Page 52 of Wrecked for Love
“Nope. But I’ll tell you this—Oscar warmed up to him faster than I’ve ever seen. And the kid managed to hand-feed that Boxer, which, I might add, you couldn’t quite pull off,” Mr. Gunn hinted.
I gave him a light glare, even though inside, I was thrilled with the news.
He then added, “Strangely enough, the kid was more scared of me than that tough brute.”
“Well, let’s be honest, you’re not exactly rocking the ‘grandpa of the year’ vibes,” I jabbed back.
He let out a deep, booming laugh that seemed way too big for his wiry frame. Honestly, if he slapped on a Santa suit, he could probably out-jolly Tim Allen and win Christmas in the process.
“I’m working on it,” he said, still riding out the last few chuckles.
“All right. In the meantime, I’ll see what I can find about this so-called prodigy dog whisperer. Maybe I can talk to his parents about adopting Oscar,” I mused, already picturing a reunion between boy and dog.
Mr. Gunn nodded. “Would be a match made in Buffaloberry Shelter, no doubt.”
I grinned, slinging my bag over my shoulder. “Fingers crossed. See you next week, Mr. Gunn.”
“Take care, Claire. And by the way, love the new hair,” he said with a wink.
I touched my hair self-consciously, already thinking about someone else I was far more interested in impressing. “Thanks,” I said, smiling as I headed out the door.
On the way to The Lazy Moose, I took my time at the grocery store, gathering dinner ingredients. I lingered until late afternoon, knowing my cowboy would have wrapped things up at the farm by now. My favorite time of the day was when the fields turned golden under the low sun.
As I parked and stepped out, I spotted Elia with Hank and the boys. Their conversation dropped to a murmur the second they saw me coming, but I didn’t miss the teasing glances theyshot in Elia’s direction. Hank raised an eyebrow, and Tucker’s smirk was borderline conspiratorial.
“Well, well, look who came to visit,” Hank said, his grin wide, his voice practically dripping with mock innocence. “Lucas, you’ve got company.”
Elia waved them off, still busy washing his face at the old pump near the barn. “You boys behave yourselves,” he warned.
I caught his eye as he looked up at me and did a double take, his wide-eyed surprise clear even from a distance.
“Hey there, stranger.” I strutted toward him, seduction written all over my posture.
The boys behind him whistled, one of them hollering, “Careful, Lucas! She’s gonna lasso you quicker than a runaway calf!”
Elia shot them a warning glance. “Shoosh! You keep flustering her, and I’ll introduce you to the wrong end of my boot!”
The group burst into laughter as Elia strode over to me, already steering me away from the peanut gallery.
His hand rested comfortably on the small of my back as he led me toward the house. “You chose one hell of a timing,” he said, a smirk plastering his blushing face.
“Exactly. Just when your muscles are all sweaty from a hard day’s work.” I gave him a slow once-over. I wasn’t joking.
“Looking for inspiration for your book, I see?” he teased, gluing his front to me.
“Maybe,” I replied, grinding the crotch of my jeans against his just slightly before adding, “Or maybe I just wanted to give you a chance to show off. You know, be proud of me in front of the boys.”
His fingers grazed my hair. “You do look fucking amazing, Chili.” His eyes took in my hair, like he was seeing more than just the new look.
And yep, the temperature definitely spiked. Who knew a hair color could dothatto a man?
“So, what color is this?”
“My New York hairdresser called it caramel. Here, they say it’s butterscotch—a bit more charming, like the town.”
“And you,” he murmured, his fingers sliding through my hair, his breath warm against my ear, “you’re way too charming for your own good.”
“It’s my natural color, actually.”
