by Kennedy Fox
He puts it back on his head and nods. “Yeah, a gift from my grandfather.”
It’s a beaten-up bluish gray color with a silver embroidered Texas state on the front. Nothing fancy, but I always liked the way it looked on him.
“I can’t believe it hasn’t unraveled yet, honestly.” I lick my lips, willing myself to stop talking. This is the most normal conversation Diesel and I have had in ages, maybe ever. He’s usually poking fun at me, and I’m typically telling him to fuck off.
Get out! Time to leave! Walk away and drive home!
Diesel chuckles, nodding in agreement. “Same. It’s my favorite one, though, so hopefully it’ll last forever.” He takes a step toward me, nearly caging me in against the bar top. “So, I have another question for you.”
“Okay.” I swallow hard.
“About that night…” he reiterates.
“What about it?”
Diesel’s in front of me, our bodies so close our feet touch. “Was it your first kiss?”
Inhaling a sharp breath, I can’t seem to get enough oxygen. Why is he asking me this?
I remember how he asked that night too.
Blushing, I nod. “Yeah, it most definitely was.”
He cocks a brow, entertained. “Really? Because I remember a sassy brat who told me ‘yeah, right’ and then stomped away.”
My chest deflates as I exhale. “Like I said, thirteen-year-old insecurities…I wasn’t exactly an expert on boys. Hell, I didn’t even have a real boyfriend until my junior year of high school.”
“Chad was a tool bag,” he states. “Edward too. Your history ain’t lookin’ too good.”
“Mine?” My voice raises an octave. “Let’s discuss your lineup of Southern belles then, shall we?”
“Actually, I was hoping to have a repeat of our first kiss instead.” He leans down, pinning me with his hard stare.
The casual way he throws that request out has me blinking, slow and hard. “What?”
“Can I kiss you, Rowan?” His deep Southern drawl sends shivers right between my legs.
What the hell is happening?
Swallowing hard, I inhale a deep breath, trying to find my courage. “You didn’t ask that night so…”
“I’m a gentleman now,” he retorts with a cocky grin. “Do I need to ask a second time?”
Biting my lip, I chew it for a moment before releasing it and sliding my tongue across it. “Yes.”
“Yes, I need to ask again, or yes, I can kiss you?”
The smug look on his face tells me he knows exactly which question I was responding to. He’s such an arrogant jerk sometimes.
Deciding to give him a little taste of his own medicine, I wrap my arms around his neck and pull his face to mine but not all the way. I stop when our lips are merely centimeters apart, and I can feel his ragged breathing against my mouth.
His strong hands grip my waist, and he squeezes my hips, waiting for permission. “Yes,” I whisper. “Kiss me.”
Chapter Seven
DIESEL
As soon as the words leave her mouth, I wrap my hand around her neck and pull her lips to mine.
Sweet and soft.
Just as I remembered.
But this kiss is electric. Intense. A decade in the making.
My other hand squeezes her hip, and she arches her back, pressing herself into me. Rowan moans when I slide my tongue inside and taste her deliciousness. My fingers grab her two french braids, and I roughly pull on them like I used to when we were kids. Her head falls back, and our kiss deepens; our tongues fight for control as eagerness takes over.
“Fuck, Row,” I growl, sweeping my tongue along her bottom lip. “I’ve been waiting ten years to do that.”
Her breathing is ragged as we make eye contact. “I was only thirteen. That would’ve been highly inappropriate.”
“Most of my fantasies about you were,” I admit, shrugging.
“Oh really?” She cocks a brow. “Care to elaborate?”
My eyes gaze down her body, admiring every curve. “Hell yeah.”
Before she can protest, I grab under her ass and lift her. She squeals as she locks her hands around my neck and wraps her legs around my waist. I walk us around the bar and set her down on one of the stools so we’re eye level. Cupping her cheek, I bring our mouths together and savor her taste.
“I always liked when you did your hair like this,” I taunt, pulling on one of her braids again. “You have no idea what they did to my teenage boy hormones. Then you’d put on a cowboy hat, and I’d nearly nut in my jeans at the thought of how I’d yank on them as I bent you over.”
Rowan bursts out laughing, tightening her thighs around me. “That’s quite the imagination for a teenager.”
I flash a half grin. “That was in my thoughts just last week.”
She swats at my chest, but I grab her wrist, pulling her closer. “Did you wear them for me?”
“Do you think everything is about you?” she retorts. “How does that ball cap even fit with that big head of yours?”
“Answer the question, Row.”
“I’ve been fixin’ my hair like this for years,” she tells me. “You’d chase me and pull on them, then tease me and say I looked like Little Red Riding Hood.”
I chuckle at the memory and shrug. “Well, your hair does have a red tint in the sun.”
“And you’d say how you were the Big Bad Wolf, and that if you caught me, you were going to eat me,” she adds, unamused.
I burst out laughing again. “I was a little shit.”
“So I’d run, and of course, you were always faster than me,” she deadpans, tilting her head. “Now I remember why I hated you so much.”
My mouth tips into a grin. She’s trying so hard to be upset with me, crossing her arms and putting space between us. After a decade, I finally kissed her again and am not wasting another opportunity.
“That was just foreplay,” I taunt, leaning closer. “All these years of pent-up sexual frustration…stop fightin’ it, Row.”
“And what were all the one-nighters and hookups? Practice?”
I arch a brow. “Were you jealous?”
She gives me her famous eye roll. “No.”
I tilt her chin up until our gazes meet. “Let me kiss you again.”
“You gonna ask every time?” I can tell she’s holding back a smile.
“You gonna stop being stubborn?” I counter, plucking her bottom lip from her teeth. “Because I have plans for this sassy mouth.”
“Is that how you win all the girls over? Skip over the dating and get-to-know-yous and go straight for the panty-dropping one-liners?”
“I know everything about you, Rowan. At this rate, we’ve been datin’ for years because there isn’t anything I don’t already know or haven’t observed.”
She scoffs. “You don’t know everything.”
I close the gap between us until my mouth hovers over hers. “Try me,” I challenge. “I bet if I slid my hand between your legs, you’d be wet. Am I right?”
She swallows. “Wrong.”
I smirk. “And I bet if I rubbed my thumb over your nipple, it’d be hard.”
“It’s chilly in here.”
“That right? So I have no effect on you? Is that what you’re sayin’?”
Rowan shrugs, unfazed.
“You’re bruising my heart here, woman. Throw me a bone or something,” I plead. “I won’t kiss you again until I know where your head’s at.”
I refuse to screw this moment up by thinking with my dick. As much as I want her, I won’t go into this one-sided. She’ll have to tell me she wants me just as much, or she’ll need to stop this before it can even start.
“Alright,” she says, sitting straighter. “Can I show you?”
I wave my hand out, motioning for her to proceed.
Rowan grabs my wrist and places my palm against her chest. “You feel that?” she asks. I close my eyes and feel her heart rapidly pounding.
&
nbsp; “Yes,” I tell her.
“That’s you,” she says softly. “Something changed between us, and now when you’re near, my body reacts to your presence.” She exhales sharply. “Even more with your touch.”
“What changed?” I open my eyes and ask, sliding my hand up to her face.
“I started seeing you.” Rowan looks up at me, her expression soft and vulnerable. “You still annoy the shit outta me, but now I see a man I want to spend more time with than away from.”
Chuckling, I brush my thumb over her flushed cheek. “Took you long enough to get here.” I cover her mouth with mine, sliding my tongue between her lips, and give in to the desire I’ve held back for so long.
We battle with our bodies, touching, sucking, pushing, pulling. I can’t get enough of the woman I’ve wanted since I was a teen, and it feels too good to be true.
“What does this mean for us, Row?” I ask, leaning my forehead against hers. “The ball’s in your court.”
I watch as she licks her lips and blows out a shallow breath. “I think it’d be best if we just take it slow and see where things go before announcing anything.”
“You’re afraid of what Riley will do?” I cock a brow.
“Well, yes,” she admits, then smirks. “Plus, sneaking around could be kinda fun. Gives us a chance to explore our feelings before the whole town’s in our business. Because they will be.”
She’s right. The moment the news is out, everyone will have an opinion about it. “Alright, I’m good with that.”
Rowan smiles, then nervously chews on her bottom lip. “Now what?”
“Now I walk out of here with blue balls, and we try this secret dating thing until we’re ready to tell people, which means we have to keep up the act of only being friends in public.”
“Does that mean you’ll be dating other people in the meantime?” she asks. “You know…to keep up appearances.”
“Hell no and neither will you. I’m not screwing up the best thing to ever happen to me.”
Rowan’s who I’ve always wanted anyway, and I’ll do everything I can to prove that to her.
She chuckles, then nods. “Okay.”
“Rowan Bishop, are you blushing?” I tease, pulling on one of her braids.
“Oh my God, I hate you!” She punches my arm, laughing.
“See? People will be none the wiser that we’re dancing between the sheets behind closed doors.” I waggle my brows, and she pushes me back, jumping off the stool.
“I’m already regretting this decision,” she states, walking away, but I quickly grab her arm and pull her back into my chest.
“I’ve always adored that smart mouth of yours,” I tell her, bringing my lips to hers. “I can’t wait to see what else you can do with it.”
Diesel: You’re lookin’ pretty sexy in those jean shorts. Especially when you bend over.
Rowan: Stop staring at my ass.
Diesel: Never. I’ve been staring at it since I was ten.
Rowan: OMG! You were a little perv.
Diesel: Says the girl who wore bikinis around all summer. Would you rather I stared at your chest?
Rowan: I’m almost certain I did catch you looking a few times…
Diesel: Well, I only had so much willpower. Teenage hormones won nine times out of ten.
Rowan: Go away.
Diesel: Come home with me tonight.
Rowan: I can’t. I’m trying to work, and you’re distracting me.
I chuckle, unable to hide how happy bantering with Rowan makes me. She’s working till close, and I’ve been here for two hours, purposely ordering expensive beer that she has to get from the bottom of the cooler. Though she’s trying to act unaffected by me, she’s doing a shit job with her hidden glances and flushed cheeks. We’re supposed to be acting normal so no one notices, but considering Riley and Grayson both asked why I’ve been smiling all day, I know I’m not doing a great job at it either.
So far, we only get moments together at closing time when I stay behind and help her. Once her duties are complete, we make out in the office until she tells me to go home. I’ve been fucking exhausted for four days, but it’s been so goddamn worth it. However, I crashed right after work tonight so I didn’t get to the bar until ten. Staying up until three a.m., then having to be up at six to work a nine-hour day is quickly catching up to me. Rowan’s told me I don’t have to come in and visit every night, but it’s the only time we get between our work schedules. I have off on Saturdays, so I’m hoping she’ll have some time to spare for us to really hang out privately.
My place is still being fixed up, but we can still hang out in my living room. Of course she’s hesitant because Riley or any of the other ranch hands could come over and bust us being together. Keeping our relationship to ourselves isn’t an ideal situation, but it’s what we have to do right now until we figure out this new territory together.
Diesel: You should meet me in the equipment barn tomorrow during my lunch break.
Rowan: What time? I have a couple of errands to run for my dad in the morning.
Diesel: I’d make any time work for you.
Rowan: I should be done by noon.
Diesel: It’s a date, baby. Wear your hair in those braids I like.
Rowan: Get your mind out of the gutter! No getting handsy.
Diesel: Absolutely no promises…In fact, wear a skirt too.
She knows I’m joking, but just to be sure, I send her a winking emoji. We’re taking things slow, something I’m constantly having to remind myself, but it’s for the best. As much as I want to explore every inch of Rowan, I want to give this a real shot. No hopping into bed and screwing shit up. Though I know a lot about her, she’s slowly been opening up, and I’ve seen another side of her. Rowan confessed last night that she’s hesitant about jumping into a relationship after the way her last one ended. I assured her we’d go at her pace, and I’m not pressuring her to do anything she doesn’t want to. I’ll be one hundred percent patient for her. I’ve waited this long, and I’ll wait as long as needed until she’s ready to take a leap.
Rowan: SMH. You’re relentless.
Diesel: I can lift it again like I did at the church picnic when everyone saw your Barbie underwear.
Rowan: Another reason I hated you growing up.
Diesel: Lies. You adored me.
Rowan: That really was a cruel prank. I should get you back for that.
Diesel: What’d you have in mind? Handcuffs? Blindfolds? Maybe a whip?
Rowan: That’s a GREAT idea! Once you’re all tied up, I’ll take a picture and send it to all your exes, and they’ll realize they dodged a bullet.
Diesel: Man. You’re evil. Pure evil.
Rowan: You started it!
Diesel: I was eight!
I hear her cackling in the office and know she’s laughing at our conversation. She pretends to be annoyed by me, but by the way her mouth attacks mine, it’s more than obvious she’s putting up a front. Whether she’s holding back because she’s worried how everyone will react once we announce it or that she’ll get hurt, my goal will always be to make her laugh. I’ll prove to her I’m nothing like any man she’s ever dated, especially her douchebag ex-boyfriends. I’d take a gunshot to the heart before I hurt Rowan.
She returns to the bar moments later and tells Claire, one of the other bartenders, to start on some of their closing duties. There’s two hours left, but it’s been slow, which means she might actually be finished earlier than usual.
“I can start grabbing cases and restocking for you,” I tell her before finishing off my beer.
She rests her arms on the bar and leans close to me. “You should go home and sleep. Those bags under your eyes make you look old.”
“I hear chicks dig older guys.” I shrug.
“Really? What chicks are you referring to?” She makes a show of looking around at the near empty room. George is on the far end of the bar, and another couple are on the other side.
“T
he only chick I care about is right in front of me.” I smirk, knowing that’ll get me an eye roll because if I mention Trace, I might get slapped upside the head.
“Are you always a smooth talker, or do you just turn it on when it suits you?” she taunts.
“Oh, always. You were just too busy being a brat to notice.”
“A brat?” She scoffs, pulling back. “You constantly picked on me!”
My face splits into a knowing grin. “Because I liked your attention.”
I see the way her cheeks tint, and I crave more of it. Before I can open my mouth again, the door opens, and we both look.
“Uncle Evan,” Rowan says, surprised to see him here this late. We both are. I notice he’s still wearing scrubs too.
“Hey, kiddo.” He gives me a firm nod when our eyes meet. “Diesel.”
“What’s up, man? You’re comin’ in late.”
He takes a seat next to me. “Just getting off a thirty-six-hour shift.”
“Geez,” Rowan says. “Want a beer?”
“Yes, please, and an inventory report when you get the chance.”
“Sure thing.”
Evan and his wife, Emily, are both doctors and work in San Angelo an hour away, but he’s always found a way to stay involved as much as he can with his hectic schedule. John handled the bar between his duties at the B&B, but now that Rowan is back for good, they’re handing her the reins.
