Finding Me (Snowy Ridge: Love at Starlight, Book 3)

by Kris Jett

  Evan climbed into the driver’s seat and looked at Becca. “Hi, again.” He let out a nervous laugh at this bizarre start to their date.

  “Sorry about the rush,” she said. “I just didn’t want you to come in.”

  Evan widened his eyes. This was a first.

  Becca laughed. “Nothing against you,” she assured him. “It’s just that my parents were sitting right there in the living room and they would have insisted you stayed and solved a puzzle. They’re Wheel of Fortune freaks. And, you know, you just can’t solve one. They’d have detained you until someone went bankrupt. I wanted to get going.”

  Evan put his car in reverse and pulled out of the driveway. “I can understand that,” he told her. He smiled. Becca was funny. Still, he wished he was doing something other than be on this date. But it was too late now and he was going to make the best of it.

  Twenty minutes later, Becca and Evan were seated across from each other, each working on giant burgers and fries. Becca had been talking a mile-a-minute ever since she first stepped into his car. He’d never met a woman with so much to say.

  “So, tell me how you and Luci met,” Evan said when there was a pause in conversation. He popped a fry into his mouth, anticipating a long story.

  “Seventh grade gym class,” Becca begun. “We both hated sit-ups so I offered to spot her so we could cheat. You know, count by fives or whatever. We bonded over our hatred of exercise.”

  “Which is like, the opposite of Luci now. She’s such a yoga fanatic.”

  “You say yoga fanatic, I say traitor,” Becca replied, pointing a fry at him.

  Evan laughed. “You guys have been friends for a long time then.”

  “Nope. But I can understand why you’d think that. I got married and moved to California so we lost touch for a while. That and I thought she was after my husband for a brief time there. She wasn’t,” Becca clarified. “So, we’re all good now. We only started hanging out again when I moved back home recently.”

  “You thought she was after your husband?” he repeated.

  “Yeah. I’m divorced by the way. Not sure if I mentioned that. And it wasn’t Luci’s fault. My ex just let me think that. He’s a moron.”

  “Ah.” That was a lot of information to take in. He was surprised that Becca had already been married and divorced. That was a large amount of life experience she’d already had at a young age.

  “So, how did you and Luci meet?” Becca asked.

  Evan smiled, happy to talk about Luci. “It’s a funny story, actually.”

  “Great, I love funny stories.”

  Evan found it interesting how an event that angered him not so long ago, he now found humorous. “Well, it all began when she called me up and asked me to sell Starlight Pub.”

  “No way! The Fosters would never sell Starlight,” Becca said.

  “Exactly.”

  Evan told Becca the whole story from his first meeting with the family to re-meeting Luci at MoonBeans and helping find dates for her mom. He didn’t mention any of their other connections or that he was reading Luci’s book for her. Some things he thought should remain more personal between just he and Luci. He felt more enthusiastic and lively as he talked about Luci and Becca seemed interested in everything he was saying. She also shared stories about when her and Luci were teens and would sneak out of their houses to go meet up with boys. It sounded like Luci really gave her parents a run for their money when she was a teenager. Evan couldn’t imagine raising three daughters. He’d have a daily heart attack worrying about their safety and keeping the boys in town away from them.

  Evan didn’t have detailed plans in mind for the remainder of his date with Becca that night. After they ate, he thought he’d suggest seeing a movie, bowling, or possibly going the next town over and trying the indoor miniature golf place. But he didn’t need to bring up any of these ideas. After their meal, Becca yawned and told him she was completely exhausted from a long day of lugging heavy books around the bookstore. She made a few jokes about how she didn’t need to work out with the type of job she had and that she hoped all her book hoisting didn’t give her bulky muscles. Evan drove her home and escorted her to her front door where Becca said a quick goodbye and slipped in. He could see the television was still on in her living room and he assumed her parents were in there watching it.

  Evan pulled out of Becca’s place and headed toward downtown Snowy Ridge. He parked outside of Monroe Realty, and let himself inside the small, dark office, flipping on only the two table lamps. Evan didn’t like the harsh overhead lighting and when it was just him in the office, he preferred the warm, dimmer light of the lamps. He sat at the desk and shrugged off his coat, slipping it onto the back of the chair. The date had ended earlier than he had expected and he didn’t feel like heading straight home. Aunt Bets would surely still be awake and grill him with questions about his evening. He didn’t feel like rehashing it with her. It wasn’t a bad date by any means. He was glad he went if, for nothing else, it got him out among people rather than holed up with Aunt Bets at home. But there was no connection between him and Becca and he was sure she felt the same way. She was nice and he found her fun to be around; but, there was absolutely nothing there. Not that he thought there could be with how he’d been feeling about Luci.

  Evan started a fresh pot of coffee and pulled the Hatch file out of the filing cabinet, tossing it on the desk. He slowly begun to page through the paperwork when something outside caught his attention. It had begun raining hard right after he’d let himself into the office so he figured he’d be there for a while. But no one else seemed to be on the street. Yet, he was almost certain he saw a shadow in the window. Evan stood up and crossed the room to the door and peered out through the glass.

  Luci.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Luci walked quickly down Main Street, away from Starlight as the cold rain pelted her. Wrong night to decide to walk home from work, she thought to herself. She started to run but the rain was completely ridiculous; the kind you could barely see where you were going in. No one else was on the street and she’d only seen one lone car pass by. The driver was probably wondering who the stupid girl in the rain was.

  Luci thought she’d better take cover somewhere until the rain stopped. She saw a light on in Monroe Realty and decided to stop there. Bets would let her hang out for a while.

  She hammered her fist on the door and was shocked when Evan pulled it open. Why wasn’t he on his date?

  “Luci!” he said, completely shocked. “Get in here. You’re soaked.”

  Luci took a step through the door and a puddle of water begun to form under her feet onto the carpet. It had been chilly outside but the small office was warm.

  Evan crossed the room and rooted in his gym bag, retrieving a white towel. “Here,” he said, offering it to her.

  Grateful, Luci accepted the towel and wiped at her face. Her hair was completely soaked and stuck to her cheeks. She pulled it into a twist behind her head and wrung the water from it. Her clothes clung to her body and she involuntarily shivered.

  “What were you doing out in this? You should get out of those wet clothes.” Evan blushed, realizing what he’d just said. “I mean, I’m sure I have something in my gym bag that you can wear.”

  Luci glanced out the window at the deserted street and then returned her gaze to Evan. She felt like something was suddenly taking over her body; some force that was stronger than her. She was tired of wrestling with her thoughts. Tired of trying to be this good person that she conjured up in her mind that she should be. She knew what she wanted and she was tired of dancing around it.

  “You’re right,” she said. She shook her coat off and tossed it on a chair. She crossed her arms in front of her and grabbed the bottom of her shirt, pulling it up and over her head, and dropped it on the ground as she walked toward Evan. She undid the top button of her jeans, looped her thumbs into the waist band and tugged, inching the wet sticking pants down her hips a f
ew inches before wiggling out of them the rest of the way.

  And then she was in front of him, wearing nothing but a soaked, white lacy see-through bra and hot pink panties.

  Evan looked at her, frozen, with his mouth open as though he wanted to say something. But he didn’t need to. Not this time. Luci put one hand on either side of his face and pulled him toward her. They kissed tentatively at first and then suddenly dove in, aggressive with each other’s mouths.

  Luci could feel his warmth through his thin cotton shirt. He ran his hand along the back of her neck, under her hair. She tugged at his shirt, the buttons popping open and ran a hand down his lean torso and over his butt, tight from his daily workouts. His erection strained at his jeans and she pulled the top button of his pants open without thinking.

  This was really happening.

  Evan slowly spun her in the small space, reaching for the switches on the two lamps and turning them off. She assumed he did this so that any Main Street passerbys didn’t get a show.

  Luci’s eyes adjusted to the dark office, now only lit by the glow of the street lights outside. She moved her hand down his flat stomach to the front of his trousers and pressed. She could hear Evan suck in his breath.

  He moved quicker then, unlatching her bra and flinging it to the ground. He bent forward and took her right nipple into his mouth, making her breath come shallow and fast at the touch of his lips to her bare skin.

  She stripped away her panties, urgent to feel their bodies pressed together.

  In a whirl of kisses and hands grappling for each other, Evan had pulled her down with him to the carpeted floor. He was on top of her then and she’d felt his hand leave her breast briefly to fumble with his pants lying on the floor in a search for a condom, she assumed.

  A few moments later he was fully in her. He moved slowly at first, and Luci whimpered and clutched at his back, straining to get closer to him. He understood her signal and begun moving faster and harder until Luci was screaming out in pleasure. Shortly after she’d finished writhing in ecstasy, Evan joined her and then collapsed on her and she wrapped her arms around his strong back. He rolled off of her and the two lay, panting, as they stared at the speckled drop-ceiling of Monroe Realty.

  Evan propped himself up on an elbow and turned to face her. He pulled her into the crook of his one arm and kissed her forehead. With his free hand, he lightly stroked her stomach.

  Luci smiled at his touch. It felt so right. Being there with Evan, their naked bodies pressed together, finally. There was nowhere else she wanted to be than in his arms. She wasn’t sure what had come over her when she’d first walked into the office. It was like an explosion. A pressure that had been building up over time and finally erupted. She saw Evan and she had to have him right then and there. And if the dreamy smile on his face was any indication, he’d felt exactly the same.

  “I don’t know how to say this without sounding cliché,” he’d begun, “but, that. Was. Amazing.”

  Luci turned toward him, her nipples grazing his bare chest, and she ran one hand lightly down his cheek. He was so handsome. She tugged at him gently, bringing his face closer to hers, closed her eyes and kissed him again. She moved much slower this time, exploring his mouth. He tasted like cinnamon. They kissed like this for several moments until something like a firework went off in Luci’s head.

  She pulled away from Evan, sharply, and looked at him.

  He gave her a quizzical look. “What’s wrong?”

  What did I do? she thought, suddenly panicked. Out loud she said to Evan, “I have to go.”

  Luci scrambled to her feet. She grappled for her wet jeans and slid into them. She slipped her naked arms into her coat and her feet into her boots, balling the rest of her clothing into her arms as fast as she could.

  Evan put a hand up as if to stop her. “Wait, now?” he asked, clearly confused.

  Luci rushed to the door and put her free hand on the door knob. She looked back at Evan, still naked but now sitting up on the floor. “I’m sorry,” she said in a low voice, before yanking open the door and rushing out into the cold, wet night.

  Chapter Twenty

  Evan lay back down on the carpet of his office and stared at the ceiling.

  “What?” he said out loud. “What just happened?”

  Did he just dream all of that? Obviously not, since he still lay there, naked. He’d just had the most incredible experience with Luci. It was perfect. Well, maybe not perfect. The floor of his office is certainly not the spot he’d thought he and Luci would make love for the first time. But it was passionate and exciting and generally mind-blowing. He wanted to do it again and again, every day for the rest of his life if he could. But what happened? And why did she tear out of there like that?

  Evan replayed the last half an hour or so in his mind. Luci had rushed into his office like she was on a mission. She’d had a clear look of determination in her eyes. He had hoped that she was feeling about him the same way he’d been feeling about her. And he’d just made the decision that he was going to come clean with her as soon as possible. His date with Becca had made his feelings more crystal clear than ever. He had no interest in any other woman but Luci. He wanted her and only her. So, when she appeared at his doorstep like that, it was almost as if he’d manifested her.

  His body had clearly reacted to her at once when she’d stepped into his office but his mind had been whirling. Her showing up like that was affirmation that his feelings were reciprocated. That he wasn’t imagining something going on between them but that there was something tangible and real there. He was so, so happy.

  But then she left. Poof. It happened so quickly he couldn’t even be sure what exactly happened. He knew she apologized, but why? What on earth did she have to be sorry about? It was as if she suddenly saw someone or like she had been caught. That was it. Luci had the look of a mistress being caught with the cheating husband by the wife. Only, that wasn’t the case at all. Evan was single. Luci was single. There was nothing keeping the two of them apart.

  Evan picked up his phone and checked the time. It was late. He wanted to call Luci but with the way she had just reacted, he didn’t think she would take his call. He didn’t want her to be so upset, though. He’d send a text. That would have to do for now. He’d text her and then call her first thing in the morning. Evan started a new message to Luci.

  I’m not sure what happened just now but I don’t want you to think for one moment that any part of it was wrong. It was perfect. YOU are perfect. And I want to be with you. So much.

  He hit send and waited. Nothing. He wrote more.

  It’s late, but if you want to talk, I can meet you anywhere in minutes. Just let me know. If not, we’ll talk tomorrow morning. But please don’t be upset.

  Evan waited and waited for a response but Luci didn’t text him back. He sighed. There was nothing he could do about it that night. She was clearly upset and she wasn’t going to let him help talk through whatever it was that was bothering her. He had no choice but to wait until she was ready. He didn’t understand any of it himself. One minute he was having the most wonderful experience and he felt like all the stars had aligned and everything was right in the world. And the next minute it was all ripped apart. His mind was swimming in trying to make sense of it all. It was like some strange mixture of elation and devastation. It was killing him to think that Luci was somewhere hurting right then.

  Evan checked the time on his phone again. It was so late. But he couldn’t go home yet without trying to find Luci first. He pulled himself up off of the floor, quickly dressed, and slipped into his coat. Evan stepped out of the office into the stormy night and went looking for Luci.

  Evan jumped into his car and drove up and down Main Street but nothing was open and there were no people out. Everyone was surely home in bed at this hour. He drove to Luci’s house and quietly parked his car and turned off the headlights. He couldn’t just walk up and ring her doorbell though; not with her mom and her
niece and sister probably inside sleeping as well. He looked at the windows and the entire house was dark except for the porch light that they left on all night. Evan thought about tapping on Luci’s bedroom window but he realized he didn’t know which window was hers and again, didn’t want to wake Melody. His hands were tied. There was nothing he was going to accomplish that night. He had to just accept what had happened and go home. Things would be different in the morning. He would just have to wait and talk to Luci then.

  Evan got back into his car and headed home.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Luci rung the buzzer once, twice, three times in a row. No answer. She pushed the buzzer again. Hard. This time holding it down for five or six seconds.

  “Holy crap,” her sister’s voice said, coming through the intercom, “whoever you are, you’d better be being mugged right now to be laying on my buzzer like that.”

  “Jess, it’s me. Luci. Let me in.”

  “Luci?”

  The door clicked open and Luci pushed her way in. She took the stairs two at a time up to her sister’s apartment. When she saw her sister standing in her doorway in a t-shirt and boxing shorts with her hair all disheveled from sleep, Luci begun to cry all over again.

  “Come here. Come inside,” Jessie said, ushering her in. She looked her sister over. “What happened to you? And where are your clothes?”

  Luci looked down at herself. Her coat wasn’t zipped and was half hanging open. She hadn’t even thought of what she’d look like running out of Evan’s office and down the street. She was surprised no one had called the police on her for indecent exposure. She tried to respond but a strangled sob escaped her throat.

  Jessie’s face was twisted with concern and she wrapped an arm around Luci’s shoulders. “Ah, come on hon. Come sit down. Unless you’re hurt. Are you hurt? Do I need to call the police? An ambulance?”