Love, Again: A Second Chance Romance Collection

by Nicole Casey

  I gritted my teeth and ignored her, making my way to one of the bedrooms to investigate.

  “There’s still more stuff to be brought in. Don’t even think about having a nap!”

  I whirled and glared at her before I could stop myself, my black tresses fanning around my face in defiance.

  “I was just looking around!” I hissed.

  “We’re coming, Amanda,” Hunter told her, stepping between us as if he sensed a brawl about to erupt and she scoffed, storming back out into the snow.

  “Jesus,” I muttered, shaking my head. “What is her problem?”

  “Everyone’s just tired,” Hunter told me and I snorted. That was a good excuse now but what about the other three hundred and sixty-four days a year?

  “Why don’t you help Amanda and I’ll see what we can scrounge up to eat,” Hunter suggested, flashing me a warm smile. Instantly, I felt my heart melt and I nodded, my anger dissipating.

  “Sounds good,” I agreed, awed that he was offering to cook. I returned outside where Queenie was talking with Magnus, the load apparently forgotten.

  “…a week with supplies, as agreed,” Magnus was saying as I neared. “You have radio here, ja? You call if there is problems.”

  “We’ll be fine,” Queenie told him sweetly and I marveled at how she could turn it on and off so easily. Listening to her speak with Magnus, you’d have no idea what a witch she was.

  “I help with bags and I go. There is storm coming,” Magnus continued. “They be saying for days about it.”

  Queenie waved her hands magnanimously.

  “No need, Magnus. You can go. Sasha and I have got this.”

  It didn’t surprise me that she didn’t ask my thoughts on the matter. Some of the equipment was heavy and with Hunter inside, that meant I’d be doing the brunt of the work.

  To his credit, Magnus turned to me and waited for me to agree. What choice did I have but to nod and smile?

  “Thank you, Magnus. We’re good.”

  He beamed at me and turned toward the vehicle, leaving me alone with the manager of my nightmares.

  “I return next week, ja?”

  “Wonderful, Magnus, thank you,” Queenie said in a sickeningly sweet tone that made me cringe slightly. He got into the driver’s seat and drove off, a sea of luggage around us.

  I turned away, another two bags in my hands but Queenie barked out at me, “You know, this is still a work expedition.”

  My eyebrow raised in confusion, I looked back at her.

  “I’m aware,” I replied dryly.

  “You wouldn’t think so with that hair. You still need to be presentable, even if you’re not in the lab.”

  My mouth gaped but no words came out. What the hell was wrong with this woman? We’d been traveling for almost a full day via plane and car. I was wiped and she was going on about my hair?

  “What?” she sneered. “You have something to say?”

  “No.”

  I spun back around and stomped back into the structure, my breaths escaping in short, furious rasps.

  Hunter looked up from the kitchen when I entered, the smile fading from his face when he saw my expression.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked, wiping his hands on an apron he’d found from God only knows where.

  “Nothing,” I huffed, shooting a look toward the door but Queenie still hadn’t followed me inside.

  Slowly, Hunter ambled around the side of the counter and made his way toward me, looking into my face with concerned emerald eyes.

  “Amanda?” he asked quietly and I exhaled in an exasperated puff of air.

  “I don’t understand what I ever did to her,” I moaned, loathing that I was venting to him. I didn’t want him to think I was whiny but the stress of Queenie’s presence was already getting to me. I needed to let it out before I went crazy.

  “I’m damn good at my job, I do what I’m told,” I rushed on, eager to spill it all before she could overhear.

  Hunter nodded slowly, a bemused smile touching his lips.

  “That’s the problem,” he murmured and I looked at him quizzically.

  “What’s the problem?”

  “She’s jealous of you.”

  I paused, unsure if he was joking or not but I saw a wisdom in his eyes…along with something else.

  “Jealous?” I laughed weakly. “She’s the boss. What does she have to be jealous of?”

  The glint in his irises was unmistakable this time as his gaze raked over her face.

  “Your beauty,” he murmured softly. My heart caught in my throat and I stared at him in disbelief but before I could muster anything clever to say, Queenie stomped into the building.

  “Oh, how nice,” she growled caustically. “Is it break time? Why didn’t anyone inform me while I was slaving away getting your crap?”

  The spell was broken between Hunter and I but the feeling of warmth which had exploded inside me remained.

  Maybe this trip wasn’t going to be all stress after all.

  3

  Sasha

  It took two days for us to overcome our jetlag and fall into a routine. I was grateful for the distraction of work after we organized our affairs and jumped into it. Even Queenie’s presence didn’t seem to faze me as much once I fell back into my research and the familiar juices started to flow.

  It helped that whenever I looked at Hunter now, he was often looking back at me, a soft grin on his face.

  Sure, I grunted to myself. Now he notices me. It’s not like I can pursue anything with Queenie in such close quarters.

  Still, knowing that I had Hunter’s attention added a little spring in my step.

  He thinks I’m beautiful.

  I did my best to avoid speaking with Queenie but due to the nature of our work, it was inevitable. She still talked to me like I was a servant but she seemed as consumed with her tasks as I was with mine.

  At the end of the third day, I sat back at my desk and rubbed my eyes. The whites were burning from all the intense scrutiny I’d been giving the old specimens. We were going to need to collect more samples soon.

  A fission of excitement sparked through me as I realized that it might be my opportunity to be alone with Hunter, away from Queenie’s watchful eyes.

  I wonder if anyone has ever gotten in on atop a glacier.

  “All done?” Hunter asked from behind me and I looked up at him. He wore a boyish grin on his face like he was coveting a mischievous secret.

  “For today,” I conceded. “You?”

  He nodded and I realized he was holding something behind his back which he produced without prompting.

  “Glenfiddich.”

  My eyes widened at the sight of the bottle and he spun to show it to Queenie who wasn’t staring at us for once.

  “What do you say, boss lady?” Hunter called. “You up for a little Scottish-Icelandic celebration?”

  Queenie eyed him and I could see the wariness in her eyes.

  “You brought booze?” she sighed but she didn’t refuse his offer. Instead, she rose and made her way over to us.

  “It’s Halloween,” Hunter reminded her and I chuckled. I hadn’t remembered.

  “Is this our candy?” I asked. Hunter held my gaze and winked slyly.

  “This is one treat I have in store,” he said and a shiver of pleasure slithered through my body.

  Is it getting hot in here or is it just Hunter?

  “Come on,” Hunter urged us and we followed him to the kitchen where he’d put together a smorgasbord of snacks. I cast him a look through my peripheral vision, wondering when he’d managed to put the platter together.

  “Fill me up,” Queenie sighed, flopping onto the sofa. “I earned it.”

  She gave me a cold smile.

  “I’ve been working on the prototype. What have you been doing?”

  Is that wench implying I haven’t been working? She’s got some nerve, considering she’s coat tailing off my idea!

  “We’ve all
been working really hard,” Hunter interjected, placing a full glass of scotch into Queenie’s outstretched hand. “We’re a team, remember?”

  I waited, fully expecting my boss to make some cutting remark but to my surprise, she only gulped back a huge sip of the liquor and smiled.

  “I remember,” she replied, an almost dreamy beam on her lips. Hunter gave me a glass, not nearly as full as Queenie’s and he brought out the charcuterie board to set on the coffee table for all of us to eat.

  I realized I was famished and I reached forward to snatch a piece of cheese and pop it in my mouth.

  “This is nice, right?” Hunter said, settling into the warped winged chair across from Queenie. “It’s not trick or treating but it has its charms.”

  Queenie said nothing and I saw that she’d almost finished her drink. She held up her glass and Hunter jumped up to refill it.

  She better slow down.

  Of course I said nothing aloud and a part of me relished the silence emanating from her for once.

  Oddly, she wore a serene, almost peaceful expression and I almost couldn’t reconcile that she was the same woman who had terrorized me at work for the past two years. She seemed more innocent, as if the liquor was a magic potion, erasing all her evilness.

  Note to self: Keep Queenie drunk.

  Hunter handed her the refill and she accepted it, bringing it to her lips instantly.

  “Are you going to have something to eat?” Hunter asked her but she shook her head.

  “I’m good,” she purred in a breathless voice which made me arch my eyebrows. “This was a really good idea.”

  Hunter seemed to swallow a smile.

  “I thought you might like it,” he replied. We exchanged a look but Queenie was floating away somewhere and I could see that her eyes were growing heavier. She downed her drink again.

  “Hit me again, Sam!” she giggled. I’d barely taken one sip out of my drink. I had no idea how she had managed to chug back all that but one thing I was certain of—she was going to be feeling the aftereffects in the morning.

  I just hoped she didn’t take it out on me. It was a foolish wish—of course she would but I’d take the night of peace while I had it.

  “You better catch up,” Hunter teased me and I wrenched my eyes away from the train wreck my boss was becoming. I put the glass to my mouth, more to keep my disbelief inside than because I wanted to feel the burn of the alcohol down my throat. Yet as the scotch made its way down my esophagus and into my stomach, the warmth was very pleasing. I could feel the tense muscles in my neck relaxing and I permitted my body to sink back against the loveseat.

  “There you go,” Hunter murmured. “Isn’t that better?”

  I nodded in agreement, a lazy smile touching my mouth.

  “My hat is off to you,” I said lightly. “I didn’t think to bring any party favors.”

  Hunter chuckled lightly and rose from his chair toward me. He sat at my side and I shot a nervous look toward Queenie but to my absolute shock, she had passed out.

  “Woah,” I muttered in disbelief. “That didn’t take long.”

  Hunter laughed and the sound filled my ears deliciously.

  “I have a confession to make,” he whispered, bringing his face close to my ear. The heat of his breath sent goosebumps over my skin.

  “What’s that?” My voice was barely audible in my nervousness. He couldn’t kiss me right there, could he? Not when Queenie was five feet away.

  Then why did I want him to so badly?

  “Amanda is a binge-drinker. I’ve known that for a couple years.”

  I pulled my head back to look at him, stunned.

  “She’s an alcoholic?” I demanded, my jaw almost on the floor.

  “Not exactly. She doesn’t drink at work or anything but she can’t say no if you offer it to her and she won’t stop once she’s started. She hits it hard and fast.”

  I didn’t know if that information was useful or tragic but I didn’t have much of a chance to ponder it because Hunter was cupping my face with the palms of his hands. My nervousness sprouted into anxiety and I tried to pull away, my eyes fixed on Queenie.

  He chortled softly and rubbed his nose against mine.

  “She’s out for the night,” he promised. “But if you’d rather be safe than sorry, let’s take this into my room. If she wakes up, I can tell her you went out for a walk.”

  I bit on my lower lip, knowing that it was wrong but I couldn’t go another month of waiting, not when I’d had such a crush on this guy since the first time I’d laid eyes on his handsome face.

  He sensed my reluctance and decided to take the lead, rising and taking my hand into his as he did.

  “We’ll be very quiet,” he promised, winking coyly and my gut fluttered. Who was I kidding? I wasn’t refusing this. It was a golden opportunity and I wasn’t going to waste it.

  We slipped into his bedroom and closed the door without bothering to flick on the lights. Through one of the high utility windows, a zillion stars glimmered in the sky and I couldn’t help but feel like I was being caught up in a dream.

  Hunter sat me on the single bed and I could make out the glow of his eyes through the light.

  This is going to be incredible, I thought, reaching up to pull him toward me but instead of a tender, exploratory kiss, his mouth smashed down on mine like a press and his breaths exploded over my face, almost suffocating me.

  “Woah,” I giggled, pulling back and he grinned sheepishly.

  “Sorry,” he chuckled, moving back in to kiss my face. “You’ve just got me so hot. I can’t help myself.”

  His hands roamed over my body without rhyme or reason, his fingers somehow weaseling in under my bra to pinch my nipples and I was thrust back into high school. Suddenly, he wasn’t Hunter Davis, man of my dreams. He was some awkward senior at prom who’d never popped his cherry.

  His kisses were sloppy, running down against my neck and I grimaced as he rushed to disrobe me.

  He’s just nervous, I told myself. He’ll slow down in a minute.

  But I was wrong and in seconds, we were naked as he dropped kisses like hand grenades over my body.

  Perhaps perpetuated by my desire to finally sleep with this man who had been the object of my affections for so long, my center was damp and somewhat ready for him but I had certainly expected more foreplay than the nibble he gave my breasts before spreading my legs apart and positioning himself between my thighs. With a single swipe of his fingers between my legs, he grinned at me and I had to wonder if he was drunk. It was the only reason I could imagine he was so bad at this.

  I found myself wondering what to do with my hands and uneasily, I grabbed his shoulders as he entered me.

  Oh. Is that it?

  It was stunning to me that he wasn’t better endowed but in spite of all this, in spite of the fact that I was already disappointed, I still gave him the benefit of the doubt.

  “God, you’re so wet!” he panted into my ear, his words escaping in grunts as he plunged into me without any choreography. “You like that?”

  “Mmhm,” I managed, sliding my ass upward to feel him deeper but his actions were so sporadic, so choppy, all I did was put myself in an uncomfortable position, my hip grinding into the thin mattress.

  “You gonna cum for me?” he moaned and as he spoke, I could feel his shaft growing harder.

  Not a chance in hell, I thought.

  “I already did,” I lied although how he couldn’t have known I was blowing smoke was beyond me.

  It wasn’t until after he released, ten seconds later, that I realized he didn’t really care if I’d cum or not and he slid off me with a massive grunt, his body shaking as if he’d done something of great value.

  Wow. That was awful.

  “That was incredible,” he rasped, turning his head to grin at me. “You’re amazing.”

  I had to look away, certain that even in the dark, my dubiousness would shine through on my pale skin. Instantly, t
he optimist in me tried to make light of the catastrophe.

  I am really glad I didn’t spend a month waiting for that. Speaking of anticlimaxes…

  I waited for what I thought was an appropriate amount of time before slipping my legs over the side of the bed.

  “Where are you going?” he asked. “Give me a minute and we can go for round two.”

  Ugh. Had there even been a round one? Not for me.

  I forced a grin and shook my head.

  “I’m too tense,” I told him. “I keep thinking that Amanda is going to wake up.”

  “She won’t,” he promised. “And I can give you a massage if you’re tense.”

  I shook my head with vehemence.

  “No,” I insisted. “I should get back to work for a bit and get some rest. I have to collect samples tomorrow.”

  I could almost feel his eyes narrow in the darkness but I was too busy locating my clothes to address him.

  “Good night,” I said brightly, sneaking out of his room.

  “Sasha…”

  I stifled a groan before turning back toward him.

  “Hm?”

  “Are we good?”

  I smiled briefly.

  “Of course we are,” I said with forced cheer. We were, after all. It was just a one-night stand and we were adults.

  Adults who work together, I reminded myself, cringing. How stupid was I to have slept with a co-worker on a work trip? I was going to be stuck looking at him every day without avoidance.

  Too late for regrets now. What’s done is done. Moving on…

  “Is there something else, Hunter?” I asked, trying to keep the impatience out of my voice as he remained silent. His eyes met mine and he shook his head.

  “No,” he muttered and I felt a stab of guilt touch my gut. He wasn’t a bad guy—he was just terrible in bed. Not really his fault but also not my project. At least now I knew. No harm, no foul.

  As I hurried out into the common area, I saw that Queenie hadn’t moved an inch from where she’d passed out and I exhaled with relief. For the first time since knowing her, I was glad she was around.

  Then again, things were bound to get really awkward now.

  4