Page 60 of Welcome Home, Cowboy
“You don’t have to.”
“Oh, I do. If you think we’re just sex buddies, whatever that is, then I’m doing something terribly wrong. I mean, I like the sex between us.” His voice lowered and she smiled just barely. That was progress. “I like the sex a lot, darling. But I also like talking to you. Being with you.”
Her demeanor softened.
“What if you gave me a private lesson? To make up for missing tonight?” His eyebrow arched, hooking the corner of his mouth with it.
This made her laugh. She shoved a hand into his chest, but he didn’t budge. Instead, he stepped into her, pulling her against him. “I know I’m already way over my head in debt to you, but I need to ask you another favor.”
She looked up, a questioning look in her eyes. The anger was gone now, replaced by hurt. He’d run out on her this morning, avoided her all day, and then missed her class. He wanted to kick his own ass up and down Seaside Drive right about now. “What’s the favor?”
“I was hoping you might accompany me to a horse show on Saturday. Beth is riding Jax. I’m going to be sitting in the stands with Sabrina.”
“Beth already invited me and I said yes.”
“Sounds like we’ll both be there. So, no need for me to ask you on a date.” No reason on paper, at least. But he and Julie were more than friends, more than sex buddies, and he needed her to know that.
Julie nodded. “Right.”
“But hell, I’m going to ask you to be my date anyway.” He met her gaze and held it. “I don’t believe that sex buddies go on real dates, do they?”
She smiled softly. “No, I don’t believe they do.”
He brushed a hand across her cheek. “I know a horse show isn’t the most romantic place in the world, but—”
“I’d love to go with you, Lawson,” she said, all evidence that she was mad at him gone. “Yes.”
He nodded. “Good. Then it’s our first official date.”
Chapter 17
The doorbell rang and Julie’s heart sank to her knees. It’d been a long time since she’d been on a real date. What she’d been doing with Lawson had started to feel like dating, but she’d told herself it wasn’t real. They’d agreed on as much.
Now, maybe things were starting to become real between them, though. She wasn’t sure how to feel about that. Was she ready for another relationship?
The doorbell rang again. And again. And again.Impatient much?
Julie walked to the door and opened it, laughing as she saw Sabrina standing there, dressed in jeans and a pink western-style shirt with a fancy pink cowgirl hat on her head. “Well, hello there.”
Sabrina smiled. “Hi, Ms. Julie.”
“Where’s your uncle?”
Lawson stepped into the doorway with a slow, curl-her-toes grin. He was also dressed in jeans and a western shirt.
Julie glanced down at her own dress and cardigan wrap. She did have on a pair of pink cowgirl boots that matched the floral print of her dress perfectly. “I might be overdressed for this date. I’ve never been to a riding show before.”
Lawson shook his head, then pulled a hat that matched Sabrina’s from behind his back. “I considered bringing you flowers, but decided on this instead. Wear this and you’ll fit in just fine.”
Julie laughed as he placed it on top of her head. No matter that she’d just spent the last thirty minutes straightening her hair. “I love it. Thank you.”
He reached out for her hand. “Shall we?”
She placed her hand in his, feeling a jolt of excitement shoot through her. They buckled Sabrina in her booster seat in the cab of Lawson’s truck and then climbed into the front seat next to one another.
Julie tapped her fingers nervously on her lap. The energy in the air was different between them today. A first date wasn’t about sex. It was about romance, and Lawson had already supplied a healthy dose by picking her up at her door and bringing her a gift. Even with a child in tow, he was smooth.
He turned on the radio and glanced over at her with a smile. He changed the station repeatedly until he found a song about winning a woman over. Her heart gave a little sigh. They were ten minutes into their first date and she was already a goner.
