More Than Pancakes (The Maple Leaf Series Book 1)

by Christine DePetrillo

  “Don’t be like this, Lily.” Drew followed her into the hall, started up the stairs with her.

  “You’re not coming to bed with me, Drew. You can have one of the guest rooms if you’ve got nowhere else to go, but you’re not sleeping in the same room with me.”

  “Dammit, Lily. We’re supposed to be together. You know it.” He retreated a step, and Lily continued up. When she got to her room, she found Drew had put his suitcase next to hers. He’d been in her room when she wasn’t here.

  Now that’s annoying.

  She placed her laptop on the bed then wheeled his suitcase out into the hallway. She listened for a moment as Drew opened the refrigerator downstairs and clanged some silverware.

  He just doesn’t get it. She shook her head, considered going to the kitchen and telling Drew to leave, but decided against it. She really was tired. She’d work on the presentation, get some shut-eye, then send Drew on his way tomorrow morning if he hadn’t already left.

  After a quick shower—being naked with a still peeved Drew downstairs unnerved her—Lily climbed into bed and booted up her laptop. While she waited, she threw an arm out and drummed her fingers on the empty side of the bed next to her. A side that could have had a naked Rick draped over it right now if things had gone differently.

  Just as well. They’d both admitted being together would be a mistake. Better off they didn’t do it. Lily was in a big enough mess without adding new problems.

  And had she actually agreed to hiking into the woods with Rick tomorrow morning? What had she been thinking? That was the last thing she wanted to do, but she’d said she would.

  “How bad could it be?” Broad daylight with two other people, one over six feet of mountain man muscle. It’d be fine.

  A soft knock on her door had the mountain man muscle fading from her mind.

  “Lily?”

  “What?”

  “I wanted to say good night. Can I come in?”

  She heard Drew’s hand on the knob. “No, Drew. I’m working. Help yourself to whatever you need.”

  “I need you.” His voice was raspy, almost whiney.

  “You’re exhausted from your unnecessary flight out here. Get some sleep.” Lily hoped he wouldn’t try to come in. Sometimes his confidence had him doing things that overstepped the bounds, and right now he didn’t have tight control of his emotions.

  Drew pounded his fist on the bedroom door, and Lily jolted at the sound. “I’m a patient man, Lily,” he growled, “but I have my limits. I’ll give you tonight to yourself, but that’s it. Tomorrow we go back to the way things were between us. How things are supposed to be.”

  She listened as he marched down the hall. She had a feeling sleep would not come easy for her tonight. First, she had an angry man staying in her guest room. One that thought she was his. Second, her body had been all stirred up by Rick. When he’d kissed her in the foyer, she’d wanted him so much it hurt. She didn’t usually react that way to people, especially ones she barely knew. Rick fell into that category. She could count the number of things she knew about him on her two hands. He owned a maple syrup business, hated the city, liked solitude, kept a coyote in his house, played the guitar but mostly in secret, had an aunt and two cousins that cared about him deeply, loved the woods.

  Had a heart attack.

  Wanted her.

  How could that be enough information to want him beside her right now? In her bed? In her?

  Drew was the one who knew her, and she knew him. They’d been acquaintances, business associates, friends, for years. Lovers on and off throughout those years. It made sense, she and Drew.

  But it wasn’t what she wanted. Not even a little bit.

  Lily flicked on the TV. When Harry Met Sally was on. One of her favorites. Meg Ryan was faking an orgasm in the diner as a demonstration for a doubting Billy Crystal.

  I could have had the real thing tonight.

  She sighed and shut off the TV. For the first time in her life, a movie hadn’t brought her peace.

  Chapter Thirteen

  For the second time in the last few days, Rick found himself deliberating over his choice of clothing. He didn’t like this new format. One in which he was concerned with his appearance and about the reaction of a female—a tall, strawberry-blonde female to be exact.

  Poe barked from her position on his bed.

  “Yeah, hurry up. I know.” Rick scratched the coyote’s ears and walked back to the closet. He chose blue jeans, a gray T-shirt, and a heavy, gray sweater that zippered from the neck to mid-chest. He wouldn’t need a jacket wearing that sweater. Less clothes to take off later.

  When he was with Lily.

  Coming home by himself last night had sucked. He couldn’t get to sleep. Every time he closed his eyes, he pictured Lily on top of him, her long legs on either side of his body, her hands doing things to him he almost couldn’t handle. Things that reduced him to his primal instincts. He’d never been so charged up.

  He’d paced his bedroom. Tried to read. Strummed the guitar. Played fetch with Poe. The coyote had been delighted. The man, not so much. Nothing could settle his mind or his body. When he finally surrendered and climbed back into his bed, only light sleep came, and even that was riddled with dreams of Lily.

  Better that than nightmares of New York.

  If only Drew hadn’t shown up. Rick stuck by his initial assessment of the guy from the phone conversation he’d had with him after Lily passed out. Typical asshole. Overconfident. Possessive. Irritating. What kind of a man flies across the country after a woman has told you not to? And if Drew had such a great relationship with Lily as he’d said, why didn’t he trust her to be doing her job?

  If Lily was Drew’s, why had she been willing to sleep with me?

  Another bark from Poe, who was now waiting by the bedroom door, propelled Rick into the hallway.

  “Sorry, girl.” He patted his thigh, and Poe followed him to the kitchen. He fed the coyote and had a quick breakfast, which would have been a big breakfast had he and Lily had their fun last night. “There’ll be another chance,” he told himself. Why he wanted there to be another chance was a complete mystery.

  With Poe by his side, Rick headed for the store and found the females of his small family puttering around. Hope rushed over with Sage right behind her.

  “Soooo? How was your evening?” Hope said, a dopey grin on her face.

  “Lonely.” Rick let his nose lead him to Aunt Joy’s coffee while Poe sat in front of the pastry case. That coyote remembered what went in there, and she was waiting for her favorite, Sage’s signature maple peanut butter cookies. Rick once witnessed a genuine fist fight between two customers over the final batch of those cookies last season. That was how good they were.

  “How did you screw this up, Rick?” Sage said, her hands on her hips. “It was in the bag. I saw the way Lily watched you play the guitar last night. She was a smitten kitten. Primed and ready.”

  He prepared his coffee and when he turned around, both his cousins leaned on the pastry case on either side of Poe, waiting.

  “I didn’t screw it up, Sage.” He sipped his coffee and mentally saluted his aunt’s brilliance once again. “When I got Lily home, she had company.”

  “Company? Who?” Hope asked. “She doesn’t know anyone around here but us.”

  “Her boss from California showed up.”

  “Uh-oh,” Sage said. “That Assburn guy? The one from the phone?”

  “Ashburn.” Rick ground his teeth. “That’s the one.”

  “I didn’t like him just from his voice.” Sage crinkled up her nose in disgust.

  “Not much better in person.” He pulled out a chair and sat at one of the tables. His ankle felt pretty good this morning, but he wanted to conserve that comfort for the hike. Wanted nothing to cut short his time with Lily in the woods today. This was his chance to show her everything he loved about this land. Her chance to see that the forest meant her no harm.

  “I’l
l bet he didn’t like you much either,” Hope said, sitting next to him.

  “Nope.” He chewed on his bottom lip as he eyed his cousins. “Lily didn’t say anything about him, did she?” What if Lily and Drew did have a relationship deeper than work and friends? What if he was getting in the middle of something still in progress? Was Lily just using him to pass the time while she was in Vermont?

  “When we watched movies with her,” Sage said, “the only thing she said was she wished she could find love like they have in the movies.”

  “I took that to mean she didn’t already have it. Not with her boss or anyone else.” Hope patted Rick’s hand on the table.

  “Lily doesn’t strike me as a player either,” Sage said, as if she were following where Rick’s silent thoughts were traveling. “There’s an honesty about her.”

  “She’s backing off trying to take all this away.” Hope gestured to the store.

  “A cold-hearted, two-timing, lying bitch wouldn’t back off,” Sage said. “What’s Assburn look like?”

  “Short, but in good shape, as if he does karate or something. Dark hair.” Rick shrugged. “I didn’t check him out thoroughly, but he doesn’t wear flannel, I can tell you that much.” He didn’t think all the clothes in his closet plus the ones in his cousins’ closets could match the price tag on one of Drew’s shoelaces. He peered down at his jeans and rubbed at the faded denim on his thigh.

  “Now don’t lose all your confidence because you’re not what Lily’s used to,” Hope said. “She likes you, Rick.”

  Does she?

  “She agreed to check the taps with me today even though she doesn’t like the woods.” Rick couldn’t help but smile at that.

  “Well, guess you won’t need me then.” Aunt Joy came around the pastry case to stand behind Hope’s chair. “I think Lily can chaperone you.” She walked to Rick’s chair and squeezed his shoulder. “Besides, you don’t need an old lady cramping your style.”

  “What style?” Sage asked.

  “I don’t know, Sage,” Hope said. “He must be doing something right.”

  “I don’t know what the hell I’m doing,” he admitted, “but I guess I’ll try anyway.” His body had already decided it wanted Lily. His mind was slowly being convinced as well. How long would it be before his heart thought it was a good idea too?

  Aunt Joy clapped, leaned down, and hugged Rick. “About time, sugar. About time.”

  His aunt and cousins returned to their tasks while Rick and Poe checked the storage tanks by the sugarhouse. Getting full. Boiling would commence soon. He could almost smell the syrup already.

  At eight o’clock, Rick meandered back into the store and peeked out the front windows. No sign of Lily yet.

  She’ll be here. He neatened the book swap area and placed walking sticks by the front door. A walking stick was much sexier than a freaking cane. He refreshed his coffee.

  Still no Lily.

  His impatience irritated him. If he had been with Lily last night, they would have most likely awakened in each other’s arms and been ready to start the day together. Instead, he had left her with her furious boss who wanted to be more than her boss. He should have stayed.

  Maybe Lily changed her mind. He understood why she was so afraid of the woods. Being attacked by a bear at such a young age had to be terrifying. He’d been a grown man when he’d had his heart problems, but he’d still been scared shitless. Looking death in the face changed a person. In one sense, it made him stronger. A “hey, I survived” mentality. In another sense, it made him worry about how his body would fail him next. Maybe Lily woke up this morning and couldn’t face the woods today.

  Rick waffled between giving her more time, calling her, and driving over to her grandmother’s place. The first option seemed the most logical. The other two reeked of desperation.

  “For God’s sake.” How had he gotten mixed up in this? His rule was to keep it simple. Trying to decipher why a female was late was not keeping it simple. He was now delving into areas about which he didn’t want to be concerned.

  He retired to the small office he kept in the sugarhouse. If Lily showed up in the store, his cousins would make enough noise that he’d hear. He finalized some orders, readied some packing boxes, and hoped Drew had left Vermont.

  But mostly, Rick wondered if Lily would have dinner with him tonight… and breakfast tomorrow morning.

  ****

  Lily had stayed in the master bedroom, hoping to hear Drew wheeling his suitcase down the hall, her front door opening and closing, his car—wherever he’d hidden it—starting and traveling down the driveway. She’d dressed in clothes from her grandmother’s closet. A pair of faded blue jeans, a green, long-sleeved T-shirt, and a blue and green flannel shirt. She’d pulled out a pair of work boots that looked suitable for hiking in the late-winter woods. Looking at the assembled outfit, Lily shook her head.

  I’ve finally lost my mind.

  What scared her even more was she was comfortable in those clothes. Really comfortable. The fabrics were soft and moved with her. They were warm and cozy, like a hug from Grandma Gail.

  Trying to hold onto her sanity, she had put the finishing touches on the presentation early this morning. She’d done a damn good job at highlighting the simplicity of Vermont. Utopia couldn’t want to build here. She’d made it seem like a lost chunk of land that was no doubt beautiful, but a commercial black hole. She hoped it would be enough to convince Utopia to target some other place.

  She paused in her email correspondence with Tam back in California. “Did I just admit that Vermont is beautiful?”

  Lily shook her head and answered Tam’s nine thousand questions about various office matters. She’d let things build up while fooling around over here and now had to dig out of a hole. Figured she’d get some of it done while she waited for Drew to leave. That’d been two hours ago. She was on Tam’s last question now. A question asking if Drew had shown up.

  Tam had left a message that he was on his way, but Lily had been ignoring her phone and email while she collected information about Vermont and Rick’s business.

  “Oh, be honest,” she told herself. “You’ve been doing more flirting than working.” Totally unlike her. She never let work pile up. Never ignored emails. Especially not for distractions of the tall, blond, and handsome type.

  Lily sifted out a breath as she replied to Tam.

  Drew is here and pretty upset. Waiting for him to leave. Attaching a presentation for you to proof and tell me what you think. No hotel here. Not right. Presentation is evidence. Does it do the job?

  She attached the presentation, hit send, and checked the time. Shit. Past eight. She was late, and Drew was to blame, dammit. She’d have to go down and deal with him if she wanted to head over to Rick’s.

  And she wanted to head over to Rick’s.

  She’d wanted to wake up and have him beside her after what she was fairly certain would have been an amazing night. Yes, Rick wasn’t like any of the men she was usually drawn to, but she wanted him anyway. She wasn’t sure if it was the gentlemanly manners, the simple outlook on living, the way he’d shown her his business, how he wanted to help her with her fear of the woods, or the fantastic guitar playing, but something about Rick Stannard spoke to her.

  Spoke enough that she was willing to deal with Drew so she could hike with Rick.

  “This is so messed up.”

  She packed up her laptop and dumped it into her bag. She couldn’t wait to show Rick the presentation. Hoped he liked it, hoped it did his business and home justice. Did him justice.

  Lily closed her hand around the doorknob, but her camera on the bedside table stopped her. She picked it up and turned it on. Leaning against the door, she found the video she’d taken of Rick playing the guitar last night. As she watched, the way his fingers moved along the strings got her hot all over again. Who would have expected that such a quiet, reserved man possessed this amazing talent? His uncasted foot tapped to the beat, k
eeping time, while his hands made that guitar sing. His golden hair fell across his forehead as he looked down at the instrument and when Lily zoomed in, she noticed that his eyes were closed. He was probably imagining himself alone in his cabin, the sexy hermit.

  Wanting to see Rick even more now, Lily dropped the camera into her bag, opened the bedroom door, and nearly ran into Drew. She stumbled back a few steps, but he caught her by the biceps. He backed her into the bedroom until the back of her legs touched the bed.

  “Drew.” Lily tried to maneuver out of his grip, but he only tightened his hold.

  Her bag fell off her shoulder and landed on the bed just before he pushed her back. Lily sat only because he gave her no room to do otherwise.

  With his hands still on her arms, he said, “I wondered how long you would wait in here.”

  “Let go of me.” Lily brought her hands up and tried to break free, but Drew’s hold was solid. Kickboxer. She couldn’t out muscle him even if she had paid attention to Jean-Claude Van Damme’s fighting moves.

  “No, I’m all done letting go of you, Lily.” Drew moved his hands to her shoulders and shoved her until she was flat on her back. “I know you don’t think we should be a couple, but you’re wrong. I’ll show you.”

  He put his knees on either side of her and sat on her thighs, pinning her to the bed. He kept his hands on her shoulders so she couldn’t sit up. She struggled against him, but he used his body to immobilize her.

  Lily’s mind raced as she realized for the first time Drew might actually try to force himself on her. His face was so red. His hands were so rough.

  His eyes looked so feral.

  “You don’t want me this way, do you? You know this isn’t right.” Lily hated that her voice wavered. “If you back off me now, we can talk about this. We’re friends first, Drew. Friends talk things over.”

  His grip loosened, but he didn’t get off her. “You’ve done your talking. I’ve done my listening. Time for action.” He lowered and pressed his ready body against hers.

  Lily squeezed her hands between them and pushed at Drew’s chest. “Get off me.”