Her lips were soft and pliable. I swallowed her soft moan as I deepened the kiss. I took her crutches and leaned them against the counter. Picking her up by the waist, I sat her on the counter, giving easier access to my lips.
She broke the kiss and leaned her forehead against mine. “This is a bad idea.”
“The worst,” I echoed, taking a step back. I stared into her eyes. “I need to start calling construction crews for Slaughter House so we can get started when we get back.”
“Right.” Pink tinted her cheeks. “The house. I almost forgot why you’re here.”
It may have started that way, but the line was blurring the more time I spent around her. I picked her up and eased her back down, re-handing her the crutches.
“I’ll give you some privacy to make your calls. I need to go pack some things and make sure the spare bedroom is set up.”
“The couch is fine if it’s not.”
The couch would be a tight fit, but I’d slept in worse places. She moved down the hall and disappeared into her room while I slipped the phone out of my pocket. I unlocked her sliding glass door and stepped out onto the balcony. She didn’t need to hear what I had to say. Not yet, anyway.
14
Libby
I sighed at the unmade bed. It had been made when I’d left. Peter’s dirty clothes were crumpled in a pile in the chair in the corner. Change from his pockets was strewn on my dresser. I glanced toward the closed bathroom door. Did I even want to look at the mess he’d left in there?
I rested the crutches against the wall and started yanking all the sheets and comforters free as anger rippled through my body like an unstoppable tsunami threatening mass destruction. Peter had lost his ever-lovin’ mind. I crumpled the entire bedding set into a ball and shoved it in the washing machine. Grabbing one of his bags out of the closet, I threw his dirty clothes inside. I yanked open each and every one of my drawers to find he’d moved my stuff to make room for his own.
Peter’s house had always been immaculate when we’d started dating. It wasn’t until he’d started coming to my place when his true colors started to show, yet being messy was a far cry from the crazy he was dishing out now.
There hadn’t been any indication of his possessive and delusional nature until I’d called things off. Surely, I would have noticed something like that, right?
Was I losing my touch in more ways than one?
Sweat beaded my brow after packing three bags and leaving them by the door. I yanked his suits out of the closet and laid them over top. Turning, I found Hugh leaning against the door frame, watching me.
“So, he did all this after you dumped him?”
“I broke up with him, and yes. He did all of this while I was gone.”
Hugh gave a slight nod. “You sure you made it clear that things were over?”
“I’m not even going to answer that,” I growled and hopped to the closet to grab more bedding and back over to the bed. I threw it down, trying to fight off my need to scream.
“You’re right. It’s none of my business.” Hugh guided me by the elbow to the now empty chair and gestured for me to sit. “I’ve got this.”
I eased down into the chair, fighting the throb in my foot. “You don’t have to do this. I can do it myself.”
He snapped out the sheet to spread it across the bed. “I have no doubt that you can do it yourself, but I want to help, so let me.”
He grinned as he tucked the sheet beneath each corner and then straightened the bedspread on top and readded the pillows.
“How did your call go?”
He hopped onto the bed and patted the space next to him.
“Come relax for a minute, and I’ll tell you all about it.”
I hobbled to the bed and climbed up on it, relishing the feel of my own mattress. I punched the unfamiliar lumpy pillow before lifting it over my head to get a look at it. Peter’s. I threw it across the room to his pile of crap.
“Here, use me. No funny business, though. I don’t want you to think I’m cheap.”
“Too late.” I chuckled and rested on his arm that circled me, drawing me closer. “So, tell me about your call.”
“I checked in with Clark to see what’s going on with the skeletons in your basement.”
“And?” I was almost afraid to ask.
“There’s a problem.”
I closed my eyes, knowing I wasn’t going to like what he had to say. “What kind of problem?”
“Well, see, here’s the thing. I was going to let him tell you, but I don’t want you to be blindsided.”
“Just spill it already.”
Hugh remained momentarily quiet as if debating what words to use to soften the blow.
“How much do you know about your grandfather?”
I leaned up on my elbow to stare into his eyes.
“Hugh, just tell me. I barely knew Joseph, and the memories I have of him stop at the age of five.”
“Clark’s forensic people found an artifact in the wall. An old leather-bound book that was wrapped in plastic and hidden inside a trunk-sized box.”
“Okay, so the guy kept a diary?” I asked.
“The first page has your grandfather’s name, which wouldn’t be so bad if the box didn’t also contain toddler-sized bones.”
My mouth parted, and words escaped me. Had my mother had a brother or sister that had died? If she had, she hadn’t told me.
I laid my head back down on Hugh’s arm. “Mom only ever had the one sister that I knew about.”
“Dinky’s mom?”
I nodded without answering.
“Does the book say who those bones belong to?”
Hugh stroked my hair. “Yeah, and it’s not a missing aunt. The book says the bones belong to your older sister.”
I jolted into an upright position and stared down at him again. “I’ve never had a sister.”
“It gets worse.”
“Of course, it does.”
“There’s a birth certificate. Your mom is listed on it as the mother, and the father is listed as a man who worked as a gardener for your grandfather. He went missing about the same time your mom ran. Clark believes he’s the one in the wall. Fabric from the uniform he was last reported seen in was tattered and in pieces near those bones.”
“You don’t think it was an accident.”
“It doesn’t matter what I think.”
I rested my head against his arm again.
“Clark is now viewing your basement as a crime scene, but I did talk him into letting the water heater guy in to install that, so you’ll have running water when you return. You just won’t be allowed in the basement for a while.”
I stared up at the ceiling, trying to process what he’d just said. I had a dead sister. It was too hard to imagine. My mother had never spoken about losing a child, even though there was always a sadness in her eyes. I’d thought it was from leaving home and taking me with her, and even before that, I’d imagined that it was from my dad dying in a war. Could it have really been something else?
“Clark is going to want to run DNA,” Hugh said, breaking into my thoughts.
“Of course. Yes. I’d like to know what the hell is going on, and I’d like a copy of the book he found.”
“I already implied that was the case,” Hugh said and started stroking my hair again. “Try and get some rest. Dinner will be here in three hours.”
I grinned. “You don’t even know this town. How did you possibly manage to find a place to eat, much less order it? You don’t know my address.”
“As for the address, it was on the junk mail sitting on your counter, and as for dinner, my sister is taking care of it to make up for the little stunt she pulled.”
“You yelled at her?”
“I didn’t have to. Not when Porter called and told her that you were immune to him. She realized her massive screw-up.”
I may have been immune to Porter, but I wasn’t immune to Hugh’s caresses or his kiss
es. I snuggled into his hold and closed my eyes. “Okay, if you don’t have any other earth-shattering news, then I’m sleeping until dinner.”
“Close your eyes. I’ve got you,” Hugh whispered in the quietness of the room.
15
Libby
Dinner had been everything I’d hoped for. It was the best in town. His sister was really digging herself out of the doghouse, considering the price tag that went with the food. We spent the rest of the evening talking and getting to know each other and eventually found ourselves in my bed again. This time under the covers and him holding me as we both conked out.
He’d been a perfect gentleman and hadn’t tried to make a move even when his body told me that he wanted to do just that. When we woke the next morning, I called Champ to come take care of Peter’s things, and we’d flown back to Mountain View.
We’d landed, and Hugh drove me back up the mountain to my house.
When we’d left, it was crawling with police and forensic vehicles, and now the driveway was empty except for my car. Crime scene tape was attached to the door frame.
The little ghost girl was standing in the room in the window next to mine. Was that little girl my sister? She waved before vanishing out of sight.
“Home sweet home,” Hugh said, throwing his truck into Park and then rounding it to help me out.
“You sure it’s going to be okay to break that tape?” I asked.
“Oh yeah, and just think. You have hot water now too.” Hugh grinned and yanked the tape off the door.
I used my key to shove it open.
Morning light cascaded through the entryway, shining on the dirt footprints leading to and from the basement.
I hobbled inside and was brought back to the situation at hand. No furniture. No food. No nothing. I wasn’t even sure where towels might be.
The salt line was smudged in the sitting room as if people had been in and out. My sleeping bag still lay on the floor, and the candles around the room were still partially melted. What had the locals thought when they’d seen that?
Hugh brought up the rear with my newly packed bags and his overnight bag. He stopped beside me as if realizing the same predicament.
“We can do this,” Hugh said. “Contractors will be here in two days to start with everything upstairs. I already cleared it with Clark.”
“You are determined,” I whispered more to myself than to him.
“Is there a bedroom on the bottom floor?” he asked.
I shrugged. I didn’t remember much about this place, much less all the rooms. I’d been gone too long, and I hadn’t snooped around.
“Take a load off your foot while I go find you something more decent than the blow-up bed.”
“The rooms will probably be empty.”
“This may take weeks, if not a month. You don’t want to be sleeping on an air mattress the entire time because I know that I sure don’t, and, yes, before you ask. I’m staying with you until this gets resolved,” Hugh said as he walked around, opening and shutting doors, looking around.
I moved to the stairs and plopped down on the steps. There wasn’t even a chair accessible in the house. Not even in the kitchen. These living arrangements were less than ideal for anyone, even though a contractor would be in heaven to work without anything in his way.
Hugh returned a few minutes later, rubbing his hands together with a big smile on his lips. “I found us the perfect place. It’s just off the kitchen. I’m thinking that it may have been a housekeeper’s suite or possibly a place for in-laws or something. It’s big, with a separate bathroom and fireplace and yet out of the way of everyone.”
“I don’t even have towels.” My voice came out broken. Even though I’d packed clothes and toiletries, I was missing the basics—linens, towels, hell, a bed.
“You leave that up to me,” Hugh said and pulled out his phone.
Within an hour, three other guys and women had shown up with bed, furniture, linens, food, and cookware. I’m pretty sure my eyes had watered, trying to hold back the tears that were about to explode. I’d never been a needy person, but the relief from not having to figure it all out on my own hit me like a ton of bricks.
He’d introduced me to a few of his brothers and their wives. They were a great bunch, including me in conversations like they’d known me forever and I was just a neighbor in need of help.
We’d paid them back with a run for pizza and beer before they left.
I’d taken a bath and climbed out, careful of my boot, and put on my robe before leaving the bathroom.
Hugh had a fire going in the hearth. He’d changed into track pants and a T-shirt and was stroking the fire as I hobbled out.
“The fireplace works?”
“Good bones, remember?” Hugh answered. A content smile softened on his face as I neared, standing over him.
I rested my hand on his shoulder, and he covered it with his own as he rose to his full height. “Libby. I was thinking…”
I didn’t give him time to tell me what he was thinking about. Instead, I showed him what had been on my mind.
I lowered his head to mine and kissed him, not like a friend but like a lover with a heat that couldn’t be contained.
16
Hugh
My hands landed on her waist as she pressed her lips against mine. I hadn’t even told her what I’d been thinking. It didn’t matter. She was showing me the same answer, and this time I didn’t want to stop. The heat of her touch burned through the fabric of my shirt.
I deepened the kiss, taking what she wanted to give until we were both left breathless and panting when I pulled away.
I stared into the need shining in her eyes. She wanted this, and so did I.
“Libby. Tell me to stop if you don’t—”
“Friends with benefits. This would be one of those times.”
“Right,” I said. She squealed as I swooped her up into my arms and carried her to the bed. I eased her down onto the mattress and slid the robe off her shoulders to find that she was naked beneath.
My body hardened as I stared at her.
“I was hoping you wouldn’t turn me down.”
I didn’t even bother with an answer. I showed her instead by kissing her hard on the lips and trailing a hot wet path down her neck. Taking her breast in one hand, I sucked her other one into my mouth, eliciting a moan from her lips.
Her hands slid into my hair, and she held me in place.
I watched her as I trailed kisses down her stomach. My fingers caressed the sensitive area behind her knee. I blew my hot breath at the juncture of her thighs. She moaned. I smiled, and then I descended again, and I didn’t come up for air until she was screaming my name and her legs were clamping around my head.
I let her fall over the cliff before stroking those flames again until her need matched mine. I climbed back over her, hovering. When her hands pulled me down to kiss her lips, I was starting to like the way she thanked me.
I broke the kiss and pulled back. “Hold that thought.”
I climbed off her and grabbed my wallet, taking out a condom. I pulled the shirt over my head and undressed before climbing onto the bed again.
She was sitting up. Her body was flushed as she took the condom and opened it, rolling it onto my shaft.
The feel of her fingers clutching me almost sent me over the top.
I eased her back and kissed her again before sliding into her heat and taking her again.
I used the last two condoms in my wallet, and we were laid out spent on the bed. Shadows from the fire flickered on the ceiling above as she rested her head on my chest, tracing my tattoo.
“That was amazing,” I whispered.
“I could do that for a month with you while the contractors fix up the place. I mean that’s one way to keep ourselves occupied, right?”
I kissed her forehead and stroked her soft skin. “That’s the least you can do, but I’m going to need to make a trip into town.”
&nb
sp; “Why?” she asked. “Your family brought everything we needed.”
My lips twisted into a grin. “Not everything. I’m out of condoms.”
“You forgot the one in the container your sister makes you keep.”
“Yeah, but that isn’t going to last long.” I grinned.
“Yes. You might want to bring the whole box.”
We both fell exhaustedly asleep as we settled beneath the covers and closed our eyes.
With the morning light came the doorbell. She groaned with her eyes still closed.
I kissed her temple. “I’ll get it.”
She waved me on without even peeking.
I threw on my jeans from last night and my shirt and headed to the front door. “Isn’t it early for you guys…”
The sentence died on my lips when I found Dinky standing on the porch with an envelope in his hand.
“Uh…are you part of the work crew? Libby didn’t tell me she was letting the foreman stay here again.”
Work crew. Right. “Nope, not the work crew, Dinky. Hugh Bennett, we met the other day.”
I pulled the door open wider.
Dinky’s brows dipped as he stepped inside. “Where’s Libby?”
“She’s still in bed. Let me get her moving.” I gestured to the kitchen. “Mind starting the coffee pot while we get dressed?”
Dinky’s brows rose as if he realized why I wasn’t fully dressed. “Right. Sorry. I thought…”
“Yeah, I know what you thought,” I said, walking back to the room where I’d left Libby. She still had her eyes closed and was hugging my pillow when I entered the room, shutting the door behind me. I climbed over her and kissed her neck. She turned into the heat of my lips, and I grinned as I pulled away.
She peeked at me. “Tease.”
“Dinky’s here. You need to get dressed.”
“Dinky? Why?”
“He’s making coffee. I’ll keep him entertained. You take your time.” I kissed her before easing off the bed. God knew I wanted to do so much more.
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