Wild Hearts (The DiCarlo Brides)

by Heather Tullis

  He grinned. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you looking less than perfect before.”

  She smiled a little and teased back. “You’re not exactly in top form either.” His hair was a mess from the helmet and running his fingers through it.

  “I like it.” He scooped one hand through her hair and then down her neck to rest on her shoulder. “I like this side of you.”

  She shifted away, uncomfortable with the attraction rising inside her. She didn’t need to make any ties to anyone in the area. “You said you had some pictures to take?”

  “Yes.” He retrieved his camera from a pouch on the bike and started toward the snowy side road. It had been driven on, so it had been packed once, but the snow had gone a little slushy with the warmer weather and Delphi was grateful she’d put on boots when she changed her clothes.

  “I have to ask how you started riding motorcycles.” He glanced back at her. “You don’t seem like the motorcycle type. Especially not that old beat up Yamaha.”

  It had been so long since she’d had anyone she could talk to about Fallon, and Jeremy had been good about not mentioning Fallon to anyone before the Lawrence’s showed up. “It was Fallon’s bike. He worked for a full year in high school to save for it. We fell in love on that bike. I couldn’t get rid of it.”

  “Sentimental value then. That makes sense. And do you just keep it because of him? You recognized my bike right off. You must have caught the bug.”

  She chuckled. “I was always fascinated. I just didn’t dare show it until I met Fallon. It was another thing my mother does not approve of.”

  “If you were to replace it, which model would you buy?”

  “I like the BMW line. Yours, for example. Or the road bike. I’ve looked at a few others, but I keep coming back to those two.”

  Jeremy’s eyes smiled at her. “That shouldn’t surprise me.”

  “But it does?” she asked.

  “You’re full of surprises, Delphi. It just took me a while to realize it.”

  She followed him farther into the forest, feeling happy and a little confused. Her relationship with the guy back home had ended before she’d become completely settled in Colorado, and dating when you had a schedule as crazy as hers was problematic at best—even if she hadn’t been avoiding the problem of making ties here. But she was starting to think a friendship, of sorts, with Jeremy might not be so bad.

  They hiked for about five minutes, then stopped at a little pond where the ice was starting to melt in the sun. He snapped a few photos, then turned the camera on her.

  She put up a hand. “I don’t let people take pictures of me when I look like this.”

  “You mean mussed and a little sexy?” He snapped a picture against her protests.

  “Just focus on your newspaper pictures.” There was the charm again, but she couldn’t bring herself to be truly irritated about his meaningless flirtation. It had been a while since she had actually been attracted to a man who flirted with her. Not since she’d met Doug—and that relationship had ended almost as soon as she arrived in Juniper Ridge.

  Jeremy’s lips quirked into a smile and he redirected the camera, shooting some other landmarks. They hiked a little farther into the woods and he snapped pictures of various birds she couldn’t name, some strange furry creature she thought belonged to the squirrel family, ancient evergreens and leafless branches that stretched into the sky.

  “In a few more weeks the trees will start to leaf out, new growth will come up from the forest floor and all of this will look completely different,” he said.

  She looked at the snowy dirt road again, filled with slushy tracks. “Where does the road go?” she asked. It seemed odd that so many people were driving out that direction at this time of year.

  “Not sure. There are logging roads, mining roads and some people have old cabins out this way. They’re off the grid, but a lot of people prefer that.”

  She stared at him in surprise. “Seems weird to me. Why would anyone want to live without the Internet?”

  He chuckled. “It defies understanding, doesn’t it? Then there are the treasure seekers. Rumor has it that Manuel’s gold mine is out here some place.” He gestured broadly toward the north.

  “I’m not sure if I should be fascinated, or if good sense says I should walk away and forget where we are.” Not that she was sure exactly where he’d pulled over. It had looked like any other patch of trees to her. Delphi was familiar with the old story that Manuel had been in his mine, collecting nuggets over a hundred years earlier and returned home to find his wife and children had been robbed and killed and their bodies burned in their homestead. It had been used as a basis for scare tactics and sabotage to damage the hotel’s bookings the previous fall but she wasn’t sure she believed the legend, never mind the bit about the ghost.

  She checked her watch when they’d been there nearly an hour. “We probably ought to head back. I have things at the house. Wedding stuff.” Since he was shooting the wedding, he knew it was coming up soon.

  He looked a little amused. “Do you ever not have things to do?”

  “Not very often, no.” Between the sisters’ expectations and keeping things going at the hotel, she rarely got a full day off. “You seem busy enough, though, with what we book for you and the extra events and portraits. Not to mention keeping up with the guys.”

  He smiled. “You can always count on your bros.”

  “I’ll remember that, if I ever have any.” She felt herself really relaxing and regretted that their time was up, that she couldn’t skip wedding duty and just hang out with him a little longer.

  “You do. Four of your sisters are married to four of my buddies. They seem pretty protective of all of you.”

  Delphi nodded, feeling a little wistful, envying her half-sisters’ happiness. “They’re good guys. The girls are lucky to have them.” She knew all of the half-sisters and husbands had come through for each other when things got rough. They would, no doubt, do the same for her, but she still felt separate from them. Being in the other women’s company should have been comfortable by now, but it wasn’t. She knew that was her fault but that didn’t make it any easier.

  Not wanting to look at him, she studied her surroundings and broke a twisted twig from the tree beside her. It reminded her of a favorite tree in the park near her mother’s home where she used to go sit to be alone in the summer. She stuck it in her pocket.

  “How long were you married?” He glanced at her and added. “Tell me to back off if I’m prying.”

  She was tempted to take the out he offered her, but it had been so long since she had been able to talk openly about Fallon that it would be a relief now. And Jeremy had kept his promise not to tell the others. “Not nearly long enough. He got sick when we hadn’t been married for a year. A couple of weeks that seemed like a moment and an eternity at the same time and he was gone.” She sucked in a deep breath to help her master her emotions, and looked at Jeremy. “How about you? Ever been in a serious relationship?”

  Jeremy shrugged, looking through the viewfinder at a tree branch. “I thought things were serious with a girl in high school. She disagreed. Nothing major since then.” His camera clicked as he took several shots in a row. “You?”

  “Not really.”

  Jeremy nodded and took her hand, leading her toward the bikes again. Before they reached the street, he lifted the camera one more time to get a picture of a red and white winter bird on the side of a tree. “That’s rare. I’ve never seen one of those up here,” he said.

  A white truck drove down the dirt road, snow chains helping it gain traction. He pulled her out of the way so they didn’t get sprayed with slush from the truck tires.

  “Thanks. I wasn’t paying attention.” She looked up and realized he was closer than she’d expected. She could smell his cologne, and when her eyes lifted to his blue ones, she stepped back.

  “You’re welcome.” He kept her hand in his, leading her to the street.
“Let’s get you home before someone notices you went AWOL for a couple of hours.”

  Delphi happily snuggled behind him on the bike and soaked in his scent. Odd that she could find his company pleasant when they’d done little besides snipe at each other since her arrival. On the other hand, he’d been nice for the past few months. Very nice. Thoughtful, kind, considerate. Had she been so wrapped up in herself that she hadn’t noticed?

  Jeremy pulled in front of Delphi’s house, sorry their outing was over and wondering how he could get her back on his bike again. Soon. It had been an exhilarating two hours—some of the most care-free he’d had in weeks. If her laughs and hoots as they’d wound down the mountain road had been an indication, she’d started to unwind too. He’d never seen her like that, relaxed and talking about herself and her past.

  When she climbed off the back of the bike, Jeremy turned to watch her undo her helmet and pull it from her head, fluffing her hair, which was a little damp and matted. It was by far the most disheveled he’d ever seen her, but he didn’t remember ever being more attracted—and he’d been fighting the way he felt about her since the first day they met. That attraction, compiled by her father’s strong hints that he thought they would make a great couple, had been part of what pushed Jeremy to go on the offense to begin with.

  He set up the kickstand and removed his helmet as well, stepping closer to her. “Thanks for coming with me. It was fun.”

  “It would have been more fun if you let me drive,” she teased.

  “Not on the first date, sugar.” He stepped closer and brushed a tendril of hair back from her face, wondering if he’d get slapped if he gave into the nearly overwhelming urge to kiss her.

  She tucked her helmet under her arm, but didn’t move—closer or farther away. “Who said this was a date? There were no advanced plans.”

  “It was impromptu, sure.” He shifted even closer. She was taller than most women he dated, but even in her boots she was still a couple of inches shorter than his six-foot-one. Perfect for kissing. “But it qualifies.”

  “How many dates does it take to be in control of your bike?” Delphi tipped her head up slightly so their mouths were on the same level and her blue eyes widened.

  “I don’t know. I’ve never let any of my dates drive her before.” She wet her lips and that was the limit of Jeremy’s self control. He scooped a hand behind her neck, brushed his thumb down her throat and leaned in to cover her mouth with his.

  Her lips were soft and far more giving than he had expected. Sweet, as if she had just been eating berries. Her essence called to him, enticing him to more than the soft press of lips he’d intended at first. When her mouth shifted under his, tempting him to do more, he tipped his head and took it deeper, wishing their heavy leather jackets weren’t between them so he could feel the curve of her waist and hips under his hands.

  When she let out a little sigh of contentment, he thought his heart stuttered and he nearly dropped his helmet as he was swamped by the urge to pull her against him.

  A wolf whistle ripped through the air. That barely registered—it was the female hooting and laughter that brought him back to his senses.

  Delphi seemed to realize what was going on at the same time and she shifted back.

  A little more space enabled Jeremy to see Rosemary and Jonquil sauntering down the driveway toward them. He looked at Delphi the moment before she turned completely away from him.

  One part of him was feeling extremely pleased with himself for finally getting his lips on hers. The other part of him was really sorry it was over, and that her sisters were going to give her a hard time about it. He hadn’t intended to make her uncomfortable. He couldn’t care less if the whole town saw him kiss her, but she was a little more worried about what others thought.

  “Thanks for the ride,” she said abruptly. “I better go.”

  “No need to hurry off. The damage is done now,” he told her, snagging her hand. If he let her go, it might be a long time before he got her to open up to him again.

  “Yeah. I know.” She sounded a little aggravated, but she was turned toward her sisters, so he couldn’t see her expression. “Hey, what are you two up to, spying out the front window?”

  “We were starting to wonder what happened to you. Everyone’s coming over to help put together wedding favors in twenty minutes,” Rosemary said, laughter in her eyes. “And I believe you put yourself in charge of that, didn’t you?”

  Delphi muttered something under her breath and touched her hair. She pulled her hand from his, even as she shot him a wistful look. “I forgot for a moment there. I have to get cleaned up.” She turned back as she headed up the drive. “Thanks again, Jeremy, it was fun.”

  “You gonna go for a ride with me another time?” he called to her.

  She glanced over her shoulder. “Will I get to drive that bike?”

  “I’m pretty particular about who I let drive her.”

  “That’s not an answer.” She stumbled and turned back around, managing to get her feet under her before landing on the cement.

  Seeing she was okay, Jeremy decided to pretend he hadn’t noticed. He could still taste her kiss as he switched his gaze back to her much-amused sisters. “Sounds like you girls are going to have a lot of girly fun.”

  “We usually do.” Jonquil stuck her hands in her back pockets and smirked a little. “Looks like you and Delphi started the evening off right.”

  He let his brows quirk. “It’s a beautiful day for a ride.”

  “Yeah. It sure is.” Rosemary eyes bore into Jeremy’s. She glanced over her shoulder, but Delphi had already reached the front porch. “Just don’t play her, okay? I can’t figure her out, but I don’t think she’s the love-’em and leave-’em type you usually date.”

  Jeremy had long-since figured that much out for himself. “I’ll take that under advisement.” It stung a little that she thought he was just toying with Delphi, but he tried not to hold it against her. He didn’t know if this was going anywhere—didn’t know if he even wanted it to go anywhere—and he didn’t exactly have a good track record with women. Funny how that never bothered him before. “You ladies have a good time.” He slid his helmet back on and climbed onto his bike.

  The ladies gave him a quick wave before heading up the drive. Jeremy watched Delphi disappear into the house before he left, wondering if this would be a turning point in their… friendship? He still wasn’t about to plan a future with the delectable Delphi—she may not be the woman he’d expected, but wedding bells weren’t anywhere on his horizon. Regardless, he looked forward to getting her alone again.

  Jeremy had almost forgotten it was poker night, but he was reminded by the twelve-pack of beer sitting in his fridge. He checked his watch. Still half an hour before everyone else would show up at Gage’s but he was itchy and confused about his interlude with Delphi and dropping in unannounced on Gage had never been a problem before, so he grabbed the drinks and headed for his car. It would be dark when he came home, and way too cold for riding his bike.

  Ten minutes later he walked into Gage’s house without knocking. “Hey, I came to harass you before the others arrive. Got any snacks?” Jeremy called into the house.

  Gage was dumping paper plates off the counter and into the garbage can. He didn’t believe in real dishes if he could help it. There was some question about whether he even owned real dishes. “Nope. You’ll have to wait for the guys to bring those. Some of their women will whip up real food for us.”

  “Not Cami, I hope. I’ve heard horror stories about her kitchen skills.” He set the drinks on the table and moved to help clean up. It was their twice-monthly poker night, which Vince had affectionately named the future sons-in-law club when they invited Blake to join them the previous summer. Of the six men, only Jeremy and Gage hadn’t settled down with one of George DiCarlo’s daughters—though George had made plans for them with the two girls who hadn’t tied the knot yet. George seemed to have a knack of selecti
ng a man who was a terrific match for each woman—even if Blake and Lana had essentially chosen each other first, they wouldn’t have been so happy now without her father’s interference of stationing them in the same hotel. Some of the guys had known what George planned while the new hotel was being built, some hadn’t—not originally, anyway—but it hadn’t seemed to matter in the end.

  The title of their group had seemed like a funny joke at the time, but as each man joined the circle, he soon hooked up with one of the girls. Jeremy had been determined not to give in, not to even consider dating Delphi—he didn’t intend to settle down anytime soon. But those hints of vulnerability he caught in her now and then and the fun they’d had together on that afternoon’s ride, made him think that dating her for a while might be worth the ribbing he’d get from the other guys. Especially if the heat that had burned between them didn’t burn out anytime soon.

  Not liking where the thought led, Jeremy shoved it aside and turned to Gage. “I haven’t seen the quarterly statement for the ski resort yet. How did we do?” He and Vince each owned five percent of the ski resort/mountain biking/hot air balloon company that Gage ran for the ski resort. Gage owned the other ninety-percent.

  Gage shrugged. “Receipts were not quite as good as last year, but better than the year before. Maintenance costs were up, but I should still be sending out a dividend check soon. Why, you have big plans?”

  “Yeah, I need some new camera equipment. I want to try some new techniques with an upcoming wedding and need to upgrade.” He slouched in his chair. “If it’s not one business eating up profits, it’s another.”

  “Too true.”

  Vince arrived last, five minutes late and carrying a grocery bag with chips and salsa—so the guys were apparently safe from Cami’s culinary efforts. “What’s this I hear about you lip-locking one of our girls?” he asked Jeremy before the door even shut behind him.

  Every eye swiveled to Jeremy. He lifted his brows and stared down Vince, feeling defensive. “Yeah. So?”