The class was exactly what she needed after two weeks of radio silence. Not that she’d been pining away for Thorne for sixteen days, but still.
When he walked into Books by the Ocean, her heart nearly stopped ... and then it pumped so vigorously with excitement she knew her cheeks had turned red.
They played it cool in front of her mom, but when he totally ignored her in the cookbook aisle, and then took off toward nonfiction, well, she knew a brush-off when she saw one.
Mia was the kind of girl who went after what she wanted, and she didn’t back down from a fight, but she also knew better than to fight a lost cause. Thorne wasn’t there to see her. If she had any doubt, he’d confirmed that with the lack of texts, phone calls, or visits.
Unless he sucked at his job, he knew where she lived. He knew how to get ahold of her, yet he chose to stay away.
It was better that way anyway. Not that she was looking for a relationship, but they could have had a sexy thing going for a bit until he went back to wherever FBI agents hung out.
She drove home singing to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and parked in her spot at the turnaround in the driveway. Her hands full between her gym and messenger bag, and the iced coffee she picked up at the drive thru, she juggled her keys and let herself into her private stairwell.
Oomf. She didn’t see the package at her feet and nearly tripped. Her quads burned when she squatted down to pick it up, but she managed to carry her load up the steps to her apartment.
There was no one to greet her. No dog or cat. No boyfriend. Not even the television or radio. She’d have to get one of those devices that turned on when you walked through the door. This loneliness thing lately was killing her.
Dropping her bags on the couch, she did the same with her package and sipped her coffee.
“Shower or snack first?” she asked herself. The package peeked out from under her gym bag. “Or mail.”
She didn’t remember ordering anything online, and it was eight months until her birthday. Curiosity won, and she plopped on the couch.
The scrawl on the front didn’t look familiar, and there was no return address. Turning it over, she ripped at the packing tape, and when it proved too strong, she got up to find a pair of scissors in her junk drawer.
Tearing the tape away, she reached in and pulled out a box. No, it felt more like a book.
Mia gasped. The wrapping paper. She knew that paper. It was the same blue and green striped print they used at Books by the Ocean. She turned it over and looked in the box and found no note, no message, no nothing.
Gently, she ran her finger under the tape and pulled the paper away. Goose bumps tickled her arms, and those dang butterflies broke out in the Electric Slide in her belly. She ran her finger around the yellow border of the National Geographic book on Sea Otters. Did they actually carry this book in her mom’s bookstore? She had no idea.
So maybe he had come to visit her and then got cold feet? She’d never know. By now Thorne was probably long gone. Case closed. Hasta la vista, baby.
Holding the book tight to her chest, she contemplated all the possible ways she could handle this.
Enjoy the book and deal with the fact that she’d never see Ryan again.
No, that didn’t sit right with her.
Send Ryan a thank you text.
Nope. Too impersonal. Granted, he hadn’t even included a note or a return address with the book.
Call him.
But what if he was in the middle of his case and she blew his cover?
While a little danger and excitement sounded fun, she didn’t want to get mixed up in an FBI case.
She could always stop by. But she had no idea where he lived. Well, she had some idea. Lily had mentioned him bringing her out to Emerald Pond when he needed to keep her safe. Maybe that was his hidey-hole now as well.
Emerald Pond wasn’t huge, but she couldn’t very well drive from house to house asking if a sexy FBI agent was holed up there.
Flipping through the pages of her new book, she mentally flipped through her strategy. It would require a few white lies, but she’d been known for worse crimes.
She picked up her cell and dialed. “Hey, Lils. Gotta sec? I’m kinda in a rush here, so I won’t take long.”
The quicker she could get off the phone the fewer questions Lily would have, and the fewer lies Mia would have to tell.
“Sure. You’re getting me out of scrubbing the kitchen floor. What’s up?”
“Well, this is kind of awkward, and I feel like a schmuck but ... I’m supposed to meet Ryan at his place on Emerald Pond, but I forgot the address. Do you have it?” Mia scrunched her shoulders and closed her eyes, hoping Lily didn’t see through her.
“You’re what?”
Maybe coming off too casual about the meet up was a bad approach.
“He’s helping me with research.”
Which could be true. He did give her a book about sea otters, after all. And she had questions for him. Granted, the ones about his personal life now out-weighed the ones about marine life.
“Oh, really?” she said, skepticism lining her words.
“We didn’t want to meet anywhere people could recognize him.” Yeah, that sounded believable.
“I guess that makes sense. I don’t know the address, but it’s pretty easy to find.” Mia fist pumped the air while Lily explained how to get there.
“Thanks, Lils. Have a great day scrubbing those floors.” She hung up before Lily could question her further about her purpose in visiting Ryan.
That was, if Ryan was actually staying at Emerald Pond.
After a quick shower and a quicker lunch, she tossed her new book in her bag and drove out to the pond.
She had to circle around three times and make two U-turns before she found the long driveway marked only by a dark green mailbox. Not a lot of clues for Mia to go by.
Turn right off Blackberry Drive, and go about a mile. Maybe two. There’s a sharp bend in the road, and there’ll be a big tree.
Out here there were dozens of bends and billions of trees. And it was two and a half miles, but Mia wouldn’t complain. The driveway was so long she thought it was another road, but then a cute little camp appeared, and she spotted a fancy Lexus she recognized from Lily’s stories about meeting her FBI agent parked under a tree.
Nerves set in, but she pushed them away as she got out of her car. She knocked on the door and waited.
No response. Walking around to the back, she stopped to take in the view. Emerald Pond was nestled in the woods, and only those who lived on the water had access to it. She had a friend in high school who lived out this way, and she spent one winter skating on the ice. Other than that, the area was pretty new to her, even though she grew up fifteen miles from here.
She knocked on the back door and tried to peek in the windows, but the shades were drawn. Not knowing how long he’d be, she walked down to the water and made herself comfortable in one of the Adirondack chairs and read her book about sea otters.
Halfway through the third chapter she heard the crunch of tires on the dirt driveway. Deciding it was best to give him time, she stayed in her chair and worked on deep breaths, hoping they’d calm her jitters.
A car door slammed. Just one. Good. He was alone. She hadn’t thought about what she’d do if he showed up with other agents. Or worse, with a bad guy with a dark pillowcase over his head.
Or another woman.
She could almost picture Ryan’s face. Pissed off. Confused. Amused. No, not amused. Showing up on his doorstep—or rather, his Adirondack chair—was a bold move, even for her.
Mia craned her neck, listening for Ryan’s movements. Did he go inside already?
A tall, dark shadow loomed over her, and she jumped.
“What the hell? How did you get here?” She should have heard him coming down the slight embankment to the water’s edge.
“That’s my line.” He folded his arms across his chest and loomed down at her.
No expression, not even of annoyance, crossed his face.
“To be fair, I sort of tricked it out of her.” Again. Nothing. Damn. She reminded herself to never play Poker with him.
His head moved from left to right as if scanning the surroundings, then he gripped her arm and pulled her—not so gently—into the house.
“Why?” He still wore his sunglasses, and they shielded his eyes, but she could feel the intensity of his stare.
She followed his jawline with her gaze, trying to get a read on him. It wasn’t clenched; neither were his fists, she’d noticed.
At first glance, he appeared cool, calm, and collected. She didn’t know him well, but knew the three C's were a sign he was anything but. It was his work face, and he excelled in his job.
“I came to thank you for my book.” She lifted it up to show him, just in case he had a memory lapse and forgot he’d sent it to her.
Ah, movement. A slight tick in his jaw. Nothing the average eye would see. Only a woman who knew her game, who didn’t take no for an answer and was good at reading people.
No response. Not even a you’re welcome. If he was going to play some sort of power trip mind game, she was more than ready to play along.
Not caring if her body language was more obvious than his, she shook the book in front of him.
“This was nice. You try to come off as a cross between a robot and an asshole, but you’re not. So, thank you for my book. That’s all I came to say.”
His chest moved. Good! He was actually breathing. “You could have texted.” Turned out, it was to gather air to say a few words. Just a few.
“Or called. Calling is more personal.”
He must have squinted at her because a few wrinkles formed on his forehead just above his aviator shades.
“Or called,” he repeated, monotone, of course.
“I could have.” She clutched the book to her chest and figured she might as well lay it all out there. Her life was, after all, an open book. Or, at least, to the FBI agent who’d profiled her a long time ago. That she learned from Ty and Lily last week.
She glanced about the room. A small camp-style kitchen with limited counter space and a wooden table with two chairs. The living room was open and oddly empty and had a great view of the pond, she assumed, when the shades were up. Her gaze moved back to the brooding, tightly buttoned-up Ryan who took up too much space in the tiny home.
“A visit is more personal, and I wanted to personally thank you for this. It’s the ... nicest thing anyone’s ever done for me. Well, my friends rock. You can’t compete with them, but no guy has ever given me such a thoughtful gift. So. Thank you.”
She gave him a curt nod then turned to leave. His strong hand gripped her upper arm, holding her still.
“Is that the only reason you came by?” His voice was low and gruff, sending shivers down her spine and to places no man had visited in ages. Eons, really.
“Kind of,” she whispered.
In one quick stealth as a ninja move, he turned her around and trapped her between his hot—as in literally; the man was on fire!—body and the counter.
His front was to her back, and he whispered across her bare neck. “Mia.”
She shivered under his touch, his fingers grazed across her shoulder, and his mouth caressed her neck. She swallowed her moan and leaned into him, tilting her neck to give him better access.
His lips skimmed down her neck, making their way to her shoulder. He pushed the strap to her tank top aside. Had she known he was going to say you’re welcome like this she wouldn’t have worn a sports bra.
Not wanting to break the spell and risk him coming to his senses and stopping, she limited herself to moans and light movements against his body. Her butt rubbed against his thigh, and she pushed her lower back into the bulge behind his zipper.
Ryan’s hands remained neutral, either on her waist or in her hair while his mouth continued to move, sending her into a whirlwind of passion.
“Ryan,” she couldn’t help but moan. She wanted—needed—his mouth on hers.
His lips and tongue made a trail from her shoulder to her neck, and then his teeth nipped at her earlobe before he sucked it into his mouth. His hands massaged her sides, and she arched even more, guiding him to where she wanted him.
Her head went light and airy, almost dizzy with lust. His hands hadn’t gone where she wanted them to, but she could feel his touch everywhere.
Ev-ery-where. His breath whispered across her neck, and she whimpered.
Her core tingled and pulsed as if... “Ohmygod.” Her knees nearly buckled as the orgasm came out of nowhere. Panting for air and gripping the counter for support, she tried to level her breathing while his hands continued to massage and stroke her back. Seriously. Her back. They weren’t even at first base, and she had an orgasm. The man was magical.
Spinning her around before she could reclaim her composure, he captured her mouth with his and kissed and licked and sucked as he had on her neck. She melted into him, returning his kisses with a passion she’d never felt before. Gripping onto his back, she pressed him harder into her, telling him with her body how much she wanted him.
Ryan cupped her neck and cheeks in his big, strong hands, keeping her mouth anchored to his. She loved how he held her face, rough but gentle at the same time. It wasn’t a domineering, controlling hold, but one that said he wanted her. And she wanted him.
Lowering her hands, she slipped them between his pants and his shirt and cupped is butt. Boxer briefs. She would have pegged him for a straight up boxers kind of guy. Why the fact that he wore briefs made her happy, she wasn’t sure. Maybe because they made him more—or was it less— pretentious.
Not that boxers were a bad thing, but she loved how briefs cupped a man’s ass. And from what she’d seen in his jeans and slacks, and what her hands were telling her now, he had One. Fine. Ass.
As if on a will of their own, her hands moved to his front and unbuckled his belt.
Ryan gasped and broke away from their kiss. “Condom.”
“Bedroom?”
He shook his head and rubbed his jaw. “None.” He didn’t look at her as he said it.
“I have one in my bag.” She slipped from his hold and rummaged through her bag, finding one in the zipper pocket. Holding it between her fingers she said, “I don’t trust men these days. Be prepared is my motto.”
Ryan’s Adam apple bobbed as he looked from the condom to her bag, his gaze finally resting on her eyes.
“This is just sex,” he said.
Mia cocked her head. “What else would it be?” Not wasting any more time on conversation, she tugged him by his belt buckle and dropped his pants until they pooled around his ankles. “Nice.”
A noise sounding vaguely like a growl erupted from his throat as he claimed her mouth with his once more, and this time his hands found their way to the button on her shorts. It didn’t take long for them to put that condom to good use.
CHAPTER NINE
Mia’s body had still trembled when she got home after having crazy hot sex with Ryan. Even after a soak in the tub and a pint of cookie dough ice cream, she still hadn’t come down from her high.
She woke up the following morning still buzzing and ready to do it again. But she couldn’t. This time the ball was in Ryan’s court. They were both pretty clear about it just being sex and nothing more.
Normally she wasn’t the kiss and tell type, but she was bursting at the seams and needed to vent to someone. Preferably not the married and pregnant friends. They may be too faint of heart now.
That left Grace and Jenna. They wouldn’t be judgmental; neither would Hope, Alexis, or Lily. Well, maybe Lily since Mia totally did the dirty with her FBI agent in his kitchen.
At least she had her early shift at The Happy Clam to get her through the morning. Tuesday afternoons weren’t especially
busy, even in the middle of July, but there was a steady stream of customers this afternoon to keep her busy.
Not even bothering to wash the restaurant smell off her, she walked down the road to The Honey Pot where Jenna worked. The store was cute and sold organic herbs and soaps and candles. And Jenna’s pottery, which was how she got the part-time work. In the winter when the owners went to a warmer climate, she kept the store running, but the summer days she spent most of her time in her barn ‘throwing clay’, as she called it.
“Hey, cutie. How’s business?” Mia picked up a soy candle and took off the cover and sniffed. She turned the candle around and read the label. Thyme and lavender. It smelled like something Lily would have in one of her massage rooms.
“Pretty steady, but you caught me at a lull. What brings you by?” Jenna folded her arms on the glass countertop. She was a cute thing, Jenna was. With her blousy top and long braid, she looked like an artist. Not too over the top with crazy colored hair and piercings, although Mia had wanted Jenna to go with her to get a nose ring.
Or a tattoo. Artists needed to decorate their body as well as a canvas, right? And Mia was an artist in a way as well.
“So, I’ve been thinking,” she started, changing her initial mission to talk about sex. “We should get a tattoo. And a nose ring. Nothing too big. Something cute, you know?”
“The ring or the tattoo? Cute and small.”
“Both.” Mia rubbed her neck. “Something behind the ear, maybe.” Her skin was still sensitive where Ryan had spent so much time kissing, licking, and sucking yesterday. When she got home she thought her upper body had to be riddled in hickies, but not a spot was to be seen.
Not even whisker rash since his face was as smooth as silk, as if he took care to not leave a mark on her. Flattery or insult, she wasn’t sure.
“Hey, girls.” Grace came flaunting in, her pink peep-toe pumps clicking on the hardwood floor. “I saw you cross the street, Mia, and figured I’d stop by to say hi. Haven’t seen you gals since book club a few weeks ago.”
“Summer’s hard to get together with all of us working so much.” Jenna straightened the display of bracelets and necklaces made of sea glass.
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