Page 204 of Branded
“I see I got my work cut out for me,” he said softly.
That sliced deep, and I couldn’t stop myself from inhaling sharply.
Which he noticed.
I knew he did.
Because he seemed to notice everything.
But he didn’t comment on it, didn’t harp on it and demand answers. He just…let me have that, and I wasn’t sure if I was disappointed or relieved or some strange combination of both.
“One date, sugarpie?” he pressed. “Just dinner and a movie or something equally as innocuous?”
There went that same combination of both disappointment and relief again.
He was Raph. He wasn’t innocuous. He was…something bigger.
I wanted something bigger with him.
Which was probably why I stopped fighting it, decided that he’d been giving plenty, and just said, “Yes.”
Raph drove himself to his house and, no surprise since it seemed impossible for me to deny him anything, he’d tempted me inside for a tour.
One smile, a gentle question, and suddenly he’d been pulling my car into an empty spot in his garage, and I was walking into his kitchen.
Which was absolutely gorgeous.
Top-of-the-line appliances, loads of cabinets, a huge island with a slab of striking granite.
Now, I had a trust fund and plenty of money to buy my home, but his was nicer.
Bar none.
I caught a glimpse of a pool and hot tub in the back yard, lush greenery surrounding the pavers and making the pretty blue tile dipping into the top of the water really pop.
“That’s all Lexi’s doing,” he murmured, catching sight of my gaze.
The GM’s wife had a collection of green thumbs…and okay, that didn’t sound right. I just meant that Lexi was really good with plants, loved landscaping as a hobby, and she’d advised more than a few of the men and women close to the Breakers on their yards. But then I wasn’t thinking about plants.
I was thinking about Raph.
Mostly because he came close and dropped a hand on either side of me, resting them on the counter near my hips and making my breath catch.
Because he was close and big and yummy and smelled good and?—
“Beth?”
“Mmm?”
“You good?”
I blinked. “I’m good. So Lexi picked out plants for you?”
Raph tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, smiled. “She straightened out my landscaper when I moved in. Got him sorted with the right plants for the climate and still texts him when it’s time to fertilize or move the plants to different pots.”
I laughed.
That sounded like Lexi.
