A few stops, and many baby gifts later, they arrived at the lodge. Cora was astonished at how beautiful the place was, set against the backdrop of the mountain landscape. The exterior was designed to blend into the forest behind it and it did that well but the glass in the windows made it stand out. She knew she was going to love her room if for no other reason than the view.
A rather unpleasant interlude at the check-in desk with a very rude staff member led to her apparent firing when she all but kicked Tessa out and the owner showed up, but we were soon ensconced in our own rooms. Hale Masters, the owner, sent up a bottle of champagne she couldn’t drink but also sent an invitation to dinner. That she could accept.
A quick soak in the tub told her that yeah she’d be spending time in the Jacuzzi later because it was overlooking the window and balcony, a scene that she’d be taking pictures of for her blog later. Maybe Sean would see it all the way in Ireland and would know that life without a lump was pretty fabulous! She knew she had some seriously wonderful friends and thanked whatever fate that brought those two women into her life.
For such a lump he sure had run a long way when it came time to being a parent. She was about to carry on with that train of thought but reminded herself quickly that she was on holiday. No more Sean! Sliding under the water, she washed her hair and got out of the tub. An hour later, she was riding the elevator down with Tessa and Kaia, a summery top of thin white muslin over a black skirt hiding her tiny baby bump.
Kaia and Tessa showed up, ready to go down and they joked about Hale for a while. Kaia and Cora teased Tessa mercilessly about him and she wondered aloud if the man with the startling and magnificent eyes was a shifter. The other two hadn’t seemed too sold on the idea so she dismissed it and followed them out of the door, giggling as they went along like teenagers.
When the elevator door opened, she knew neither Cora, Kaia, or she quite expected the sight they were greeted with. She knew they were all going down to have dinner with the owner of the Singing Stones resort but she’d had no idea he was inviting friends. Four gorgeous males stood there in suits and ties, ready to greet them. She thought they’d have been just as sexy standing in a sunlit barn with nothing on but boots, low-slung jeans and cowboy hats.
She couldn’t even grin; all she could do was produce a sound that came out something like “harrrrum”. She had no idea what she was actually trying to say but felt her cheeks go red as two of the men gave her huge grins and a wink. Hale, the owner, started to introduce the men, his friends and partners apparently, and Cora watched the two men Hale called Rhys and Knox. Yeah, those two were her type. The laughing, jocular way they kept whispering to each other caught her attention.
The taller one, but not by much, was called Knox. His eyes turned serious as he continued to watch her, the joking air disappearing as something else replaced the laughter in his eyes. Cora couldn’t define that look but it intrigued her. He was blond with dark brown eyes. His dirty blond hair fell into his eyes and she was jealous of his fingers as they drove through the silken strands, pushing it all back. Longish on top and short on the sides he had the hair of a model or one of those European soccer players that appear on the cover of magazines.
Cora controlled a sudden urge to make that odd noise again and looked at the other guy. He had the same dark eyes and a shaved head that gave him a sophisticated air rather than the creeper vibe it gave to some guys. She knew his name was Rhys and he was just as handsome. A little more serious than Knox but not by much.
Cora watched the men for another moment then gave them a tentative smile. Just what she needed exactly, two fellas to spend the night laughing with. Excellent. She felt more confident, stronger, the more she looked at the men. Not normally one to depend on men to boost her confidence she still felt her spine straighten as their gazes stayed on her and her smile grew stronger as well. She had to meet these two.
Hale carted Tessa off and the remaining three men walked up to the women. They all had brown eyes, just to varying degrees. She told herself that wasn’t unusual but her earlier thoughts about shifters returned. There was just something about them that was different from other men. And no, it wasn’t just that they had money, she’d met plenty of those over her 25 years.
Earth had known about shifters for a few months now but a lot had chosen to stay in hiding, not wanting to be singled out for attention of any kind. They looked like regular humans, there was no sign on their foreheads proclaiming their species or some other identifying marks that would make them obvious. Cora could understand their reasons for hiding but it would be nice to know who she was dealing with. And if this oozing sex-appeal was their only identifying factor then Cora was certain these were shifters. A whole group of them.
“I guess those two only have eyes for each other.” The one named Knox said with a charming laugh. “We’ll be on ignore for the rest of the night. I hope we can keep you entertained.”
For a moment she felt like a deer being stalked by a predator, the gleam in Knox’s eyes intent and hungry. Gulping she looked over at Kaia and couldn’t believe how relaxed the other woman looked. Kaia was a cool customer but seriously, these men were hot with just enough air of danger about them to be intriguing. Looking over at Rhys she saw the same look in his eyes. Oh dear.
Gulping once more Cora tilted her head to the restaurant. “Shall we?”
“Oh, sure, come on guys, stop drooling, the ladies are hungry. May I?” Rhys asked as he held his elbow out to Cora.
“Sure.” She said with a happy smile and took Knox’s elbow on her other side when he offered.
Sparing a glance at her friend, Cora saw that Kaia had tilted her head at the man in front of her. Cora thought his name was Zed. A handsome fellow but Cora was too enamored with Knox and Rhys to pay too much attention to the man.
Keeping her hormones under control during dinner proved difficult and Cora didn’t know whether to blame her pregnancy or the two men. Maybe it was a combination of the two. She wasn’t sure but she was having some seriously dirty thoughts as the men made her laugh with their antics over dinner. An ability to make her truly laugh was far more attractive than looks to Cora. And these two had game.
“So, Cora, you going to be here for long?” Rhys asked, punching Knox in the ribs as he tried to kiss his ear playfully. “I’m going to break his knees in three seconds so don’t worry about him.”
“Oh my!” She responded. “Should I start calling you Hopalong now?”
“Oh, I have to hop anyway.” Knox responded with a dirty wink. It should have made her groan in revulsion but she laughed instead. From him it was just funny.
“I bet. That ego is tough to carry around.” Her smirk was gentle and teasing.
“I know something else I’d like to carry around but we’ve only just met so I’ll be a good boy.”
“That might be a good idea. For tonight at least.” She broke out in a laugh as she spoke. “We’re here for two weeks. That might be long enough.”
“For?” Rhys asked as he pinched Knox’s neck. Knox’s reaction sounded as though the pinch was painful.
“For me to make a decision of course.” A smoky look from under her lashes had the men settling in their chairs, serious looks plastered on their faces.
“About?” He seems stuck on one word questions.
“On what to have for dessert for the rest of the week, of course. We women are notorious about not being able to make our minds up, you know? For now, I think it’s bedtime. It’s been a long day. But I hope to see you gentlemen soon. Both of you.” She stood, looking down at the men.
They stood with her and walked her to the elevator. Tessa had gone up with Hale earlier and Kaia and Zed seemed to be glued to each other. Cora felt a pang of happiness for her friends and thanked the men as they dropped her at the elevator like gentlemen.
“Thank you for such a lovely evening fellas. It’s been lovely and I’d love to do it again.” Cora stepped into the elevator as she spoke.
“Maybe tomorrow then.” Knox offered.
“Yes, tomorrow?” Rhys joined in.
Cora waited until the doors started to close to respond.
“I’d like that.” She said with a smile and a wave as the doors closed. She slumped against the wall of the elevator, her body still singing.
All night she’d clamped down on her hormones and not inviting them up with her had been terribly hard. She’d decided that maybe, if she was going to go wild, she might as well go full-on out of her mind. She couldn’t believe the men were so interested in her but they’d been like two bear cubs play and tumbling over each other all night. She thought perhaps a package deal would be possible and for once, she’d do just as she pleased. Maybe. If she didn’t chicken out. And if they caught on to what she really wanted, that is.
Smothering a giggle as the elevator climbed, Cora wondered if she could really do it. She wouldn’t tell them about being pregnant, they didn’t need to know that, for now. But if she could have her cake and eat it too maybe, just maybe, she’d take that chance. As she slid into bed after changing her clothes Cora smiled to herself once more. She knew it would probably never happen, it was just too far out, but she could dream about it if she wanted to. You could do whatever you wanted to in your dreams without being judged. You could also pretend two of the hottest men you’d ever seen really did want your attention if you wanted to. Tomorrow she’d wonder if they were just being hospitable but for now she could dream whatever she wanted to.
Chapter 2
Cora woke the next day to a bright summer morning, and stretched languidly. She settled back down into the snuggly pillows and thought how nice it was not to wake up to the overwhelming need to throw up. She put her hand on her stomach and felt the rounded place where her baby was growing. Smooth and warm the spot comforted her.
She hadn’t planned to get pregnant, she’d tried to avoid it but now that the baby was there she was happy. The initial shock had worn off and the idea had started to appeal to her. She was going to have a baby!
As her hand rested on her tummy her thoughts turned to the very vivid, very memorable dreams she’d had the night before. Dreams of being in bed with Knox. Then Rhys had joined them. Cora giggled wickedly at the things they’d done in her dream. She might be pregnant at the moment but that didn’t stop her body from feeling desire and need. And the things those men had done in her dreams, the places they’d taken her, the life they gave her, it was more than she could ever hope to have. She was almost sad that the whole thing had only been a dream.
A knock on the door had her jumping out of bed to see who it was. She wasn’t surprised to see Tessa and Kaia at the door, ready to go for the day. They waited for her to get dressed and went down to explore what the resort had to offer for breakfast. Cora smelled real biscuits, sausage, and gravy as she walked into the area and grinned. It was time to get her grub on!
She was happily stuffing biscuits slathered in gravy down her throat when she heard Kaia and Tessa smothering giggles. She looked up to see her friends watching her in amazement.
“Girl, you could always eat but dang!” Tessa busted out with a laugh and a pat on the hand to let her know she was only teasing.
“I stay so hungry lately! It’s ridiculous! Oh, and about that, can we keep things about the bambino quiet here? We’re only here for two weeks, no need to scare anybody off, if you know what I mean? Men get all freaked out when you mention babies.” Cora winked as she stuffed a piece of sausage into her mouth happily.
“I understand.” Kaia said and Tessa nodded her head in agreement. “You up for a hike today or are you feeling tired?”
“No, I’m good. Since the morning sickness stopped I’ve been fine, just hungry.” Cora responded, the idea of a hike appealing. It might work off some of her libido.
The conversation carried on for a bit but they were soon on the trail. Cora waved at Knox sitting with Hale at the table on the other side of the room before she left. She hoped she’d get to see him again later in the evening.
Cora was soon in a rhythm of walking, watching Tessa as she grouched her way along. Tessa was a little bigger than the other two women but quite beautiful and normally not a grumpy person. Cora wondered if Hale was on her mind and poked at her friend.
“Why are you so grumpy?” Cora asked her friend. Cora liked to face problems head on with her friends.
“I’m just tired. Where are we?” She started to look around and then looked over at Kaia. “What’s up?”
That’s when they figured out they were lost. After some shuffling around and discussion they decided to head back to the river so Cora could at least stick her feet in the water. Cora had taken off her boots and socks, sliding her feet into the cold river water as she sat on a rock when Tessa started talking again.
“Hale will find us.” She said confidently. Cora looked at her, wondering how she could be so certain. “He will.”
Cora wasn’t really nervous or upset, she knew someone from the lodge would come looking, so she didn’t panic. Kaia might not feel it but Cora did, she knew Rhys and Knox were coming so she waited patiently, daydreaming about pies and whipped cream, and other ways of using whipped cream.
Cora couldn’t really explain it but she felt unusually calm. The only one that didn’t appear to be calm was Kaia; the usually calm woman was pacing up and down the clearing so Cora tried to distract her.
“Kaia, Knox and Rhys, those two guys. Do you think they’re interested?” She asked with a hopeful tone.
“Oh they are. Very interested.” Kaia shot out, her pacing quickening.
“Which do you think I should choose?” Cora asked the question with a smile hidden behind her hand.
“Why choose one? Have them both my darling. You might as well. Men like that are few and far between. I’d take the opportunity given to you.” Kaia said as she stopped to give Cora a meaningful glance.
Cora’s eyes went wide as Kaia went back to pacing. Kaia said it so bluntly, as though it wasn’t a worldview shattering thing to do. Kaia was still pacing when the first sound of engines reached them.
Cora saw Kaia’s eyes go wide in astonishment before she turned away. Cora could only guess she was shocked the men showed up. Tessa took off with Hale immediately and Kaia jumped on the ATV Zed had brought. That left Cora with Knox.
She looked at the man shyly, wanting to be close to him but not wanting to make a fool of herself.
“Climb aboard the Knox-train, miss. We offer complimentary bumps and knotted hair, a bone-shaking ride that will make you feel like a human milkshake, and a complimentary bottle of water.” The devilish smile that accompanied his speech had her feeling wobbly as she walked over to the large piece of equipment he was sitting on.
Her normally wicked tongue, sharp but funny, abandoned her now and turned into a slug on the bottom of her mouth. She could only nod her head and smile as she climbed on. She could smell his scent, feel his warmth as she settled behind him. There was room enough that she didn’t have to cling to him, there was even arm rests, but her legs were still brushing against his and she wanted to giggle.
Clamping down on the urge Cora thought about her conversation with Kaia once more. She knew women sometimes fantasized about having two men at the same time, she’d been dreaming about that all night, of course she knew that! But would Knox and Rhys really go for that? Men were so picky, so afraid another man might touch them or that people would see them as less masculine sometimes. Kaia had said they’d go for it, how did she know?
What kind of man would do something like that? A confident one obviously. But one that trusts his friend, obviously, too. Cora looked down at her bare legs, and shivered when Knox’s hands grazed her bare calf. She only had on a loose top, a pair of denim shorts, her hiking boots and hiking socks. There were a good few feet of bare skin for Knox to touch there. When his fingers went back to her calf, grasping at the muscle before letting it go her heart started beating faster.
Yes, there was interest there. She most definitely returned it! Cora flexed the muscle as he continued to touch her. She didn’t protest, didn’t want to protest, but moved her leg closer to his instead. She hoped that he understood her signal.
He put his hand back on the grips and revved the engine. Cora giggled, her laughter stolen by the wind as they sped along a dirt trail. She loved riding the ATV and felt like her every care was blowing away with the wind. She sat up and wrapped her arms around Knox, wanting to feel close to him.
Cora really wanted to run her hands under his shirt once she got close to him and felt his heat but controlled herself.
“Just slip your hand under the back of his shirt, Cora. Just a little.” A little voice in her head told her. She told it to hush but it wouldn’t listen.
“Just imagine what it would feel like, smooth skin, and those tight muscles in his stomach. Go on, you know you want to!” She fought down the urge once more but couldn’t stop the images stirring in her brain. She imagined the way he’d tense and maybe grumble a little. She’d just slide her hand down, lower, until it slid under the button of his jeans down to his…
She stopped herself, her hands tensing on his stomach but over his shirt still. That was close, she thought, too close. Just stop that! But her fingers twitched once more, wanting so badly to move and touch his flesh. Knox must have noticed her fingers twitching because he growled, a low rumble that Cora felt more than heard, and gave the ATV more gas.
She could feel Knox laughing but couldn’t hear it. She joined him as they sped over the flat ground and rested her head between his shoulder blades. Clad in a black t-shirt and jeans, Knox reminded her more of the cowboys that she’d thought about the night before.
She could tell that the man was more comfortable in jeans and boots than he was in a suit and loafers but the man could wear anything and he’d make it look good. Cora liked that he was versatile though, and finally just let her thoughts fly away, deciding to enjoy the moment and not overthink things at all.
Professor next Door Page 27
