by Cate Ashwood
“That could be arranged.” I kissed him hard and hitched my leg beside his hip. At that moment, my stomach rumbled.
“Hungry?”
“I was hungry two hours ago. Now I’m dying of starvation.”
“You want that spaghetti now?” We’d never actually gotten around to making it the night before, choosing fucking over food more than once before giving in to the pull of sleep.
“How long does it take to make?”
“Shouldn’t you know that?”
“Other people in my family cook. I enjoy.”
“Properly, it takes a couple of hours.”
“You got anything you can whip up in say, fifteen seconds or so?”
He laughed. “I might have a protein bar or two.”
“If I take the protein bar, can we nix the pasta and you can take me back to bed?”
He flipped me over and pinned me down. “Be back in fifteen seconds.”
Barrett
“Everything set for your Juneau trip?” I asked, flicking through the shipping manifests.
When Ted didn’t respond, I shifted my gaze up to find him staring at me with a worried expression.
“It’s not all set for your Juneau trip?”
“I’m gone all week. You gave me the days off, remember?”
Suddenly the memory of the conversation coalesced in my brain. “Shit. Yeah, I did. You’re right.”
“Everything’s ready to go, but I thought you were gonna find someone else to drive it up.”
“Yeah. I was. I will, I mean.” I rested my hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll take care of it.”
He gave me a tight smile.
“Really. Don’t give it another thought,” I said, running through a list of possible scenarios and landing on the only plausible one. “I’ll do the deliveries.”
“I already booked my flights or—”
“It’s not a big deal, Ted. It’ll be nice to get outta town for a couple of days.”
“Okay, then.”
“Have fun on your vacation. San Diego, right?”
“That’s right. Me and the wife haven’t gotten away in ages. She’s real excited.”
From the expression on Ted’s face and the way his voice bounced as he spoke, I was pretty sure he was as excited as she was.
“You’ll have a great time.”
“You been there?”
“No, but I’d like to visit one day. I haven’t had a chance to do much traveling.”
“Should take the time. Life’s too short.”
“You’re right. I’ll start with a quick trip to Juneau.”
Ted laughed. “Not what I meant.”
I really did want to travel more. When we’d been teens, anxious to leave Alaska behind and strike out on our own, Naomi had filled my head with ideas of travel and new experiences and seeing the whole world. I hadn’t followed through on any of it, and it had been years since I’d given it serious thought, but suddenly the travel bug was starting up again.
“One day.”
“Make it soon.” Ted shoved his hands in his pockets. “The truck’s loaded, the paperwork’s in order, hotel room’s booked, and the gas tank’s full. Should be a smooth trip.”
“Great. Thanks.”
Ted nodded and walked away, and as he did, I was struck with a thought.
Frankie and I had been spending almost all our time together—a good portion of our workday was spent holed up in the office, locking the door every once in a while when the sexual tension became too thick to see through. When we weren’t at Copper Creek, I was helping Frankie with arrangements for Holden’s wedding.
But as much as I enjoyed spending time with him around town, in the back of my head there was this whispering little voice keeping me constantly on edge, reminding me that someone was going to see something and figure me out.
I wasn’t ready to declare to my whole world that I was into guys.
The whole thing seemed simple enough until I looked too closely, and then it was too confusing for words. I liked keeping things straightforward in my mind. I wanted Frankie. I had Frankie. When Frankie left, I’d go back to living for my company and take each day as it came.
That thought left me feeling slightly unsettled, but like the nitty-gritty of my sexuality, I didn’t poke at it too closely. Putting shit like that under a microscope was a really bad idea.
I shifted my focus to the idea of taking Frankie with me to Juneau. It seemed like a good idea on all fronts. First, if I didn’t, I’d lose two days with him, and we only had a couple of weeks left.
Just as I made up my mind, I heard him behind me talking to Mason, so I decided to grab a glass of water from the bar.
“When you’re done come find me. I’ve got something I need to run by you,” I said as I passed.
“Sure thing, boss.”
I hid my grin until I was out of Mason’s sight. It always gave me a little thrill when Frankie called me “boss”—not because I liked to be in charge, though I did, but it felt like a kind of secret code, a term of affection or something that was so innocuous no one would catch on, but it hit me right in the chest every time.
I ran the tap for a few seconds, letting the water go cold before I tipped the glass underneath to fill.
“What’s up?” Frankie asked, coming up behind me.
I squashed the urge to kiss him. “You wanna go on a road trip with me tomorrow?”
His eyes lit up, and it ignited a fire in my belly.
“Where we going?”
“I have some deliveries to make in Juneau, and I thought you might like to come along. Get out of the confines of this town for a few days. See more of Alaska than the Sawyer’s Ferry town square.”
“Count me in.”
“I’ll pick you up at six tomorrow morning.”
“I changed my mind. Bring me back something nice.”
“Six fifteen?”
He groaned. “At least bring me coffee.”
When I showed up at Holden and Gage’s place the following morning, Frankie was waiting for me. The door swung open and he trudged out before I had a chance to get out of the truck. He walked like a zombie, staggering down the stairs and onto the driveway wearing a full fur-lined parka.
“Coffee,” he groaned as he climbed in.
I handed over the cup. “There’s espresso in there too.”
“You’re my favorite.” He took a sip. “No, scratch that. You woulda been my favorite if you’d picked me up three hours from now.”
“It’s ten hours to Juneau, so we need to get an early start or we’re not gonna be there until midnight. And you know it’s not any colder there.”
“Can’t be too careful. At least the seats are comfy.” He wiggled. “Ish.”
“We’ll make some pit stops so your ass doesn’t fall asleep.”
“Good. It needs to be in tip-top form for tonight.”
Heat speared through me. “Your ass is always in tip-top form.”
“And I work hard to make it so.” He leaned to the side and gave his left cheek a smack. “Best ass in Alaska.”
“No argument here.”
Five minutes into the drive, Frankie fell asleep, head back, mouth wide open, snoring loud enough to rattle the windows.
Even unconscious, I preferred his company to making the trip alone. I’d driven this route a thousand times, especially in the earlier stages of the business, hustling hard, knocking on doors, peddling my beer to anyone who’d give me half a minute to talk. And once I’d secured a couple of clients, the trips had increased. It was only in the last few years that I hadn’t had to go very often, that Ted took care of this side of things.
I settled in, turning the stereo on low, listening to our only radio DJ reading the weather. She had terrible taste in music, sounded a bit like what I imagined a stoned robot would, but she’d run the radio station single-handedly for as long as I could remember. I found her voice weirdly comforting.
Frankie slept all the way to the ferry docks, and since we had a calm sea, he slept through the smooth sailing to the other side. It wasn’t until I’d pulled into the parking lot of Russell’s pub that I stroked my hand across his cheek and leaned in to kiss his temple.
It was that moment he came awake, disoriented and alarmed. He flinched, flailing hard enough that he managed to both smoke me in the nose and poke me in the eye almost simultaneously.
“Son of a bitch,” I groaned, blinking hard, waiting for the stinging and the watering to subside.
“What the hell were you doing?”
“Waking you up. Kissing you.”
“I can see the confusion,” he said, laughing. “Flawless skin, shiny hair, unattainable-level gorgeousness. But I’m not Sleeping fucking Beauty.”
“I doubt Sleeping Beauty snored or drooled, and she almost certainly didn’t have an angry right hook.”
“I don’t drool.”
“Your shirt begs to differ.”
He glanced down at the wet patch on his shoulder. “That’s yours.”
“You think I leaned over, drooled on your shirt, and then told you it was yours?” I shook my head. “C’mon. Let’s go in and get you breakfast. You’ll be less bitchy with a full stomach.”
“I’ll be less bitchy if that breakfast includes mimosas.”
“It probably won’t.”
He pouted. “How do people live in Alaska? Like, permanently?”
“I can promise you there’ll be places in Juneau to get mimosas. I will buy you one.”
“Five,” he countered.
“Five.”
Frankie
Juneau wasn’t anything like I thought it’d be.
I’d imagined a fishing village like Sawyer’s Ferry, only slightly larger. And it was, but it also looked like an actual city. There were even buildings higher than three stories. I wanted to weep.
I felt like I’d stepped back into civilization, and I inhaled, the scent of the ocean mingling with car exhaust. Familiarity ran through me, and I could have dropped and kissed the pavement.
As we’d driven through town, we’d passed a couple of places that looked like motels. They seemed nice enough, but when Barrett had come to a stop outside a frickin’ Candalia Hotel, my heart had leapt. How was there a Candalia here?
It was one of the nicest hotels in the country, and they had a location in goddamn Alaska.
“Please tell me we’re staying here,” I said, staring all the way up at all fourteen beautiful floors.
“They have a pub onsite.”
“And you’re delivering.”
“Yep.” He paused for a minute, but halfway through I knew he was fucking with me. “You can check in while I do, and we can go up as soon as I’m done. Put our feet up. Order room service. Whatever you want.”
I nearly squealed but managed to suppress the urge. I could have kissed him, right out there on the street. I didn’t. But I wanted to.
Barrett had been very under the radar about things with us, keeping our relationship or whatever it was we were doing behind the curtains. I got it. Not everyone strutted out of the womb ready to live their best and most fabulous life.
Long after I was gone, Barrett still had to live in that town with—I was sure—more than a handful of bigots. Most of the men I’d met who hunted and wore camo weren’t big into the gays. Maybe that was presumptuous. But I understood why he wasn’t throwing himself a coming-out parade.
So when Barrett hooked his arm around my waist, pulling me in and pressing a kiss to my cheek, I almost keeled over.
He handed me his wallet. “Black card is the business card. Use that for checking in. Room’s under Anderson, three nights.”
“Three?”
“That okay? I figured since it was the weekend, we might as well stay an extra day and do some sightseeing. Unless you’ve got to get back.”
“I only packed for two.”
“Guess we’ll have to go shopping, then.”
“Oh my God. Luxury hotel. Room service. Shopping.” I placed my hand on my chest in an exaggerated gesture. “You’ve really stepped up your game, boss.”
He waggled his eyebrows at me. “You ain’t seen nothing yet.”
Holy shit.
He wasn’t kidding.
The second I stepped into our room, I made the split-second decision that I was never leaving. They could drag my cold, dead corpse from that room because that was the only way management was ever getting me to vacate.
From ten stories up, the huge windows overlooked the water and the snowcapped mountains across the channel. There was a huge Jacuzzi tub in the bathroom with gleaming white marble, and in the center of the wall, across from the bed, was a fireplace with floor-to-ceiling stone and an oversized raw wood mantle. The space managed to be both luxurious and rustic—a little bit glam and a little bit backwoods all at once.
I walked through the room, letting my fingers trail across the high-thread-count linens and the gleaming wood furniture.
“Is this the same suite Copper Creek employees always get?” I asked, lifting the stemless wineglass from the bar, the gold rim glittering in the light.
“Of course,” he teased. “Only the best for my staff.”
“I bet Ted really makes use of that tub. I can just imagine in him there, bubbles overflowing the sides, bath bomb fizzing between his hairy-ass legs.”
Barrett laughed. “I think he’s more of an essential-oils kind of guy.”
“You’re probably right. I imagine he’s really into the eucalyptus and tea tree.”
Two hours later, we’d stuffed ourselves full of crispy calamari, marinated olives, and salmon capellini and were lounging in a food coma, the discarded remains of our dinner tucked safely outside our door for someone else to deal with.
Fuck, I loved room service.
We were lying on the bed, wrapped in hotel bathrobes, plush slippers on our feet. I’d tucked myself into the hollow at Barrett’s side, where I seemed to fit perfectly, while he flicked through the channel guide, trying to find something to watch.
I didn’t care what he landed on. I was full and happy and comfortable and so blissed-out that I didn’t know if I could move, even if I wanted to. And I most definitely did not. I was happy and lazy.
Barrett kissed the top of my head and clicked the TV off. “Nothing on.”
“Never is.” We sounded like an old married couple. “Did I tell you Holden and Gage finally picked a venue for their wedding?”
“Good timing. It’s what, two weeks away?”
“Twelve days,” I said, picking at a loose thread on Barrett’s robe.
“Right. Did they end up going with the lighthouse?”
“No.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.” I laughed. “You ready for this?”
He leaned to look at me. “Tell me.”
“It’s a barn.”
He burst out laughing. “You’re fucking joking.”
“Nope.”
“After all that… a barn.”
“Yeah. Logan owns this huge piece of property, and he actually lives in a converted barn, but there was another building on the back of the property he’d been renovating as a guest house. It’s more than big enough for the venue, and there’s a big field outside for the outdoor area.”
“So, it’s a fancy barn.”
I laughed. “I guess so. I couldn’t believe it when he told me. There isn’t anywhere that’s ever gonna be nicer than Peregrine Point.”
“No, but maybe I’m biased.”
“I’m not,” I said. “Well, maybe I am, but the bias goes against barns, not for lighthouses.”
“Whatever makes them happy, I guess.”
I shrugged. “They really seem to be. A few of my friends in New York have gotten married, but their weddings each took at least a year to plan, costs tens of thousands of dollars, and in the end, half of them ended up so stressed-out they couldn’t even enjoy the day.
”
“I’ve never understood it.”
“It’s not like that for Holden and Gage, though. I honestly think they would have been content to go down to City Hall, sign the paper, and just have it done. I think they just want to be together.”
“Why go through the whole song and dance, then?”
I thought about it for a moment. “Partly because it’s nice to have a celebration, I think. But there’s part of me that thinks maybe this was a ploy to help me—get me out of New York, give me some direction, shake things up a bit.”
“You needed that?”
“I didn’t think I did, but being here has given me some perspective. I’ve been aimlessly wandering through the city, not sure what to do with my life. I never wanted to come to Alaska. I thought Holden was nuts for staying. But I’ll admit, I’m glad I came.”
Barrett held me tighter. “I am too.”
I shifted, turning to put my arms around him, and lowered my lips to his. I suddenly wasn’t feeling so lazy anymore.
Barrett
“You brought your camera, right?”
Frankie scoffed. “Ask me again when the sun is up.”
“The sun’s been up for hours,” I said, pulled the heavy cream-colored drapes open a crack to let a sliver of bright sunlight stream in. “And I have plans for you today.”
He hissed like he was a vampire and daylight was lethal.
“Again? You fucked me sixteen times last night. Surely your dick is done for at least a few more hours.”
“Sixteen might be exaggerating.”
“Hardly.”
“I’m not trying to get in your pants.”
Frankie whipped the covers back to reveal acres of creamy skin. “I’m not wearing pants.”
I climbed onto the bed, covering his body with mine, and kissed him. “As much as I would love to take advantage of that fact, we’ve got to get a move on. I have a delivery to make. I’d leave you here and come back for you, but the place is on the way to where I’m taking you.”
“Where?”
“It’s a surprise.”
“Tell me,” Frankie said, pushing me over with surprising strength and straddling my chest. His cock was hard and inches from my mouth. I was so tempted to plant my hands on his ass, pull him forward, and take him down.
