Valerie rolled her eyes. “Melanie.” Answering the call, she had a similar conversation before disconnecting. “They worry,” she said.
“Because they care about you.”
“They do, and they’re both thrilled that you offered to ride the elevator with me. If you hadn’t, they would have, but they think—” She flushed. “Never mind what they think.”
“I’d very much like to know what they think.” If he planned to get involved with Valerie, and that seemed likely, he needed to know more about her best friends.
“They think you’re better suited to the job.”
“Why me? They’re your best friends. They know you better than anybody.”
Her flush deepened. “Astrid said that a gorgeous hunk in a Stetson is exactly what I need to take my mind off my fears. Melanie dittoed that.” She glanced up at him. “Happy now?”
He couldn’t help grinning. “Yes, ma’am. But I can’t help wondering what you think.” He was fishing for a compliment, but he didn’t care. Being admired for his new persona was plain fun.
She met his gaze. Her cheeks still flamed, which made her green eyes sparkle even brighter. “I think my friends have excellent taste.”
“Thanks.” That comment warmed him clean through.
“You have a little lipstick . . .” She reached up and rubbed his lower lip with her thumb. “That got it.”
Looking into her eyes, he caught her hand and kissed the tips of her fingers. Heat shimmered in her gaze.
She gently disengaged her hand from his. “Let’s go conquer that elevator before the urge to kiss you again overwhelms my good sense.”
“You bet.” This was quickly turning into one of the best days of his life.
* * *
As Valerie stood beside Adam in front of the bank of elevators, he took her hand, threading his fingers through hers. His grip was warm and firm. Even better, touching him reminded her of the way he’d kissed her. She couldn’t think about that sizzling kiss and worry about the elevator at the same time.
His solution had been a brilliant one, but she didn’t know if he’d done it mostly to calm her nerves, or if that kiss was the beginning of . . . what? That kiss created more questions than answers.
Yes, they had chemistry. She thought he’d be more than willing to take her to bed if the opportunity presented itself. But her hiatus from dating had taught her something. Before the fire she’d been focused on enjoying Mr. Right Now instead of searching for Mr. Right.
That was how she’d ended up with Justin, who’d never demanded any kind of deep connection. Neither had she, so maybe it shouldn’t surprise her that he hadn’t been willing to risk his life to save her. Before Justin had been Brent, and before him, Eric. Those superficial relationships had run their course and ended without much fanfare.
That kind of laissez-faire arrangement wouldn’t work for her anymore. It was, she realized now, a waste of time, and time was a precious commodity. A person couldn’t know how much of it they had left, and she’d already thrown away several years on dead-end love affairs.
But she had no idea how Adam viewed this attraction between them. He might be hoping to use it as a way to get his groove back after having his heart slammed by his divorce. If so, he’d have to find himself another woman to fill that temporary role.
She didn’t know how to have that kind of discussion with him, though, because she’d never felt this way before. One thing was for sure—they wouldn’t talk about it over lunch. She wondered what they would talk about when they didn’t have a horse to focus on. Should be interesting to find out.
The elevator dinged and the doors slid open. Just her luck—it contained three people and a rolling cart piled high with file boxes. There was room for her and Adam, but just barely.
Adam squeezed her hand. “We can catch the next one,” he murmured.
“No.” Taking a quick breath, she stepped into the leftover space. She was through being a baby about this.
Still holding her hand, Adam removed his hat and followed her in. In typical elevator protocol, they all faced the door as it slowly closed. But as the opening narrowed, Valerie’s chest tightened.
Breathe, she told herself, and she tried, but a steel band had wrapped itself around her lungs. She gripped Adam’s hand and fought her rising panic. When he extricated his hand from hers, she made a little sound of protest.
Then his arm circled her shoulders and he pulled her close. Leaning down, he put his mouth close to her ear. “I’m here, Valerie,” he murmured softly as he massaged her shoulder. “You’re fine. Everything’s okay.” Then he pressed his lips to the tender spot behind her ear.
She closed her eyes and concentrated on the feel of his mouth against her skin. So warm. Some of the tightness eased, and she took a shallow breath. And another.
He lifted his mouth and spoke into her ear again. “You’re doing great,” he said softly. “We’re almost there.”
The elevator jolted to a stop, and she opened her eyes in relief.
“Second floor,” Adam said.
Two rather large men started into the elevator. “Squeeze in,” one of them said. “We can make it.”
“No, sorry.” Adam stepped in front of Valerie. “We’re full.”
“Look, mister,” one of the guys said. “We’re running late. Just let us in. It’s only one floor.”
“Yeah, let them in,” said someone in the back of the elevator. “We’ll make room.”
“No can do. Catch the next one.” Adam reached over and pushed the button that closed the doors as the two men glared at him.
Valerie wrapped both arms around Adam’s waist and gave him a hug. She stayed that way, pressed against him, until the doors opened on the first floor. Then she let go and followed him out, her heart full to the brim with gratitude.
He turned back to her with a smile of triumph. “Congratulations! You did it!”
“Thanks to you.” Capturing his face in both hands, she pulled his head down and kissed him full on the mouth. She didn’t care if the other elevator passengers got an eyeful. They probably already thought she and Adam were strange, not to mention unaccommodating.
It wasn’t a long kiss, not like the one he’d given her, but she couldn’t think of a better way to reward him for being such a hero. After she released him, she moved back and took a deep breath. “That was awesome.”
“You actually liked the ride?”
“No. I hated the ride, but I loved the way you stood up to those guys who wanted to crowd in.” She gazed at him. “You protected me,” she said softly.
“Of course.”
Looking into his eyes, she felt her heart lurch. She still didn’t know how he saw their relationship, but for her, the jury was in. She’d fallen for him.
Six
Lunch went by so fast that Valerie was shocked when she glanced at her phone and discovered they’d been sitting there for more than an hour. Having something to talk about hadn’t been a problem. Without the horses to distract them, they found out how many things they had in common—books, movies, music, even food choices.
But Valerie had shared common interests with the other guys she’d dated, too. This first lunch didn’t seem like the occasion to ask the tough questions about whether Adam wanted kids and whether he ever intended to marry again. He might have decided against it, and his horses might have replaced any desire to have a family.
Until the fire, Valerie hadn’t thought kids mattered to her, either, but lately she’d changed her mind. A kid or two would be nice. She could live without having them, but she wouldn’t mind, if she found the right man—someone kind, nurturing, heroic. Someone like the guy sitting across the table from her in this cozy little café.
She’d been here before for lunch. It was close and reasonable, and she could usually get a table by the door. Yet today she hadn’t minded where they sat. The hostess had given them a table roughly in the middle of the café, and Valerie hadn’t once worried about the distance to the front door.
All her senses had been focused on Adam. Now every time she came in here she’d remember sharing a meal with him. Whether she’d meant to or not, she’d created memories with him that weren’t likely to go away anytime soon.
“I saw you check the time.” He put down his empty iced tea glass. “You should get back.”
“Probably. But it’s been fun.”
“Sure has.” His hat was tilted back and his smile was open and uncomplicated.
“You may not realize that it’s significant, but we’re sitting in the middle of the restaurant. I’m nowhere near the door.”
“Shoot, I didn’t think about that.”
“Neither did I! That’s what’s so wonderful about it.”
“I’m glad. I wish we didn’t have to leave, but it’s time for you to get back to work.” He picked up the check and pulled his wallet out of his hip pocket.
“And for you to head back to the ranch.”
“Actually, I’m not leaving until later.” He set some bills on top of the check and returned his wallet to his pocket. “As long as I’m here, I decided to take care of some business. And I’m meeting Will for a drink at the Golden Spurs and Stetsons after his last appointment.”