Harlequin Special Edition November 2013 - Bundle 1 of 2

by Lilian Darcy

  Chapter Thirteen

  Sutter invited Paige to Thanksgiving dinner at his parents’ house, but she had to decline the invitation because her family was having their meal at the same time. When they’d dated in the past, they’d managed to get two meals out of the day because his family always had theirs at lunch and her family preferred to eat at dinnertime. But for some inexplicable reason that seemed to surprise Paige as much as it surprised him, Mary Dalton decided to have an early meal this year. Sutter half suspected that she’d deliberately scheduled her lunch to conflict with his family’s plans and ensure that Paige wouldn’t be able to spend the holiday with him.

  His mother was bustling around the kitchen, completely in her element as she choreographed the preparations. Willa was mixing the coleslaw; Angie was mashing potatoes. Even Dallas’s boys had been put to work: Ryder was putting pickles into trays, Jake was dumping dinner rolls into baskets and Robbie was helping his grandfather set the table.

  When everything was ready and bowls and platters covered almost every inch of the table, they all sat down and Bob said grace. As the food was passed around, Ellie decided that—in honor of Thanksgiving—everyone should share something for which he or she was thankful. There were some subtle groans and protests, but his mother wasn’t easily dissuaded.

  “I’ll start,” she said as she added a spoonful of candied yams to her plate. “I’m thankful to Hank Pritchard for making the extension for this dining room table, but I’m especially grateful that so many of our children and grandchildren are here to sit around it with us today.”

  The only one of Sutter’s siblings who hadn’t come home for the holiday was Clayton. Sutter knew that his brother would have liked to have been there, but now he and Antonia were married and living on her family’s ranch, where she managed the Wright Way boarding house with her widowed father and three brothers. And while Ellie was undoubtedly disappointed, she understood that Antonia had a family of her own and other responsibilities. That fact—along with Antonia’s promise that they would come to Rust Creek Falls for Christmas—lessened her disappointment, at least a little.

  Ellie looked at Robbie, who was seated to her left. “What are you thankful for?” she asked her grandson.

  “That Uncle Collin married my teacher, ’cuz she smells really good.”

  Willa’s cheeks flushed in response to the boy’s exuberant comment while the other adults chuckled.

  “I’m glad it’s a long weekend, so there’s no school until Monday,” Jake declared.

  “Braden?” Ellie prompted.

  “This one’s easy,” he said. “I’m thankful that Sutter’s home to help me muck out stalls.”

  Bob was up next, and he smiled at his wife at the opposite end of the long table. “I’m grateful that, forty years ago, I had the good sense to marry my Ellie.”

  Ellie’s eyes sparkled with moisture as her own lips curved.

  Angie was beside her father-in-law. “I’m thankful for my new husband and his wonderful family.”

  “I’m thankful for the support of my whole family—” Forrest looked at Sutter, then shifted his attention to his wife “—and especially for my beautiful wife.”

  The only one who faltered was Dallas, and Sutter could understand why he might not be feeling particularly thankful after the events of the past year. But when he finally spoke, he said, “I’m thankful for my sons—Ryder, Jake and Robbie—who are the very best part of my life.”

  Ellie’s eyes filled with tears again. They all knew it had been a rough year for Dallas, and Sutter was glad his brother was able to appreciate how fortunate he was to have the three boys who looked at him as if he was the center of their world—and he was.

  When it was finally Sutter’s turn, he looked around the table, at the family he’d stayed away from for far too long, his gaze pausing on Forrest beside his new wife. “I’m thankful for the second chances that I’ve been given since returning to Rust Creek Falls.”

  Of course, thinking of second chances made him think of Paige, and the advice that his brother had given to him the day before. There are no guaranteed tomorrows. If you want to be with Paige, don’t wait to tell her.

  He’d barely touched the plate he’d heaped with the food his mother had spent hours preparing, but he pushed his chair away from the table and stood up.

  Ellie looked at him, obviously startled—and not at all pleased—by his abrupt action. “What are you doing?”

  “I have to see Paige.”

  She frowned. “Now?”

  “Right now,” Sutter confirmed. “Because she gave me a second chance, too, and I’m not going to blow it.”

  “I hardly think staying to finish your meal would blow anything,” she chided.

  Sutter looked at Forrest again. “I’m not willing to wait another minute to tell her how I feel about her.”

  * * *

  Paige had always loved Thanksgiving, but as she sat at the dining room table with her family, she couldn’t help feeling as if something—or someone—was missing. She wished Sutter was there, or that she was at the Triple T with his family. But with each of their families deciding to have the meal at similar times, there was no way for them to be together without choosing one over the other.

  But maybe it was better this way. Maybe they needed to spend the holiday apart so that she would remember they had separate lives now. Lately she’d started to fall into the trap of thinking they were a couple again, because they’d been acting like a couple. Spending almost all of their free time together, talking every day when they couldn’t see each other.

  Every time her phone buzzed to indicate a text message, her heart started to beat just a little bit faster because it might be a message from Sutter. And if it was, she’d inevitably feel a smile steal across her face. She was acting like a lovesick teenager, further proof that she’d fallen for him all over again.

  Paige and her sisters had just started clearing away the empty plates when there was a knock at the door. Visitors on Thanksgiving were unusual, as most everyone in town was celebrating the occasion with their own families. Since Paige was closest to the door, she responded to the knock—and her heart knocked hard against her ribs when she found Sutter on the porch.

  He smiled. “Happy Thanksgiving.”

  “It is now,” she said.

  “Am I interrupting?”

  “We just finished eating. Did you want to come in for dessert?”

  He shook his head. “I just wanted to talk to you.”

  “Sounds ominous,” she teased.

  “It’s not,” he promised. “At least, I don’t think it is.”

  “Then it can wait until after we have pie,” she said, and took his hand to drag him into the dining room.

  “We’ve got one more for dessert,” she said brightly, dragging Sutter into the dining room.

  There had been several conversations taking place around the table, and they all faded away.

  “Happy Thanksgiving,” Sutter said.

  The chorus of halfhearted and mumbled responses immediately put Paige’s back up. She understood that her family disapproved of certain things Sutter had said and done five years earlier, but if she’d gotten over them, she expected they should be able to do the same.

  “I hope I’m not intruding,” he said.

  If he’d been anyone else—or if the same scene had played out more than five years earlier—her mother would have assured him that he wasn’t and her father would have jumped up to find him a chair. Today, her mother only said, “I’m surprised to see you, Sutter. Doesn’t Ellie usually host a big lunchtime meal on Thanksgiving?”

  “Yes, she does. And she is,” he told her. “But I slipped out early to see Paige.”

  “I imagine it was probably a little awkward around the table,” Mary
said, with false sympathy, “since your brother’s home from Thunder Canyon for the holiday.”

  “Forrest and Angie are home, but Clay and Antonia stayed in Thunder Canyon,” he clarified. “And no, it wasn’t awkward at all.”

  “This, on the other hand, is starting to feel more than a little uncomfortable,” Paige noted. “Can’t you be gracious and welcoming to a guest I’ve invited to join us?”

  “There really isn’t room for another chair at the table,” her mother said primly.

  Paige was stunned, as much by the dismissive tone as the blatant lie. “We’ve never had trouble squeezing in one more in the past.”

  “I didn’t put the extra leaf in the table this year,” Ben spoke up in support of his wife.

  Her brothers, who had always been friendly with the Traub boys, said nothing. Paige wasn’t sure if their silence was a deliberate decision to remain neutral or a result of the fact that they were too focused on their dessert to care about the conversation. Her sisters—especially Lani—always had something to say, but even they were quiet. And while Paige would have appreciated some support for Sutter from their corner, at least they hadn’t joined the fray against him.

  Paige had to take a deep breath before she could speak again. “Then I’m sure you’ll all appreciate the extra elbow room since I’m not staying for dessert.”

  “Don’t,” Sutter said, touching her arm. “I didn’t come over here to cause a scene.”

  “And you didn’t,” Paige assured him. Then, to her family, she said, “Happy Thanksgiving.”

  Ben scowled. “You can’t just leave.”

  “Actually, I can. And right now, I think it’s better that I do.” Then she turned and walked out the door before she said something she knew she would regret.

  “I’m sorry,” Sutter said, when he led her to his vehicle.

  “Why are you sorry?”

  He opened the passenger door for her, helped her up. “Because I put you in an awkward position by showing up the way I did.”

  She shook her head. “I’m glad you came by.”

  “You’re glad I caused dissension between you and your family?”

  “You didn’t cause it,” she denied. “They did.”

  He went around to his side and climbed in. “They’re your family, Paige. And I know, probably better than anyone, how hard it is to be at odds with family.”

  She nodded. “You’re right. But aside from the fact that they’re being completely unfair, they have to stop trying to control my life and my choices.”

  “Are you choosing to be with me?”

  “It seems that, at least for today, I am.”

  “What about tomorrow?”

  “I don’t know,” she admitted. “Right now I’m afraid to look too far ahead, because when I do, I see you back in Seattle.”

  “My business is in Seattle,” he agreed. “Not my life.”

  She felt hope swell inside of her chest. “When did you come to this realization?”

  “Sometime between the night of the election, when I kissed you as the snow fell around us, and yesterday, when I was talking to my brother.”

  She didn’t need to ask—she could tell by the tone of his voice that he meant Forrest. “How did that go?”

  “Much better than I expected.”

  She reached for his hand, squeezed it. “I’m so glad.”

  “Me, too. And one of the things I decided after talking to Forrest was that I wasn’t going to waste any time going after what I wanted.”

  “And you wanted...me?”

  “I’ve always wanted you,” Sutter told her. “Even when I was five hundred miles away, I wanted you. Even after five years, I never stopped.”

  Wow—that was a declaration she hadn’t expected. And she didn’t quite know how to respond. She could tell him that she felt the same way, because it was true. But she was wary about opening her heart so completely when she wasn’t sure that there was a future for them, and if there wasn’t, he would break her heart all over again.

  On the other hand, he’d taken the first step in coming to her tonight—he’d stood firm despite the disapproval of her family and he’d put his feelings on the line. He hadn’t professed undying love or promised her forever, but she wouldn’t have trusted either of those claims if he had. She’d been in love with Sutter before and she knew there were no guarantees. What he was offering her now was honest and real, and she wasn’t going to turn him away.

  He pulled into her driveway, put the vehicle into Park. She waited for him to turn off the ignition, but he didn’t. She looked at him, silently questioning.

  “I’m waiting to see if you’re going to invite me to come inside,” he told her.

  It seemed like a simple response, but she somehow sensed that there would be no going back if they went forward from here. She could go into the house alone and he would drive away. Or—

  She drew in a deep breath. “Would you like to come inside?”

  He turned off the ignition.

  * * *

  Paige led him into the house. Now that they were inside, alone, she suddenly felt nervous. It wasn’t the first time she’d invited him into her home, but it was different this time because they both knew he wouldn’t be leaving tonight.

  “Can I get you anything? Beer? Soda? Water?”

  Sutter shook his head. “No, thanks.”

  She took a glass from the cupboard and filled it with water, more because she needed something to do than because she was thirsty. She took a few sips and tried to put her scattered thoughts into some semblance of order.

  He pried the glass from her fingers and set it on the counter, then he put his arms around her and drew her close. “I can almost hear you thinking, but I don’t have a clue what’s going through your mind.”

  “I’m not sure I do, either,” she admitted. “I guess I’m just wondering, when you said you wanted me, did you just mean for tonight? Or are you planning to stay in Rust Creek Falls?”

  “I haven’t made any firm plans yet, but I’m hoping to stay here—with you.” He brushed his lips against hers. “If you want me to stay.”

  “I want you to stay,” she said, and kissed him again.

  She was sure there were more questions she should ask, but right now she couldn’t think of any of them. She couldn’t think of anything while he was holding her and kissing her, except how much she wanted to be with him.

  “Is your mother going to wonder if you made it home safely?”

  Paige sighed. “She might.”

  “Why don’t you give her a call to preempt any interruptions?”

  She did so, and was grateful that Travis answered so she could leave the simple message and hang up. Then she turned back to Sutter.

  “No more interruptions,” she promised and, taking his hand, led him upstairs to her bedroom.

  “This is the second time you’ve brought me up here—I hope you know what you’re doing this time.”

  “I know exactly what I’m doing...and who I’m doing it with,” she said, and brought his mouth down to hers.

  She might have initiated the kiss, but he was an avid and equal participant. He kissed her again, deeply, hungrily. She pressed closer so that her breasts were crushed against his chest and the rock-hard evidence of his arousal was against her belly. Desire pounded through her veins, pulsed deep inside her.

  His hands slipped under her sweater, and she quivered as those rough, warm palms scraped over her bare skin. He zeroed in on the clasp at the front of her bra and released it. Then his hands were on her breasts, and her nipples immediately pebbled in response to his touch. His thumbs circled the rigid peaks, moving slowly and teasingly closer to the aching nubs. She sucked in a breath when his thumbs finally brushed over the hypersensitive
tips, and her knees actually trembled.

  Because she wasn’t entirely sure her legs would continue to support her, she drew him toward the bed and pulled him down onto the mattress with her. His brows winged up, but that was his only response before he captured her mouth again, nibbling on her lower lip as he continued to play with her breasts, driving her ever closer to the edge.

  Her fingers were trembling as she worked at the buttons of his shirt, but finally she parted the fabric and touched him. Her hands slid over the ridges of abdominal muscles to his chest, admiring the smooth skin stretched taut over hard muscle. He was a man of so many contrasts. He had the strength to effortlessly control a thousand-pound stallion, the gentleness to bottle-feed an orphaned kitten—and the heart to do so. And when he focused his attention on a woman, he had an uncanny ability to make her feel safe and cherished even as he systematically obliterated any doubts or resistance.

  Not that Paige was resisting—or ever had. Because she’d given her heart to Sutter long before she’d ever offered her body, and he was still in complete command of both. But she knew his body as well as he knew hers, and she stroked her hands over him again, moving down his torso. She unfastened his pants and slid one hand beneath the waistband of his boxers. Here was another contrast: steel encased in velvet. She wrapped her hand around him and was rewarded with a throaty groan.

  He pulled back, tugged her sweater over her head and tossed it aside. His shirt followed, then her bra, so that they were both naked from the waist up. She shivered, not from the cold but from the heat in his gaze. And everything inside of her quivered, not with fear but anticipation.

  He unfastened her skirt, then shifted back on the mattress so that he could tug it over her hips and down her legs. His eyes followed the progress of the garment, and his lips curved when her silky lace panties and thigh-high stockings were revealed. He traced the lacy edge of the stockings, then his fingertips skimmed over bare flesh to trace the edge of her panties. It was a feather-light caress that arrowed straight to her core.

  His eyes lifted to her face, watching her as he traced the same path again. This time his thumb brushed over the thin barrier of lace between her thighs, and she had to bite down on her lip to keep from crying out. He touched her again, and she did gasp now. His lips curved in a slow, satisfied smile. “You’re ready already.”