“Hey, there you are.” Cade walked through the door followed by Damon. “Thought you’d be in the kitchen.”
Lexi gestured toward the refrigerator. “I was observing an artist at work. That woman knows her spatial relations.”
Damon smiled at Phil. “She sure does. Those windows went in slick as a whistle today.”
“Thank you.” It truly was refreshing to have a man appreciate her skill instead of dismissing her abilities.
“So, have you guys finished your beer?” Lexi went over and slipped her arm around Cade’s waist.
“We have.” Cade pulled her against his hip and nudged his hat back with his thumb as he gazed down at her with slightly boozy devotion. “I was thinking you and I might head out.”
“That’s fine with me. Are many people left out there?”
“Hardly anybody.” Cade looked over at Phil. “In other words, the coast is clear.”
“Okay.” She blessed the dim light because she could feel herself blushing. “Guess I’ll leave, too, then.”
“I’ll walk you out,” Damon said.
Cade rolled his eyes. “It’s just us chickens, genius. You don’t need a cover story. Plus Rosie’s the only one left in the kitchen. Everybody’s headed home or to the fireworks. Nobody’s going to question your behavior if you march out there and climb into Phil’s truck.”
“I think it’s sweet that he’s worried about my reputation.” Phil was feeling protective. She didn’t have all the facts about Damon’s life, but it certainly hadn’t been a bed of roses.
“Oh, me, too,” Cade said. “Except it’s a waste of energy in this case. You two can engineer it any way that feels right, but Lexi and I are riding on out of here. See you two in the morning.” He guided Lexi through the door into the kitchen.
“We’ll be on the job at dawn, Gallagher,” Damon called after them. “How about you?”
“Might be a tad later than that, Harrison.”
After they left, Damon looked over at her and held out his hand. “Come on, Philomena.” His voice softened. “Let’s go try out your sleigh bed.”
“Okay.” Her throat tightened as she put her hand in his. His grip was firm and strong. Somehow he’d managed to overcome whatever roadblocks had been put in his way and make a life for himself. What right did she have to mess with that?
They said good-night to Rosie as they walked through the kitchen. She didn’t try to delay them with small talk, and for that Phil was grateful.
She’d left her purse in her truck and the keys under the seat, as Damon had noticed and commented on this afternoon. He handed her up to the driver’s side, and she moved her purse behind her seat as he rounded the hood and climbed in beside her.
He glanced at her and smiled. “Déjà vu all over again, huh?”
“Except this time we’re really going to my house.” She started the engine.
“My cabin’s closer.”
“Yes, but Ty and Brant are staying in Cabin Three.”
“I know. I was kidding. Let’s get out of here.”
She put the truck in gear and had gone about ten feet when she put on the brakes. “Condoms. I left mine in your cabin, and unless you—”
“Put the box under the seat of your truck? You think I’d do something like that?”
She laughed and started off again. “I should have known.”
“Hey, if you don’t want people dumping condoms in your truck you should lock it. Oh, wait, that won’t work because you like putting your keys under the seat.”
“You are so damned observant it’s scary.”
“You learn to be when you’re fighting for your life.”
“I’m sure.” She gripped the wheel and wondered if he’d confide any more.
“I haven’t told you the particulars and I don’t plan to. You’ll have to trust me that I know what I need in my life. And that’s what I’ve created for myself.”
“I respect that.”
“I hope so, because I’m being as honest with you as I know how.”
“I appreciate that.” If he didn’t want to talk about his past, she’d honor his wishes. Her sleigh bed was waiting with clean sheets and the bedside lamp turned to a romantically low beam. “So let’s talk about something else, like the rec hall Lexi and I think needs to be built.”
“A rec hall.” He settled back in the seat. “Now there’s a concept.”
“The rec room is too small for the group we’re hoping to attract. And the academy probably will need some classroom space.”
“Yeah, yeah, you’re right. Now that I think about it, I can’t imagine the rec room filled with sixteen hormonal kids. I remember what I was like at that age.”
“And what were you like?”
He laughed. “I could say I was completely focused on sex, but then you’d think I haven’t changed at all.”
“But you have. I’m the one who went on the fake hunt for my keys. If I hadn’t done that, you’d have controlled yourself until tonight.”
“That’s true. You absolutely lured me in there, flipping your hair around and wiggling your hips as you walked away. No man with a pulse could have resisted that siren song.”
“Would you believe I’ve never acted that way before in my life?”
He was quiet for a moment. “Yes, I can. We have some powerful chemistry going on here.”
“Does that scare you?”
“Some.”
“I could turn this truck around and take you back. We don’t have to spend the night together if you’re worried about the consequences.”
“I said I was scared. I didn’t say I couldn’t handle it.” He turned to her. “How about you?”
She had no idea how she’d deal with their inevitable breakup. Although she wouldn’t let it take her down, it might be very rough on her. But she gave the only answer she could, because she wanted him so desperately. “I can handle it.”
13
THEY SPENT THE rest of the drive talking about the rec hall. Damon agreed it was the thing to do, and he and Phil were the logical ones to build it. And yet if he came back later this summer, they’d continue their affair. They wouldn’t be able to help themselves.
He was already in deeper than he’d ever been with any woman. Another week or two with Phil would strengthen those bonds. He couldn’t let her become essential to his life, but spending more time with her would make that a very dangerous possibility.
Philomena was sexy, smart, capable, talented, funny and creative, and...she had the power to ruin his life. If he had any sense he would have accepted her offer to turn the truck around. Apparently, he liked living on the edge.
Besides, the house would be amazing. He knew that without setting foot in it, because she was amazing, and she would have put her personal touch on everything. When he renovated a place, he made it gorgeous, but in a generic way. Putting a personal stamp on a house limited the number of potential buyers.
He was fine with that. He wasn’t even sure what his personal stamp would look like. Working with quality materials in neutral colors, he presented buyers with a blank canvas they could transform to their own tastes.
This cabin of Phil’s wouldn’t be anything like that. Her choices would be everywhere, and because he liked her so much, he was bound to like what she’d chosen. A sleigh bed. He knew what they were, but he’d never slept in one—or made love in one.
Sleighs made him think of Santa Claus, who’d never paid him a visit until he’d moved to Thunder Mountain Ranch. Christmas wasn’t a big deal to him these days, but maybe he should plan to come back to the ranch this December. Herb and Rosie would like that.
But he couldn’t come back without seeing Phil. This situation made him appreciate why Cade had stayed away for five years. It had taken Rosie’s apparent heart attack for Cade to overcome his reluctance to face the mess he’d made with Lexi.
“This is it.” Phil turned into a driveway that angled sharply up to a log cabin on a wooded slop
e. Light glowed from the front windows, creating a postcard scene, but she had to gun the motor to make the climb.
“This is a seriously steep grade. What do you do when it snows?”
She laughed. “Park at the bottom and walk up. It’s a hassle, but it’s a factor that affected the price. The driveway and the sad condition of the cabin gave me bargaining power. It’s the only way I could have afforded it.”
“I’ll bet you drive a hard bargain.”
She parked in front of the cabin and turned off the motor. “Depends on who I’m bargaining with.” She glanced at him. “With you I’d be a pushover.”
He couldn’t see her face very well in the darkness, but he knew how she’d look, her blue eyes soft and inviting, her lips slightly parted, her cheeks flushed. She wanted him and wasn’t afraid to let him know. “Same here,” he said softly.
“Let’s go in.” She unfastened her seat belt. “I’m like a kid at Christmas. I can’t wait for you to see what I’ve done with the place.”
He understood that kind of eagerness, but he wondered how it felt to have the same surroundings all the time. Even at the ranch, which he’d loved, he’d grown restless when things became too static. Helping the adults build Cabins Two and Three had helped, and he’d pitched in with the rec room addition, too.
He had to fish the box of condoms out from under the seat, so by the time he climbed the steps to her front porch, she was already fitting her key in the lock. She really was excited to show him her creation, and he was touched. “Great door.”
“I know, right? I bought it at an auction for practically nothing.”
“And a front porch swing. Never had one of those.”
She paused to glance at the wooden swing mounded with colorful pillows. “Found it at a yard sale. I love sitting out here and listening to the crickets at night.”
“I can hear crickets right this minute. Want to sit out here for a bit?” Sure, he had other plans, but they could make out a while on the swing first. He had a real hankering to do that, in fact. The swing looked very inviting.
“Maybe tomorrow night, cowboy. Tonight I want to show you my house, and then I want to show you my sleigh bed. After that I doubt you’ll have the energy to stagger out to the porch.” She plucked the condom box from his hand and shook it. “Savvy?”
He grinned. She was so damned cute. “Savvy.”
With that she flung open the front door and stepped inside. “Ta-da!”
He followed her in. As he looked around, he gave a low whistle.
“So you like it?” Her voice quivered with happiness. “I knew you would.”
“I don’t just like it. I love it.” He walked straight to the rock fireplace and ran his hand over the mantel, a plank of cedar with the bark left intact along the edge. The surface had been sanded until the finish was like satin under his palm. Whoever had created it had chosen to use oil instead of shellac, which brought out the aroma of the wood. He took an appreciative sniff.
“I made that.”
He turned to her. “Wow.”
She beamed with happiness. “So this is the living room. Not real big, but—”
“It’s perfect.” He began wandering around, touching the refinished furniture and absorbing the...what, energy? His California friends would say something like that. The room had energy. He’d always thought blues and greens were cool colors, but these seemed warm, somehow.
He had the urge to sprawl on the sofa and watch TV. “Remember when you emailed about going to watch your cop show?”
“Yeah, I do.” She continued to smile at him.
“Now I can picture you doing that.”
“The coffee table converts to dining table height so I can eat meals out here if I want to. There’s no dining room, and I like being near the fire, so I do that a lot.”
“We could, too.”
“Absolutely. I like to cook.”
He gazed at her. “You cook, you build cabins and you restore furniture. Is there anything you aren’t good at?”
“Tons of things. I’m not a very good dancer, and I can’t sing worth a lick. I’m horrible at Scrabble and although I like to cook, I’m not into gourmet dishes with a long list of ingredients. I can paddle a kayak but I never learned how to swim.”
“I could teach you to swim.” The minute he said the words, he wanted them back. “Well, except we don’t really have time.”
“I know. It’s okay.”
She probably understood that he hadn’t meant to offer swimming lessons. Gestures like that came from men who planned to stick around a while. But as he stood in this living room that was so her and listened to the list of things she didn’t do, he realized not a single one of those mattered to him. She was everything he’d ever dreamed a woman could be.
Well, except for the swimming. He’d become really fond of that since he’d moved to California. Surfing, too. But she could learn. Give him a few days and he’d have her churning through the waves like a pro.
But he wouldn’t have a few days to teach Phil how to swim or surf. Why even think about such a stupid idea? Because he couldn’t seem to help himself. She inspired him to imagine all kinds of scenarios that didn’t fit with the life he had now. And the life he had now was the one that worked for him, that gave him what he needed and kept the demons at bay...mostly.
“Now onto the kitchen. I refinished all the cabinets.”
“I’ll just bet you did.” He followed her into a kitchen with a mix of old and new appliances, something he’d never do in a house he was renovating to sell. But it worked here because this kitchen had something his always lacked—charm.
“The cabinets look terrific.” He opened a door here, a drawer there. The hinges were smooth, and the drawers glided easily. He wasn’t much of a cook, but he could understand why anyone who was would be excited to work in this space. The layout was efficient, and she’d used the cabinets and drawers the way he would if he ever had his own kitchen.
“I had to go with Formica instead of granite for the countertops as a cost-cutting measure. I may change that eventually.”
He glanced up. “So this isn’t all set the way it’ll stay?”
“Heavens, no. I want a different light fixture in here, a chandelier of some kind, but I haven’t found what I want yet. And I’m not sure about the finish on the cabinets. It may be too dark.”
“You’d redo them?” That boggled his mind.
“I will if it starts to bother me. And besides, I like changing things around. I may refinish the living room floor and stain it a little darker. I’m trying to decide if I want a screen on the front door. It’d give me a breeze but I don’t want to ruin the look of the door.”
“I know a company in California that does amazing things with screen doors. You can check the website and see what they have, but they’ll also customize one for you.”
“Pricey?”
“Yeah, but I get a discount, so I—” He stared at her for a long moment. “What am I doing?”
“Confusing me, that’s for sure.”
He scrubbed a hand over his face and sighed. “Your house is great, and I got caught up in the moment. Sorry.”
“I suppose we have to talk about what happens after this week, though. If we’re going to put up that rec hall, we’ll be working together again.”
“True.” He took a deep breath. This was getting more complicated by the minute. “I’m gonna want to be with you, Philomena.”
“I’m gonna want to be with you, Damon.”
“Can you accept the same parameters we have now? Lots of sex but no commitment?”
“As opposed to what? If I don’t accept those conditions, then I’ll be working with you all day and going home to my lonely bed every night. That doesn’t sound like much fun to me.”
He smiled. “Not to me, either. And speaking of that lonely bed, are you ready to show it to me?”
“Well, I was planning to give you a tour of the pantry and the coat
closet and the—”
“Later.” Grabbing her around the waist, he pulled her close. “Unless you had plans to seduce me in the pantry or the coat closet.” He’d been aware of a mild but persistent ache in his groin, but he’d ignored it so he could pay proper attention to her house. Now that her soft body was nestled against the source of that ache, ignoring it was no longer an option.
“I’ll tuck that idea away for another time.” She tossed the condom box on the counter and slid both hands up his chest, massaging as she went. “After we’ve explored all the options of my sleigh bed.”
“Mmm.” Leaning down, he settled his mouth over hers. Ah. His tongue found its way between her parted lips, and he shifted his angle so he could go deeper.
She moaned, her fingertips pressing, stroking. His cock responded with an eager twitch. The memory of the way she’d licked the drops of sweat from his chest earlier today would stay with him forever, and it taunted him now.
He lifted his mouth a fraction away from hers. “Got any wood for me to chop?”
“What?”
“I’m not sweaty enough, but if I could swing an ax for twenty minutes or so, then—”
“Silly man,” she murmured, capturing his hand and placing it over her left breast. “Feel my heart?”
He flexed his fingers, relishing the sensation of touching her there. All evening long he’d watched her and imagined how it would feel to hold her again, to feel her heart hammering against his palm. He grasped a fistful of the cotton T-shirt. “This needs to come off.”
She lifted her arms as he pulled it over her head. “But now we don’t match.”
“We will in a minute.” He tossed the shirt on the kitchen counter and started on the buttons of her blouse.
She leaned back to give him access. “We’re not doing it in the kitchen.”
He laughed and kept unbuttoning. “You sure are focused on that sleigh bed.”
“You will be, too, when you see it.” She rotated her hips against his.
He drew in a sharp breath at the tantalizing pressure she’d just put on his swollen cock. “I will.” He pulled the blouse from the waistband of her jeans. “But the contractor in me wants to test the strength of your counters.” And he lifted her up on the nearest one.
Thunderstruck Page 13
