Page 68 of Falling Hard for the Billionaire Cowboy

Austin pulls back slightly, his eyes twinkling. "It's good to be back. I missed this place... and you."

My cheeks warm at his words. "When did you get in?" I ask, trying to keep my voice steady.

"Middle of the night," he replies with a grin. "I was tempted to wake you up, but I figured you might not appreciate a midnight visitor."

I laugh, shaking my head. "Probably not. Though I might have made an exception for you since it means we would have seen each other earlier."

Austin's grin widens. "I'll keep that in mind for next time." His eyes roam over the vegetable garden, and a mischievous glint appears in them. "You know, this reminds me of a certain incident involving you, my dogs, and some stolen vegetables."

I groan, burying my face in my hands. "Are you ever going to let me live that down?"

"Not a chance," he chuckles. "It's not every day I catch a beautiful woman raiding my garden in the middle of the night."

"I was hungry!" I protest, fighting back a smile. "And your vegetables looked so good."

"Well, how about I make it up to you?" Austin says, his tone suddenly softer. "Would you like to go on a date with me? A full day, just the two of us?"

My heart skips a beat. "A date?" I repeat. I mean, it's not the first time we’ve gone out. But for some reason, this feels different.

Austin nods, looking slightly nervous now. "Yeah, a proper date. We could explore the town, have a picnic, and maybe go for a hike if you're up for it. What do you say?"

"I'd love to," I reply, unable to keep the excitement out of my voice.

His face lights up. "Great! Oh, and speaking of dates, how do you feel about car shows?"

I tilt my head, wondering if it's related to what he's planning. "I guess they could be interesting. Why? Are you inviting me to one?"

"As a matter of fact, I am," he grins. "There's a show in town on Saturday. I thought maybe you'd like to come with me."

"I'd love to," I nod, realizing suddenly that we're holding hands. As Austin continues speaking, all my attention is focused on our entwined fingers. I'm giggling inwardly, marveling at how natural it feels.

"Hayley?" Austin's voice breaks through my reverie. "Are you okay?"

I look up, meeting his concerned gaze. His free hand reaches out, tucking a stray hair behind my ear. The gentle touch sends a shiver down my spine.

"Uhm, excuse me you're the cause of all of this.”I yell inwardly.

"Do you need to go to work?" he asks. "I can drive you if you'd like."

I shake my head, lying through my teeth. "Actually, I'm taking a break today. I have no appointments."

I'm just going to ignore the mountain of documents I need to go through.

Relief washes over his face. "In that case, would you like to have breakfast with me?"

"I'd love to," I reply, then add, "Oh, and thank you for ordering dinner for me the other night. I was so surprised, and it was a great meal."

Austin's smile is warm. "It was my pleasure. I'm just glad you got something to eat."

"Give me an hour to get ready, and we can go into town for breakfast," I suggest.

But Austin shakes his head. "How about I cook for you instead? If you don't mind, that is."

I raise an eyebrow, impressed. "You cook too? Is there anything you can't do?"

He laughs, a rich, warm sound that makes my heart flutter. "I guess you'll have to stick around to find out."

"I should go change," I say, suddenly self-conscious about the effort I put into my appearance earlier. I mean... it's a date now. I should probably have left the makeup I cleaned.

---