I’ll need a shower as soon as I’m done with this horrendous chore. No wonder my grandma doesn’t want to deal with it.
“Bryn?”
I still, turning my head to the left. I swear I just heard Matt’s voice call my name. Great. Now I’m going crazy and hearing things.
“Lousy men,” I mutter, shaking my head and pointing the shovel at the rooster, who looks ready to jump me at any minute. “You’re all alike. Ready to jump on a woman and tear her apart before she can put herself back together again.”
“Bryn, what the hell are you doing, talking to a chicken?”
Standing completely straight, I turn slowly, the sun suddenly shining in my eyes. I cover them with my hand to find—
Oh my God, to find Matthew DeLuca standing in my grandma’s backyard, on the other side of the chicken coop, looking gorgeous in a pair of khaki shorts and a wine-colored polo shirt.
“I’m not talking to a chicken,” I explain, my voice weak. “I’m talking to a rooster.”
“Same difference?” Matt asks, a hint of a smile curving his lips.
“Don’t tell that to the rooster. You’ll only piss him off,” I mutter, turning and pointing my shovel at the very creature I’m talking about, who’d gotten closer to me what with my distracted state.
My heart is racing, and I can’t believe Matt’s standing here. With me.
But why?
“You uh, look good, Bryn.”
He’s a liar. I look crazy, and I know it. Turning more fully to face him, I kick out one foot, showing off the boots. “You like them?”
“They’re interesting. I prefer seeing you in those tiny denim shorts though.” He whistles low, a rush of pleasure flowing through me at the sound. “Your legs look mighty long in ’em.”
Giddiness courses through me at having him here, with me, in Cactus, Texas, checking out my legs and telling me I look good. If anyone looks good it’s him, all sexy and handsome in the shorts and the polo, his dark hair a haphazard mess, his face covered with a shadow of stubble.
If I wasn’t dressed like a fool and standing amongst chickens and their crap, I’d run over and throw myself at him.
“Shit!” I yell when a sharp pinch digs into the back of my knees. I turn and swat at the rooster who attacked me. Turn my back on him for a second too long and look at how he treats me. “Goddamn ass**le!” I screech, swinging the shovel at him. Thankfully he struts away, and I snatch up the bucket, backing out of the coop until I feel the gate directly behind me. I unlatch it in a hurry and slam it shut, leaning against the chicken wire for a brief, relieved moment as I try and calm my racing heart.
Only to turn around and find Matt laughing at me so hard, I’m afraid he’s going to double over and collapse onto the ground.
Matt
I SHOULDN’T LAUGH. Bryn just about got the scare of her life, if the expression on her face was any indication. I hadn’t any chance to warn her, and it had been quite shocking to see that rooster fly in the air so fast. One minute we’d been flirting and chatting, the next a wild, puffed-out red rooster came at her, his legs extended and his claws digging right into the back of her legs.
That had been horrifying. The funny part? The curse words flying out of Bryn’s mouth, made even more humorous by her thick accent. She’d been pissed. Furious that the rooster jumped her and tried to take a hunk of her flesh out of her legs.
“That wasn’t funny you know,” she says as she approaches, which launches me into a fresh round of laughter.
“Oh yes, it was,” I say between breaths.
She stops directly in front of me, dropping the bucket by her booted feet. I look at her, really look at her as the laughter dies in my throat. Despite the crazy outfit, she looks hot as hell. The tank top is torn and bleach stained, clinging to her br**sts, and those denim shorts should be illegal they’re so damn short. I can’t help but wonder if she’s even wearing any panties underneath because if she is, they’re pretty damn tiny.
But those white rubber boots are the finishing touch. I’ve never seen Bryn look like this.
I kinda like it.
“What are you doing here, Matt?” she asks, sticking the shovel into the ground, her fingers still gripping the handle.
“I came looking for you.” My mouth goes dry the longer I stare at her. A faint sheen of sweat covers her skin, and I can smell that addictive-as-hell scent of hers wafting all around me, despite the bucket of chicken shit sitting at her feet.
“Why?” Her voice is so soft, so full of doubt I wish I could pull her in and hold her close.
But I don’t. Not yet. I might have to wait until she takes a shower or at the very least washes her hands, but I will be holding this woman very soon in my arms, I promise.
“I want you to come back with me, Bryn,” I tell her, keeping it simple. “I miss you.”
Her lips part, and she grips the shovel handle so tight, her knuckles go white. “What?”
“I miss you. Have you missed me too?” I step closer to her, notice the way her eyes widen, her tongue sneaks out for a quick swipe of her lips. Damn, I want to kiss her. “After being without you, I realized I need you.”
“As your assistant?”
Ah, my silly Bryn. She just can’t believe someone would actually want her, can she? Wouldn’t she be surprised, knowing I was a complete wreck while she was gone? “Not as my assistant. I need you in my life. I want you by my side, helping me run the winery.”
“Working for you,” she says, her voice flat.
“I’ll pay you, yes, since technically you’ll be my employee but not as my assistant. You’ll be my partner.” I smile gently and take another step toward her, until I’m standing directly in front of her, reaching out my hand to settle it over hers still gripping the shovel handle. “I’m in love with you, Bryn. And I don’t want to live without you anymore.”
“Matt,” she starts, but I squeeze her hand, silencing her.
“Don’t protest or tell me you don’t want to bring me down or whatever other crazy excuse you came up with the last time we talked. I don’t want to hear it.” With my free hand I reach for her, cupping her cheek, savoring her soft, soft skin. “I want you in my life. I want you living with me in California and working with me. I want us to be partners and grow DeLuca Winery together. What do you think?”
She smiles, her blue eyes bright with tears. “I think you’re crazy.”