Page 36 of About Time You Noticed

Tommy casually stood and dusted himself off, like what he'd said hadn’t crossed any boundary. How could he not be rattled by what just happened between them? Had anything happened? Was it only her heart pounding to outer space?

She eyed Damien doing a pathetic job of pretending he didn’t hear anything, whistling and gazing at the ceiling. No one else seemed to pay any attention. Thank goodness.

Sarah smoothed her hair back into place and twisted the seams of her skirt until they aligned with each thigh.

"Okay," Kaitlyn said. "One point to Paul and Becca. One to Jake and Damien." She frowned at Tommy and Sarah. "You guys need to catch up. Get your game on."

Kaitlyn cocked an eyebrow at Emily. "You as well. You should be able to guess the next sample within three seconds."

Boris barked from another room and scratched on a door.

"Boris is at it again." Jake looked over his shoulder. He shook his head at Kaitlyn. "Another door bites the dust.”

Damien straightened. "Sounds like a big dog. What breed?"

"A Great Dane."

Ethan scoffed. "He's like their child. He sleeps on their bed."

Kaitlyn huffed. "Boris has his own bed now. But he sleeps on ours during the day."

Ethan gave a mocking nod. "Right." He rolled his eyes at Damien. "Boris has his own Instagram page and twelve thousand followers. He's famous for bowling over Mrs. Baxter at our double wedding."

Damien burst out laughing. "Got that on video? Put it on social media, and it'll go viral."

Kaitlyn waved a hand. "Mrs. Baxter can be interfering, but I'm sure she has a soul, deep down in the earth's core. We do love her."

"I've seen the woman in Georgetown.” Damien gave a mock shiver. “I could tell she wanted to make a beeline for me to ask a bunch of questions. I stay out of Idaho Springs to avoid people like her."

"She's not that bad." Ethan scratched the back of his head. "Kaitlyn's right. Mrs. Baxter has a heart of gold. She claims she helped Emily and I get back together. And man, did we need all the help we could get. We couldn't be in the same room as each other." Ethan's lip curled. "If you ever need some matchmaking, you know where to go. Mrs. Baxter loves a little romance."

Becca laughed. "She does. Have you seen how many historical romance novels she has? Her living room's whole back wall is floor to ceiling bookshelves."

Paul placed an arm around Becca. "The Gossip Monger sure came in handy when we wanted a rumor spread." He tugged Becca closer and kissed her nose. "Your best scheme yet, babe. I'm not sorry I changed your plans by a real proposal."

Becca winked. "How do you know that wasn't part of my plan all along? You couldn't resist me." Becca slipped her arms over Paul's neck and kissed him long and slow.

Tommy groaned in protest. "Will you two stop already? I thought you'd calm down once you were married. I'm never going to get used to my best buddy kissing my little sister." He stuck a finger down his throat.

Kaitlyn removed a meat tenderizer from the drawer and pounded a cutting board. "Order, order. Let's focus on the game. Swap your blindfolds."

Tommy held the material over his eyes, letting the ties dangle on either side. She stepped behind him, tightened the blindfold, and stood back, putting distance between them.

Tommy squatted and felt around for the carpet. He sat cross-legged.

Sarah took a red food sample from Kaitlyn. Strawberry jelly?

Once in the contestants’ mouths, Ethan and Tommy raised their hands simultaneously. Kaitlyn blinked and touched her chin. "All right. On account of three, Ethan and Tommy shout your answer. One, two . . . three."

Tommy and Ethan called out different words. Ethan yelled, "banana." Tommy guessed strawberry jelly.

"It’s raspberry. Close enough. Point for Tom and Sarah." Tommy twisted his torso, and his hand cut through the air. He latched onto Sarah's hand and gave it a little shake. "Good teamwork."

Although Sarah enjoyed his touch, she removed her palm. "I didn't do much to help."

Tommy tugged off his blindfold, stood, and faced her. With slow, deliberate movements, he slipped the material over her eyes, his face an inch from hers. Every cell of her body hummed on high alert as his arms skimmed her shoulders to tie the back. Slight caresses over her hair sent tingles down her spine. She couldn't see him, but boy could she smell his intoxicating cologne as his chest pressed against hers. He sure was taking his sweet time. If he knew how ridiculously attracted she was to him, he wouldn't be torturing her by invading her personal space. His gentle brushes messed with her head.

Kaitlyn hollered for the teams to get into position. Tommy ran his palms down Sarah's arms and took both of her hands, and gently tugged her to sit on the carpet. Light headiness washed over her at his tender touch. Like a dream, all the sounds around them faded as she zoned in on Tommy. Nothing new. She always sensed his every move. But this was the first time his moves centered around her. What game was he really playing?

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