“Good. So what can I get you two to drink?”
“Bud in a bottle,” Lincoln answered, and then I replied, “After last time, I trust your judgment. Surprise me again.”
She drummed her fingers on the bar and chirped, “You got it,” and went about getting our drinks.
There wasn’t a live band playing tonight, so the music filtering through the bar was from the jukebox near the stage, but the songs were good, and the atmosphere was just as awesome as it had been the last time I was there.
When Rory dropped off our beer, I immediately lifted mine to my lips and sipped. She waited patiently for my reaction, and I quickly gave her a thumbs-up. “Another winner, Rory. From here on out, I’m never ordering. I’ll just leave it up to you.”
She giggled and her face lit up, taking her from pretty to stunning. “I might not have the first clue about clothes, but when it comes to beer, I’m a genius.”
I looked down at her stylish jeans and the badass cowboy boots on her feet. She was wearing another awesome formfitting tee, this one saying “Tap That” in buttery yellow letters against the burnt orange material. Through the belt loops of her jeans, she’d laced a gorgeous scarf in different shades of orange, yellow, teal, and red. Her hair was pulled up in a sloppy bun that showed off the delicate curve of her slender neck, and her makeup, done to accentuate, made her naturally feminine features stand out. I thought she looked amazing. The whole outfit totally worked in a “rocker meets curvy mountain chick” kind of way.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I think you look cute.”
She gave me another smile. “And I think you’re awesome. I’ll let you get back to your date, just wave if you need anything.” Then she skipped off to fill more drinks and chat up the other patrons surrounding the bar. From the looks of it, Rory was popular with men and women alike, but there was no missing the way more than a few of the guys stared after her with stark appreciation in their eyes.
“I really like her,” I told Linc when we were alone again.
“Yeah, Rory’s good people. Sweet as hell and loyal as all get out. You’re lookin’ to expand your circle, you could definitely do worse than Rory Hightower, but I’m not sure you’ll get much better.”
Well that just solidified it. I had Nona and Gypsy, but you could never have too many good people in your corner, and Rory was someone I wanted to get to know better.
Lincoln and I hung out at the bar for a while longer, speaking in close, hushed conversation. As we talked, I silently counted the times he threw his head back in laughter at something I said. Now that I knew the truth, I cherished each one like the gifts I knew them to be.
We were on our second round when another familiar voice cut in. “Brother. Didn’t expect to see you tonight.”
I spun around on my stool as Lincoln did that manly chin lift thing before clapping Cord on the shoulder. “Good to see you.”
I gave him a wave and greeted, “Hey, Cord.”
“Hey, darlin’. You still mad at me?” he asked, then winked good-naturedly.
The blissed-out high I was riding made it impossible to hold on to any kind of grudge, not that I intended to. Cord was a great guy. Sure, he’d agitated the hell out of me for two whole weeks, but he’d only done it as a way to have his friend’s back, and if I thought of it like that, I realized his loyalty made him even better.
“No,” I answered, letting him off the hook. “All is forgiven. As long as you promise not to annoy me ever again.”
He chuckled and made an X over his chest. “Cross my heart.” Then he hooked his arm around the neck of the pretty blonde girl at his side and pulled her into him. “Eden, I’d like you to meet Laurie. Laurie, you’ve met Linc, and his girl, Eden.”
Over the past couple weeks, Cord had told me a lot about Laurie. The way he spoke of her, it was clear to see he cared a great deal for her. He was sweet and funny, and just like all the other men who worked for Lincoln, hot as hell, so I was interested to finally get to meet the woman who he’d chosen.
I extended my hand her way. “Nice to meet you, Laurie.”
But instead of returning my offer of a handshake, she dismissed it and gave me a bland, watered-down version of a smile that wasn’t sincere in the slightest.
“Yeah, you too,” she muttered before turning to Cord and stating, “I think I’m starting to get a headache. Can we get outta here?”
With how I grew up, I learned not to judge a person based off a first impression, but something about her just didn’t sit right with me. It wasn’t just her disregard for me and Lincoln that pissed me off. It was also the fact that it was abundantly clear she didn’t want Cord to talk to or associate with anyone other than her. He deserved better than that. Hell, I would have bet good money that at least three-quarters of the women in the bar would have sold a kidney on the black market to be in Laurie’s place right then.
I took an instant dislike to the woman, and my heart ached for the man I’d come to know and respect. I hadn’t thought it was possible for a man as perceptive as Cord not to notice he was dating a raging bitch, but he looked down at her and grinned, replying, “Sure thing, baby. Let’s get you home.”
However, when he turned back to say his goodbyes I could see something in his eyes that made my stomach twist. He wasn’t oblivious to Laurie and her bitchiness, he was just too respectful to call her on it in the middle of a crowded bar. But he was not happy. I watched with pain for him and annoyance for Laurie as they exited the bar. Then I spun my stool back around to Lincoln and declared, “I do not like that woman.”
“Not much about her to like,” he grumbled, lifting the bottle and taking a pull of his beer. “Only met her a handful of times, but each one leaves a bad taste in my mouth.”
“I don’t get it. He could have any woman he wants. Why would he tie himself to a woman like that?”
Lincoln gave me a serious look. “There’s a history there that’s not for us to question, baby. He’s got his reasons for stickin’ it out, and it isn’t our place to interfere.”
“But—”
“Like you said, he’s smart. But there’s always more to a person’s story. And it’s none of our business what Cord does with his life.”
I wanted to argue more, but I knew it was pointless, mainly because he was right. It wasn’t our business, whether I liked it or not. And I certainly didn’t.
“Get you two another round?”
Lincoln and I shifted our focus back to Rory at the bar, and what I saw in her eyes made my inner meddler come screaming to the surface. Rory might have been talking to us, but her attention was firmly planted on the door Cord and Laurie had just disappeared through, and the longing written all over her face was strong enough that it nearly knocked me off my stool.
Lincoln pulled his wallet from the back pocket of his jeans and slapped a few bills on the bar top. “Nah, sweetheart. We’re good. Gonna call it a night.”
I whipped my head around and tried to communicate silently with Lincoln by bugging my eyes out and tipping my head in Rory’s direction. He read my meaning loud and clear, but instead of doing as I’d hoped, he gave me an almost indiscernible shake of his head and squinted in a way that said, stay out of it. It’s none of our business.
“All right, you guys. Enjoy the rest of your night, then.” She was still smiling and pretending to be her usual perky self, but I could see she was struggling to keep up the act.
“You too, honey,” I replied, knowing it would be pointless to push Lincoln. If I tried to brush him off, no doubt he’d just throw me over his shoulder and carry my me out of the bar. “See you soon.”
“Soon, babe,” she replied with a smile, but the light in her eyes had gone out.
* * *
As Lincoln guided his big truck through town toward our neighborhood, I sat in silence, staring out the windshield.
Our entwined hands were resting on his center console, and his fingers flexed, giving mine a squeeze to ca
ll my attention as he spoke. “You’re quiet, Edie. What’s on your mind?”
“You saw Rory’s face when Cord left,” I stated plainly.
“I did, but it’s not our place.”
I hated that he was making perfectly rational sense. “Rory’d be a much better fit for him than Laurie,” I grumbled, flopping back in the seat petulantly.
“Maybe, but if it’s meant to be, it’ll work itself out.”
My brow furrowed as I turned my head back in his direction. “I never took you for the type to believe in fate.”
“I wasn’t.” He looked over at me, the corner of his mouth hooking up. “Then this tiny little thing moved in two doors down, and suddenly my perspective changed.”
Oh damn, I liked that.
He pulled into my driveway a couple minutes later, but when he reached to turn the key, I wrapped my fingers around his wrist and stopped him.
“Before you shut the truck off, I have to ask you a question.”
“And what’s that?”
I bit my lower lip as I worked up my courage. “If I invite you in again, are you gonna turn me down or take me up on the offer?”
With a chuckle, he hooked a hand around the back of my neck and pulled me in for a quick kiss. “Darlin’, I planned on comin’ in whether you invited me or not. And I have no intention of leaving ’til well after the sun comes up. That work for you?”
That worked for me in many ways.
A quiver made its way through my body and settled between my legs. “Then you better go over and get Rocky. I’d hate for him to be stuck in your house alone all night.”
Chapter Thirty-Three
Eden
“Yes,” I hissed, throwing my head back as I tilted my ass to take him deeper. I looked back over my shoulder, the sight of my man taking me making me clench even tighter around him. “More, baby. Harder.”
“That’s my girl,” he grunted, his green eyes sparking with fire as he snapped his hips, driving me closer and closer to the edge. “So fuckin’ greedy for my cock.”
And I really, really was. I couldn’t get enough. No matter how many times we made love—and I’d lost count over the past couple of weeks—it was still never enough.
“Mmm, Lincoln,” I hummed, arching my back as my whole body began to tremble. “So good. Always so good.”
“Touch yourself, darlin’,” he ordered on a grunt, the sound of skin slapping against skin echoing through the room.
Doing as he commanded, I lifted one hand from the mattress where I’d been holding myself up on all fours and reached between my thighs, sliding my fingers to where we were connected, feeling his thick length moving in and out of me. It was the most beautiful thing I’d ever experienced. Gathering my wetness on my fingers, I drifted back down to circle my clit, rubbing in tight, hard circles in time with each of his thrusts.
That was all it took. Every muscle in my body strung tight before snapping, causing my nerve endings to explode and stars to burst from behind my eyelids as I slammed them closed and came on a cry of pure ecstasy.
Lincoln fucked me through my orgasm, pulling every last whimper and moan from me before curling himself around my back. Bracing himself with one hand on the bed beside mine, he wrapped his other arm around my waist as he buried himself deep and came on a groan against my neck.
When it finally left him, Lincoln kept hold of me and went down on the bed, positioning us on our sides so we were spooning and he was still holding onto me. “Good mornin’, baby,” he rasped into my ear, sending another shiver of pleasure throughout my body.
“It is now,” I returned, twisting my head so I could reach his lips for a kiss.
Lincoln’s whole body shook on a quiet laugh that was no less beautiful than when he laughed out loud. His arm flexed, pulling me tighter against him as he went in for another kiss. A moment later, he pulled out and shifted me to my back so he could hover over me. “Go to sleep, Edie,” he said in a low, gentle voice, brushing the hair from my face. “I gotta grab a shower and head into the office.”
After what he’d just wrung from me, drifting back to sleep most definitely wouldn’t be a problem. “Okay,” I said softly, shifting back to my side so I could watch as he climbed from the bed and padded to my bathroom in all his naked glory.
It was early, and I was still sleepy, but as I lay there, I kept my eyes open and listened as the water cut on, thinking of just how insanely happy I was. It had been a little more than two weeks since Lincoln and I got back together officially, and every day had been like waking up in a dream. We both worked during the days, but after, he always came to me. We had dinner together every night—sometimes I’d cook, sometimes he’d take me out. We’d share our days with each other over our meal. I’d make him laugh, he’d make me smile and blush, and every night he’d take me to my bed and make love to me before we fell asleep wrapped in each other’s arms.
It was absolutely perfect, and with every day that passed, I fell even more in love with him than I’d been the day before.
The clip of Rocky’s claws against my floor alerted me to his presences just before he hopped up onto the bed and slunk toward me.
“Morning, monster,” I said, reaching out to give his head a gentle scratch. This was another thing I’d grown to love over the past few weeks. Each night Lincoln stayed at my house meant Rocky stayed as well. He’d quickly commandeered the chair in my living room as his, and he’d curl himself into it every evening as Lincoln and I stretched out on my couch and watched whatever caught our attention on the TV.
Then Lincoln would take me to bed, usually by picking me up and kissing me stupid as he carried me down the hall. Earth-shattering sex would ensue, and once we finished, Rocky would come in and curl up in a ball at our feet. We’d wake up hours later, and the moment he felt us shift, Rocky would jump down and go back into the living room like he was giving his mommy and daddy their private time.
Lincoln always woke up way before I had to, so we’d finish, he’d get in the shower, and as soon as the water came on, Rocky came back, and we snoozed together for a little while longer.
He turned in circles, trying to find just the right spot before finally coiling into a ball and tucking himself into my front. His little doggy snores started a minute later, and I lazily dragged my hand along his coat as sleep began to tug at me as well.
I was just beginning to drift back off when the bathroom door opened, revealing Lincoln in nothing but one of my towels wrapped around his waist. Droplets of water dripped from his hair onto his shoulders and slid down his chest, and my body cried out for him all over again.
“You know, I’m startin’ to think my dog likes you better than me.”
“That’s because he does,” I giggled.
Lincoln went about getting dressed, pulling clothes from the duffel bag he’d brought over a few nights ago so he could just dress and leave for work from here instead of having to stop at his house first. The sight of that duffel on my bedroom floor made my belly flip.
“You know,” I started nervously, “if you wanted to stash some of your stuff here, I wouldn’t mind clearing a drawer for you.”
I pulled my bottom lip between my teeth and bit down after making my offer. I wasn’t sure if it was too soon for us, and he only lived two houses down, so it wasn’t like it was that inconvenient. But I found I really wanted to give him his own drawer.
Instead of getting freaked like I thought he might, Lincoln’s face split into a smile, complete with that sexy dimple, and he came back to the bed, leaning in to speak against my lips. “Works for me, buttercup. If it’s not too much, a few hangers in your closet would be appreciated too.”
God, I loved this man. There was no point in denying it. “I can definitely do that.”
“Good. I’ll bring some more stuff over tonight.”
“Awesome,” I said in a breathy whisper. Then he kissed me, long and slow, building that burn deep in my belly before pulling away so he could finish ge
tting ready.
“You got any plans today?” he asked once he was dressed in another long-sleeved thermal that looked amazing on him and another pair of jeans.
“Finishing an edit and maybe running a few errands.”
“You go anywhere, you take Rock with you,” he said in a gentle command. Since getting back together, Lincoln had loosened up and taken the security detail off me since we were together most of the time, but with Shep still out there, and those men still after him, Lincoln hadn’t stopped being protective. Anywhere I went without him, I had to take Rocky as my own personal bodyguard, and I’d been ordered to call or text to let him know if I planned on leaving the house and where I was going.
I didn’t blame him for worrying—in fact, I thought it was really sweet—but that didn’t mean I wasn’t more than ready for this shit to be taken care of so I could get back to my life without having to be watched over twenty-four/seven.
“Sir, yes, sir,” I said sarcastically, lifting a hand and giving him a salute.
“Smartass,” he grumbled teasingly, grabbing his wallet from the dresser and shoving it into the back pocket of his jeans. “I’ll see you later.”
He came back for another kiss, and I lifted my head off the pillow to return it while fighting to keep the words I wanted to say so badly from bubbling past my lips.
The past couple of days had been a serious battle of wills not to let that L-word slip, for fear it was way too soon, but with each passing day, it was getting harder and harder to keep my true feelings in.
“Have a good day, honey,” I returned. “Make those bad guys wish they’d never skipped out on their bail. And if you have time, save the Federal Reserve Bank of New York from being robbed.”
“You know, your love for all things Die Hard is starting to get a little worrisome.”
“I am who I am,” I said on a shrug.
With a laugh and a wink, he finally left, and I curled myself tighter around Rocky for another hour or so of sleep before I had to get up and start my day.
Out of My League: a Hope Valley novel Page 23
