She closed her eyes, shaking her head, and Ryan eased back from his grasp on her disheveled clothes. Whatever she was about to say, she was right.
“We can’t do this.” He smoothed down her shirt and took a step back, ignoring the devil on his shoulder telling him to take what his body craved. “You’re vulnerable and I’m horny. That would make for a really bad wreck in this relationship.”
Piper laughed. “That’s one very blunt way of putting it.”
“Have you ever known me to be any other way?” he asked.
She adjusted her belt. “No, I haven’t. That’s why I admire and care for you so much.”
Ryan watched as her shaky hands refastened her belt and he knew they needed to get out of this house, away from the temptation of being alone with their jumbled emotions.
“You up to going out tonight?” he asked.
Her head popped up and she grinned. “What did you have in mind?”
“We could go to Claire’s.”
Piper’s smile widened and Ryan felt the kick in the stomach that had been associated with that potent action.
“I’d love to. That’s exactly what I need.”
“I have a few things to do over at the school first. I had some men working on a new barn today and I need to catch them before they leave. But I can be back in a few hours.” He smacked a kiss on her cheek. “Try to leave the flannel and jeans in the closet. ’Kay, Red?”
Rolling her eyes, she turned to head toward her room. “Lock the door behind you, slick.”
Whistling as he headed to his truck, Ryan knew that even if Piper came out for their date in her most worn plaid flannel, holey jeans and beat-up work boots, he’d still be thrilled to be seen with her at the upscale restaurant in Royal. He never did care too much what people thought. They were going to talk whether you wanted them to or not. He always figured if they were talking about him, they were leaving others alone and he had thick skin.
He was anxious to take Piper to Claire’s. They hadn’t been to the restaurant before together and he wanted to start staking his claim, barbaric as that may sound. He wanted Piper to get used to the idea that he was putting down roots in Royal and he intended for his life to intertwine with hers. Forever.
Ten
This was absolutely silly.
Piper stood in front of her mirror wearing only a lacy black thong and matching demi bra. Yeah, this was as pretty as her wardrobe got because nearly everything in her closet consisted of flannel or denim. She had a couple of dresses, mainly because so many people were getting married lately, but she wasn’t going to wear a dressy dress to Claire’s. Though the upscale restaurant’s romantic ambience called for something above plaid flannel, being overly dressed just to eat dinner simply wasn’t her style.
She sighed and glanced at the clock on her bedside table. Ryan would be back in about thirty minutes looking all freshly showered and sexy as hell. The man could wear anything, throw on his Stetson and look like he’d just stepped off the pages of a calendar featuring hot, hunky cowboys.
Piper went back to her closet, hoping something had changed since the last time she’d peeked in there.
Fingering plaid shirt after plaid shirt, she stared at the few dresses she owned. The bright blue was her favorite because it was simple, but it was also very striking and she really didn’t want to call attention to herself.
Her eyes moved over the black one and she paused. Black was a nice “I want to blend with the crowd” color.
She yanked the sleeveless dress from the hanger before she could change her mind. While she hated dresses, she didn’t want to embarrass Ryan. He was taking her out to keep her mind off of her terrible workday...and probably so they could get out of the confines of her steamy house where the sexual tension had settled into every nook and cranny.
Was he classifying this as an actual date? Was he trying to go beyond friendship and make things more intimate? So many questions, so many worries.
But for tonight, she wasn’t going to analyze everything to death. No, really. She wasn’t. Piper vowed to herself that she would enjoy Ryan’s company and this was no different than if they were grabbing a piece of pie at the Royal Diner. This time they would just be dressed up, eating steak and using the cloth napkins at Claire’s.
She slid the dress over her head and groaned when her curly hair sprang from her shoulders. Could she be any more clichéd? Curly red hair and green eyes with a fuller figure. She wasn’t a supermodel-thin blond...she was just curvy and curly.