But what was he going to do for the rest of the night? Maybe pick up some groceries and get his kitchen stocked, he decided. He wanted to buy a grill too, since there was a small balcony extending outside from the kitchen in the apartment.
He’d try not to think about Ashley too much, but now that he’d seen her again, it would be easier said than done.
The grocery store was still in the same location but had doubled in size and changed names. There weren’t too many people shopping on a Monday evening, so he was able to park close to the entrance and made his way through the store quickly. There was even an inexpensive small grill already put together near the entrance, so he snatched it up along with charcoal and lighter fluid.
As he made his way back outside with the cart filled with a couple bags of groceries and the grill, he could have sworn he saw someone familiar walking into the store as he was walking outside.
“Jeff?”
Turning, Jeff’s jaw dropped when he saw Brian.
And then Jeff smiled from ear to ear, rushing over and slapping him hard on the back. “I can’t believe it. Brian? When did you get back in town?’
“Earlier today. I’m reopening Dad’s office.”
“That’s great.” Jeff grimaced. “Michelle is back in town too.”
Brian pursed his lips. “How’s she doing?”
“Not so good, but better, I think, since she returned to town. She’s really had a difficult time of it during the last ten years. My parents snapped right back after what happened, but we did sell the house and rent for a while.”
Apparently, Jeff didn’t know that the Ponzi scheme story had been fabricated. So Jeff’s parents must have been informed about the scheme, along with Brian and Ashley’s.
Brian asked, “By any chance, does Jake Loughlin hang out with your Dad?”
Jeff looked at him strangely. “How did you know that? They got to be tight after you left town.”
“There’s so much you must not know,” Brian answered. “I wish I had permission to give you details, but there was a lot more going on ten years ago than all of us knew.”
“You know, I’ve always felt that everything with our family went pretty smoothly after their devastating financial loss,” Jeff murmured. “But it ended up being the best thing that could have happened for me. Except for losing Ashley.”
“How’s that?”
“Tell you what? Why don’t we get together soon? I have to get up at four a.m. tomorrow and travel a few hundred miles to inspect a house for the state historical society.”
Brian blinked. “The state historical society? You’re kidding? Right?”
Jeff laughed. “Nope. And I love it. Have you got a number?”
“And email,” Brian answered, pulling a business card from his wallet and handing it over.
“I’ll give you a call,” Jeff said. “I can’t tell you how great it is to have you back.”
“It’s great to be back,” Brian said. “I feel like I’m home.”
Jeff lifted a hand as he started walking into the store. “Talk with you soon.”
Crazy to be back less than a day and run into not one, but two of his old friends, he thought after loading everything he’d purchased into the truck. Less than fifteen minutes later, he was back in his apartment and was starting the grill outside on the patio after changing into jeans and a t-shirt.
Eating and settling in afterwards, he switched on the TV for a while but was suddenly restless.
As nice as the apartment was, there wasn’t any decent outdoor space. He had a feeling he wasn’t going to be happy here upstairs with nothing to do except to maybe walk into town and hit a couple bars.
Or go downstairs and work in the office.
After driving here from Chicago this morning and working until he’d left for the inn, he should have been tired. Something made him think about the house at Stone Lake, and how he’d never had a chance to look around again that night before he’d been forced to leave town because of what he’d overheard.
Funny, he still had the old key, and had brought it along with him after discovering he’d be returning to Crystal Rock. Like a talisman, he’d taken it along with him everywhere during the last ten years.
It probably wouldn’t fit the lock anymore.
But pulling on a hooded sweatshirt, he grabbed his keys for the truck, along with the key for the spooktacular house.
Chapter Fourteen
Driving along the access road leading to her house, Ashley admitted she’d been shaken today after seeing Brian again, and it scared her to realize how upset she was to discover he’d been injured. She’d tamped down any feelings she still had for him long ago.
Or, so, she’d thought. It would explain why she’d been unable to have a meaningful relationship during the past ten years.
She’d needed to get away from him, because she was afraid of what she might do with him so near. Ashley had longed for him to take her into his arms and give her one of those amazing kisses, just like he used to.
Because maybe if it wasn’t as good as she remembered, she’d be able to move on.
Taking a sharp left after the bridge, she drove along the access road leading to her house. The spooky house was beginning to feel like home, she decided, turning into the driveway and parking inside the old barn near the rear of the house. She would need to get started applying for permits and building her workshop soon before winter arrived.
She’d given the guys from Callahan Construction the week off while she moved in. That way she could get herself situated before the workmen returned to begin on the next project. She was considering transforming the basement into an apartment, but she wasn’t sure she liked the idea of renting out space to a stranger.
Besides, Ashley had grown to enjoy her privacy.
Sliding the barn door closed, Ashley hiked toward the house, climbing the steps of the porch. At one time, the property had exuded a sinister feel, but now that wasn’t the case.
She had some landscaping going in this fall, and she’d added a few new trees to replace what she’d been forced to have cut down. Ashley could hardly wait until spring when all the bulbs she’d planted began emerging.
Hearing a rustle in the woods, a black cat emerged, running towards her.
“Meeeoooow,” he yowled.
“Hi there, Spook,” she murmured.
It was rather strange that another black cat had appeared months ago near the barn, wearing a collar bearing the name Spook on a star shaped tag.
It couldn’t be the same cat, because his time the cat had never left, and Ashley had claimed him as hers since he didn’t seem to have anywhere to go, although he disappeared occasionally for days at a time. She’d made some inquiries amongst the neighbors, but no one seemed to know where he belonged.
Unlocking the back door, she smiled her satisfaction walking through the mudroom into the kitchen with Spook scrambling inside beneath her feet. What a beautiful transformation from the dark dingy space it had once been, she thought for about the millionth time, studying the new appliances. Instead of getting rid of all the old cabinetry, she’d had much of it restored, since the upper built ins were etched with carvings and still had original tempered glass.
Dark wooden floors had been refinished throughout the house and looked beautiful against the creamy yellow accent color she’d decided to paint the walls.
After making herself some dinner, she decided to go upstairs to her bedroom, where she had her office set up. Maybe she’d work a little while and get a good night’s sleep so she could move a few more things from the apartment in the morning. She was feeling exhausted right now. Running into Brian had really thrown her.
* * *
It was about eleven o’clock when Ashley heard a sound coming from downstairs as she was trying to fall asleep. All she’d been doing though was thinking about Brian and how she should have spent the evening with him too. Why dwell on the past?
Checking the monitor, s
he ran through the surveillance cameras she had set up throughout the house and saw someone entering through the old side entrance, which led to staircases running downstairs into the basement and upstairs into the kitchen.
She heaved a sigh, reaching for the baseball bat she kept nearby along with the mace in her nightstand drawer. It figures it was the only entrance where she hadn’t changed the locks yet, intent on preserving the original door. She’d even installed new doors and locks in the passageway leading from her bedroom to the other house levels and the basement to play it safe.
She’d thought about closing off that entrance, but if she did eventually rent out the downstairs, it would be needed by the tenant.
Funny, how she wasn’t really afraid. Nothing much scared her anymore. She’d taken classes in self-defense and had become pretty well trained. She was probably in the best shape she’d ever been physically, as a matter of fact.
She studied whoever it was a little longer trying to figure out where he was going with his flashlight. Probably the living room, she decided, creeping out through her bedroom door, carrying her bat and mace along with a keyring sized flashlight.
Ashley took the steps slowly, one at a time, and stopped when she heard the man cussing after obviously stumbling over something in the dark.
She heard the man mutter, “Damn it. I think someone is living here. I’m probably trespassing.”
It couldn’t be?
But then he began talking again. “Geez, this place looks nice.”
And then Ashley heard a long loud mmmmmmmmmmmeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeewwwwww, and grinned.
“Spook? Can that really be you?”
Ashley switched on the lights.
And Brian gave her an owlish stare. “Ashley?”
Standing at the base of the staircase with her arms crossed, she leaned against the wooden staircase railing. “Brian. May I ask what you’re doing here?”
“I still had the key,” he answered, holding it up for her to see. “The place looked different when we drove by on the pontoon today, and I was curious to see if someone was living here.”
She shrugged. “You have your answer.”
He was definitely surprised. “You’re living here?”
“I am. Turns out my dad left the property in my name, so I decided to fix the place up.”
“From what I can see of it,” he answered, his eyes scoping the room. “You’ve done a fantastic job.”
“So far,” she murmured. “There’s still a lot to do.”
“Ashley?” he asked hoarsely. “What are you wearing?”
She grimaced, looking down.
Not much—just a tank top and shorts. Although she’d pulled on a robe, she hadn’t bothered tying it. There was a gas fireplace installed in her bedroom which put out plenty of heat without having to warm up the entire house. She was dividing sections of the house into zones; not only to save on her heating and cooling costs, but to make the home energy efficient for a better tax break.
Brian was staring at her, and before Ashley could utter a word, he rushed towards her, yanking her into his arms, his mouth hotly, hungrily covering hers.
Brian’s kiss was everything she remembered, and just so much more. The kiss sparked down and around her like fiery heat, satisfying places inside of her that’d longed for him for what seemed like forever.
His hand moved through her hair, pulling out the hairclip holding it up. When his mouth explored hers, heat shot straight through her very soul.
She closed her eyes, sinking into the kiss. Her senses were alive with something indescribable, that felt so remarkably incredibly right, and Ashley couldn’t help thinking that fate had always meant for this to happen between her and Brian.
And soon, she discovered, kissing Brian just wasn’t enough.
“What in the hell am I doing, Ash?” Brian muttered, when they broke away for air. “Tell me to stop.”
“Stop,” she murmured, reaching for his hand and leading him slowly up the staircase.
When they arrived at the top, she took a moment to tug off his sweatshirt, throwing it on the floor.
Brian groaned, but followed her up the second flight of stairs, and then down the hallway and through the open doorway at the end.
“The tower?” Brian observed, only taking a moment to look around as Ashley led him toward the bed. “It looks great in here.”
“I put in skylights, so it’s nice and bright during the day,” she said, pulling Brian’s t-shirt off over his head before slipping off her robe.
Ashley blinked. “Oh, wow. You’ve sure filled out nicely, Brian. I used to think you were muscular back in high school, but it wasn’t even close to how ripped you are now.”
“Are you seducing me? Somehow this isn’t quite the way I envisioned our first time making love together would be.” Brian took a moment to laugh but shivered when Ashley ran her hands over his bare chest.
“Come here,” he growled, pulling the skimpy tank top she was wearing over her head.
“Beautiful,” he whispered and groaned, laying his hands over her bare breasts.
Ashley fell on her back as Brian slid down the clinging shorts she was wearing from her hips.
He paused for a moment, pulling his wallet from his back pocket and pulling out a condom before slipping out of his jeans and boxers.
Holy crap, she thought to herself, staring at his arousal with widened eyes.
“You’re sure?” he asked softly, staring into her eyes as he gave her a wry smile, obviously noticing her moment of uncertainty.
“Yes,” she answered firmly.
And then his body covered hers. Every point of contact felt warm, from their mouths, to their breasts, to their groins where she felt his arousal hot, hard and ready.
It was then that she realized she’d never stopped loving everything about Brian, and had been envisioning him – his weight, his scent, and the power in his hard muscular body – every time she’d tried to move on with her life, and have a relationship with another man.
“I’ve been thinking about this for so damned long now, I’m not so sure I’m going to be able to take my time,” he whispered with urgency.
“You don’t have to,” she answered fiercely. “We have the rest of the night.”
When Brian thrust into her and filled her, it was the most fabulous sensation she’d ever experienced. To think, she’d been missing out on this during the past ten years.
Hesitantly, one of Brian’s hands slid across her hips and caressed her inner thigh. He teased her, straying closer to the center of their joining, until she trapped his hand between them. His fingers grazed her most intimately, and the intensity in response to his touch caused her to arch and cry out incoherently. His mouth covered hers, cutting off the sound as if he was tasting her pleasure.
But instinct couldn’t be denied, not for long as Brian flexed his spine and withdrew and thrust again. Ashley caught the rhythm of retreat and possession. Dragging him down, she kissed him insatiably, and urged him on.
Finally, she went beyond thought as their pounding rhythm compulsively drove them forward, and clutching tightly, her fingers were entwined in his as they raced harder, more forcefully to reach the peak.
Completion finally found them. She cried out and convulsed around him, powerfully, and on a groan he surrendered and went along with her. A tide of pure sensation wracked through her and she was sure that Brian was feeling it too as it shattered them both.
Ashley realized as she dropped into lethargic satisfaction, she’d never felt loved like this before, and much to her surprise, for a moment, she blinked back tears.
“Ashley,” he whispered, but then he stopped.
She waited for him to finish. But when he didn’t, she finally asked softly, “What?”
“I…” He shook his head hesitantly. “It’s too soon for me to say what I was going to say.”
And then he kissed her long, strong, and tenderly, like he was never going to let her go.
Closing her eyes and focusing on the kiss, she savored it, running her hands up and down his back, loving the weight of him in her arms, the way he moved and touched her.
Groaning and turning over to lay on his back, Brian swiped his face with a hand. “Holy crap. It’s a good thing we never considered going all the way ten years ago. We would have never let anyone tear us apart, but we sure would have been in trouble.”
She blinked, turning and staring at Brian. “I think you’re right.”
With that comment, he pulled her back into his arms and kissed her deeply.
And then they laughed.
She should really send him home.
But no, what the heck? Was she really going to make it so easy for him to come back into her life?
She realized then that he’d fallen asleep.
Suddenly feeling a little chilly, she slipped from the bed, grabbing her robe and pulling it on before getting back under the covers. Settling in snugly beside Brian, she wrapped an arm around his waist.
Ashley must have been more tired than she’d realized, and when she awoke to the touch of a finger running gently along the side of her face, she was momentarily startled. It took only seconds for her to remember that Brian was here.
“Just a minute.” Ashley pulled down the comforter. “Let me get rid of this robe.”
Silently, Brian crawled across the bed. Pulling her into his arms, he covered her mouth with his. “I can’t believe I’m here,” he whispered, when they finally surfaced for air.
She fell back onto the bed after Brian helped her remove her robe and toss it onto the floor. Every point of contact was hot as Brian caressed her, dragging his hands and mouth along from her lips and on to the smooth soft hollow of her throat, before moving down to sip at the nipple of her breast.
For a moment he moved off her, and she felt bereft. But then his mouth found her breast again, and she was alive with desire and sensation as his teeth pulled gently at her nipple.
Gradually, he moved his mouth lower, over her stomach and between her thighs, tasting and stroking, letting no single part of her go untouched or unloved.
That Incredible Kiss Page 9