Page 5 of Tempting Bo (Montgomery Dreams #2)

KENZIE

Cities like Skyview Falls never actually change, not in any way that matters.

Sure, there’s a different fast food joint halfway down Main Street that was a diner before this, and a pub before that.

The high school kids have added to the graffiti on the old textile factory, but nothing’s new about that.

The kids knocked spray paint from the same hardware store that was there when I was a kid.

There are new faces, new names, but everything’s all the same at heart.

I don’t recognize the waitress who takes my order after I take a seat at the counter, but the menu is still the same as it always was. The cracked vinyl of the barstool sticks to my thighs in a way that’s both unpleasant and soothingly familiar.

It really is good to be back home.

I’m proud of the progress I’ve made, even if I’ve got some cushion with time.

School doesn’t start for a while yet, but I’m already mostly unpacked and ready to get started.

My office is decked out with houseplants that I’ll probably kill within the month and framed photos of family and friends.

I even have one of me and Mrs. Geraldine.

She technically retired at the end of the last semester, but she offered to train me before the school year starts. It’s an honor to take over her position, especially since she’s the only reason I excelled so much in school.

If I wasn’t able to lean on her when things got rough, I don’t know where I’d be today. Certainly not in the same diner I grew up in, excited about a brand new start.

I spent a lot of time here when I was younger, studying with Oakley and Bo and everyone who hung around them. If I wasn’t at the Montgomery Ranch or at home, I was here, PB&J milkshake in hand. This diner has probably seen more math homework than any establishment should have to suffer through.

My food comes out fast, a steaming burger with homemade fries and a massive milkshake. I’ve never ordered a milkshake here when I was on my own—usually Oakley and I would split one because of how big they are.

This is a celebration of my new job and a new chapter of life, and I’m going to treat myself with all my favorite foods. I’m pretty sure my lifelong crush kissing me is also a hell of a cause for celebration.

I tuck into my food, groaning quietly at the familiar flavors. Marge hasn’t changed her secret sauce recipe, thankfully. I could probably drink the stuff straight.

The bell on the door rings, and I glance over at the sound, almost choking in surprise when Bo himself walks up to the counter. He’s in work clothes, his jeans filthy and worn thin, his shirt covered in dust. I’ve never found a dirty man so unbearably attractive, but Bo wears it well.

Hell, he wears everything well.

He doesn’t notice me at first, putting in an order with the waitress at the counter. I take the time to fix my hair and straighten my posture before calling out to him.

“Look what the cat dragged in,” I say teasingly.

He looks up in confusion, his surprise melting away to pleasure when his eyes land on me.

“Kenzie,” he says. “I’d hug you, but I’m covered in dirt.”

I laugh as he walks the few feet over to join me. I’d hug him anyway, if he asked, but I keep that thought to myself.

“You on your lunch break?” I ask before sipping my milkshake.

“Just picking up for the guys at the ranch. PB&J still your favorite?” Bo asks, a warm grin on his face as he glances between my eyes and my mouth.

“I can’t miss out on the nostalgia,” I say, grinning right back at him. “I didn’t realize you still came here.”

I really shouldn’t look into it so much—Marge’s is a staple of the town for a reason, and it’s not just because Marge herself refuses to share her apple pie recipe.

A part of me can’t help but feel warm and fuzzy.

This place was always special to me, and the thought of Bo still coming to somewhere I considered ours makes my heart beat a little faster.

“I never really kicked the habit.” He chuckles and slides onto the stool beside me, propping himself up with an elbow on the counter. His eyes never leave mine. “Mind if I join you while I wait for my food?”

I take another sip of my milkshake to stop myself from agreeing immediately. A little self restraint is good, even though I can’t stop thinking about the way he kissed me. It’s hard to focus on conversation when I know what his lips feel like against mine.

“I guess I could allow it,” I say teasingly.

“Thank you for your kindness, ma’am.” He heaps on a southern drawl, and I laugh as he tips an imaginary cowboy hat to me. “You setting up for school already, or do you have a little time off?”

“I have to train on the computer system, so I’m already neck deep in it,” I say with an excited smile. “I got my office set up today, and Mrs. Geraldine and I are going to go through some of the filing stuff after lunch.”

Bo’s smile is warm, affectionate in a way I’m not used to. His eyes flick over my face like he’s memorizing every line, and my cheeks heat at the scrutiny.

“You look really happy, Kenz,” he says. “I’m glad. It’s not the same around here without you, but I was worried you’d get a taste of college life and ditch this place.”

“I could never.”

I didn’t think about staying away even once. I always wanted to come back—for work, for home, for my family. For Bo.

“Good. You know me, I’d be in shambles if I couldn’t bug you,” he says, his dimples winking as his smile stretches wider.

Something about his words rings truer than I think he meant it to.

Maybe that kiss wasn’t just a spur-of-the-moment thing.

I’ve been trying to figure out what it really meant this whole time, but I’m coming up blank.

It just makes little sense that Bo could like me like that, especially after all this time.

But why else would he kiss me? Why would he kiss me like he’s been starving for a taste of me?

“You never bug me,” I say, tapping my sneaker against the ankle of his boot playfully. “But I’m not going anywhere. Here to stay.”

He looks me over, dark eyes tracing my form like a physical touch. He opens his mouth, then closes it, looking like he’s trying to decide what to say. It’s a cute gesture, especially when paired with the determined look in his eyes, but I don’t know what he’s thinking so hard about.

Is he trying to come up with something to say about the kiss? I have no clue how I’ll survive if he tells me it was a mistake, but I’ve got no control over that. All I can hope is that he says… literally anything else.

“Do you think I could convince you to let me take you to dinner?” he asks.

I blink at him, then laugh, tilting my head in confusion. That’s not what I expected him to say.

“Sure. We can always grab food. I’m training every day this week, but?—”

“No, I don’t want to grab food,” he clarifies, reaching out to take my hand in his. “I want to take you on a date.”

My fingers twitch in his, shocked at his touch and his words. His hand is rough, work-hardened and callused, but it’s warm in mine. His eyes are excited and affectionate and a touch terrified, that same dark brown that I’ve adored for so long.

“A date?” I ask weakly, a tentative smile on my lips. “I—yes. Yeah, you can absolutely take me on a date.”

Well.

I guess I haven’t been overthinking that kiss.

What the hell?

I want to giggle and jump around like a schoolgirl, but I sit here frozen as Bo lifts my hand to his mouth and presses a kiss to my knuckles. His fingers are shaking around mine. I have to be hallucinating, right?

There’s no way this is real.

My cheeks hurt from how wide I’m smiling, and Bo beams right back at me.

“I need to get your number,” he says, not dropping my hand. “I got a new phone after one of the heifers trampled mine, and I lost all my contacts and wound up with a new number. I didn’t think about it until I went to text you after you left that night.”

I was wondering why he hadn’t texted me back and had been trying unsuccessfully to convince myself that he’d just been busy.

This is a much more reasonable explanation.

“Give me your phone, I’ll put my number in.”

I blush as I hold my free hand out expectantly. I’m not used to talking to Bo like this, but we’re too comfortable with each other for it to be truly awkward. His cheeks are tinged pink, too, and he hands his phone over, a new contact pulled up and waiting to be filled.

I type my name and number in before handing his phone back to him. My blush strengthens a million times over when he adds a little heart emoji after my name before slipping his phone back into his pocket.

I’m half tempted to pinch myself and check if I’m dreaming, but I couldn’t come up with this even in my wildest dreams.

“For Bo?” a waitress calls as she slides a takeout bag onto the counter.

Bo glances over his shoulder, raising his hand in acknowledgement.

“I’ve got to get back to the ranch,” he says, frowning and squeezing my hand. “I’ll call you tonight? We can sort out details for dinner.”

“That sounds perfect.” I can hardly keep myself from squealing in excitement, settling for a wide smile. “I’ll talk to you tonight.”

He leans closer and presses a kiss to my cheek, fleeting and a little nervous.

It sets off a riot of butterflies in my stomach.

His eyes are the same dark brown they’ve always been, but so much more affectionate than I’m used to as he pulls away.

I wave goodbye to him as he gathers his food and heads back out to his truck.

Once the door closes behind him, I turn back to my food and let my hair fall in front of my face to hide the blush on my cheeks. I’m smiling like a maniac, my chest tight with excitement.

I’ve never been so flustered in my life, but I can’t help it when I’m with Bo. How am I going to survive going on a date with him?

God. A date with Bo Montgomery.

What has my life become?