AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’m glad you had fun.” He touched her cheek. “I promise I’ll text you this week.”
She shook a finger at him. “You’d better, and I expect an invitation to your birthday party too.”
“I’ll see what I can do about that.”
He held his hand out to her, but she pulled him close and hugged him instead. With her arms around his neck, she rested her head against his chest, listened to the rhythmic cadence of his heartbeat, and drew in his familiar scent.
Carter rested his hands on her hips and his cheek on the top of her head. His warmth surrounded her, seeping into her skin. She closed her eyes and basked in the feel of his arms around her.
When she released him from the hug, his dark eyes focused on hers with an intensity that sent her pulse galloping. He swallowed and licked his lips. “I like you, Darcy.”
“I like you too.”
“I mean, I really like you.” He paused. “I’d like to see where this goes.”
She nodded. “I would too.” She touched his hand. “Can we take it slow?”
He blew out a puff of air, and his expression relaxed. “That would be perfect.”
Happiness billowed through her.
“I’ll text you.” His handsome face lit with a smile.
She unlocked her front door and pushed it open. “Drive safe.”
“I will,” he promised. “Good night, Darcy.”
“Good night.” She stood in the doorway while he jogged down her steps and climbed into his SUV.
***
Carter’s thoughts spun like a cyclone as he drove home. He had relished every moment with Darcy today. He’d finally found the courage to tell her that he liked her, but he felt torn.
Darcy had a house, and her parents were comfortable—very comfortable—while Carter was crawling out of debt.
Still, when Darcy hugged him, he didn’t want to let go. In fact, he wanted to tilt her chin up and kiss her until she was breathless.
Yet attraction could only go so far. He had nothing to contribute to her life except for debt. The cost of his routine medications alone was enough of a hardship for him. It would be unfair of him to even consider dragging her into the mess of his life. How could he expect someone else to take that on?
He was starting to care for her. And that scared him.
Carter rested his elbow on the door and steered with his other hand while he stared at the road ahead. His thoughts wandered to her fiancé and the pain he’d witnessed in her eyes when she talked about him. Carter couldn’t imagine the depth of her grief, and her fiancé hadn’t even been gone for two years.
Everything felt so hard right now. Darcy, his recovery, his finances, his dad... He frowned, recalling how he’d opened up to Darcy about his father. He had to find a way to convince Shauna to not waste her time looking for Dad. The last thing he needed was his father returning to disrupt their lives.
Carter parked his truck in the driveway, climbed out, and gathered up the basket and blanket. He was still deep in thought as he hit the button to open the garage door and sauntered into the house. He hung his truck keys on a hook by the back door.
The sound of a movie echoed in the kitchen from the family room. He padded through the house, waving to his sister and brother-in-law on his way toward the hall closet, where Shauna had kept the basket and blanket.
When the television muted, Carter pressed his lips together.
“Sooooo, how’d it go?” Shauna asked with a grin.
Carter nodded. “Fine,” he said, opening the closet door.
“Details, please!” his sister demanded as he slipped the basket and blanket onto the top shelf.
He frowned, not in the mood for an interrogation. “We had fun. We had a picnic and walked around the park. We wandered around town, and then I took her home.”
