His texts and calls to her went unanswered, and it was pissing him off. He’d promised to give her space on the relationship front, but this was for the business—their business—and she was nowhere to be found.
“I think I got everything I need, Nash. Thanks so much for taking the time to meet with me.” Lucy, the interviewer, packed her things into her bag. “I’m so excited about this series. I’ve been pitching something like this to my editor for months, but we just hadn’t found the right town to spotlight yet. Once Rory sent over those pictures of your projects and I started digging more, I knew Havenbrook was our town.”
Nash cocked his head to the side, his eyes narrowing. “Did you say Rory sent you the pictures?”
She laughed. “Yep, kicked off this whole thing with her email. Never knew so much tenacity could reside in such a small package. Didn’t matter that she only knew me through my sister, she wouldn’t take no for an answer.” She closed the flap of her messenger bag. “But I’m glad she reached out. It was at the perfect time since I’ve been angling for something like this for a while.”
“Yeah,” Nash managed while his brain churned over the new information. Rory had set this up? Rory had contacted the magazine to get this spread for him—for them—and she wasn’t even here for it? None of it made sense.
“I’ll be sure to send a few copies of the magazine once it’s printed.” Lucy stood and offered her hand to him. “Thanks again for your time.”
Nash stared down at the tabletop after she’d left, his brain cranking a mile a minute. The more he thought about it, the more pissed he got. He understood Rory wasn’t ready for a relationship with him, and he was finding a way to deal with that. He hadn’t pushed once.
Hell, even if he’d wanted to, he wouldn’t have been able because she’d been avoiding him. She wasn’t at job sites when he was, and all her instructions over the past few days had come in the form of texts or notes at the location.
He’d worried more than once that it was her way of slowly extricating herself from their partnership. But if that was the case, why reach out for this interview?
He had no fucking idea, and the more he thought on it, the more none of it made any sense. He’d promised to give her space, but he wasn’t going to get any answers just sitting here.
“I’m gonna have to take a rain check on today, Drew,” he called as he strode to the front door.
They’d had plans to hang out later, but this confrontation with Rory couldn’t wait. He needed to know what the hell was going on, and he needed to know now.
“What? No, c’mon, man. It’s—”
Nash waved him off. “Not gonna happen. We’ll do it next week. I’ve got somewhere to be.”
“Wait, Nash—”
With single-minded determination, he pushed through the front door and headed straight for his truck. He knew any calls or texts to Rory would go unanswered, just as they had every other time for the past few days. Which meant it was time to confront her. They were going to figure out a way to work through this, whether or not Rory wanted to talk.
Nash knocked on Rory’s front door again and glanced around. Her car was out front, a golf cart parked next to it. She was definitely home. Home and blatantly ignoring his knocks, which pissed him the hell off. As if it weren’t bad enough that she apparently couldn’t be in the same place with him in public, now she couldn’t even speak to him? How were they going to run a business like that?
“Momma, can you take a look at this, please?” Rory yelled.
Nash’s head jerked toward the sound of her voice, and he jogged down the porch steps and around the side of the house. The farther he went, the louder voices grew—two of them, from the sounds of it, arguing about something.
When the backyard came into view, he stopped short. A large canopy tent stood in the back corner of the yard, half a dozen picnic tables settled beneath it that Caroline and Will, along with Ava and Ella, were covering in tablecloths. Large-bulbed string lights zigzagged through the arching tree branches. And only ten yards from where he stood, Rory and Mac were perched on stepladders, their backs to him as they argued over whether or not the banner they were hanging was straight.
A banner that read, CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR SUCCESS, KING CONSTRUCTION!
For long moments, he was frozen in place, his mind whirring. She hadn’t bailed on him, hadn’t been avoiding. She’d been trying to surprise him. She’d contacted the magazine, had arranged for the interview, and now, apparently, had planned some kind of party in celebration. For him.
He strolled in her direction and didn’t stop until he stood directly behind her, ready to catch her if she fell. “I thought we talked about you standing on ladders.”
Rory squeaked and spun around, hand to her chest. “Nash! What—” She glanced over his head, wild eyes darting around the yard. “What’re you doin’ here? Where’s Drew? I told him five, not two!”
He gripped the ladder on either side of her hips, brow furrowed. “What does Drew have to do with anything?”
“He’s…” She glanced around again. When she seemed to realize Drew wasn’t there, she yanked the banner out of Mac’s hands, ignoring her sister’s protests, and shoved it behind her back. “What’re you doin’ here?”
He raised his eyebrows and pointedly glanced around the yard, lifting a hand in a wave at Caroline, Will, and the girls, who were all staring at him. “I think the better question is what are you doin’ here?”
“Let’s, um—” With a hand on his shoulder, she pushed him back so she could climb down the ladder. Once on the ground, she kicked the banner behind her and shot a pointed look to Mac. “Let’s go around front and chat. It’s such a mess back here.”
He nearly grinned at her avoidance, but he played along, strolling behind her as she tugged him toward the front yard with a hand gripping his wrist. “Looks like you’re throwin’ a party. What’s it for?”
She glanced back at him. “What? Oh, no. I’m not— That’s not—” She shook her head and waved a dismissive hand. “Just a little get-together for family. It’s nothing.”
“Didn’t look like nothing. Looked like a pretty big deal. A genuine Rory Haven party. Something you might throw for your grandmother’s eightieth birthday, or for a graduation, or maybe even after a small, family-owned business got a spread in a national magazine…”
She stopped short, and he nearly stumbled over her, stilling himself with a hand on her waist.
“What makes you say that?” she asked, her voice strained.
He knew he shouldn’t, knew it wasn’t his place to touch her anymore, but he couldn’t stop his thumb from stroking the sliver of skin peeking out between her pants and long-sleeved shirt. Fuck, he’d missed the feel of her under his hands. Missed the feel of her under him, period. “I saw the banner, princess. You gonna tell me what this is all about?”
“Dammit!” Her entire body deflated before she snapped upright again, fire in her eyes. “I’m gonna kill Drew! He had one job—one!” She paced away from Nash, her arms gesturing wildly. “Just get you here at the right time so I could do this in front of everyone because you deserve that. You deserve it after everything I put you through—put us through. This was the chance to show everyone how much I love you, and now it’s ruined because you’re here three hours early! This wasn’t how this was supposed to—”
She continued ranting, but he stopped listening. His mind was stuck on the three little words she’d said that kept repeating over and over in his head.
When she paced closer to him, he stilled her with his hands on her shoulders and turned her to face him. He brushed his thumbs across her collarbone and bent at the knees to meet her eyes. “Hang on. Rewind for me a minute. I’m gonna need you to say that again.”
“Which part? How I’m gonna kill Drew? Don’t worry, you can plead ignorance. Will’ll watch the girls for me, and Mac’ll help me bury the body.”
He breathed out a laugh and shook his head, tightening
his fingers on her shoulders, fighting the overwhelming urge he had to pull her into his chest and just…hold her. Remind himself what all her curves felt like against every inch of him. Reacquaint his senses with the feel of her…the scent of her…the warmth of her. “I was thinkin’ more about when you said you love me.”
“When I—” Her eyes went wide before she dropped her forehead to his chest and groaned, her hands fisted in his shirt. “Nooo! Can’t even do that right. I just drop it in the middle of threatenin’ to kill one of your friends. What is wrong with me?”
Unable to keep himself from holding her for another second, he wrapped his arms around her shoulders and pulled her close, finally inhaling his first full breath in what seemed like forever. Tucking his head until his nose was in the crook of her neck, he asked, “Was this party really just an elaborate event for you to tell me you love me?”
“Not just you,” she said into his chest. “My parents, too. Your dad. Everyone I work with at town hall. All our clients. Edna, of course. I figured she’d spread it the quickest. And if it happened to make it back to that bitch Carol Ann before tomorrow morning, all the better.”
He exhaled a laugh into her neck. “Seems like a whole lot of work for something you could’ve told me yesterday at the Taylors’ house and put me out of my misery sooner. I wouldn’t have minded something simple like, ‘Hey, Nash, we’ve decided to go with four-inch baseboards, and oh, by the way, I love you.’”
Rory pulled back enough to look up at him, her eyes serious as she rested her hand over his pounding heart. “But then only you know, and I didn’t want it to be a secret anymore. I just…I was tired of hidin’, and I wanted everyone to know.” She shrugged. “This seemed like the perfect way.”
“What’ve I told you about that? I don’t want perfect. Never have.”
She raised her eyebrows. “But perfect would’ve gotten you here at the correct time with everyone around to bear witness to my declaration.”
“But real got me you cussin’ and plottin’ homicide while tellin’ me you love me all alone.”
The corner of her mouth lifted. “Technically, I haven’t told you yet.”
He tipped his head down in acknowledgment and tugged her against him until their noses were nearly touching. “I stand corrected. You gonna change that?”
She studied him, a tiny bit of apprehension shining in her eyes. Her fingers danced along the collar of his shirt, and her gaze followed the movement. “If I were to say that—hypothetically speakin’, of course—what would your response be?”
He lifted his eyebrows. “Hypothetically?”
She nodded and glanced up at him. “Yeah.”
“Well, hypothetically, I’d probably tell you something along the lines of me wantin’ you my entire adult life and how I don’t see that changin’ anytime soon, so you’re stuck with me. Or I might play it cool and just reciprocate.”
A slow smile swept across her lips, and happiness danced in her eyes. “Either one works, I guess.”
He finally did what he’d been aching to for so long. He cupped her face and brought his lips to hers, inhaling her moan when he swept his tongue into her mouth. She tasted like coffee and chocolate and…home.
Pulling back, he pressed kisses to her cheeks, her eyelids, her forehead—everywhere he could reach. “I missed you.”
“I missed you too. I’m sorry it took me so long to get here.”
“Don’t care how long it took, just that you made it.” He tipped her head up until she met his eyes. “We’re gonna make a whole lot of mistakes, princess. We butt heads and we argue—there’s no denyin’ we crackle, for better or worse, when we’re together. But I’m tellin’ you now, I’m not goin’ anywhere. We can be pissed at each other all damn day, but I won’t end a single one without tellin’ you I love you.”
She sighed and melted into him, her eyes broadcasting her feelings without her saying a word, before she suddenly jerked back. “Hey! You stole my thunder. I went to all this effort—” she gestured toward the backyard “—just to tell you, and you said it first.”
He shrugged. “You snooze, you lose. Next time, don’t take so damn long.”
She pinched him, laughing, and he captured the sound between his lips.
Nash had daydreamed what it’d be like after he finally told Rory he loved her. They wouldn’t be able to get their clothes off fast enough, and he’d fuck her wherever they stood because he’d need to be inside her as soon as possible. To hear her utter those three little words while he was buried deep.
In reality, they’d been surrounded by dozens of people for hours, everyone congratulating the two of them—first on their business success, and then, upon closer inspection of their clasped hands or their near proximity to each other, on their relationship. They’d gotten some raised eyebrows, and he had no doubt the gossip mill would be cranking like crazy, but Rory didn’t seem to be bothered by that, so he couldn’t find a flying fuck to give. She was his, and everyone in Havenbrook knew it.
Nash’s dad had made an appearance at the party—this time, thankfully not offering to sleep with Rory. Things were strained between them, and no doubt would be for a while, but they were talking. That was something.
Even Rory’s father had ambled over to offer his praise. Something that’d been a shock to her, if the look on her face was anything to go by. Caroline had stood next to Richard, her arm locked through his as she beamed at Rory…while simultaneously giving Richard talking cues through not so subtle pinches. Nash didn’t care if Richard delivered the message at gunpoint so long as he did so because Nash just wanted Rory to be happy.
And…she was. It radiated from her.
Whether he was chatting with a prospective client or being glared at by Drew—no doubt in thanks to Rory’s threats to castrate him for letting Nash show up unannounced—he’d kept his eyes locked on her the entire time. The difference in her demeanor between this party and Gran’s—or hell, every other party she’d ever thrown or even been at—was remarkable. Gone was the pretending. Gone were the smiles that didn’t quite reach her eyes. Gone was the buttoned-up girl he’d lusted after from afar, and in her place was the real girl he’d fallen in love with.
Hours after the first guest had arrived, the yard had finally cleared out, the only stragglers Rory’s sisters and him. Rory stood under the canopy with Will and Mac as they gathered the cloths from the picnic tables, her head tossed back in laughter and her eyes alight in genuine happiness.
A happiness he’d go to the ends of the earth to make sure she felt every day for as long as she’d have him.
“You’re lookin’ at Momma like you wanna kiss her.”
He glanced down to find Ava smiling up at him, Ella standing between the two of them, her face pinched in a grimace as she split a look from him to Rory. “I kinda do. Does that bother you?”
Ava shook her head at the same time Ella yelled, “Gross!”
He laughed loud enough to draw Rory’s attention, her eyes softening as she stared at the three of them. And damn if he didn’t melt a little bit when she looked at him like that.
Ella heaved a sigh and leaned against his leg. “This is gonna be happenin’ a lot, isn’t it?”
“Momma already talked to us about it,” Ava said, elbowing her sister. “I dunno why you’re so surprised.”
Nash’s eyebrows shot up his forehead. “She did?”
She’d wanted the whole town to know that she loved him, but somehow knowing she’d discussed the two of them with her daughters—with the two most important people in her life—made it all…real.
“What, um… What’d she say?” He scratched his jaw, hoping his eagerness wasn’t obvious.
Ava shrugged. “That she loves bein’ with you, and she hopes you love bein’ with her.”
“I do. A lot.”
Ava offered him a smile so much like her momma’s it nearly knocked him on his ass. “I’m glad you make her happy.”
He reached out an
d rested his hand on her head. “Me too.”
“Well, I’m glad you’re gonna be around more so you can take me fishin’.” Ella looked up at him, her lips pursed. “You have a fishin’ pole, dontcha?”
“Yes,” he said with a laugh, lifting his eyes to meet Rory’s across the yard. She studied the three of them, her head cocked to the side and hand resting against her chest, as if she loved every bit of what she was looking at.
The feeling was mutual.
Rory stepped out of Ella’s room, quietly closing the door behind her. It’d been a long day—hell, it’d been a long couple days—and the girls had conked out just as soon as their heads had hit their pillows. The last partygoers had finally filtered out. Mac and Will had left a bit ago after helping them clean up. And that meant Rory and Nash were alone. Finally.
He stood at the end of the hall, leaning his shoulder against the wall. “They asleep?”
Rory nodded as she twisted around, the doorknob gripped in her hand. “Just us now.”
He pushed off the wall and prowled toward her until he was so close, his breaths swept across her cheek. “Remember how you had plans to tell me how much you loved me in front of everyone?”
“Mhmm,” she said, her body going boneless as he kissed his way up her neck to her ear.
He nipped her earlobe. “You didn’t do that once the whole party.”
On a gasp, her eyes popped open. “Dammit!” she hissed. “That’s two fails in one day.” She fisted his T-shirt and tugged. “Are you upset?”
“A little bit. I have an idea for how you can make it up to me, though,” he said, one hand palming her ass as he pulled her up against him before walking her backward down the hall.
She raised her eyebrows. “Does your idea happen in my bedroom?”
“As a matter of fact…” He nipped her bottom lip as he reached behind her to open her door. “Before we get started, though… How hard do the girls sleep?”
She tilted her head to the side to make room for his questing lips. “A tornado could come through, and they’d be oblivious.”
Hometown Troublemaker Page 26
