Page 40 of In This Moment

He’d thought, or assumed, Scarlett was single. “How long have they been together?”

“Scarlett and Aden?” She laughed, rich and addictive. “They’re not. They drive each other up a wall and back down again. On an hourly basis. They’re friends. Sort of.”

“Sort of, huh?” She was amusing when talking about anything but herself. More open book and less reserved.

“Yeah, it’s hard to categorize their relationship. He’d do damn near anything for her, and she respects the heck outta him. She was the one who recognized he should make a go of the business instead of just tending to her horses. They fight like red-headed stepchildren.”

Sounded like foreplay in his book. Mighty fine of Scarlett, though. Not only to acknowledge Aden’s gifts, but put them to use in way that offered him independence.

“You’d like Aden. We’ll get a group of us together one night and introduce you. Might not be a bad idea to join club yourself. Meet some of the townsfolk.”

“Maybe.” Friday nights could prove problematic because that’s when he did Monday’s layout. Then again, he could knock it out anytime over the weekend. “We’ll see.”

“Anyway,” she said through a sigh. “We had a lot more people than expected, I think out of curiosity about the library and wanting to hear gossip. Mostly women, but we had about ten gentleman. We settled on a cozy mystery for this month.”

He nodded, not having much to add. He’d rather listen to her talk, anyhow. With her being so close, her intoxicating scent was wreaking havoc on his attention span. As in, he had none. What had occurred back in his office this afternoon began playing on a loop through his head. How he’d almost kissed her. The things she’d said.

“There was bickering and fussing over what genre to start with, so finally we just took a vote and—”

“How long is a hot minute?”

Straightening, she snapped her mouth shut, confusion creasing her forehead.

Crap. He hadn’t meant to interrupt, but it was driving him bonkers. He’d been having a hard time straddling personal and professional with regards to her. Apparently, half the town, mayor included, thought Graham and Rebecca were dating. And okay with it. Tonight’s visit from Gunner had thrown Graham a one, two punch, first with fear for his job and then with the comment about her.

“Um…” Her lips pouted in thought. “In southern terms, it typically refers to a long time, I guess. Could be weeks, months, or years, depending on the context. Why?”

Well, okay. That hadn’t clarified anything.

Crawling out of his skin, yet again, he rose and paced the short sidewalk in front of her stoop. “The other night at dinner, you said it had been a hot minute since you’d slept with anyone.”

“Oh, that.”

Uh huh, that. “So, in that context, how long is a hot minute?”

She stared at him, her expression unreadable. “My most recent relationship lasted about eleven months. We broke up almost a year ago.”

A year? He thought his dry spell of seven months was bad. He’d been with Felicia going on two years, and she’d flaked the second his career started tanking. Which only proved she hadn’t given a damn about him. Frankly, he hadn’t been all that upset. Or surprised.

He paced anew, his head a riot. “At the office today, I nearly kissed you, and then I apologized.”

She stared some more, and how he wished her typically expressive eyes would give him an inkling of her thoughts. He was batting zero.

Fine, he’d keep going on his bipolar rant. “You said that you weren’t sorry I tried.” At the time, if she’d given him a lap dance while wearing a dinosaur costume, he would’ve been less shocked. Or perplexed. “What does that mean, precisely? Could you maybe spell it out?”

This was a very precarious position. He was her supervisor, and though he’d never, not in the realm of ever, force himself on a woman, want them to feel they were being sexually harassed, or coaxed in any manner, he also had to protect himself. His career had already taken a knockout hit. Anything else would be a death blow. And on the flip side, she needed to know she could trust him, that he’d respect her, and that any engagement would be her choice. Without repercussions.

She drew a slow delicate breath, gaze never leaving his, and when she finally spoke, her voice was soft, bordering on feeble. “I’m not very good at this sort of thing, Graham.”

Of all the replies he’d anticipated, that hadn’t made the cut. “Not good at what thing?”

Her teeth worked her lower lip, and it took everything he had not to erase the distance and do that for her. His skin heated and muscle locked around bone. His fingers twitched in his abject desire to touch her.

A long blink, and she lowered her chin, absently petting the dog. A move so unlike her spirited, straightforward personality that even gravity seemed like a myth.

He needed an aspirin. “Rebecca?”

“Dating.” She winced, shaking her head as if berating herself. “I’m not very good at dating or relationships or the flirty banter beforehand. I don’t have much experience in this arena. Growing up in a small town where secrets don’t exist, there weren’t many boyfriend options. A couple, but you get it. All the guys around here had played in the same sandbox. In college, there had been a few interests. Nothing long term. I was more focused on my studies. Same for after I graduated. Some here and there, but I was trying to make a name for myself. That eleven-month relationship I mentioned? It was my longest.”

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