Page 68 of Blame it on the Kiss
Honor stumbled back, her head a massive jumble of emotions. “She lied to me?”
“Because she loved you.”
That was true. And she knew Honor better than she knew herself. Maybe it took a lie to make a person find what they were capable of. Honor did feel more accomplished since crossing things off Pay’s list. A mixture of relief and courage ran through Honor’s veins.
This was all on her now and it felt strangely… good.
Chapter Twelve
Honor got home Wednesday night and collapsed onto her couch. She’d worked nonstop the past five days, spending all day locked away at the mayor’s office and then her off-hours at Driftwood. Decorating and furnishing the store was the easy and fun part. But things like licenses and insurance and something called a DBA were beyond her scope of understanding. So when Danny had stopped in earlier today, she hadn’t questioned what he was doing there. She just asked for help and he gave it.
She let out a deep, satisfied breath. Payton would be proud of her.
The doorbell rang, but unwilling to move from her comfy spot, she didn’t budge. “Come in,” she called out.
“It’s not too early for the Boogeyman, you know.”
Honor jolted up at the sound of Bryce’s voice. They hadn’t spoken since he’d left Driftwood the day Mary visited and by the ill humor in his voice, he wasn’t exactly happy to see her now. “Umm…”
“Are you home alone?”
“Yes.” Was that good? Bad? Was he supposed to meet up with Cooper?
“Then you really should keep your door locked.” His unfriendly tone irked her.
“And ruin visits from the Boogeyman?” she teased, because he might be in a bad mood, but she wasn’t.
He shook his head and took the spot next to her on the couch. “Danny and I had dinner with Zane and afterwards, I somehow ended up here. Weird, huh?” Finally, like he couldn’t fight it anymore, the corners of his mouth lifted. The slight crack of a sexy mischievous smile combined with that chin and those cheeks and those eyes, turned her to mush.
“Very.” She scooted closer, took his arm and put it around her. Now she wasn’t just mush. She was mushy mush. He smelled super good.
“You’re like a homing device whenever I get within a certain range.”
She laughed. “So long as you don’t start calling me Pigeon, we’re good. Hey,” she picked up his hand. “I see you got your stitches removed. I’m glad you remembered to do that.”
“The nurse said you did good.”
She looked up at him. “I’m, uh, also glad you stopped by. Is everything okay?” His clothes were a little more rumpled than normal, his hair not as neat as usual.
“Yeah. Just some stuff going on with work.”
“Is that it?” She’d replayed the last words they’d spoken over and over again and kept thinking somehow she’d messed up.You called him Payton’s Bryce.
“I have to tell you something,” she rushed out before he could answer. She brought her knee up and turned to face him. Even weary and wrinkled he looked sexy. Her stomach fluttered. “Two things actually. First, I’m sorry if I hurt you when I introduced you to Mary. That wasn’t my intention.”
“I haven’t been Payton’s for a long time, Honor, and honestly, looking back, I never really was.”
Honor nodded and swallowed the lump in her throat. “And second, Payton’s list was meant for me.”
He sat taller, his eyes twinkled, like she’d just given him a gift. “Go on.”
She did. She told him everything about her conversation with Mary. He listened, asked a few questions, and said he appreciated her apology.
“So whatever happens now is what you want to happen.”
“Yes.” She liked being back in control.
“How does that feel?” He laid his arm across the top of the couch and played with a strand of hair at her shoulder.
