There had been a time when he’d looked at his own father that way. A time when his sister had looked at him that way, too.
“She’s always been a daddy’s girl,” Angel said as she came to Brett’s side.
Brett smiled, blinking away the emotions he was struggling with. “Your daughter is an incredible woman. I should have led with that when I met you, but—”
“You were shell-shocked?” Angel gazed out at her husband and daughter. “Our family can be a bit much.”
“Your family is exactly as a family should be. My mother would fit in well here.” Even after all his family had endured, his mother’s walls had never gone up the way his, and the rest of their family’s, had.
“And your father?” she asked carefully.
Brett clenched his jaw, his emotions roiling again. “Maybe at one point, but…” After my sister died, we all changed. “Life’s taken its toll on him. He’s not a happy man.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.” She tucked her hair behind her ear and tilted her head, as if she were thinking.
He saw Sophie in her expression.
“You know, Sophie’s pretty tight-lipped about her personal life, but she’s mentioned you to me quite a few times over the last couple of years.”
“She has?” A wave of pleasure swept through him and just as quickly he cringed inwardly, thinking of all the times he’d propositioned her. “I’m afraid to ask…”
Angel patted his arm and said, “Let’s just say that she saw right through you. I tried to tell her to be careful with her heart and that if you were a playboy, you might always be. But my Sophie is as stubborn as her father, and she’s also quite intuitive. She said, ‘Mom, sometimes you know there’s more to a person than even they see.’” Angel put her hand over her heart and looked lovingly at Sophie. “The little rascal threw my own words back at me. It’s exactly what I said about her father.”
“I don’t know what I’m more shocked by. Sophie seeing so much in me, or knowing her father hasn’t always been perfect.”
“Oh, I never said Del wasn’t perfect. He might not have been perfect for some women, but he has always been perfect for me. What do you say we dance over to my perfectly flawed husband and your brilliant, all-knowing girlfriend and cut in?”
He offered her his arm. “Angel, I like your style.”
Sophie watched them approach with a soft and adoring gaze. Could he give her everything she wanted and deserved? He sure as hell would do everything within his power to try.
“You know, there are all types of people in this world, and if we judged everyone by who they were before they met their special someone, why, even I might not be such a gem in some people’s eyes,” Angel said as they danced toward Sophie and Del. “Don’t ever apologize for who you’ve been. Whatever you’ve gone through has made you the man you are today, and you make my daughter happy. I see it in her smile and the way she is with you. That tells me what I need to know.”
“Thank you, Angel. Now I see where Sophie learned to be so forgiving.”
“We’re only forgiving of those who deserve it,” she said with a smile. “You’re also a very good dancer. But my little girl looks like she’s ready to be in your arms.”
“And that guy over there has been eyeing you all night.” He motioned toward Del, who was looking at Angel with the same emotional gaze Sophie had locked on him. They danced over, and Brett and Del exchanged a silent nod of appreciation.
As Angel and Del danced away, Brett lifted Sophie’s hand and kissed the back of it. “Sweet Sophie, may I have this dance?”
A tender smile lifted her lips as she walked into his arms. “There’s no one I’d rather dance with.”
Sophie rested her head on his chest, one hand around his neck, the other resting half on his jaw, half on his cheek. He felt himself leaning into her familiar caress as they danced beneath the lights.
He touched his cheek to hers and whispered, “I can’t get close enough.”
“Me, either,” she whispered.
He closed his eyes as emotions whirled inside him. “What have you done to me, sweet Sophie? I don’t ever want to let you go.”
“Be careful,” she said so softly. “I might believe you.”
Chapter Thirteen
AFTER THE GUESTS and Sophie’s grandparents left, Sophie and Lindsay helped their mother put away the extra food, while Brett, JJ, Sable, Trixie, and Axsel folded chairs and gathered trash. Sophie loved that their friends stuck around to help after parties. They’d been doing it for so many years, they no longer asked if they were needed. They simply pitched in.
She stood by the kitchen sink watching her father and friends through the window as Sable directed the others. She was bossier than Grace, and as the owner of an auto shop and lead guitarist in a local band, Sable was good at making things happen. Sophie caught sight of Brett and her father carrying chairs to the shed. She liked seeing them together. Brett seemed a lot more relaxed than he did in the city. But then again, didn’t everyone?
“He’s really taken with you, sweetheart,” her mother said, joining her by the window.
“I know,” she said softly. He’s my forever kisses, and I want to be his.
“It’s a scary and wonderful thing watching my little girl give her heart to a man.” She tucked Sophie’s hair behind her ear, her lips curving up in a warm smile.
“Oh my God, you guys.” Lindsay pulled open the refrigerator and set a platter inside, then joined them by the sink. “I swear I live in a Hallmark movie.” She grabbed a piece of celery from a tray on the counter and bit into it. “Can’t you just celebrate the hot sex and steamy kisses and then move on to another pasture?”
“No,” Sophie said sharply.
“Just because you don’t want to settle down one day, Lindsay Anne, doesn’t mean it’s wrong for Sophie to dream of more with her man.”
“I never said I was dreaming of more.” At least not out loud.
Lindsay rolled her eyes. “You didn’t have to. It’s written in those starry eyes of yours.”
Their mother put an arm around each of them and said, “And there’s nothing wrong with that. We all know that you like to play the field, Linds, which I’m pretending means you only kiss the men you go out with and only after very nice dates.”
“I hate to burst your bubble,” Lindsay said with a laugh. “But I think I must be adopted.”
Their mother shook her head. “I assure you, you’re not, and I think I’d know after twelve hours of labor. You’re just more like your dad than me when it comes to settling down. You need to sow your wild oats first. But Sophie’s heart doesn’t work that way. She gives her all. I think she fell for Brett long before now.”
“Mom,” Sophie pleaded. “Can we not dissect the Secret Life of Sophie Roberts tonight?”
“Well, it’s true.” Their mother kissed Sophie’s cheek and finished wrapping the last tray of food. As she put it in the refrigerator she said, “I’ll go grab your dad so you kids can have some fun.”
“That won’t happen until later, when Sophie shows Brett the hayloft,” Lindsay teased, ducking out of reach when Sophie tried to swat her.
“Brat!” When Sophie was in high school, her father had caught her in the hayloft kissing the boy who had later broken her heart. She’d found out the next day that Lindsay had been mad at her about something and she’d told their father where she was.
“You love me.” Lindsay put her arm around Sophie and whispered, “You should totally do it. I’ll send Dad out with a flashlight.” She took off out the door with Sophie on her heels and ran through the yard, both of them laughing.
JJ caught Lindsay around the waist, and she squealed.
Brett intercepted Sophie. What else could she do but barrel into his open arms? They laughed into the kiss as he twirled her around.
His eyes glittered in the moonlight. “Gotchya, beautiful.”
“What are you going to do now that you caught me?”
Oh, how she wanted that! But Lindsay and the others were already heading to the barn with their arms full of blankets and a cooler full of beer. “Later,” she said as her toes touched the ground. Then she remembered why she’d been running in the first place and added, “But not in the barn.”
They followed the others down to the barn and sat on blankets draped over hay bales. Sable played her guitar as they caught each other up on their lives and her friends got to know Brett. Time moved like a dream as she and Brett swayed to the music and Lindsay told them about the wedding she was planning for a couple in a neighboring town. She wished Grace could be there. She was the one who had pushed Sophie over the hurdle toward Brett, and she knew Grace would like seeing how happy they were.
“Seriously? Who has a cotton-candy-themed wedding?” Lindsay pulled her legs up beside her on the hay bale. “It’s weird, but it’s going to be cute. The bride’s gown is pale pink, which reminded me of Sophie’s homecoming dress.”
“Oh, Soph,” Trixie said. “I forgot to tell you Shane said he was bummed he couldn’t make it to the party, but he got held up picking up a horse with Trace in Maryland.”
“Trace is another of Trixie and JJ’s brothers,” Sophie explained.
“Does Brett know about you and Shane?” JJ asked.
“You mean that he took me to homecoming? It’s not like he could miss the picture on my parents’ wall.” She smiled up at Brett, and he leaned in for a kiss. She loved that he was comfortable enough around her friends and family to be affectionate. She’d worried when he’d said he was coming with her that he might suddenly realize he’d made a big commitment and freak out. But he clearly hadn’t, and if anything, she felt even closer than she had when they’d arrived.
“I think he means the after-party,” Sable explained.
She should have expected her friends to try to embarrass her. “Geez. Really, you guys?”
“After-party?” Brett’s brows lifted.
“He doesn’t know?” Lindsay dramatically flipped her hair over her shoulders and sat up pin straight. She turned toward Trixie and, speaking in an animated voice, as if she were a younger Sophie, said, “I had a wonderful time at homecoming. Thank you for taking me.”
Trixie leaned forward to kiss Lindsay, and Lindsay moved out of reach, causing Trixie to fall off the haystack. Everyone laughed, except Brett, who was trying to suppress his smile, and tightened his grip on Sophie.
Sophie felt her cheeks burning. “That was a hundred years ago!”
“Who doesn’t kiss their homecoming date good night?” Lindsay teased. “I would have kissed him.”
“Of course you would,” Sable said. “You’d also kiss my homecoming date, or Grace’s, or Trixie’s…”
“True,” Lindsay said.
“Why wouldn’t you kiss him good night?” Brett asked.
“Because!” Sophie glared at Lindsay. “He was a friend, not a boyfriend. But if I had known what would happen by not kissing him, I would have done it. He told a friend, who told another friend, and by the end of the next day, the whole town knew I didn’t kiss him.”
“Aw, my poor virtuous girl.” Brett pressed his lips to hers. “I feel insanely lucky right now.”
“Don’t you ever forget it,” Sophie said sassily.
“But Shane did get his kiss,” Axsel reminded her. “I wasn’t even in high school yet, and by the time I was, their midgame kiss was legendary.”
“Midgame kiss?” Brett asked.
“The whole town was talking about me,” Sophie said. “What was I supposed to do? I had to shut them up.”
“Shane was the quarterback for our high school team,” Lindsay explained. “At the next game, Sophie marched out onto the field right after he’d thrown the ball—in the middle of the game—yes, middle—and she ripped off his helmet and kissed him smack on the lips.”
“Then she curtsied and sauntered off the field like she hadn’t just turned my brother’s world upside down,” Trixie said.
“No boys tried to kiss me after that,” Sophie said, feeling mildly embarrassed by that fact, even though there were no boys she’d wanted to kiss. “But I did get a standing ovation.”
Brett cradled her face in his hands and said, “I would have wanted to kiss you. You’re the gutsiest girl I know, and I love that about you.”
He lowered his lips to hers, and Axsel strummed his guitar loudly. “Hey, I’ve kissed your girl.”
“I thought I heard you were into guys,” Brett said.
“My sister has a history with gay men.” Lindsay winked at Sophie, who rolled her eyes.
“I am into guys,” Axsel said. “I was eight and Sophie was babysitting. She brought stuff to make Christmas cookies, and there was this moment I’ll never forget. She was smiling, and her hair was falling over one shoulder. She was just so beautiful, and I wanted to kiss her.” He shrugged and said, “It wasn’t a sexual thing. I mean. I was eight. But I kissed her, and she said, ‘Axsel, you’re really sweet, but you can’t kiss me.’ I said something like, ‘That’s okay. It wasn’t as fun as I thought it would be,’ and we went back to making cookies like it never happened.”
“You guys are dead set on embarrassing me, aren’t you?” Sophie leaned over and touched Axsel’s hand. He had the kindest hazel eyes, and while he could hang tough with the best of them, he had a gentle soul. “You know I love you.”
Axsel blew her a kiss. He began strumming his guitar and sang, “If you’re going to break my heart, just break it,” earning more smiles.
“Did you babysit everyone in this town?” Brett asked. “Your mom introduced me to at least three people you babysat, and you danced with one of them.”
“Just about everyone who was younger than me. I loved babysitting,” Sophie admitted. “I was always booked weeks in advance.”
“She was the best,” Axsel said. “She’d come armed with crafts or baking paraphernalia and would let me stay up late. And she used to practice for the school plays and pretend I was her audience. It was fun.”
“You know she loves scary books, right?” Sable asked. “We used to tease her about becoming the sweet grandma who secretly wreaked terror on people’s lives in other towns.”
“You guys were mean to my girl.” Brett pulled her up to her feet and said, “Axsel, do you know the song ‘Last First Kiss’?”
“Heck, yeah.” Axsel began playing the song.
Brett drew Sophie into his arms, right there in front of everyone, and began singing the song word for word right along with Axsel.
“Dance with me!” Lindsay grabbed JJ’s hand, pulling him to his feet.
Sable picked up her guitar, playing along with Axsel. Trixie jumped up and began dancing around them.
As Brett sang about wanting to be Sophie’s last first kiss, her emotions soared, and she was thrown right back to when they’d danced on the sidewalk in the city, and before that, when they’d danced in the bar.
When he pressed his cheek to hers and changed the lyrics to—Baby let me be your last first everything—she knew in her heart they were meant to be together all along.
AFTER SOPHIE’S FRIENDS packed up and called it a night, Brett and Sophie went for a walk. Moonlight cut through the trees and tangled branches, glistening off the slow-running creek water. The smell of damp earth and lush greenery accompanied by sounds of crickets and other night creatures scurrying through the brush brought a peacefulness that the city didn’t offer. Between the close-knit community he’d met tonight and the serenity of Sophie’s parents’ property, Brett finally understood the draw of rural life. He’d always considered himself a city dweller, but with Sophie he could imagine sitting on a front porch overlooking acres of farmland, with a hint of family and livestock hanging in the air.
“You know about my first kiss and my ho
mecoming nightmare,” Sophie said as they walked along the creek. “But all I know is that you haven’t had a long-term girlfriend until now. Tell me about your first kiss. Where was it?”
“It’s been a long time since I thought about it, but I was in seventh grade, and it was after art class. The prettiest girl in the whole school was Shelby Grand. She had long dark hair and big blue eyes, like you, only not nearly as beautiful.” He leaned down and kissed her cheek. “Every guy in school wanted to go steady with her, but I didn’t. I just wanted to prove that I was better than all the other guys.”
“That’s awful.”
“Probably, but it’s the truth. I was so angry back then, Soph, I could barely keep my head on straight. After art class I saw her at her locker surrounded by all her friends. She was one of those girls who was friends with everyone, not fake or too good for the unpopular kids. I liked that about her. Anyway, my buddy Cooper Wild liked her.”
“Heath’s brother?” Heath was married to Amanda’s sister, Ally. Sophie knew all four of the Wilds and their families.
“Yeah. I saw him coming up the hall, and we were friends, but you know, as guys we were always competitive. Plus, back then I was a bit of a prick. Always ready for a fight, even with friends. I have no idea how anyone put up with me, but I’m thankful they did. I strode right through the circle of girls and kissed Shelby right on the lips.”
“That’s so you. Kind of like my midgame kiss, except my guy had already tried to kiss me once. What did Shelby do?”
“She smacked me, then Cooper punched me, and we ended up in the principal’s office. My mother made me apologize to Shelby, but I won the fight and I got the kiss.”
Sophie laughed. “Of course you did.”
He stopped beside a weeping willow that bowed out over the water and drew Sophie into his arms again. It struck him that he was always doing that, trying to get closer to her. “Speaking of kisses…”
She tipped her chin up, and when his lips touched hers she made one of her sensual sounds, and as always, it sailed through his body like warm liquor, soothing and stirring at the same time.
Bad Boys After Dark Page 15
