Page 60 of Gifts

“Your goats are a riot, Ms. Lockhart.” Levi looks over his shoulder after he passes the ball to Knox, but it was intercepted by a sneaky black and white goat.

I don’t have a chance to answer when Asa interrupts. “You sleep good?”

I look back to him and his eyes on me tell the tale—and that tale is all about him making me hot and sweaty.

“I did,” I admit. “Better than I thought I would. I don’t remember the last time I slept that long.”

If the smirk on his face means anything, Asa is pleased with himself.

Just when I was about to ask why he was holding goats and what they’ve been doing all morning, I remember the construction on my house. “Has Jimbo been by? He’s my contractor. He usually starts working early on Saturdays.”

“Yeah, Jimbo.” Asa raises a brow. “He’s an interesting guy. I told him to take the day off. I wanted you to sleep.”

I open my mouth to protest him butting in on my home refurb plans, because it’s already taking forever. I can’t afford to send Jimbo home if he’s willing to work, but before I open my mouth to argue, Jasmine and the goats turn up the volume. I look toward the front of my house and from around the corner, an SUV on steroids appears. It’s tall, wide, long, and all silver—from the paint to the shiny chrome. Asa walks past me, brushing my hip with his fingers for no one else to see. When I look closer, the man I met among the chaos last night, Crew, is driving and Grady is following in another big, black monster of a vehicle.

I jump when Asa whistles, the shrill causing a tingle to crawl up my spine, and points to my driveway where Crew pulls up and parks.

I walk up beside Asa. “What’s everyone doing here so early?”

I don’t get an answer because Crew climbs down and tosses something to Asa. “Sweet ride. Extra set and paperwork are in a folder on the passenger seat.”

Asa catches whatever Crew tossed. “Thanks. I hope it didn’t take too long.”

“Not bad,” Crew says as he moves toward the back of Grady’s vehicle. “Took longer to get there and back.”

“Are they staying?” I lean in and whisper to Asa. I’m still in Asa’s shirt from yesterday, I haven’t put on a bra, and my hair is a rat’s nest.

“Nope,” Asa answers and keeps talking to Crew. “You get what else I needed?”

Grady is still sitting in the black, behemoth Cadillac Escalade. Crew appears from behind it carrying a box and my eyes get big when I see what it is.

I can’t take my eyes off the box and whisper, “You got Saylor a booster seat?”

Crew interrupts and plops the big box down between us. “Maya talked to Addison and Addison talked to me and made me promise to invite you out. She says you need to visit your barrel, but even more, she wants to meet you. You should come by today.”

I look back and forth between Asa and Crew, frowning. “Come where?”

“Whitetail. Bring the kids, there’s plenty for them to do.” He looks to the pasture and shrugs. “We don’t have goats but we have cows. They don’t play soccer though. They just get in your face and want attention.”

“We’ll be there,” Asa promises.

Crew nods and looks back to me. “Addison will be happy. She’s dying to meet the woman who got Asa off his ass.”

I look up to Asa and widen my eyes.

Not a man who wastes time on idle chit-chat, Crew heads to the passenger door of the Escalade and just as fast as they entered, Grady makes a U-turn, leaving us in a small cloud of dust.

I look to Asa and repeat, “You got Saylor a booster seat?”

He crosses his arms and his eyes frown even as his smirk grows into an incredulous smile. “There’s a new car sitting in your driveway and all you see is a booster seat?”

My face falls and I look back to the shiny, silver, steroided monstrosity sitting in front of us. “What do you mean new car?”

He leans into me and I feel his breath on my ear at the same time my kids come running. “Yesterday left you without transportation, and, no offense, I looked like a freak driving your minivan. There’re six of us and if we want to go somewhere at the same time, there’s no point in taking two cars. This fixes all of those issues.”

If my expression is anything similar to how I’m feeling—I’m sure me looking horrified would be the understatement of the century.

“What’s this?” Knox asks.

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