Holly Jolly Cowboy (The Wyoming Cowboy #7)(75)
A stricken look crossed his face. “Am I bothering you?” There was a quiet note in his voice, a careful one. “Should I go?”
“No!” She reached out and grabbed his shirt. “No . . . I want you to stay.”
They moved closer as if drawn together, and Adam gazed down at her, his expression thoughtful. “I guess I wanted to ask about you and me, too, if I’m being selfish.”
“It’s not selfish,” she protested, her heart fluttering. God, she loved the way he looked at her. She reached up and ripped the towel turban off her head, letting her hair flow over her shoulders. “You . . . you should definitely ask about me and you.”
“How are we?” he murmured, voice low and husky. “Me and you?”
“I don’t know. How do you want us to be?” Holly didn’t want to be the first one to speak up. She was afraid of sticking her neck out and getting hurt again.
“I want us to be together,” Adam said. His hands moved to her waist, pulling her against him. “If it’s not what you want, tell me and I will leave you alone. But I wanted you to know that I miss you and I’m crazy about you. That’s not my stomach speaking, either—I will happily eat peanut butter and jelly every day for the rest of my life if I get to eat it at your side.”
She sucked in a breath. “That sounds . . . very much like a commitment, Adam.”
“It does.” His expression didn’t change. “Did you not want one?”
“I thought you didn’t want any kind of commitment. Not after your divorce.”
He gave her a rueful look. “I thought so, too, and then I met you. And I realized that I’d be an idiot if I let you get away from me. I’m willing to try the commitment thing again if you’re willing to give me a chance.”
It sounded good, and yet . . . Holly hesitated. “I really like you, Adam. And I like us together. But . . . you need to have a stronger reason to be with me than just sex and good times. I need you to be with me, even in the bad times. Even when it’s not fun. I need a life partner, not a bed partner.”
He adjusted his baseball cap, shaking his head. “I’m fucking this up, aren’t I?” He took a step toward her and cupped her face, heedless of her stupid mud mask that was even now cracking all over her skin and making her face hurt with how tight it was. He gazed deep into her eyes. “Holly. I want to be with you because I love you.”
Her knees grew weak. “You do?”
“I do.” Adam kissed her gently. “It’s not because you’re an amazing cook or because you’re fantastic in bed. You are. But it’s the small things I miss about being with you. I’ve gotten used to mornings with you. Hearing you laugh. Watching you yawn through a TV show. I miss your cold feet on my leg and sharing a shower with you. I miss your smile.” He kissed her again. “Those are the moments I want.”
“Oh, Adam.” She was melting into a puddle, an absolute puddle.
“Though I’m not going to lie,” he whispered against her lips. “I do like the sex a lot.”
She giggled as he leaned in to kiss her. Her arms went around his neck and then they were kissing, kissing, kissing. Holly’s breath stole from her throat as his hands roamed over her back. It felt so good to be back in his arms, so very right as their mouths met and tongues brushed against each other. She loved the soft groan he made as he conquered her mouth, and she clung to him.
When he finally pulled away, his gaze was hot on hers. “Merry Christmas, beautiful.” He brushed a finger over her face and she felt a chunk of mud mask fall off.
“Merry Christmas, Adam,” Holly breathed. “I love you, too.”
His smile was brilliant. He took her hand in his again and kissed her knuckles. “Want to take a closer look at your present?”
Excitement bubbled up inside her. Holly bounced, holding his hand. “Yes!”
A look of uncertainty crossed his face as he led her forward. “I don’t want you to feel obligated,” he began. “You can always take the deed and sell it and use the money for a start-up in some other way—”
She reached out, putting a hand over his mouth. “Hush. I’m admiring my present.”
They walked the short distance out to the gravel parking lot in front of Sage’s ranch. The ice cream truck was still running, and the closer she got, the more Holly fell in love with it. It was boxy and old, sure, but she could paint it a cute lemon yellow with pink ribbon. She could put a sweets menu on the door, or heck, she could do a whiteboard and change the menu as often as she liked. The truck looked big enough to hold plenty of trays of baked goods, and the possibilities were endless.
She could see herself in it, and the smile on her face grew wider and wider. Holly looked over at Adam, ready to thank him again. He was smiling, too, but in a strange, watchful way. As if he was waiting for something.
The window on the side of the ice cream truck opened and a familiar face appeared. Her sister, Polly, leaned out of the truck, a bright smile on her face. “What’ll it be?”
Holly’s squeal of delight was earth-shattering.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
A few hours later, he sat in the kitchen with Holly and her sister, Polly, watching the two women, a cup of coffee in his hands. The cattle were taken care of—he’d raced through the majority of his work that day with the help of Caleb and Jack from the Swinging C, because they’d known he wanted to celebrate the evening with Holly. They’d agreed to help out and Holly was even now baking them a cake as a thank-you. Polly stirred a cheese sauce in a pan and chatted with her sister, both of them talking nonstop ever since she’d arrived.