Page 27 of Lady Luck's Kiss
“Well so far, it’s pretty darned right!”
“Charlie, this is not…” he bit off and looked away. “You deserve better and I want to be that.”
“I know you said there weren’t any other girls from the rodeo, but I thought you wanted more and-”
“Charlie! No!” he bit out, his intense eyes looking back at her. “I do want to more - so much more. There have been no other girls, ever. Don’t think that and don’t ever compare yourself to anyone else. Yes, I want you.”
“Right now, I want you, too.”
“But, I want you to want me later on, as well. When I’m hurt or you’re sick, I want us to want each other. I knew it when I saw you standing there, from the very first. I was in awe and humbled by your smile. You’re my star, my beacon,” he breathed, his chest heaving as if he had run a marathon. They stared at each other for several minutes in the dark silence. “I’m ruining it all, aren’t I? It’s too soon and weird, right? I will take you back.”
Jack sat down on the side of the truck, silent. She stared at his figure in the darkness.
“You had better not,” she bit out suddenly, feeling her heart pounding in her chest nervously. The feelings she had just experienced at his kiss and his touch were still working their magic on her. This might be the biggest mistake of her life or the best decision ever. “You promised me a goodnight kiss first and that we were going to talk. Well, there was talking between us and I’m waiting for my kiss now.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea and I don’t want our first time to be in the back of my grimy pickup truck. I’m afraid if I kiss you that I won’t stop. I want more from you,” he breathed, looking up at her.
She saw the battle in his eyes and knew that it was all coming to a head between them. He stood up and took a step towards her in the truck bed.
“I want so much more with you than something casual.”
There was something in Jack’s expression that bothered her, speaking softly directly to a part of her soul… and she felt that flutter of unease.
She wanted more from him, too.
Respect, love, all of it… and this was wrong.
“I don’t want to ruin what is between us by rushed sex. I want to make love to you for hours on end and smear that lipstick everywhere, little one.”
““I want everything too. I’m scared sometimes and doubt myself quite a bit, but when I see you… I know it’s perfect. There are no rules. No time frames. Just us. You and me. That’s what we had said, right?” she hesitated, hoping that he understood how torn she was.
She wanted more between them, but had always dreamed of waiting for marriage… but he wasn’t exactly offering it either. It was like they were at a strange impasse between them, leavingher wondering if maybe she’d ruined the best thing that had ever happened to her or pushed too hard. Just as she was about to open her mouth, to explain that she wanted to wait until they were in a committed relationship - he spoke.
“I think I’m falling for you,” Jack admitted softly, dropping the most gentle kiss on her lips before taking a step back. “And that’s why I’m taking you home.”
Well, there’s that bombshell,she thought silently, trying not to freak out.What guy mentions the ‘L’ word so quickly… and now he’s taking me home?
Yeah, maybe this was a perfect time for them both to retreat to their corners… for multiple reasons.
11
CHARLIE
The next morning, Charlotte’s mind refused to quiet. It had been buzzing since the moment she opened her eyes, restless and unrelenting. She barely knew him, she reminded herself for what felt like the hundredth time. Sure, their date had been wonderful—better than wonderful. The easy laughter, the brush of his hand against hers, the way the night had seemed to vibrate with some invisible current between them. There had been something alive and thrilling in the air, something she hadn’t felt in a very long time.
But feelings weren’t facts. Sparks didn’t equal substance.
Didn’t it matter if they had compatible personalities? If they liked the same things? If he had roots here, or people who grounded him? You couldn’t just tell someone you loved them after one night—not without knowing who they really were. That was reckless, and Charlotte had never been reckless with her heart.
It was weird. The whole situation was undeniably weird. And weird, she supposed, could lean either direction—wonderfully good or catastrophically bad.
She tried to bury herself in work instead of dwelling on it. Sitting at her desk in the garage office, she was halfway through ordering more parts online when she heard the familiar rumble of Buddy’s truck pulling into the lot. She glanced up through the open door just in time to see him backing a small Chevy toward the garage bay. Her gaze flickered instinctively to the next stall—Jack’s truck.
Her chest tightened.
She’d poured so much effort into that truck, working late nights and long hours, taking pride in every repaired piece. They’d even driven it on their date last night, laughing with the windows down as if the world belonged to just the two of them. And now it sat there, still needing a few finishing touches. But her eyes snagged on the dash, and she cursed under her breath.
The rose.
