by Molly McLain
That’s because no one got under her skin like Ryan did. “That’s because I really like him, but that’s not why I’m here. We’re supposed to be talking about the Angel Alliance, remember?”
Rolling his eyes, Kyle spun around to the windows behind him, the Sierra Nevadas looking absolutely picturesque with all the new snow. “It goes against my better judgment, but maybe there’s a way we can use the foundation to snuff out these latest rumors.”
Rose lifted her hands to the sky in silence. Halleluiah. “That would work very nicely, I’m sure, but I don’t think it’s necessary to give any credence to this story.”
“Of course it’s not. And we wouldn’t have to acknowledge them, not directly anyway.” He pulled in a slow breath and exhaled just as easily. “I’ve been thinking about my attempts to keep Angel out of the social spotlight, but the truth is, she already has a following with her movie reviews. The video blogs could very well be a passing hobby, but I’d like to continue supporting her and maybe tying her into the Alliance is one way I can do that.”
A big grin stretched across Rose’s face and she practically bounced in her seat. “I couldn’t agree more. In fact, I’m going to get started on this right away.”
Kyle glanced back with a knowing smirk. “As if you haven’t already.”
Um… She bit the inside of her cheek and held up two pinched fingers. “Only a little.” Janine chose that moment to knock on the office door.
“Vaughn is here with the gentlemen from the other day. Should I send them in?” her roommate and Kyle’s assistant asked.
“Please do. And if you wouldn’t mind, put a pot of coffee on, too. We might be here a while.”
Rosemary frowned. “Is there a problem?”
Kyle nodded. “I think so, but I want to see what Vaughn has to say first.”
Did it have something to do with what John had shared yesterday at the senior center? Maybe Ryan would know. “Okay. I’m going to camp out at Brewed Beginnings and get some work done. Let me know if you need anything.”
“Will do.” Her boss waved goodbye and she followed Janine into the hall.
“I could really use a good coffee right now, you lucky witch,” her friend complained when they were alone.
“I wish you could come with me, but sadly I’m the only one with the benefit of a floating office. Which, come to think of it, isn’t always that wonderful. I have a mess in the study to clean up before I go.” Sighing, she made her way toward the opposite end of the big house, which Kyle had temporarily opened up to her and Janine while they made the transition to Hope Falls.
On her way, she spotted Vaughn and Ryan’s friend Will in the sitting room off the foyer. Instantaneous heat filled her cheeks when Will grinned.
“Hey, Rosemary. Didn’t get to tell you on Saturday, but you’re really something on a pair of skis.”
“Oh, that,” she laughed lightly. “Thanks for letting me tag along. I had fun.”
“Anytime.” He winked and she continued on her way.
As she approached the study, the door across the hall opened and Ryan appeared, filling up the space with his broad shoulders.
“What are you doing here?” She blinked up at him in disbelief. “You were just in Tahoe.”
He flicked off the bathroom light and tucked his hands into his pockets. “Actually, I was in the car. Driving here.”
“You!” Her slug turned into an embrace right there in the middle of Kyle’s hall.
“Mmm,” Ryan sighed as his hands slid around her waist and his face nuzzled into her hair. “You smell good.”
“You do, too, but we can’t do this. Not here.”
“It’s a hug, Rosie. Relax.”
“Yes, but…” Angel could come around the corner at any moment. Not exactly the kind of role model Rose hoped to be for the girl. “Come here.”
Grabbing his hand, she tugged him into the study and shut the door. He had her pinned against the wall in less than a second.
“I need to taste you,” he murmured, slanting his mouth over hers before she could protest.
Not that she would have. She’d melted at the first tease of his tongue across the seam of her lips.
“This is so wrong,” she whispered between kisses, pay no mind to the fact that her hands had slipped up the back of his Henley, smoothing over all the hard muscle, flexing beneath his skin. “And I’m still not sure why you’re here.”
“Does it matter?” He angled down and found the hem of her knee-length skirt with one hand while the other curled anxiously around her breast. He pinched her nipple between his fingers and she hissed, snagging his bottom lip between her teeth to return the cruel favor.
Dancing up the inside of her thigh and over the lace of her stockings, his fingers promised another kind of touch. One that would make her lose her mind. One she craved desperately. But did they dare?
“You feeling brave, Rosie?” His eyes flashed wickedly to hers before his hot mouth skated down the curve of her jaw to her collarbone. The sting of his teeth sinking into her flesh had her fingernails scoring down his bare skin, urging him on no matter how dangerous a rendezvous like this might be. Messing around in Kyle’s house? She could be fired.
“Touch me,” she begged, helpless to turn him away no matter the consequences. Their opportunities together were too limited.
He pressed his forehead against hers, his gaze stormy as he slipped inside her panties. He braced her steady with his hip against hers, the evidence of his arousal so hard between them.
“I love feeling this.” She reached down and grasped him through his jeans, running her palm along his length. “Maybe if we’re really quiet…”
He shook his head and distracted her with a purposeful stroke across her clit. She whimpered, the friction of his rough and calloused fingers both erotic and perfect, and exactly what she needed.
“Can you come for me like this?” he whispered, covering her mound with his hand and giving a not-so-gentle squeeze that sent a liquid rush of desire straight to her core.
She nodded. “Just a little more. Please.”
“Like this?” He tweaked at her clit again and she shuddered. So, so good. “Or like this?” In two quick tugs, he snapped the lace at both of her hips, allowing more room to play.
Here we go again. Her reminiscent smile morphed into a long, needy groan as he pushed one, then two fingers inside, hitting all the right spots along the way. “God, Ryan,” she rasped. “What are you doing to me?”
“Making you as crazy as you make me.” He pumped in and out, his breath hitching as erratically as hers. “Hopefully making it hard for you to forget me, too.”
“Ohh!” She threw her head back, hitting it hard against the wall, when the first wave of orgasm ripped through her body. The pain didn’t matter though—all she could think about, all she could feel, was Ryan. In that moment. Stealing yet another piece of her heart.
He covered her mouth with his again, absorbing her cries and holding her through the last of the tremors. Ever so gently, he let go, brushing the hair back from her face.
“You good, princess?” He smiled and kissed the tip of her nose.
Breathing hard, she nodded and closed her eyes. “I just need a minute.”
He chuckled and stepped away. The satiny slide of her shredded panties disappeared with him. “I think I’ll keep these.”
Her eyes sprung open as he tucked the pink lace into his front pocket. “Ryan Croft, you are the devil.”
“And you, princess, are my favorite sin.”
Chapter Twelve
“I’m not going to lie, Vaughn. I’ve got some real concerns about this project.” Kyle Reed folded his hands together on top of his desk, brow tight.
Next to Ryan, Vaughn Roberts shifted from one ass cheek to the other, decidedly uncomfortable and rightfully so. If he wasn’t careful, he could lose this deal. Probably not the biggest project he’d ever taken on, but the one that could ultimately decide his fate.
“I’ve got the crew to do the job, Mr. Reed,” Vaughn began. “I know my health hasn’t been the greatest, but I assure you that we can handle your renovations, just as we agreed.”
Will cleared his throat. “I’m willing to stick around the area and help out, if that’ll ease your mind.”
Kyle narrowed his eyes and shifted a glance Ryan’s way. “And you, Mr. Croft? Are you able to continue offering your services?”
Much as he wanted to, it simply wasn’t feasible. He gave his head a regretful shake. “Unfortunately, I can’t. I have responsibilities back home in Nebraska. I’m always willing to provide input where I can, and Vaughn and I have talked about that. I’m just a phone call away.”
“But you won’t be here in Hope Falls.” The actor leaned back in his chair, fingers steepled against his lips. “Vaughn, for the most part, I’m happy with the plans we’ve made. I do, however, worry about your company’s ability to carry out the renovations in the timeframe we planned, given the step back you, personally, have taken. I also suspect that the reason you’ve brought your nephew on board is because you’re considering a change in management. I can see how that might be necessary, but you have to understand that a shift like that in the midst of a project this size could be disastrous.”
Will shifted forward in his seat. “Mr. Reed, I can assure you that the transition will be seamless. That’s why I’m here now. To get a feel for the job before we officially begin.”
“So the deal is settled then. You’re taking over at Falls Contracting.”
Vaughn coughed and Ryan shot a curious glance his way. The older man scratched a hand around the back of his neck, his eyes glued to the hardwood floor.
“All we have left to do is the paperwork,” Will spoke up. “Right, Uncle Vaughn?”
“Uh…”
Goddammit. This was neither the time nor the place for this conversation. “Mr. Reed, would you mind giving me a minute with Will and Vaughn?”
Kyle eyed the three of them, his expression unchanged. “Absolutely. You’re welcome to stay here while I find us some coffee.”
Ryan nodded and waited until the movie star left the office. Then he turned to his friends, a warning finger pointed at them both. “You two better get your shit together and fast, or you’re going to lose the job of a lifetime.”
***
“I am so stuffed.” Rosemary fell back on his bed with a groan. “Jason might be a total goofball, but he’s got mad skills in the kitchen.”
“Only when he wants to.” Ryan took a seat in the chair beside the fireplace and unlaced his boots. “He hasn’t lifted a finger the whole time we’ve been here. Pretty sure he only did it tonight because you were here.”
“In that case, you’re welcome.” She rolled onto her side, head propped on her hand, and grinned at him. She’d replaced the sexy librarian look from earlier with a soft, light blue pullover and a pair of those snug, patterned pants she liked so much. At first, he was disappointed; reenacting, maybe expanding upon, the scene from earlier today had been his number one plan for the night.
But then he’d followed her into his room and hot damn. Leggings were now his favorite things ever. And the cleavage popping out of her low cut top wasn’t bad either.
Christ, he was getting hard already.
“Ryan.”
He blinked and lifted his eyes from her chest to her face. Where she grinned, totally aware of his ogling.
“You see something you like?” she asked, the question rolling off her tongue like sugar.
“I see a lot of things I like, princess.”
“Then maybe you should hurry up and get those boots off so you can have a closer look.”
“I’m starting to think you only want me for my body,” he teased, kicking away his boots and whipping his t-shirt over his head.
Her eyes fluttered, her breath hitched, and she rolled onto her back, holding out a beckoning hand. “Come here, Romeo.”
Grinning, he dropped onto the bed, holding himself up above her. “As hot as you look tonight and as jacked up as you got me earlier, I think we should talk a bit before we get naked.”
She smoothed her hands up his chest, feathering through the hair there. “This sounds serious.”
“As serious as a conversation between two former lovers turned temporary, rekindled lovers can be.”
Her lips twitched into a smile. “Oh my. Maybe I should be nervous.”
“Well…” He shifted onto his side next to her, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. This was one of those conversations he didn’t want to have and one that maybe they didn’t need to have…but it was the right thing to do and he wasn’t about to give her a reason to be mad when he left. Because he would leave. He had to. “I’m leaving the day after tomorrow. I thought maybe we could do something special tomorrow night. Maybe have dinner at The Cove. Or see a movie like old times.”
“You want to take me on a date?” Her fingers pushed up, kneading his scalp and sending a shiver zipping down his spine.
“You drive me insane,” he growled, his own fingers finding a home beneath the hem of her top. Her skin was warm and soft and definitely not what he needed to be thinking about right now. “God, babe, it’s like no time has passed at all. Like we’ve fallen into this…this time machine that’s let us to go right back to the way things were a decade ago.”
Her dark eyes softened. “Some things are just meant to be.”
How was that true for them? She lived here and he lived in River Bend. If they were meant to be together, fate wouldn’t have put them so far apart.
Fate wouldn’t have brought you back together either.
Asking if he could see her again danced on the tip of his tongue. Hell, he’d already thought through his schedule for the next six months, figuring out every possible time he could get away again. There wasn’t a lot of room for play, but for her, he’d sure as hell try.
“What if I said I wanted to see you again?” he asked, trailing his fingers across the bare skin on her belly.
“I’d say you were crazy.” She smiled. “But I’d be game for whatever you had in mind.”
“I can fly out for a couple long weekends between now and the spring. It’s not much, and maybe something else will open up, but it’s something.” And hopefully enough.
Rose nodded, her pearly teeth sinking into her lip. “And then what?”
He frowned. “What do you mean?”
“We see each other a couple times over the next few months and then what? Where do we go from there? I mean, don’t get me wrong…I want to see you. But it’s unrealistic to think we can both go on being happy with an arrangement like that. I want…” She trailed off, looking away from him.
“You want what?” His hand stilled on her belly as she tensed. “What is it, babe? Tell me.”
She sucked in a deep breath, then covered his hand with hers. “I want a family someday. I want to get married and have kids and a dog…” Her face crumpled and a tear slid from the corner of her eye. “But I can’t have that and have you, Ryan.”
Fucking hell.
He pulled her close, stroking her hair. “I’m not trying to be selfish. I just assumed you weren’t ready to settle down.” More like wishful thinking, to be honest.
She swiped at her tears and gave a strangled laugh. “Because I slept with you right away?”
“No.” He grasped her chin and lifted her face to his. But she shut her eyes instantly. Blocked him out. “That’s not what I thought. Jesus, babe. Look at me. Please.”
She didn’t. “I don’t make a habit of sleeping around. Just so you know.”
Where was this sudden self-consciousness coming from? “Rosie, I’m not judging you. Hell, I jumped into this just as quickly.”
She nodded. “Maybe that’s what I’m worried about.”
Huh?
“I don’t know if I can handle being ‘that girl in California’. The one you see from time to time for sex. I mean, these
past few days have been incredible. I’ve enjoyed them just as much as you have, but I know me, Ry.”
“Rosie, look at me.” He brushed his thumb across her cheekbone. “Please.”
“I’ll want more for us. I already do,” she continued on, her whispered cry stabbing like a blade in his chest.
He wanted more too, damn it, but it wasn’t realistic. Then again, neither was thinking he could see her here and there, and not let it get in his head.
“This isn’t just sex for me.” He thumbed away another tear. “I promise you that.”
“But these few days don’t make a relationship either.”
Maybe not, but they had a hell of a lot more than a few days together. “I want to try. I think we can.”
She shook her head. “I don’t.”
Fuck.
“This isn’t a movie, Ryan. It’s real life.”
Real life that couldn’t possibly suck any more. “So this ends here.”
She nodded, the tears still coming. “Tonight.”
“Then we’d better make it memorable.”
Chapter Thirteen
Put on your big girl panties, Rose. You want this man. Take what you can of him, while you have the chance.
“What’d you have in mind?” Sniffling back the last of her emotion—that she’d let him see anyway—she pushed him onto his back and climbed on top, her rear end nestled against his lap. “How about this to start?”
Slowly, taking time to tease and play, she lifted her shirt, first showing him her belly. Then her ribcage and a flash of bra.
“That works,” he rasped, gripping her hips and grinding himself into her soft center. “Too bad you’re not wearing a cheerleading skirt, like that one time.”
She laughed. “Oh, God. That was such a crazy night.”
“One of my all-time favorites.”
Hers, too. She’d give just about anything to go back in time and do it all over again. Minus the miscarriage and the part where she’d left. “How about you use your imagination, handsome? Maybe we can take a trip down memory lane.”
“Hell, no. This grown-up version of you is ten times hotter.”
