Page 22 of My Small Town Silver Fox Billionaire

“He’s got an interesting way of showing it.”

“Well, let him be interesting. But what matters is thatyouhad fun, Sara. Did you?”

I nod. “I enjoyed myself far more than I expected.”

“Well, boom! There you go. Maybe call him sometime during the week and ask him about what he wants to do next.”

“Eh, maybe. I prefer just letting him come to me.”

Katie groans, facepalming at my words. “I swear, you’re going to miss every opportunity you have, you know.”

“How is it missing? I’m just being prudent.”

“Yeah, and prudency means you’re not taking the chances you get.”

“Italsomeans that I’m not falling into traps.” I retort.

“Ugh, true,” Katie mutters, annoyed by my words. “Anyway, I guess you’ll just wait and see?“

“Yes, that’s just what I plan to do.” I get up, yawning as I feel tiredness overtake me. “I’m getting a little bit tired.”

“That, or you’re trying to weasel your way out of continuing the conversation.”

Katie laughs and stands up. She grabs the empty hot chocolate cups and sets them in the sink, then yawns a moment later, covering her mouth.

“Darn, you’ve got me doing it now too.”

“It’s late. I’ve got a shift first thing Monday, but I plan to go to the sanctuary and ride my horse sometime tomorrow.”

“Okay, get some sleep. We’ll talk more about your little crush in the morning,” she replies, winking before she retires to her own room. The door closes, and I head to my room in the back. As I open the door and turn on the light, I see the twin-sized bed with a horse blanket over the top of it. Sure, the blanket’s immature, but it’s been something I’ve kept since I was a kid. It’s helped me through a lot of difficult times.

Including my ex.

I get ready for bed; the usual teeth brushing is joined by some very unusual hair needs. I pull out the curls, hissing slightly as I brush through the hairspray. Guess I’ll leave the fancy hairdos for very infrequent times! I crawl into bed a few minutes later and lie there, thinking about today’s events and about Robert.

I shared something special with him. To say it’s magical is an understatement. I’ve never felt this sure of my feelings this quickly before, and I want to indulge in them again. It was just one night, but the energy between us felt like something other than a singular date.

When I close my eyes and think about what happened, I realize that I want a second date so badly. He’s perfect, really. Despite being gruff and uninviting at our first meeting, I know now that he means well. He’s a total softie at heart if I’ve ever seen one.

But I’m prudent. As much as I want this to work out, there’s a part of me that worries about the potential for this. Sure, it might progress, but can I fall in love again?

After what happened with the guy in college, falling in love and thinking that I meant something to him only to get rejected, holds me back. He acted like he cared about me and wanted something lasting. But then, a few weeks later, I caught him dating another woman.

It broke my heart, and since then I’ve hesitated to fall for anyone. I don’t want that, especially since it means there’s a chance of me making mistakes I don’t want to make.

There’s no need to worry about it now. It’s not like Robert and I are actually together.

Sleep overtakes me, and as I close my eyes, my thoughts drift to what we could be and the potential for Robert and me to have a relationship.

It’s unlikely, but a gal can dream, right?

Chapter eight

Robert

“Okay, great. I’ll send over the investment report, and then fax you the rest of the details as well as the net profits from closing. Got it. Bye.”

I hang up the phone, sighing as I rub my temples. Another long business call with a whole bunch of issues that I must resolve sooner rather than later.

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