by Taryn Quinn
“No, those freaking ducks. They decided under my deck was the perfect place to make a nest.”
“We have had an unseasonably warm fall.”
Mason rounded his desk and pulled out a freaking bullhorn from his bottom drawer.
“Jesus, put that away.”
“It’s the only thing that scares them off.”
I shook my head and pointed my thumb at my dog. “Hello.”
“Oh, right. Genius.” He went over to Sadie and ruffled her ears. “Do you want to earn a steakbone?”
At the word bone, Sadie popped up, her tail wagging madly.
“You know that one, hey?” Mason strode out with Sadie on his heels as I took an extra minute to buckle Sami into her carrier. She always seemed to inch her butt down the seat. She fussed a little then quieted herself with her fist in her mouth.
I grabbed the heavy handle and followed my brother out before he did something stupid. The lower level of his restaurant was almost full light with the domed skylights and large windows showing off the lakefront view. Small mason jar lights were strung up high and low in varying heights for interest. They had solar tea lights inside which were sucking up all that energy, thanks to the early afternoon sunshine.
I knew this because he’d bribed me into helping him fill each freaking jar. Good thing he had decent beer on tap. On Sundays, the restaurant was only open for dinner, which meant the only people in the room were his waitstaff wrapping silverware and the clanging of dishes in the kitchen.
Mason was already out back. The porch had large heaters for the hearty customers who loved the view enough to use the deck. More mason jars decorated the railings and larger, holiday-themed hurricane lanterns were tucked into the corners of the floor.
As soon as I walked through the double doors, three ducks met me on the deck, their heads bobbing as they looked for spare crumbs under the tables and around the jars on the railings.
Sadie was splashing out on the coastline of the lake. She’d chased two ducks into the water and was barking merrily at a third one who still let her give chase. I checked on my daughter, but she was sleeping through all the noise, bless her little oblivious heart.
I set her on the table closest to me and tucked her blanket around her and draped the other over the handle to block any of the wind. Gillian was down with Mason on the patio off the deck.
“Get out of here,” Mason yelled.
The ducks just bobbed and weaved around him, looking for spare pieces of bread that the customers usually threw out for them. Which was why the ducks were sticking around. No sign about not feeding the wildlife could override something as cute as middle-aged ducklings.
I knew, because I’d had the same problem all summer. The family of ducks were a menace, but none of the townsfolk—me included—would use anything hurtful to get them to go on their way.
Mason stalked across the lawn to his small shed. Gillian followed him and peeked from the door.
“What’s going on?”
I turned to find Gina in the doorway. I was struck dumb for a moment. The flowy dress in deep red flirted with her knees and the tall black boots she was wearing. The heel was one of those spiky kinds that I was eternally grateful for, even if I winced at the thought of them from a practical standpoint. But damn, they made her legs look long. “Hey.”
She grinned up at me. “Hey yourself.” She immediately peeked into the carrier and adjusted the blankets before covering her against the cool wind off the water. “What’s got your brother so excited?”
A duck came up to meet her and quacked—actually, it sounded more like a bray, for God’s sake. He stabbed at the toe of her boot.
“Hey, buddy.” She stepped out of reach. “I just bought those suckers.”
I slid my hand around her back, glanced around for onlookers, and then cupped her ass. “And I appreciate those boots.” I stared down at the duck. “Buzz off, buddy, she’s my date.”
She laid her hand on my chest. “Is that right?”
“Definitely.” I lowered my mouth to hers. She tasted of something sweet. Maybe frosting? Possibly the cupcakes I saw Tabitha from Sugar Rush loading into her van earlier. But then that spicy gingerbread scent wafted from her hair.
She was a damn goddess.
I tangled the fingers of my other hand into the loose curls floating down her back. She moaned into my mouth, and I tugged a touch harder before I eased back. “How’s the head?” I asked.
“Perfectly fine. Kiss me again.”
I did as she asked, sinking in as if it had been years since we’d touched. The quick lash of her tongue buzzed along mine before another quack busted us apart.
We were surrounded like we were chum in the water.
Reluctantly, I pulled my mouth from hers. “You don’t happen to have food in that big bag, do you?”
“Maybe.” She gave the four ducks on our left a side-eye.
“A bread type item?”
She bit her lower lip—the one still swollen from me—then nodded. “Vee’s bacon and cheese tartlets.”
I groaned. Other than Gina’s pecan pie, those were practically my favorite thing ever, and she knew it. I drew her closer as the ducks doubled in number. “I think they might like them as much as I do.”
“And maybe the garbage bread.”
I laughed as we slowly shuffled to the right so I could reach the baby carrier. I snagged it and we rushed back to the doors of the restaurant. I handed off the carrier to her and spun around to close the double doors.
Manic quacking sounded outside on the deck as more and more seemed to congregate.
“The Birds have nothing on these guys.”
Gina peeked around me and out the window. “They’re probably starving.”
“Well, they should be in some warmer climate like Georgia or Florida or something.”
“I bet they are getting fed just fine based on those numbers.” She gripped the back of my jacket with a giggle before she snaked her hand under my polo shirt to rub my back.
How many times had she rubbed my back since we’d been friends? Except now I knew just what it was like to be skin to skin with her. And any contact had the divining rod otherwise known as my dick thirsty for her in every damn way.
She set Sami on the table beside us and after another peek, she shook her head. “Still sleeping. You’re the best little girl, aren’t you?”
I dragged Bee in front of me. “The very best sleeping girl.” I dipped my head for another kiss now that we were actually alone. She wrapped her arm around my neck and went up on her tiptoes. I loved how small she was, even in heels. I resisted the urge to lift her up and wrap her legs around my hips.
Inappropriate.
Sheriff.
Public.
All the words flashed in my brain, but the light was so dim. Especially with her sexy curves in my arms and her taste in my throat. Frosting and that darker sweetness that I’d always crave. Gina was my favorite flavor I never knew I loved.
Loved.
That emotion was so foreign and new to me, but it was so very real.
Pounding fists on the door broke us apart. Mason’s panicked face was right beside mine, only his was plastered to the windowpane. “Stop sucking face and let me in. Do sheriff things, dammit.”
I nudged Bee away from me and tapped her chin. “To be continued.”
“You know it.”
I opened the door. “Hurry—”
“Wait!”
A squeak came from behind me as one of the waitstaff spotted the ducks. And that was just enough of a distraction for the door to be open a second too long.
Ducks came flooding into the restaurant. At least two dozen of them spread out looking for any spare crumb.
Mason sagged against the open doors as the rest flowed around him like he was a river rock. Gillian came running up to help and then it was just bedlam. Waitresses climbing on chairs as the ducks lost their fool minds. They didn’t understand where they were
or how to get back out. A few enterprising ones jumped onto the table and found lunch leftovers from the staff who were eating before customers started coming in.
“Are you freaking kidding me?” Mason drove his fingers through his hair, holding on to the top of it as if it might actually fly off.
I made sure my girls were okay and turned to my brother. “So, maybe we could use that bullhorn now?”
“Yes.” Mason ran for his office.
“Take Sami out the front,” I commanded.
Bee shook her head. “Nope. Baby is fine and sleeping.” She pulled her coat off. “I’ll help.”
“All right.” That was my girl. She wasn’t like the squealing women climbing on every available surface.
I pointed at two startled guys coming out of the kitchen. “Close that door and lock it. Then get out here and help us.”
I started barking orders as I swooped one up under my arm like a football. The honking and bold braying quacks would haunt my dreams for days. I handed one off to Gillian. “Outside.”
She nodded and held it away from her.
We ended up making a sort of chain of handoffs to the door until the ducks figured us out and started spreading out.
Mason came out of the back with the bullhorn. “Attention ducks. Get the hell out of my place.” He swooped through and when they ignored him, he started quacking like they did.
Bee was laughing so hard, she had to dab at her eyes as she caught another wily one heading for the stairs to the front of the restaurant. She had two juveniles in her arms, and one was trying to make space in her bra. I met her in the middle of the main dining room and rescued one. “That’s not for you, buddy.”
The other was trying to climb up into her jacket. Bee’s dark eyes were shining with laugh-induced tears, and I wanted to drag her into my arms. She suddenly stopped laughing and gave me the same look. Things were so new with us—old and new at the same time.
But every time I saw her, I just wanted to touch and to take. To swallow down all that golden laughter and let it warm me up from the inside out.
Then the duck bit my earlobe. “You little shit.” I held it out and hustled to the back door.
I could hear her laughing from behind me.
Without warning, Bee disappeared into the kitchen.
“Traitor,” I yelled after her as I waded back into the melee. I scooped up two babies and tucked them into my jacket pockets, and then cornered one of the mamas.
Between the bullhorn and the quacks, I was nearly cross-eyed from the utter chaos of it. As if there was a secret aphrodisiac in the air, the ducks suddenly all turned tail and arrowed toward the kitchen.
“Oh, shit.” That was definitely a health code violation in the making.
“Here babies!” Bee’s voice rose over the crazy. She was holding a huge bag of stale bread that my brother usually used for his famous bread pudding.
“Hey!” Mason yelled.
“Sorry, Mase.” Bee sprinkled a few pieces on the floor, and the ducks beelined for her. She led them to the double doors. “Hurry, open the door!”
Mason ran for the French doors and blasted them open. The ducks outside the door started to storm back inside until they saw the buffet of bread being tossed onto the deck. A tide of brown waddling butts flowed out as quickly as they’d come inside.
She gingerly walked between all of them and down the stairs to the patio. I stopped at the table with Sami, craning my neck to keep her in view.
Mason waved me off. “Gillian and I have her. She’s sleeping.”
I frowned. The urge to follow Bee warred with my responsibilities. “Are you sure?”
“Go. Take a walk with your girl.”
I lifted the blanket and Sami was still sound asleep.
“Go. I can handle it. Pops is on his way in anyway. He’s showing me how he makes his custard for the holiday menu. He’ll be thrilled to have time with his grandbaby.”
“I…”
Mason took me by the shoulders and shoved me out the door. “That beautiful woman is out there, and you need to go remind her that you’re more than insta-parents.”
I glanced back at him. “Well, that’s very intuitive, little brother.”
Mason shrugged. “I have moments. Besides, babysitting a sleeping baby is no biggie.”
“Just for saying that she’ll wake up as soon as I go down the stairs, you know that, right?”
But I picked up the pace. He’d made the offer and there were enough people in his employ to help out. Especially since I knew at least two of the waitresses had been struck by the Cove and had new babies at home.
I chased Bee down to the patio and out to the long grass right before the beach. The long reeds were still hanging on. It had been a fairly mild pre-winter for us, with the exception of a few random snow bursts, and any snowfall we’d had seemed to melt away within a day or so.
“Come on guys. Just a little farther.” She tossed some bread out on the beach and in the water. Finally, the ducks seemed to get the idea. She spotted me and slowed down. “Hello there, Sheriff. Where’s your daughter?”
“Uncle Mase and his waitstaff are watching her.”
She arched her brow. “Takes a village.”
“And my dad is coming in too. So, I’m not too worried about it. He managed to keep us alive this long.”
She laughed. The breeze kicked up and the skirt of her sweater dress wrap thing flirted with her knees as a corner flipped up. She started walking backwards, staying mostly on her toes in the shifting sand. There was a sway in the way she walked as if she was leading me away on purpose.
I reached into her bag and gathered large handfuls. “We have a few moments alone.”
“I see that. Whatcha gonna do about it, Sheriff?”
“I’m pondering.”
“Don’t ponder too long.” She picked her way up the incline to the rocky pier at the edge of Mason’s property. Luckily, I was wearing my hiking boots since I never knew what kind of situation I’d be in. My days off never seemed to fully be time off, and before Sami arrived, I’d taken as few as humanly possible. Christian didn’t seem to mind the change in schedule, but he’d not so gently reminded me that we still had to actually hire the deputy we needed.
I’d been resistant to adding another person to our small unit, but a lot of things were changing. Taking the time to train someone was always a pain in the ass, not to mention the hiring process. But then I looked at the ridiculously gorgeous woman standing on the dock in front of me and realized all of that was worth it.
Worth having more time with her.
More time for my daughter.
More time to have a life that didn’t revolve around this town. My dad was right about that. There was more to life than just my job.
I tossed the bread into the reeds and the marshy area at the top of the hill just away from the lake. Prime duck placement on a warm late fall day.
With those duties done, I hopped up on the deck. A few long strides later, I caught Bee around the waist and lifted her against me. Her laughter tasted like sunshine. With the wind blowing off the water and her cheeks ruddy from the small amount of exercise, there was no way I could resist her.
As if I had a chance in hell anyway.
Twenty
His lips were cold and hot at the same time. The air was balmy for November, and a surprising change from last night’s chill, but it still had enough bite to it to remind me we were outside. But the water was behind us and the ducks had wandered off with full bellies. For all intents and purposes, we were actually alone.
I wound my arms around his shoulders and reveled in the fact that he could actually hold me up. I mean, he had carried me down the street after Sadie had tried to take me out before the tree lighting. But I’d been so woozy I couldn’t really enjoy it, and I hadn’t dwelled on the snatches of memory overmuch since.
Abject embarrassment tended to dull the thrill from such adventures.
Here, all his
muscles bunched under my fingers and yet he held me as if it was effortless. My best friend was now my lover, and…
No. Just be in the moment, Regina Maria. Be present.
I smiled into the kiss and let my feet dangle. And because I could, I popped up one foot at the pure joy of being his. His large hands molded to my hips, holding me tight to his ridiculously firm chest and the growing bulge trapped between us.
“Put your legs around me,” he said against my mouth.
“I am wearing a dress, sir.”
“I know.” He bunched the material, dragging it higher to cup my ass. “Ah, man. Thong? You know my weakness for those.”
I grinned at him. I sure did. “Didn’t want my panty line to show. But you better not steal these. Hmm, who do I call when the sheriff is a klepto?”
“Wiseass. You’re going to kill me.”
I wrapped my legs around him and locked my ankles at the small of his back. “But we’re outside, Sheriff.”
“Why are you calling me Sheriff so much all of a sudden?”
I quickly tucked a lock of my whipping hair around my ear. “Maybe I like it.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Maybe you like seeing me go a little crazy? Lose my professional control?”
“Maybe.” Okay, definitely.
He nibbled my lip. “With all the mayhem inside, I forgot to ask about the shower. How was it?”
“Good. Tiring. Erica was fretting a bit, but she’s still a glowing, excited mama-to-be.” I smiled. “I’m much happier to be here right now.”
Here we were on a sunny Sunday afternoon, and he was actually with me. Not worried about going back to the station, not distracted with some endless chore in town, or some training he thought he had to catch up on.
Just me.
Just him.
Just a cloudless blue sky and the water lapping around us.
“What are you going to do with me?” I asked huskily.
He strode down the dock. “I’m going to violate my brother’s boat.”
I let out a strangled half scream and half laugh as he jumped onto Mason’s boat. It rocked with the force of us both hitting the deck. The bouts of unseasonably warm fall weather had made for a longer than usual boating season. It was a large pontoon boat made for long summer days on the lake. I knew, since I’d been on it many times with his family in the year since Mason had returned to the Cove.
