The bell above the door chimes as I walk into Timeless Threads. The shop appears empty at first glance, and a country song drifts from the speaker Charlie keeps at the register.
The place is more cluttered than usual. Several large pieces of furniture, including a bookshelf and a bulky armoire, block the main pathway. I maneuver around them, ducking past a rack of clothes, and come to a sudden stop when I spot Charlie at the back pushing a heavy oak dresser, her face flushed from the effort.
“What the hell are you doing?” I growl.
She whips her head in my direction, eyes growing comically wide. “Oh shit.”
“’Oh, shit’ is right.” I set aside the crate I’m carrying and fold my arms across my chest. “You’re in so much trouble, hellcat. You promised you’d wait for me.”
Before bed last time, she told me she’d been meaning to move a few things around but had been too exhausted to do it.I offered to help when she was ready, but she failed to mention she was planning to tackle the whole project this afternoon.
“Oops, I forgot.” She winces sheepishly. “I woke up from a nap with a sudden burst of energy and decided to knock this out before I turn back into a walking zombie.”
It’s hard to stay mad when she looks so cute and rumpled—her shirt wrinkled, and her hair falling in tousled waves past her shoulders.
“You’re something else, you know that?” I laugh with a mix of amusement and exasperation. “Next time you get the urge to rearrange the whole damn store, you text me first.”
“Don’t you already have a job, bossman?” she taunts, sauntering toward me. “You shouldn’t have to take on my chaotic mess too.”
When she’s within reach, I wrap my arm around her and draw her against me. “That’s what I’m here for.”
Charlie tilts her head. “And what is that exactly?”
I cup her face in my palm. “To take care of you.”
She rises onto her toes, wrapping an arm around my neck. “Like how you did last night.”
A grin spreads across my face. “That’s definitely one way, yeah.”
“Good,” she whispers. “Because if orgasms are included, I’m very persuadable when it comes to letting you help around here.”
It’s the first real sign that she’s open to taking things further. Last night she temporarily let her guard down, but I still didn’t know if she was any closer to accepting her feelings or if she’d go back to resisting me at every turn. I’m choosing to be optimistic and focus on the fact she’s willingly touching me without prompting.
Charlie slips out of my embrace when the bell over the front door jingles. She frowns, glancing between the person who’s just entered and the disheveled storefront.
“I didn’t realize how big of a mess I made,” she mutters.
I catch her wrist, pulling her back for a kiss on the cheek. “Don’t sweat it, hellcat. Once the shop is closed for the night you can show me where you want the furniture. It won’t take me long to rearrange things how you want them.”
She flashes me a genuine smile. There’s no teasing or sarcasm in it—only warm affection, another fracture in the defenses she’s kept up from the start.
On her way to greet her customer, she stops beside a nearby desk where I put the crate I brought from the ranch.
“What’s that?” she asks.
“I told Ma that you’ve been nauseous, and she sent a few remedies she swears by,” I reply, nodding to the crate brimming with supplies.
Charlie’s lip quivers, eyes glistening. “She did that for me?”
“Of course, sweetheart.” My tone softens as I brush a loose strand of hair behind her ear and let my fingers trail down to intertwine with hers. “You’re family, and she takes care of her own.”
Charlie might still have her grandma and Florence around but I’m grateful that she has Ma too, who’s determined to do whatever she can to help make this pregnancy as enjoyable for her as possible. Charlie deserves all the love and support, and I hope she can see just how much she’s cared for.
Cowboy Cock
“You doing okay over there?” Heath asks, his head popping around the bookshelf he’s dragging across the store.
I scan around the empty store, batting my lashes as I point at my chest. “Who, me?”