“They raised enough money, then?”
He didn’t like where this conversation was headed, but he couldn’t lie. She’d find out about the calendar shoot sooner or later. “No, afterward, we found out there were some foundation issues. Underground water. Drainage problems with the house.”
“Yikes, that puts a heavy price tag on it. What are y’all gonna do?” She cringed as she opened and closed the cabinets. “You know, these might just need to be stripped and new handles put on. Might save a few thousand.”
“I think that’s what we decided to do, but to answer your question: we had to come up with some other ideas. Something different. Hopefully, it’ll work. Out back, there will be a large garden.”
“A garden sounds nice. Anything I can do to help?” Closing the gap between them, she took his hand. “With the fundraising, I mean.”
His mouth went dry at her touch. Clearing his throat, he replied, “No, no, it’s all taken care of. Charlotte took care of it.”
“Charlotte?”
“Charlotte Foster. Charlie. The photographer. I think she might be seeing Logan Tate right now. He’s a deputy sheriff.”
“Photographer? What did she come up with?” Her eyes sparkled with excitement. “You think this new fundraising will be enough?”
“I sure hope so.” Kyle had already decided if their project didn’t raise enough, he’d make sure Harry’s House received an anonymous donation to carry them not only through the repairs but a couple of years of operating costs as well.
Of course, he should have done that before Charlie sweet-talked them all into posing. Then he wouldn’t be so damned worried about the stinking thing going viral and Jason Crowe hearing about it.
I wouldn’t put it past him to attach his name to anything that would make him look human, especially after the last tabloid headline he caused.
Kyle knew it would be great numbers for Harry’s House if the actor mentioned it, even once, but it would blow Kyle’s chances for any kind of normal life here in Marietta and he’d be forced to move on sooner than he wanted to.
She rested her hand on his cheek. “Hey, you okay?”
The warmth of her touch made his body tingle. “I’m good.”
More than good.
“You sure? I’d be glad to help with whatever you need. Donate supplies or help with cooking.”
“Thank you, Gabriella, but this isn’t anything you use in the kitchen.”
“Oh. What’s the fundraiser, then?”
Damn. He did not want to talk about this. “I guess you could hang it on the wall.”
Her eyes went wide. “On the wall? Like a poster?”
Stuffing his hands in his jacket pockets, embarrassment washed over him. “More like a calendar.”
“You posed for a calendar?”
He swallowed hard at the lust that washed across her face. “It’s for a good cause.”
“I’m sure it is. What month are you?”
Chapter Eight
What month are you?
Good grief, Gabby, could you say anything more fangirl?
Still, the idea of this guy standing in whatever means of undress, hanging on her wall year-round, made the move to Marietta instantly worth it.
“Oh, um, I’m October.” His bright red cheeks only made him all the more adorable and sexy.
Oh, so sexy.
Her eyes betrayed her, raking over him. “Mr. October. Well, that’s a great month.”
“My dad’s and my birthdays are that month.” Lust lingered in his eyes.
She rested her hand on his chest, unable to stop herself from wanting to be near him. “October is full of amazing things. Pumpkins. Apple cider. Hayrides. Football. Spurs basketball.”
The beating of his heart hummed under her palm. When she realized how close she’d moved, she began to step away, but he rested his hand over hers. The soft gesture encouraged her to remain in place. “Glad you like October.”
Swallowing hard, she stared at his lips. “Is the, um, calendar out yet?” I’ll buy a thousand copies.
“Not yet. They’re talking about having some sort of launch party in a couple weeks.”
“How did the pictures, um, turn out?” I’ll buy two thousand copies.
“Pretty good. I have the proofs at home.” He leaned forward, his lips inches from hers. “Would you like to go with me?”
“To the calendar, reveal?” Peppermint laced his breath.
“Yes.”
“Sure.” Hell, yes I would.
“Thanks.”
Oh no. Thank you. Tilting her head up, she inched her mouth closer to his before…
“You said I can check out upstairs—right, Kyle?” Trinity shouted.
“Yes, please do.” Gabriella didn’t move, but noticed Trinity peek around the corner and gave a thumbs-up before her quick footsteps made the stairs creak.
“It’s safe up there.” Kyle rested his hand on the small of her back, gently encouraging her closer. “They’re setting it up to be a study hall.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
She tilted her chin up, looking deep into his eyes. “Now, where were we?”
He brushed his lips against hers, making a sigh escape her. “Somewhere, about here.”
“Yes.” Pressing his mouth to hers, he slid his tongue along the seam. Her mouth opened and his tongue swept in. The burn of peppermint tingled along the sensitive skin and sent a thrill straight to her panties. She couldn’t help but moan, which only appeared to encourage him.
He pulled her flush as he nibbled her lower lip.
Sliding her hands around his body, she heard a soft thud, but she didn’t bother to look at what she’d dropped.
Her tongue slid along his, deepening their kiss.
He tasted of lemon pie and mint. It had been too long since she’d been engulfed in this kind of passion.
All consuming. Wild. Hungry.
It took everything she had not to rip that jacket and shirt off him and run her hands down that chiseled body she knew he hid under his clothes.
“Gabriella,” he whispered before nibbling on the pulse point of her neck.
She gasped, grabbing handfuls of his jacket. “Yes, Kyle.”
“Damn, you smell good. Taste even better.” His mouth covered hers again.
Even with Derrick, she hadn’t experienced this kind of chemistry and certainly not this quickly. She ran her fingers through his hair as he moved his hands along the sides of her body. His thumbs tenderly brushed the outsides of her breasts. Despite the thick sweater, his touch penetrated the layers and set her body on fire.
“Gabriella,” he gasped as he came up for air.
“Yes?” she panted, her hands running down his thick torso. Her fingers itching to move under his shirt.
“Would you like to go out with me?”
She couldn’t help but giggle at his innocent question. “Are you asking me on a date?”
The corner of his mouth curled up as the flush of red on his cheeks began to fade. “Yes. I guess I am.”
“Considering I just stuck my tongue down your throat, I’d say that’s a yes on the date.”
A lusty laugh escaped him. “Fair enough.”
As heavy footsteps sounded on the stairs, Gabriella reluctantly pulled away and straightened her clothes. “Trinity’s on her way.”
He let out a long sigh. “Continue this later?”
“Yes.” Please, goodness, yes! Tucking her hair behind her ear a few times in an attempt to look casual, Gabriella cleared her throat as the sting of peppermint still tingled on her tongue.
As her daughter neared the room, she spoke loudly. “Did I understand Flo to say you’re working here tomorrow?”
“Yes, we’re working all day tomorrow on it. Got a ninety-day deadline or the city takes it back.” Kyle zipped up his jacket as he shifted his weight a few times.
“We?” She knew that shift. Good to know he was as turned
on as she was.
“The first responders. It’s for a friend of ours. Harry.”
The cross outside of town blipped in her mind. She could feel her fordhead furrow. “Did he…?”
“Yes.” Flashing a subdued smile, Kyle nodded. “Last Labor Day weekend. Hit and run.”
“Oh no. That’s terrible.”
“It’s going to be a busy day. Lots of work to do.”
Trinity appeared around the corner as Gabriella continued, “That’s very interesting, Kyle. Thank you for showing me the house.”
“Nice try, guys, but I know y’all were making out while I was upstairs.” Trinity grabbed her jacket and hat off the floor. “The paint colors you picked out are going to be great. Let me know if you need help. I’ll be in the car.”
As frustrating as her daughter could be, Gabriella had to laugh at the teen’s keen observation skills.
When they’d all settled back in the car, Trinity added, “Too bad Uncle Eddie isn’t up here, Gabby. He and his friends would have that whipped up in no time.”
“Yeah, he would.”
Trinity settled back in the seat. “That upstairs area could be such a cool hangout like a media room—or I guess you could do a study hall type place with the media room downstairs. Be sure to put in a coffee pot or K-Cup machine.”
“I think someone already thought of having upstairs as a quiet room.” Kyle turned on the car and cranked the heater, not that Gabriella needed it.
Her body still hummed from Kyle’s touch—and the idea of going on a date with him. Her stomach felt like hummingbirds danced around inside. The delicious excitement of having a date with a hot fireman only verified her move to be the smart choice.
Not that you had many others.
He added, “There’s also an attic. We’ll need ideas for that. You want to help with some of the setup?”
“That would be cool. Don’t you think so, Gabby?” Trinity asked.
The question pulled Gabriella out of her reverie. “What?”
“Don’t you think it would be cool if I helped with the setup? Hey, maybe I could teach some art classes to the younger kids.”
“I think that would be great.” Getting a taste of Kyle only made her crave more. A whole lot more.
“What kind of work does your brother do?” Kyle turned down 2nd Avenue.
“What?” Focus! She had to yank her mind out of a lovely scenario of her unzipping his jeans, sliding them off his perfect ass, and seeing him in all his naked glory.
“Your brother? What does he fix?”
“Oh, Edwardo. Yes, he can fix just about anything. He knows how to work some magic when it comes to repairs.” She ran her fingers through her hair. “He keeps that resort up and running like a champ.”
Kyle swallowed hard. “Resort?”
“Yes, where I used to work back in San Antonio. My brother is the head of maintenance there. That place would fall apart without him.”
There was a giggle from the back seat before Trinity added, “Remember when he had to be called in about that wayward fountain hose that kept squirting the guests at that wedding?”
“That bride was pissed. Glad her pictures were done before she got soaked.”
“Bride got soaked? How did he fix it?”
Did Kyle’s voice just go up? Curiously, she watched him as she spoke. “He didn’t at first. That jerk of a manager kept telling me he knew someone who could repair it instead of calling my brother in. He spent over a thousand dollars on a friend of his who said he was a plumber and then ended up almost ruining a wedding reception because of it.”
“Your brother saved the wedding then?” His hands gripped the steering wheel tighter than they had a minute ago.
“Yes.” Gabriella shook her head as the memory of Riley Fitzgerald childishly stomping his feet replayed through her head. “Thank goodness we had the food protected in the tent, but that bride was not happy.”
They pulled into the driveway and Kyle immediately put the car in park. “What ended up happening?”
“As soon as the father of the bride threatened not to pay a dime for the entire event, they called Edwardo in on his day off. My brother fixed it within minutes. Just needed a couple of seals replaced and to adjust the hoses, all of which he had in stock. Of course, they didn’t pay him any more for saving their asses. Not even a thank you.”
“That’s detrimental to the business if the manager’s doing that kind of crap.” Kyle’s forehead furrowed for a moment. “It could ruin a place.”
“That wasn’t the first crap he’d tried to pull. You’d be amazed at the stuff that guy got away with.”
“Did you ever talk to upper management?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
Because he threatened to fire everyone in my family who worked there if I said a word. “I guess I didn’t know if they’d believe me.”
Gabriella glanced out the other window, not wanting her pent-up anger over Riley Fitzgerald to ruin her highly charged evening.
“But Uncle Eddie is awesome. I miss him,” Trinity sighed.
“I’m sure he’d love to help if he were here.”
With his jaw still clenched, Kyle nodded. “We could use all the help we can get. He sounds like a good guy.”
“He’s the best at his job for sure.” Drumming her fingers on her leg, she pushed away the sadness of not seeing her oldest brother every day. “He’s taught us a lot so if you need any help, let me know.”
He popped his seat belt and clasped his hands in front of him. “Well, there’s the tour. Any questions?”
“Thanks again, Kyle. I’ll go check on the pets.” Trinity gathered her bag. “I’m sure Belle needs to go outside.”
“Don’t forget to dry her paws if she’s in the snow.”
“Right.” The back car door slammed. Trinity sprinted across the yard before Kyle had even closed his car door.
“Dry her paws?” Gabriella walked around to join him.
“Keeps Belle from getting frostbite between her toes.” He held out his hand and she instantly grabbed it.
“Good to know.”
Trinity ran up the steps, entered the house, and flipped the porch light on, leaving the door wide open as she called for the dog.
The winds whipped by Kyle and Gabriella as though they were shooing the couple across the icy grass to the warmth of her house.
Without thought, she grabbed his hand as they made quick work of the stairs.
She stopped short of the door and turned to him. “Thank you.”
How she wanted to invite him inside, continue what they’d started at Harry’s House, but she couldn’t. Not with a huge lack of sleep and apparently no rational thought as far as he was concerned.
As if he could read her mind, he kissed her on the cheek. “We’re good, Gabriella. Get some sleep.”
“Thank you so much for helping me, us, today.” She shivered as a brisk wind whipped by them.
“Of course. Harry helped me when I first came to town. I’ll help you.”
“He sounds like a good guy.”
Kyle grimaced as if he were in pain. “You would have liked him.”
Stepping forward, she took his bare fingers, sandwiching them between her gloved ones. “I’m sorry to hear about your loss.”
Kyle lifted a shoulder. “What can you do? It’s done.”
“It doesn’t make it any easier.” She began to ask him something, but a frigid gust swirled around them. A whimper escaped her.
“Go on. Get inside. We’ll talk more tomorrow.”
Relief flowed through her. She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek before whispering in his ear, “Thank you, Kyle, for being such a gentleman.”
“You’re welcome, but I sure as hell don’t want to be.”
Oh my! As she pulled back, her eyes focused on his lips.
Her body suddenly felt like she’d been thrown into a hot springs.
How she wanted to kiss
him. Kiss him until he moaned her name deep into the night…but not tonight.
Tonight, as much as she hated the idea, she’d be her normal, responsible self.
Dammit.
Chapter Nine
In the short walk home, he hoped the frigid weather would be a good substitute for a cold shower, but no such luck. Like some wound-up teenage boy, Kyle resorted to the old-fashioned method of relieving his tension, but it only gave him temporary relief.
Not only did Gabriella have his dick in knots, but if what she’d told him about his grandfather’s resort was true, he wouldn’t be able to wait until his birthday to save it either.
Clicking the link sent by his mother, he found multiple bad reviews of the management, but rave reviews about the food, salon, and general staff.
Running his fingers through his hair in frustration, the reality of leaving had been kicked up a notch.
He began to call his mother, but something made him stop.
I have to reread those papers again. I’m missing something.
By the time he got to page two, the legalese made him go cross-eyed. “What I need is a lawyer.”
A name popped up in his mind and he quickly texted his college friend, Dean Stafford.
When he didn’t get an immediate response, he gave in to his exhausted body and overworked mind.
By the time he crawled into bed, he had trouble getting the sheets to lie flat or his mind to calm down considering he stared at the light from the upstairs window next door.
He wondered if she were still awake. If she were already in bed. If she slept naked.
How she’d feel next to him, under him, on top of him.
One thing at a time, Cavasos.
Sometime after midnight he drifted off, his thoughts on the woman next door and his approaching family commitment.
When the alarm beeped at five thirty, he still tented his sheets as he held on to the last bit of a tremendously vivid dream of Gabriella and him and meticulously placed whipped cream.
Deciding the best course of action would be to run off his pent-up frustration, he hit the treadmill before a cold shower and a quick breakfast. He loaded up his truck with his father’s toolbox in hand and three floor heaters, and drove the three blocks to Harry’s House.
Burning with Desire Page 8
