By His Hand: Truly Yours Digital Edition by Jennifer Johnson Page A

bottom reconnected with the torn, vinyl seat.
    “You okay?” asked Chris.
    Victoria had never felt like this. She’d never been in anything so primitive, so rustic, so nostalgic.
Okay, Victoria, you’re being a little dramatic
. But she didn’t care. She felt so country … so free. She loved it.
    Grabbing her clip from her hair, she shook her curls loose and kicked off her heels. She glanced at Chris whose expression bespoke nothing short of complete awe. “This is great.”
    “Um … okay.” Chris peered back out the windshield. Victoria couldn’t help but notice his chiseled chin and how stubble, a much deeper red than his hair, covered it. Strong arms gripped the steering wheel, and she realized how protected she felt in Chris’s presence.
    She shook her head and glanced out the passenger window. The wind blew the blanket of flat, golden wheat in ripples before her. She shouldn’t think about Chris and his chin or arms or anything else for that matter. A country boy/mechanic obsessed with naming his inanimate treasures after women—no, Chris Ratliff could not be the man for her. He was nothing like Zack. And Zack was perfect.

eight
     
    What have I gotten myself into?
Chris watched as Victoria hopped out of the truck and held open the door. She giggled as she ran her fingers through the tousled curly mass that sat atop her head. Her wind-kissed cheeks matched the nail polish he’d inadvertently noticed covering her toenails.
     
    Abby threw open the screen door. “Hey, Victoria.” His little sister waved at the woman who’d stolen his breath the entire trip home to come inside. “What’s so funny?” Abby asked as a smile split her much-too-dark-painted lips. The first smile he’d seen in days.
    Victoria glanced back at Chris. “Your brother’s truck.”
    Abby furrowed her brows. “What?”
    “That truck is great.” She scooped her heels from the floorboard and slammed the door shut.
    “What’s so great about it?”
    “It’s like an amusement park ride. It bounces and turns, jerks and twirls.”
    Chris shook his head as he stepped out of the cab. “The lady spent a long time stuck inside a bank today.” He looked at Abby and circled his finger beside his temple. “Too many hours counting greenbacks, I guess.”
    With her heels dangling from her fingers, Victoria stomped around the truck toward him. She lifted her shoulders and peered up at him. “I’ll have you know I had a great time on my first day of work.”
    A long strand of hair fell in front of one of her eyes while the mass of it hung down her back. Her tiny nostrils flared in a pitiful attempt at anger. Her eyes betrayed her as they sparkled with merriment.
    He cleared his throat. “I’m glad you had a good day.”
    “You”—she poked the middle of his chest—“were my first customer.” She smiled, and her face lit up brighter than the sun peeking through a batch of rain clouds.
    He brushed the wayward strand away from her eye. His fingers caressed her soft cheek. “I’m glad I was your first customer.”
    Her face flushed, and she touched her cheek. Chris gripped the door handle as he fought a primitive urge to scoop her lithe body into his arms and carry her off to a cave somewhere far away from civilization.
    Instead, he turned and grabbed his keys and the papers from his day’s errands out of the truck. He shrugged at Abby as he walked toward the house. He looked back at the two. “Victoria doesn’t have a change of clothes. Would you mind her borrowing something of yours that’s a little more comfortable?”
    “Sure.” She glanced at Victoria. “You’re a little taller than me, but I’ll see what I can find.”
    “Let’s go then.” Victoria walked to the door. When she stood beside Abby, Victoria lightly bumped the teen with her hip. Abby giggled and grabbed Victoria’s hand, dragging her fully into the house.
    Chris shook his head and grinned. Sondra Ward had to be the most intelligent person he knew.