by Croix, J. H.
“Lucy?” she asked.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I was enjoying your view,” I explained.
Their home was in a lovely area at the end of a road just beyond downtown Willow Brook. There was a narrow stream running along the edge of a field to the side of their home with trees in the distance and the peak of Denali visible above the tree line. The field was awash in color from the fireweed and lupine, bright amidst the misty rain falling outside.
Gloria cast a smile in my direction as she paused in her chopping to turn on a burner. Levi had inherited his rich blue eyes from his mother, along with his dark gold hair. Hers was pulled up atop her head with a chopstick as she moved about the kitchen.
Quickly pouring olive oil in the pan, she added the chopped onions to it and gave them a quick stir. The kitchen was large and airy with a picture window looking out over the view. A round table was situated in front of the window. An island served as a divider between the dining area and working area. It was clear that the kitchen was the center of this household.
Gloria had taken me on a tour of the house when I arrived, shooing Levi back outside to help his father chop and stack wood. I’d been briefly introduced to his father, Brad Phillips. His father had a quick smile, blue eyes and dark brown hair.
Their home had a large living room just across the hallway from the kitchen. A staircase in the center led up to a hallway with doors to four bedrooms. After the quick tour, Gloria had escorted me into the kitchen where she plied me with wine. I’d been happy for it, anything to take the edge off of my frayed nerves.
“It is a lovely view,” isn’t it?” she commented.
“Oh yes. But then it’s hard not to find a lovely view around here,” I replied with a little laugh.
Gloria chuckled. “So true. Where do you live?”
A perfectly innocent question. Normally, I wouldn’t think twice about sharing that I was staying with Levi. Yet, it felt funny because the last three nights had demonstrated beyond any doubt that I wasn’t simply staying with Levi as a friendly houseguest. Rather, I’d been as intimate as it was physically possible to be with him. The flush started at my toes, sending tingles through my body. I took a gulp of wine and tried to keep a straight face.
“Oh, I’m between apartments right now. Levi was nice enough let me stay at his place for the time being. I think he took pity on me and invited me for dinner tonight because I’m a terrible cook,” I offered.
Gloria stirred the onions again and rested the spatula on the counter before turning to face me. “He certainly has room. I’m sure you can stay as long as you need. This is a tough time to find a rental.”
“I’ll say. It’s my own fault. I got annoyed with my last landlord for trying to raise the rent too high. I should’ve been a little more strategic about that argument,” I said with a roll of my eyes.
Gloria grinned and shrugged. “I think some of the landlords around here do that just to snag the tourist money when they can. Levi mentioned you own Kick A** Construction with Amelia Masters. Is that right?”
“Sure is,” I said, a sense of pride welling inside. I loved my job, and I loved working with Amelia.
“You two run one of the best construction companies in town. I told Brad he needs to hire you for the new garage he wants to build. Mind if I ask him to check with you about that?”
“Anytime. Just let us know when. We’re filled up for this year, but it’s getting late to start any new projects as it is. We could schedule it for next spring.”
“I’ll have him chat with you when he comes in. He likes to take care of everything himself, but a big project like that is too much as far as I’m concerned. Back to you though, looking for rentals now is bad timing, but with summer winding down, it’s a good time to look for property over the winter. Anyone who didn’t manage to sell over the summer will be more willing to negotiate.”
“I’ve thought about that. I’ll have to figure out the best timing.”
Gloria nodded and then glanced over her shoulder when the kitchen door opened. I hadn’t noticed the steady sound of wood stacking and chopping from outside had ceased. Levi and his father stepped through the door. The moment my eyes landed on Levi, my low belly clenched. With his hair tousled and his cheeks ruddy from the cool, late summer evening air, looking at him set need to humming inside of me.
The crisp scent of spruce gusted into the kitchen as his father closed the door behind them. Levi carried a woodsy, musky odor with him. His scent was pure octane to the lust that burned inside of me whenever he was near.
Don’t be silly Lucy. You can’t be sitting here lusting after him in front of his parents.
My body’s response was swift. Sure I can. You can’t talk me out of it.
The battle between my mind and body was raging these days. I took another sip of wine, willing myself to ignore the need spinning through my veins.
Gloria stirred the onions again before looking back to Levi and his father. “Well boys, is all the wood stacked?”
Levi’s father tossed his work gloves in a basket by the door and hung his jacket, kicking his boots off in unison with Levi. He stepped to Gloria’s side and dropped a kiss in the curve of her neck, only then answering. “Of course it is.”
“We moved all of it under the woodshed, and I also filled the rack out on the porch. You’re ready for winter,” Levi added.
Gloria grinned as Levi stepped past her to open the refrigerator and pull out a beer. “Need one, Dad?” he called over his shoulder.
“Sure thing,” Brad replied, slipping onto a stool beside the kitchen island.
Levi spun back to the refrigerator, handing his father a beer and then walking to the table to slide into a chair at an angle across from me. His eyes met mine as he arched a brow. I hoped he couldn’t tell I was wrestling with my almost constant desire for him.
Ignoring the heat on my cheeks, I smiled. “How was it?”
How was it? He was stacking wood. How could it be? Oh shut up.
I scolded my inner critic to stop nitpicking everything I said.
“Safe to say between work earlier and this, I’ll sleep well tonight,” he said with a grin before glancing to his father. “Hey Dad, you should talk to Lucy about the garage.”
His eyes flicked back to me. “Dad wants a garage, so I told him he should have you and Amelia take care of it for him. Maybe next spring.”
Before I could reply, his father was joining us at the table. “Gloria won’t let me build it myself. She says the project is too much,” Brad explained with a wry grin. “Honestly, she’s probably right. I’m not as young as I used to be. I’d love to set up a time to chat with you and Amelia about getting the project on your schedule for next year.”
“Of course. Amelia usually handles the planning upfront. I’ll have her give you a call. We can slot you in for next spring. Sound good?”
“Sure does,” he offered.
Levi’s eyes caught mine, the heat banked there hot enough to singe me from across the table. Restless and flushed, I stood abruptly and excused myself to go to the restroom. I splashed cold water on my face and held my wrists under the water—anything to cool me down.
I stared at my reflection in the mirror. My cheeks were flushed, and my hair had come loose from its ponytail, tendrils dangling around my face. After drying my hands, I smoothed my hair back and took a deep breath, fortifying myself to get through dinner with Levi’s parents without looking like a foolish, lovesick girl. It didn’t help matters at all to know, deep down in the parts of my heart I’d kept locked away, that I might just be that.
When I returned to the kitchen, Gloria was serving plates with caribou and sautéed onions and mushrooms in gravy over rice. It was absolutely delicious. I glanced over to her between bites.
“This is amazing,” I offered.
Levi caught my eye and winked before glancing to his mother. “Lucy’s not much of a cook.”
“I already fessed up,” I added with a grin. �
�I figured you invited me over tonight out of pity.”
“Of course not. It was for the company, but I did know if I didn’t you’d probably eat soup out of a can for dinner.”
Gloria gasped. “Soup out of the can?” she asked, her tone disbelieving
I shrugged sheepishly. “My mother wasn’t much of a cook, and I’m not either.”
“How is your mother?” Gloria asked conversationally.
“I haven’t seen her in a few weeks. I didn’t…”
My words trailed off because I was slightly confused to have Gloria ask about my mother.
“She and I are in a knitting group together,” Gloria added, as if guessing my train of thought.
That was news to me. Though my mother hadn’t cooked much, the one domestic thing she did was knit. It sounded as if she’d expanded her social circle more than I’d known. I kept my expression controlled and polite. I didn’t want the awkwardness of my not-so-close relationship with my mother to be obvious. I wondered if Gloria knew I was a largely absent daughter as pangs of guilt stabbed at me.
“I didn’t know you knew her well,” I offered, uncertain what else to share.
Gloria nodded and smiled as she took a sip of wine. “Well, I’ve only just gotten to know her this last year. Janet started that knitting group and badgered me into it. Really, I don’t know why we say we knit. It’s mostly an excuse to get together, but that’s how I met your mother. She’s so proud of you.”
I was suddenly slammed with curiosity. I didn’t dare to pelt Gloria with my questions, so I nodded politely and smiled, relieved when Levi’s father began asking questions about my opinion on what he wanted to do with the garage.
Conversation carried on, the moment that was likely awkward solely for me passing. Dinner with Levi’s parents was comfortable and relaxed. I was more relaxed than I ever could’ve imagined I’d be having dinner with any man’s family.
I oddly liked it, and I shied away from thinking about that. After we finished and Gloria was swatting the rest of us away from helping her clean up, she commented to Levi, “I told Lucy I was sure you’d let her stay as long as she needed over the winter. I think she should find some property and build anyway. Anything else is wasting money around here.”
A flash of heat raced through me. I couldn’t believe she had volunteered Levi to let me stay at his place for the entire winter. I almost spit out the sip of wine I’d just taken. Levi’s eyes flicked to mine, a subtle gleam in them.
“Of course she can. I told her she could stay as long as she needs. Why don’t you just plan on it?” he asked conversationally.
Talk about awkward. There was no polite way for me to respond, especially not with the heat burning in Levi’s gaze sending sparks flying through me.
“I’ll play it by ear and see what happens,” I managed with a polite smile, willing the flush away from my cheeks even though I knew it was futile.
What I didn’t dare say was there was this crazy little part of me—a crazy part that had suddenly gotten vocal—that was practically jumping up and down with joy. A whole winter staying at Levi’s would be heaven, pure heaven. I’d pretty much given up trying to talk myself out of the idea that I could get him out of my system.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Levi
Later that night, I rolled my truck to a stop, glancing in my rear view mirror as Lucy’s headlights reflected in the driveway behind me. It wasn’t quite dark yet. Dinner at my parents generally didn’t run too late. I turned my engine off and climbed out, walking around to meet Lucy once her truck rolled to a stop beside mine.
Her cheeks were flushed, and her hair windblown. Before we left, my father had insisted on taking her on a walk through my mother’s gardens. He liked to show them off because he knew how much my mother loved them. She grew everything that could be grown in this part of Alaska, from vegetables to apple and cherry trees to perennials scattered about the property.
Lucy looked up at me once she closed the truck door behind her. “That was nice. Thanks for inviting me,” she said simply.
My body was an engine on high idle whenever she was near. I couldn’t be around her and not want her. In fact, I’d had to will my cock into submission in front of my parents.
I was fully expecting a phone call from my mother tomorrow. Perceptive as she was, I didn’t doubt for a minute she’d picked up on the vibration between Lucy and me.
My father had straight up asked me about Lucy, starting off with, “So you like her a lot, then?”
My dad wasn’t one to mince words, or avoid a topic. I’d considered not saying anything, but it seemed silly when he knew me so well. So I’d fessed up and told him the plain truth—she was the first woman I’d ever met who made me think about what he’d said to me all those years ago—that I’d know when I met the right woman.
He’d smiled slowly, his eyes warm. “Not too hard to see why. She’s a lovely girl. Tough one though.”
When I asked him what he meant, he simply said, “You’re going to have to earn her.”
I replayed his words as I looked at Lucy and considered that I was half in love with her already. She’d slipped into my heart, and I hadn’t even been trying to defend it. It was that fast and that easy, and I knew it in my bones. I just needed to not screw it up.
* * *
We stared at each other in the wispy light of dusk. The sky was almost dark, faded pink streaks from the last of the sun’s glory disappearing with the stars and the moon. I stepped to her, catching her hand in mine and reeling her to me.
I meant to say something, but I didn’t. The moment she was close, she tensed briefly. She was wound so tightly most of the time, and I wanted her to know she could let her guard down with me. I brushed her hair back from her face and slid my hand down her spine, careful not to jostle her wrist.
She noticed, her eyes catching mine as her sky blue gaze darkened. “It doesn’t hurt. You don’t have to be careful.”
There was a hint of a smile teasing her lips, letting me know she wasn’t annoyed. A damn miracle.
I lifted a shoulder in a slow shrug and dipped my head, my lips feathering across her cheek. I was simply unable to resist the urge to touch her.
“Maybe not, but there’s nothing wrong with being careful.” My next words slipped out unbidden. “Just let me take care of you.”
A thrum of tension rippled through her body before she sighed softly. I dipped my head lower, dusting kisses along her neck. Her tension melted as she went soft against me, her good arm sliding around my waist.
I meant to take it slow. But then her tongue tangled sensuously with mine and her hand slid under my shirt to explore my chest. Her touch was like lightning, sending streaks of electricity shimmering on the surface of my skin everywhere she touched. Our kiss went wild. My hand tangled in her hair while I slid the other down her spine to cup her lush bottom, pulling her tight against my arousal.
Lucy drove me insane. I was hanging onto a thin thread of control. After hours of trying to contain my desire, need was lashing at me.
I lifted her against me. Her legs curled easily around my hips as she wrapped her arms around my neck. Her gasps and breathy moans spurred me on. Hell if I knew how, but I managed to walk with her kissing me. I needed her more than air. Our kiss was a hot, wet tangle.
Thank fuck she was lightweight. I managed to get up the stairs and through the door without sending us both tumbling to the ground. Kicking the door shut behind me, I spun around. For a beat, I worried I was too rough when I heard the door rattle as her back slammed against it. I started to pause and draw away.
“Oh God, don’t go gentle on me,” she muttered, her voice husky.
Another deep, electrifying kiss and then she was shimmying down from my hold and tearing my jeans open. Before I could scramble to take control, she shoved my briefs down and spun around, pushing me against the door.
Her hand curled around my cock as it sprang free. I groaned, my cock rock hard
with need, pre-cum dripping and running down the tip. I looked down at her, her hair a wild tangle around her face, her cheeks flushed and her lips swollen.
Her tongue darted out as she drew it in a swirl around the tip of my cock, swiping up the drop of cum, a sly smile claiming her lips. My knees almost buckled. I brushed her hair back from her face, barely hanging on to my control as she drew me into her mouth.
With the warm, wet suction of her mouth drawing me in and out, her hand curling around the base of my cock, and her wet grip sliding in rhythm with her mouth, she pushed me close to my breaking point. I thundered toward my release faster than I wanted.
“Lucy, I need…”
Whatever I meant to say was lost in the wave of pleasure crashing over me as I came in her mouth. She drank in my release, drawing back as I sagged against the door.
Her tongue swiped across her lips, sending another lash of need through me. I didn’t think I would ever get enough of her. I drew her up, lifting her against me. I meant to take her upstairs, to make love to her properly. But she was having none of that.
She tugged at my shirt, almost knocking me off balance. Easing her down beside the couch with a laugh, I yanked off her clothing, tearing her blouse open and shoving her jeans down over her hips. I was still surprised every time I saw her underwear—tonight they were bright pink cotton.
I reached between her thighs to find the cotton soaked and sticky with her arousal. I dragged my fingers across the fabric, savoring the hiss of her breath. Biting her lip with a grin, she glanced to me. I stared at her as she stood before me, her shirt hanging open, her nipples taut against the silk of her bra. Leaning forward, I laved my tongue across the silk and over the tight little bead. She cried out, arching into me, and I couldn’t wait. I needed her bare. Flinging her bra off and shoving her panties down, I spun her around where we stood. Kicking the pink cotton loose from her ankle, her hands curled over the back of the sofa.
With need roaring through me, the sweet arch of her spine and the sight of her lush ass nearly did me in.
