Snapdragon Way (Firefly Hollow Book 8)

by T. L. Haddix

  “About Haley? You know it does. Not that… if they didn’t like Haley, I wouldn’t let… I don’t want to make the same kinds of mistakes I made with Erica, but if they didn’t like Haley, I don’t think I’d let that interfere with how I feel about her. But knowing they do like her? That you like her? It takes a lot of the pressure off.”

  Noah squeezed his shoulder. “It helps that we’re adults now. Come on. Let’s get this gang headed up to the farm. I’m starving.”

  When they reached the two-story farmhouse at the top of the mountain, Haley didn’t bother hiding her curiosity. She looked around avidly, taking in the setting.

  “This so beautiful. So peaceful,” she said, turning around in a slow circle.

  “That it is. It’s a very special place.”

  Eli gestured to the small house near the tree line, set back away from the main farmhouse. “That’s where Grandpa writes. They lived there the first two or three years of their marriage, and when they found out Emma and Ben were twins, they rehabbed the farmhouse. Over here,” he said, pointing to the barn on the opposite side of the wide meadow, “is a path that goes directly down the ridge to Noah’s house. And if you go straight ahead from where we stand, there’s a trail that heads down the mountain to your place. It’s about a ten or fifteen minute walk.”

  “Do the neighbors mind people crossing their land?” she asked as they approached the porch.

  “Nope. There’re no neighbors to worry about. It’s all Campbell land.” He nodded when she raised her eyebrows, her look conveying her surprise. “My grandparents own over six hundred acres.”

  “Okay. Wow.”

  Eli held the door open. “Yeah, it’s something else. Come on. Let’s get in here before Noah eats all the food.” He, Lee, and Sawyer were already there.

  To his surprise, the dining room was empty. John was waiting in the door to the living room, arms crossed casually as he leaned against the jamb. He straightened when they came in.

  “There you are. Haley, welcome to the farm. Come on in. We have something for you.”

  She looked at Eli, who shrugged. “I only knew about the food.” He followed her into the living room, stopping in the door at the sight of the prettily wrapped packages and colorful gift bags on the coffee table.

  John laid a hand on his shoulder. “I hope she likes this,” he said in a low voice. “That we didn’t go overboard.

  Eli glanced at him, shaking his head. “You all are sneaky,” he said quietly as Zanny hugged Haley and directed her to a seat on the couch beside Sarah.

  “You said she had next to nothing to set up house with. We wanted to help.”

  Haley was laughing and crying. She looked up at Eli. “This is why you were asking me about my favorite colors, isn’t it?”

  “I guess so. Mom asked, and she wouldn’t tell me why she wanted to know.” He crossed his arms and smiled at her.

  “Well, open up the goodies,” Noah said, coming to a stop beside Eli, a plate of food in hand. “Let’s see what you got.”

  “You all shouldn’t have,” Haley said as Zanny handed her the first bag. “You’ve already done so much for me.”

  “Sweetie, we had an absolute blast doing this,” Sarah said. “It’s been a while since we had someone to dote on.”

  Sophie, who’d come in that morning for her meeting with Owen, came down the hall from the bathroom. “Hey, stranger,” she greeted Eli, hugging him. “How’d the move go?”

  “Well enough. How was your trip?”

  “Boring. Long. So that’s your Haley?” she asked, crossing her arms to mimic his posture.

  “That’s her.” He winked at Haley when she looked over at him. When he didn’t bother to correct her assumption, Sophie sent him an assessing look, then smiled widely.

  “Well, well.”

  By the time Haley finished opening the gifts, she had bathroom and kitchen towels, a small set of kitchen cookware, a fancy single-serve coffeepot, and a host of other useful but stylish items she’d need to set up house. And unless Eli missed his guess, she was also considerably overwhelmed by the family’s generosity.

  “I honestly don’t know what to say to you all. Just… thank you. This has been a challenging few weeks, and everything you’ve done, it’s helped. I can’t even begin to tell you how much.”

  Sarah hugged her. “We’re glad to do it. Now, let’s get in there and see if the boys have left us anything to eat.”

  Noah and Sawyer gave put-upon shrugs as everyone laughed and teased them.

  “I say we blame Lee,” Sawyer said.

  “That sounds like a plan,” Noah agreed as Rachel stuck her tongue out at him. Lee had already left, as he’d gotten a call from work he couldn’t ignore not long after Eli and Haley had come in. “He’ll never know why he’s in trouble.”

  There hadn’t been time to introduce Haley to Emma, Rachel, and Sophie before she’d sat down to open the presents, and his mother had mostly done that as she’d given out the gifts. But as Haley joined him, he touched her hand.

  “Let me introduce you to Sophie properly.”

  She nodded. “Okay.”

  Sophie had joined Owen in the hall to look at a picture of the family taken when John and his siblings were still children. With Haley’s hand clasped in his, Eli approached them. He felt ridiculously nervous about this introduction even though he was fairly confident that Sophie would like Haley and vice versa.

  “So there’s a strong resemblance, as you can see,” Owen was saying. “Campbells have strong genes. Sarah likes to say it’s my stamp.” He smiled at Eli and Haley over her head.

  Sophie laughed as she turned. “There’s no doubt you all are kin, that’s for sure. Hi!”

  “Hello,” Haley said softly, holding her hand out. “It’s so nice to finally meet you.”

  “And you, as well. I’ve heard nothing but ‘Haley, this,’ and ‘Haley, that’ for weeks now from this one.” Sophie goosed him, then grinned and winked at Haley. “Did they get your move taken care of?”

  “They did. There wasn’t much to move, thankfully.”

  “It’s still a hassle, though, isn’t it?” Sophie asked. She nudged him aside and looped her arm through Haley’s, and they started walking to the dining room. “I feel like I live out of suitcases half the time. If I end up coming back to Hazard, I think I’ll get more than an efficiency apartment. So has he been courting you properly? Tell me if he hasn’t and we’ll make sure that changes. I’m very devious, and we can come up with a plan if we need to.”

  Haley threw him a startled look and laughed as they disappeared into the dining room, talking the whole way.

  Eli sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. He wondered if he hadn’t created a monster of sorts. A soft, funny, fuzzy monster. “Oh, boy.”

  Owen squeezed his shoulder. “You’ve done it now.” But far from a dire warning, his words were delivered in a teasing tone. “What you’ve done here, helping her get a home, that’s a good thing, Eli. I’m proud of you.”

  It took him several tries, but finally he asked, “Yeah?”

  “Yeah. You’ve grown into a fine young man,” Owen told him seriously, then folded him into a hug. “I’m glad you’re here, both still on the planet and here at the farm.”

  Eli’s eyes were damp as he returned the hug. “Thank you.”

  Owen held on tight for a few moments, then let him go and cleared his throat. “Let’s eat.”

  And that was that. Eli knew then without a single doubt that he’d been forgiven for any transgressions in the past. And he also knew then that as much as Haley’d gotten a new start today, so had he.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Haley didn’t have much to say as Eli drove her around to the trailer. Given how many gifts she’d gotten, they’d needed t
he back of his SUV to carry them all. Instead of talking, she watched the passing scenery, setting the route in her memory. Besides, she was all talked out. The day had left her so exhausted, she thought she might spread a quilt out on the bare mattress and take a nap when she got home.

  Thankfully, Eli seemed lost in his own thoughts, and the silence was comfortable.

  “We can set these on the couch,” she said as she unlocked the door once they were at the trailer. She crossed to the plaid sofa and put the bags she carried down.

  Eli set the box of cookware beside them. “I’ll get the rest.”

  “Okay. Thank you.” She kicked her shoes off, sighing as her feet sank into the thick, nearly new carpet. That nap was looking better and better.

  Once all the gifts were inside, Eli stepped up to her. He lifted his hand, softly touching her cheek before brushing her hair back, tucking a loose strand behind her ear.

  “You look tired.”

  “I am tired,” she admitted, barely resisting the urge to lean into him. “That bed is calling me. I’ll be asleep before you’re halfway home, I think. But please show me the thermostat before you go.”

  When he blushed—actually blushed—she chuckled.

  With a chagrined sigh, he shook his head. “I’m sorry about that. I don’t know what came over Noah.” He headed for the hall.

  “I do. Sophie. She knocks him off kilter,” Haley said as she followed him. “And it was hilarious. I thought your father was going to cry, he laughed so hard.”

  Eli huffed. “Yeah. Hilarious. And yeah, that probably explains it.”

  When Zanny had started explaining the heat pump to Haley, something they’d all overlooked, she’d made the remark that it was a cool heat, not like a regular furnace or wood stove.

  Haley smiled. “Oh, okay. That’s not a big deal. I can bundle up until I get used to it. I tend to freeze anyhow.”

  Noah, who’d been reaching for the green beans for a third helping, shrugged. “Eli can help you stay warm. He’s good with his hands.”

  As the table erupted with shocked laughter, Eli turned bright red.

  Haley’d been laughing just as hard as everyone else. “Excuse me?” she asked, certain she’d misunderstood.

  Noah spread his hands. “What? He’s a mechanic. He fixes mechanical things. So if the heat pump doesn’t work or something, he can fix it. That’s all I meant.” But the grin he’d sent her ever so briefly was purely wicked, and she knew better.

  “Sure that’s what you meant,” Eli said, shaking his head.

  “What else could it be?” Noah asked him, straight-faced.

  Eli hadn’t had a good answer for him, but from then on, every time Haley’s eyes met his across the table, she’d laughed.

  “I thought for sure he really meant the repairs,” she told Eli now, “especially given what you’ve told me about Noah and his hang-ups. But he was actually teasing you. It was funny.”

  Eli sent her a stern glance. “Young lady, I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about. Now, this is the thermostat,” he said, pointing to the box on the wall at the end of the long hallway.

  “Oh, is that what that is?” she asked as she moved in for a closer look. “I thought it was the controls for the oven.”

  With a smooth movement, he turned, backing her into the wall. The length of his body from his hips to his chest pressed into her, and he braced his hands on the wall beside her head as Haley laughed.

  “Smart-aleck.”

  She grinned up at him, some of her fatigue fading. “Maybe just a little.”

  “I thought you’d never had central air.”

  “Not at home. But we have it at work. I’m assuming it’s a similar principal?” she asked as she rested her hands on his waist.

  “Mm-hmmm. Probably. You know I should go,” he murmured, his eyes soft as he studied her.

  But Haley didn’t want him to, and not just because she didn’t want to be alone. A heady warmth was spreading through her, starting in her center and moving outward. She flexed her hands, moving them up his torso to his chest to trace the muscles there.

  “I thought you were tired,” he said quietly.

  “You could um… you could stay. It is your bed, after all,” she teased softly.

  He stared at her, then groaned, his eyes closing as he let his head rest beside hers. “Who told you?”

  “Your mom.”

  “My family…”

  “Is precocious and wonderful,” she said softly. She rubbed her cheek against his slowly, closing her eyes. “I know you need to go but I don’t want you to.”

  Eli turned his face just a hair, the motion causing their lips to rub against each other. For a bare whisper of a second, he froze, and then his mouth settled softly over hers.

  Haley nearly came out of her skin at the contact, her hands tightening on his shoulders as she kissed him back. She’d dated enough in high school and college that she knew the rudimentary aspects of kissing, but the exchange with Eli now was so unlike those contacts, she almost felt like it was her first kiss all over again.

  He was tender, reverent, and oh, so patient as he slowly deepened the contact, taking the kiss from something gentle and sweet into the steamy territory.

  The heat of the man, the solidness of his muscles, as he rested against her seeped into Haley’s bones. She slid her hands up to clutch at his shoulders, then thread her fingers into his hair as he traced the curve of her bottom lip with his tongue. When he retreated, she nipped at his lip, causing him to suck in a breath.

  “You are so…,” he rasped, dipping his head back down to hers for another kiss.

  “So what?” Haley asked as she brought one of her hands down from his hair to trace the outline of his lips, her eyes fixated on watching the tip of her finger as it touched the arches of his upper lip, then the tiny cleft in his chin.

  “Good. You’re so good,” he whispered, clutching her hand so that her palm was exposed. His eyes caught hers, and he placed a hot kiss to very base of her hand, right at the most sensitive point.

  When she felt the tip of his tongue flicker along the skin there, she moaned and moved restlessly against him. She didn’t feel like she was good at that moment. Rather, she felt like she was wicked. Deliciously, hotly wicked. And that was just because of a kiss.

  Eli’s hands slid down her back to grasp her hips, lifting her up onto her tiptoes as he settled back against her more intimately. He spread his fingers, cupping her behind, and kissed her again.

  This time, his mouth moved in concert with his hips, subtle little surges that sent electric shocks running all over Haley. When he moved his mouth down to her neck, she almost cried.

  “I really, really should go,” he murmured in her ear, his breathing ragged. “Because there’s a bed down this hall and all I can think about right now is laying you on it for the rest of the evening.”

  “I’m trying to figure out why that’d be a bad thing. And it is your bed.”

  He let out a laugh on a tortured groan and lifted his head to look at her. “God, Haley, don’t tempt me. I’m really hanging on to my chivalry by a damned thread here.”

  She wet her lips, not surprised to feel them swollen, and struggled desperately to clear her mind enough to think. But Eli was still pressed hard against her, almost right where she needed him, and she didn’t want to think. Trailing a hand down from his shoulder, she moved it between them, hesitating only when she reached his belt.

  Eli stopped breathing, his eyes searching hers. With a hand that shook, he guided her, placing her hand over his erection and pressing hard. His breath gushed out as he surged against her touch, and he lifted his chin, his eyes closing as he removed his hand, using it to brace himself on the wall.

  Haley was stunned and
awed at the restrained power of his erection. She watched his face as she traced the shape of him through the soft fabric of his well-worn jeans, almost as fascinated by the hard flush that stained his cheeks as she was by the large bulge she was exploring.

  “I don’t know if I’m ready for more than… making out, I guess,” she whispered. “But I don’t want you to go yet. Please stay. If you can. If it’s not too… much to ask.”

  Eli cupped her face and kissed her soundly in response. “Bedroom?”

  She nodded. “It’s private. The curtains are up.” She’d seen to that first thing, knowing she might be too tired later to do it.

  “I should lock the door,” he said, taking a step back. “Just in case.”

  “Just in case. Yes.” Haley stood right where he’d left her, her hands pressed to the wall as she bit her lip and watched him cross the living room. She half expected him to leave, that she’d pushed too far too fast. But he didn’t leave. Instead, he was back to her side in a matter of seconds.

  “Lead the way, ma’am.” He held his hand out.

  Feeling terrified and giddy and more aroused than she’d ever felt in her life, she took his hand and started walking.

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Of all the things Eli had expected to happen when he’d driven Haley home, ending up in her bed wasn’t even on the list. It really wasn’t. And part of him worried that this was too soon after her losses, that she wasn’t emotionally ready for intimacy. That he might be taking advantage.

  But as soft and sweet as Haley was, she had a core of steel. He’d seen that over and over again since he’d met her. She was strong enough to tell him if he pushed too far.

  He knew from previous conversations that she didn’t have a lot of experience. That was fine with him. For all her lack of hands-on experience, when she’d kissed him and touched him, she’d not been terribly shy or hesitant.