Page 21 of Bed of Roses

“Are you smelling the air?” Tori asks with a chuckle as we begin striding next door. Just like Fairview, Mount Pleasant has an old downtown strip full of shops and small businesses. I’m finding that I like the old, small-town downtown areas. It’s quite charming.

“I don’t think I have ever breathed in something so clean.”

She turns a bright smile toward me. “It sure beats the smell of the city.”

I twist my lips. “You’re right. I don’t miss the stench of cigarettes, car exhaust, and factory smoke. I can really see why you love it here so much.”

“It grows on you, doesn’t it?”

I nod as she holds the door open for me. As soon as we enter the hardware store, the smell of paint immediately tickles my senses. I rub my nose, not liking the scent as much as the outdoors. “Do you know where the screwsare?” I whisper doubtfully to her as we travel deeper into the store.

“Ye of little faith,” she whispers back. She gently grabs my elbow and steers me down an aisle that has rows of small plastic boxes containing screws of all kinds. I internally gape at all the options. I had no idea there were this many kinds of screws available.

“Jesus,” I hiss as I pick up one particularly large and heavy one.

Tori ignores me while she searches for the right size, browsing the pull-out boxes, picking them up, and putting them back. I wait patiently with my arms loosely crossed over my chest. This could possibly take forever, there are so many damn options.

Movement to my left draws my attention. I glance over, and my eyes go wide. “Shit,” I hiss, whipping back around and hoping like hell he didn’t see me.

“What?” Tori asks absentmindedly. She pulls out another box and makes a noise in the back of her throat. “These are the ones. Can you hand me a bag?”

“Tori,” I hiss while I do as she asks, plucking a thin and small plastic bag from the pile of the others and passing it to her.

“What?” she hisses back, finally glancing over at me.

I tip my head, gesturing behind me, and her eyes flick in that direction before a wide grin spreads across her face. “That’s Cole, right?”

I move to the other side of her, using her like a little shield. “Yes, yes it is.”

Cole hasn’t seen me yet, but he’s browsing the bigger screws that I checked out when we first arrived in the aisle. A look of concentration is etched between his pinched brows as he searches for the right one.

At this vantage point, hidden behind Tori, I can get agood look at him without feeling incredibly guilty or obvious about it. And, damn, he is freaking hot. I mean, I knew he was hot since the moment I met him, but in this moment, staring unabashed, I can really appreciate it.

Today, he’s wearing faded jeans that hug a tight ass. His shirt is an orange graphic t-shirt that he cut the sleeves and most of the sides off, leaving a tiny strip of fabric at the hem to keep the shirt together. The homemade cutoff reveals corded biceps and slivers of his abdomen. I can even see the groove of his hip before it disappears into his jeans.

Every move he makes, a muscle ripples. And his hands? Large, calloused, and scarred. I gulp. I mean, I can easily imagine what those hands would feel like on me, and just by imagination alone, my clit tingles.

“Tegan?” Tori’s whispering voice filters through my thoughts. I look at my friend. “Did you hear anything I said?”

“I’m sorry?”

She rolls her eyes. “You were ogling.” She shoves my shoulder a little. “Just go talk to him.”

“No!” I whisper-yell.

“Oh, come on, Tegan. A fly could see that you’re attracted to him.”

I shake my head. “Am not.”

“You’re such a liar,” she says with a smile. “I thought you came here to change you’re life. Remember what I said about living a wilder life?”

“Well, yeah.” I wrinkle my nose, not liking the direction of this conversation because I know, in the end, she’ll get what she wants as always.

She places a gentle hand on my elbow. “Then do it.”

“Now?” I hiss.

She nods. “Yes.”

---