Page 14 of Her Braun
She nodded and looked back up at him. "Too weird?"
Gibson shook his head. "Nope, not weird at all. If you like the color, then use it. We could find you something a little softer or have them mix some of the paint with a more neutral color for the rest of the walls. Do you know the height and width of the walls so we can figure out how much paint to get."
He wondered if she always bit the inside of her cheek when she was mulling over something like this. Or maybe she did it when she felt uncomfortable.
Either way, she looked adorable.
"No?"
"Well, what we can do is ask them for a small sample can and try it out on your wall before I fix the drywall. Since we'll have to paint it over again after the fix."
"Lieutenant?"
He lifted a brow at that. "You don't want me to call you doctor, I think you can call me Gibson."
"Gibson." She said the word softly as if she was testing it on her tongue and that thought sent blood rushing south of his belt. He'd give anything to have her take a taste of him. "Not Braun?"
Her smile was a little impish as if she was trying it on for size but also wanted to see what effect it had on him.
"I wouldn't mind," he smiled at her. "Whatever you want to call me... go ahead."
She lowered her chin slowly and he could see her mind working behind her eyes. That amazing brain of hers.
"Let's start with Gibson and go from there."
He couldn't help but smile and swell up at her words. 'Start with' meant that this wasn't just a moment. This was a beginning.
"Okay, Kay."
She rolled her eyes at that, but her smile didn't dim. "Let's see about this paint and then..."
He nodded. "I have the rest of today open if you want me to come over and get that drywall fixed."
Kay drew in a deep breath and let it out. "I can't believe how amazing it's been already. I came in here feeling like I was heading to the firing squad of mansplaining. I'm so lucky that you were here, Gibson."
Yeah, he liked her saying his name. A lot.
"I think I'm the one who's lucky, Kay. I was just looking to kill some time before I headed home. Now I have something to do and a wonderful woman to spend some time with."
She took a step to the side and turned to face him, holding out his phone. "Maybe we're both lucky. I don't have to sacrifice my sanity trying to do it myself and I get to know you a little better."
He lifted his chin at his phone. "Why don't you put your information in my phone and then I can follow you home."
She looked down to do just that and maybe it was just wishful thinking on his part, but he hoped that the blush he saw on her cheeks was for him.
He could dream.
Right?
THREE
As it was,they didn't have that dinner. Kay got a call from the hospital. A mass casualty event happened on the interstate and the Emergency Room had patients rolling in.
Instead of putting two vehicles on the road, she'd gotten a ride from Gibson to the hospital on his way to the Fire station to help with whatever he could do.
So it was a week later, and she was still smiling at the neat patch of her wall that Gibson had done before all hell broke loose in Center City.
Her schedule and his hadn't lined up in any real way and while he insisted he could move around some of his scheduled contractor work, her schedule had been shifted around to include extra shifts where she tagged along with Callen Webb as he did his job as the head of the Trauma Department of the hospital.
