forward to push against the door. His white dress shirt, unbuttoned at the collar, revealing a smooth tan neck.
The bell over the bakery door rings and he steps inside. For a moment, no one speaks. Not him, not me, not the three sex-crazed cougars rendered speechless by his presence.
“Hi.” His voice is the same…a deep tenor.
Is this really happening or have I fallen into my memories?
“Well fuck me.” Unaware she spoke aloud, Patsy runs her eyes over him from head to toe. “Who’re you?”
He smiles over his shoulder, politely forgiving her crass introduction and then turns his deep-brown eyes back on me. “I’m Alex Ramirez.”
Holy shit. Amber can talk to the dead.
Chapter Three
56 Days Until Willy Tries His Luck With the Bridesmaids
Alex, seemingly unnerved by four pair of blue eyes boring into him, steps closer. “Is there someplace we can talk?”
His eyes shift to Brook. The Botox effectively masks her shock but her mouth has been hanging open so long, I’m worried she may start to drool.
I move away from the counter on shaky legs. “In the back.”
Alex walks around Brook and waits for me. Her head follows him like a blind dog follows sound. We make our way to the back room. My hands shake as I pull the thin cotton curtain closed behind us, leaving my three stunned aunts to man the bakery.
He’s standing very close to me. Dressed in a smart white button-up and navy slacks. He looks every bit as delicious as he did the last time I saw him. My mouth is so dry I have to try twice to force words out. “Hi,” I manage.
“Hi.” He smiles warmly at me.
I return his smile uncertainly and two roguish dimples tease me. “What are you doing here?”
Alex looks around the small room. “I was nearby and thought I’d stop in. Say hello.”
“You were in Harlow?”
“Nearby,” he says. “I heard about the bakery and I thought it might be nice to check it out. See you again.”
Last time Alex Ramirez saw me, he saw all of me. “Paige told you?”
Alex nods. “She’s proud of you. Though, I think she’s a little raw you didn’t want to follow her footsteps out of here.”
Paige has never understood my loyalty to this place. It was during one of her many attempts to lure me to the bright lights of Dallas that I met Alex. It was the only time her plan even came close to succeeding.
“I think you may be right. We’re so different. Sometimes I think she must’ve been delivered to the wrong house by a drunk stork.”
His laugh sends vibrations running through me. “And your dad? I hear he’s still working in the fields. How’s he managing that and having an empty nest?”
So he knows I bought the bakery and he knows I moved out. I let my inner trailer park do some talking. “You’ve been keeping tabs on me?”
His eyes settle on my mouth for the space of two heartbeats. I bite my bottom lip, a nervous habit.
“I’ve kept my ears open. I’m happy for you, Charlie. I remember how much you wanted this place.”
The intimacy of his words makes me uncomfortable. “I’m surprised you remember.”
“I remember a lot about that night.” He doesn’t bother to be covert, but looks me up and down.
The intensity of his gaze leaves a trail of hot, flushed skin in its wake. He closes more distance between us. “I remember the color on your cheeks when I stripped you of that towel.”
I gasp, shocked by his words.
“I remember the smell of your skin from your interrupted bubble bath.”
Another half step and he’s within inches of me. I don’t look up but stare instead at the collar of his shirt, a familiar view.
Alex leans forward, his mouth almost against my ear. When he whispers, the words tickle the skin on my neck. “I remember how you tasted.”
I sway on the spot and he places firm hands on my hips. “You’re always falling around me,” he says, softly.
The memory makes my body thrum. I turn my head and focus my gaze on his mouth. I’ve tried so