Page 93 of One Kind Hand

She poked him in the arm. “Shut up.”

He snuggled in beside her, pressing kisses to her neck as she munched on tortilla chips, pretending to ignore him. No easy task because all her senses were fine-tuned to notice absolutely everything about him.

“Confession: I’m obsessed with you too,” he whispered into her ear before pulling her earlobe into his mouth and sucking gently.

Of course that turned into them deciding they were full enough and needed to satiate other appetites on Charlie’s couch. After they’d made each other forget their own names again, a light tap-tap-tap behind them made Austin sit up straight.

Charlie groaned at him jostling her from where she’d been dozing on his lap.

“What was that?” He looked over his shoulder.

Tap-tap-tap.

“That’s Knox.” Sliding off his lap, she rose to her feet and held a hand out to Austin. “C’mon, let’s hop into some clothes and I’ll introduce you to my feathered friend.”

He took her hand and followed her into the bedroom where they slipped into their clothes. Charlie stopped in the kitchen and poured a mix of seeds and nuts onto a plate. Stopping to grab their jackets and put on their shoes, they went to the sliding glass door in Charlie’s living room where Knox could be seen making tracks in the snow when Charlie turned on the floodlight.

“Wow,” Austin said as Charlie opened the door. “He is one big crow.”

Knox let out a loud caw as he flew to the railing. He wobbled a little as he searched for balance on his good foot.

“That was clearly his and don’t you forget it caw.” Charlie took some seeds and nuts into her palm and held her hand to Knox as she stepped onto the deck.

“You’re not going to let him—”

Before Austin could finish his sentence, Knox had hopped over and gently picked up food right from Charlie’s hand.

“How do you know he won’t peck the stuffing out of you?” Austin asked, clearly in awe of Charlie feeding the crow as if it were a common house pet.

“I suppose it’s not something I know,” she said. “It’s more something I feel. He’s never hurt me before either so he’s got an excellent track record.” She lifted her other hand while Knox was busy eating and ran her fingers over the bird’s sleek black back, further shocking Austin. “Besides, crows are super smart. Knox knows he’s got a good thing here.”

Austin let out a hum behind her. “Me too.”

She glanced at him over her shoulder, loving the warmth in his blue eyes as he stared back at her. “Such a charmer, Austin Rayhill.”

Knox let out another powerful caw then he burrowed his beak under the few inches of snow collected on the railing, sending white flakes spraying up.

“Oh, he wants to play.” She kicked her toe around in the snow on the deck’s floor until a ball of aluminum foil sparkled in the floodlight. Bending, Charlie picked up the ball and tossed it across the deck where it promptly disappeared into the snow.

Spreading his wings, Knox took off, poked his beak into the hole the ball had made, and held it up with a triumphant arch to his regal head. He fluttered back to the railing near them and dropped the ball at Charlie’s feet. The game continued until Knox showed an interest in the plate of seeds and nuts so Charlie fed him again.

“If I didn’t know better,” Austin said, “I’d say I was watching one of those nature shows on TV where research scientists conduct tests with intelligent animals.”

“No research here, right, Knox?” Charlie stroked the bird’s wing. “He and I know each other well.”

“I can see that.” Austin pressed a kiss to the back of Charlie’s neck. “And you said I’m a charmer. I think you’ve got me beat. Charming crows is beyond my expertise.”

Charlie shook her head. “No, it’s not. Give me your hand.” She laughed when Austin hesitated. “Are you telling me you can roll out of speeding cars in your movies, but you can’t approach a little ol’ crow?”

“First of all, he isn’t little.” Austin pointed at Knox. “He’s like the biggest crow I’ve ever seen. Secondly, my fear of water was exposed today, thus proving I’m not immune to phobias.”

Charlie turned around to face him. “That phobia isn’t illogical. You experienced trauma.” She arrowed a thumb toward Knox. “Have you had any bad encounters with birds?”

Austin shook his head.

“Okay, then let’s give it a whirl. The fact that Knox hasn’t run you off yet means he doesn’t see you as a threat.”

“I might be offended by that.”