“Shit, Rick.” She quickly put the plates on the table.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” But she did look adorable with her eyes bugging so wide and her mouth slightly opened. God, he wanted those lips on him again.
“What are you doing over there when the pancakes are over here?” She pointed to the two places set at the table, and he liked the balanced look of it. “I hope you don’t mind pancakes again or that I rifled through your entire kitchen, but I was absolutely famished.”
“I told you I could eat pancakes at every meal,” Rick said as he walked over to her. He caught her lips in a long, deep kiss, and she actually licked her lips when he stepped back. “And I’m just as famished.”
“For pancakes or something else?” She leaned toward him and raked her fingers through his damp hair.
He grabbed her around the waist. “Both.”
“Sex and pancakes. It’s all we need.” Lily freed herself from Rick’s hold, but not before he kissed her again.
“I can’t argue with that.” He sat across from her and took in a whiff. “Banana pancakes?”
“I like to mix it up.” Lily shrugged one shoulder. “Maybe we can have chocolate chip pancakes for dessert later.” She grinned at him. “Or would that be overdoing it?”
“No such thing.” He covered his dish in syrup and offered the jar to Lily. As she doused her own dish, he watched the amber liquid creep along the pancakes, and he got some creative ideas for that “later” she’d mentioned.
He ate with several breaks to look up at Lily. What an odd thing to be happy someone else was sitting with him. He’d spent so much time alone he never thought it could be another way. He should be terrified. Anxious that Lily was going to spoil his tranquility, shatter the harmony he had established in living by himself apart from all the things that try men’s souls.
But looking at her, eating pancakes in his sweatshirt with coils of soft hair framing her face, he couldn’t find the fear or the anxiety. Not a drop of it.
Foolish. This little snapshot was not representative of the real world. An isolated, post-sex contentment was what it was. Something that tomorrow would shine a spotlight on and reveal all the impossibilities.
But that was tomorrow. Today was today.
“You want to look at the presentation,” Lily said as she took their plates to the sink when they were done eating.
Tomorrow was closer than Rick cared to accept.
“Sure.” He helped her clean up and they went into the living room. After powering up his laptop, he took the flash drive from Lily. He rested his ankle on the chest in front of the couch and sat back with the computer on his lap. Lily snuggled up next to him. The couch was quickly becoming his second favorite spot to be with her.
Rick watched the presentation with Lily pointing out various things she would say when she shared it with Utopia.
“It’s the best we’ve got,” she said when it was over. “I hope it’s enough. I’ll launch right into my Arctic design after I show this. Hopefully I can suck them into an idea they can make more money on.”
“That’s what it’s all about anyway, isn’t it? The money.” He closed the presentation and opened a set of barn blueprints.
“Utopia speaks in money. It’s the only language they understand.” She craned her head to see the screen. “What’s this?”
“The Tramtons’ barn.” Rick slid the computer to Lily’s lap, and she leaned forward to study it, chewed on her upper lip, and tapped her fingers on the edge of the laptop. He got a glimpse of what she must look like at her desk in California working on designs. Had he ever seen a more beautiful woman? Not even the female characters in some of his favorite books could compete with Lily.
“Is this an oculus in the ceiling?” She pointed to the eye-like opening in the barn’s dome-shaped roof.
“Yeah. The owner wants to let natural light in, save on electricity. The barn’s going to be in a pretty open area, lots of sunshine.” Rick scrolled through a few more schematics for the oculus. “Ted Tramton hired me to design their barn over the winter and start building it after the syrup stops running. That time is fast approaching.”
“This is beautiful, Rick.” She waved a hand toward the bookshelf where he kept the photo album of the barns she’d already looked at. “They’re all barns yet they look as if they’ve been made by a dozen different people. That’s not easy to do. Designers usually fall into a certain style, but yours are all unique.”
“I imagine you have to do the same thing with all the hotel themes.” He took the laptop back, closed it, and set it on the chest.
“That’s how I know it’s not easy. To get that level of originality in a one room construction like a barn is even more challenging.”
“It’s about the art of it.”
“Exactly. Not the money it’ll make from rich tourists.”
“I thought you liked rich tourists.”
“I did.” Lily shook her head. “I do.”
Rick fought not to smile at her uncertainty. Was the city girl warming up to the woods?
“I need to go to the Tramtons’ and measure up a few things now that the site has thawed some. You up for a ride with me?” He slid his leg off the chest and tried to seem as if he didn’t care if she came or not. But dammit, he did care. More than he wanted to.
“I suppose I need some way to work those pancakes off.” She knocked her knee against his. How, even fully clothed, could she jumpstart him like she did?
“I’ve got a way we can work them off.” Rick grinned at her as he stood and offered her a hand.
She accepted his hand and stood beside him. “Then I guess I’ll keep feeding you pancakes.”
****
With Poe jumping ahead of them, Lily and Rick stopped into the store where Rick’s aunt insisted they take some leftover muffins she’d experimented with to the Tramtons.
“Becky will love these,” Aunt Joy said as she held the kitchen door open and directed Rick inside. “Then she’ll blab about them to everyone she knows, and we’ll have customers throughout the season sniffing around for these babies.”
“Probably not a marketing plan you’d use in California, right?” Sage peered up at Lily from one of the tables where she was ordering baking supplies from a catalog.
“Word of mouth is the strongest form of advertisement.” Lily scratched Poe between the coyote’s oversized ears. “We may not use the word ‘blab,’ but the idea’s the same.”
“East coast or west coast, consumer psychology is an important part of any good business.” Hope stepped down from the ladder she used to dust the various artifacts displayed above the bookshelves.
Lily hadn’t noticed them before and wandered over to have a closer look. Old farm tools mostly, wrought iron and rusty. Some copper cans and tin buckets. A few lanterns with old beeswax candles inside. They would have been perfect in the log cabin resort. The one she was no longer designing.
Career suicide. Refusing to carry out a deal Rita and Webster had both approved would not be earning her high marks on her annual evaluation. As good as her presentation and new designs were, it’d be a miracle if they were enough ammunition against building in Vermont. Utopia saw dollar signs in these woods, and rich tourists would come if a resort were built here. Hell, Utopia had people slugging it out to the middle of the Chihuahuan Desert. Why should these quiet woods be any different?
She needed something else to save Rick’s land. Land she’d put in jeopardy with her own insecurities. She could have told Rita she needed time to put something together and research a suitable location. She could have been not quite so worried about dealing with her grandmother’s land. Holding that bunny this morning in the woods with Rick had made her see the woods weren’t all bear attacks and blood and pain. Some of it was soft and warm and gentle.
“That one on the end,” Hope said, tugging Lily over to her side and pointing to a photograph of two men in a twig frame. “The one on the left is
my father, and the one on the right is Rick’s. They were in their late teens there. Handsome chaps, don’t you think?”
Lily squinted up at the picture. Two young men leaned against an aging barn. Both had blond hair, one light like Hope’s and Sage’s, the other a little darker like Rick’s. They looked like sturdy farm boys with muscles where they should be and easy smiles on their faces.
“They were only a year apart like me and Sage,” Hope said. “Mom says they were tighter than tight like me and Sage too. I don’t remember them well. I was only four when they died, but I do remember when you saw one of them, the other wasn’t far away.”
Hope moved the ladder to the end, climbed up, and ran the feather duster over the frame. She blew the men in the photo a kiss, came back down, and stood next to Lily. “You have any brothers or sisters?”
Lily shook her head. “Nope. Not sure my parents even wanted me.” That was something she rarely admitted out loud, but it came tumbling out now.
“They may not have planned to have you, but I’m sure once they saw you, they realized how lucky they were.” Hope threw an arm around her shoulders while Poe pushed her muzzle into Lily’s knee.
“My dad maybe.” Lily looked at Hope. “My mom definitely not.”
“No family’s perfect.” Hope gave her a squeeze before releasing her and patted Poe on the nose. “But I do know that when I marry the drummer and have me some babies, I’m going to love them to pieces.”
Lily laughed at the love struck expression on Hope’s face. “So, do tell me about the drummer.”
Hope did a little dance around the nearest table. “We’ve got a date this weekend, which will probably just involve dinner at Black Wolf Tavern, but I don’t care.”
“That’s because you’re a cheap date,” Sage said as she gathered up her catalogs. “Bet Lily could tell us about some real expensive dates.”
Rick came out of the kitchen toting a plain, brown shopping bag. “Ready?” he asked as he passed Lily and headed for the front door. Poe scrabbled after him, her tail wagging.
Screw expensive dates. A ride in a pickup truck with a man who smells like maple syrup is just as good. Better actually.
“Sometimes it’s not the money they spend on you,” Lily whispered to Hope and Sage. “It’s how hard they can get your tail to wag.”
Hope and Sage burst into laughter, and Rick threw Lily a questioning look. He was about to say something, but Sage said, “Hey, is that Rick’s sweatshirt you’re wearing, Lily?”
At that, Rick gave Sage a look and ushered Lily out the door without letting her answer. “Sorry about them. They never stop.” He led her to his truck.
“Would you really want them to?” she asked as he unlocked the passenger door and held it open for her. She leaned against the truck and looked up at him. The sun caught in his hair, reflecting gold, like found treasure.
“No, I guess they wouldn’t be Hope and Sage if they didn’t bust my balls every chance they got.” He grinned, set the brown bag down on the floor of the passenger side, and trapped Lily with a hand on either side of her.
“What are you planning, Mr. Stannard?” Lily ran a finger along his bottom lip, and his blue eyes disappeared behind his lids for a moment.
“Well, the way I figure it, Hope, Sage, and probably Aunt Joy are watching us from the window as we speak.” He leaned down and dropped two short kisses on Lily’s lips. “We may as well give them a show.”
In a quick motion that had Lily giggling, Rick pulled her away from the truck, spun her around, and dipped her low. He kissed her long and hard as he held her, and Lily could hear the women hooting and cheering from inside the store. Rick straightened so they were both standing again and planted one more kiss on Lily. She actually felt a little dizzy.
She somehow made it back to the truck and watched as Rick faced the store and bowed to his audience. When she looked to the window, three sheets of paper sporting the number “10” were on display.
“High marks,” Lily said, letting Poe hop into the truck before she climbed in.
“They’ve never seen me behave in that fashion, I assure you.” Rick started the truck and headed down the driveway. “Felt kind of good.”
His cheeks were a little flushed, and Lily took the hand he rested on her thigh. Her day had started out like a scene from The Shining, all crazed Jack Nicholson, but Rick was rewriting the ending with each kiss, each look, each silent promise to treat her like something very valuable.
How long could she pretend that was enough?
Chapter Sixteen
After thirty-five minutes of driving along a scenic stretch of Route 91 while Rick pointed out various points of interest and a ton of cows, the truck came to a stop in front of a huge farmhouse with a wraparound porch. Behind the house, a dilapidated barn looked as if a swift breeze would knock it over.
“Hence the need for me,” Rick said as he gestured to the barn. “That thing is not fit for equipment, never mind the horses and cows Ted wants to raise.”
They got out of the car, and Lily grabbed the bag of Joy’s muffins. As she followed Rick, she had a weird sense of being exactly where she was supposed to be.
How can this be right?
She was wearing faded jeans, a man’s hooded sweatshirt, and work boots now covered in mud for heaven’s sake. A coyote trotted along beside her, and she wasn’t freaking out about it. She carried a load a muffins while she walked up the creaky steps of a farmhouse. Her laptop was destroyed, and her cell phone was back in the truck. And the damn thing was off! She didn’t even care how many messages she was missing.
What’s happened to me?
“Lily?” Rick touched her shoulder. “You okay?”
“I think so, yes.” She let out a little laugh and reached up to kiss Rick’s cheek.
“What was that for?” He shifted a notebook of graph paper from one hand to the other.
“I’m not sure yet. Just felt you deserved a kiss.” She rang the doorbell, and a howl erupted from inside. Lily froze as Poe answered with her own howl.
“Don’t get nervous.” Rick immediately took Lily’s free hand. “The Tramtons’ dog is big, but he’s even gentler than Poe.”
Another low canine cry sounded beyond the front door. “How big?”
“Great Dane big. I’m sorry. I totally forgot about him.”
The door opened, and Lily thought she was looking at a pony. “How do you forget about that?”
Poe walked right in, past a short, square woman who stood by the door, and touched noses with the mammoth dog.
“Old friends,” the woman said, angling her head toward the two animals. “Hey, Rick. C’mon in.”
“Becky, this is Lily,” Rick said.
“Yeah, I figured. Just got off the phone with Joy.” Becky pushed her long, brown braid off her shoulder then shook Lily’s hand.
“Of course you did.” Rick glanced at Lily as if to apologize.
“Those would be the muffins she was yapping about?” Becky pointed to the bag.
“Yes.” Lily held the bag out to her. “Nice to meet you.”
“Likewise.” She wiped her hands on the red and white-checkered apron around her waist and took the bag. “Ted’s out back by the site, Rick. You can cut through the house. Lily will come with me, and we’ll bring out some cider.”
Rick saluted Becky. “Becky makes fresh cider from apples they grow in the orchard behind that eyesore of a barn.”
“I’ll be so glad to watch that thing crumble.” Becky raised one hand to the sky as if she were thanking God. “C’mon, Lily. Kitchen’s through here.”
Lily followed Becky, but stopped when Poe headed her way instead of Rick’s.
“Real nice, Poe.” He shook a fist at the coyote who pushed her nose into Lily’s hand. “Traitor. That’s fine. I’ll be friends with Brom here instead.” He patted the Great Dane’s back and winked at Lily.
As Rick disappeared deeper into the house, Becky said, “You succeeded
in tearing Poe from Rick, her daddy, and Brom, her boyfriend. That’s mighty impressive for a tall, skinny city girl.”
Had Joy described her as a tall, skinny city girl? Probably. “Poe just knows we’ve got the food.” She rubbed the coyote’s ears, and golden eyes squeezed closed.
“Don’t think it’s got anything to do with the food.” Becky set the muffins on a table made from scarred barn wood. “Animals get a sense ‘bout people, and Poe’s got a good sense ‘bout you.”
“Maybe.” Lily shrugged and ran a hand over the top of the table. The wood was fantastic. Tongue and groove with a rich, dark stain. Stout, square legs supported the top and two benches were tucked under either side.
“Like furniture?” Becky got out a basket and lined it with a blue linen napkin.
“I like themes,” Lily said. “This table suggests a time period.”
Becky pushed the basket toward Lily and tapped the bag of muffins. After pulling up the sleeves of Rick’s sweatshirt, Lily filled the basket as Becky said, “My great-great-great-great-great granddaddy made a table like this when he bought this land back in the 1700s. When we took over the land, I found an old picture of that table and had Ted make me one just like it.” She pressed her palms to the top. “I love this table.”
“It’s gorgeous.” Lily folded the empty brown bag and Becky took it.
“Gorgeous as my new barn will be. Have you seen the designs?”
“I have. It’s a masterpiece.” Lily looked out a door leading to the backyard where Rick stood in a cleared field with a dark-haired man in overalls and calf-high rubber boots. Rick was a giant next to the man who appeared to be shorter than Becky.
“Wouldn’t expect anything less than a masterpiece from Rick,” Becky said following Lily’s gaze. “Man’s syrup is good, his designs are good, and I’ll bet his kissing is good too.”
Lily’s face grew hot as she tried not to look at Becky. She focused on Rick who bent over to rest his tape measure on the ground, but that only made her warmer. Really, a spectacular ass. Grandma Gail would so approve.
More Than Pancakes (The Maple Leaf Series Book 1) Page 20