by Lacey Baker
“Right. And then I just stayed. I can’t really say why.”
To that Drew had only smiled. A pretty smile that reached her eyes and made her makeup-free face look just a little angelic.
“I saw you and Preston at the bake-off. I’d say that’s as good a reason as any to stick around,” she told her.
“We’re just friends,” Heaven said, sounding a little off even to her own ears.
Drew had touched her shoulder then and gave her a knowing nod. “Friends with benefits are the best kind.”
Heaven didn’t respond immediately. She wasn’t quite sure how to.
“I’ll be back later with the flowers Michelle ordered,” Drew had told her before continuing out the door.
Now, hours later, Heaven sighed as she put down the chairs. Each table had been covered with a white tablecloth. In the center were floral arrangements in pretty pastel colors—baby roses and lavender were the first flowers Heaven identified. The rest she wasn’t totally sure of. She loved how the festive arrangements looked at any rate.
The scent from the flowers and the light breeze filtering through the air put a pep in her step and she heard herself humming as she moved along, unfolding chairs and pushing them under the tables.
Savannah came out with plates and napkins and silverware. Heaven began setting each place.
“I’m never getting married,” Savannah said, slamming a plate down.
It was a good thing it wasn’t one of Michelle’s famed Haviland china plates, but rather a sturdier china set in a basic white color she used for crab feasts and outdoor functions.
“Okay, did somebody say you had to?”
Savannah was very moody. Yeah, Heaven had heard men at the lab talking about women and their mood swings happening according to the calendar, but Savannah was the exception to the rule. Her moods could change in the blink of an eye. Heaven was sort of getting used to the frequent fluctuations and tended to simply go with the flow. Today’s flow was obviously agitated.
“It’s wedding season—that’s what Michelle said first thing this morning. Nikki has bridal magazines all over the place, like guests want to come in, have a seat in the parlor, and read about the latest wedding styles.” She huffed as she worked, slamming down plates and silverware, leaving the napkins alone completely.
That was probably a good thing. Michelle had gone through great pains to show them how to fold napkins; it wouldn’t go over well if Savannah messed them up.
“I guess it’s an exciting time,” Heaven offered, following behind each place setting Savannah left. She carefully folded each napkin and straightened the silverware beside it. “Getting married is starting a new life, leaving everything in your past behind and deciding to create new memories with the man of your dreams. I think it’s kind of romantic.”
Silverware clinked against the next plate. Heaven looked up slowly to where Savannah stood across the table from her. Obviously she’d said the wrong thing.
“Really? Are you thinking about marrying Preston? Because if you are, let me just stop you right there,” Savannah said, dragging a hand across her throat like she was ending more than this conversation.
“That’s not what I said,” Heaven tried to open, but Savannah was already shaking her head.
“Look, Preston’s not the marrying type. He and Parker wrote out their life goal list when they turned thirteen, and it did not include marriage. I know because Nikki and I stole the list and tacked it to the tree in Fitzgerald Park.”
More than a little confused by the jolt in conversation, Heaven asked, “Why would you do something like that?”
“Because the list also doubled as a sort of hit list for all the girls in Sweetland they planned to conquer before they were eighteen. We thought it would be pretty embarrassing. Instead the goofy girls whose names were on the list lined up at the house hoping to hurry along their slot in line.” She rolled her eyes after that, sighing heavily before picking up another plate.
“So all I’m saying is that he hasn’t changed a bit since then. The last time I was in Baltimore and stopped by his office to see him, there was a half-dressed woman sitting in his chair obviously waiting for him to return. Of course I kicked her skanky ass out, but that wasn’t the point.”
Heaven was almost positive Savannah wasn’t trying to upset her; she really wasn’t that type of person. Savannah’s emotions, good or bad, revolved solely around her; whatever anyone else felt or did as a result she had no clue of. So as Heaven had paused, her fingers going perfectly still with the napkin she held, the thought of Preston having sex with some—as Savannah put it—“skanky” woman in his office filtered through her mind. Something sharp pierced her chest, and she wondered if it was jealousy or anger that he’d do something so obviously juvenile and unprofessional.
“The point is that men mean what they say and they say what they mean. Women who don’t believe when they say they don’t want a commitment and definitely do not want kids are idiots!”
Savannah’s rant continued and Heaven struggled slightly to keep up.
“Not all men are like that, Savannah,” Heaven added when she’d snapped out of her own jealous trance and resumed folding the napkin.
“Men are idiots! All of them! And I wouldn’t marry any of them if I were offered a million dollars!”
Those were her parting words as she dropped the remaining silverware in a heap on the end of the table and stalked back into the inn. When Savannah opened the back door, the puppies came streaking out in a wail of barking, running down the steps before anyone could catch them. This brought another shriek from Savannah, who made no attempt to capture them, stomping into the house instead.
Heaven saw them coming and thought about chasing them but figured it made more sense to let them run loose for a while. At least until she finished setting the table.
To her surprise Coco ran straight to her, stopping at her feet and looking up expectantly.
“You’re not supposed to be out here,” she told her.
Coco fell back on her bottom, her tongue hanging out as she panted.
“And I’m not rubbing your ears, no matter how nicely you ask,” she continued while she worked.
Coco followed dutifully until Heaven was finished, and she finally sat cross-legged on the grass, laughing when the puppy plopped her head on her thigh.
“He’s a womanizer,” she said with a frown and rubbed Coco’s ears despite her previous statement. “He acts like he’s not, at least sometimes with me he acts like that. But his own sister knows what he is and she’s known him a lot longer.”
Coco jumped into her lap, planting her front paws on Heaven’s chest. Heaven obliged her by lowering her face for the puppy to lick her cheeks. Coco wasn’t the only one who enjoyed that.
“You’re such a good listener,” she said between chuckles.
“If you’d needed someone to listen, all you had to do was ask,” Preston said, kneeling down beside her.
“Will you do whatever I ask?”
Heaven didn’t know why she’d said that, especially since she wasn’t totally sure she believed anything Preston said to her at this point. No, he hadn’t lied to her about anything, and he hadn’t tried to deceive her, but wasn’t that what he would end up doing eventually?
“If it’s something I can do,” was his reply.
He reached out a hand to pat Coco, who had taken a defensive stance against Heaven’s chest.
“She really loves you now,” Preston continued. “You two make a good pair.”
“I think we’re kindred spirits, both of us trying to find our way and ending up together.”
“So you think you’ve found where you belong? You think you’re going to stay in Sweetland?”
Heaven shook her head. She had been thinking that, but she hadn’t told anyone.
“Ever since I graduated I’ve received offers from professors to help with their research or to cowrite papers with them. It’s a more solitary kind of work
but I could live anywhere and still make a living,” she said, looking down at Coco’s pretty dark brown eyes.
Everything on this puppy was a chocolate-brown color. At first it had amazed Heaven; now she was used to it and could tell her puppy from all the others.
“You can work here in Sweetland,” he said.
“I can. And Coco wouldn’t have to leave the town she’s used to. There’s so much grass and running room for her here.”
“You planning to permanently rent a room at the inn like Mr. Sylvester?” he asked with a little chuckle.
Heaven looked up at him and shook her head. “No. Actually, I don’t really have a plan. I’m just going with the flow for right now. And that’s something I never used to do.”
“What did you used to do? How did you come to this point in your life?”
She shrugged. “I did what was expected of me. I went to school, got good grades. I went to college and set my eye on a career. I came home and got a good job. That’s what they wanted me to do so I did it. No thinking required,” she admitted, feeling more than a little foolish for knowing what she’d done all those years was wrong.
“And what do you want to do now?” he asked, his gaze locked with hers.
Heaven tilted her head, watching as his eyes remained riveted on her. He always looked at her that way, as if there was nothing anywhere on this earth more important than her. And normally that look would leave her breathless, stunned that a man such as Preston Cantrell would even consider her that important. And in this instant, ignoring Savannah’s “Preston will never get married” warning, Heaven leaned a little closer to him.
Her heart thumped wildly in her chest, Coco shifting slightly in her arms. She couldn’t put into words what she was feeling and figured it may have some pretty bad repercussions, but try as she might she couldn’t stop. And didn’t really want to.
“I want to kiss you right now,” she said in the barest whisper as her face drew closer to his.
He didn’t speak. She hadn’t really thought he would. Certainly he wasn’t going to turn her down. No, Preston was too damned smooth for that.
He cupped her face, letting his thumbs rub along her cheekbones, his palms warm against the bottom half of her cheek. Tilting his head in the opposite direction he lowered his face to hers.
“Then kiss me,” he finally whispered, so close to her now that his breath fanned across her face.
If she blinked the moment would be lost; hesitation would settle over what was a blissfully lovely idea. So Heaven didn’t blink. Later she would realize she probably hadn’t even breathed. She moved just another inch and let her lips touch his. Soft, slow, then disregarding that idea, she took the dive. She opened her mouth over his, her tongue danced along his lips, pressing along the seam until he parted them and let her taste his tongue instead. It was a brilliant taste, all man, all sex, all day long. She suckled hungrily, anxiously until he moaned.
He pulled her closer until Coco got the message and scrambled off her lap and Heaven fell into his arms. For his part Preston fell backward, lying on the soft grass, Heaven now on top of him. They both took a reassuring breath before resuming the kiss that would take the temperature up about ten or twenty degrees.
She straddled him, rubbing her center over his thick arousal. He cupped her bottom, gripping her cheeks hungrily in his hands. They panted, trying hard to breathe and not break the connection of their mouths.
Heaven ached all over. She wanted his hands on her skin, wanted the direct contact of this man as soon as possible. His mouth on hers made her nipples tingle, her center throb. No matter how much she moved the burgeoning desire spun more out of control, with only one reprieve in sight. She nibbled on his bottom lip. He moved one hand to slip beneath the hem of her shirt, upward until he cupped her breasts. She gasped.
“Well, is this the type of entertainment The Silver Spoon offers its guests?” a shrill voice asked.
Heaven and Preston grew perfectly still. Turning her head slightly, Heaven caught a glimpse first of five-inch black patent-leather pumps, then smooth-shaven legs. Upward her gaze traveled until the full length of Diana McCann’s black-and-white full-skirted strapless dress came into sight.
This time her gasp was not of pure pleasure, but pure embarrassment.
Chapter 20
“I’m telling everyone I know to go to The Marina from now on!” Diana screamed when Preston and Heaven had finally gotten up off the ground.
“This disgraceful behavior is not what we want tourists to see when they come to Sweetland,” she continued.
“And it’s not what they’ll see when they come to The Silver Spoon,” Preston assured her.
Of all the people to be caught necking by, Diana McCann was the absolute worst.
“I certainly can’t tell from what I’ve just seen. And with her! Why, you don’t even know anything about this woman. She’s nothing but a tourist,” Diana continued, waving a dismissive hand in Heaven’s direction. “And she’ll probably be arrested by the end of the day since I’ve already signed a formal complaint for her assault against me at the bake-off. The sheriff is probably swearing out the warrant as we speak.”
Preston sincerely doubted that. Kyle Farraway knew exactly what type of woman Diana was as a result of the vicious games she’d played with his son Carl when she first returned to town. For his part, Carl had been swept away by an older woman, an older, much more experienced woman with a reputation that should have preceded her.
“You’re making way too much of this, Diana,” he said, taking another step toward her, being careful to keep Heaven behind him.
He couldn’t see Heaven’s face, but he didn’t have to in order to know she was made very uncomfortable by this scene. It wasn’t something he would have looked forward to, either, but Diana had to be dealt with.
“I’m only stating the facts. And when I have dinner with Steve tonight I’m going to make sure I recount this whole sordid tale for him. I’m sure there won’t be any issues like this at The Marina.” She folded her arms over her chest, tapping one foot in front of her as if she were waiting for him to say something else, or offer money for her silence. Preston wasn’t quite sure.
“Ms. McCann.” Heaven stood beside Preston. “We apologize for any embarrassment our … situation may have caused you. But this is not a reflection of the services The Silver Spoon offers.”
“Oh, I wasn’t embarrassed. I’ve seen this one in action before.”
Beside him Heaven stiffened at Diana’s words.
“Oh, didn’t he tell you?” Diana continued.
“That’s enough,” Preston interjected. “What are you doing here anyway, Diana? This afternoon’s function is private.”
Diana only nodded. “Right, just like that night we shared was private.”
To his dismay Heaven laughed.
Preston looked over at her as if he needed to confirm. Yes, she was laughing.
By this time Parker had joined them, barely using his cane as he walked in an almost normal manner.
“What’s going on?” he asked. “Diana?”
Diana surprisingly didn’t speak.
Heaven continued laughing. “Ms. McCann was just about to tell us how she and Preston spent the night together, some time ago I presume.”
“Oh, really?” Parker asked with an arched eyebrow. “You were with my brother?” he asked Diana.
Diana’s mouth opened, then shut quickly.
“Sure she was,” Heaven continued. “I think the story goes something like this: She wanted you, Parker. But since you weren’t paying her any attention, she set her sights temporarily on Preston. To convince him she was worth his while she did an impromptu flashing in the woods, I believe. Apparently her, ah, girlfriends weren’t as appealing to Preston as she anticipated and he left her standing there. Embarrassed to no end she decided Preston wasn’t the right Cantrell man for her, either. Is that what you wanted to tell me about you and Preston, Diana?”
She looked mad enough to spit fire. Really, Diana’s cheeks were so red Preston would bet he’d burn his fingers if he touched her. Her arms quickly fell from her chest and she clenched her fists at her sides.
“I don’t like you!” she spat. “And I don’t see what he sees in you. But the day you came to Sweetland was the day The Silver Spoon lost any credibility it might have had in my eyes. As I stated before, I’ll be telling anyone who’ll listen not to waste their time or money on this place!”
Preston grabbed her by the arm before she could stalk past him. “Be careful, Diana. Before you start this verbal war, think about all the things in your past and how they could come back to bite you and the hooks you’ve managed to sink into Steven Redling in the ass.”
“Don’t threaten me, Preston. I’m not afraid of you,” she told him.
“You should be, Diana. You see, I know the terms of your uncle Hugh’s will. I know you’re about to be kicked off that estate and that your ex-husband left you penniless. So if you don’t want me to cause trouble for you and your new sugar daddy, I suggest you keep any bad words about the B and B and my family out of your mouth.”
“Is that a threat?” she asked, elegantly arched eyebrows lifting with the question.
“It’s a promise,” he said in his most lethal defense attorney tone.
* * *
“One of you want to tell me what happened?” Parker asked. “And I’d suggest you make it quick because Michelle’s on her way out here to check on our progress.”
“She caught us kissing and threatened to tell the world this place is no good and not to spend any money here,” Heaven volunteered. “I would have apologized if it were anyone else, but I really don’t like her.”
Parker chuckled. “You’re not alone in that area. But maybe you should keep the kissing in your room, especially tonight. We already have a bride and groom for that.”
Heaven smiled at Parker. “Good idea. Another good idea is to go offer more help to Michelle before she comes out here giving out assignments.”
