Sweet Harmony (Harmony Falls #1) - Elizabeth Kelly Page 0,72
it,” she scolded.
He grinned and reached for her hand, squeezing it hard. “I’m glad you did.”
She hesitated and gave him a shy smile. “Me too.”
“Good.”
He wanted to kiss her again, but she was already moving away to restack the pillows on the bed. “Here, lie back and we’ll get your leg up and I’ll grab a fresh ice pack.”
He got comfortable on the bed, lifting his leg onto the stack of pillows as she hurried from the room. She returned a few minutes later with a bottle of water and an ice pack and she set it on his knee gently before opening the water and handing it to him.
“Ladies first,” he said.
She drank nearly half of it before giving him the bottle. He finished it off and set it on the nightstand as she cleared her throat. “Okay, well, um, I should go back to my own room now.”
“Stay,” he said.
She gave him a look of surprise. Truthfully, he was more than a little surprised himself. Where the hell did that come from?
“What?” she said.
Now was the time to tell her thank you and let her go back to her own room. Instead, he said, “Stay with me in the bed.”
Her gaze dropped to his crotch. He still had a semi and he shook his head immediately, hating that she thought that was all he wanted from her.
Since when did it become more?
He ignored his inner voice.
“Not for that. I just thought it might, uh, be easier on both of us if you stayed in the bed with me. If I need something in the night, I can nudge you instead of texting you.”
Holy fuck. He sounded like a moron.
To his shock, she said, “Sure. Yeah, that makes sense.”
She walked around to the other side of the bed and climbed in, lying on her side with her back to him. She wasn’t touching him, but he could feel the heat of her body and it weirdly made him feel more content to have her soft warmth in the bed beside him.
“Good night, Connor. Thank you again for, um, you know,” she said.
“It was my pleasure, little Kira. Good night.”
He stared up at the ceiling, listening to Kira’s soft and rhythmic breathing and feeling a peace he hadn’t felt in a very long time.
Chapter Sixteen
“Connor?” Kira shut the front door. “Everything still okay?”
“Just fine. How’s Grace?”
She kicked off her shoes, set the bags of food in the kitchen on the table, and walked into the living room. Connor was where she’d left him two hours ago, on the sectional with his leg propped up on the end section and the TV remote in one hand. He muted the television as she sat next to him on the couch.
“Did you get Grace’s car towed?” he asked.
She nodded. “Yeah, Wade showed up just as I got there. He thinks it might be her starter, but he towed her car back to his shop and will look at it in the morning. I dropped her off at home and will pick her up in the morning to give her a ride to work. She said she could take the bus, but she’d have to leave at a ridiculous hour in the morning and Gracie is not a morning person.”
He laughed. “Yeah, I’ve noticed.”
She smiled at him. “Grace said to say hi. She really likes working for you, Connor. Says you’re the best boss she’s ever had.”
“She’s a great employee,” he said. “Hiring her was one of my better decisions. Do you not have to go back to work tomorrow?”
“No. I texted with Rose and she told me to just go ahead and take the week off.”
He gave her a worried look. “Can you afford to just take the week off?”
“It’s all good. My commission from the Stark sale has staved off the wolves for now.” She grinned at him, but the worry stayed firmly on his face. “Honestly, Connor. It’s fine. Anyway, I picked up some food from Nan’s Diner on my way home. The special was her chicken stew and biscuits, I hope you like her stew.”
“Love it,” he said. “Thanks, Kira.”
“You’re welcome.” She stood and headed toward the kitchen. “We’ll eat in here tonight, if that works for you?”
“Sure,” he said.
She glanced behind her, blushing a little when she realized he was staring at her ass. He didn’t look the least bit ashamed to be caught staring at her butt. In fact, he gave her that flirty grin that showed off