One More Kiss (Forsaken Sons Book 1) by Elizabeth Lennox (good summer reads .TXT) 📕

She felt…special as he looked down at her.  And awkward.  “Well, would you…?”  She looked around, noting that there wasn’t a lot of clear space available. Every inch of the tables was covered with…stuff.  Nuts, bolts, odd gizmos, and tools.  So many tools!  The man loved tools!

He glanced over his shoulder at the mess as well, then back at her, his thumb jerking behind him at the door to the side that she now knew led out to the side of the building.  “Why don’t we eat outside?  It’s a pretty day.”

Her relief was huge!  As much as she really enjoyed the challenge of this job, it was kind of lonely.  She worked by herself in her office all day, her only communication with anyone was when a reporter or “investor” called to demand “just five minutes” of Lincoln’s time.

It suddenly occurred to her that not many people gave anything to this man.  He lived a solitary life, working on his projects.  She had no idea how long it took before he came up with a finished product to launch into the world, but suspected that too many people demanded things of him.  And not many gave much back.

“That would be really nice.”

She followed him out of the building, watching when he grabbed a couple of chairs out of a closet she hadn’t known existed.  He set them up in the sunshine and they both sat down. “Do you want the apple or banana?”

“Apple, unless you prefer apples.”

She passed him the apple, wondering at the significance of the man who looked like the devil taking a bite out of an apple.  Wasn’t there some sort of biblical import to that image?  Probably not. Wasn’t it Eve who offered the apple to Adam in the bible?

Either way, it felt significant, even if she was only thinking it.  She also noticed that he had straight, white teeth.  She was a teeth person, she knew. It was probably a weird thing, but a person who didn’t take care of their teeth…ick.

“I think this is the one with the peppers on it,” she said, handing him the larger sandwich.

For several minutes, they ate in silence, but it was a comfortable silence.  They both looked out at the view, marveling at the mountains in the distance.  “Why did you choose this area to build your compound?” she asked.

“I’ve never really thought about the land and all of the buildings as a ‘compound’ before, but…” he took a long sip of his soda as he looked around, “I guess it could be considered one.”

Kinsley was fascinated by the way his neck and Adam’s apple moved as he swallowed.  He was so powerful and strong, his biceps flexing just from lifting the bottle to his lips.

“You have a work building, a racetrack, and,” she pointed behind her at another mystery road leading up into more lush landscaping.  “And whatever is up there.”

He looked around, squinting in the bright sunshine.  “I built out here so that I could be away from others.”

She considered that for a moment.  “For security?” She prompted.

“To a degree,” he replied, shrugging slightly with a tilt of his head.

Kinsley suspected that there was more to his reasoning.  Something he didn’t want others to know about.  “Or because you get sick of everyone asking you for help?”

His eyes snapped away from the view, narrowing on her features.  “Why do you say that?”

Because someone buying you a sandwich stunned you, she thought.  But said, “I answer your phone, remember?” she teased.  “Not a single person has called offering help, only demanding your time and attention.”

He shrugged and her eyes moved down to his deliciously broad shoulders.  “I’m well known as a recluse in the industry.”

She considered his words for a moment.  “Not because you prefer being alone though,” she offered, surprised she’d actually uttered that observation out loud.  He seemed surprised as well.

Thankfully, he didn’t seem to be offended by her comment.  He shrugged slightly. “I don’t like to talk about my projects until they are ready to be presented to the world.”

She took another bite of her sandwich and nodded.  “That’s fair.”

“So, are you engaged-engaged yet?” he asked, then took a big bite of his sandwich.

Laughing, she shook her head.  “No!  It’s not time yet.”

He froze for a moment, then looked at her earnestly.  “What does that mean?  Is there a season for engagements I don’t know about?”

Another laugh, but Kinsley warmed to her subject.  “No, there’s no specific time when a man is allowed to propose.  But there definitely are good and bad times for a wedding.”

His eyebrows went up, then down as his eyes narrowed.  “And you’re waiting for…?”

She shrugged, her eyes turning shrewd as her innate sense of organization and efficiency kicked into overdrive.  “It will take me ten months to plan my wedding.”

“Ten months?” He echoed, surprised.  “Why that long?  Can’t you just go to a justice of the peace?  Or even better, fly out to Vegas and get the deed done and over with?”

The horror on her face made him laugh.

Kinsley huffed a bit, implying that the idea of doing a quickie wedding was absurd.  “Absolutely not!  Going to Vegas is just…well, it’s fine, for some people.  But not for me.  I want to be married with all of my friends and relatives around me.”

He leaned back, stretching his legs out in front of him and crossing his ankles.  “Do you have a very big family?”

She paused, shrugging slightly.  “No. Not really.  I’m an only child.”  She looked a bit forlorn for a moment, but rallied quickly.  “But still, I’d like a big wedding.  My mother and father will walk me down the aisle and I will be wearing a white dress with pearls on the bodice.  My fiancé will be wearing a dove