It was as painful for Kallie, as it was for Caspin. He had left hard and needy, while she had watched him go with sadness and wetness between her lips. There was so much that she wanted to do to him, say to him, but he was gone because she had sent him away. Still not knowing why she had done it, Kallie knew deep down that a night would not be enough for her and it would only leave her yearning for more.
She went to the feed store in the morning and took care of some deliveries. It was her third day on the job and she was already starting to like the routine of it. Kallie never thought that she would like learning about animals, but she was having a good time while she did it.
It had only been about a week and she was already getting pressure to come home. But she wasn’t ready yet. When she was around Caspin, Kallie thought that she might not ever be ready to go home. The fact that he seemed to be everywhere that she was didn’t help.
Even at lunch, she was running into him. “Hey, Kallie.”
“Hi, Caspin. I am starting to wonder if you are stalking me.”
He shook his head that he wasn’t. “It’s a small town Kallie and you are right across from my office. I have lunch here pretty much every day.”
“Oh well that is disappointing.”
“Sit down and eat with me.”
“What’s good here?”
“Everything.” His eyes took in her jeans and tank top. Kallie was getting over the fact that she was never dressed nice when she saw him. She was usually grunge out at the feed store, so she was accepting of her new look. He didn’t seem to mind, his eyes just as dark and needy as they had been before.
Sitting down across from him, Kallie picked up the menu and ordered a club sandwich when the server came back around. “So do you really work next door?”
He nodded. “Yeah that is the family headquarters for the business. I am not here as much as I should be but that’s because I would rather be at the ranch with my horses.”
“A ranch and a Fortune 500 company. When do you have time to do anything?”
“I don’t really.”
Kallie felt bad that she had been taking up so much of his time lately. He had helped her more than once and never seemed rushed about it. His jobs made the state of his muscles far more likely. She couldn’t help but think about him shirtless and sweaty. The hat and boots were optional in her mind.
“Kallie, are you okay?”
“Huh, yeah. Sorry about that.”
“Where did you just go?”
She kind of laughed a little. “You don’t want to know.”
He leaned in and he was suddenly right next to her. She sat back quickly like if they touched she may burst into flames. As hot as she felt, it may have been possible.
“I think you know that you are a dangerous man Caspin. But don’t worry, I have been warned about you.”
“What do you mean dangerous and warned?”
“You could jump start my heart it is beating so fast. I think you know exactly how you affect women.”
“Yes, that very well may be, but who has warned you?”
She smiled and sat back as the waitress brought her a plate with the sandwich and some French fries. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
He leaned forward and smiled at him. “I think you are the one that knows how to affect someone Kallie.”
Not answering, she took a drink of tea and avoided his dark eyes. He looked at her in such a way that made her insides quiver. She couldn’t taste anything and after a few bites, Kallie gave up trying. There was nothing to take the wonder out of her mind. What if he would have stayed the night before?
“There you go again.”
She blushed a little. “See dangerous.”
***
Kallie was the first to leave after lunch. She was sure that he had meetings, a full schedule to attend, but instead he tried to coax her out to some activity. Kallie found herself declining. It was becoming a trend with the two of them. He was as understanding as always, but there was a moment where she thought he was going to kiss her. When he didn’t, she was disappointed. Kallie gave him her phone number and told him that they could do something soon. She was putting him off, but only to catch her breath.
She spent the rest of the afternoon getting a window bought and put in at the old house, as well as some cleaning done. It was starting to feel more like a home and Kallie decided that it needed some cooking in it to break it in. She hoped that Caspin would call so she could invite him over, but he didn’t so she went to bed discouraged.
The next morning brought the same routine and it was several days before there was a break in it. The weekend came and she had nothing to do when she woke up. Kallie was half tempted to go in to work to make sure everything was okay, but she knew it would be. The staff had been there a long time and it ran with or without her there. So, she was left with open time and Kallie was pressed for an idea. The only thing she could think to do was finally tackle the upstairs that she was avoiding or the basement that she had twice failed to get the courage up to go down the stairs. She was procrastinating all through breakfast.
When her phone rang, she half hoped it would be something that needed to be taken care of, just to give her mind something to work on. “Hello?”
“Kallie, good morning.”
His voice was deep and her knees started to buckle with the sound. She didn’t realize how much she was looking forward to his call until she heard his voice. “Hey, Caspin. Good morning. You sound downright chipper this morning.”
“It’s a beautiful day and no business to deal with. What about you?”
She should have made something up, that she was busy but she wasn’t. Truthfully, she had been dying to see him all week and was a little bummed that he hadn’t called. She felt like a teenager getting a call from her crush. It was that bad. Her heart pounded in her chest and she was downright giggly.
“Not a thing going on. Did you have something in mind?”
“I was hoping you would want to come down to the ranch.”
“Sure.”
“Well that was easy. I thought I was going to have to convince you.”
Kallie didn’t need any convincing. Just that he wanted to see her was enough. It didn’t matter where or when. She was debating how bad just one night would be. At least she would know what it was going in, just one incredible night.
“No convincing needed, I am bored and by pure coincidence, you are one of the few people I know here.”
He made a sound that told her that he wasn’t too happy with that. She never had been good at stroking egos, but Kallie figured he got enough of that on a daily basis. “So what’s the address and I will put it in the GPS.”
“I can come pick you up.”
“Either way. I need a few minutes to get ready if you want to come this way.”
She hung up and a thrill went over her. Kallie had already made it up in her mind that she was going to do more than visit him. She wanted him and the longer that it was until she seen him, the more she was hoping for him to call. Now that he had, Kallie wasn’t sure what to do or what to wear. He was inviting her to the ranch, but she didn’t want to come in shirt and jeans. She wanted to take his breath away and instead decided on a nice little black dress. It was not what she should have worn, but it was what she wanted him to see her in. She wanted to change his mind about how he saw her.