Page 19

Chapter

Ten

K elby found it hard to believe those words had just come out of her mouth.

But she didn’t regret them one bit.

West seemed surprised for a moment, and then his head moved toward hers. She closed her eyes, waiting to see if what had been between them once before might ignite again.

The kiss was sweet. Tender. It was comforting, one meant to reassure her that everything was going to be all right in the long run. But it was not the kiss she had asked for. Not by a long shot. She gripped his wrists with her fingers and pulled his hands from her face, lowering them.

West looked at her, obviously confused. “I’m sorry. That was wrong of me to take advantage of you like that. You’re really vulnerable now, Kelby. I should have never kissed you.”

“I asked you to kiss me,” she insisted. “It was a nice kiss, but I was expecting one to knock my socks off.” She hesitated. “Like the one we shared before,” she added softly.

“I don’t think we need to go there.”

“Let me be the judge of that,” she told him, determination filling her.

“I tried not to think about you for almost fifteen years, West. For the most part, I succeeded. I buried all thoughts of that kiss between us.” Her gaze met his.

“Since I was eighteen years old, I’ve never had a kiss like the one we shared that day.

I want to see if there’s still anything between us. ”

Kelby licked her lips. “And pursue it if there is.”

Her hand moved to his nape, pulling him down to her. Their lips touched, pressing against each other’s. Every fiber of her being was aware of him. The feel of his sensual lips. The hint of mint on his breath. His clean, masculine scent. Her heart crashing against her ribs painfully.

West didn’t rush things between them. He started slowly, just as he had that first time so long ago.

And just as before, the kiss caught fire.

Kelby opened to him, and he accepted her invitation, his tongue easing inside her mouth, stroking her own.

Energy crackled in the air as their tongues began warring, things heating up fast. She felt her blood heat, feeling the fever sweep through her.

This is what she had wondered about. Hoped for.

She tried to move closer to him, but the console was in her way.

She heard his own low growl of frustration as he broke the kiss.

Her hand still cradled his nape as their foreheads rested against one another’s.

“I guess a sports car isn’t the best place to try and kiss you.” He lifted his head, and she saw his turquoise eyes had gone an even deeper bluish green, desire changing them. “Would you like to come back to my rental?” he asked huskily. “Just to finish the kiss. Nothing else.”

She sensed West would be a gentleman and keep his word, so she whispered, “Yes.”

They broke apart. Immediately, he said, “Uh-oh. We have company.”

Looking over her shoulder, Kelby saw a deputy’s cruiser pulling in behind them.

“Let me handle it,” he told her. “We’ll be fine.”

She grinned at him. “Something tells me that you’ve been in a situation with the law before, and it turned out in your favor.”

“Well, there may have been a time or two where a speeding ticket was on the table. That is, until the issuing officer saw who I was, and I managed to get off with a warning.”

West rolled down his window, placing both hands on the steering wheel in plain sight.

“Hello, Officer,” he said pleasantly as the deputy reached them and looked inside the vehicle.

“Is there a ...” The law officer’s voice trailed off, and then he exclaimed, “Oh, my gosh! You’re West Sutherland. West Sutherland! Are you in trouble, Sir?”

“Not a bit, Deputy Jackson. I just got an important phone call and decided to pull off to the side of the road and take it. I thought it was better to do so instead of only half-concentrating on my driving.”

West’s answer, combined with him using the lawman’s name, seemed to fluster the young deputy.

“Well, all right. Good. Boy, West Sutherland. You were my idol growing up. I was in seventh grade when the Hawks went to the state championship game. You caught that forty-two-yard touchdown, and then in the last few seconds of the game, you pulled in that Hail, Mary from the quarterback. Ran sixty-seven yards for a touchdown. Man, I was crying in the stands. I was so proud to be from Hawthorne that day.”

“Hey, the offense only got the chance to get the ball back that final time because Chance Blackstone intercepted a pass and gave our offense a last chance at victory.”

Kelby had listened to this kind of talk her entire life.

Her brother and West. Bax and his teammates.

They loved to relive games in great detail.

Where women filed away the names of shades of lipsticks and where to pick up bargains on shoes, men knew sports stats like the back of their hands and shared them with one another with ease.

“Did you play any ball for the Hawks?” West asked pleasantly.

“I did, Mr. Sutherland. I was a defensive tackle. We didn’t quite have the glory days of your teams, but we made it to the quarter finals my sophomore year and the semifinals my senior year. Coach Markham is a good man and a great coach.”

“I agree,” West said easily. “In fact, I think so much of Coach that he’s going to be my new boss.”

The deputy’s eyes widened. “What? You’re going to coach the Hawks?”

“I’ll be an assistant coach for next year’s squad,” West said proudly, and Kelby knew he would be just as happy doing that as he had been playing in Super Bowls for the Cowboys.

A part of the barrier she had erected to keep men out seemed to invisibly crumble.

“Well, if you’re okay, it looks like your call has ended, Mr. Sutherland, so you might want to get on the road again.”

“I’ll do so, Deputy Jackson. Thanks for stopping to see if we needed any help.” Then West asked, “Would you like a selfie together?”

The young deputy grinned from ear-to-ear. “If you don’t mind, sir.”

“Make it West in the future.”

Jackson’s smile grew even wider. “I’d be happy to, West.”

“Let me take it for you,” Kelby offered, getting out of the Jaguar.

“How about in front of your squad car?” West suggested.

The officer started to hand his cell phone to Kelby, but she waved him away, pulling out her own.

“I’ve got it. Move together now.”

Deputy Jackson stood proudly next to West. She took several shots, both vertically and horizontally, and then zoomed in for a couple of closer shots.

Lowering her phone, she said, “I’ll text these to West and you. He’ll probably want to put them up on his Insta.”

Jackson looked shocked. “You’d do that?”

“I’d be happy to, Deputy Jackson. I’ve always been a big supporter of law enforcement.”

Kelby handed Deputy Jackson her cell, asking him to input his number so she could send him the pictures. As he typed, she asked, “What’s your handle? He can tag you.”

The deputy shared it, and West shook hands with him. “Good meeting you, Deputy.”

“It was an honor meeting you, West,” enthusiastically pumping his hand. “And it’ll be great to have you on the sidelines come Friday nights this fall.”

They returned to West’s car, and he opened the door for Kelby before going around to the driver’s side and climbing behind the wheel. He started the car and gave a wave, signaling to move back onto the two-lane road.

“Thank you for not accepting his phone for the pictures,” West told her. “I hardly ever give out my number. Not that I think the good deputy would abuse it if he had it, but I appreciate you using your number to text him from.”

“I figured as much. You realize now that everyone in Hawthorne and miles beyond will know about your coaching job after your encounter with Deputy Jackson.”

“I don’t mind a bit. I’m excited about it. I’ll be proud to be a part of Coach Markham’s staff.”

“Is it going to be hard for you, West? Adjusting to civilian life in a small town?”

“I had wondered a little bit about that myself. Dallas Cowboys are treated like gods in the city. I’ve told you, though, that I’m looking for a different kind of life. Besides, I’m thrashing it all out with my therapist. She’s helping me to lay a strong foundation for the future.”

“You have a therapist?”

“You sound surprised. Therapy isn’t just for people who have massive problems, Kelby. It’s a great place to work out little things. To learn about yourself. Even about others.”

“How long have you been in therapy?” she asked.

“I started last year after my ACL injury. I knew I had the tools and personnel to help my body to heal, but sports is a mind game. The smallest thing can psych you out. I needed someone to bounce ideas off of, and Dr. Linda fit the bill. My mental health is just as important to me as my physical health.”

Kelby found it very interesting that West had a therapist and had been open about sharing that fact. “You played this entire season. Starred in the Super Bowl. I really haven’t kept up with football much, but I know you reached the pinnacle again. Did therapy help?”

“Sometimes, I feel as if Dr. Linda saved my life.”

His words moved her. “Was she the one who recommended that you retire?”

“No, she’s not like that at all. It’s hard to get her to express her own opinion or make any kind of suggestions to me. She wants all that to originate with me. Did I talk over retirement with her? You bet I did. But it was more how I was going to announce it and what I would do once I did retire.”

He grinned. “And I can’t believe it, but I just recently found out that she’s a Green Bay Packers fan.”