Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 70264 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 351(@200wpm)___ 281(@250wpm)___ 234(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70264 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 351(@200wpm)___ 281(@250wpm)___ 234(@300wpm)
I don’t know what I want. I’ve never had a chance to even think about it. Maybe it’d be nice to be confident like Mindy, but her looks haven’t gotten her what she wants. I glance at Maverick, taking in his strong profile and the way his lips always turn up at the corners. I have what Mindy wants. Maybe I’m not doing too badly, after all.
By the time we pull up at the ranch, I’m emotionally wrung out and not sure how I feel anymore. I look down at the soiled handkerchief. Crumpling it between my fingers, I stuff it into my pocket.
Maverick cuts the engine, and we sit in silence for a few moments. I feel relieved to be back, which is an odd sensation under the circumstances.
Maverick touches his hat, pushing it up a little. He licks his lips, biting the bottom one, then he turns to me. “You know, there’s nowhere else I’d rather be than here, Taylor. And I hope that in time, you’re gonna feel the same way.” He reaches over to take my hands, and I shift to face him. My heart skips a beat. The questioning in his warm, hazel eyes reveals a gentle need for reassurance, but the masculine squareness of his jaw and the healthy whiteness of his perfect teeth cause me to look away quickly before he notices my blush. I want to take his face in my hands and feel the prickle of his stubble beneath my fingers. I want to trace the lines that crease at the corners of his eyes, the result of years of laughter. I risk a glance back, and his eyes and lips smile softly. “Let me get your bags from the trunk and into the house. I’m taking ownership of another one of those muffins in there, and then you’re gonna set to work on more because I want to see what other flavors you’ve got up your sleeve.”
“You’re not gonna tell the others what happened, are you?” My voice is a desperate plea.
“We want to protect you, and I don’t keep secrets from my friends. They’re not gonna like it. Being rude to you is the same as being rude to us.”
I exhale, admitting defeat. I’m not used to having anyone in my corner, and now I have three men ready to come to my aid. It’ll take some getting used to.
I reach to open the car door and Maverick tuts. “Hell no, you sit right there!” He makes his way around my side of the car and helps me out. “Ma’am.” He removes his hat in a broad, theatrical sweeping gesture, bending down to almost skim the dusty ground with it. I can’t help but smile. He brings my hand to his lips and kisses me with an old-world flourish and eye contact so fierce, I blush.
He unloads the bags of clothing and the drugstore items and takes them inside. I love the way that no one needs to lock the door. It’s just always open for whoever wants to come inside. Neither Clint nor Jesse are home, which is a relief as having to go over everything that happened in town is not something I’m keen on doing right now. All I want to do is hide away for a bit.
“I’m going to unpack. I’ve got some chores to do upstairs.”
“I’ll carry these bags up for you,” Maverick says, already striding into the hallway. I guess I don’t have a choice. I follow him up, hoping he’s going to have a burning desire to get back to work, but when he drops the bags onto the floor next to my bed, he turns and reaches out for my hand.
“Today wasn’t what I hoped it would be. I wanted you to have a good time… I wanted it to feel like a treat.”
His bewitching, smiling eyes search mine, and I try my hardest to smile so he doesn’t feel bad. “It was fun, and you treated me to more than I would ever have asked for.”
He touches my cheek. “You’re as sweet as your blueberry muffins, you know that?”
I shrug, embarrassed. My sister, Molly, is sweet. I feel tough but brittle. Wearing a hard shell on the outside to protect my fragile interior. It brings a lump to my throat to wonder what I would have been like if I didn’t have to deal with my past.
“Can I kiss you, muffin?” Maverick’s eyes focus on my mouth, and he folds his lips in, releasing them with a sheen.
I’m trembling inside, uncertain about myself and what all of this means to me. But I’m not uncertain about Maverick. Despite Mindy’s criticism, I can feel his good soul like an aura emanating from him. I want to press myself up against him so his good energy can envelop me and push away the tinge of gray that’s clung to me since Mom died. I want him to break through my toughened exterior so I can be the sweet girl he thinks I am.