by Linda Joyce
“I love you more,” she whispered back before kissing him again.
His heart swelled. Delight shot him to the sky, and there he joined the brilliant stars. He leaned against a low hanging branch to steady himself, never breaking contact with her. She pressed her body closer to his. There was no way she could miss his hard bulge between them.
“Wish I had thought to bring a blanket,” Amelia said, taking a breath. She tugged on his bottom lip with hers and rocked her pelvis against his. The grass might be soft, but not a place for making love with her. His need for her hit a fevered pitch.
“Come.” He pushed through the brush and led her along the path with Jack nipping at their heels. Jogging slowly so she could keep up, he made several turns to keep her off track.
He cut through a cornfield to a field of sunflowers visible under the moon’s glow. After several minutes, which seemed like an hour, the final destination came into view. Her surprise waited around the next corner.
At the top of the rise, they stood together bathed in the moonlight. Below them, a field of sunflowers, surrounded by acres of tasseled corn spread out like the train of an evening gown. His truck sat in a small clearing where he’d parked it to capture the view. A royal blue tent, the center pitch high enough for them to easily sit up, covered the bed of the pickup. He held his breath waiting for her to speak.
“I don’t understand.” Amelia stopped beside him.
“A night under the stars.”
“Alone? The two of us?” she asked eagerly.
“Well, I promised Jack he could stay. I’ll put him on the backseat and open the window so he won’t feel left out.”
Amelia made her way to the rear of the pickup and hoisted herself on the tailgate. “An air mattress, sheets, pillows, and a quilt. Soft lights and music. You are a man with a plan.” She grinned and batted her lashes. “I like that about you, Lucas Dwyer.” She opened her arms. “Now come over here and let me show you how much.”
Her flirting set off more flares of desires. He hugged her tightly.
“Let me get Jack situated,” he whispered, hating to tear himself away from her. He opened the back door to the crew cab, and the obedient dog hopped in. By the time Lucas walked back to the rear of the truck, he discovered Amelia had peeled back the bedding. He remained very still. Silhouetted by the beam from a flashlight, Amelia with her back to him, knelt on the air mattress clothed in only her bra and underwear. His breath caught in his chest. When she reached behind and unhooked her bra, it was the sexiest move he’d ever seen.
Tossing the bra aside, she turned and glanced over her shoulder at him. He caught sight of her slender shape and full round breasts. Every muscle in his body tightened.
“Don’t tell. Show.” She crooked a finger in his direction.
He backed up. With a step and a hop, he landed on the tailgate. Kicking off his shoes, he jerked off his jeans before dropping to his knees. He tossed his t-shirt in the corner.
“Woman,” he thundered. “I want you. I love you.”
“I’m yours.”
Amelia relaxed into the bed and stretched her legs long. Raising her hands over her head, she laced her fingers together. This Amelia was seductive and wanton. He intended to satisfy her every need. Running his hand down her arm, around the curve of her jaw, drawing a line from the hollow of her neck to the spot between her breasts, he stroked her skin.
Moving on to removing her panties, sexy and silky, he never imagined the always-proper, ever-decent, perfect girl-next-door, Amelia Britton owned such things. He smiled hoping for many days of opportunity to remove more of them from her body.
She surprised him when she lifted up and pushed on his chest, forcing him back against the mattress. Just as he had done for her, she gave back to him. Her soft warm hand stroked from his arm to the curve of his jaw. Only after she reached the hollow of his neck, she traced a line all the way down to his erection. When her soft hand cupped him, he groaned. She removed the barrier separating them, tossing his briefs aside.
“Amelia, I can’t take much more, honey.”
“Lucas, darling, there’s no more waiting.”
He arched over her. His entry to the heated softness between her legs was sweetness beyond his dreams. They fit together perfectly, like jigsaw puzzle pieces.
He nipped at her breast. She squirmed beneath him, undulating her hips. Together, they moved. She matched his pace. A slow rock. The pace quickened.
“Oh, yes,” Amelia moaned. Her eyes closed. She licked her lips. Her expression spoke of focused intensity. Her body nudged against his faster and faster. Her writhing drove him crazy. He matched her pace, quickening each thrust.
When Amelia moaned again and grabbed his butt, he let out a moan of pure pleasure.
Heaven wrapped around them. Physical sensations shot them through the universe.
Expressions of love, lust, and desire culminated in a long guttural moan, their cries melding just as their bodies had. Floating back to earth seemed a crime.
Being with a woman had never been like this. Amelia wasn’t just any woman.
“Love you,” Lucas said, when his breathing allowed him to speak. Amelia’s reply came as a deep and satisfying kiss. He locked his fingers in her hair. Silk thread couldn’t feel any more luxurious.
When his breathing slowed a bit more, he rolled beside Amelia and propped on his elbows. “I can’t recall a more perfect evening. Happy birthday, Amelia.”
“Thank you,” she whispered almost shyly. “It’s been the best birthday.” When she didn’t reach for the sheet to cover her body, it pleased him in a way he’d never considered. His woman was comfortable with him and their intimacy. Society’s propriety remained parked at the door.
He sat and reached for his jeans. From a front pocket, he pulled a small box. “I’ve waited a long time to give you this.” He opened the box for her. His gift nestled in velvet.
“Oh!” Amelia cried. “It’s beautiful.”
Lucas lifted a solitaire diamond pendant hanging from a chain. She hurriedly motioned to him to put it on her. It hung in the middle of her chest. She stroked the length of the chain as though it might bring her good luck, or maybe a genie would appear and offer three wishes.
“I don’t want to rush things, or rush you. I love you. Amelia, I want to marry you.”
Her eyes widened. A smile spread across her face. She brought both hands to her heart and clutched the diamond pendant. “I want to be with you.”
“When you’re ready, we’ll find a setting for the diamond, and it will become your engagement ring.”
She kissed him tenderly. “You mean the world to me. But my future is so uncertain. Are you sure?”
He’d do everything to ensure her happiness, including convincing her brother of the rightness of their relationship. Amelia was locked in his heart forever. His.
“Woman, let me show you how certain I am.” He pulled her close. “Actions always speak louder than words.”
She giggled. He loved the lightness of her laugh, the unjaded way she lived and loved. He’d make love to her until dawn.
“Talk away,” she teased.
He tried to shove away the niggling thought working on a foothold in his mind. It would break his heart forever if she had to move back to the city to fulfill her artistic needs, something he could never give her. Everything in her life, and now his, rested on the crop spread out before them. It was only gold when harvested and money from the sale deposited in the bank. Then she could claim the independence she craved.
He still had a plan to save her farm.
Chapter 19
Dawn lifted the sun upward over the horizon as Craig paced the length of the back deck. Last night, Amelia had never opened her birthday present. Last night she never came home. Last night she changed before his eyes from a younger sister to a woman in control. She carried herself with grace and dignity, displaying a poise he’d not seen before.
He should be happy. A grownup
confident woman would understand the realities of life. He wouldn’t have to sugarcoat anything anymore. But at six in the morning, his sister still hadn’t appeared, and Megan’s car remained in the driveway. Lucas had to be with Amelia, but where were they?
Lucas. He wanted to blame him and thank him.
Amelia had danced with him once, but the rest of the evening, she danced with everyone, especially Lucas. At first, their closeness bothered him. Then it surprised him. When the two of them made the rounds to greet the guests, no one but him seemed fazed that Amelia and Lucas were a couple. A couple!
In the beginning, his friend had shown brotherly attentiveness, and he reasoned it was because Lia was the birthday girl. When he spied Lucas tilt Amelia’s chin and kiss her, reality struck hard. Lucas had fallen for Amelia. His feelings about his best friend and his baby sister whirled in his heart like a spinning propeller. The emotion, not exactly disbelief, well, maybe that mixed with anger and possibly betrayal…but why?
His mind couldn’t circle around the idea of the two of them. Since high school, he had dissuaded Lucas from any relationship with Amelia after she’d declared her love. Even last year after the funeral, he’d cautioned Lucas to keep his distance, insisting Amelia needed time to grieve the loss of their parents.
Unable to wait any longer for his sister to appear, Craig pumped his fists and jogged down the steps to the backyard. Gentleman Jack came to greet him bearing his toy pheasant in his mouth.
“Hunting season will open soon. We’ll go this year, I promise. Where’s Amelia?”
Jack ran off toward the creek and Craig followed. The dog came from excellent pedigree, the progeny of many world champions, but his breeding made him a pointing bird dog, not a human tracker. His gaze followed Jack as he shot through the low hanging branches obscuring the view of the creek. As a kid, it was Amelia’s favorite place to hide. When she was about seven and going through her princess stage, she ordered him and Lucas to stay away from her castle.
Nearing the creek, he walked along the tree line, then slipped between the tree branches as Jack had done. There he found the Brittany spaniel hunkered down and panting near the water’s edge. Craig squatted next to him. Morning sun filtered through the limbs and leaves, hitting one particular spot. He noticed something carved into the trunk of a tree. Scooting along the thick branch, he jumped down on the opposite side of the creek and stared at the letters, tracing the carvings with his finger.
A heart with the initials L & L inside. The carved letters had to stand for Lucas and Lia.
His heart sank. What had he done?
Below the heart, a date. He counted back the years. Amelia had been a senior in high school. Back then, she demanded to be called Lia. Her friends complied, but their family had always used her proper given name.
Had his sister carried more than a schoolgirl crush on Lucas all these years? Did Lucas know? If so, then why had Lucas gone along with the plan to get Amelia to move back to the city? Maybe the man loved her—which might explain his angry rant in the barn before when he’d stormed away.
Craig scrunched his forehead. Confusion swirled until his head hurt. People and their love lives…it complicated life in a way he wanted no part of. He would forever be a bachelor. Certainly he enjoyed the company of a smart, sexy woman, but he liked women who loved their careers more. That kind of woman he understood. A nice time. A little companionship. No lasting entanglements to cause complications.
After crossing back over the creek, Craig squatted to pat Jack. “Where can I find Amelia? Jack, find Amelia.”
Jack bolted. Craig ran wide open to keep up with the dog. The paths they ran turned like a maze. He halted when a tent came into view. He slowed his pace, turned a corner, and approached Lucas’s truck from the front. Jack shot past him, heading back in the direction they had come from as though to say, I did my job. This is in your hands now.
No sound came from the tent perched above the truck bed. The hair on the back of his neck rose. Silently, he made his way alongside the truck. All quiet. He grimaced and paused before peering around the corner. If there was anything to see, anything at all, he wouldn’t be able to un-see it, like a bell that couldn’t be unrung. Sucking in a deep breath and squaring his shoulders, he marched the last several steps to the open tailgate.
The scene before him burned in his brain. Squinting into the darkened tent, his eyes adjusted. Amelia and Lucas. It was like watching a train wreck and being unable to look away. He shook his head in denial. “No!”
Inside the tent, Amelia and Lucas were lay tangled together. She on her side, one bare leg exposed all the way to her butt. Thank God, her chest was covered. Lucas lay on his stomach, his entire bare backside visible.
“What the hell!” Heat flooded Craig’s face. He put his hands over his ears to be sure his exploding blood pressure wasn’t spurting blood from there. His sister naked in bed with Lucas? Crushes and puppy love were one thing. This was just… just… mind-blowing.
“Amelia, wake up! Have the decency to cover your ass!” he snarled. “Lucas! Christ, man, what the…did you do? My sister?” He yanked on the quilt, and Amelia grabbed it from his grasp.
“Stop this craziness,” Amelia chastised.
His sanity fled. He wanted Lucas to climb out of the truck and fight.
“Lucas, have you lost your mind? Get out of there!” Craig yelled.
Lucas rolled over and pulled a sheet to cover himself. He yawned. “Screaming like a girl doesn’t change anything. We’ll be up to the house in a little while. How ’bout some privacy?”
Craig locked his jaw and slammed his fist on the tailgate. “Get your ass out of bed. Away from my sister!”
“Stop it!” Amelia demanded. “You’re acting irrational. You’re not my father. I’m not a wayward teenager. Get the heck out of here. We’ll see you at the house in a little while.”
“No. Now.”
Lucas eyed him. “Please respect your sister and leave.”
“I’m not going to stand here and watch you dress. I’ll be waiting. I expect you in fifteen minutes,” Craig snapped. He stalked away, certain if anyone saw him, they’d see fury rolling off him and have the good sense to stay away.
“We may be more than fifteen minutes,” Lucas called out, his voice full of sleep and laziness. Amelia giggled.
Sweat broke out on Craig’s brow. He burst into a full run as if chased by hell. Whatever might happen next in that makeshift bedroom, he could imagine, but didn’t need or want confirmation. The sooner he got away, the better.
But he’d be waiting.
With a shotgun.
Lucas Dyer was about to get some old-fashioned coaching.
Chapter 20
An hour later, around the breakfast table, the most important people in Lia’s life, minus one, laughed and scarfed down scrambled eggs, home fries, bacon, and toast. The kitchen was made more homey by aromas from frying applewood-smoked bacon, Craig’s favorite. But he was nowhere to be found. With his car still in the driveway, he couldn’t have gone far. Lia poured orange juice into glasses and mussed with Megan’s hair as though she were a small child rather than a college student. Maybe one day, the two of them would be sisters-in-law. Giddily, she fluffed Megan’s hair again.
“Coffee?” Lucas asked.
“Coming right up.” Lia’s heart sang a melody, part Irish jig and part down-home blues. How she loved Lucas! The man was a package and then some. A tender and thorough lover. A solid man, always wanting to do the right thing for everyone in his life. He worked hard, kept his word, a handshake his bond. A farmer’s body, strong, lean, and sexy. The man drifted to the serious side a bit, but she would help lighten him up. Responsibility weighed him down since his first tour of Afghanistan. He never talked with her about the war or things that happened there.
She would find more ways to put smiles on his face. Just like the ones last night and this morning. She giggled remembering.
Together with Lucas, the posi
tive possibilities of life could light up the night sky.
She poured coffee into Lucas’s mug. He caught her wrist, smiled, and winked. “Thank you.”
She nodded, enjoying the sensations of being part of a family again.
“I wonder where he is,” she muttered, concerned about her brother’s absence. She set the pot on a trivet before sitting down to eat. If anyone minded that Craig was a no-show, it wasn’t apparent by their appetites.
Bang! Slam!
The front door opened and closed. Craig rushed in hoisting a side-by-side, double-barreled shotgun. He aimed it at Lucas. “Get up.”
“What?” Lucas’s fork, covered in potatoes, hung suspended halfway between his plate and mouth.
“Craig, what the heck?” Lia asked. Pushing away from the table, she rose and stood in the space between Craig and Lucas, who remained seated. “We’re having breakfast. I saved some bacon for you. This isn’t funny. Put the gun down. How do you want your eggs?”
“Lucas, outside.”
“You better not hurt my brother,” Megan shouted, fear flashing on her face.
Lia turned her back to her brother and faced Lucas. “Finish your breakfast. I’ll take care of this.”
“No!” Craig cried. “Lucas. Man to man. Outside. If you live, you can finish your meal. Amelia, the two of you have gone too far.”
Lia’s hands trembled. She reached for Megan’s hand when Lucas rose, dropped his napkin on the chair, and crossed the room. He left the house the same way Craig had entered. Craig followed him out.
“Seriously?” Megan said, standing up. “Make them stop. This isn’t funny,” she pleaded.
“I know. I know.” Lia swallowed hard, her stomach in her throat. Wrapping her arm around Megan’s shoulder, she made a fist with her other and released it. Was Craig drunk? Her stomach tightened. It was all too surreal. It had to be a joke.
She and Megan pressed their noses to the window. Lia shuddered. Uncertainty scratched down her back as the scene unfolded outside. “Trust me. Craig won’t hurt Lucas. He doesn’t have it in him. Let’s just pray the gun doesn’t accidently go off.”
