Perfect Risk (Mason Creek Book 1)

by C. A. Harms

  I placed my hand over Wyatt’s that was resting on my lower abdomen, and felt his chest rise and fall against my back.

  We quickly fell into a rhythm, our bodies swaying as one and our feet shifting in sequence. I didn’t care that there was people around us, let them look, let them talk. This felt too good.

  “You don’t understand how badly I wish I would have taken a left turn instead of a right one all those years ago.” His lips skimmed over the side of my neck while he spoke. “That action is my biggest regret. To imagine what my life would be like right now had I not made that mistake.”

  I chose not to speak, I felt too raw to try.

  “I think you should give me a chance to show you exactly who I am.” His free hand glided over my hip, only to come to rest on my outer thigh. “Don’t you feel it,” when he kissed that space just beneath my ear, the one spot on my neck that ignited every want inside of me I sighed. “There is something here Sadie, something between us. Something I think we both want and that maybe you’re too afraid to act on.”

  “You don’t know me.” My words were breathy and immediately my thoughts were, maybe he did.

  “I know that I hurt you once, and that you have every reason to be cautious, but I can assure, if given the chance, I would never willingly hurt you again.”

  This man was saying all the right things and if I’d listened to the way my body felt pressed to his I would have agreed to just about anything in that moment. But my mind was telling me to proceed with caution.

  “Dinner,” he whispered near my ear.

  “We already had dinner, remember?” I smiled when I felt his chest vibrate with laughter.

  “How could I forget, I’d hit repeat on that night if I could.” The song changed, and his hold on me loosened just enough I was able to turn in his arms. Suddenly my hands are rested upon his chest and his are on my hips. I could feel his breath on my cheek, knowing if I looked up, our mouths would only be inches apart.

  “You scare me.” The confession felt premature. Maybe I shouldn’t be opening up to him, giving him more power than he already seemed to have.

  “I don’t want to scare you,” his left hand wrapped around me, resting on the small of my back. Applying the right amount of pressure, he moved me in closer to him and then I found we were tucked away in our own little cocoon. The place where he could whisper in my ear so softly and it was a guarantee that no one else could overhear. “I want just the opposite. I want you to feel safe with me. I want to make you laugh and smile, I want to hold you just like this as much as you’ll allow me to.”

  What did he have a book tucked in his back pocket containing all the right things to say?

  “The way I feel when I’m near you, excited and hopeful, Sadie I haven’t that way is so long. I don’t want it to go away, I want it to grow. All I’m asking is for a shot.”

  I lifted my chin, bringing us closer. Our eyes locked with one another’s and I took in a slow deep breath before releasing. “Do you promise not to make me regret it?”

  Leaning in he rested his forehead to mine and said nothing for what felt like minutes but I know it was only seconds. “I promise.” Standing tall once more, but remaining close we stared at each other. That charming grin of his returning.

  The music continued and we both started to move together once more, but didn’t look away from the other. The distance between us growing shorter and shorter until I could feel the scruff along his jaw tickling my cheek.

  Closing my eyes, I waited, anticipating the feeling of his lips on mine.

  “Our first kiss shouldn’t be on a dance floor with more than a hundred people watching us.” I froze, opening my eyes to find a soft look on his face. His hand rose and his thumb skimmed along my cheek before cupping my jaw. “When I kiss you, I don’t want to share that with anyone, I want that to be only ours.” Moving passed my lips he kissed my cheek and lingered there for a few seconds.

  I didn’t think I could feel anymore exhilarated than I had only moments ago, but I was wrong. My body was on fire, and I knew if I didn’t walk away now, I would climb this man and take the kiss I so desperately wanted.

  “I could use a cold drink right about now.” Or a cold shower. “How about you?” He didn’t wait for me to respond before creating a distance between us I hated instantly. I stood in the middle of the dance floor, watching as he backed away and moved through the crowd toward the bar.

  “Holy shit, is it hot in here?” That’s when I noticed Anna at my side fanning her face. Beau simply laughed like he was in on some kind of secret before slapping Anna’s ass and following the same path Wyatt just took.

  “Honestly Sadie, that was beyond hot. I couldn’t look away, I mean I’ve never seen Wyatt like that with anyone, like ever. How are you still standing, he made my damn knees weak?”

  “I’m thirsty.” Forcing my feet to move, I ignored the curious stares of those around me. Wyatt was right, there were too many people just waiting for something to gossip about. Truth was there was already enough for them to share tomorrow in the coffee shop and diner. We’d be front page news, at least there was one thing we could keep for us, but the problem was I was having a hard time waiting.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Wyatt

  * * *

  All the glances, the simple touches, they went on all night. After our brush on the dance floor, I was lit like a fucking inferno. Sadie had me climbing the wall with entirely too many dirty thoughts. The thing was it wasn’t even her fault, I was the one that set it up, only to walk away.

  But the second I got her in my arms, I couldn’t let go. It all unfolded and walking away without kissing her until her knees gave out was next to impossible.

  Now, with her standing at my side, her hip bumping against my knee every time she moved, it was only adding fuel to the fire. A man could only practice so much restraint.

  I was focused on her ass in her tight jeans, her back to me while she talked to Anna and other girls that I’d missed Beau at my side. I’d been so lost in Sadie for the last couple hours I hadn’t seen much of anything else.

  “I thought she moved out of town?” Beau was leaning in blocking my view but when he shifted to allow me to see what he was talking about my body tensed. Long gone was my relaxed state I’ve been in.

  At the opposite end of the bar stood Karlie and a few of her friends. She was smiling at one of them while holding a fruity drink in her hand. I wasn’t sure if she’d noticed me yet, but if she had I hoped that she knew well enough to stay at a distance.

  “She was staying with her cousin.” After I’d ended things I never cared where she ended up after that. From the many men I found she was messing with I figured she’d had more than enough warm beds to land it.

  A hand landed on my thigh and I looked away from Karlie to find Sadie standing right at my parted knees. “Can you hand me that?” She was pointing to the drink behind me on the bar that the bartender just made.

  Teasing her, flirting, sounded more fun than immediately giving her what she wanted.

  “Agree to have dinner with me tomorrow night and I will.”

  “You do know I could get it myself, I just didn’t want to lay across you.”

  Arching my brow, I held my hand out indicating she had free rein to do what she must and she laughed.

  “You are something else, Wyatt Murphy.” When I made no effort to get her drink she leaned in closer, and I did the same. Finding us back in the same predicament we were in on the dance floor. If she turned her head slightly, I’d feel her breath on my lips.

  “Why are you torturing me?”

  “Maybe you’re the one that is torturing yourself.” I loved how she fired back, never letting me win. “You could’ve kissed me, but you made your choice.”

  “I never said I wasn’t gonna kiss ya.” Someone cleared their throat and I let my guard down for one-second too long. She grabbed her drink and stepped back as I reached out for her. I didn’t give Beau a
second thought as I hooked her waist and pulled her back to me. “Have dinner with me?”

  The way she licked her lips made it hard to concentrate.

  “Only if you buy me desert.” She bit her lower lip and again I found myself wanting to kiss her and tug on that same lip.

  “Baby, I’ll buy you one of everything on the menu.”

  She smiled so big it made my damn cheeks hurt.

  I let her go so she could get back to her friends but when I found Anna in the crowd and she offered me a thumbs up I shook my head and finally turned my body back to face Beau.

  “Bed hopper found you.” With a nudge of his head, he motioned behind him and there stood Karlie, looking at me from across the bar. I didn’t give her more than a few seconds before looking away. Whatever reason she had for being back in Mason Creek wasn’t one I needed or even wanted to know. I had nothing to say to her, and that would never change.

  It was just after midnight and I had been home for less than thirty minutes when there was a knock on my door. Freshly showered, wearing nothing more than a pair of my favorite sweats I locked Gus in my bedroom and walked toward the back door.

  Smiling when I notice Sadie, I opened the door and looked to the empty space where her car usually sits. I’d wanted to give her a ride home, but Anna insisted on her going with them. Both tipsy and clinging to one another, Beau and I figured it was the only way to avoid an unwanted dramatic event.

  “You need help finding your way to bed?” I’d be more than willing to tuck her in if she’d let me.

  “I may need a ride into town tomorrow.”

  “I can do that.”

  She began to roam over me with her eyes, starting at the top and moving completely down, over my chest and lower. When she began to move back up she paused at my abs and bit her damn lip.

  Without thinking about it, I lifted my hand and tugged her lip free.

  “You should know that when I drink I tend to say a lot of the things I normally wouldn’t.” Her confession was sexy, the way she still continued to watch me.

  “Is that so?”

  Sadie nodded and took a step in closer. “I wish you would have kissed me on that dance floor tonight.”

  I fisted my hands at my sides, wanting nothing more than to grab ahold of her and pin her to the door. Feeling her body pressed against mine, hearing her whimper as I shifted my hips, showing her exactly what she does to me.

  “Just how drunk are you?”

  “Tipsy, not drunk,” she corrected. Lifting her hand upward, she trailed her fingertip over my chest. Stopping in the center, then lower slowly descending before she paused at the waistband of my sweats. “I am fully aware of my actions, and nothing said or done here tonight will be forgotten.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Oh yes.” Closing the distance between us, she slowly lifted her chin, locking her stare with my own. “I couldn’t go to bed without doing one thing first.”

  “What would that be?”

  “This.” Gliding her hands over my chest she brought them to the back of my neck and pulled me to her. The second her lips touched mine my control snapped, and I encircled her waist with my arms, pulling her close.

  A slow start, our lips mingling, teasing each other. An exploration of the other, one that set me on fire quickly. I let Sadie control the kiss because if I took over, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to stop. I found out fast just how addictive she could be.

  The tip of her tongue ran along the seam of my lips and I opened for her, gliding my own over hers. I swear I heard her moan, but it was lost in the sounds of my heart beating so fast I was having a hard time focusing. With one hand on each of her hips, I lifted her slightly and turned toward my door, pinning her body using my own. I knew I should hold back, but my need for her was too strong. She fit so perfectly to my body, wasting no time wrapping her legs around my waist.

  As if my hips had a mind of their own, I shifted forward and knew without a doubt that she felt exactly what reaction kissing her was inflicting. I was so damn hard, wanting nothing more than to continue to move against her but I held back. It was one of the most difficult things I'd ever had to do. Restraint was not on my side at the moment.

  I wasn’t sure which one of us was moaning louder. The build-up between us was so strong, the flirting and touching throughout the night leaving us both needy.

  We broke free, my forehead pressed to hers, both of us trying to regain some clarity. My head was swarming with so many fantasies, so many things I wanted to do to her right there in my doorway.

  When Sadie unhooked her legs and they slid down my body, placing her feet to the floor, I felt disappointed. I wasn’t ready for this to end.

  Sliding out from my hold, and moving to the right, she looked a little wobbly on her feet. It took her a few seconds to say anything. A deep breath, making her chest rise before she slowly exhaled.

  "Good night, Wyatt.” She backed away biting her lower lip, taunting me with her sultry eyes.

  "You surprise me, Sadie.” And drive me out of my mind.

  “But in a good way, right?”

  I chuckled, and her smile widened at the sound of my laughter. “Yeah, in the best way.”

  She wasn’t too far away but I was already looking forward to having her close once again. I felt like a crazed teenager all over again, and Sadie Michaels would be the star in all my impending wet dreams. She was so damn sexy and alluring, she already had me all tied up inside.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Sadie

  * * *

  "I overheard a little conversation this morning about a certain officer that may have performed a strip search on the dance floor at Pony Up last night." I almost choked on my coffee at Granny Char's words.

  Chancing a glance at my mom, she was staring at me with wide eyes and her full interest was focused solely on me.

  "There was no stripping." Gran had absolutely no filter.

  "But there was some searching." Her laughter echoed over my mother's kitchen and I looked back toward the doorway that led to the rest of the house to ensure that my father had not overheard. Thankfully it was just us three as if that alone wasn't bad enough.

  "Are we talking about Wyatt Murphy?" I stared down at my half-empty coffee cup, my heart thumping hard in my chest. "Are you two dating?"

  "Not sure some hot dancing with a whole lot of touching on the dance floor classifies as dating."

  I loved Gran, Lord knows I did, but at that moment I just wished she'd shut the hell up. I knew it wouldn't take long for word to get around, but come on, it wasn't that bad. It was me mauling him at his backdoor that was the hot part of the evening. My lips still felt like they were on fire the next morning. And my body, the way he held me to his back door and pressed the lower part of his body to mine. Just thinking of it, made my cheeks feel overheated.

  "Sadie?" My mom was still waiting for an explanation and to be honest, I wasn't exactly sure how to explain what was going on between Wyatt and me. What the hell were we doing? Was it a mistake?

  Was I being naive?

  "It was just a dance." I decided to keep the details to myself. Afraid that saying it out loud may make the entire thing backfire in my face.

  "Well, from what I—"

  "This town is full of busybodies just waiting for the next topic they can gossip about. There were several people out on that dance floor, but I'm the newest one back in town and they ran with it." I shrugged and refused to admit that what happened between Wyatt and I was anything more.

  I could almost feel the both of them staring at the back of my head, but I busied my hands in front of me. I refilled my cup, adding in the hazelnut creamer, and stirred slowly using up as much time as I could.

  When I turned back around, I moved to the center island and grabbed the calendar my mother had spread out there. "So," sipping the warm liquid, soothing my throat now that it felt raw, "the Harper wedding."

  We quickly fell into a groove, going over
the notes of the upcoming wedding. My mother had this event booked long before I'd returned to town. She'd met with the bride and her mother, so I needed to be brought up to speed before our last meeting, before this weekend's event.

  But even with them both now distracted I couldn't get my head clear. I kept falling back to the words I remembered Wyatt whispering in my ear as he held me closer, his arms wrapped around me, the heat of his breath, the softness of his words.

  “There is something here Sadie, something between us. Something I think we both want and that maybe you’re too afraid to act on.”

  He couldn't have been more right, I was afraid. I know he thought that it was only because of what happened when we were younger but honestly, my luck with men since then has never been good. The cheating, the lying, it had become a pattern every man followed. Trusting was an issue, and it was mine. I was trying, I really was, but there was that constant voice in my head that was screaming out, reminding me that this was just another heartache in the making.

  "Friday night." Wyatt leaned over the counter, staring at me with intent. "Six o'clock, dinner, a movie?"

  "What makes you think that I have Friday night free?" I'd found challenging Wyatt had become a new favorite of mine. It managed to inflict that boyish grin of his every time, and I really loved that grin.

  We were alone in the shop, Miley had gone home for the night. We'd been slow, it was only another hour before closing.

  "At this point Sadie, I'll take any night you give me, an hour on a Tuesday afternoon." Reaching out, he toyed with my fingers, before linking our hands together. A warmth ran over me, pooling in my stomach. This man, I didn't plan for the way he'd made me feel. A reminder that I was a woman with needs, needs that only multiplied in his presence, it wasn't fair.

  "I have a wedding this weekend I need to prepare for," I was more than prepared.