Need fisted his groin tight, but he pushed it aside. Not yet. Not until he tasted her and made her burst. He stroked her again, then removed his finger and blew a breath over her heated flesh.
“Lucas…” She stared down at him, need hooding her smoldering eyes.
And while he held her gaze, he leaned closer and licked.
She cried out and lifted off the stair.
“Easy, darlin’.” He set a hand on her belly and gently held her in place. “I’m just getting started. Then he drapped her legs over his shoulders, put his mouth back on her and stroked her plump flesh with his tongue.
She let out a low, throaty moan that throbbed straight through his erection.
“Don’t stop,” she rasped, shoving her fingers in his hair and gripping tight. “Don’t ever stop.”
Damn, he loved hearing her say that.
With his mouth too busy to reply, he held onto her sweet ass and curled his tongue to give her a different angle. That’s when she burst, her cry echoing up the stairwell. He lapped her up, drawing out her orgasm until she finally stopped rocking.
He released her and slowly drew back, setting her feet on the stairs.
“Wow, Lucas.” She smiled down at him, satisfaction warm in her eyes while her chest rose and fell, rippling with her labored breathing. “That was amazing.”
He kissed her knee, before he moved to fish a condom from his jeans. Those warm, glistening curves of hers beckoned. If he didn’t get inside her soon, he was going to burst just staring at her.
After rolling on the condom, he returned to her. She hadn’t moved. Just sat there smiling the best satisfied smile he’d put on her face yet.
But he wasn’t done.
He kissed his way up her warm body still trembling with aftershocks, paying extra attention to her gorgeous peaks, sucking one into his mouth and pressing it against the roof with his tongue.
She gasped, and gasped again when he kissed a path up her throat to bite the curve of her neck. So soft, and warm. He’d never tire of worshiping her with his mouth. Never.
She squirmed and clutched his head. “Lucas, I need you inside me.”
“Not yet,” he said, gripping the step above her as he captured her mouth for a deep, hungry, frenzied kiss. When they broke for air, he switched their positions. “I don’t want to hurt you with my weight.”
She smiled and kissed his forehead. “That’s sweet.”
He smacked her ass and smiled. “So’s that.” Then he gripped her hips while she straddled him and slowly lowered down.
Son-of-a-bitch. Now that’s sweet.
The feel of her slick heat surrounded him, welcoming him in. Nothing was sweeter.
This was what he wanted. What he needed. This total oblivion. His cares faded away. Nothing matter. Not his past. Not his dad. Just this woman and her total acceptance of him.
“You feel so good, Lucas,” she said, and hot damn, started to move.
She gripped the rail with one hand and palmed the wall with the other as she began to ride him hard.
Ah hell. He wasn’t going to last. He’d barely held on when she’d climaxed before. He was working on borrowed time. She just felt too damn perfect. Looked too damn perfect with her breasts bouncing wildly, eyes closed, mouth parted.
So beautiful.
He sat up, bringing their bodies flush, thrilling at the scrap of those peaks against his chest. “Evie. Look at me.”
She opened her eyes, and the impact of the pleasure and need spilling from her gaze rippled straight to his heart. Holding her gaze, he began to move with her, slowing their pace, using long, slow thrusts to take them higher, carry them to a place he’d never been.
“Lucas.” She moved her hands to his shoulders and blinked, wonder softening her features and joining the slew of emotions filling her eyes.
“I know,” he said against her lips, still holding her gaze, letting her see he felt the same.
Then need took over, and he upped their pace. He was done. She felt too damn good. Sliding a hand to her center, he found her wet and plump, and heat skittered down his spine while a tell-tale tightening in his groin signaled he was close.
She gasped.
And with nothing between them, and everything out in the open, he watched her gaze glaze over as he applied just the right amount of pressure exactly where she liked it the most. A second later, Evie called out his name as her walls clamped around him. Tight.
Lucas cupped her sweet ass, thrust up hard and completely lost his breath and bearings as he followed her over with the fiercest release he’d ever had.
When his vision returned, along with some strength, he lifted a hand to stroke her face, and watched her come back to herself.
And as the beautiful woman slumped against him, panting and spent, Lucas knew why he’d never found a lasting relationship in Harland County.
Because the woman with the key to his heart had been in the Poconos.
***
The day after Christmas, Evie was having a hot chocolate with Jenna and Faith at Jill’s shop in the resort, waiting to meet up with Lucas. They’d had a wonderful holiday, but the more times the cowboy had to leave her to go home, the longer the nights had become.
He was bringing Missy for her workshop, and she was hoping they could slip away for a little while to go take care of the horses again. Warmth spread through her chest just thinking about that special lunch they’d share.
In the weeks that’d followed, he’d been wonderful, giving, and attentive, both in and out of bed.
“I know that smile,” Faith teased. “You had another good day with Lucas yesterday, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
“I’m so happy for you.” Jenna reached across the table to squeeze her hand.
“Thanks. It’s incredible. For the first time in…well…ever, I’m looking forward to a future with a man.”
“But he’s not just any man. He’s the right man.”
“Exactly.” She nodded. “I can’t wait until you both find yours.”
A strange look crossed each of her friend’s faces, and she raised a brow. “Or have you already?”
“No.”
“Hell no.”
They claimed before sipping their drink.
“I’ve the feeling you’re lying, but I’ll keep my nose out of it.” The chances of her idiot brother waking up to see Faith as the incredible woman Evie knew her to be, were about as slim as Scott doing the same with Jenna.
“Hey, look, there’s your boyfriend now.” Jenna pointed out the window.
Faith nodded. “Yeah, you should go enjoy your two hours of uninterrupted bliss while you can.”
She laughed and stood. “Okay. I get it. I’m going.” She rushed out the door and spotted the gorgeous man wearing a black Stetson in the lobby.
He unknowingly caused a stir amongst the women passing by. She empathized. He was truly something, and when his gaze met hers, he smiled, and the shadows he carried lately disappeared from his face.
“Hello, beautiful,” he said, sweeping her in his arms for a kiss.
When he drew back, she smiled. “Wow. What was that for?”
“Me.” He winked. “You about ready to go check on the horses?”
Hell yeah.
“Absolutely.” She hooked her arm through his, and together, they walked out of the busy resort and into a bustling festival. “Things seemed to have picked up.”
Last weekend, it had been sort of sluggish when she’d manned the Martelli stand. The coating of snow that had fallen during the week lured the guests to the nearby slopes. But, Lucas and Missy had helped out and they’d had a blast.
She glanced sideways at him and caught him watching a young boy, laughing and throwing snowballs at his father. The wistful expression on the cowboy’s face broke her heart.
“You okay?” She entwined her fingers with his and squeezed.
He blinked away his melancholy, and smiled down at her. “Yeah, of course.”
&nb
sp; They walked in silence for a bit, and once they were farther away from the crowd, she decided to see if she could get him to open up. Dwelling in the past was eating him alive.
“You don’t have to pretend with me, Lucas. I know you’re hurting.”
He frowned, but said nothing.
“You want to tell me about your dad?”
He snorted. “I never had a dad. He let me go, but at least he wised up enough to be a good dad to Missy.”
“He was.”
His gaze snapped to her. “You knew him?”
She nodded. “He was a regular at the shop. My dad and Mr. Wyne went to school with him. He was a nice man.”
He brought them to a halt and tugged free. “Yeah, so nice he abandoned me and my mom.”
She shook her head, her mind unable to equate the caring, kind man who’d been there for her many times over the years with the one Lucas painted. “I don’t know what happened, but the man I knew, he’d never abandon his child.”
“Well, he did. Bought my mom a one-way ticket to Texas and never contacted us again. So, yeah, he abandoned us, because I don’t recall birthday cards or Christmas presents from him. Or my mom getting child support. She worked two jobs, and I cleaned out horse stalls before and after school by the time I was in the fifth grade.”
Her chest tightened, aching for the little boy he had been. It just made no sense. “Look, I’m not saying he tried to contact you, I’m just saying there had to be a reason.”
“Yeah, he was a piece of shit.”
She shook her head, her heart squeezing at the pain etched in his face. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault.” He swiped off his hat and thrust a hand through his hair
“It’s not yours either.”
He laughed without mirth and shoved the hat back on his head. “Who the hell else’s is it? Because the next time he had a kid, he didn’t send her and her mom away.”
No. She recalled Missy’s mom had died in a car accident when the girl had been three. Mr. Williams had been devastated. Family meant everything to him.
“I just can’t believe he sent you away, Lucas.”
The guy had been a responsible, hardworking pillar of the community. To accuse him of turning his back on his one-year-old son was like accusing her dad or Mr. Wyne.
“I hate to take your blinders off, darlin’, but he wasn’t the saint you believe.”
His gaze was dark and so cold she shivered.
“Apparently, he told Missy about me when she was ten. She said she wrote me letters and sent cards…but I never go them, Evie. Who does that to their own daughter? Tells her she has a brother, gets her hopes up. Even goes so far as to help her write the damn letters with one hand, then toss them in the garbage with the other when she wasn’t looking. Who does that?”
She didn’t know. It made no sense. “The Mr. Williams I knew wouldn’t have done that to Missy.”
“Jesus. He did, Evie. Missy told me she wrote them out, but I never got them. Who the hell else could’ve intercepted them? No.” He shook his head, resignation setting his shoulders. “He was the only one who could’ve made them disappear.”
“I don’t believe it. What does Missy think?”
He blew out a breath. “I haven’t said anything to her. She’s still under the impression he sent them.”
“Maybe he did.”
He muttered a curse and shook his head. “You and I are obviously not going to agree on this, so let’s drop it. In fact, you know what? You should probably go home. I’m not the best company right now. I need to be alone.”
And before she could reply, he strode away and disappeared into the woods.
Feeling as if the wind was knocked out of her, Evie sank down onto a nearby bench, her legs too shaky to stand.
What the hell just happened?
Did Lucas just walk away from the discussion?
Or them?
***
Nearly a week had passed since his heated discussion with Evie. Lucas had talked to her once on the phone, but it had been to tell her he had some evaluating to do.
But, God, he missed her.
Missed her smile, and her warmth. Being buried deep inside her. The way she had of making him feel as if he hadn’t a care in the world. That together they could face anything.
Christ. He felt as if someone had reached into his chest and scraped out his heart.
And the two times he’d seen her that week, when he’d picked Missy up from work, had salted the wound. Her gaze was no longer bright. She’d been pale, with shadows under her eyes. She was hurting, too.
He hated that he was the cause, but dammit, it had hurt that she’d taken his dad’s side. God, he’d never felt so betrayed in his life. Not even by his father’s lack of interest. Lucas just didn’t see a point in hanging out when he couldn’t count on the woman he’d fallen for to have his back.
And he had fallen for her. Hard.
That’s why her lack of support hurt so bad.
“Uh…Lucas?” Missy stood in the doorway of their living room, clutching a shoebox to her chest, the knees of her jeans a little dusty, her face dirty and tearstained.
His gut twisted. “Is everything okay?” He wanted to get up and go to her, but she’d only just started to open up recently. He didn’t want to scare her off. “Did you find the decorations in the attic for Jill?”
Jesus. He should’ve gone up with her. It probably stirred a lot of memories for her.
Guilt soured his stomach. He was an ass.
She nodded. “Yeah. Two fiber optic candles she wants for the New Year’s Eve party tonight. Mason’s on his way to pick them up.”
Ah, hell. He’d forgotten about the party tonight.
Apparently, the Wynes had a New Year’s Eve party every year in the resort’s big ballroom, similar to the annual Christmas party the McCalls threw for family and friends back in Texas.
He glanced at the clock on the wall and held back a sigh. Less than two hours from now. The last thing he felt was festive. And the prospect of seeing Evie again hurt his chest.
“So, uh…” Missy slowly walked over and sat next to him on the couch. “I think you need to see this.”
He frowned, taking the old shoe box she handed him. A shiver of trepidation shot down his spine. “Okay, what’s in it?”
“Just open it.”
With one last glance at her tearstained face, he turned his attention to the box and lifted the lid. Lucas sucked in a breath as his brain processed what he was seeing.
Son-of-a-bitch.
“They’re all there. Every letter and card I sent you.” Missy’s voice wobbled. “Now I know why you never got them.” She burrowed into his chest and sniffed. “I’d addressed them to Lucas Williams. Not Harper. I didn’t know you had a different last name.”
“Yeah, my mother’s maiden name.” He returned her hug and murmured something soothing while his mind fixated on one thing.
His dad had actually sent them.
A million emotions surged through him at once, and when he released his sister to riffle through the box, they grew overwhelming as he found letters and cards addressed to him that weren’t in Missy’s handwriting.
His father had tried to contact him, too.
Evie was right.
The beautiful, strong-willed gorgeous woman had had his back. She’d stuck to her conviction, insisting there had to be another explanation as to why he’d never gotten the letters. She had tried to help him consider another explanation, to look beyond his anger, but he’d been too stupid. Too damn stubborn.
And what had he done? He’d walked away.
He had done the abandoning.
Christ, I’m an idiot.
“There’s a letter in there to Dad.” Missy sniffed. “I think it was from your mom.”
His heart dropped to his boots, then bounced up to rock in his chest. Instinct told him it was important, and he rooted through the box. Lucas found the letter, and d
rawing on the encouragement in his sister’s eyes, he opened it.
It took him less than a minute to read, but he was damn grateful he’d been sitting down. He felt like a rug was pulled out from under him.
He’d had it wrong.
All this damn time, he’d had it all wrong.
“I’m sorry,” his sister said, laying her head on his shoulder after they’d read it together.
He blew out a breath, feeling slightly numb. “Me, too.”
His father had never known about him. Never sent him away. His parents had met while his mother was on winter break on a ski trip. She’d returned to Harland County, and two weeks later discovered she was pregnant. But never contacted his father.
Why? And why would she never tell him? Why wait until after her death?
The outside envelope was a registered letter from a Texas law firm. She must’ve written it and paid a lawyer to mail if she died. But the date on the envelope had been nearly eight years after her death.
His mind reeled with questions while his stomach lurched. All that wasted time…
But, for once, he wasn’t going to dwell on that now. He folded the letter and slipped it back in the envelope, then set it in the box.
Not yet. He couldn’t open it yet. The past had to wait. He needed to take care of his future, first.
“I’m going to read them, all of them, but not tonight,” he told Missy, who nodded. “We have a party to get ready for.”
He put the lid on the box and stood. “And I need to apologize to Evie.”
Chapter Ten
Evie tried her best to get into the festive mood, but it was hard when her heart was flatter than pizza dough without yeast. Still, she’d donned a floral dress, did her hair and makeup, hoping her family didn’t notice she was operating on auto pilot. If they had, they’d said nothing when she greeted them a few minutes ago after arriving at the Wynes’ New Year’s Eve bash with a smile on her face.
“Okay, what’s wrong?” Jenna pulled her aside two minutes later.
She sighed, knowing better than to try to lie to the sister of a cop. Her friend was just as observant as Jeremy. “Nothing I want to talk about just yet. Maybe later, okay?”
By then, she was hoping to have ironed things out with Lucas. What they had together was new, but too wonderful to walk away from over their difference of opinion on his father, and she was going to tell the stubborn cowboy that…if he showed up tonight.
Wine and Her New Year Cowboy Page 9
