Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 101466 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 507(@200wpm)___ 406(@250wpm)___ 338(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 101466 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 507(@200wpm)___ 406(@250wpm)___ 338(@300wpm)
I took a piece of chicken and some of the salads. They’d been kind enough at the store to add a few plates and some napkins as well as the forks I’d asked for. “This chicken is incredible,” I muttered around a mouthful of the still-warm meat.
Jesse took a piece and bit into it. “Six pieces wasn’t enough,” he groaned.
“We have lots of other things.”
He nodded. “Next time, we’ll get an entire bucket.”
His words warmed me, thrilled he was already planning a next time.
“Good idea.”
A small piece of meat caught in my throat, and I sputtered, smacking my chest and coughing. Jesse sat up, alert and worried. “I’m fine,” I said, coughing a little more. He handed me a bottle of water, and I drank it gratefully.
“I shouldn’t talk and eat,” I teased.
He shook his head. “Dangerous at times.”
I finished my chicken and the salad, looking over the sandwich selection.
“They’re really good. The ham is great. So is the meatloaf,” he offered, trying to help me decide.
“Wanna share one?”
“Sure.”
We ate quietly for a while, enjoying the sun and peace. I shut my eyes with a contented sigh. “It’s so lovely, Jesse. Today is a great day.”
I felt his fingers run down my cheek. I opened my eyes and met his tender gaze. His voice was low. “Yeah, Pixie, it is.”
We finished lunch, packing up the leftovers and deciding to wait a bit for dessert. Jesse lay down opposite me on the blanket, resting his arm over his eyes. I leaned back against the tree, the serenity surrounding us.
“What would you do?” I asked.
“About?” he responded lazily.
“If I were choking. I imagine you’re trained for that.”
“Yes.”
“So, the Heimlich thing?”
He was silent for a moment. His chest jumped as though he was laughing. “In normal situations, yes. The Heimlich thing.” He paused, his voice almost shaking. “In your case, I’d pull back a couple of inches and say sorry. Then carry on.”
It took me a minute to get it, then I gasped. He lifted his arm, grinning so widely, his eyes were almost shut. And he was laughing so hard tears were rolling down his face.
I launched myself at him, and he caught me, pulling me down to his chest and kissing me. We laughed as we kissed, one of us breaking away when the humor would hit us again.
Jesse the jokester. Teasing, fun, sexy. Grumpy, jealous Thorne. Silly, sunglasses-wearing Jesse.
Today, he was all of them.
And I especially loved the fact that I was one of the few people who saw them all.
Chapter Twenty-One
CASEY
Iwoke up, my head on Jesse’s lap. He gazed down at me, a gentle expression on his face again.
“Hey, sleepyhead.”
I sat up, yawning. “How long have I been out?”
“Only about thirty minutes.”
I tilted my head. “You have something on your lip.”
He wiped at it, licking his finger. I looked over at the basket. “Were you into the cupcakes?”
“You were asleep. I had to keep myself entertained.”
“By eating the cupcakes?”
“I only had one,” he protested. “And a couple of cookies.”
I rolled my eyes.
“They were good,” he informed me. “But not as good as yours.”
“You know how to BS your way out of trouble, don’t you?”
“Speaking the truth.”
He reached into the basket and brought out the box. “Want a cupcake?”
“Sure.”
He handed me the vanilla one I had picked out, and I took it from him. I peeled away the paper and broke it in half, then flipped the icing top over onto the bottom and pressed it together like a sandwich, taking a bite.
“What did you just do?” he asked.
I held it up. “Made a cupcake sandwich. Then you get icing in every bite.”
“Dammit, woman. That is brilliant. I have to try it.”
He grabbed another cupcake and copied my movements, taking a huge bite. “Amazing,” he said, cupcake crumbs escaping his mouth. He ignored them and kept eating.
I ate mine, enjoying the rich buttercream and the light vanilla cake. I licked my fingers and stood to go to the brook. “Sticky,” I said, waving my fingers.
“Careful,” Jesse called. “It’s slippery on the rocks,” he chuckled. “And I’m not coming in after you.”
I bent and rinsed my hands, standing upright. “Whatever, Jesse. If I fell in, you’d come after me.”
“Nah,” he laughed. “It’s shallow. Not even you could drown in it.”
Ignoring him, I stood in the water, watching the ripples and current move downstream. The water was so clear I could see the bottom and the pretty rocks and the way the water skimmed over them. I wandered a little, my feet adjusting to the cold temperature. It was deeper in the middle, and I imagined, on a summer day, very refreshing.
“Some rocks for the garden would be nice,” I mused. “I wonder if we could get one of the bigger ones into the trunk?”
“Don’t even think about it,” Jesse hissed into my ear, startling me. I spun around, my foot catching on something in the water, and I stumbled, waving my arms in panic to remain upright. I grabbed at Jesse, who wasn’t prepared, and he slipped and fell, landing in the water with a loud splash. He bolted upright, the water streaming off him.