Page 6 of Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend (Catching Feelings #1)

“He is the old ways,” Sean says, and I laugh.

“I wish everyone could see I’m not looking to make waves, just friends.”

“The right people will see it,” Danny says. He gives me a smile and then goes to help a customer, leaving me and Sean.

Sean leans back, gripping the counter behind him and smiling at me. He looks so comfortable in his skin, so steady and reassuring. Even when he moves, Sean has a calmness, a stillness to him. Like a babbling brook. A human anxiety buster.

He’s impossible not to watch.

And to be frank, a big part of that is how unbelievably handsome he is, with his wide jaw, thick beard, piercing brown eyes, and gorgeous dark hair. And his absurdly broad chest and biceps …

Whew.

If he didn’t have a mullet …

Who am I kidding?

He makes it look good.

And perhaps the best part of all is the way he’s looking at me like he can hardly believe I’m looking back at him. When his eyes drop to my left hand, mine follow.

“I see your hand lost some dead weight.”

I sniff out a laugh and wiggle my bare fingers. “Looks good, doesn’t it?”

He nods, his eyes sparkling. “It does. You made it happen, huh?”

“I did. Thanks to you,” I say.

The smile drops from his face, and he shakes his head, looking beyond uncomfortable. Distraught, even. “That’s not what I was trying to do. I would never break up a relationship.”

“Hey,” I say, holding my hand out toward him, glad no one’s paying attention to us right now.

“That’s not what happened. My ex was the same he’d always been, and I finally felt brave enough to confront it.

It had never occurred to me that I could simply break up, not because something was wrong, but because nothing was right.

You empowered me. But you’re not responsible for breaking us up.

I’m happily taking credit for that, thank you very much.

” I sit up straight and pop the collar of my sleeveless blouse.

And Sean’s smile returns, even bigger than before.

Somewhere behind me, a stool scrapes across the floor and a burst of laughter erupts from a booth in the back, but I barely register it. Sean has my full attention.

“Did I hear right that you moved to Sugar Maple?”

I shrug. “I’m staying in my grandpa’s old riverfront house in town with Ash—Rusty Fielding’s girlfriend. You know Rusty, don’t you? He’s close with your brother?”

“Yeah, we’re tight, too,” Sean says. “And my brother’s dating one of Ash’s best friends. They’re a great group. But what made you pack up and move? Don’t you have a job and life in Atlanta? You work for Carville Industries, last I heard.”

“You’ve heard something, have you?” I tease, and he gives me a half-smile.

“I do have a job and did have a life in Atlanta, but it turns out my dad buying me a team was … serendipitous. All of my friends have sided with my ex-fiancé. They think I had a nervous breakdown that caused me to ruin my life and move to a town famous for mullets. The hairstyle, not the fish.”

“Well?” he asks. “Did you have a nervous breakdown?”

A smile tugs the corner of my mouth up. “I brought an eight hundred dollar Heritage Port pie to the church potluck. I think the jury’s still out.”

He laughs, and the deep, rumbling sound makes me feel all fluttery inside.

I love a good laugh, and Sean’s is better than good.

It’s the kind that makes you feel captivating, not just funny.

I love people with a good sense of humor.

One of the first warning signs I had with Aldridge was that I was funnier than him.

I learned that on our second date.

If I let myself think about how much time I wasted with him, it would drive me crazy. Make me sick to my stomach …

Be kind. Young Kayla was doing the best she could.

Back then, I cared less about finding my people and more about simply fitting in. Aldridge had friends and connections and manners so impeccable, it was easy to mistake them for kindness. And because of my last name, his inner circle welcomed me with open arms.

Poor Young Kayla.

Being here in a town where no one likes me or wants me around is hard. It’s a fight every day to make sure I don’t slip back into old habits and do and say whatever I need to to be accepted.

I don’t feel that way with Sean.

He steps forward and plants his elbows on the bar. His dad and another bartender are hard at work, so I don’t feel guilty for occupying Sean’s attention. “I think it’s great that you’re trying. My dad’s right. Stick with it. They won’t freeze you out forever. You’re too sincere and authentic.”

I fake a snore and then pop my head up. “What, sorry? I fell asleep when you called me ‘sincere and authentic.’ I’m bored just hearing about my virtues.”

He laughs, his face only a foot from mine across the counter. Man, he’s good looking. I’ve never thought much about beards, but I think I could come around after seeing Sean’s.

“Fine,” he says. “Witty and delightful. Is that better?”

I smile, because it is better. He gets it, what I’m doing. He can even go along. “Only if you sincerely, authentically believe it.”

He leans down so he’s looking me head on, staring at me. “I do.”

He’s close enough that I catch a hint of something sweet and oaky. But it’s not his intoxicating smell that hits me—it’s the quiet certainty in his eyes, like he’s decided I already belong.

Why does that make me flush?

“Well, I think all of those things about you, too,” I say, stirring my straw around in my soda water. “Sincere, authentic, witty, and delightful.”

He flattens his eyebrows. “Do you really think that?”

I hold his eye, wanting him to know how serious I am when I say,

“I do.”

He doesn’t back up right away, and neither do I, and I get a feeling like I wouldn’t mind staying here, peering into his eyes for a moment longer … when someone asks him for a drink.

He backs up, but not before shooting me a smile that feels almost secretive. But what secret could we possibly have?

And why do I smile back like I know exactly what it is?