Page 18 of No Place Like Home
My eyes popped wide. Did he feel that? I searched his face and saw nothing, and when he spoke, he broke whatever this moment was between us. “Be gentle, and you’ll do it.” His voice was soft in my ear, his breath brushing the side of my face.
It took me a second to realize he was talking about the rock. I cleared my throat to help focus my brain, pulled my arm back, horizontal with the ground, and sent my rock soaring. It skipped twice before falling under the water. “Yes!” I yelled. “I’ve never been able to do that. You’re an amazing teacher, Row.” I turned quickly—and found he was much closer than I thought.
He grabbed me around my waist and the air left my lungs.
I tipped my head back to be able to see him, and his eyes stayed on mine for a split second before glancing at my lips.Damn. My heart needed to slow down and remember who this was. This was Rowan. Maybe if I continued to remind myself of that, my body would get the message.
My eyes—the traitors—fell to his mouth, which was inching closer. I could feel his breath, soft and warm, as his lips hovered over mine. My heart thumped wildly and my eyes fluttered closed.
The goats bleated a greeting back at the beach where we left them, but I didn’t care.
Then, “Summer? Rowan? Are you out here?”
Shit.The spell, or whatever that was, was immediately broken. I pulled away and puffed a breath. “It’s Kai. Come on.” I turned away without hesitating because I didn’t want to see the look of rejection that crossed Rowan’s face any longer than the quick glimpse I just had. I needed to put space between us. What the fuck was going on? What were we doing?
I made it back to the bank in record time. I didn’t even look back to make sure Rowan was following. Didn’t have to. I heard his light splashes in the water behind me.
“Hey, Kai,” I greeted him. “Rowan wanted to come to the river.”
“No problem. Looks like y’all had company.” He gestured toward the goats that were now walking slowly back to the property.
“Yep,” Rowan said as he caught up to me. “They were friendly.” He stood close enough I could feel his arm brush against me.
“Yeah, they are. Wasn’t the water cold?” Kai asked.
“Little bit,” Rowan said. “But as soon as your legs get numb, it’s all good. I was showing Summer how to skip rocks. She never really learned how to do it.”
“Yeah, but I did it,” I said with what I hoped passed as excitement at my accomplishment. I grabbed my phone from my bag, avoiding all eye contact. “Shit. It’s one thirty. Glad you called us, Kai. I’ve got to get to Shear Perfection.” I slipped off my water shoes, dried my feet, and put on my socks and sneakers. “You want me to drop you off at the house first?” I asked, finally making eye contact with Rowan.
The look on his face—maybe hurt or desire—made me wish just briefly that we could have finished that kiss.
“If you don’t have any plans,” Kai said to Rowan, “I’d love for you to hang out a bit.”Saved again by Kai.
Rowan glanced at me then back to Kai. “Sounds good. I’ll see you later, Summer.” There was something in his eyes—like all the words I knew he wanted to say, but now was not the time.
I nodded once. I sure as hell didn’t trust my voice. Taking advantage of the distraction, I turned away and picked up my bag and the remnants of our lunch.
“It’ll be good to get to know the man who stole my favorite cousin’s heart,” Rowan said.
I could tell he was joking, trying to make light of things, but there was a slight hesitation in his voice. Someone who didn’t know him as well, like Kai, wouldn’t have detected it, but a good friend, like me, absolutely would.
“I’d love to see the house and the palace barn where the goats live,” Rowan said.
Kai chuckled, and then he and Rowan led the way up the path toward the truck.
Chapter 10
Rowan
Sure, I wanted to get to know Kai, but . . .damnhis timing.
I watched Summer drive away. I would have waved, but she never looked up. If we just had a few more uninterrupted minutes . . . I puffed out a breath, and with it the irritation that filled my gut. I’ve got to do something about this tonight.
Kai gave me a quick tour of the outside as he led the way to the fenced-in area and let the goats back in. “There’s no way to keep these little shits from getting out.” He leaned toward me. “Don’t let Kora know I called them that.”
One of the black-and-brown goats glanced at Kai, bleating a protest, and head-butted him in the thigh. “It seems like you need to worry about the goats more than me,” I said, laughing.
“Percy, quit.” He pushed the goat away and Percy yelled at him again, then bounded after his brothers.
