Put that way, it sounded reasonable. Lyle moved so close that his heat warmed her. Why was it so hard to breathe? She simmered with anticipation. His hands came to rest at her waist as his mouth lowered to hers.
She didn’t want his kiss. That wasn’t true. Until that moment she’d had no idea how desperately she did want Lyle’s lips on hers. Her breath caught as his mouth made a light brush over hers. He pulled away. Cass ran her tongue over her bottom lip, tasting him.
Lyle groaned and pulled her tight against his chest. His lips firmly settled over hers. Cass grabbed his shoulders to steady herself. Slowly she went up on her toes, her desire drawing her nearer to him. Sweet heat curled and twisted through her center and seeped into her every cell. She’d found her cozy fire in a winter storm.
The sound of the door opening brought both their heads up. Their gazes locked with each other’s.
“Hello? Is someone here?” a man called.
“It’s Lyle, Mr. Stewart. I’m in the boot section.”
“Please don’t do that again,” Cass whispered, and stepped as far away as the small space would allow. She couldn’t deal with the feelings swarming in her. This wasn’t what she needed or wanted. She needed to figure out her life, not complicate it.
Now that she’d really been kissed by Lyle, she wanted more. No! And she couldn’t handle the feelings his kiss had kindled in her. This was too much at the wrong time. Panic welled in her. She shook her head. Letting something grow between them would only turn into disaster. She didn’t want to hurt Lyle, and she couldn’t endure another heartache.
He studied her for a moment, then picked up the box, placing it under his arm as if nothing earthshaking had happened. “Let’s go and pay for these then get one of those pies.”
That suited her just fine. She could pretend nothing had changed as well as he did. Head held high, she followed him two aisles over to a wooden counter. A middle-aged man with white tuffs of hair, rosy cheeks and a white beard stood behind it. He could pass for a Santa Claus.
“Well, hello. How’re you, Lyle?” Mr. Stewart gave them both a wide smile.
The man’s accent was just as thick as Lyle’s mother’s.
“Fine, thanks, Mr. Stewart. We’ve been helping ourselves to some boots. I was just going to write you a note and leave the money.”
“Give me a second to set this down.” The older man placed a brown bag on the counter. “I went to get a meat pie before they were all gone. I look forward to Mrs. McKinney’s pies all year.”
“I hope you left some for Cass and me. We’re on our way there next.” Lyle leaned toward the bag and inhaled deeply. “Mrs. McKinney makes the best.”
While the men were talking, Cass managed to get her purchase paid for. She and Lyle exited the shop. The sun was shining but clouds were gathering.
“It looks like it’ll snow again tonight,” Lyle commented. “We need to go this way.” He indicated to the left. “McKinney’s Pub is down this way.”
Cass shook her head. “I’m not really hungry. I think I’ll just look around some more then go back to the castle. I appreciate your help with my boots.”
Lyle said nothing until she looked at him. “Cass, I didn’t mean to make things uncomfortable between us.”
“You didn’t.”
He searched her face for a long moment. “Then you won’t mind joining me for lunch. You don’t want me to have to eat alone.”
She pursed her lips. “Somewhere in there I think there’s a touch of emotional blackmail.”
He quirked a brow, his grin devious. “Could be. Live dangerously and join me.”
She was doing that by just being around him. Her body still hummed with awareness, but she did owe him. He’d been nothing but kind. More than once Lyle had gone far beyond what was necessary. Helping her with her new boots was just one of the small things. Still feeling unsteady after their kiss, she was afraid that remaining in Lyle’s presence might further break her tightly strung nerves. It was risky to her well-being for her to say yes. “If you’re going to insist.”
A winning smile lit up his face. “I am. You know how I hate to eat alone. This way.”
They didn’t walk far before they came to a building with an elaborate sign stating that it was McKinney’s Pub above the door. “Here we are.”
Cass turned the doorknob and pushed the door open, to find a room with a dark timber-beamed ceiling, stone-flagged floor and a handful of wooden tables and chairs unoccupied. Men were standing at the bar with drinks and talking. She glanced back at Lyle to see him duck to enter.
“Why don’t you go see if you can find us a table near the fire while I place our order?”
“Okay.”
“Before you go, would you prefer beef or pork?” Lyle asked.
“I don’t know. You make the call.” She didn’t often let others decide anything for her. Being with Lyle was definitely having an odd effect on her. For some reason she trusted him not to let her down.
“Okay. One more thing, hot drink or something cold?”
“Hot, definitely hot.” She shivered. “I can’t even imagine drinking something cold.” Cass reached into her pocket. “Here’s money for mine.”
Lyle looked offended. “Put that away. I’ll get this.”
“I don’t expect you to buy my lunch.” She couldn’t continue being indebted to him. “You’re always doing something for me.”
“You can return the favor sometime. Now, go and find us a seat.” He started toward the bar.
“You don’t need my help carrying the food?”
He shook his head. “I can handle it. You find us a place to sit before they’re all taken.”
“All right.” Cass made her way to an empty table to one side of the roaring fire in the fireplace. She turned a chair toward the flames and sat down, stretching out her hands to the warmth. A couple of minutes later she looked around to see where Lyle was.
She quickly found him among the people at the bar. With his height and broad shoulders he stood out among the others. His hair was mussed but it matched his easygoing personality. Lyle was every bit as appealing to look at as he was to talk to. She was getting in deeper and deeper the longer she was with him. As hard as she tried to push away, the greater the pull he had on her.
Soon, carrying two drinks with steam wafting from them, Lyle joined her. He placed them on the table. “You got us a perfect table. How did you manage that?”
Cass shrugged and picked up her mug. “Lucky, I guess.”
Lyle picked his mug up as well. “This is hot punch. I think you’ll like it.”
She took a sip. “Mmm...”
“I like it when you make that sound,” he said, just for her ears. “You did it a while ago when I kissed you.”
“I did not!”
Lyle gave her a wicked smile that said, Do you want to bet?
Heat that had nothing to do with the punch surged through her. “You shouldn’t say things like that to me.”
“What, the truth?”
Much to her relief, they were interrupted by a young woman placing two plates on the table.
Lyle said politely, “Thank you.” The woman gave him a shy look and hurried away.
It appeared Lyle sent most women into a tailspin by just being nice. Cass had imagined he only had that effect on her.
She watched as Lyle used a napkin to pick up the perfect brown half-moon pastry. He closed his eyes and took a bite. His eyelids dropped as an expression of pure bliss washed over his face. He slowly chewed. Something low within Cass tightened. She shook off the vision of Lyle naked in bed, wearing that same expression. How could just two kisses cause such an idea to pop into her head?
Instead of concentrating on her traitor of a mind, she followed Lyle’s lead and picked up her pie. She took a small bite of the flaky pastry. It me
lted on her tongue as the taste of tangy beef hit her taste buds. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the moment. Did she have the same look on her face as Lyle? She opened hers to find him watching her closely, an intense flame of desire in his eyes. Oh, yeah, she had.