Page 70 of Revelry
“Sounds good. But maybe something less frostbitey?”
“Spoilsport. Night Tate,” she whispered.
“Good night, Gertrude.”
Chapter Nineteen
Gertie
“Are you avoiding me?”
I squeaked as his deep voice took me by surprise. I turned from the entrance of Cathy’s gallery to find Tate peering down at me. I hadn’t seen him for a few days, mainly because yes, I had been avoiding him. As I took him in now I remembered why. His arms were folded across his chest, his white Henley pulled tight and tucked into faded blue jeans, a pair of Timberland boots adorned his feet. He looked mouthwatering.
“Uh, no of course not,” I replied, avoiding his sharp stare and peering over his giant shoulder.
“You’ve just been busy?” He pushed his glasses up his nose and my body tightened with lust.
“Yeah, super busy ever since…” I trailed off.
“Ever since our fun the other night?” He said it so simply, didn’t lower his tone and Mrs. Brown, the owner of the Mini Mart, stared at us as she walked past. I narrowed my stare, mentally telling her to keep walking.
“Jesus, Tate,” I choked out.
He ignored my obvious discomfort, and the attention we were drawing from the smalltown busybodies, I mean, business owners.
“Busy with what?” he asked.
I flapped my hands, looking for something. “With the ranch?”
“Are you asking me?”
“No?”
“Oh Gertrude,” he sighed. “If I’d known you’d go awkward afterwards I wouldn’t have helped you out. I mean, what’s an orgasm between friends?”
I made a choked sound. “Do you do that with all your friends?”
He leaned forward and winked at me. “What other friends?”
Okay, who was this playful man who, well, he wasn’t exactly smiling but his eyes gleamed with such mischief that he may as well have. And since when did he joke about orgasms? Or having friends?
“I need to go,” I said, my cheeks flaming.
He frowned. “You just got here.”
I looked back and forth between the gallery and him. “Were you spying on me?”
He shook his head, jerking a thumb over his shoulder. “Saw you through the window.”
I peered over his shoulder again and spotted the veterinary practice and the gorgeous young woman behind the reception desk painting her nails. Jealousy snagged at me that he spent all day with such a stunning looking woman.
Why was I jealous? Just because we’d been spending time together and I was getting to see what a great guy he was. And he knew all the right buttons to push to make me orgasm with an intensity I’ve never known before…
“Do you wanna grab a coffee?” he asked, cutting through my internal rambling. I dialed back my frenzied thoughts and reminded myself that it wasTatestanding in front of me. My friend. Who volunteered to go for a drink? Was he okay?
“Uh, I actually can’t. I’ve just got to pick up some mail for Cathy and then head back to the ranch. I think a couple of the cows are going to go into labor. They’re overdue.” I unlocked the door to Cathy’s gallery and went inside, picking up the stack of mail on the doormat.
“Yeah, I’m on call for any issues.” Tate followed me inside and looked around the unit, whistling low. “Damn, this is a nice place.”
