”she asked.
Kane just grinned and nodded his head.
Jaylen laughed when he heard her sigh.He pulled her tighter against his side.
“Hey, there are way worse nicknames,” Jaylen told her.
“Yeah, like Butthead,” Kane said.“That’s what I call Jaylen once in a while.”
Amelia’s gaze zipped to Jaylen.She relaxed when she caught his smile.
“And I call him a Dickhead.”
Amelia looked between the two and then shook her head.
“What did you guys stop by for?”Kane asked.
“I need some meds for a few horses, and we’re also looking for a cookbook for Amelia.I know you have a couple of long aisles that have odd and ends.”
“Well, I don’t sell cookbooks, but I know they have some at the grocery store.Look on the racks at the checkout aisles.Some women’s club in town makes one up every year.I hear there are some pretty good recipes in there.Someone told me Sandra’s meatloaf recipe’s in there.”
Both Amelia’s and Jaylen’s eyes lit up and locked on each other.
“We’ve talked about that meatloaf a few times, and it was almost becoming an obsession for us,” Jaylen said.“We’ll definitely be picking up one of those today.We’re also planning on going to the restaurant to eat lunch.Can you come with us?”
“Yeah, let me get your supplies, and I’ll go tell Joe I’m leaving.”
Within thirty minutes, the three were seated in a booth.
Kane watched Jaylen and Amelia as they got comfortable on the opposite side from him.He noticed Jaylen had her pulled snugly against him, and Kane wondered with humor if they were going to be able to eat that way.He also saw the changes in Amelia after only a few days.Her hair was down instead of back in the braid like when he’d met her.She seemed tinier than he remembered, but he thought it might have something to do with Jaylen’s flannels, although it was clearly too large, it still looked good.She looked much better in it than Jaylen did.What was most noticeable was the light of happiness that hadn’t been present before.
It seemed Jaylen was right for her, and she was perfect for him, he decided.Despite the size difference, they fit, and he could tell there were some pretty deep emotions swirling between the two after the short amount of time they’d been together.
“So, Amelia, are you thinking of sticking around now?”Kane asked.
Amelia stiffened and glanced at Jaylen.The fiery ray of affection in Jaylen’s eyes sparked something inside of her.She relaxed against him before she glanced at Kane.
“Yes, I’ll be staying.At least until he gets sick of me,” she said in a joking manner, but the men could tell from the tone of her voice that there was deep-seated insecurity she was trying hard to hide from them.
Jaylen bent and placed a kiss on her temple.“And I can tell you that’s never going to happen, so you’d better get used to having me around.A lot.”
