Page 39 of Homebound

TO SEE YOU SMILE

DAKOTA

“Abet?” I narrow my eyes at the smirk hinting across his lips.

Wyatt never smirks. It goes against his sweet demeanor, so I’m shocked to see one forming.

“Yes. A bet.” His lip curls higher, making him look nothing like the flower boy I knew. He looks like… a man now.

There’s really no other way to describe it.

I’ve always liked my men a little more rugged, but there might be something to be said for a gentleman like Wyatt Patterson.

He’s low-maintenance and wears the same flannel he’s had since he was a teenager. He says pardon me instead of excuse me. He’ll never grow a full-on beard because it’s “uncouth,” as he says, but he doesn’t want to shave every day, so he’s always got a bit of sexy stubble. I look down at the dirt under his nails from where he was plowing the flower rows.

He’s not afraid to get his hands a little dirty.

It’s different, thinking of him like this, but the only thing I want is a one-night stand. I need a few more palette cleansers after Boone, and Wyatt may as well have Looking for Commitment tattooed over his heart.

“Why do you want to help me train me so badly?” I drop my voice to a whisper, careful not to wake up little Vienna. The cutie needs her beauty sleep after wailing for who knows how long.

He shifts to me and rests his elbows on his knees, giving me his undivided attention. It’s unnerving. Men typically give me a two-second flirtatious head nod, not a full-blown penetrating stare. “I need to stay in shape this summer for next season, and I owe you one.”

I cast a quick, assessing glance his way, trying to determine if he has some ulterior motive.

Probably not.

Wyatt opens doors for gray-haired ladies and stops to fix a stranger’s tire on the side of the road. My guess is that he’s simply doing this because he’s got a good heart—one of the best.

“Consider this a thank you,” he adds. “I know it’s not ideal having a twelve-month-old move in with you. She’s already got her toys everywhere.”

I typically come home to an empty barn after a ride, and coming off the high of the crowd makes the silence scream. I can hear everything in that quiet—my worries, fears. But not with them here.

“It’s actually nice having the barn a little messier,” I admit. “The place was starting to feel like a hotel, so I’ll take little Vi, crying and all. Sure, she’s a bit of a handful, but what girl isn’t?”

“True.” He studies me, and his voice lowers to a rasp. “Any woman worth having takes a little bit of handling.”

A zing of… something shoots right through me at the rumble in his voice. I can’t stop imagining my sunshine-boy Wyatt handling a woman, so I take a hefty swig of my beer to squash the searing visual.

But it doesn’t work.

Now, I’m looking at his hands, and wondering if they’ve always been that big.

“Anyway…” He clears his throat, biceps popping as he lifts his bottle to his lips. “I still owe you, so let me do this for you. It’ll make me feel better ’cause I’m still sorry about leaving.”

I cross my arms over my chest, forming a barrier between us, and my next words are nothing more than a broken whisper, to my embarrassment. “Then why’d you leave like that? You used to be the one person I could always depend on besides my dad.”

He seems to struggle to find the right words.

“After you got engaged to Boone,” he grits out, unwilling to meet my penetrating stare. “He told me to keep my distance from you. Threatened, really. He said it was ‘fuckin’ weird’ that you had a guy best friend and that I followed you around like a ‘pathetic lap dog.’ Those were his exact words. I wanted to give y’all some space. Then Vi happened, and my whole life changed. After that, I felt like too much time had passed to just pick up the phone.”

He looks so guilty that my shoulders drop. It’s hard to stay mad at a man like him, but I can stay angry at Boone for saying that to him.

“Boone never should’ve said that,” I tell him fiercely. “You were the best part of my summers, and don’t believe a word of what he said to you. He was always a controlling prick. I’m not sure what I ever saw in him… I think I was blinded by the hot sex.”

He grimaces and drinks a big gulp of beer, saying nothing.

I thought passion meant you’d have a good relationship, but I think relationships are all about finding someone who balances you out. Passion burns everything and dies out quickly. Only in those ashes do you realize the relationship wasn’t made of anything substantial.