Looking to the side, she observed the garage and the odor of motor oil faintly filled the air. Wrinkling her nose, she wondered if the scent would invade her shop, making it unpleasant for her customers. No matter…I can always make sure my air conditioning ventilation system can filter the odor. Looking back to the storefront, she grinned. Perfect.
Pulling out her phone, she placed the call to her real estate agent.
Two hours later, Rose walked over to the old, metal bleachers of the Baytown baseball field, stared up at the group of girlfriends and waved. She climbed to the top of the bleachers, swatting at an errant bee, and greeted the others before sitting down.
She had wanted to move to Baytown permanently but was still coming down from her hometown in Maryland as she tried to find a place to open her ice cream shop. Tired of driving back and forth and desperately wanting to move on with her life’s plans, she sighed as Katelyn asked when she was going to open her store.
Shrugging, she said, “My bid for the first storefront I wanted was already taken by the new tattoo artist.” She tried to keep her voice neutral, but it was hard not to let the emotions resonate in her words. “There’s another building down from the pub, but it’s on Main Street and is out of my price range. I’m working on trying to get my finances together, but the town manager is really riding my ass about getting the work done by certain contractors, and they’re out of my league.”
Jillian and Katelyn groused, but Rose just sighed once more. “Oh, it’s okay,” she said softly. “It’ll happen when it happens.”
Turning her attention to the ball game, she got into the spirit of the activities watching the American Legion members coaching the young children. As with so many days in Baytown, the sun was shining, the sky was blue, and the peace of the little town was once more pulling her under its spell.
It was not as though she had to escape Maryland. Her parents ran an ice cream shop in her hometown, and she had grown up learning how to create delicious homemade frozen concoctions. But on a trip south through the Eastern Shore of Virginia, she had stumbled across Baytown. Stopping for coffee at Jillian’s Coffee Shop, she had met Jillian and Katelyn, two original Baytown girls, and they had chatted for hours.
She had never had such an instant connection with anyone before, and that extended to the place. When she left the coffee shop, she drove around the small town and fell in love.
And she noticed something important…Baytown did not have an ice cream shop. She had toyed with the idea of opening a shop similar to her parents’ but had never found a place that she felt like she could call home. Now that she had, it seemed like she was experiencing one delay after the other. She never expected that opening her own business would be easy, but she had not expected to run into so many roadblocks.
The women around her jumped from their seats, cheering as one of the children ran toward home plate. Lifting her hand to shade her eyes, she stared out over the field, admiring the coaches. She recognized Mitch, Grant, Aiden, Brogan, and Callan. She had heard the women talk about the original Baytown Boys, having grown up on the Eastern Shore together and as adults had found their way back home.
With the new American Legion chapter and auxiliary in town now, she also had heard that they were extending invitations to come to Baytown to some of their service member friends who did not have a welcoming home.
As her gaze moved over the field, they landed on the outfield coach. Even from a distance, she could see his tall, muscular form. His long hair blew in the breeze, tucked out of his face in the front by his ball cap. The few times she had been around Jason, he had been in jeans, a formfitting T-shirt that showed off his muscular arms and tattoos, and often a leather motorcycle vest. It almost seemed strange to see him in cargo shorts, a T-shirt, baseball hat, and cleats.
He had snagged her attention the first time she saw him and every time since. She knew he was opening a garage but had not heard that he also planned on a tattoo shop.
Watching him now, she frowned. As nice as it was to spend time viewing the eye candy, she could not forget that she had lost the bid on the best storefront to him, and while it might not make sense to be irritated at him, he was as good a person as any to focus her ire upon.
Fall in Baytown was beautiful, with flowers still on the Crepe Myrtle trees and the other leaves going gold and red. Rose stepped out of her car, closed her eyes, and lifted her face to the breeze coming off the bay. She was exhausted from the events of her day, wishing that she had better news.
She had just been with the town manager again, along with another real estate agent, and was so ready to spend some time with her friends. They were meeting at the top of Jillian’s Coffee Shop, where she showcased local artists’ work in her Galleria.
Ordering coffee from the barista on the first floor, she could hear women’s voices coming from upstairs. Just as she bounded up the stairs and rounded the banister, she heard Jillian say, “Rose is coming today!”
“I’m here,” she called out, smiling at Katelyn, Jillian, Tori, Belle, and Jade. The women were sitting at a round table covered in a lace tablecloth with a platter of pastries in the middle. The tall windows next to the table were lit with the setting evening sun. “I was in town today and grabbed coffee downstairs. Thanks for letting me crash your party.”
Sitting down, she eyed the pastries as her hand hovered above them, choosing just the right one. Making her selection, she bit into it and moaned in delight.
“How’s the ice cream shop going?” Tori asked between bites of her own pastry.
Rolling her eyes, Rose huffed, “I swear, the town manager has me so twisted in knots, I want to throw in the towel and just try to open a shop in the northern part of the Eastern Shore—”
“No!” the others shouted.
Their enthusiasm brought a smile to her face, warmth moving through her. “Well, I know I told you that the first property I looked at had just been taken by the guy who owns the garage—”
“Jason,” Jillian supplied.
She knew his name, but calling him the guy made it easier to think of him as someone who took something she wanted. Shrugging, she continued, “All I know is he wanted to open a tattoo parlor as well as the garage. But he’s only got the garage going now, and the storefront is just sitting there! It looks like he’s got stuff in it, but I could be open now, growing my business, and who knows how long it will be before he opens the tattoo parlor.”
Softly, Tori said, “He’s really a nice guy. He helped me out when I was having some difficulties this past year.”
“Well, nice or not, he’s got the place I could afford. So, I’m still looking.” She cringed at the peevish sound in her voice, hating what the process was doing to her. Opening her own business in Baytown was proving to be an almost insurmountable challenge.
As the women continued to chat over coffee and pastries, she relaxed enough to enjoy their company and dreamed of when she could host them at her own shop.
As they were all getting ready to leave, she glanced out the tall window overlooking Main Street next to her and recognized Jason’s long hair flowing behind him as he walked down the street. Offering hasty goodbye hugs, she grabbed her purse and hurried out of the coffee shop.
He was no longer in sight, but it was not hard to imagine the direction he was going. With little in mind of what she would say when she got there, she hurried down the road after him.
Rounding the corner at the end of the block, she could see the garage that Jason had bought, the bay doors closed with a ‘Now in Business’ sign over the front door. A tow truck was parked outside, and with the phone number painted on its sides, she knew the towing part of his business must already be in service. Walking to the front door, she curved her hands around her face and peeked through the glass. It was dark inside, and she huffed in frustration that he was not there.
Knowing she was a glutton for punishment, she started down the street to stare longingly at the windows in the building
she had hoped to buy for her ice cream shop. There was heavy paper taped up on all of them. As she had walked by earlier, the front door was open, allowing her to see that there were some counters and boxes inside.
Standing on the sidewalk, it was so easy for her to imagine a sign hanging on the building, announcing to one and all her ice cream shop. She had the design for the shop completely ready; not surprising considering she had been planning for her own shops since she was a little girl. Soft pink and purple swirls, the color of the sky at sunrise, would decorate the sign, and she would have something similar painted on the windows as well.
A sound from inside the shop jolted her out of her musings, and she realized that Jason must be there.
Stepping into the dim interior lit only by a lamp on a counter, she looked around. Not seeing Jason, she assumed he must be in the back, and with more gumption than she normally felt, she decided to study the room.
The counter was along the wall, but it was easy for her to imagine the front being divided from the back with display cases holding various flavors of ice cream. She loved the delicate wrought iron tables that Jillian had in the Galleria, and while she could see that type of furniture in an ice cream shop, she did not want the male customers to feel as though the furniture might break if they sat on it.
She had been to the shop of a woodworker just north of town and had fallen in love with the tables and chairs he made. They were not cheap, but if she budgeted, she could have afforded them.
Dropping her chin to her chest, her shoulders slumped as she thought of the other properties the agent had shown her. They either needed too much work or were too expensive. She squeezed her eyes tightly shut, suddenly overwhelmed with disappointment.
“Rose?”
Hearing the deep masculine voice coming from close behind her, she whirled around and stared up into Jason’s surprised face. She had been around him numerous times but never noticed how far back she had to tilt her head to look into his clear light blue eyes. His sandy blond hair flowed over his shoulders, looking like it had not been brushed today, and yet made her fingers itch to reach out and touch the thick tresses. His jeans were worn in all the right places, and the dark T-shirt molded to his muscular torso.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice laced with the same concern she viewed in his eyes.
Swallowing deeply, she pushed down the embarrassment at having been caught inside his place and bit out, “No! I’m not okay.”
His eyes narrowed slightly as his head tilted to the side. Cautiously, he asked, “Is there anything I can do for you?”
A rude snort came forth, foreign to even her own ears, but she seemed unable to stop the flow of emotions or the flood of words as she stood in the very room that she had imagined would house her own business. “Yes, you can decide that you don’t want this building and let me have it!”
His head jerked back, and he lowered his brows. “Look, I’m sorry you didn’t get what you wanted, but the fact of the matter is that I got the contract on this building first. I didn’t even know you were interested in it!”
His reasonable logic only made her more frustrated, and she growled as she placed her hands flat on his chest and gave a push.
His eyes widened in surprise, and he grabbed her wrists in a firm but not painful grasp. They stood toe to toe, staring at each other, chests rising and falling with labored breaths.
Time stood still as she stared into his eyes, her body hot with embarrassment over her actions that slowly morphed into pure lust. Her breath burned in her chest as she struggled to draw in oxygen. The touch of his hands on her sent electric shocks up her arms, and he released the hold on her, his fingers opening wide as though her skin burned him.
Her gaze dropped to his mouth, and all reason flew from her mind. Lunging, she threw her arms around his neck and lifted on her toes, planting her lips on his.
The instant their lips touched, whatever rational thought had been in her mind dissolved as she craved Jason’s kiss. She twisted her head back and forth, her hands clutching his jaws as she searched for the perfect angle to devour his mouth.
He rocked back a step, and she felt him hesitate. She tightened her grip, indicating her intentions, pulling herself closer. He could no longer mistake what she wanted, and she felt his arms band around her middle, lifting her. She wrapped her legs around his waist, unconcerned that she was clinging to him, climbing him like a cat up a tree.
She may have owned the kiss at the beginning, but it took him no time at all to take over. Their movements, starting out as uncoordinated bumping of noses and teeth, quickly became a flaming hot seduction as their tongues tangled in a slow exploration.
Heat clawed at Rose from the inside out, and she shifted her hips, seeking friction, rubbing her core against his rough jeans.
He lifted his head back, but she pressed forward, not ready for their connection to disappear. Trying it again, he tightened his hold on her as he pulled his lips away, his eyes full of lust but piercing hers, holding her captive.
“What is this, Rose?” he asked, his voice rough as gravel.
Shaking her head in quick jerks, she strained forward, wanting his lips on hers again. “If you don’t know, I must be doing something very wrong.”
“Oh, no,” he said, and she felt his words rumble from his chest. “You’re not doing anything wrong, but I don’t want you to have any regrets if this is going the way I think it is.”
She blinked, wanting to deny that he was the responsible one, but having to admit even to herself that her actions were unlike her. Her hands slid from his jaws to the back of his neck, his thick hair tangling against her fingers. His eyes mesmerized her, and she licked her lips before saying, “I plan everything. I do almost nothing that isn’t planned, but look where that’s gotten me. Right now, right here…I want to go with no plan other than what we feel like doing to each other right at this moment.”
He cocked his head to the side, and for an instant, she thought he was going to kiss her again. Instead, his jaw tightened and he said, “You’re sure?”
With each heaving breath, her breasts were pressed even tighter to him, and she felt as though her heart would beat out of her chest. Tears hit her eyes as she desperately wanted to make him understand. Voice now raspy, she replied, “I’m all in. What about you?”
His arms continued to hold her easily as though her weight was nothing. His tongue moved slowly over his bottom lip, and she could see the wheels turning behind his eyes as he tried to figure out what she wanted.
“Look, Jason, I’m a big girl, and I know what I’m doing.” As soon as the words left her mouth, she inwardly winced, knowing that they were a complete lie. Forging on, she said, “What’s wrong with two adults who are attracted to each other getting together for some fun?” She shifted once again, feeling his cock pressing against the front of his jeans, and decided the time for talking was over. Clutching his jaws again, she angled her head and latched onto his lips.
3
Whatever questions he had about her motives, they flew out the window as he continued to kiss her while turning and stalking toward the stairs just to the side of his front door. One of the reasons he liked the building, besides the fact that it was next to the garage, was that there was an apartment over the store. Granted, it needed a lot of work to make it livable, but he had moved a bed, dresser, small table, and folding chair into the space. The bathroom was old and outdated, but at least he could take a shower, brush his teeth, and flush the toilet.
His plan of carrying her up the stairs faltered when she wiggled once more against his groin, and his booted foot tripped on the second step. Rose grabbed his face, holding tightly as she continued to move her lips over his, sucking his tongue into her mouth. Rational thought took a vacation from his mind as the electricity from their lips shot right to his cock, which was already pressing painfully against his zipper.
Thrilled she was wearing a dress, he twisted and set her ass on the step
above him, sliding his hand underneath the hem of her dress and up her thigh, finding the crotch of her panties hot and wet.
With a finger, he slid them to the side as she opened her legs wide, and he dove in, the scent of her in his nostrils and the taste of her on his tongue. As he feasted, her fingers clutched his long hair, her short nails dragging along his scalp.
Every moan and movement she made continued to drive him wild, and he was desperate to bring her pleasure before they went further. He wanted her, all of her, but a sliver of rational thought stayed in his mind, determined for her to get off and then have a chance to end it if that was all she needed. His cock would hate him, but he would be able to look at himself in the mirror the next day.
With her legs over his shoulders, he licked and sucked, nipped and tongued, her hips undulating underneath his face. It only took a moment for shudders to rack her body as she cried out when her orgasm moved through her.
It had been a while since he had had sex, mostly a quick tryst with someone who was vacationing in town looking for a tumble with a rough-looking man. But considering he was never rough in bed, he figured more than one may have gone away disappointed. Since moving to Baytown, he had not found anyone that held his attention as more than a friend…with the exception of the pretty Rose.
He leaned up, licking his lips, and watched the blush rise from her neck to her forehead, and grinned, knowing he put that there. He made no move other than to softly kiss her thighs while letting his finger drop her panties back into place.
Her eyes fluttered open, and he waited…was she done with him? Was she simply full of emotion and just needed someone to get her off? If so, he could have felt used, but then he knew he would have the taste of her on his lips for a long time and was glad he was the one she chose.
Sweet Rose: Baytown Boys Page 2
