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I meet his gaze.
“You do know how beautiful you are, don’t you?”
I want to ask him how. How am I beautiful to him? I want to hear all the ways. I stare up at the ceiling because that’s not who we are anymore. He doesn’t have to shower me with compliments to quiet my insecurities.
“Every inch of you is perfection. From your heart down to your toes. I could look at you all day. And I’m a man who bores easily.” He winks.
I laugh softly and he smooths his hand over my head, kissing my forehead and lingering there for a moment. When he pulls back, strange concern lines his brows. “Are you sure there’s nothing?” he asks.
I swallow with a slow nod. And there’s that look again. The one that tells me he knows I’m holding back.
“Charlie?”
“Hmm?”
“I have one more.”
“Alright.”
“Don’t lie to me. As long as we’re both honest, no one gets hurt.”
I want to crawl under these covers. Bury my head in his chest and scream out the truth.
But what would it matter? If we’re nothing after this.
“Agreed.”
I park near my brother's house and step out of my car. It's been a while since I've been here during the day since I'm always busy at the office or driving to Denver for a client meeting.
But I'm not working today.
I breathe in the earthy aroma of hay and pine as I step around the ranch. A couple of hands are tending to a horse and I wave to them, despite not knowing my brother's crew the way I should. One waves back while the other narrows his eyes as if deciding where he'd seen me.
"Uncle Noah!" Jackson races up to me. He sniffs the greasy paper bags. "Are those cheesesteaks?"
I laugh. "Smell of manure not kill that little nose of yours yet?"
"Not for cheesesteaks," he says, wide-eyed, reaching for one of the bags.
"Someone say lunch?" Levi steps out of the barn, wiping his hands on a rag. He spots me and looks around at his staff. "Who's suing me?"
I chuckle. "Very funny. I visit all the time."
"Yeah, for poker." His eyes scan me. "But it's Wednesday and you look like you're ready to get your hands dirty."
I hand him his lunch. "I need your help."
He perks his brow. "Peppers and Cheese?"
"And hot sauce."
He grins. "Follow me."
We step onto his patio and I drop Charlie's folder on the wooden table.
Levi glances at me and opens it, pushing pages around, scanning them. "We're takin' a drive to the hardware store, aren't we?"
"Think we can get it done by Friday?" I ask.
