Page 45 of Three Rules I'd Never Break

“There is a shop in one of the small towns near Stadtburg. Gourmet food store with a deli counter in the back.” He handed me a bottle of water. “I hope water is okay.”

“It’s great.”

He wolfed down his food, then leaned back on an elbow as he drank his water.

A hundred questions bounced in my head, but one begged to be asked more than the others.

“What changed, Eli?”

We’d texted back and forth, but after spending that night working on his car, he was this charming, flirty cowboy. And while I loved it, I wondered if his interest was going to start waning. That had been his pattern.

He stretched out on his back and looked up into the trees. “You asked about my car.”

“That’s it? Really? I heard that when you start talking to someone you lose interest.” I kept my focus on my sandwich because he was freer with his words when I wasn’t staring at him.

He trailed a finger down my arm. “Tessa has been giving you the scoop, huh?”

“She has.”

“That has been true. For a few reasons. Some girls—women—are way more interestingbeforeyou have a conversation with them. With others, I realized the butterflies in my stomach were only there because I was nervous. I’d confused attraction with my fear of being awkward.”

I dropped my hand to the blanket, making it accessible.

In his never-miss-anything way, he caught my hint and laced his fingers with mine. “With you, there are always butterflies. But you don’t make me feel awkward. Not anymore.”

I glanced at him, pinching my lips together to keep my smile from ripping open my face.

He squeezed my hand. “You don’t look at me with impatience and act like I’m slow when I’m trying to think.”

I laid down on my side, facing him. “I’m sorry I tried to hurry you in the doughnut shop.”

He shook his head before shifting so that he faced me. “Don’t be. I didn’t leave because I felt rushed, Delaney. I left because I felt stupid for dumping coffee on you. Again.”

“I probably should have warned you so you could put your coffee down.”

Brushing a knuckle along my cheek, he leaned closer. “Nocoffeehere.”

His fingers threaded in my hair, and he pulled me to him. His lips were as soft as his arms were strong. There was no hesitation. Tenderly, he danced his lips on mine. He hadn’t shaved, and the stubble burned my lips in a satisfying way.

I leaned in closer. His hand shifted out of my hair and slipped around my waist. The kiss intensified as he rolled onto his back, landing me on top of him. And it was a good thing I was lying down because my knees could not have handled this.

For several more minutes, he kissed me, holding me tight against his chest.

I giggled when he broke away. “First, wow. And is that why you rode Cream and left Coffee in the barn?”

Chuckling, he kissed me again. “Yep.”

I pressed a kiss to his stubble. “You didn’t shave.”

“You said you liked the way it felt on your lips.”

“I do.” I rested my head on his chest and watched a butterfly flitting from flower to flower.

Several seconds ticked by as we lay on the blanket.

Patting his chest, I thought back to our other kiss.

“Penny for your thoughts.” He trailed a finger across my back up and down, then back up again.

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