Page 21 of Take My Heart
‘No, that’s the orchard. It always looks like that in the fall.’
‘I’d love to see it. I’ll have to come back next fall.’
‘You should. Come for the fall festival. There’s tons of food. People sell crafts. There’s live music. A dance.’
She smiles. ‘That sounds fun! I’ll definitely come back.’
My gaze goes to her smile. It’s not the nervous smile she gave me when we met. It’s more relaxed. And her eyes aren’t darting around like they were earlier, which gives me a chance to look at them. They’re a deep shade of brown that matches her hair. Just below her eyes and extending across her cheeks are patches of light colored freckles. I didn’t notice them earlier because she had so much makeup on.
‘What is it?’ She wipes her cheeks. ‘What are you looking at? Is there something on my face?’
‘I like your freckles,’ I say, smiling at her. ‘I didn’t notice them earlier.’
‘Oh,’ she says, her cheeks blushing. ‘Yeah, I usually cover them with makeup.’
‘Why are you embarrassed?’
‘I don’t like people looking at them. I tried to get rid of them, but my dermatologist said all I could do was fade them. So I did, but you can still see them.’
‘Why would you want to get rid of them?’
‘Because I don’t like them. And Cam hated them. He’s the one who suggested I try to get rid of them. He even paid for the treatments.’
I’m starting to really not like this guy. If he loved her enough to want to marry her, why was he trying to change how she looked?
‘Not that it matters, but I think the freckles look good on you,’ I tell her.
‘So what are you going to do?’ she asks, changing the subject.
‘About the plow? Like I said, I’ll call Nick and see what he thinks.’
‘What about your girlfriend?’ Kate asks. ‘Is she coming over?’
‘Talia’s not my girlfriend.’
‘Are you sure? Because she sounded like a girlfriend.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘She seemed really upset that I was here.’
I shake my head. ‘She’s just pissed that we can’t go out tonight. She lives with her parents and is always trying to find ways to get out of the house.’
‘Do you like her?’
‘She’s okay. But I’m not looking for a relationship right now. I’ve got too much going on.’
‘You mean with your business?’
‘The business. The house.’ I motion to the truck. ‘Shit breaking down. Let’s go inside. We don’t need to be standing out here freezing.’
I follow her to the laundry room and take off my coat, tossing it on the floor while Kate hangs hers on one of the hooks.
‘Whydo you have hooks if you don’t use them?’ she asks.
‘They came with the house,’ I joke.
She smiles and picks up my coat.
