Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 77941 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77941 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Rhys chewed his lower lip, and Caleb could tell his hands were shaking. He wanted to pull Rhys to him, wrap his arms around him, and hold him until he was able to settle down. But he knew Rhys wouldn’t accept that type of comfort. Physical contact wasn’t going to fix this.
He filled a glass with cold water and handed it to Rhys. “Here. Drink this.” Rhys took a sip, then pressed the glass to his face. “Thank you for staying.”
Rhys nodded. “I didn’t mean to do that.”
“To kiss me?”
Another nod. “I mean, I wanted to, but it’s a bad idea.”
“Maybe, but it didn’t feel like a mistake while we were doing it.”
“No, it didn’t.” Rhys licked his lips as he stared at Caleb, and it was all Caleb could do not to kiss him again. He couldn’t remember ever wanting a man that much.
“I want to kiss you again,” he said. “I want to do a lot more than that.” Rhys’s eyes widened. “But not tonight, because I want you to be absolutely sure of what you want. When I take you upstairs and lay you in my bed, I want you to be all in. I want to be able to make you stop thinking of all the reasons we shouldn’t do what we want. You won’t be thinking about anything but me.”
“Fuck.”
“Do you need me to walk you back to Frost + Foam? Or drive you home?”
“I… um… I walked here from home. I needed… I needed the exercise to calm my nerves.”
Caleb smiled. “Come on. Let me drive you home.” Caleb gestured toward the back of the store.
“You don’t need to do that. Someone might see us together.”
“Rhys, I don’t think it’s a big deal if I give you a ride home. Maybe you were at the pub and you had several drinks.”
“Everyone will know I wasn’t at the pub, and I rarely drink more than a single beer.”
“Rhys, it’s late, and you’re shaken up. You shouldn’t walk home alone. How far is it?”
“It’s just a mile and a half. Really, I’m good.”
He was far from good. His hands were still shaking, and he wouldn’t look at Caleb. “My truck is in the back. No one is going to see us. I won’t even drive on Front Street.” He held out his hand, fighting back a smile when Rhys accepted it and laced their fingers together like he needed Caleb to anchor him.
Caleb unlocked his truck and waited by the passenger door as Rhys climbed into the seat and buckled himself in. As Caleb seated himself and started the truck, he noticed that Rhys kept his focus on the window. Caleb wanted to reach for his hand again, but he squeezed the gear shift instead. He wasn’t going to push.
“Are you all right?”
Rhys nodded but didn’t speak.
Caleb turned out into the alley, then drove along a road that paralleled Front Street. They were about halfway to Rhys’s house when Rhys finally glanced in Caleb’s direction.
“Wait. How do you know where I live?”
“We picked you up for the farm today.”
He laughed. “Oh shit, right. I’m not thinking clearly right now.”
“Me either,” Caleb said.
That had Rhys turning to look at him again. “You’re not?”
“No, I think it’s going to take a while for my brain to come back online. That was a damn good kiss.”
“Yes. I mean, you’re a good kisser, but I don’t think I’m all that good at it.”
Caleb shook his head. “You’re wrong. Don’t doubt yourself anymore.”
“I shouldn’t have kissed you. We can’t be more than business partners. Anything else is asking for trouble.”
Caleb knew he was right, but he still didn’t want to agree with him. “Things would be complicated, considering what we do and how small Frostwick Harbor is, but if you’re interested, I won’t say no to another kiss.”
“We can’t. I mean, it was… Your lips are so fucking soft.”
It was all Caleb could do not to pull the truck over and kiss him again right there. Rhys was so cute, and Caleb was fairly sure he didn’t understand the power of his shy smile.
“You’re welcome to feel my lips again anytime you like.” Rhys sucked in his breath, which reassured Caleb he wasn’t coming on too strong.
Rhys didn’t say anything else, but that was fine. The fact that he hadn’t run away after the kiss and had accepted a ride from Caleb was progress. He couldn’t expect everything to change in one night, no matter how much he wanted to follow Rhys into his house and right to his bed.
Rhys was right. Anything between them would be complicated, but he thought the risk might be worth it. He wanted to see more of the passion Rhys held tightly inside him. He’d only glimpsed a little that night when Rhys had closed the distance and taken his lips like he was starving for him, but he knew there was so much more.