Page 64 of Dare to Dance
A gravesite. Solace. Fresh country air. Memory lane.
An engine rumbled, drawing our attention to the quiet street.
“I should get going, anyway. I just wanted to see the old house.” I’d taken the bus up here that morning, and I had a return ticket for later in the afternoon.
A silver truck slowed, turned toward us before stopping at the edge of the driveway. The windows were tinted, or maybe the overcast day prevented us from seeing in.
Nick whistled. “Sweet ride. A friend of yours?”
I didn’t have any friends who drove shiny trucks. Inch by inch, the window rolled down, revealing the one person whose presence always coaxed a slew of tingles and butterflies from me. A waft of his spicy cologne drifted out, causing a blazing heat to trail up and pinch my cheeks.
Kross plastered on a knowing smirk as though I had a sign on my forehead that read, “Kross Maxwell gets me hot and bothered.”
The word “asshat” sat on the tip of my tongue. I would’ve said it out loud if it weren’t for the way his blue gaze undressed me, making my brain shut down.
Nick shuffled over to Kross and stuck out his hand. “I’m Nick.”
“Kross Maxwell.”
Nick closed his fist as he touched his mouth. “No way. I guess you found Ruby.”
Kross flicked his head to one side. “I guess I did.”
“Nice seeing you again, Ruby,” Nick said. “I’ve got to run.” He dashed off the same way he’d come.
“Get in,” Kross said in his bossy tone.
“Pfft. If you came all this way to be possessive, then go home.”
His eyes softened like quicksand and so did his voice. “I came all this way to finish our conversation from yesterday.”
I smiled slowly, tucking my cold hands into the pockets of my wool coat. “How did you know I was here, anyway?”
“I didn’t exactly. I caught Norma before she left for the bus station. She said you were headed up to the Berkshires. This was my first stop.”
Norma was one reason I was taking a trip down memory lane. We’d had a deal. I would come clean with Kross about Raven, and she would make an effort to visit her parents after seven years. She decided that Thanksgiving would be a good time to catch them at home. I didn’t want to hang around the city alone, so I decided to visit Riley’s grave. Nevertheless, I hadn’t figured that Kross would search for me on Thanksgiving. After all, he’d wanted to spend the day with his family.
“Although, she thought you might’ve made a stop to see your mom,” Kross said. “If you haven’t, I can take you.”
My plan had been to visit my mother until I’d spoken to her yesterday. She’d asked me to come on another day since she had a bad case of the flu. She didn’t want me to get sick. So, we had talked. It had been good to tell her that Kross had found me, and that I’d told him about Raven. She’d been pleased and said, “He’ll be good for Raven.” After seeing how he had interacted with Raven even for those few minutes, I agreed with my mom.
I fidgeted under his gaze. “What about your family and Thanksgiving?”
“You are my family,” he said easily.
My eyebrows flew into my hairline. I’d been praying all night that Kross would accept Raven. It was hard to miss how affected he’d been when he laid eyes on her. I had never pegged Kross for a crier or a man with deep emotions. The Kross I knew was strong and rough around the edges. The deep heartfelt emotions he’d displayed with Raven blew me away.
I sank my teeth into my bottom lip.Iwas his family. Could’ve fooled me by the way he’d abruptly left yesterday. “Raven is your family. Not me. We’re not playing house because we have a child.” In no way was I living with someone who didn’t have feelings for me.
He groaned, shifted the truck into park, and stormed out like a man possessed. His jaw flexed as he stalked up to me, reached out as though he wanted to touch me, then lowered his hands. He puffed out air as fury swirled like a storm at sea in those blue eyes. He paced back one step, glared at me, then drove a hand through his unkempt hair.
Kross had always been on edge when he was at the academy. Back then, I figured his impatience stemmed from his family troubles. His brothers had similar traits as they had acted out in class. Then again, we’d been teenagers with raging hormones and mood swings.
I scanned the neighborhood out of habit. After the cops had raided our home that night, the neighbors had all but shunned us or looked at us as though my mom and I were criminals.
Kross leaned against his truck, all six feet of imposing muscle, sizing me up. Again, I fidgeted under his scrutiny. I always had with him. He emitted a dark and dangerous aura that seemed to seep into my pores, weakening my knees.
He crossed one ankle over the other. The storm that brewed in his gaze calmed. “Since Raven is our daughter, that makes you family in my book.”
