Vic had told him the same thing about her faltering relationship with Haugen, but it felt damn good hearing the words from her mouth. It also gave him a few more ideas on how to romance this woman the way she deserved.
"Silly me, I thought I just had a workaholic husband like most everyone else in the neighborhood. I used to joke he took his cell phone and pager into bed with him."
She tried for a smile. No luck.
Paige glanced down at her lap, tracing a purple flower on the shirt before sucking in a brave breath and meeting him eye-to-eye. "I haven't been with anyone except Kurt."
The conversational shift jolted through him. Then understanding followed about her reasoning for this detour. Listening would definitely work best here because one misstep would cause far more pain than just an end to their evening plans. He stayed silent and let his touch speak reassurance for him by tunneling into her hair to cup her head.
"All I have to go by is sex with a man who had no morals. How ewww is that?"
There was no answer he could offer up so he continued a slow stroke of his thumb along her neck, a non-threatening touch to let her know he was still here. Serious brown eyes stared back at him, brave and determined eyes that made him more than a little sad because making love shouldn't have to be this serious and fearsome.
"Okay, Bo, here it is, straight up. I'm afraid that even as much as I want you, sex could have been ruined for me because it's somehow associated with him, who he was and what he did. I need you to reassure me."
"With sex?" Did she want him as some sort of therapeutic fling? Or did she want him?
She crinkled her nose. "Maybe that didn't come out quite right. I didn't mean to sound so...clinical about it all. Let me try again."
It was tough to be insulted when she was being so sweet and earnest. "I'm all ears."
"You are the most honorable, charming and giving man I've ever met. And that's saying a lot considering I think my brother and Seth are really great guys. And of course you're hot as hell and not a relative."
"That last part's definitely a plus." He shrugged off the compliments he wasn't sure fit with a joke.
A smile lit her eyes as much as the stars glinting off her gold glasses. "I need to move forward with my life, and while sex shouldn't be everything, I think the longer I wait to figure this out, the more I'm going to worry and freeze up inside."
She gripped his shirtfront, twisting, her small fist resting against his chest. "And, God, please say something soon, before I absolutely die of embarrassment. I thought men wanted the chance at uncomplicated sex."
"Lady." He paused, shaking his head. "There isn't one thing about you that's uncomplicated. And that's one of the many things I like about you."
"So all my babbling there made sense somehow?"
"Absolutely." Easing back with a quick, tender-as-he-could-make-it kiss, he shifted the Jeep into gear.
Later he would think about the fact that he didn't feel much like the man she described. In spite of his countless flaws he recognized well, he'd always prided himself on never starting a relationship if it didn't stand at least a chance of going somewhere. For the first time, he was about to break his rule.
Because no way in hell could he turn his back on the chance to be with this woman even just once.
Chapter 12
Outside Bo's house, Paige grappled for the Jeep's door handle while chanting in her head that she could do this, she would do this. She wanted this, him, all of it, so don't think.
Do not think. After a mad dash across town for privacy— a mad dash across the country since they'd left North Dakota, for that matter—finally they were alone.
Bo grazed her arm with his knuckles. "Sit tight. I'll be right around."
To open the door for her? Old-fashioned, but sweet nonetheless. Although, she hoped he would hurry before she thought too much about all the embarrassing things she'd told him while sitting outside her old house. She watched Bo through the windshield as he sprinted around the hood with a speed and obvious urgency that sent a jolt of anticipation through her.
He swept the door open, dropped his keys in her hands and scooped her out of the front seat, startling a surprised yelp from her as she grabbed his shoulders for balance. "You're crazy."
"For you? Hell, yeah." He charged up the front walk to his house carrying her, stars dancing overhead as she jostled. "Unlock the door, would ya? Use the key with the red-tape marking."
"You could put me down."
"Or you could just open the door so we can get inside sooner."
"Fair enough. One red-tape key coming up."