Page 38 of Butterflies and Hazel Eyes
I rubbed my hands on his chest to relax against him. “I think about all the people who have written me off in my life, and all the people who haven’t, and I can see the difference with clear delineations. Those who wrote me off did so because of their own insecurities. Those who stayed did so because they understood my insecurities. Which camp do you fall into?” I asked seriously. “If it’s the former, I’d like to know now. If it’s the latter, then kiss me and know I’ll never write you off because I understand your insecurities too.”
His hand cupped my neck and hauled me toward him, and I fell against his chest, both our hearts finally beating together in the same place. It was simple, but oh so beautiful when his lips teased mine into complacency. He worked them over, his tongue stroking them with adoration, but never pushing past them to take the kiss to a higher level. Instead, he let me rest against his chest with his lips on my forehead. We shared warmth, but more than that, we shared a bond in commonality of our pain and disappointments.
“You’re more than I could ever hope to find, Charity.” His gaze locked with mine, and when I didn’t glance away, he kissed me again, this time with the pent-up passion of a man determined to show me with his lips and tongue how important this moment was. We had cemented a feeling, an indescribable emotion, one we both shared but couldn’t name.
I wrapped my arms around his neck, holding my chest to his while he rocketed the kiss all the way to the moon. He rocked me into orbit with his tongue, and it took some doing but I eventually stole a taste of him too. His chest hummed with the desire of a man losing control. He wanted so much more than stolen kisses by the campfire. The part of him that he couldn’t control, the virile man reacting to a woman on his lap and in his arms, was growing harder with every soft brush of my belly against him.
Gulliver grasped my shoulders and pulled me away from him, the gold flecks in his eyes spinning like a kaleidoscope in the light from the fire. “Charity, I didn’t know these feelings could exist within me,” he sighed. “I didn’t know. God, please tell me I’m not the only one feeling this.”
I climbed off his lap and stood next to him, resting my bottom on the arm of the chair. “Definitely not,” I promised. “I’m feeling the same passion and need for you, but mine is just less obvious.” I winked, and in the light from the fire, I noticed him blush as he adjusted himself discreetly.
“I understand that we’re in a weird place with your lifestyle compared to mine,” he said with honesty. “I’m tied here, and you aren’t. If you can’t find what you need in Plentiful, I would never ask you to stunt whatever your soul needs just to stay with me.”
I caressed his face, my finger trailing across his beard while I gazed into his mesmerizing eyes. “I don’t know everything my soul needs, but I do know it needed to meet you. My life is shifting, and it’s scaring me. If I had a crystal ball, I’d use it right now, just to sort out what I’m supposed to do. I don’t have the answer, but I know I’m not good at staying in one place.”
“I might have something to help,” he said, kissing me on the cheek. “Sit, I’ll grab it from my truck.”
I stood and handed him his crutches, then poked at the fire. I should have been tired after all the cave exploring today, but I wasn’t. I was wired more than anything and didn’t know how to settle down. He was right when he said his life was here, and mine, well, wasn’t. Admitting I was scared wasn’t easy, but at the same time I wanted him to know it wasn’t him making me indecisive, but my own insecurities and questions about life. In six years, I’d never stayed in one place longer than a month, and every time I tried, it had been a dismal failure. Maybe it was because I’m a Gemini, and I’m destined to roam the world forever. More likely it was because that scared, unloved little girl who used to survive off the kindness of others still hadn’t learned how to trust anyone.
As he closed the truck door, his phone rang, taking us both by surprise. Gulliver held up his finger. “It’s Mathias,” he said, answering the call.
The short conversation was concerning, and I stood, waiting for him to finish. He ended the call and stuck his phone in his pocket, crutching back to me. I noticed the fatigue immediately. It was easy to see when he needed to rest his body just by watching him walk. “What was that about?” I asked when he reached me by the fire.
He lowered himself back to the chair and tossed his sticks to the ground. “Honey’s mom had a massive heart attack tonight.”
I gasped with surprise. “Oh my. Is she alive?”
He nodded and my shoulders sank in relief. “She is, but if they don’t do a triple bypass, she won’t stay that way. He has to take Honey to Superior tonight to be with her parents. That means she won’t be able to work this week.”
I waved my hand in the air. “Not a problem. I’ll do it. She should be with her family right now. Besides, it will give her arm extra time to heal.”
He lowered his brow at me. “Charity, we can hire a temp. You’re in no way bound to do this.”
“I know,” I assured him, nodding when he took my hand. “I don’t want you to hire a temp, though. I already know what’s going on at Butterfly Junction and am already part of the team,” I said, making air quotes with my free hand. “Adding someone new is a risk, and it could put them in danger too. I know you don’t want to do that.”
His shoulders slumped with the weight of the world on them. “I didn’t think of that. You’re right, though. If I bring someone new in, I’d have to vet them and somehow protect them from what’s going on there.”
“That’s why I’m the perfect solution,” I said again, rubbing my hand on my leg. I was nervous he’d say no, and I was desperate for him to say yes.
“You have to let me pay you,” he said, his brow going down.
I rested my hand on his shirt, secretly thrilled he was agreeing to this. “I would rather you pay Honey. She can’t work, but she still needs to pay her rent. I know Mathias would take care of her, but it’s the right thing to do.”
“I will, but you need to live too. You’ve been working for free for weeks now. It can’t continue.”
I clapped my hands once with an idea. “Fine, you feed me lunch and dinner and throw in a bag of Mojo’s dog food, and we’ve got a deal.” I held my hand out for him to shake, but he didn’t.
“Charity, that’s hardly fair. You don’t eat that much. Besides, I want to eat lunch and dinner with you all the time anyway. That isn’t exactly a hardship.”
I tipped my head back and forth a couple of times as if weighing what he’d said. “True, but food for us is the only thing we really need right now. As long as that’s covered, I need no other payment. It’s not forever, Gulliver. I’ll be fine.”
He let out the breath he’d been holding and nodded. “Okay, but only until we know more about what’s happening with Honey’s mom. You have to promise to tell me if you have to leave or you get tired of working all day.”
I crossed my heart and planted a kiss on his lips. “I promise. You don’t know how relieved I am to know I have something to go back to on Monday.”
He pulled a box out of his pocket and held it up. “I was going to give this to you tomorrow to thank you for all the work you’ve done to protect the business. Instead, I’ll give it to you tonight as a way to say thank you, both for your hard work in the business and for all the time you’ve spent with me. You’ve reminded me there is more to life than work and bugs. Well, actually, this gift...” He waved his hand around. “Never mind.”
He thrust the box toward me, and I accepted it, one brow in the air. “Are you slightly indecisive about giving me this?”
