Page 64 of Hit the Ground
He’d opened the truck door, one boot already inside, when the words tumbled out of me before I could think. “Caleb…wait.”
He turned, hand braced on the doorframe, eyebrows raised.
I stood, heart hammering, and crossed the short stretch of yard to him. “There’s something I’d like…well, I guessneedis the better word for it. Will you give me one thing?”
“Anything you want or need—it’s yours,” he vowed.
I sucked in a shaky breath. “Would you give me a hug?”
For a second, something in his expression softened so much, it made me ache all over. Then he stepped down from the truck and wrapped those big arms around me, pulling me flush against him.
Heaven help me, the second my chest hit his, I melted. He was tall and strong, but there was nothing hard about the way he held me, just solid warmth and a slow, steady heartbeat under my ear. His beard brushed the top of my head, his hand splayed broad and protective against my back. It was everything I’d imagined…and so much worse, because now I knew exactly how it felt.
“Is this good?” he murmured.
“So good,” I answered, barely resisting the urge to rub my face against the well-worn flannel of his shirt.
“Yeah,” he rumbled. “It is.”
I might have stayed there forever if the sound of a car in desperate need of a new muffler hadn’t brought me back to earth. With a sigh, I took a step back. Caleb looked down at me, his thumb brushing a stray hair from my cheek.
“Thank you for giving me that.”
“Anything you ask for, Allie,” he murmured. “Take all the time you need. I’m not going anywhere.”
Chapter Twenty-five
Alice
ThetimeIneededturned out to be approximately twenty-nine hours and thirty-seven minutes. I’d done nothing but think about what Caleb had said, how he’d said it, and that hug. Oh, that hug.
His phantom arms had stayed around me for hours after he left. I’d been so fortified from less than a minute in his embrace, I’d gardened the hell out of my yard, the whole time thinking about what it would be like to give Caleb a chance.
I bet I’d get a lot more of those hugs. And more. So much more.
I really wanted more, especially with him. I’d never wanted it with anyone else.
I managed to hold off until nine that night. The usual time of our phone calls. My hands only shook slightly as I dialed his number.
I’d almost lost my nerve by the time he answered on the fourth ring.
“Allie? You okay?”
“Hey, I’m fine,” I replied, though that was an exaggeration. I was somewhat freaking out. “I’ve been thinking.”
“Give me a second, I want to hear everything you’ve been thinking.” I heard movement then a door closing. “Sorry. I got Jesse back this afternoon. He’s in his room, doing his thing, but I doubt he wants to hear his old man on the phone with his favorite librarian.”
I laughed. “Did he have a good week with his mom?”
“Sure. They get along pretty well. I appreciate you asking, but I suspect Jesse wasn’t what was on your mind.”
“You want me to cut to the chase?” I teased.
“To tell you the truth, I’m so glad to have your voice in my ear again, you could read me a receipt, and I’d listen.”
A gush of air rushed out of me so fast, I fell heavily onto my couch cushions. “That was sweet.”
“I told you I missed our calls, and I meant it.”
