Welcome To My World (Hell Yeah!) by Sable Hunter Read Free Book Online Page A

laugh off their by-play. “Did you say you found my bracelet?”
    “Yes, I did.” He stood up and fished the tiny sterling silver piece of jewelry from the front pocket of his jeans.
    Yea, there it was. She followed the movement of his hand as he dug in the front of his pants, wishing she could go fishing in that particular hole of mystery. When he removed it and held out the delicate silver chain to her, she felt tears rise in her eyes. “Oh, thank you, Bowie.” Impulsively she held her arms up for a hug.
    He wouldn’t have turned her down for the world. Leaning over he accepted her gratitude. She squeezed him tight and planted a sweet kiss on his cheek. A powerful swelling of tenderness swamped Bowie like high tide at Galveston. “You’re welcome, baby.”
    Pulling back, she looped it around her wrist. “I’m going to put it on.”
    “How does your burn feel now?” He realized he must sound like a broken record, but he so wished he could take the pain from her.
    “Not bad.” She smiled up at him. “I’ve had worse.”
    He started to ask for her to explain but he didn’t know how.
    Cassie cleared her throat, seemingly trying to compose herself. “Tell me a Bowie story.” It was always easier to have someone else do the talking. Everything she could say about herself was more than boring.
      “Okay.” He would rather have talked about her instead of himself, but he could break the ice. “I’m a member of a couple of groups who are called upon to locate missing people, either in a wilderness setting or at sea. One group is an equine search team and the other is a dive team.” He took a swallow of the milk, watching her rub the condensation from her glass. He wished she were touching him. Her hands were so small. “Nothing glamorous, but finding people who need my help satisfies me.”
      “I can imagine it does.” She bit her lower lip and he licked his in response.
      Kissing her was a great temptation.
      “You not only help people, but you see the world.”
      Bowie could tell the thought of traveling filled her with longing. “What about you? You make candles, I remember.” He pointed toward the boxes, packed and sealed. There were also several larger ones sitting around. He stood up and moved closer. “This is beautiful.” With a careful touch he ran his finger over a brown candle which had been intricately carved with a picture of a deer running through the woods. “Did you do this?”
      “Yes, I did.” She moved her chair to the left a bit, to be closer. “I’m a frustrated artist, I love to sketch and this isn’t much different. Instead of pen and ink, I use wax and a carving tool.” As he moved to another which was carved with a date and flowers, she went on to explain. “I do custom requests to celebrate birthdays or anniversaries, new babies, things like that.”
      “I wouldn’t want to burn it.”
      Cassie giggled. “Most don’t. I treat it with a special lacquer which preserves them quite well, especially if I press flowers or leaves or shells into the hot wax.”
      “You’re very talented.” He was impressed.
      Over the next hour, they talked about everything. Bowie coaxed her to open up and just share with him. She told him about her work at the animal shelter and the nursing home. They discussed serious things—life, politics, religion, and philosophy. His ploy was simple, he was working hard to make her feel at ease with him. Bowie was showing her they had a lot in common and he was interested in her as a person. After he had her laughing about his views on being a vegetarian—he was against it, by the way—Bowie took a sip of the drink, glanced over to the glass door and chuckled. Two pairs of eyes were gazing at him. “I think we’re being watched.”
    Cassie glanced over. “Meet Sassy and Patience, my roommates and bosses.”
    He walked to the door and knelt down to stare at the curious pets. “Do you want them to come in?”
    “Oh, yeah,