Hope's Chance(40)

His words shocked me, and it wasn’t because I thought he was lying or that it wasn’t the appropriate time to tell me. I just couldn’t believe he had said it. “Did you just say what I think you said?”

He looked directly into my eyes and smiled. “Maybe.”

I smiled back at him. “Well maybe I feel the same then.”

He pulled me tight against him. “You better.”

“I wish we could stay here all day.” I said.

“Yeah well I can’t stay much longer. I told your dad I was going out to get a paintbrush at the hardware store.” Chance explained I sat up and looked at him. “You better get going then.”

He laughed and reached for something in his back pocket. “I am surprised you didn’t feel it when you were on the bike behind me.” A paintbrush in a wrapper sat in his hand.

I busted out laughing, unable to control my shock in reaction to his fast thinking. “Wow you thought of that fast.”

“It was nothing compared to your story about the ladder.” He added.

I leaned over and kissed him lightly, but when he began to kiss me back it turned into much more. I ran my hands over his face and held them as his mouth found mine once again. When he pulled away we were both breathless. “I don’t know how long I can last without touching you.” I confessed.

“You won’t have to wait long Hope.” Chance promised.

We held each other for a few more minutes before climbing back onto his bike and heading in the direction of our neighborhood. I promised him that I would be open minded about my father and Buffy’s upcoming nuptials.

I really did want them to be happy, except I just feared being the one to break the news to my mother. She had been through so much lately. First my grandfather died and now my grandmother had to be put into a home. Plus she had lost her job and had to sell the house. This would crush her.

I couldn’t begin to figure out how I was going to break the news to her, but knowing Buffy like I did, I knew she was going to call every newspaper and have it listed. Hell, she probably had called to have engagement photos taken already.

I could just picture it now. She and my father in a fashioned embrace while Chance and I stood behind them with googly eyes for each other. That would go over fantastic.

I squeezed my arms around Chance even tighter. Our alone time was almost over and I wasn’t ready to let him go.

When he finally pulled over he gave me a quick kiss and pulled away. We could be caught like that, so I understood completely. As he drove into the distance I felt like a part of me was gone. My heart ached and I ran as fast as I could to get back to my house and be able to see him.

When I rounded the block that my house was on, I decided to slow down. I didn’t want to arrive just minutes after Chance, so I walked the rest of the way. I finally made it down the long driveway and was met by my father having a word with Chance. When he walked away from him, he patted him on the shoulder. I had no idea what the discussion was about but I couldn’t help having a guilty conscience.

Chance had already begun painting the wooden shutters on the front of the house. Seeing him with a paintbrush reminded me of last Saturday. I wished we were alone again with a couple of paintbrushes and rollers.

Chance looked back at me and gave me a wave before turning back around and getting to work. My father came back out of the house with his briefcase this time. He walked over to where I was standing and pulled me in for a hug. “I am sorry if we caught you off guard this morning Sweetie. We didn’t mean to upset you.”

“It’s fine Dad. I had just woke up and I wasn’t prepared for hearing big news yet. I feel better after my run though.”

He smiled. “Well I am glad to hear it. Listen, I gotta run out and show some commercial property to an investor. I don’t know how long I will be so Buffy was hoping that you and Chance would want to watch movies later. Please try and be nice to her.”

“Actually Dad, I would love to hang out with them. Good luck with the investors.” I said as I ran into the house.

I didn’t see Buffy when I got inside so I hurried up and headed into my room. After gathering some clean clothes I walked into the bathroom. As I reached in to turn the water on, I heard someone knocking. I walked to the door first but nobody was there. I turned around and saw Chance standing at the window.

I pulled it open. “What are you doing?”

He smiled, displaying his perfect teeth. “I am trying to work, but when I saw what you were doing I didn’t want you to freak out if you saw me staring.”

“That is illegal you know.” I joked.

“You can handcuff me right now Hope. I wouldn’t even put up a fight.” He admitted.

I leaned out and grazed his lips. “Don’t tempt me Chance.”

“So are you giving me permission to watch?” He asked.

“What do you think?” I said as I started pulling off my shirt. I backed away from the window and slid my shorts off slowly. When I stood up he was smiling but walking away from the window.

“That is so mean...” He said while beginning to paint again.

I took my time in the shower, and not because I wanted to tease Chance. I was half tempted to pull him inside. I just wanted to let the water run down my face and relax. When I got out I didn’t see Chance anywhere around. He may have had to go get one of his famous cold showers he told me about.