Christmas Kisses with My Cowboy - Diana Palmer Page 0,109
to set the rules.”
“I do?” After having a man running her life for ten years, Veronica couldn’t even tell Ted how much that idea appealed to her.
“Yeah, like what’s okay, and what’s not okay for us to do together.”
A few ideas sprang to life in her head involving him maybe being naked, and Veronica’s cheeks heated. She hurried to get out two mugs and the creamer.
“Maybe we should play that bit by ear?”
“Fine by me.” He nodded. “We could go with the idea that we’ve been dating online for a while, and that one of the reasons you came back for Christmas was to size me up in person.”
“Sounds reasonable.”
Ted’s phone buzzed and he took it out of his pocket and made a face. “I’ve got to relieve Mano at the gas pumps for a couple of hours. Can I take my coffee to go?” He opened one of the cupboards and produced a metal flask. “You can stick mine in there.”
“Don’t you need some lunch?” Veronica called after him as he went down the hallway to his bedroom to change into his work clothes.
“Still full from breakfast!” he shouted back at her. “I’ll need to go grocery shopping at some point if we’re not going to eat pizza every day.”
As Veronica had been in the refrigerator, she knew he had a point. She poured the coffee, added sugar to hers, and waited for him to return to the kitchen, which he did in very short time.
He was wearing a dark blue coverall with the word Baker’s embroidered on the pocket and thick work boots. She instinctively went over, stood on tiptoe, and flattened down his mussed-up hair. He caught her around the waist and held her still until she looked shyly up at him.
“May I kiss you?”
“Yes, please.”
He slowly lowered his head, giving her all the time in the world to say no, and set his mouth over hers. As he angled his head, the subtle scrape of his stubble against her skin made her knees go weak and the polite kiss turned wild. Within seconds, she had her hands in his hair and was demanding more.
He only stepped back when his cell phone buzzed again, his lips slightly parted, which made her want to drag him right back and keep him there until they were naked and horizontal. Who’d have guessed that Ted Baker would be a phenomenal kisser?
“Gotta go.” He cleared his throat and swallowed hard. “Spare key’s by the door if you want to go out and explore.”
“Okay.” She turned to hand him his coffee. “See you in a couple of hours.”
After he’d left, she remained in the kitchen, her gaze fixed on the door, her senses still reeling from the kiss they’d shared—a kiss that had felt both natural and incredibly hot. He tasted right, and his body fitted against hers in all the correct places.
She smiled. Maybe she had been a fool not to notice he was attracted to her in school. She could’ve stayed in Morgantown, built a happy life with him, and never had to deal with the awfulness of Jason. But maybe the experience of a Jason made a woman appreciate the finer things in life such as coming back to her hometown and finding Ted Baker all grown up.
A loud piglet snort from the bathroom reminded her not to get carried away until she’d sorted out the current mess her life was in. She set down her coffee and went to find Bacon, who was extremely pleased to see her. She sat on the floor and let him climb into her lap. His happy little pig snuffles and wet nose made her want to hug him tight and never let go.
At least she hadn’t crossed any state lines and was still in California. Was it actually illegal to transport a single, lovable pet pig into another state? Did Bacon need papers? Did she need a lawyer?
Veronica patted Bacon, set him back on the floor, and got up. There was no point staying inside worrying about everything. She’d wait until Uncle Victor returned, and share all her troubles with the man who’d brought her up after her parents had died in a car accident. If he couldn’t help her, no one could. Until then, she’d keep an eye on the news, enjoy her time with Ted, and make sure he at least had something to eat for dinner before she went out with Avery.