He drew back and yanked his shirt off, tossing it to the floor. She swallowed at the pure masculine sight of him, all hard lines and tanned flesh. He’d always been beautiful, like a work of art, but he was no longer off-limits. She reached out, running her hand along the defined ridges, loving the feel of hard muscle underneath the softness of her hand.
His fingers hooked the waistband of her panties, and he tugged them down her bare legs. A smile tilted his lips as he came back to her, sealing his mouth over hers and tracing his tongue along the seam. Desperate to deepen the kiss, she parted her lips and without hesitation, he dipped his tongue into her mouth, licking and teasing, sending her need for him to new heights.
The kiss slowed now, he took his time, exploring her mouth gently and tracing her folds lightly with his fingertips.
She burrowed her hand into the space between them, unzipping his pants. He grabbed her wrist, pinning it above her head. “I know you’re impatient,” he said. “But I have been dreaming about this moment for a very long time.”
“You have?” she breathed, her eyebrows pinching together in uncertainty. Maybe he was just speaking in the moment, telling her what he thought she’d want to hear, finding a way to make himself feel better about taking her virginity.
“Too many times to count,” he said.
“But I was so mean to you.”
“It’s when I found you the sexiest.” He kissed the bridge of her nose. “You would get wrinkles right here, above the line of freckles, and I imagined, kissing them away. When I would say something that shocked you, your mouth would fall into a cute little O, and I fantasized about that mouth wrapped around me.”
Her eyes widened at his admission, but it also sent a new rush of desire spiraling out of control through her. It was crude, yet the fact that he thought about her in such a way, turned her on. She grabbed his cheeks, pulling his mouth to hers.
She pressed herself against his fingers, begging for some sort of release. A plea was making its way to her tongue when he slipped a digit into her wetness. She cried out at the foreign sensation, relishing in the unfamiliar pleasure consuming her.
His thumb circled the tight bundle of nerves while his finger worked in and out in a slow yet satisfying rhythm. Trembles moved through her body, and she arched into his touch, absorbing and savoring the pure bliss.
She needed him. Her hand brazenly moved on its own accord, reaching into his pants and wrapping around his thick, hardened length. His body clenched, the muscles in his arms bulged as she stroked him, and the instant power she felt from that single move, invigorated her.
With her other hand, she worked his pants over his ass. He placed a foiled packet next to her and helped her until his pants and underwear were tossed to the floor.
She chanced a look and gasped at the solid flesh in her hand. She ran her thumb over the head, and she heard the sudden intake of breath from Tyler. His face burrowed into her neck and his mouth sucked and licked with renewed vigor. She explored each vein and ridge with interest.
He drew back, his eyes intent on hers. She gazed at him, holding onto the tender look in his irises as he positioned himself at her center. Tingles of anticipation wracked her body as he moved his touch along her body and stopped at her hand. He tangled their fingers.
“Are you ready?”
“Yes,” she said, her voice filled with the desperation clawing through her.
She had been ready the first time his lips touched hers. She didn’t want to wait anymore. She heard the crinkle of a wrapper then he swiped the engorged crown against her folds and slowly inched inside her. Soft tissue stretched, and she squeezed his hand, her fingers digging into his knuckles.
“You okay?” he asked, the restraint to be as gentle as possible evident in the tight lines of his face.
She nodded. “I want all of you,” she said. “Please.”
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
The pain wasn’t a worry in her mind anymore. All she cared about was being as close to Tyler as possible. “You won’t hurt me. Please.”
He thrust into her, filling her completely. A tiny squeak of pain escaped her lips, and he covered his mouth with hers. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I’m so sorry.”
She shook her head. “Never be sorry for this,” she said. “It’s better than I ever imagined.”
She kissed him, arching her body into him, urging him to keep moving, and he did, in slow, steady strokes. The pain gave way to little bursts of pleasure that set her body ablaze.
His thumb found her swollen nub and stroked the tender flesh. Her tummy tightened, and she grabbed his face, urging him to look at her. She wanted him to see the pleasure he gave her, to make him understand that it was only him she wanted.
She held his gaze, dark and intense as he continued to move inside her. The intimacy was on a level she’d never known before and now experiencing it, she never wanted to go back to a time without it. She cupped his jaw, wanting to kiss him, but refused to break this intense moment.
Tiny explosions moved through her body in quick succession as the cresting waves of her climax swelled. She swallowed, holding onto the sensation as long as possible, before it all became too much. Pleasure crashed into her, and she cried out, dropping her hands from his face and grappling for anything to grab onto.
Her fingers curled into the comforter, and she fisted the material. Tyler’s hand landed on her face and her eyes popped open, meeting deep blue. Noises fell from her mouth, but she never broke eye contact.
She kept her eyes on his as the aftershocks rocked through her and until he thrust one final time succumbing to his own release.
***
Tyler collapsed beside Brooke, not wanting to burden her with his weight, and gathered her in his arms. He kissed her bare shoulder and the sensitive spot between her ear and neck. She moaned quietly, arching her ass into him and almost making him ready for round two, though that wasn’t going to happen. She needed time to recover.
“Are you okay?” he asked for probably the five hundredth time since they’d started. He needed reassurance that he didn’t cause her any pain. He didn’t think he’d be able to live with himself if he did.
“I’m fine stop asking.” She laughed and turned to face him. Her gray eyes were light like the sky after a storm moved out. Her skin was flushed and beautiful, putting her freckles on display and making her look as innocent as he was beginning to realize she was.
“Was your first time everything you hoped for?” he asked and instantly braced himself. Fear of her telling him it was worse than she could have imagined filled him.
“Terrible,” she said, and his body froze. A loud laugh echoed from beside him, and she shoved at his chest. “You really are an idiot sometimes.”
He caught her hand and tugged her to him, flipping her beneath him. He looked down at her, grateful for every moment that brought them to this exact one.
“I always loved your compliments, Hearts.”
“I hate that nickname.” Her eyes dropped from his and he rolled off of her. “I always have. Why you started calling me that…”
He touched her chin with his finger, turning her face to him. “I liked you.”
“What?” She swatted his hand away and sat up. “Fantasizing about sex and liking me are two totally different things.”
“I know, and I was hit with both. I thought the nickname was cute, and the first time I called you that you actually paid attention to me.”
“I believe I told you to shut up and go away.”
“My fourteen-year-old heart loved every second.”
“Like I said before… idiot.”
“Not denying it. After that, the nickname stuck, but as the years went on, you just got meaner. I thought you hated me, so I let go of the idea of ever being with you and let you hate me. It was easier to not like you than it was to like you. It hurt less.”
“You want to know why I hated that nickname?”
“Because
you were embarrassed,” he said, remembering the moment she bent over in those white pants and the hearts of her underwear showed right through.
She shook her head. “It was more than that. We didn’t have any money. Like none at all. We were lucky when our water wasn’t turned off, and when that would happen magically, it would be turned on a few days later. Most likely because of Terry, though, she’d never admit it. Anyway. I wanted a pair of white pants because I thought they were the coolest things ever. I saw all these fancy women on TV wearing them, and they were all over the fashion magazines. They looked classy and I wanted to be classy. I didn’t want to be poor or the girl whose father took off and whose mother was killed. I wanted to feel special. I thought those pants would make that happen. I babysat the Foley’s kids three days a week for a month before I had enough to buy the pants. That day when I wore them to school, I felt like I was hot shit. I was strutting my stuff down those hallways and I felt great. Then I bent over to pick up my pen and…”
All these years and he had no idea about any of this. If he did, he never would have called her Hearts. He always did it out of fun and never knew that those pants, for a sliver of a second, had made her happy. If he would have known, he would have kept his mouth shut. “I’m an asshole.”
Brooke shrugged. “Maybe a little. Or at least your past self was. I know you meant nothing by it, you had no idea about any of it, but I had never felt so deflated. It was like a kick to the gut. I borrowed Daisy’s sweatshirt and kept it tied around my waist for the rest of the day because I was terrified everyone could see right through my pants. I got home and threw them in the back of my closet and never wore them again. And that’s why I hate the nickname. It reminds me that no matter how hard I try, I’ll never be classy.”
“Brooke, that’s not true. You’re the classiest girl I know.”
Brooke laughed. “That is such a lie.”
“It’s not. You always look amazing.”
“You’re just saying that because you want to get lucky again.”
He took her face in his hands and kissed her. “No. I mean I definitely want to get lucky again, but that’s not why I’m saying that. I’m saying it because it’s true. You might not think so, for whatever reason, but you are and everyone else knows it. You don’t need white pants to prove it.”
“Lucky for me, I never wore white pants again.”
“Now I know what I’m getting you for your birthday,” he said.
She gasped, amusement in her eyes. “You better not.”
“I so am. And you’re going to wear little panties with hearts on them, and you’re going to bend over for me.”
“Go to hell,” she quipped.
“Only if you come with me,” he said, linking his fingers with hers and kissing her knuckles. Because from this moment, he never wanted to experience anything without Brooke at his side.
Chapter 13
Tyler awoke to an empty space beside him. He patted the mattress, searching out the soft warmth of Brooke’s body, but her side had already gone cold. He sat up and grabbed his pants, slipping into them and pulling his still damp t-shirt over his head just in case Layla or Chase was home. The last thing he needed was to bump into them in his boxer briefs.
The house was quiet, and he followed the scent of coffee to the kitchen. Brooke sat at the table in a white t-shirt and a pair of black leggings. She rested her chin on her bent knee while chewing on the end of her pen. Her hair was wet from the shower, and her face was free of makeup, making her freckles standout against her porcelain skin.
He watched her for a moment, observing all the little intricacies that made her who she was. She tapped the pen against her lip and her mouth parted, eyes widened as she bent down to scribble something down on paper.
“What are you doing?” he asked, walking around the table and kissing the top of her head. She glanced up from the pad she was scribbling in with an adorable smile. If he could start every day like this, he would be forever happy.
“I’m a genius!” she exclaimed.
“Is that so?” He laughed, loving the exuberance in her declaration.
“Yes! I’m about to blow your mind.” She pointed over her shoulder. Coffee is in the pot, mugs in the second cabinet on the right. Get a cup, and I’ll tell you all about it.”
He did as she said, needing his caffeine fix. He poured himself some coffee and sat down at the table beside her. “Tell me why you’re a genius,” he said, picking up her hand just because and pressing his to her knuckles.
“I’ve been thinking about how we can make the house more appealing, but then I realized, it’s not really about making the house more appealing because really that’s only a small part of it. We need to sell the town so people will want to come and stay here. Why is Red Maple Falls better than Fairview Resort or another nearby town?”
“We have the brewery, Basil Hill Farms and their fall festival, small-town charm, the Happy Apple.” He could keep going. The town while small had a whole lot to offer, it was why he never left. He loved Red Maple Falls, and almost everyone he met who was passing through had fallen in love with it.
“Exactly!” She snapped and pointed at him. “We need to show the people all the things the town has to offer which got me really thinking.” She turned the pad around, and he looked down at a list of many of the local businesses. “Why not give the people a complete Red Maple Falls experience?”
“And how do you suggest we do that?” We. The word wasn’t lost on him. He had been in this venture on his own from the start, but since Brooke offered to help him, she had given it her all. He couldn’t imagine continuing anything without her help and input.
“I’m glad you asked,” she said. “We get the local businesses involved.”
“I’m not following.”
“Then zip your mouth and let me finish.”
“I can think of other things I’d look to do with my mouth.” He moved toward her, but she put up her hand and pushed his face away.
“Focus.” She laughed. “We can do plenty of that later.” She put pen to paper and circled Five Leaf Brewery. “I was thinking of creating a binder that we can keep on the coffee table with brochures and flyers and a little history about the town. I can talk to Daisy and ask for the event schedule for the brewery to include. I was also thinking we can leave an empty growler from the brewery in the house with a tag on it. It will be complimentary for them to take to the brewery and get a growler fill. Mason donates the growler and in return will make money on the fill.”
“That’s a great idea, and I love how we could send business Mason’s way.”
“I’m not done,” she said. “I’ll talk to Declan and see what we can come up with, but I’m thinking a menu in the binder to Calhoun’s, and if they mention they’re staying here at the house, maybe Declan can give them ten percent off the bill or a free dessert.”
“I love it.” Not only would he be providing a great experience, he’d be helping out local businesses.
“That’s just the tip of the iceberg,” she said. “We can go to Sweet Dream’s Bakery and get a menu from Shay and see if she’d be willing to offer a discount for people who stay in the house. Then we can go down Main Street to Serenity Glass Blowing Studios and ask Kate if she’d be willing to donate a piece to use in the house. In the binder we can say the piece is from a local vendor and is available for purchase. We can also plug her glass blowing classes. Then there’s the Happy Apple and Basil Hill Farms, Forgotten Treasures and The Chain and Spoke…”
“Slow down.” He laughed. Her excitement was palpable, and it made him want to make this as big of a success as he could to make her proud of what they would accomplish.
“Sorry, I’m just excited.” She bit her lip and looked at him through long lashes. “But if you’re not excited, that’s fine. It’s your business after all…”
He tucked her hair behind her ear, his hand lingering on the curve of her cheek. “When do we get started?”
<
br /> Her face lit up, and she leaned over, her nose mere inches from his. Her bottom lip was moist from worrying it, and all he wanted to do was nibble on it himself.
“I was thinking today,” she said and unable to resist a second longer he devoured her in a sweeping kiss. She squeaked in surprise, but the squeak quickly transformed into a sexy moan.
Her hands slid up his chest and rested on the curve of his jaw. Her lips moved effortlessly against his, and he whipped his arm around her waist, pulling her to him.
The sound of the front door echoed through the house, and Brooke jumped back from him, almost falling on her ass, but he managed to catch her. She stepped out of his hold and fixed her shirt, plopping into a seat on the other side of the table. He cocked an eyebrow at her, but she grabbed the pad and pretended to write.
Layla walked into the kitchen, confusion evident in her eyes, finger hooked over her shoulder toward the front of the house. “Did you know there’s a tree down—” Her gaze landed on Tyler, and the confusion in her eyes magnified. “Tyler?”
“Morning, Layla,” Brooke said. “Coffee is ready for you.” Layla moved slowly across the kitchen to the coffee pot, and Tyler assumed it had nothing to do with the fact that she just worked an over-nighter. “The tree fell last night,” Brooke continued. “I was going to text Chase about it this morning to get him and the guys over here. Tyler had drove by earlier and saw it and came by to make sure we’re okay. Then we started going over some ideas.” She was babbling, and it was adorable. He had never seen Brooke so frazzled.
Layla took a sip of her coffee then placed the mug down on the table, looking directly at Brooke. She waited until Brooke peered up at her. “You do realize Tyler’s truck is in front of the tree.”
Brooke sputtered, and Tyler stifled a laugh. Busted.
Layla held up her hands. “Does this mean you’ll be spending more time here, Tyler?”
He hadn’t thought about what last night meant for their future. It was all very new, and he was still getting used to the fact that Brooke looked at him with desire instead of bloodlust. He was about to answer hell yes, because he didn’t want to go back to what they were before last night, when Brooke beat him to it.
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