Page 52 of Finding Home

“I know.” He stared at her.

A beat passed, their gazes caught and held. He saw her, and she saw him. It was both exhilarating and terrifying. Like the time she’d gone zip-lining with Willa in Catalina. Weightless, she dangled twenty feet in the air but felt secure in the anchored sensation of being tethered to the safety line.

“So, you can help, or you can go explore. There’s a whole second floor and basement.”

“I should probably help you clean.”

He kissed her cheek. “Go snoop. I’ll find you after I take Fitz out.”

While he had his arms elbow deep in sudsy water, she glided out of the room. Choosing the second floor, she glanced at family photos dotting the wall leading upstairs.

There were three doors in the upper hallway. The first was a guest room, decorated in simple shades of gray, with a single picture of Letchworth in the fall. The next door opened into a bathroom with the smallest counter space. That would never do for all her hair products. At the end of the hall stood the last closed door. It was Clayton’s bedroom.

Entering the dark room, she hit the switch turning on the overhead light and two small wall sconces. Two large windows were draped in navy-blue curtains, flanking a king-sized bed. The matching navy blankets were soft under her touch as her fingers skated along the neatly made bed. More bookshelves, including the promised row of books filled with feisty historical heroines, lined the walls. A barn-style door separated the bedroom from the bathroom.

Her gaze drifted to the closet door on the other side of the room, and she squealed.The hat!On the drive to Buffalo, Clayton had mentioned a cowboy hat that he’d worn to a Garth Brooks concert with Noah as teens, which he still owned. Swinging open the door and switching on the closet light, she observed his organization. Shoes neat on racks at the bottom, clothes hung by type. On the top shelf sat several rows of baseball caps. That’s where she found the black cowboy hat. Rising on her toes, she reached for the hat and slid it to the edge of the shelf. It tumbled into her chest. Laughing, she placed it on her head, turning to check herself out in the long mirror that hung on the wall across from the closet door.

“You look good, cowgirl,” Clayton drawled in a twangy accent, leaning against the door frame.

“I bet you’d look better,” she said.

Sauntering to her, he reached for the hat. Skimming her fingers with his, he took the hat and settled it on his own head. The brim obscured his eyes just enough to leave anyone looking at him puzzled at the story hidden within.

“I think I need you to answer the door wearing that hat, jeans, and nothing else.”

With the rise of his lips, Elle knew that she’d said that aloud.Perhaps don’t speak all your thoughts.

“Noted,”he said, those gray eyes smoldering. His chest bumped hers as he returned the hat to its spot.

Heat from his body lapped against her skin.

He settled his hands on her waist. “Any other discoveries?”

“Do you make your bed every day?” Her breathy voice kept cadence with the thump of her heart.

“Yup.”

Oh, god. He’s perfect.

“I think we should muss it up,” she purred.

“Are you sure?” His throat bobbed.

In response, she lifted to her toes, placing her lips against his.

Pulling inches away from her, he whispered, “I want you so much, but I don’t have protection. I tried to buy condoms, but they have them in the same aisle as the lady products and I ran into your aunt. I pretended I’d gone down the wrong aisle until she left and when I attempted to sneak back over, my mom walked into the store.”

“Small towns.” She rolled her eyes.

“I know.” He looked sorrowful.

Elle thought for a moment before speaking. “I’m on birth control to regulate my periods.”Period? Really?She closed her eyes in embarrassment, but then opened them with certainty.“It’s been years since I had sex and I was tested after the last time. I see my doctor annually. I’m safe.”

His eyes were soft and sincere. “I’m safe.”

“Ok.” She wrapped her arms around his neck.

“Are you sure?” he asked again, his mouth scant inches from hers.

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