by Devney Perry
“Still on for dinner?” he asked.
I nodded, unable to speak.
Then he bent and kissed my cheek. Right there on the sidewalk in broad daylight with the entire congregation inside the motel’s office bearing witness. Had he known I’d been feeling insecure? Most likely. Brooks seemed to understand me better than anyone ever had, including Karson.
Brooks left me on the sidewalk, crossing his lawn to where his truck was parked outside his garage. I stayed put—this time I had to watch him walk away.
My shoulders slumped. My smile dropped.
I didn’t like it.
Chapter Nine
Brooks
I used my forearm to wipe the sweat from my forehead, then slammed the hood on the truck I’d just finished working on. It was the Chevy I’d hauled in early yesterday morning. The owner hadn’t been able to get it to start. When I’d gotten it into the shop, I’d understood why. The thing hadn’t been tuned up in years. The oil was practically sludge and the battery corroded. The starter was on its last leg.
The owner was new to Summers and had recently moved into the widow Aster’s place after she passed in March. He’d given me the go-ahead to fix it all, so after getting parts yesterday and clearing the shop, today it had been my project.
“Chevy’s done,” I told Tony, wiping my forehead again. The sweat wouldn’t stop dripping. “You can go ahead and call for him to pick it up.”
“Will do, Brooks.” Tony unscrewed the cap on a gallon jug of water and hefted it to his lips. Most of the water went inside his mouth, but a healthy trickle dripped down his chin and onto his coveralls.
No matter the temperature, Tony wore coveralls. Today, he’d at least given up hot coffee for cold water.
“What else we got on the docket for the day?” Tony asked, catching a dribble of water with his wrist.
I blew out a long breath and stared down the shop to the office. “I need to spend some hours on paperwork.”
I hadn’t sent invoices in a week, and as much as I hated keeping the books, I did like getting paid. Normally, I did my billing at night. I’d stick around after the shop closed. Unless Wyatt had a night off or we had Monday dinner at Mom and Dad’s house, I was here until my growling stomach forced me home.
Those three or four nights a week made it possible for me to keep up on the business side of things. But with Londyn here, I’d left every night this week as soon as the last car was out of the shop and on the road with its owner.
Last night, I’d even closed up early. I’d hoped to catch Wyatt between football practice and work so I could tell him about Londyn. But he’d had a friend over when I’d gotten home, so I’d put it off. As soon as he’d gone to work, I’d hauled ass to the diner to pick up a couple of cheeseburgers, then met Londyn on the rock.
I’d been braced for her to be in an off mood thanks to her ex’s visit. But she’d been her normal self when she’d shown up to meet me. We’d talked about her life over dinner. Londyn had quickly become my favorite topic. I’d asked her more questions about the journey from California to Montana to Boston and the places she’d stopped along the way.
By the time our cheeseburgers had been devoured, the pair of us had been too full to do anything but lie on the rock and watch the sunset with our hands linked.
As much as I would have liked kissing her for an hour, my lips were chapped and my control on the brink. One taste of her and I wouldn’t have had the strength to stop at a kiss.
It was killing me to send her on her way to the motel each night. Alone. I’d walked stiffly home, my cock so swollen and aching I’d been forced to take a miserably long cold shower.
At the moment, a cold shower sounded great. I was melting, and just thinking about Londyn had stirred my dick to life.
The last time I’d been this hot for a woman had been . . . never. Not even as a teenager with Moira. And I was about done waiting. I’d been patient, but there was only so much a man could take.
I glanced at the clock. It was nearly noon. Tony had come in early this morning, around six according to his punch card. I’d been in shortly after eight, having hung around the house this morning to make sure Wyatt had breakfast before leaving for practice.
He was a zombie in the mornings. During the school year, both Moira and I made sure he was out of bed because he could sleep through ten blaring alarms. I’d hoped today might be the exception to his normal dazed routine so I could tell him about Londyn. But he’d nearly fallen asleep in his eggs.
I’d kept the conversation light, talking about football and his plans for a summer Friday night. He’d woken up enough to ask if he could take a girl to the movies. I’d agreed as long as he promised to spend some much-needed time with his old man on the boat tomorrow.
“I’m ready for the weekend,” I told Tony.
“Same. You got plans?” He raised an eyebrow, no doubt wondering if I had plans with Londyn. Though he hadn’t outright asked about her, it was no secret that I’d had dinner with her every night this week.
Meggie knew it. Therefore, Sally knew it. Therefore, Tony and the whole town knew it.
“Wyatt and I’ll probably take the boat out.”
“Good plan.” He fanned his face. “This heat sure came on fast.”
That was no joke. Another reason all Londyn had gotten last night was a chaste kiss good night. It was too damn hot to get worked up.
The worst of the summer heat had descended on Summers and would stick around until September. The days would be sticky, the nights muggy and thick. I needed to find time to tell Wyatt about Londyn and fast, because the rock wasn’t going to be enjoyable again until fall. My back porch was much more comfortable—so was my bed.
“Tony?” I glanced around the empty shop. We were done with jobs for the day. “I think I’m going to spend the rest of the day in my office. You should take the afternoon off.”
“Yeah?” He swiped up his gallon of water from the tool bench. “Think I’ll take you up on that.”
“Good. Have a nice weekend.” I waved as he headed for the door.
“You too, Brooks.”
I retreated to the office, sinking down in the chair and enjoying the slightly cooler air. The ceiling vent blew air into my face.
I closed my eyes, giving myself ten minutes to cool down and work up the gumption to open my laptop. But I didn’t get ten minutes. I only got three before a rap came at the door. My eyes shot open to a beautiful sight.
Londyn leaned against the doorframe with a smile. A pair of denim shorts left most of her legs bare. Her green tank top dipped dangerously low in a scoop around her neck, the color bringing out the darker greens in her eyes. “Did I interrupt nap time?”
I waved her into the room toward the chair in the corner. “It’s the heat. I needed a breather.”
“Seriously.” She fanned her face. “Someone turned up the dial because it’s miserable.”
“To what do I owe the pleasure?”
She relaxed deeper into the chair. “I’m bored. It’s too hot to walk around town and I couldn’t stay cramped up in my motel room any longer.”
Londyn was growing restless. Soon, she’d be gone. “Got a call from the body shop today. They’re starting on your car first thing Monday. Should be done by Friday at the latest.”
“A week.” She sighed.
“Is that too long? I can ask if they can hurry it.” Maybe if I asked Mack, he’d be willing to work the weekend for some extra cash.
“No.” She toyed with the frayed hem of her shorts. “I was just thinking it was too soon.”
“It is too soon.” I grinned. If she wasn’t in a hurry, maybe I could convince her to stay through next weekend too.
“Mind if I hang out here for a while?” she asked. “I promise to ask you a bunch of questions and distract you from getting any work done.”
“Well, when you put it like that . . .”
“I’m kidding. Give me ten to cool down and then I’ll get out
of your hair.”
“Nah. Stay as long as you want.” Nothing I needed to do today was urgent. It could all wait until the weekend. Or next week. Or the week after that. I’d probably want the extra work after Londyn left town anyway. It would be a nice distraction.
She sank even deeper, resting her head on the back of the leather chair. “What does a sexy mechanic do on a hot Friday afternoon in West Virginia?”
“Sexy?” I raised an eyebrow.
“Definitely sexy.”
I chuckled. “Well, if that mechanic has a stack of bills to pay and invoices to send, he spends it in the office. If he’s not in the mood to work and doesn’t have a car to fix, he’s out on the lake in his boat.”
Londyn sat up straight. “You have a boat?”
“I do.”
“Hmm. Interesting.” She tapped her chin. “I happen to like boats.”
Fuck the office. I stood from my chair and took my truck keys off the hook by the door. “Let’s get out of here.”
“I might have insisted on dinner here if I’d known about it.” Londyn stood at the end of my dock, staring down at my boat. “What else are you hiding from me?”
I held out my hand to help her into the boat. “Not a lot.”
Only my teenager.
She smiled, her eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses as she took a seat in the passenger chair. She hadn’t changed from the office. We’d driven over together and while I’d run into my house to swap my jeans and boots for board shorts and sandals, she’d wandered around the back of the house and found the dock.
“This is some place.” She glanced back toward the house.
“It wasn’t easy to come by, but I got lucky. My dad worked with the previous owner. She was a doctor at the hospital with him. She and her husband retired to Florida. Dad knew I was looking to buy and gave me the tip.”
Lakefront homes with a private dock didn’t appear on the market in Summers often. This one hadn’t even been listed. We’d agreed upon a price, and when they’d moved out and I’d moved in, it was the talk of the town for weeks.
Some didn’t like that they’d been cheated the opportunity to bid. If they knew how much I’d paid, they wouldn’t be bitching. My offer had been three times as much as a house like this in town would cost. But the location had been worth taking a loan from my parents.
“Ready?” I asked and Londyn nodded.
I started up the boat, the rumble radiating from the engine through the floor. Then I eased us away from the dock, pointing the bow toward the center of the lake. When we were clear, I lowered the throttle.
Londyn’s smile widened, her eyes aimed at the shore behind us as we flew. She pointed to the rock when she spotted it and laughed.
From the rock, the shoreline of the lake jutted out about thirty feet, hiding the dock from view. But out here, in the middle of the water, you could see how each landmark bookended my property line between my neighbor on one side and the motel on the other.
“This feels so good!” Londyn yelled above the rev of the engine and the slap of water against the hull.
The air rushed around us, creating the breeze we’d been missing. Her hair flew behind and around her face as she spun forward, watching where I was going.
We cruised, making the long lap around the lake. There were a few other boats out on the water today, all fishermen bobbing along the banks at slow speeds, and we waved as we passed them by. Tomorrow the lake would be packed, everyone out to enjoy the weekend and beat the heat.
I brought us to the center of the lake, to a spot where we’d have some privacy, and shut off the boat. No one would bother us out here. The fishermen were working the edges and coves where the walleye and smallmouth bass were searching for food.
“Thank you for this.” Londyn slid her sunglasses into that long, blond hair, revealing those shining jade eyes.
My mouth went dry. “Water. Need one?” I sure as hell did. My head was dizzy and my heart was beating in hard thunks. The heat was getting to me again—I was burning up, from the inside out.
“I was thinking of going for a swim.”
Thunk. “Didn’t think you had a suit.”
There was no tie at the nape of her neck. She hadn’t gone to the motel to change after coming to the office.
“Do I need one?”
Thunk. “Uh, no.”
She gave me a sly grin, one that said she was ten steps ahead and I’d better catch up fast. Her tank top was gone in a flash of cotton, leaving nothing but skin and black lace cupping perfect breasts. Londyn looked up at me through her lashes as her fingers trailed down the flat line of her stomach to the waistband on her denim shorts.
Those slim, lithe fingers flicked open the button. The zipper clicked, one notch at a time, until her hands slid toward her hips to push the shorts down her legs. She shimmied, a gentle sway, until all that was left was black lace.
“Are you swimming with me?” She stepped out of her sandals and walked to the back of the boat, stepping up on the bench seat, then the rear deck. Her toes wiggled forward until they were gripping the edge, ready to catapult her into the water.
I managed a nod.
Then she was off, the dive graceful and smooth, like the woman herself. The stunning woman who’d swept into my life and captured my attention like no other.
Thunk.
My hand pressed against my heart. She was stealing it, little by little.
“Are you coming in here?” she hollered from the water after popping up about twenty feet away. “Or are you afraid of a woman swimming in her underwear?”
“Smart-ass.” I grinned, reaching behind my head to yank off my T-shirt. My flip-flops were still under the steering wheel where I’d kicked them off during the drive. Three long strides and I was up and off the boat, stretching long as I dove into the water.
Surfacing beside her, I slicked the hair off my face. “What was that about your underwear?”
Londyn smiled, her hands coming to my shoulders as she drifted closer. Her legs tangled with mine in the cool water below as we treaded to keep afloat.
I wrapped one arm around her waist, pulling her hips flush against the ridges of my stomach. With my other hand, I cupped her ass, squeezing the wet lace in my palm. She gasped when I pressed my erection into her inner thigh.
“You’re driving me crazy, honey.”
She leaned in, her lips a whisper from mine. “If you kiss me today, you’d better not stop.”
There’d be no stopping, not today. I’d threatened to fuck her on that rock, but the boat would work fine instead.
My lips crashed into hers, the sweet taste of her mouth consuming me as my tongue dove inside. I pulled her closer with one arm, holding tight as I plundered her mouth and my other hand stretched for the boat, using it to keep my balance as my legs propelled us.
“Brooks,” she panted my name, breaking her lips away when we reached the boat’s platform.
“Up.” I put my hands on her hips, hoisting her out of the water. Drops fell from her tan skin, landing on me as I planted my hands on the platform and shoved myself out of the water. The moment my feet were steady, she was in my arms, our bodies crashing together and our mouths fusing.
We fumbled over the back of the boat, slipping and sliding as we made our way to the center aisle. I swiped a towel from the stack I’d brought along, shaking it out with one hand. I tore my lips away, making Londyn moan as I laid the towel on the wet carpet.
I took her hand, tugging her to her knees beside me. Then I wrapped her in my arms and eased her to the floor, hovering above her.
“This okay?”
She nodded, snaking a hand around my neck and pulling me down.
There was nothing languid or slow about our next kiss. This wasn’t a kiss to explore or learn about one another. This kiss was the prelude. This kiss was the last one in a long line of kisses that had led us here, to my bare chest against her smooth skin.
My hand reached between us, c
upping her breast. I pulled the cup of her bra under the curve to set her nipple free. I twisted the hard nub in my hand, rolling it to a peak as her back arched off the towel.
I needed it in my mouth. I needed to taste every inch of this incredible woman. I tore my lips away, dropping to suck on her skin.
“Shit,” she hissed, her fingers diving into the wet strands of my hair as I rolled her nipple around my tongue. Her eyelids were closed, her wet mouth open as she breathed.
She was a picture of ecstasy and we hadn’t even gotten to the good parts yet.
I grinned, giving her nipple a playful nip before leaning away and stripping the straps of her bra off her shoulders. It closed in the back so she pushed up, reaching behind to undo the clasp.
“Condom?” Her chest heaved. “Please tell me you have a condom on this boat.”
“Yeah.” I popped open the compartment below the steering wheel and retrieved my wallet. I’d put a condom in there earlier this week, just in case my control cracked.
With the foil packet in my hand, I tossed the wallet aside and ripped at Londyn’s panties. The lace shredded as I tugged hard, and the scrap of fabric got tossed carelessly to the side.
Londyn relaxed onto her elbows, her eyes hooded as she widened her legs.
My hand went to my heart once more. “You’re . . .” My heart did another thunk. “Beautiful.”
That wasn’t the right word but as a smile spread across her face, I lost the ability to think.
Her eyes darted to my shorts. “Are you going to take those off? Or would you like some help?”
“Don’t. Move.”
I stood and ripped the wet shorts off my legs. My erection bobbed, throbbing hard as she spread even wider. I tore into the condom, sheathing myself, and when it was in place, my eyes dropped to her bare, slick pussy.
Fuck. I wasn’t going to last. My stamina was shit and she deserved more than a fifteen-minute ride.
“Brooks.” She squirmed. “If you don’t get down here—”
