Page 41 of One Kind Soul

“Hey, Christian,” Tessa said when Donovan finally let go of her.

“Hey, everyone.” Christian extracted himself from the Pyrenees loving and looked at Nicole, giving her a quick nod in greeting, then averting his gaze to his brother. “I came by to show off my new truck.”

Donovan clapped his brother on the back. “That was fast.”

“Was it? It felt like forever. A man needs a truck.” Christian stepped out of the kitchen, heading for the front door. “Come see.”

Nicole didn’t care much about a new truck, but she definitely wanted to see more of Christian’s toned ass in those jeans so she took the last swig of her coffee and followed Tessa and Donovan outside to a black truck that didn’t look all that different from the one that had gotten destroyed in Boston.

“Nice, man.” Donovan opened the driver side door and sat. “This is bigger than your other truck.”

“Yeah. The guy at that dealership convinced me I needed a bigger bed.”

Nicole liked hearing him say the word bed. She only wished he was talking about them getting into one together.

“It looks rugged.” Tessa ran her hand along the door.

“I figured that might be good in case more vans want to bash into it. Maybe this one would survive such an impact.”

“Hopefully, you’ll never be in that situation again,” Nicole said.

Christian looked at Tessa. “Do you have any other friends who need picking up in Boston?”

“Nope. Just this one.” Tessa slung her arm around Nicole and squeezed her close so their heads touched.

“I should be safe then.” Christian turned his attention to pointing out features in the cab to his brother and Nicole was impressed by his ability to remain cool when all she wanted to do was drag him into Donovan’s garage and mount him. Either the man was a great actor or he wasn’t feeling the electricity in the air that Nicole felt.

That thought dampened her spirits. They’d had fun at his farm two days ago. At least she had. She hadn’t been able to get him out of her mind, but maybe he’d moved on. Maybe he was exactly as Tessa had said. Perhaps the novelty of being with her had left him.

She supposed that was inevitable. Her sister had always told her she’d never be able to keep a man and so far that had been true. Why should Christian be any different? Besides, she couldn’t keep him anyway.

Tessa’s phone chimed in her pocket and when she pulled it out, she said, “Oh, it’s Marco.”

Nicole had met Marco yesterday. He owned Cups Café and he was officiating the wedding on Saturday. He’d gotten certified online as a minister a while back and had performed several weddings for Maplehavenites. He was a nice guy who made the most delicious BLT she’d ever eaten.

“Hey, Marco,” Tessa said. “What’s up?” She listened then walked to the driver side of Christian’s truck. “Oh, okay.” Nodding as Marco talked, she motioned for Donovan to get out of the driver’s seat. “Yeah. See you in a few then.”

“Why will we see Marco in a few?” Donovan asked, but Nicole caught the slight smile on Christian’s lips as he used the bottom of his T-shirt to polish a spot on the hood of his new truck.

What’s he up to? Hope suddenly filled her.

“He said he wants to run through a few pieces of the ceremony so he can personalize them better.” Tessa threw out her arms. “I thought we were all set, but maybe he came up with some new stuff. He said it’s quiet right now at Cups so we have to hurry to get there before the lunch rush comes in. I’ll go grab my keys.”

“Okay.” Donovan jiggled Christian by the shoulder as Tessa ran into the house. “Good luck with the truck, buddy. You’re picking me up for the party tonight, right?”

“Yes, sir. Another reason why I needed a vehicle right away. Can’t leave the groom without a ride to his bachelor party.” Christian shook his brother’s hand then winked at Nicole when Donovan escorted Tessa to her SUV.

“My phone and wallet are inside,” Donovan said to Tessa.

“Leave them,” she ordered. “We don’t want to miss the window Marco has given us. Plus, you’re on vacation, Detective Henley. No one needs you.”

“Fine.” Donovan got into the passenger seat of Tessa’s SUV.

In two minutes, they were gone and Nicole stared at Christian in Donovan’s driveway, her mouth opened in awe.

“I know what you’re thinking.” Christian rounded the hood of his new truck to stand in front of her. “You’re thinking I’m pretty clever and that you want to kiss me for getting Marco to call Tessa and request a meeting with the bride and groom.”

“He called because of you?”