Perfect Risk (Mason Creek #1) - C.A. Harms Page 0,34

mother had spread out there. "So," sipping the warm liquid, soothing my throat now that it felt raw, "the Harper wedding."

We quickly fell into a groove, going over the notes of the upcoming wedding. My mother had this event booked long before I'd returned to town. She'd met with the bride and her mother, so I needed to be brought up to speed before our last meeting, before this weekend's event.

But even with them both now distracted I couldn't get my head clear. I kept falling back to the words I remembered Wyatt whispering in my ear as he held me closer, his arms wrapped around me, the heat of his breath, the softness of his words.

“There is something here Sadie, something between us. Something I think we both want and that maybe you’re too afraid to act on.”

He couldn't have been more right, I was afraid. I know he thought that it was only because of what happened when we were younger but honestly, my luck with men since then has never been good. The cheating, the lying, it had become a pattern every man followed. Trusting was an issue, and it was mine. I was trying, I really was, but there was that constant voice in my head that was screaming out, reminding me that this was just another heartache in the making.

"Friday night." Wyatt leaned over the counter, staring at me with intent. "Six o'clock, dinner, a movie?"

"What makes you think that I have Friday night free?" I'd found challenging Wyatt had become a new favorite of mine. It managed to inflict that boyish grin of his every time, and I really loved that grin.

We were alone in the shop, Miley had gone home for the night. We'd been slow, it was only another hour before closing.

"At this point Sadie, I'll take any night you give me, an hour on a Tuesday afternoon." Reaching out, he toyed with my fingers, before linking our hands together. A warmth ran over me, pooling in my stomach. This man, I didn't plan for the way he'd made me feel. A reminder that I was a woman with needs, needs that only multiplied in his presence, it wasn't fair.

"I have a wedding this weekend I need to prepare for," I was more than prepared.

"Then let me help you."

"Oh, are you a florist now?"

"I can be whatever you want me to be." Grinning at me, I was thankful the counter was separating us.

As if reading my thoughts, Wyatt stood tall and walked around the island, stepping in closer to me. I stared at his chest afraid to make eye contact. My mind once again battling with what my body wanted. "I just want you to be real?"

The silence of the shop was deafening. My words hanging heavily between us.

Then I felt his hand glide over my shoulder, along the side of my neck, before his thumb nudges my head to lift. When my eyes met his, I noticed immediately there was absolutely no humor in his expression. "I've never in my life been more real, than when I’m with you."

The way his palm caressed my face, his thumb softly gliding over my jaw left me in awe. Again, lost to the feel of Wyatt's touch.

"I'm not gonna screw this up, I know you're waiting for that, expecting it." I felt raw and tried to look away, but he didn't allow it. "I will never be anything but real, I promise you that. I like you Sadie, and I want more than anything for us to have a chance. I want to get to know you, I want you to know me."

"Dinner sounds good," I whispered.

"No movie?"

"We'll see how the night goes." Biting my lips I hide the smile.

“I'll take that." Leaning in, he lightly kissed my lips and my eyes fluttered shut. "Don't be scared of this." He kissed me once more, only this time he lingered there a little longer, trailing over my lower lip with his tongue. I gripped his shirt, feeling my desire for him take over.

It was him that pulled away, trailing his thumb over my lower lip, his eyes following the movement. "Six, I'll pick you up."

I laughed, the idea of him walking across the driveway to knock on my front door was funny.

"People are talking," he added and again our gazes locked. "I like hearing our names being whispered."

Allowing his hand to fall away from my face, he stepped back. "Friday is three days away, so