Page 59 of The Cowboy Who Worked Late

Their little secret relationship had definitely been finessed. She’d suggested to Henry to come this afternoon to get all their supplies, pick up their feed, and get their tools, and he had taken it and run with it.

She didn’t see the big farm truck that Henry had driven. He was picking up a lot of feed today, as well as salt blocks for the horses, and he wouldn’t be driving his personal vehicle. She turned off her car and started to get her purse together, stick herphone in, and take her sunglasses off. Then she turned to get out of the car.

Someone stood in the space between her car and the one next to her, and she grunted in surprise, her adrenaline high and her fight reflex up immediately. A man’s hand wrapped around her wrist and pinned it against the car. He leaned down and kissed her.

And oh, Angel knew this kiss. She knew the shape of this mouth. She knew the taste of Henry Marshall.

She relaxed into the kiss as Henry’s arm swept along her waist and brought her flush against his body. They stood in public, so he didn’t go on too long. When he pulled away, he said, “Took you long enough to get here,” in that devilish, flirtatious tone that he’d perfected.

“I texted you when I left,” she said.

“Yeah, and I mapped you the whole way.” He drew her into his chest and whispered, “Here’s your cowboy hug, sweetheart.”

She wrapped her arms around him, pressed her cheek to his pulse, and enjoyed the way they fit together. They hadn’t had too many serious conversations yet. They were only six weeks into a secret relationship that no one else knew about. Angel hadn’t even brought it up with Trevor again.

“You good?”

“Yes.” Angel exhaled. “Thanks, baby.” She looked at him, and Henry cupped her face in one of his big hands.

“You’re calling me baby now?”

Angel smiled at him. “Don’t tell me you don’t like it.”

“I do like it,” he said. “I want you to say it again.”

Angel absolutely would not say it again. Not right there. Not just because he told her to. She pressed her palm against his chest to get him to back up. “I’m starving. Let’s go eat.”

He chuckled and gave her room. She moved out of the doorway of her car, closed the door, locked it, and they went intothe store together. They both went down the bar, filling their clamshells with whatever they wanted.

The grocery store had tables in the back corner where they could sit. A few people sat there, but no one Angel knew, thankfully. She didn’t expect anyone from the farm to catch them. When she sat down with her soup and her salad, Henry slid onto the other side with his hot food and salad too.

“Are you going to text your momma?” she asked.

He whipped his phone out. “Yes, ma’am.” He snapped a picture of the veggies, his thumbs then flying over his screen. That done, he set his device aside and picked up a plastic fork.

“I started making a new employee handbook,” she said, forking up a slice of cucumber with her lettuce.

“Is that so?” He took a bite of his teriyaki chicken and rice. “What’s going to be new about the handbook?”

“New rules,” she said. “Some new procedures for our welcome greeters, that kind of stuff. All the new positions, what they do, the teams, scheduling, and new roles on the ranch.”

He swallowed and kept his gaze on his hot lunch. “You going to take out the rule about not dating on-site?”

“Yes,” she said. “It’s already out.”

“Have you showed it to your daddy?”

“No.” She stabbed a grape tomato doused in ranch and put it in her mouth. Henry looked up at her, barely meeting her eyes from underneath the brim of his cowboy hat. She knew what he wanted, but at the same time, she wasn’t ready to give it.

“Everyone will know eventually,” she said. “The new employee handbook is going to come out at the same time as the promotion announcements.”

He said, “And what do you think cowboys will think when they find out we’ve been kissing, and you promoted me?”

“I don’t know,” she said. “And who says you’re going to get a promotion?”

“Maybe I won’t,” Henry said. “It all feels knotted up.” He leaned back in the booth. “I’m just going to shoot straight with you, sweetheart.”

“As if you haven’t in the past,” she said dryly.

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