Mansfield Ranch (9 page)

I felt a momentary stab of guilt as I watched her walk out of the building and into the bright sunshine. I couldn’t let it affect me.
There’s no way I can start to feel compassion for the girl Sean’s interested in. It would kill me.

As I followed Julia outside, I heard Lauren’s ear-piercing shriek across the courtyard and parking lot.

“LILLY!”

Ugh
. I put my head down and sped toward the sound.
Does she have to scream so loud? I knew I was late. Sheesh!

“Hey, Lilly.” Harrison jogged up to me, no doubt alerted to my presence thanks to Lauren’s stupidity.

I walked faster.

“Wait.” He caught up. “Why do you put up with them, anyway?”

“Because I have to, okay?” I never took my gaze from the ground as I plowed on.

He tugged on my bag, forcing me to stop. “But why? You don’t
have
to.”

My eyes rose to Harrison’s other hand that held his strap on his shoulder. “Yes, I do. We’re family. It’s what families do—put up with each other.”

He let out a sigh of frustration. “Come on, don’t give me that. Just ride home with me, okay?”

My eyes met his. “Why? So you can—?”

“LILLY!”

I winced.
Just great. Now she’s really bent.

“This isn’t right!” he hissed. “Let me drop Lauren, okay? The more I’m around them and see how they treat you, the more I want to strangle one of them.” He grabbed my elbow and pulled me right up to him. “This—this is right. You and me. Not you, me, Lauren, and Alexis.”

“No.”

His eyes seared into mine. “Let me prove it to you, please. Let’s get past this. Let me take you where you want to go and make sure you’re treated right.”

I shook my head. My chest tightened and I couldn’t speak.

“Dang it, Lilly! Why are you so completely stubborn? You can have me.
Me!
And instead, you’re willing to be kicked around by them.”

“Harrison—” I tried to step back, but his hold remained firm.

“And you make me force myself to be nice to them. Why? You know, I could end this right now.” Harrison’s eyes flashed. He whirled around, still gripping my elbow, and propelled me toward Lauren’s car.

“Don’t you dare do it, Harrison Crawford, or I swear to you I’ll . . .”

“You’ll kiss me with gratitude?”

Ugh
. My eyes flew to his self-satisfied grin. “You wish.”

 “Aww. Look at that. She’s beginning to read me already.”

I would’ve retorted with something else, but right then we reached the car. Harrison was all smiles.

“Hey, girls. Sorry—I missed the assignment Mr. Simmons gave out at the end of last hour and I had to ask Lilly what it was. Hope I didn’t make you late for something.” He finally let my elbow drop and walked over to Lauren’s side of the car. She was out and in his arms before I even made it into the backseat.

Once in the car, I was forced to sit there and listen to Harrison’s husky murmurs—Alexis was giggling.
What a moron
. His arm was wrapped around Lauren’s waist while he flirted with Alexis. In disgust, I glanced away until a movement in the window caught my attention. Harrison pulled out his cell phone with his free hand and after a quick glance at it, blindly pushed a few buttons at random behind him and then carefully placed it back in his back pocket again.

My cell buzzed.
What in the—? He did not
.

I turned the phone on and shook my head at the ultimate player strategy known to mankind, hitting on three girls at once. Harrison Crawford was something else. With a chuckle at his annoying charm, I read:

Miss you already. Will call

you later. Oh, and you’re

welcome.

What a piece of work. I felt sorry for any girl who was dumb enough to be his girlfriend.

***

By Friday night, I had almost convinced myself I had a stomachache—almost. It was, however, convincing enough to lie and say I couldn’t make it to the party because I wasn’t feeling good. Lauren and Alexis were only too happy to see that I was staying home. Even Sean didn’t seem as concerned about it as I thought he would be.

“Okay, Lilly. I’ll let Julia and Harrison know you’re sick.” He was smiling, actually smiling, as he said it. With a quick look in the large mirror in the living room, he flicked his hair a bit. “We’ll miss you, though,” he said, as almost an afterthought.

But just as I turned away and was beginning to feel a bit put out by the whole thing, I was surprised to hear Sean whisper in my ear and feel his warm arm wrap around my shoulders. “Oh! Don’t forget—tomorrow morning I have a surprise for you, so you have to be better by then.”

Surprise?
My tummy flip-flopped. I was grateful I wasn’t really sick or his soft voice might have hurt, the way my insides jolted. His subtle cologne washed over me and the pressure of his hand on my shoulder caused my legs to buckle slightly. I didn’t realize until that moment how much his nearness could affect me. It was wonderful.

I leaned my cheek closer to his mouth and murmured, “Oh, you mean the date thingy?”

Sean stiffened. I heard him slowly inhale and felt his hand tighten on my shoulder. He leaned in and his forehead lightly caressed above my brow. “You smell amazing.”

The deep shudders his voice created released a small gasp from my mouth. “I—I do?” I tried to sound normal, but I was failing miserably.

“Come on, Sean,” Lauren whined from the door. “What are you guys whispering about, anyway?”

Sean instantly pulled away from me, allowing our eyes to meet. “Be ready by five thirty, okay?”

“Five thirty?” That was early. My brows rose.

He grinned and waggled his eyebrows in return. “Yep. It’s a surprise, remember?”

“Okay.” I grinned back. My insides were already jelly.

“Let’s go, already!” Lauren was not in a good mood.

“Bye.” Sean winked a gorgeous wink before hurrying to the front door.

With a lighter heart than I’d had in weeks, I floated to my bedroom and shut the door. I squealed as I grabbed the closest pillow and collapsed on the bed.
Sean likes me! He can’t help himself—he likes me! And he has a surprise. And he loves the way I smell.

In a rare fit of girlishness, I ran to my desk and sprayed a couple more squirts of my mango body spray all over me. Then I slipped off my shoes and socks and tucked my feet under the comforter while snuggling into my pillow. I sat there for several minutes, dreaming of all the simple joys that flitted through my mind—mostly of what tomorrow would bring, skipping over hundreds of different scenarios only to settle completely on what I already knew: the guy I was deeply, perfectly, and hopelessly in love with found me irresistible.

I was blissfully unaware of everything around me, but the distinct noise of a rock hitting my window brought me back to awareness immediately.

I threw back the covers and jumped up. Flipping off the light, I crept up to the window between my dresser and bed. My heart raced as my fingers touched the cold window sill and lifted the blinds to find Harrison’s smiling face inches from my own.

I screamed and slammed the blinds down.

Ugh
. I couldn’t believe he’d scared me like that.

He’s such a moron!
Calming my pounding heart, I slipped on the shoes beside my bed and tossed a hoodie over my head. I ripped the door open, ran down the hall, and was out the back door before he decided to find his way in. I met him around the side of the house and hissed, “What are you doing here?”

“I came to cheer you up.” He laughed. “I didn’t mean to scare you, though.”

I rolled my eyes and folded my arms as I leaned against the side of the house. “You didn’t.”

“Uh—really?” He smirked and imitated my pose, resting his shoulder on the prickly stucco. “Do you always scream when you look out your window at night?”

“Only when I see people like you. I get so annoyed, I have to scream.” I turned slightly and rested my back against the house, staring up at the moon so I wouldn’t have to see him.

I felt Harrison’s eyes travel my shadowed profile before I heard him clear his throat and quietly ask, “So, do I really annoy you that much, or . . . ?” His voice trailed off.

I waited a few moments before I turned and caught his intense stare. His darkened eyes were full of what seemed to be uncertainty. “Or?” I asked quietly.

Harrison didn’t say a word. He stepped toward me and gently ran his hand through my hair. My fingers gripped the front of his jacket to push him away, but his mouth descended on mine before I had the chance.

Soft, careful lips applied their pressure, then pulled away.

It was nothing like the challenge he’d issued before when he stole the kiss on the side of the road. This was so different.

I inhaled slowly as his eyes flew to my mouth once more. I knew he wanted me to step forward and invite him to really kiss me. I knew he did.

But I couldn’t.

I wouldn’t.

Something about him made me uneasy. “I have to go,” I said.

He reached down and tugged on my hand. “No, you don’t. Just like you’re not really sick.” His cool fingers laced through mine. “Admit it. I unsettle you so much, you don’t know what to do with yourself. So much, you have to hide away and pretend like everything is normal.”

“Maybe, just maybe, I really don’t want to be around you. Have you ever thought about that?” I said as I pushed away from the wall.

Harrison shook his head. “No. You do. I know you do. I could tell just a moment ago when I kissed you.” He took a step forward, his eyes intent on my lips.

I froze.

“You may not like me, but you’re just curious enough to want to know what I’ll do next, aren’t you, Lilly?”

“No.”

“Your heart is beating faster, isn’t it? You’re so preoccupied by trying to keep away from me that part of you secretly wishes I’d stay so you can know what it really feels like to be kissed, to be cared about, to be proven wrong—that part of you keeps you standing here now.”

My heart clenched, but I didn’t move
. Is he right? He can’t be right.

Harrison slowly brought his hand up and slid it around my neck to cup my head. “Walk away from me. I dare you, Lilly Price,” he whispered before his mouth kissed mine again.

This time, just this once, I closed my eyes and allowed his kiss to overwhelm me.
Is he right? Do I secretly want him to kiss me?
It was so tender, and cautious, and perfect. Honestly, it was one very amazing, very dreamy kiss.

He pulled back and gasped. His eyes bore into mine as his shoulders moved with each inhale. “Holy cow, Batman. Why in the world did I do that?”

It snapped me back to reality. “Because you’re a moron.”

He shook his head and touched his mouth with his fingers. “No, because I’m a fool.” He looked down in a bit of a daze. It didn’t seem as if he was focused on anything. “Game over.” His eyes came back and met mine. “You won.”

And then he left, leaving that cryptic remark hanging in the cold night air.

Chapter Eleven: Rise and Shine!

I heard a soft knock at the door and quickly zipped up my coat. “Just a minute,” I whispered. Grabbing my gloves and scarf, I opened the door to a smiling Sean. He looked adorable in his beanie and jacket. My heart somersaulted.

“Are you ready to go?” he asked, holding his hand out for mine.

I stuffed my gloves into my pocket and slid my fingers onto his palm. Everything, simply everything, about his hand was flawless. Why did I never notice before?

He squeezed and then pulled me down the hall.

“So, where’s the surprise?” I had to ask, if only to stop my heart from its erratic beating.

“You’ll see. Now patience.”

I expected it to have something to do with Princess Buttercup, but when we rounded the corner and made our way to the garage instead, I stopped. “No, really. What’s going on?”

He laughed. “Nope. Hurry up already or we’ll miss it.”

“Miss it?” Good grief. Now I was really curious.

“Yep. We have a long drive ahead of us. Come on.” He opened his truck door and I glided onto sumptuous leather seats.

“We’re taking the truck somewhere? Not your car?” Unless he was hauling something or going off road, he preferred the car.

“I should’ve blindfolded you,” he muttered as he climbed in next to me.

“You’re a—”

“Careful there. Remember, I have a surprise to show you. You don’t want to be mean and ruin it, do you?”

I gasped. “Who says I was going to say something mean?”

His eyes met mine in the darkened vehicle and he grinned. “Whatever. I probably deserve it, I know. But whatever.” He started the engine and waited for the automatic garage door to open before slowly backing out.

I was dying to ask again where we were going, but refrained. It nearly killed me. However, I was good and kept the conversation flowing about normal things. Things that had nothing to do with Julia or Harrison, but everything to do with the day-to-day grind of life and the ranch.

About an hour later, we crossed over the Colorado border. Once we pulled off the road onto a dirt trail and began to climb up a mountain, I knew it was going to be a very special surprise—I just didn’t know what. After a bumpy twenty minutes or so climbing the mountain, we finally parked. It was almost seven o’clock.

Sean jumped out of the truck. After slipping on his coat and gloves, he began rummaging in the backseat. He pulled out thick blankets and a hamper.

“Do you need help?” I climbed down and put on my gloves, then walked over to him while tying my scarf.

“Here.” He handed me a thermos. “You take that and I’ve got the rest.” Throwing the blankets over his shoulder, he picked up the hamper and then grinned his adorable grin—dimple peeking out and all.

“Where to?”

“Over here.” He seemed so proud of himself, I had to giggle as we made our way through the darkened brush and evergreens to an outcropping of rock.