Free What She Wants by Jenna Byrnes Page B

suffocating in Oklahoma, and needed a little breathing room.”
    She nodded. “I understand that. My father died awhile back, and mom’s been pretty clingy since then. I love her a lot, but sometimes I need my space, too.”
    “ Any brothers or sisters?”
    “ One sister, two years younger. She goes to the junior college close to home, so she can stay with mom.”
    “ Isn’t that admirable of her,” he remarked wryly. “Leaving the guilt to you.”
    “ No kidding,” she laughed.
    “ Well, I understand that. My brother, also two years younger, works at the paper factory. He and my father go for beers together after work. I’m sort of the odd man out.”
    “ Don’t they see that you want more? You’re trying to better yourself. Oh—” Kelsie stopped as realization dawned on her. Of course, Tom’s father wouldn’t appreciate his wanting to be better. It would be like a slap to the older man.
    Tom smiled at her, sadly. “Yeah, you guessed it. What they don’t see is, I want to live in a bigger town. I love the pace of big cities. Denver, Kansas City…I don’t know where, but I’m going to settle down in a city.”
    She smiled at how much they had in common. “I love bigger cities, too. I knew a marketing degree would get me in the door of a large company, most likely based in a big city. I wouldn’t want to stray too far from home, maybe Kansas City, or Oklahoma City.” She grinned, and he laughed.
    Their food arrived, and they continued talking as they ate. Tom was funny and seemed intelligent. Kelsie couldn ’t help but be captivated by his big brown eyes. She found herself staring into that mesmerizing gaze more than once.
    When they finished eating the restaurant didn ’t seem to need the table, so they sat and talked for another two hours. At one point he reached out and touched her hand for emphasis. She felt a fiery spark between them. Judging by the look on his face, he’d felt it too. His fingers slowly intertwined around hers, until their hands were clasped.
    Tom squeezed her hand when she yawned a short while later.  “You look beat. Ready to try and get some sleep?”
    She perused the bustling airport. “Do you really think sleep is possible?”
    “ No.” He stood, tossing some cash on the table. He’d paid their tab hours ago, but the waitress continued to bring drinks. Kelsie thought it was sweet of him to tip her again.
    They gathered their belongings before heading back to their assigned gate area. People were spread out across most of the seats, attempting to get comfortable by whatever means possible. Many huddled together in groups on the floor, and that seemed the only option available to them as well.
    A crowd of people walked past, along with a couple airport security guards. Kelsie could have sworn she saw Tom shirk, ducking his head and turning away from view. It struck her as strange, until he gazed into her eyes and she forgot about everything but him.
    “ Looks like we get the floor. I see an empty corner over there. We can pile our stuff up behind us.”
    “ Whatever you think,” she replied softly.
    “ Come on.” He tugged her hand, and they dragged their things to the corner. Tom put her rolling case down first, then his backpack. He looked at her backpack, but she shook her head.
    “ I’ll hang on to this one.”
    “ Okay.” He removed his coat and shoved it up against the wall as a cushion. She did the same. Together, they leaned against the wall. Tom covered them with blankets, and positioned her bag between their knees. “Oh, I almost forgot.” He reached behind her head and settled one of the little pillows there.
    “ Thanks.” She looked into his eyes. Their faces were inches apart. She felt the strong attraction to him growing. He must have felt it too, because he leaned in and pressed his lips against hers.
    Kelsie pulled back, blinked a couple times at Tom, and leaned in to kiss him again. He caressed the back of her head as their mouths opened