Page 13 of Caught Up In You (The Monroes 2)

With a shrug, she reached out with her right hand to feel for the rail. He stood directly in front of her but didn’t touch her. He wanted her to find her way, because she’d insisted. But if she lost her balance, he would definitely catch her. When her hand gripped the rail, he started down sideways to keep an eye on her. She came down slowly and he held his breath, worried over the simple act of her on the stairs.

“You can go faster,” she told him, as if she knew he was staring and not moving as quickly as he normally would. “I’ve got the rail and I’m on step four. I’m quick with the math.”

Braxton couldn’t help but admire her witty attitude, her ability to practically hear his thoughts. She’d been adamant about doing things herself and that little insight she gave him earlier about not having freedom before told him how serious she was about finding that independence.

He moved on to the last step, but waited for her until she reached the bottom. Just because she was doing everything on her own didn’t mean he wouldn’t be watchful. This was new territory for him. He’d respect her wishes, but he was sticking close.

“You didn’t finish the basement,” she said immediately. “There’s a coolness to the space, almost a damp smell, but not musty. Tell me there’s brick or stone walls.”

She’d proven how stellar she was with her senses, and she kept enforcing that fact over and over. He shouldn’t be surprised anymore, but he was.

“Stone. That’s why we didn’t finish the space down here. We wanted it to be the original. But that’s not what I wanted to show you.”

When he reached for her hand, she jumped. Braxton cursed. “Sorry. I wanted to lead you to the secret spot.”

“It’s fine. Just warn a girl when you’re going to touch her,” she joked.

He didn’t want to conjure up an image in his mind of touching her, but too late. It just popped in there. Definitely a bad idea to show her this place all by himself. Maybe Sophie should’ve done this. Maybe anyone else in the freakin’ world should have done this because the more time he spent with her, the more inappropriate thoughts consumed him. And it wasn’t just the thoughts, it was everything. The emotions that came along with all of these lustful feelings. Something beyond lust was taking over and if he didn’t get a damn grip on this soon, he was going to find himself exposed, vulnerable, and at the mercy of another woman holding all the control over him.

“There are tunnels,” he told her, getting back to the point. He watched as her face lit up and she turned her head toward him. “They lead to the two cottages on the property. Apparently, t

hey had been used to hide slaves during the war. Being that I’m a nerd, too, I did some research and I’m pretty sure this was part of the Underground Railroad.”

Cora gasped. “You’re kidding? That is the coolest thing ever. Of course you can’t be from this area and not be thrust into that part of history, but to know this exact spot helped free slaves . . . I’m getting chills just thinking about it. Can we walk through the tunnels?”

The excitement in her tone, the elation on her face matched his own. Yup, he needed to get control over his emotions before this innocent woman became trapped in his world. Or he trapped in hers. Either way, they weren’t meant for anything beyond employee/employer. And friends. Friends would be fine. Nothing else.

“I was hoping you’d want to go through.”

Braxton had never met a woman—outside of work—who got this excited over history. Anna sure as hell hadn’t. She found it boring and even when he’d planned a getaway trip, she’d complained because there had been no mall nearby, only historical sites.

And why was he comparing the two women? One was out of his life and the other he barely knew.

Braxton led Cora toward the wide opening. “We left this open for the guests to use, just an extra something cool for the clients who bump up their stay and use a cottage. We ran a small strip of theater-style lighting along the ground so they could see to get through, but we wanted to keep the overall feel of the stone passageway.”

Cora reached her left hand out to the side, feeling for the wall. Braxton steered her over a few inches so she could touch the stone. Her unpainted fingertips ran over the ridges as she took careful steps. Braxton loved this house, Chelsea had loved this house, but seeing Cora actually experience the house in an entirely different way was something he hadn’t expected. He found that he wanted to really take his time, to let her see things the way she knew how, to be the one to show her all the newness around her. He continued to watch as she familiarized herself with the area.

The fact she could see through her fingertips, in a sense, was absolutely mesmerizing and fascinating. He didn’t say so, he didn’t want her to feel insecure because that was definitely not his intent. He was just so in awe of how she adjusted with her inability to physically see. Cora Buchanan was one intriguing woman, no doubt about it.

She’d been in his life for one day and he already had this possessive streak he’d not experienced in a long, long time. Actually, he’d only felt that way about three other women: his mother, Chelsea, and Sophie.

Cora removed her hand from his and took a step forward. Reaching her arms wide, she shifted side to side. Braxton stood back and watched in amazement. She was measuring the width. Slowly she reached her arms up, the tips of her fingers brushing along the stone ceiling. And that gesture brought the hem of her pink T-shirt up just enough for him to catch a glimpse of creamy skin above the top of her designer jeans.

Braxton fisted his hands at his side. Cora turned to face him, her eyes darting over his shoulder. “How much farther does this go?”

“It’s pretty long.” He wanted to close the miniscule gap between them, but he remained still. “It’s one passage and then up a bit it forks off and leads to the two different cottages. Each cottage has a hidden door in the kitchen.”

“This may be the coolest house I’ve ever been in.”

Braxton shifted closer, unable to stay away any longer. He actually wanted that feel of her hand in his, wanted to continue to show her all around. And it was all of those wants that was going to get him into trouble. There were too many and they were piling up higher and higher. His defenses were crumbling where Cora was concerned.

She was their new employee, which meant he had to keep his hands to himself. The last thing he needed was to scare her off or have that added complication and tension at the resort.

His foot scuffed against the concrete floor as he came to stand before her. Cora’s eyes widened, landing just over his shoulder. He shifted so he was in her line of sight. Not that she knew it, but he did. He wanted her eyes on him.

“Are you going to touch me?” she asked. And why the hell was her tone breathy?

Braxton gritted his teeth. “Yeah. I am.”

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