Page 15 of When You Kiss Me

She glanced out to sea and then back to him. “You have a smile that reminds me of my cousin Braydon. He works in my uncle’s diamond business. And although I’ve heard he’s a good worker, my uncle always tells him to grow up.”

“Ouch.”

“I’m not saying you need to grow up,” she hastened to say, although perhaps not with complete believability. “Honestly, I don’t think Braydon needs to grow up either. He’s good at what he does. But he’s also enjoying being single in New York City and dates just for companionship. To my uncle, he seems to be living aimlessly.”

Coop let those words settle in. His father had hung up on him when he found out Coop was in the Hamptons, a rich man’s playground. Great. “You think my father wants me to find my purpose in life. My fate, so to speak.”

“Yes and no.” She nodded, ponytail billowing in the ocean breeze. “Shakespeare referred to purpose as a gift. But fate… Your personal fate is often something else entirely.”

Vivi explained things so well. He was grateful for her insight. But the more they talked, the more Coop was convinced thatViviwas his fate. If his father had sent him out to find a passion for business, he’d be disappointed. Coop had found passion for a woman. And for once, she didn’t return his interest. What would Shakespeare have to say about that?

Coop suppressed a string of curse words as he realized something else. “My father wants me to find my way, but he doesn’t want me to find it within the company he wants me to inherit.”

Vivi brought her horse close enough to his that she could touch his arm. It was a brief touch when he wished she’d linger. “Maybe he wants you to find your way in the world without him or your family’s business. You know, get experience under your belt that can benefit the company when he wants to retire.”

“My own path,” Coop said slowly, nodding because it made sense.Shemade sense. On too many levels. “I’ve been forging my own path.” Even before Dad had cut him off. “I’ve been working for other companies for years. But he doesn’t acknowledge that as more than me just biding my time, waiting for my turn at the family helm, probably because that’s what I’ve been doing. Just a job.”

“I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, but perhaps your father doesn’t see limo driving or stable hand as jobs worthy of your time.” Vivi guided Yancy away from him, which felt odd since they were thinking along the same lines. “What kind of business does your family run? Dry cleaning? A restaurant?”

A collection of oil fields.

Coop didn’t want to tell Vivi the truth for fear her opinion of him as a monied playboy would be solidified. And if there was one thing he was sure of, it was that Vivi wouldn’t have time in her day for Charles Cooper Pearson the Third.

Chapter Five

“My gift. My purpose,” not-Chuck repeated as if the concept had plagued him. And yet, the cowboy’s smile was gentle, as tender as the way he looked at Violet. “No one should take charge of anything without a clear goal. I get it now.”

“But you still have to prove you’ve found your gift,” she said evenly. “How do you do that? It’s almost as challenging as asking someone to prove their love for you.”

He nodded, continuing to look at her.

And she…

Violet continued to seesaw between attraction and duty. She had goals, which required diligent work. He was a distraction, a man she barely knew.

Violet brought Yancy to a halt. “I should get back.”

“Because I make you nervous.” It wasn’t a question. And the way he smiled, it sizzled a path through her veins, more jolting than a shot of espresso. “What do you think will happen if I kiss you?”

“Kiss me?” she choked out. “How did the conversation turn from you finding a meaning to your life to—”

“Us testing how combustible the chemistry would be between us?” Shakespeare was daring her.

And Violet imagined he wanted her to grab hold of that dare the way she’d grabbed hold of him yesterday on their wild horseback ride.

“Yes,” she breathed before catching herself and turning Yancy back toward the Summer house. “I’m wise enough to know better than to play with fire.” But that didn’t stop her from wondering what kissing not-Chuck would be like.

He brought his black horse around, walking close enough to Vi that the tip of his boot nudged her stirrup. “You think I’m the kind of guy who flirts, steals a kiss, and is never heard from again?”

“Aren’t you? I bet if we kissed, I’d never see you again.”

His smile grew, as did his bravado. “That is a bet I can’t refuse.”

Vi’s breath caught. It took her a moment to collect herself.

“I was talking in hypotheticals. I’m no longer the kind of woman who takes dares from handsome strangers.” She urged the old chestnut mare into a faster pace. But Yancy had one speed. And unlike not-Chuck, that speed was unhurried. “I don’t know you well enough to let you kiss me.”

He laughed, a rich sound that had the horses swiveling their ears around to hear better. “Well,Iknow you well enough to letyoukissme.”

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