by J. H. Croix
He arched a brow, his blue eyes teasing. “Do I get a hello?”
Too late, she realized she’d been silent for a beat too long. “Oh, right. Hello,” she offered. More flustered than usual after her call with Terry, she couldn’t think of what to say next.
Garrett saved her with a question. “So where are we going tonight?” His slow smile sent her belly somersaulting.
“I thought maybe we could go to the Boathouse. Have you been there before?”
He shook his head slowly. “I haven’t been anywhere other than the lodge and Misty Mountain.”
“It might not be like what you’re used to in Seattle, but the Boathouse has some good food.”
“Seattle leans toward trendy, but trendy doesn’t always mean amazing food. Your cooking is as good as anything you could find in Seattle.”
His quick compliment made her smile and then blush. He chuckled. “Don’t tell me I’m the first person who’s ever told you you’re a damn good chef.”
She shook her head rapidly. “No, but Diamond Creek’s just a tiny corner of the world.”
“Trust me, the big city’s not all it’s cracked up to be.” His eyes, darkening to navy, coasted over her. Her breath became short and her pulse skittered.
“The Boathouse sounds perfect. Do you want me to pick you up?” he asked.
Taking her father at his word, she’d told him she was going out for the night with friends. She could have Garrett pick her up and not worry about too many questions. “Sounds good. Six o’clock?”
“You got it.”
He pushed away from the wall and closed the distance between them. Before she could form a thought, he leaned over and nudged her chin up with his knuckles and kissed her. She was coming to learn that kisses with Garrett were dangerous. His lips caught hers, softly at first, shifting to rough and deep in seconds. His kisses wiped thought clean from her mind, sent sensations rolling through her hot and fast and made her melt inside and out. By the time he pulled away, she was practically a puddle. Her panties were soaked with desire and her nipples were so tight, they ached.
He held still, a fraction of space between their lips. “You make me crazy,” he whispered roughly.
A laugh bubbled out of her and she nodded, flushing madly. He made her crazy too, but the second her brain kicked into gear, she had to remember to get a grip.
He nipped at her lip and then dropped another soft kiss before taking a deliberate step back. “See you at six,” he said.
Someone came around the corner. Delia suddenly remembered where they were. That’s how bad it was with Garrett. In the last few moments, it was as if they were alone in the world—nothing and no one existed but them and the desire shimmering in the air around them.
She glanced up and met his eyes, which held a hint of frustration as if it strained him to hold back. “See you then.” She clutched the mail to her chest and walked past him, hurrying out to her car.
As she drove home, her mind bounced between anticipation about Garrett and the call from Terry. Just because Terry was a jerk didn’t mean his parents were, but she didn’t know them. By the time she considered trying to track them down, she realized she didn’t know how to reach anyone in his family. She didn’t even have names for his parents. Looking back, she felt a twinge of guilt, but she swatted it away. She couldn’t be responsible for everything, especially when Terry had made it abundantly clear he wanted nothing to do with Nick.
She forced her mind off that worry and onto tonight. Even though part of her, a big part if she admitted it, was thrilled Garrett wanted to see her, another part of her was nearly frozen with fear. She hadn’t been on a date since college. She had slammed the door shut on relationships for the last six years. It was overwhelming enough to have a baby on her own. Throw in the mix that her mother, whom she’d loved dearly, had been diagnosed with cancer and passed away within six months of the diagnosis, and Delia’s emotional cup had been full. Once she thought her father was doing better, she’d just been hanging on and trying to find a steady job she could enjoy that paid the bills. Diamond Creek had a lot to offer in some ways, but most of the local restaurants were family owned. Gage’s decision to reopen Last Frontier Lodge gave her an opportunity to do what she loved and paid well enough she could breathe easy for the first time in a long time.
Along came Garrett, an entirely unexpected curve in the road of her life. Oh, she’d fantasized about the right man coming along. She just hadn’t figured he would be heart-stopping sexy and a high-flying, wealthy lawyer to boot. He was more the stuff of fantasy, and she wasn’t so sure it was a good idea to indulge those fantasies. She reminded herself again and again, he wouldn’t be here for long, and his life was in another world. Yet, she couldn’t resist taking a shot to experience more of what she felt with him. Even if it hurt her in the end, she didn’t want to go through life living small.
***
Garrett looked across the table at Delia. She was so damn beautiful. Her honeyed hair fell in tousled waves over her shoulders, framing her face with loose curls. Her blue eyes made him want to dive in and forget himself. He tried to recall if he’d ever had a dinner date that didn’t involve business and came up with nothing. He only ever had dates to have a beautiful woman on his arm at business and social functions. Work ruled his life, including on the social plane.
Dinner with Delia had nothing to do with work. He was curious about her, a curiosity foreign to him. He wanted to know her. He was quickly coming to learn why she was so beloved to her friends and family. She was warm, kind, funny and went at life putting everyone else’s needs ahead of her own. He admired the hell out of her for being a single parent. When the conversation offered an opening, he asked about Nick’s father.
“If you don’t mind me asking, is Nick’s father from around here?”
Delia’s eyes darkened, and she was quiet for a moment. “No, he’s not. He’s never been a part of Nick’s life. It’s an old story,” she said with a shrug. “I got pregnant in college. It definitely wasn’t planned, and that was the end of our relationship. I, uh, got pretty used to him not being around and honestly don’t really want him to be a part of my life, but it matters to Nick. Oddly enough, he called me today. Right out of the blue.”
Her words were matter of fact until the end. Cold anger coursed through Garret just thinking what it meant for her and Nick to have the man who was his father simply not be there. He wasn’t sure what to say, but he felt he needed to say something. “I’m sorry. That, well, it sucks. Completely.” He paused, gathering his thoughts. “What did he want when he called?”
She idly circled her wineglass in her hand, spinning the stem carefully. “He said his mother found out about Nick and wants to meet him. It took me so off guard, I didn’t know what to think. I did get to tell him what an ass I thought he was though,” she said with a bitter smile.
Garrett watched her carefully. She seemed open to talking. At a time when he would have usually tried to find a graceful way to exit the conversation, he found himself continuing. “I bet that felt good,” he said with a wry smile.
She shrugged. “For a minute. Doesn’t change anything for Nick though. Now I have to figure out what to do about Nick’s grandmother.”
Garrett nodded slowly, the first thought coming to his mind was how important his grandmother had been to him and his siblings. “What do you think you should do?”
“Probably let her meet him. Honestly, if it weren’t for the fact that Terry still isn’t interested in Nick, and I have to worry about whether she’ll try to push that, it’s an easy yes.”
Garrett watched her, realizing that Delia just kept blowing him away. A situation in which anger easily could have overtaken her, she didn’t deny she was angry, but she didn’t let it color her choices. “Maybe you play it by ear and see what happens.”
Delia smiled softly. “That’s probably what I’ll do.” She took a swallow of wine and set her empty glass on the table. “Enoug
h of the serious stuff, tell me some stories I can tease Gage about.”
Conversation moved on to lighter matters. Not much later, their waiter approached the table with the check. Garrett quickly slid the tray into his hand, returning it with a credit card. Delia’s hand paused in mid-air before she glared at him.
“You don’t have to get that,” she said, her eyes tinged with defiance.
“Maybe I don’t have to, but I want to.”
She bit her lip and her breath came out in a soft huff. His eyes locked onto her plump lips, sending blood shooting to his groin. He could barely keep a lid on the lust that surged through him whenever he was near Delia. His body rumbled on high idle, and all it took was a glance at the give of her lip under her teeth and his mind could focus only on how amazing her lips felt under his.
His eyes dipped down to the curves of her breasts. She wore a bright blue shirt with a scoop neck. The fitted cotton outlined her full breasts. Her skin, scattered with freckles, made his mouth water. All he wanted was to lean across the table and trace the soft curves with his tongue. He took a breath and forced his eyes up, only to notice her pulse fluttering in her neck. Another breath and his eyes collided with hers. His chest tightened, his body taut with need. He was not this man—this man who was half out of his mind with need for a woman and would do just about anything for her.
She flushed under his gaze, but he saw the answering desire in hers. She shrugged. “Fine then, but I get to return the favor.”
He had to think for a second to recall what she meant. “Taking you out to dinner wasn’t a favor. It’s not like you need to keep an account so things are even.”
He sensed a tension in her, but he wasn’t going to take the bait.
Her breath huffed out again before she spoke. “I wasn’t trying to make sure things were even, but I didn’t want you to think I assumed you’d buy me dinner.”
As off kilter as he felt with her, he realized she had her own reasons for not being certain of what things meant between them. “I didn’t mean to assume. I just wanted to buy you dinner. That’s all.”
She bit her lip again. Holy hell. She needed to stop doing that. His reaction to her was beyond ridiculous. All she did was bite her lip a few times and he was ready to bend her over a table and sink inside of her. He was all about calculated pleasure, not this wild thrumming inside his body that he could hardly contain. He shifted in his seat, trying to will his erection away.
He was relieved when the waiter approached the table again. He quickly signed the credit card receipt and made small talk with the waiter for just long enough that he got his body under control. He stood and tugged on his jacket. Delia followed suit, and he was disappointed to see her curves disappear under her down jacket. He walked outside, his hand resting in the dip of her waist. A bracing wind cut across the parking lot. He savored the icy air. It took his mind off the relentless pulse of attraction coursing through him. He felt her shiver and wrapped his arm tighter around her. He couldn’t help the wash of satisfaction he felt when she nestled closer to him.
He’d wisely used the remote starter for the truck he was borrowing from Gage. Once they were inside, Garrett didn’t let himself stop and think. He glanced over at Delia. “How about we head back to the lodge?”
Delia held his eyes for a beat before nodding quickly. It started to snow on the drive back to the lodge. When he parked and went around to help her out, the snow fell softly around them. It was late enough that the outside lights had been dimmed. Stars winked in the black velvet sky, the moon coming in and out of view as clouds passed by. He was becoming accustomed to the odd sense of freedom and relief he experienced when he felt the deep quiet surround him here. A gust of wind blew Delia’s hair wild. He caught her hand in his and led her to the door. Once inside, he immediately made his way to the kitchen. The restaurant was empty now and the staff hopefully gone. He’d become familiar with the schedule since he tended to be a night owl and often made forays to the kitchen for snacks and cider late at night.
A lamp remained on in the corner of the kitchen. With Delia’s hand in his, he headed straight for the corner where the hot cider waited. He’d come to savor her cider nightly—half because it was delicious with enough of a kick to take the edge off and half because he knew she made it. Without a word, he quickly filled two mugs and gestured toward the office. It crossed his mind that he’d never have considered what he was considering right now in another place or time. Without eliciting far more questions than he wanted to answer, there was no way for him to bring her up to Gage and Marley’s apartment. He knew she lived with her father, so he’d immediately ruled out going to her place. His choice for their destination was the kitchen office, about the only private place he could think of.
Delia didn’t appear to find the idea off-putting, which made him consider the fact that the women he usually dated would’ve flat refused to lounge on a couch in an office. It was Delia’s office and held the same warmth she conveyed. It was decorated with a touch of whimsy with bright paintings of flowers on the walls, a multi-colored rug thrown over the hardwood floor, and a lamp with a stained glass shade on the desk. She flicked the lamp on and turned to him. The lust he’d been barely holding at bay surged through him. He kicked the door shut with his booted foot and closed the distance between them. He reached for the mug in her hands and set it on the desk, along with his. He lifted a hand and caught her zipper, slowly sliding it down. He held her gaze, giving her a chance to say something. Her lips parted and her tongue darted out to moisten them.
The coil of need tightened inside of him. He slid one hand inside her jacket, curling around her waist and tugging her close, as he stroked the other up her neck and into her hair. He finally gave in to what he’d wanted to do all night and caught her lips in a kiss. She opened instantly, inviting him inside, and he didn’t wait. He threw himself into the kiss. She met every stroke of his tongue with hers. His pulse raced and waves of desire rushed through him. He slid his palm down from the dip of her waist to cup her luscious bottom and pulled her against his arousal, savoring her throaty moan.
He was anything but smooth and practiced over the next few minutes as he tore at her clothes. She was as frantic as he was, yanking his clothing off. His thoughts were a blur. He was driven solely by need. He glanced down to find Delia seated on her desk, her breasts rising and falling with her rapid breath. She was pure, seductive beauty, her eyes hazy with desire, her lips red and swollen, and her cheeks flushed pink. Her hair was rumpled. She was bare save for a pair of blue cotton panties. He stood in the cradle of her thighs, trying to catch his breath. His jacket and shirt were on the floor and his jeans were torn open. His cock was rock-hard and pulsing with every beat of his heart. Though he was consumed with need, when his eyes caught hers, his heart clenched.
Chapter 7
Delia couldn’t break away from Garrett’s navy gaze, his eyes like hot embers on her. Her breath was ragged, and she was feverish with need. Garrett stood before her, his arms braced on the desk on either side of her. The sight of his bare chest sent her pulse up another notch. He was pure muscle, his arms bulging, his chest and abs etched from stone. Somewhere along the way in these heated moments, she’d torn his jeans open and shoved them down his hips. A pair of fitted black briefs didn’t hide his bulging arousal.
The practical corner of her mind tried to assert itself. Are you out of your mind? You’re sitting here almost naked and about to have sex for the first time in six years, and you’re not even thinking about stopping! Do you remember what happened last time you didn’t bother to think? As if she needed to be reminded. She didn’t let herself think that way often, but the truth was Nick was the biggest blessing of her life despite coming from what she also considered her biggest mistake—a silly, childish brush with love that had been far from it. She’d been ruled by her practical side for so long now because she needed it.
But right now, in this moment, she didn’t want to let her p
ractical side make her decisions for her. If this turned out to be another mistake, at least it would feel amazing. She knew maybe it wasn’t a good idea to let Garrett any closer, but the temptation was so strong. She didn’t want to miss the chance to feel the way she felt with him. Even if he walked out of her life in a few weeks, and she had to shore up the walls around her heart in the aftermath. She already knew with certainty that the way she felt with Garrett when she managed to turn her brain off was something beyond anything she’d ever experienced. Even in the cloud of love-lust she felt for Terry all those years ago, the reality was the sex had been awkward and not particularly satisfying. The orgasm Garrett had so effortlessly brought her the other night was the first orgasm she’d had with anyone other than herself.
Holding Garrett’s gaze, she placed her palm on his chest and stroked it slowly down. His breath hissed through his teeth when she slipped her hand into his briefs. She thrilled to his low groan when she curled her hand around his heated length. His eyes still on hers and his breathing rough, he circled her lips with his thumb before he traced a path down between her breasts. Her nipples contracted and her belly clenched as his touch traveled over the curve of her belly and stroked across her cotton panties. He stroked softly once or twice, and her breath broke on a moan. She was already drenched with desire. She shifted restlessly into his touch. He abruptly stepped back, tugging her hips to the edge of the desk.
He moved swiftly. In one motion, he pushed her panties out of the way and leaned forward and brought his mouth against her. Her hands fell away from him and she hung onto the edge of the desk, frantically grasping for something to anchor her as fierce sensation overtook her. His fingers joined his mouth, plunging into her channel and stroking as he licked through her folds. Her hips rocked into his mouth as he teased around and over her clit. She lost all sense of anything other than the pressure gathering and spinning inside until it spun loose, releasing wave after wave of sharp pleasure.
