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He reached out for the book, but she slapped his hand away. “Hey, I wasn’t done with that. I was going to suggest you try haggis next.”
“No, thank you. I don’t know what haggis is, and I’m not sure I want to find out.”
“It’s a bunch of sheep organs minced up.”
Sariah’s face looked a little green. “Let me guess. You’ve eaten that too.”
“It’s not my favorite.”
“Was it better than the chicken’s feet?”
“Not really.”
She crossed her arms. “Why do you eat so much weird stuff?”
He shrugged. “Mostly so I can say I’ve tried it.”
“So, for bragging rights.”
“Pretty much.”
She rolled her eyes. “You’re such a weirdo.”
“You’re the one who wanted to kiss me the other night,” he pointed out.
She raised her eyebrows. “What makes you think it was my idea?”
“You kissed me first,” he insisted.
“But you were already leaning in. It was clear that you wanted the kiss.” She looked around like she was checking to see if their grandmothers were around to hear their conversation.
He licked his lips. He wanted another kiss right now. Seeing her all sassy only made him crave her more. “You’re right. I did want that kiss.”
She caught his gaze, and her lips parted.
He fought the urge to take her in his arms and kiss her passionately right there in the middle of the crowd. Knowing the Maple Creek rumor mill, word would spread like wildfire that he was dating Sariah. At least the paparazzi hadn’t discovered where he was. If they caught wind that he was kissing another woman, they’d have a heyday with the information.
His phone rang in his back pocket. He pulled it out and checked the screen. It was Orchid. He tucked the phone back in his pocket and let it go to voicemail. She was the last person he wanted to talk to right now. Especially not in front of Sariah.
Was he a total jerk for not telling her he was about to become a dad? He knew she had issues with Elliot keeping secrets from her. Hopefully, she wouldn’t get mad at him when she found out he had a kid on the way. Eventually, it would get out. He couldn’t hide it forever.
He was a much more complicated guy than he seemed on the surface. When she learned the truth, she might pull away from him. He wasn’t sure he wanted that anymore. The longer he spent time with her, the more he wanted to see more of her.
Kane and Sariah browsed the book stand for a bit more and then headed to the stage where some chairs were set up. A bluegrass band was playing on the stage, and there were people scattered throughout the audience seating. “Want to sit down and listen for a while?”
“Sure.”
His phone buzzed again. He checked it to see another missed call from Orchid. She’d called while he was at the town meeting too, and he still hadn’t gotten back to her. Hopefully the baby was okay. He wasn’t going to call her back now though. Not in front of Sariah.
A text message came through.
Orchid: I need you to call me back as soon as you see this.
He hated texting in front of Sariah, but he needed to make sure the baby was okay.
Kane: I’m unavailable to talk on the phone right now. What’s going on?
She didn’t respond.