Elli chose two bottles and made her way to the cashier. She arrived at Brady’s apartment early, but after a brief debate, she decided not to sit in her car for twenty minutes while the beer grew warm.
At the top of the stairs on the third-floor landing, she rapped her knuckles on apartment 3C. The building was surrounded by trees so the lake was less visible. Definitely he wasn’t in his dream home yet, she thought, remembering the house he’d pointed out during her lake tour.
“You’re early,” she heard behind her. She swung around to say hello to her chef for the evening, but the sight of Brady Hutchins nearly naked glued her tongue to the roof of her mouth.
He stood in the doorway, a bath towel slung low on his waist, hiding the part of him she’d enjoyed so much a few nights ago. Screw dinner, she wanted to screw him.
“Keep looking at me like that, Elli Bean, and you’ll get more than a kiss hello.” He raised one eyebrow, which made him sexier. “You look amazing.”
“Thanks.” She swept her hand over her simple white dress and stepped inside.
He shut the door behind her and moved the towel to dry his damp hair. Her eyes traveled along the planes of his abs and down to his heavy cock, hanging temptingly to one side. By the time she’d forced her gaze back to his mouthwatering chest and then up to his talented mouth, she’d forgotten how to breathe.
“You want to put those in the fridge while I get dressed?” A smile spread his mouth. “Or we can eat naked. Your call.”
“Yes, of course.” She shut her eyes, but the outline of his nude body was burned on the inside of her eyelids.
She felt his palm at the back of her neck, and when she opened her eyes, he was close enough to kiss.
“At least let me feed you first,” he rumbled, sounding amused. He took the bags from her hand, set them on the counter, and then laid kiss on her mouth. She touched his damp chest. His skin was warm from his shower, tempting her to lean in and taste his soap-scented skin.
“Sorry,” she said, not sorry at all.
“Be right back. Try and pull yourself together.” He winked before turning for the hallway. She admired his bare ass until he vanished into a back bedroom.
“Pull yourself together,” she reminded herself as she stashed the beer and white wine into the fridge. She set the red wine on the counter next to the stove and bent to see what was in the oven.
“Frozen pizza.” Brady appeared around the corner, pulling a blue shirt over his head. He wore shorts and no shoes, and his damp hair was everywhere. “It was supposed to be lasagna, but I was called in early and ran out of time this morning. I didn’t even have time to pick up Pancake.”
“Pancake?”
“My dog. She’s at my grandfather’s house. Her name’s Lila, but Gramps calls her Pancake. Don’t ask.”
“I didn’t know you had a dog.” It suited him though. A hot bachelor with a dog.
“Yeah. Wasn’t supposed to have one.” He knelt to check on the pizza and then stood again, closer to her than before. “I came across Lila on a call. She was tied to a porch. Underfed and terrified. I intended to give her to someone else, or drop her at a shelter, but she apparently deems me a suitable guardian.”
Elli’s heart ached for the poor pup. Dogs deserved better than chains. “Poor thing. Sounds like you saved her.”
“What can I say? I’m a sucker for cute females.” He touched her elbow, and she lifted her chin to take him in. He was a lot taller than her, which could be intimidating, but like everything else about him, his height only made her feel safe. “Kiss me again, Bean, I’m dying.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck and climbed to her toes. Kissing him was like enjoying a cup of coffee. He relaxed and revved her up at the same time. He was an illustration of tantalizing opposites.
“I brought beer and wine. I wasn’t sure what you liked,” she said as she lowered to her heels. She hadn’t managed to take her arms from his neck yet.
“I like you.”
Unable to reply as boldly, she continued, “White wine, red, an IPA, and a summer shandy.”
His grin was slow and made her recall vividly how amazing his mouth felt whenever it was on her. “So careful.”
No, she wasn’t. If she were careful, she wouldn’t be here. She let go of his neck, and he moved to the oven to check on their dinner. He pulled out the hot pizza and set it on the stovetop.
“While our dinner cools, how about a drink?” He powered off the oven and dropped the oven mitt. “Which of those options did you buy for yourself?”
“Salty Dog’s summer shandy.”
“Wise choice.” He grabbed two bottles from the fridge, popped the tops, and poured them into glasses. After they’d each taken a long draw, he grasped her hand and they walked into the living room. The decor was manly yet warm and inviting, like Brady himself. His deep-brown leather couch sat in front of a large, round ottoman stacked with a few books. A TV dominated one wall of the room, and a gas fireplace served as the focal point for another.
He eased into the corner of the couch, fatigue outlining his features.
“You had a long day,” she said, picking up one of the novels. “We could’ve rescheduled.”
“Hell, no. How are you? Tough day slinging coffee beans?”
“Oh, brutal.” She set aside the novel. “Your job’s hard.”
“Sometimes.” He didn’t elaborate, and she guessed he didn’t want to discuss whatever—or whomever—he’d encountered on his shift.
“Were you a barista before you came to the Cove?” he asked, smoothly changing the subject.
“Nope. Jo took a chance on me. I have that business degree I mentioned, but…ah, I haven’t worked outside the home for the last five years or so.” She offered a tight smile. “Neil, my ex, didn’t want me to work. It took me too long to realize he was manipulative. He had a way of making his ideas seem like mine.”
“What a fucking dick.” Brady’s good humor was gone. His attractive face hardened.
“Pretty much.”
He reached for her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Sorry you had to go through that, Bean. You shook him off completely? He doesn’t have any contact with you?”
“No. I moved out one day while he was at work. My parents came to help just in case… Well, I wasn’t sure how he’d react. Turned out he didn’t react much. He told me he was sorry things didn’t work out, and then he shook my hand. Six years, and he shook my hand like I was a business acquaintance.” That part made her nauseous. “That was, I don’t know, maybe ten weeks ago? I haven’t heard from him since. I saw a photo of him online with a woman on his arm, so I don’t think my leaving shattered him. I don’t want him back, but it hurts to know I meant so little to him.”
She paused when she realized that Brady had asked a simple question about where she used to work and she’d spilled her guts.
“Ignore me. I didn’t mean to say all that.” She moved to pull her hand from his, but he kept hold of her.
“Don’t be embarrassed. What you told me makes him look bad, not you. He didn’t know how to treat a woman so that she blooms in his presence instead of withers. You—look at you—” Brady studied her earnestly. “Elliott, you’ve already bloomed. You came to the Cove and exploded.”
Flattered, she ducked her head. “Lou said something similar. I remember when I was strong.”
Silence invaded the room. She let it for a moment before turning the tables on him.
“What’s your story? Nice guy, skills in the bedroom, handsome cop in a wealthy tourist town. Where’s your wife and kids?”
“You think I’m nice?” He winced.
“Well, you’re no Neil,” she teased.
“No, honey. I’m definitely not Neil. You summed up a few of the reasons why I don’t have a wife and kids. Cop. Wealthy tourist town.”
“Lou hinted that you’re not a long-term guy.”
“Is that why you’re here?” He didn’t break eye contact. And like she was being int
errogated, she answered honestly.
“It didn’t hurt your chances.”
He took her beer glass, set it next to his, and slapped his thighs. “Come here.”
“On your lap?”
“Yeah.” That grin would be the death of her, but oh, what a way to go. “Make out with me.”
“You’re crazy.” She shook her head with zero conviction.
“Come on.” He slapped his thighs again.
She straddled his lap, settling over him. They fit together. Her open thighs against his strong ones, her breasts brushing his chest. Even their mouths lined up perfectly, without their noses getting in the way.
He wrapped his palms around her hips. “Whatever shit you went through in Michigan is in the past, Elliott. He swept her hair away from her face. “You’re here now. Evergreen Cove is a fresh start for a lot of us.”
A fresh start.
She’d considered Evergreen Cove more of a temporary stop on her journey. She still did. But a miniature fresh start during the weeks she was here didn’t sound so bad, especially if it started, and ended, with Officer Brady Hutchins.
Chapter 14
After some spectacular couch sex, Elli and Brady ate pizza at the kitchen table. He’d talked about his friends in the Cove, his grandfather, and what he remembered of his parents. She told him about her own parents, admitting she felt ungrateful saying they sometimes drove her crazy.
He took the conversation in stride, the way he took everything. He listened and asked questions and listened some more. And then he took her down the hall and they had more spectacular sex, with her having three orgasms right in a row.
Right in a row.
Later as they lay in bed, he said, “You smile a lot more than you used to, Elli Bean. Like to think I have something to do with that.”
She was so unaccustomed to a guy being the reason she smiled she wasn’t sure what to say. But he wasn’t wrong. She smiled a lot more in Evergreen Cove, and he had a lot to do with the reason why.
The next week was a busy workweek for both of them. Cup of Jo’s kept her busy, and since there were a lot of summer events that required traffic and crowd control, Brady was scheduled at various venues.
Zack had unexpectedly asked her to trade shifts so she was free for the weekend, and debating texting Brady. He’d popped into Cup of Jo’s a few times during the week, but left quickly.
She vacillated over contacting him like life or death hung in the balance, her hesitation fueled by her own temporary status in the Cove. Just when was she supposed to break things off with him? Should she cut her losses now? Continue until the day she left? She had no idea what protocol was for a fling, though he probably did. Maybe she should ask him for advice.
After her shower, she dressed and wandered into the kitchen. She watched raindrops slide down the window over the sink and debated some more. To see him or not to see him, that was the question.
When she reached into a cabinet for the bag of Jo’s coffee beans, a knock sounded from the front door. It was too early for the mailman. Could be Lou, though she was more likely to come to the back patio.
Elli opened the front door and found Brady standing in the threshold, his hair styled neatly, raindrops darkening his shirt and dotting his arms.
“You weren’t at Jo’s.” He held up a tray with two coffee cups. “I’m delivering.”
“I traded shifts.” Her smile was back like he’d brought it with him. It was so easy to forget everything except how he made her feel when he was in front of her.
“Zack told me.” Brady caught her by the waist and kissed her. She melted into him. “You taste better than you look, and that’s saying something.”
“I’m wearing a sundress, no makeup, and my hair is wet,” she argued.
His eyes flared with heat. “Yeah. I see that.”
He kicked the door closed behind him, continuing to kiss her. She couldn’t resist him. Well, she could. She just didn’t want to.
“Coffee can wait,” she murmured against his mouth.
“Agree.” He set the tray on the breakfast bar in the kitchen before lifting her dress over her head. “No bra. I approve.”
He rewarded her choice by kissing her breasts, taking his time on her nipples. Quite possibly, this was better than drinking coffee, and she really, really liked her morning coffee. She was fuzzy without it. But she was fuzzy with him, too, only in that lovely, gauzy, orgasmic way.
Her pulse moved from her chest to pound between her legs. It was an ache that needed soothing, and Brady was just the man to do it.
“I didn’t like sex this much before you,” she said as she wrestled with his shirt. “What are you doing to me?”
“Flattery, Bean.” He whipped his shirt over his head and dropped it on the floor. Then he dipped his fingers into her panties. His touch had her bracing against the counter to hold herself up. He’d literally weakened her knees.
She shut out thoughts of the future. When she left town and no longer had a man show up to deliver coffee and an orgasm. Right now was about right now. She’d lived too many years reining herself in. This was her opportunity to be free.
He peeled her panties down her legs, kissing a trail along her thighs. When he snaked his tongue along her center, she let out a sharp breath, clutching his hair and holding him close. Her head swam as she recited his name like a prayer. When she was close, oh so close, he stood abruptly and unbuttoned his shorts. He rolled on a condom in record time.
“Countertop, Elli Bean,” he said as he lifted her and deposited her on top of said countertop. He spread her legs and wedged his body between them. “Unless you have a better idea.”
“Nope,” she answered. Everything he did was perfect.
He flashed a cocky grin, angled his hips, and slipped past her wet folds.
Being filled by him, each powerful thrust in clumsy sync with their out-of-control breaths, was absolute heaven. He was completely in control of her pleasure, and he knew it. He pulled her down roughly on his cock, driving her absolutely wild.
“Yes!” she cried into his ear, gripping his shoulders and hanging on for dear life. They were perfect together, the glide of him and the give of her. She both never wanted it to end and greedily chased his release. He’d gifted her with more than her fair share, but as he’d confessed the night they had sex on his couch, he wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Come for me, Elliott.”
Her stomach coiled in delicious anticipation. “Close. I’m close.”
“Now, honey. I can’t hold off much longer.” His voice was a low growl in her ear. “I’ve been thinking about this all week, and it’s been damn distracting.”
That did it for her. Knowing he’d thought of them together all week was the highest compliment. Her orgasm was no less intense than the previous ones with him. He came with her, his eyes squeezing closed as he bared his teeth. His arms locked around her back, and he drew her into a tight hug, dropping his face into the space between her neck and shoulder.
They stayed there, connected, his weight heavy against her. Eventually, she shivered, suddenly chilly from in the air-conditioning.
His arms loosened. He lifted his head and gave her a lazy smile. “Good morning.”
There was something under his smile that scared her. It tempted her to stay and made her want to run and hide. Dirty, quick, countertop sex shouldn’t feel intimate.
And yet…
“Elliott.” His heavy-lidded gaze drew her in.
A breath away from kissing him, another knock sounded from the front door, followed by a bone-chilling, “Yoo-hoo! Elliott!”
“Oh my God.” Through the frosted glass, she made out the blurry outline of her mother. When the doorknob twisted Elli shoved Brady away and hissed, “My parents!”
“Seriously?”
“Yes!”
He didn’t appear alarmed enough for her taste.
She scrambled off the counter, grabbing her clothes and his hand. �
��Bathroom. Go.” If they ran for the bedroom, her mother, and probably her father, too, since they rarely went anywhere without each other, would witness both Elli’s and Brady’s bare asses jogging up the stairs.
She grabbed his discarded clothes and hers, and he thankfully followed her into the bathroom. She was fuzzy and unsteady from her orgasm, and she’d really, really like to avoid her parents seeing her like this.
“Hey, it’s okay.” Brady pulled on his shorts. The nightlight plugged into the wall lit his chest in a warm honey-colored glow.
“It’s not okay.” She gestured to her reflection in the mirror and hissed, “I look like I just had the best sex of my life.”
She’d meant to underline the severity of the situation, but he took it as a compliment. “The best?”
“Now is not the time,” she warned, fighting with her sundress.
He fisted the dress and pressed her back against the door, lighting her up with a kiss that made her temporarily forget her predicament.
“Elliott! It’s Mom and Dad! Elliott?” Her mother’s voice was closer than before.
“In the bathroom! One second!” Elli shouted back. She slipped away from Brady, who was clearly amused, and pulled her dress over her head. “I’ll distract them. You can sneak out the patio door.”
“Yeah?” He pulled his shirt on and stuffed his feet into his shoes. “How you going to explain the truck in your driveway?”
Crap. She forgot about that.
“Relax, Elli Bean. I won’t tell them we just had sex in the kitchen.” He chuckled lightly before opening the bathroom door. “Can’t wait to meet them.”
Chapter 15
She left the bathroom first, rushing to the front door before her mother walked into the kitchen. That would give Brady a second to come out of hiding. Her father was wiggling the door back and forth and muttering about oiling the hinges.
This entire situation, from hiding a boy in the bathroom to her mother mentioning that the blinds needed dusting, made Elli feel sixteen years old again.
“There’s a strange car in the driveway,” her mother said.
Bad Boy Blues (Evergreen Cove Book 1) Page 7