Vincent gave her a wry smile. “I didn’t see it that way. Sure, it was scary at the time, but it told me how much you cared about him. And it gave me a little hope.”
She gulped as she looked up at him, unable to take that hope away from him by reminding him she hadn’t made her choice yet. Maybe she had already. She knew she shouldn’t say more until she’d had time to get alone with her legal pad and map out all the reasons to stay in Divine and all the reasons to go to Abilene.
It was probably a good thing she had Presley Ann to get home because she knew if he gazed at her with those bedroom eyes again, surrounded only by moonlight, with his equally attractive brother at his side, she’d go home with them if they asked.
Presley Ann laughed softly at something James said to her as they exited the community center and headed toward her car. Leah bristled a little on the inside, mostly out of habit, because Presley Ann was paying attention to a man she loved…cared about. Once again, Leah had to remind herself that she didn’t have the right to lay claim to James any more than she did to Vincent.
“You keep coming to the classes, Presley Ann, and we’ll get some more practice in. It’s good to see you doing so well these days.”
Presley Ann smiled at him and then turned to Leah. “I’m sorry I kept you waiting. Do you think we can come back next week for the second class?”
Leah frowned, wondering in a knee-jerk reaction what her sister’s real motivation was.
Vincent smiled at her and said, “I hope you both do. Doll, next time I’ll wear my riot gear.” Laughter bubbled from her as he leaned down and kissed her on the lips and whispered, “The woman I love builds people up even when she’s struggling herself.”
As Vincent went around the car to shake Presley Ann’s hand and open the passenger side door for her, James drew closer. “You okay, honey?”
“Sure. Vincent told me that you’re having a visitor on Saturday.”
He nodded as he studied her face. “Did he invite you to come?”
“Yes. I think I might…”
He caressed the edge of her jaw. “Only if you feel up to it and if it doesn’t interfere with your schedule. We’d love to have you.”
“I may have this Saturday off. I’ll have to see.” She didn’t really abide by a schedule much, at least as far as taking time off was concerned. “Because I was away for three days, I have work to get caught up on but…”
James just raised an eyebrow and didn’t say anything else. She already knew how he felt about her long hours.
“He’ll be arriving around midafternoon and we’re planning on making supper at our place. You can come for all or part of that time, and you’re welcome to stay after he leaves, too.”
He capped that final hopeful-sounding note off with a kiss that was both tender and wanting, and then pulled away just as her heart started pounding and need bloomed to life inside her. Yeah, it was good thing she had to take her sister home or she’d be making crazy decisions right there in the parking lot.
Both men waved as she started her car and waited for her to drive off before turning to their own trucks.
“James and Vincent are nice,” Presley Ann said as she adjusted her seat belt.
“Yeah,” she murmured softly in reply. “They are.”
“They love you.”
She didn’t hear any whiny notes of jealousy in Presley Ann’s voice but wondered what her purpose was in saying that. “Think so?”
“Yeah, I have for a while. When they say good night to you, it sounds like they don’t want to say good night. Do they know you’re considering moving to Abilene?”
“Yeah,” Leah said and cleared the lump in her throat as she tried to imagine doing exactly that.
“You’ll be breaking their hearts if you do. Do you love them?”
“Hush now.”
Presley Ann gently touched Leah’s forearm. “I know I haven’t done much in my lifetime to earn your respect or affection. I was spoiled and rotten, and horrible to you but I do know what love looks like, and what it feels like,” she said, placing a hand on her abdomen. “And if you lose them from your life, you’ll never be the same. You’ll have regrets to live with, just like I do. Do you love them?”
The lump in her throat kept her from speaking so she nodded and quickly swiped a tear from her cheek.
“Well, then, sis, you’re crazy if you leave, because they’d give you the moon and the stars and everything they had.”
She’d set out to make a rational, well-thought-out, professional decision based on the facts but even her normally troublesome sister was making sense. The rest of the drive was made in silence with only her own thoughts to torment her.
Chapter Thirteen
“Find the missing piece, fluff,” he whispered as he held Leah close. She opened her eyes and her vision was distorted by the sun shining brightly on her face, but it didn’t hurt her eyes as she blinked, trying to focus them. The scent of fresh spring grass and other verdant things filled the air.
“Find the missing piece, fluff,” he whispered as he pressed his lips and his nose against her throat. “You smell so good.” His lips were supple and warm as he nuzzled her.
She tried to lift her hand to touch his face, to shield her eyes, so she could see him but her arms remained immobile.
The sound that came from his throat was a cross between a purr and a growl and her pussy quivered with need as he slowly licked and sucked at her tender flesh, sending shivers racing over her bare skin.
“The missing piece, fluff. Find it,” he whispered as he caressed her cheek. She wanted to turn her head so she could kiss his hand but her head remained loose, lying on the soft cushion of grass. He spread kisses lower, between her breasts, a soft groan coming from his lips before he uttered, “You’re so beautiful.”
The flurries of pleasure on the verge of exploding shimmered in her pelvis and she moaned, ready to beg for him to suck her nipples but her voice was stuck in her throat. As if reading her mind, he lifted a hand and squeezed one of her breasts. “So luscious. The perfect size for my hand.” His hot mouth encircled her nipple and the gentle tug accompanied by the soft lapping of his tongue sent her straight to the edge of orgasm. She hung there teetering and panting, waiting for what he’d do next, no longer struggling to move.
“Find the missing piece, fluff,” he murmured as he released her nipple and dragged his chin, with its neatly trimmed beard down her midline past her belly button, straight to her pussy.
One more touch was all it’d take.
“Mmmm,” he hummed and inhaled deeply. “So precious and delicate, fluff.” Warm breath drew a gasp from her a second before his tongue parted her pussy lips. He delved within, slipping into the slick juices welling from her opening all the way up to her clit, and a wild cry tore loose from her throat. The orgasm raged through her like a storm and her body arched and her heart pounded as rapture rained down on her in wave after wave.
“Find the missing piece, fluff,” his voice echoed and the dreamscape shimmered all around her, the sensation of his warm, damp lips on her hip bone the last thing she felt as she struggled to move, to reach for him and finally succeeded, only to find that it was the covers and her body pillow that she was holding on to.
“Patterson!” she cried out into the pale dawn, her body still throbbing from her orgasm, but she was alone.
She flopped on the bed and closed her eyes, drew the covers over her and tried fruitlessly to recapture the feeling of his hands on her body, his lips, his mouth, and his tongue. She arched her back and even though it’d only been a dream, she luxuriated in the way her body hummed. Her wet pussy tingled, and if he’d actually been there, she would’ve begged for him to take her. Her eyes grew misty. “Patterson, I wish you were here so much. I miss you.” The ache was there but it wasn’t debilitating like before.
Full wakefulness came as she recalled his words. “Find the missing piece, fluff.”
She pondered what her subc
onscious was trying to tell her. What he was trying to tell her. Was this a commentary about her life and the fact that she was currently only living a half-life because of her career? Was it disquiet in her own heart for finally finding those missing pieces of crystal only to pack them away with the rest of her collection, hidden away in boxes where she couldn’t see them or enjoy them? Had the repetitive, excruciating nightmares been a vain attempt to hold on to him, no matter how painful?
“At least it was a different dream and I didn’t wake up crying.” On the contrary, she woke up fresh from an orgasm she’d dreamed Patterson had given her and it hadn’t inspired tears. Instead, she actually felt like getting up, facing the day.
“No—seizing the day, damn it.”
She sang in the shower for the first time in she didn’t know how long, and it was a George Strait tune, too.
She turned on music while the coffeepot gurgled and sang along with Florida Georgia Line and Luke Bryan to “This Is How We Roll” as she fixed her breakfast. She tried to dance sexy like Grace and Charity but gave up when the moves just didn’t come easy to her, glad no one was watching as she lost her balance.
Remembering that the guys were having a visitor later that day only put a slight damper on her mood. She always went in to work on Saturday mornings, regardless of scheduling, and today would be no different. Where the day took her and whether or not she had the guts to go to James and Vincent’s cabin was still anybody’s guess, much like that other important decision she had to make.
Over the last few evenings, she’d filled pages of yellow lined tablet paper with reasons to go and reasons to stay and she was feeling more divided than ever. Her dad hadn’t made it any easier, calling her the day before, on Friday, to see what he could do to cajole her into taking the position in Abilene. Evidently he’d talked to Denny and had felt that the store, the city, the job—even the contractor—were all a perfect match for her. Now he was waiting on an answer just like her men.
Her coffee mug landed on her small dining table. “My men? Since when did I start thinking of them that way?”
To distract herself from all of that, she reviewed her to-do lists, her promotional calendar, and her work agenda until it was time to go. The day promised to be a boiling-hot one, and she was happy she’d be inside for most of it as she trotted down the steps to her car.
His deep, velvety voice echoed in her head the whole time. “Find the missing piece, fluff.”
She arrived at the store, ready to tackle the workday. More than ready, in fact. “Ready, ready, ready.” she muttered to herself.
Find the missing piece, fluff.
“Good morning,” Evelyn said as she met her in the hallway outside her office. “I have coffee made. How are you this morning?” she asked, looking concerned. “Not more nightmares, I hope?”
“No.” A bad dream didn’t generally include an orgasm of titanic proportions. “No, just so much on my mind.”
Evelyn tilted her head and raised a brow as she looked up at Leah. “Insomnia, then?”
Leah sighed and shook her head, “No. I didn’t have a nightmare but I did have a very vivid dream. It’s left me distracted, when that’s not what I need. It’s a good thing I stayed up late and got some work done,” she said, holding up her legal pad, tablet, and a manila folder full of lists.
Evelyn made big eyes at the work that had occupied Leah’s late-night hours and a slight smile crossed her lips. “There is an envelope with your name on it lying on your desk. When I came in a little while ago it was taped to the side entrance.”
The smirky grin Evelyn had difficulty controlling made Leah curious. “Oh, really?”
Leah turned the envelope over and studied the decidedly masculine scrawl on the front.
After slitting open the envelope, she pulled out the card inside. It was a gift certificate for a full body massage at A Divine Retreat. “Oh! Oh boy.”
Her name was filled in as the recipient and on the next line, where the giver could fill in a name, in the same masculine scrawl was written, “Someone who cares about you.”
Frowning, she held up the card so Evelyn could see. “You have no idea who this is from?”
The knowing smile on Evelyn’s face that made all of her dimples appear told Leah that she probably did. “I have a good guess but you’ll get nary a word from me about it.”
“Oh, you.” Leah let out a long sigh. “I don’t want to go get all ooey-gooey, relaxed, and covered in massage oil and then come back to work.”
Evelyn tilted her head as she raised an eyebrow. “Dear, the whole point is that you’re transported into a relaxed state and then you go home and continue relaxing there. And I’ve heard that Lucy Owen gives a delightful—only slightly—messy massage. As I recall, you have Ward scheduled to work today so technically, you don’t even have to be here. You could go have your massage, and then return home to a nice warm bath, and relax. And would you believe that I happen to know that Lucy has an opening at eleven o’clock this morning.”
“Sounds like you have all kinds of inside information.”
“It’s uncanny at times,” Evelyn said, her voice dripping with amusement. “Ward will call you if there are any issues. If I see your father, I’ll tell him that you had appointments. You even have time to go shopping before your massage with Lucy. I think you may find at the end of what is supposed to be your day off that you feel much better. And it may make arriving at your important decision a little easier.”
There was no arguing with Evelyn when she had that look in her eyes. Leah’s mom had been deceased for several years and this woman was as close as she came to a mother figure. She couldn’t tell her no. And she knew the store was in exceptionally good hands. Ward would make an excellent store manager someday and he had Evelyn to help him.
“Okay.”
“I doubt you’ll regret it. And leave all those lists and what-have-you that you brought in this morning. They’ll still be here tomorrow or Monday, and you’ll be better prepared to implement them.”
Leah stood from her desk and looked down at the stack of folders, notes and lists and saw it through new eyes. The work was legitimate, no question, but did it require immediate action and her personal attention? Probably not. But it definitely distracted her from what was in front of her. The decision. She cringed inwardly and then grabbed her purse, her smartphone, and the gift certificate. “I have to go, Evelyn. I’ll talk to you later today, okay?”
Evelyn grinned as she took off her reading glasses so they now hung from their gold chain around her neck. “That’s more like it, dear. Seize the day.”
She dialed her phone as she walked out the side door. When Vincent picked up the call, she said, “Thank you, handsome.”
Vincent chuckled, a raspy sexy sound. “Hello, doll. You’re welcome. Did Evelyn break down and tell you?”
She giggled as she walked to her car and keyed the remote to open it. “No. I remembered the way you rubbed my shoulders the other night. You must’ve felt all those kinks and knots. I’m treating myself to a morning of shopping, and I’m taking Lucy’s eleven o’clock appointment, if she’ll still have me.”
“Good.”
She waited for him to say more but he didn’t. “About this afternoon…”
“Whatever you decide will be perfect, fluff. I love you. Oh, and enjoy your shopping. Buy something sexy.”
“Okay.”
She ended the call and sat there with her hands on the steering wheel, looking at the aged brick on the outside of the department store. It was beautiful. Aged by time and the elements. The old-timey transom windows were sealed shut because the store was air-conditioned nowadays. The gilt lettering spelling out the store name on the old glass and wood door shimmered in the sunlight as an employee entered through it and she smiled as she started her car.
Find the missing piece, fluff.
* * * *
James wiped his greasy hands on a rag as the old Chevy Blazer rolled to a s
top in the driveway. There were two occupants. Vincent looked at him from under the shade of the hood on Patterson’s old pickup and James saw the hint of a smile. They’d been on pins and needles for days, anticipating Kendry McCulloch’s arrival, wondering what kind of man Patterson’s heart had gone into…and whether or not Patterson would approve.
“’78?” he asked as the driver, a guy in his midthirties with dark brown hair, jumped down from the vehicle and smiled at them.
The answer to both of his internal questions came when the guy grinned, nodded, and eyed Patterson’s truck. “’86?”
The tension seemed to bleed out of Vincent as he put down his wrench and the two of them approached the man with hands outstretched.
“Kendry McCulloch,” he said, returning the firm handshake, and nodding as James and Vincent introduced themselves.
Kendry was lean and tall, a little taller than them at probably six feet even or maybe six feet one. His hair was a little on the long side, reaching past his collar but otherwise he was neat in appearance. He seemed physically fit which told James he’d take good care of the gift he’d been given.
Kendry shoved his hands in his pockets as the other Blazer door shut and they were joined by a slightly taller man who bore a subtle resemblance to Kendry. The main differences were in the couple of inches of height he had on him and his clean-cut blond hair.
“This is my older brother, Jared McCulloch.”
Greetings and introductions were passed along a second time and then Kendry grinned and said, “I was worried that this would be weird. That I’d somehow roped both of you into an entire afternoon and evening of discovering we have nothing in common.”
“Something tells me that won’t be a problem,” James replied, gesturing to the two vehicles.
“The coordinator who handled everything back a few months ago offered to come, too, to ease the introductions but I told her I didn’t think it was necessary.”
Vincent stared at Kendry’s chest as he said, “Sure seems that way.”
Kendry gestured with his chin toward the ’86 and said, “What’s the story here?”
Brokenhearted Beauty [Divine Creek Ranch 19] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 18
