“Not at all. He almost hit me for it until my brothers stepped in.”
“He did what?” he asked.
“It didn’t actually happen.”
“But it has before, hasn’t it?” he asked.
I took a sip of my coffee as I watched Travis straighten up in his chair.
“Has he done it recently?” he asked.
“It’s not a big deal. It’s under control. Mostly.”
“It is a big deal. To me, it is. A man should never be laying his hands on a woman. Especially a father to his damn daughter.”
“It happens more often than you realize,” I said.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m the best I’ve been in a long time. Things are tense in the house, but I’m about to go home with a cup of forbidden liquid in my hands and a bag full of books my father would hate me reading just to prove my point. I feel… confident. I feel like I’m leading on some sort of march that will free my brothers as well. I had no idea they felt just as oppressed as I did.”
“I have to admit, I’m glad to see you. I’ve been thinking about you,” he said.
“Oh really?” I asked. “I wonder why.”
“Not just because of that,” he said with a chuckle. “I was just… worried. That your father would squeeze you back into the life you’re trying to get away from.”
“Nope. I’m stronger than most people give me credit for. I just had to figure it out for myself.”
“That you are, Ava,” he said. “That you are.”
“So, tell me about this meeting you just had. What happened?” I asked.
“How much have I told you about my family’s company?” he asked.
“Not much. I only know that you have one.”
“Well, through our company we own part of Kettle. Most of the mountainous terrain.”
“I know that part,” I said.
“There’s a company who’s threatening us with all sorts of action to try and get us to sell.”
“Is that a thing companies can do?” I asked.
“It’s not kosher business practice, but yes. Currently, they’re threatening to get the government involved.”
“Why do they want your land so badly?”
“They want to put a gas line through the mountains. It’ll save them millions of dollars to cut through rather than go around. My family’s company tried to stop the line from being settled though this town altogether, but our lawyer got us to compromise.”
“Was that your lawyer you were talking with?” I asked.
“Yep. I told him if we gave them an inch, they would take a mile. But he was certain that if we settled, they would leave us alone. So, my father and us all agreed to have them route the gas line through the valleys and around the mountains.”
“Which would still cost them millions more than just blasting them away,” I said.
“Exactly. Now, they want to buy the land from us for double what it's worth. But we aren’t selling. And now I’m having to investigate our options because this company’s getting serious about their accusations.”
“None of that seems legal. What did your lawyer say?” I asked.
“We can sue them for harassment and notify the U.S. government of the threats they are making, but beyond that there isn’t much we can do unless we can catch them doing something illegal.”
“That’s it?” I asked. “That’s all your lawyer had to say?”
“Hence why I’m frustrated. My family purchased this land a very long time ago simply to preserve it. We run some hunts and a couple of camps and give out hunting permits, but that’s about it. That money gives us the property taxes on the land and the property taxes on the cabins we’ve built in the area, and that’s it. It’s not some big money-making scheme for us. It’s just to preserve the beauty of this town.”
“I think that’s a very noble thing to do,” I said. “Kettle’s a beautiful place. I couldn’t imagine it without its mountains.”
“And running a gas line is never just a gas line. Then you need people to settle and work it, which means building more homes. Which means more grocery stores and more places for entertainment. It would bring the world into this small little town, and soon Kettle would be like every other industrial city in the nation.”
“That’s not okay. I have serious memories in this town that stem around how small and quaint it is,” I said.
“Our family single-handedly makes sure that stays intact. But this company that keeps reaming us is making it difficult.”
“Selfish assholes,” I said.
I could’ve sworn I saw Travis’ cheek twitch with a smile.
“What?” I asked.
“Nothing,” he said. “Just your enthusiasm.”
“It’s beautiful out here. Kettle’s like a second home to me, despite the fact that I’ve explored very little of it. Knowing someone’s attacking it like that makes me sick.”
“Don’t worry. We’re trying to get it settled,” he said.
“I don’t know what I can do, but if I can help just like me know. Okay?”
I could see him really taking my words to heart as he nodded his head. Silence fell between us as I sipped on my coffee. Simply being in his presence was enough to make me smile. Something inside me pulled toward him. My body gravitated in his direction. My foot slid toward his underneath the table and settled by his as my hand reached out for his fingertips. I waited for him to move. To shrug me off or get up from the table. I waited for the rejection I somehow assumed was coming.
But instead, he allowed our fingertips to tangle within one another’s and I felt a peace settle over my body.
“What are you doing for dinner tonight?” Travis asked.
“Sitting at a table with my head in my plate trying not to look at my father’s angry glare. Why?” I asked.
“I figured you might want to have steak stir fry and smile instead.”
“Uh huh. And who’s cooking up this stir fry?” I asked.
Travis scooted his hand closer to mine, threading our fingers deeper into each other’s grasp.
“Me,” he said. “If you’d let me.”
I smiled as I curled my lips around my straw. My eyes fluttered up to his as we sat in the corner of that coffeehouse. Part of me was worried about who saw us and who would report back to my father with it, but the other part of me was fine. I wanted to be with him. I wanted to be in Travis’ presence. I wanted to soak up his warmth and experience what it felt like to be safe in the presence of another human being.
“I think I’d like that option better,” I said.
“I was hoping you would say that,” Travis said. “I’ll see you tonight.”
Sixteen
Travis
I was frustrated after that meeting. I was beyond frustrated, really. I was angry. And fed up. And pissed off. I was upset at the position my father’s company had been put in. I was upset with the fact that we had no other options except to pin Breathline Energies for harassment. That wouldn’t make a company like them stop. They had a team of lawyers piecing this together. For all we knew, they could take that harassment lawsuit and spin it to make my father look fucking crazy and take the whole damn company from him.
But seeing Ava walk into that coffeehouse settled me immediately.
It was scary, the way I relaxed with her. It was reminiscent of the woman I had once fallen in love with. Things like this had been easy with my ex. Talking and sharing memories and being around one another. It was easy and fluid, like it was with Ava.
That terrified me. But it also filled me with a sense of delight.
When Ava and I parted from the coffeehouse I went straight to the grocery store. I picked up all the best ingredients to make her dinner tonight. I picked out a wonderful cut of steak and picked out fresh ingredients to use. I purchased fresh herbs instead of the dried stuff I had in my cabinets and grabbed a decent bottle of wine. I took all of it back to my cabin and started planning out the
evening, excitement coursing through my veins.
I was just about done with dinner when a knock came at my door.
I wiped my hands off and raked my fingers through my hair. I headed for the door and opened it, my eyes raking over Ava’s beautiful form. She was in this beautiful yellow and pink floral-printed dress, with ballet flats on and her hair curled around her face. She had this innocent glow about her until my eyes connected with hers. For the first time, I saw Ava as a woman instead of as a young girl. Her eyes were filled with a fire and a confidence I hadn’t seen in her yet, and my heart slammed against my chest as she stepped inside.
“You look wonderful,” I said.
“You look nice, too,” Ava said. “It smells delicious in here.”
“And it’s done cooking. I hope you came hungry,” I said.
“I did. Very much so.”
“How did things go when you got home?” I asked.
“As well as I figured it would. Dad tried to get me to take the books back to the library. He poured my coffee down the sink. But not before I took a massive chug of it in front of him.”
“I have no idea how you’ve lived with that man for so many years,” I said.
“I didn’t have a choice. Until all of this marriage stuff came about, I guess I didn’t realize how much of my life he really wanted to control. Either that, or I had simply become okay with it.”
“Did you return the books?” I asked.
“Nope. I started reading one of them on the couch and he fumed every time he saw me reading it. But they are in my car right now. I didn’t trust my father’s actions enough to keep them in my room.”
“Where does he think you are right now?”
“We may have had a fight before I stormed out. He asked me where I was going all dressed up and I told him I had a date.”
“You what?” I asked.
My eyes connected with hers and I watched her shy away.
“That’s not what this is, is it? Oh shit. I’m so sorry, Travis. I could’ve sworn you were asking me out on a date this afternoon. You know, one of those cook-in dates like in the movies.”
“I did,” I said. “Don’t misread my shock. I just didn’t think you would’ve told your Dad something like that.”
“Oh,” she said. “Well, it was more to get under his skin than anything. To make him upset. It’s a petty move, I know. But I was over his antics for the day. I stalked out of the house as he came rushing to the door, and I drove away before he could get to me.”
“Well, I’m just glad you’re here,” I said.
“Me too.”
We ate and continued to talk, the conversation flowing easily between the two of us. I steered the conversation away from her family and we settled onto a friend of hers. Cassie. She talked about all the things they got into during school and how they always had sleepovers. I enjoyed watching her eyes light up with the memories from her childhood as she dove into the more positive memories of her life.
By the time we were done with dinner, we had also finished the bottle of wine I had purchased.
“This is really good wine,” Ava said.
“I’m glad you enjoyed it. Do you have a favorite?”
“Nope. I haven’t tried many of them. The only drinks I’ve ever had were the ones my mother let me have or the ones my brothers made for me from underneath their bed after Dad fell asleep.”
“Sounds like my twin brothers. They did all sorts of those types of things growing up.”
“What were their names again?” she asked. “Did you ever say?”
“I don’t think so. I might have. Jasper and Leo.”
“Are they identical twins?”
“Nope. Fraternal. But they might as well be identical. They do this weird thing where they can finish each other’s sentences and shit. There was one time Leo had gotten into a car accident, and Jasper just looked at my mother and said ‘Something’s wrong.’ Ten minutes later, the police were calling.”
“You’re kidding,” she said.
“Nope. It’s the weirdest fucking thing I’ve ever experienced in my life.”
“I couldn’t imagine being that close to someone,” she said.
“I think it would be nice.”
“So you’ve never been that close to someone?” she asked.
My mind wafted back to my ex as I got up from the table.
“I thought I was once. But it didn’t work out,” I said.
“I’m sorry,” Ava said.
“It’s in the past. Want some more? I can open up another bottle of wine.”
“I think I’ve had plenty. I still have to drive back tonight, so I might not want to overdo it.”
“That’s true. Want some water instead?” I asked.
“How about we just sit on the couch?”
I looked back over at her as I put my wine glass in the sink. She got up from the table and walked over to my couch, sitting down and patting the cushion. I could feel my chest flushing with want. I knew if I sat down with her and felt her skin against mine it would be all over. I had ingested just enough wine for me to taste how tight her pussy would be. That virginal pussy slipping over a cock for the first time.
I drew a deep breath as I turned back to the sink.
“Be there in a sec,” I said.
I ran some cold water over my hands, trying to get my body to settle down. I made my way toward the couch and sat down next to her, feeling her body move closer. I groaned internally, trying my best to keep my wants and wishes at bay. But the moment she laid her head down on my shoulder and sighed, I was done. That sweet little sound and the warmth of her skin pressing against my body. It was too much for me.
I allowed my lips to descend onto the top of her head, kissing her as my arm threaded around her body.
She tilted her lips up to mine and caught my stare. Her eyes burned with a bright passion. A collapsing star ready to implode on itself. I could feel her body trembling as she rose to her knees, her lips inching closer to mine.
“Are you sure?” I asked.
Her eyes danced between mine, taking me in as a small smile spread across her cheeks.
“More than I’ve ever been before,” she said.
I captured my lips with hers and pulled her into my lap. I felt her squeal with delight, a smile pressing into my skin. My hands slid up her dress, feeling her luscious thighs as her legs parted around my lap. I ran my hands up her naked skin, gripping onto her back as I pulled her dress over her head.
Our clothes fell into piles on the floor. Her tits were bare for me, pinched to wanton peaks and begging for my lips. I coated her in kisses as she moaned, her hands gripping onto my hair as I sucked on her nipples. She ground down into my lap, pulling my cock hard against my pants as I grunted. I needed her. I needed to feel my cock wrapped within her warmth. Her hands fiddled with my pants as she worked them down my body, my dripping cock springing free for her to see.
I watched her carefully as she studied my body, her fingertips gliding along my twitching muscles.
She climbed back into my lap, her juices dripping onto my skin. The tip of my cock hovered and pulsed for her as it teased her entrance. She shook for me. Her hands were twisted into my hair as our foreheads collided. We panted together, our naked bodies warm from the wine and our passion as she froze.
“If you aren’t ready—”
“Just hush, okay?” Ava asked.
I rubbed her back as she stood there, poised above my cock that wanted her badly. I was going to let her take this at her pace. This wasn’t my situation to control, even though I got the feeling she wanted me to.
“Help me,” she said breathlessly.
“This is your decision,” I said.
“I’ve made my decision. Just… help me. Guide me. Show me what to do.”
I opened my eyes and found hers staring back at me. I reached down between our bodies and gripped my cock, pushing it right up to her entrance. Her hands clung to me, her nails
digging into the meat of my shoulders. I breached her folds for the very first time, feeling her tightness swell around me as she tensed.
I nipped at her ear, relaxing her body as I pushed in a little more. I could feel that tearing. I could feel the droplets of blood dripping down my cock. It rose something primal within me. A protective nature that surged through my veins. I nibbled at her neck and kissed her ear, relaxing her body as I slowly invaded it.
“Oh my gosh,” she said breathlessly. “Holy shit.”
“Almost there,” I said. “You’re doing wonderfully, beautiful.”
She moaned into me, her face dropping into the crook of my neck. My legs shook with passion as her body trembled in my lap. I sank her all the way down, her walls expanding around me to fit my thickness within her. I panted into her skin, trying my best to hold myself back.
But I wanted her. I wanted to fuck her until she screamed my name.
“When you move, I’ll move,” I said.
I felt her hips roll into mine and I wrapped my arms around her.
I slid from her body and plunged back in. She groaned into my neck, raising goosebumps all along my skin. I coated my cock in her arousal as it dripped down my balls, soaking into the cushions below us. I grabbed her round ass, feeling its softness in my palms as I thrusted into her again. My rough curls raked against her clit, shivering her body as she jumped into me.
“Holy hell. Travis. This feels… oh, fuck.”
I grinned as I kissed her shoulder, setting a steady pace. My feet dug into the hardwood floors as my entire body flexed for her. She hung onto me, giving the whole of her existence away to me. I felt her innocent light draining into me, fueling my passionate desire to make her cum around my cock. I thrusted deeper into her, rolling my hips so I could reach every part of her. She gasped and moaned, bucking back into me as sweat began to drip down my brow.
I grabbed her hips and guided her movements. Our lips locked together as the tension began to build. I could feel my balls pulling into my body as her pussy fluttered around my dick. She grew tighter and tighter as she worked my cock, my hands rolling her hips as her hair fluttered around her face. She was perfect. The billboard image of beauty. Her skin was flushed, marked with my nibbles as my toes began to curl.
March Heat: A Firefighter Enemies to Lovers Romance Page 38
