Page 61 of Cautious Love

Eventually, a few more people come in. Mollie and I go back and forth serving the tables. I drop the check at the Hayes table and run away before anyone has the chance to say anything. I don’t even care about the tip. I don’t want a tip.

When they get up to leave, Ledger comes up to the register and hands me a stack of bills for the meal. I ring it up and hand him the change back.

“No, it’s yours.”

I huff through my nose. “I don’t want your tip.”

He frowns. “Why? You earned it?”

“Ledger, please,” I whisper, holding the change out. Rocks are filling my throat and for some strange reason my eyes are burning like I want to cry.Why in the world would this make me cry?

He lifts his hand as if to take the money and instead takes mine, using his thumb, turning the ring on my finger in the right direction — stone up.

“Fine, give it to Bear,” he mutters, and drops my hand.

I take the cash. “That I can do.”

He dips his head once, looking me straight in the eye, and my heart combusts.

I don’t know what I was thinking, but …I can’t be friends with this man.

“I’ll see you at home,” he says quietly.

“Okay,” I whisper.

He spins on his heel and walks out the door, leaving me completely overwhelmed by the tangible chemistry between us. I felt it in the laundry room, hell I felt it when invited me to live in his home. But he’s the sheriff, a cowboy, a good man, known in the community, and I’m a criminal. Albeit apreviouscriminal, sort of. But I’ve cleaned up my act because I learned my lesson, but it doesn’t change the fact that the whole town knows about my past. So it’s safe to say I wouldn’t make Ledger look like an upstanding Sheriff.

I sigh and wipe the table.

If he hadn’t kissed me, I think we could resist because when we said ‘I do’, the kiss wasn’t enough to feel anything.

But we did cross the line, and we can’t go back, and I don’t want to feel the way I’m feeling, but I do. I’m falling for my husband and there’s no doubt it cannot end well.

Yup, I’m screwed.

When I get home from running errands, I almost sprint to my room because he’s home and I don’t want to talk to him. I’m afraid of what I’ll say, and I still need to call my dad.

Yeah, that’s my excuse. I have to call my dad.

“Are we going to talk about it?” Ledger asks, sitting in the living room with a book face down in his lap.

I’m too busy freaking out to pay attention to the title.

“What?” I ask, playing dumb. It’s the easiest out. It worked with Grey, why couldn’t it work with Ledger?

Oh, wait because Ledger isn’t an idiot.

My stomach twists, and I hate even considering that either of them are similar. Ledger is the best man, short of my own father, that I’ve ever known.

“Shy,” Ledger says, almost exasperated.

I finally look at him and I can’t read his face. He’s either hopeful, or trying to let me down easy.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I say and rush to my room, closing the door behind me.

I barely take a breath and he barges through. “Yes, you do, and I need you to answer my question,” he says.

“Does this have to do with your case?” I ask him.