Love Walks In

by Samantha Chase

  She rolled her eyes. “Out with it.”

  “Don’t you think it’s weird Zoe’s making my mother’s recipes? I mean, why? It’s not really her place, right? Shouldn’t my sister be doing that sort of thing?”

  Pulling away from him, Aubrey straightened and faced him. “Why? Why should it fall on your sister to do it? I think it’s kind of sweet Zoe would try to do this for your family.”

  “You do?”

  She nodded. “Of course.”

  Now he straightened, curious to get her input. “Tell me why.”

  “Why what?”

  “Why do you think it’s sweet? I mean, it’s not her family. Shouldn’t she be cooking some of her family recipes for us?”

  Aubrey laughed. “Hugh, do you hear yourself? The Shaughnessys are her family now. She’s marrying your brother. I think it’s sweet that she wanted to do this for him—for all of you!”

  “Yeah, but…”

  “I don’t think she’s trying to take anyone’s place. You shouldn’t look at it as a bad thing. It’s not.”

  “But maybe Darcy would have liked to have the chance to do it.”

  She leveled him with one look. “Your sister is in college and I doubt she’s sitting around thinking about making traditional Irish dishes in her spare time. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t know a thing about your sister, but I’m going to go out on a limb here and say she’s got other things on her mind.”

  “Maybe,” he grumbled.

  “It’s okay, you know,” she began hesitantly.

  “What is?”

  “For things to change. Your family is going to grow and change, and traditions may start to look a bit different, but it doesn’t make any of it bad. You shouldn’t go into this meal tomorrow with a negative outlook. Maybe with a hint of anticipation. Like ‘Oh, I wonder which dish she’s going to make?’ I know I’m as curious as all get-out!”

  He chuckled. Couldn’t help it. “Have you ever eaten traditional Irish food?”

  She considered the question. “I’ve had corned beef and cabbage.”

  He laughed again. “So has everyone. I have no idea what Zoe will be making but it’s not all good.”

  “I’m sure your brother gives his input before Zoe decides on a recipe. At least…I hope he does.”

  That made Hugh feel better. He and Aidan had very similar tastes, and no doubt he would encourage Zoe to make something the family had enjoyed at some point. “One can only hope.” He looked at the hopeful expression on Aubrey’s beautiful face and sighed.

  “What? What was that sigh for?” she asked softly.

  “You,” he said huskily. “I look at you and I’m just blown away.” His hand reached up to caress her cheek. “You’re so soft and beautiful and every time I look at you, I can’t help but want to touch you.”

  She purred and moved so she was stretching out on top of him. He reclined on the sofa beneath her until they were perfectly aligned. “Mmm…this is nice.”

  “Yes, it is.”

  Leaning forward, she placed a chaste kiss on his lips. “I don’t feel like watching any more TV. How about you?”

  One arm banded around her waist as he shook his head. “No. No more television. I’d much rather sit here and watch you as I touch you,” he began as his lips met the slender column of her throat. “And kiss you.” He nipped at her collarbone. “And make love to you.”

  Aubrey all but melted against him at his words. “You have a way with painting a picture,” she whispered.

  His hand wandered down and cupped her bottom. He squeezed, pressing her firmly against his growing arousal. “I don’t want you having to picture anything, sweetheart. I want you to see it. Feel it.” The other hand cupped her nape and brought her lips to his. “Want it.”

  He kissed her with a hunger that was becoming all too familiar. His lips slanted over hers again and again, and he growled when her tongue darted out to mate with his.

  It would have been easy to take her right here, right now, on the sofa. But they’d already made love on the floor once in this very room and Hugh was determined to get them to a bed and make love to Aubrey properly.

  Carefully, he sat up and smiled when Aubrey moved with him, her legs gracefully coming around to circle his waist, her arms looped around his shoulders. He was on his feet and carrying her through the tiny apartment to the bedroom, heedless of the lights he was leaving on in their wake. He’d deal with them later.

  Laying Aubrey down on the bed, he contemplated following her down and taking his turn stretching out on top of her. But instead, he disentangled them and began to slowly undress her.

  Funny how he’d never taken the time to simply enjoy that activity. This time, he looked at her as if she were a present. She squirmed under his touch and it was all he could do to slow himself down. “Patience,” he murmured as he slowly pushed her shirt up over her breasts. The pink lacy bra she had on was of the barely-there variety, and his throat went dry at the sight of it. But rather than lean forward and feast on her, he continued his task of slowly unwrapping her.

  The shirt went over her head and onto the floor. Next he skimmed his hands across her ribs, down to her waist, and then let them softly trace the line across her belly until they rested on the button of her slacks. Hugh’s eyes never left hers as he unclasped them, slid the zipper down, then gently tugged them over her hips, down her legs.

  Aubrey licked her lips and Hugh had to stifle a groan.

  The pants hit the floor and he took a minute to massage first one foot, then the other. When Aubrey moaned with appreciation, he lifted her foot and placed it on his shoulder. Tilting his head, he kissed her ankle and then journeyed downward—over her shin, her calf, her knee. His fingers teased her, tickled her gently right behind her knee until she started to squirm again.

  “Hugh,” she sighed with a hint of urgency.

  “Soon,” he murmured, but he was in no hurry.

  Softly, gently, slowly, his fingers skimmed her thighs. Aubrey’s hips slowly rocked off the bed, but Hugh forced himself to keep moving. Instead of steadying her, placing his hands on those hips and gripping them like his hands twitched to do, he kept them on the move. Back up her rib cage and to the lacy pink bra.

  Now it was his turn to lick his lips.

  “So pretty.” His hands traced the swells of her breast. “So soft.”

  And then he lowered his head and smiled when Aubrey cried out his name. Her hands went to his head, raking through his hair and holding him to her.

  His tongue followed the path of his hands until he reached behind her and unhooked the bra, pulling it from her body. Aubrey’s back bowed, her breasts offered up like some sort of feast.

  And he readily took advantage of it.

  His mouth and hands were everywhere. Aubrey did her best to pull Hugh down on top of her but he wouldn’t budge. He wanted to bring her pleasure—wanted to prolong this feeling, this anticipation. Beneath him, Hugh could feel her hips still rocking, still seeking, and when she whispered “please,” his restraint broke.

  Straightening, he quickly removed his shirt, his jeans, and his boxers, and stared down at her. “What do you want, Aubrey?” he said, his voice raw.

  “You. Only you,” she said.

  With a slow grin, Hugh reached out and skimmed her panties over her hips, down her legs, and tossed them over his shoulder.

  “You have me,” he said as he stretched out on top of her. “Always.”

  * * *

  “Hugh? How about it? You want the last slice?” Zoe asked, her smile knowing.

  He was so full he could barely speak, and yet he waved his future sister-in-law on. He couldn’t help but smile—his response clearly pleased her. The meal had been spectacular. She hadn’t made anything outlandish and she wasn’t trying to reinvent the wheel. She had simply chosen a recipe
from his mother’s collection and made it for the Shaughnessys to enjoy.

  Mission accomplished.

  “What did I tell you?” Aidan asked, looking at Hugh with a grin on his face. “It’s like we’re kids again and Mom made Sunday dinner.”

  “You were right,” Hugh said after a minute, taking the time to savor another bite of the Guinness- and honey-glazed pork. “I can’t remember the last time I had something like this.”

  “Too long,” Ian chimed in, his tone wistful. “I never claimed to be a cook and didn’t want to try and risk ruining anything. When Zoe was helping me design the new kitchen and we found your mother’s recipe box, she asked if she could go through it. I told her she could have the whole thing on the condition she made some of the dishes that were in there for us.”

  The room went silent. Aidan, Ian, Hugh, Quinn, and Anna—who was practically a Shaughnessy—all seemed lost in their own memories of growing up under the loving care of Lillian Shaughnessy.

  Quinn broke the silence, raising his glass to Zoe. “My compliments to the chef. You would have made Ma proud.” They all toasted.

  Hugh looked at Aidan, his arms wrapped around his bride-to-be, and couldn’t help but feel envious. His brother had it all. He didn’t begrudge Aidan his happiness. The dynamics in the family were beginning to change; that had become obvious once Zoe had come into their lives. Hugh knew how much Aidan fought against the change and had even made fun of him for it, but now that it was moving forward, Hugh couldn’t help but feel a little overwhelmed.

  Zoe, Aubrey, and Anna all began clearing the dishes. It was funny how none of the men offered to get up and help, but none of the ladies seemed to mind. Hugh had his suspicions. He figured Anna and Zoe were anxious to get Aubrey alone and talk to her. Or maybe they were just letting the four clueless Irishmen sit and commiserate on how much they missed Lillian.

  Hugh opted for number two.

  “Zoe’s a hell of a cook, Aidan. If I closed my eyes, I would have sworn that was one of Mom’s roasts.”

  Aidan smiled. “Yeah, she’s been having a good time going through all that stuff. Not all of her re-creations have been successful though,” he said with a laugh. “Either that or I’ve really lost the taste for some good old-fashioned Irish stew.”

  They all laughed. “It’s cool that she wanted to do it,” Quinn said. “I mean, I know we ate a lot of regular stuff—Mom’s weekly menu rarely changed unless it was a special occasion or holiday—but I didn’t realize how much I missed some of those meals until Zoe started doing this.”

  “Darcy might have wanted to check those recipes out,” Hugh said, looking to his father.

  Ian shook his head. “Your sister loves to bake. If I let her, she would fill every inch of our kitchen with cookies and cakes, but she doesn’t have the connection to these meals the way you boys do. She was too young.”

  They all nodded solemnly. Darcy hadn’t even been a year old when Lillian Shaughnessy died. Mother and daughter never had the chance to spend afternoons in the kitchen together cooking or baking. Hugh had to wonder if Darcy ever thought about it, and then cursed himself for not taking the time to talk to his sister about such things. Maybe he’d have to rectify that in the future. Maybe on her next break from school he’d arrange for her to spend some time with him at one of the resorts.

  Aidan was the first to sit up straight, clapping his hands together loudly as if to break the somber mood. “So I hear you looked at property yesterday,” he began. “What did you think of it? Was it any good?”

  Hugh nodded. “The property was amazing. I think there’s a lot I can do with it. It’s probably more than I need, but I don’t have to develop it all. I can accomplish what I want with it resort-wise and maintain some of the natural landscape around it to ensure privacy.”

  “So you’re going to buy it?” Quinn asked, sounding a little anxious.

  “I’m not sure yet.”

  “Why the hell not? You just said it was amazing!”

  “For crying out loud, Quinn,” Hugh huffed, relaxing back in his seat, “do you buy the first building you look at for your shops?” He didn’t wait for an answer. “No. You don’t. You look over several properties, gather information, and take the time to figure out if it’s the right fit for you.”

  “I just bought property here for the new shop,” Quinn said smugly, crossing his arms over his chest.

  “Oh really?” Hugh asked. “So…what? That means I have to buy property here too?”

  “Boys,” Ian warned. “It’s been a nice afternoon and we’ve just finished dinner. No fighting.”

  “I’m not fighting,” Quinn said, leaning his arms on the table now. “All I’m saying is Hugh was presented with a great piece of property at a reasonable price. He’s willing to build everywhere else in the damn world, why not right here?” He looked around the table, expecting an argument. “I mean, you’ve already got a realtor in Anna, a builder in Aidan, a decorator in Zoe…it would be a real family endeavor. Hell, I would even consider investing in it if you were open to it.”

  Hugh raked a hand through his hair. Working with his family? Having them invest in one of his businesses? He hadn’t considered that. His father had helped him out with the very first resort he built, and that had been kept between the two of them. He sort of liked that the resorts were all his. “I already have investors—”

  “So?” Quinn snapped. “You can’t have more?”

  “I don’t think that’s the point,” Aidan interrupted. “Hugh’s entitled to take some time to think about this. Just because the property is available doesn’t mean he’s ready to take on another project. Did you know what he had planned for upcoming developments before you pitched this site to him?” he asked Quinn.

  “Well, no. But—”

  “So that’s a pretty big assumption on your part. What if I found a place in, say…Phoenix right now that would be great for one of your auto shops? Would you be willing to drop everything to make it happen?”

  Quinn slouched in his seat. “No. I’m working on this new site here.”

  “Exactly,” Aidan said evenly. “So cut Hugh some slack.”

  “It would…it would be great for Anna to make this commission, that’s all,” Quinn said quietly, looking over his shoulder to make sure none of the girls heard him. “This real estate thing is new for her. She’s not confident in her skills yet and no one’s taking her seriously. They tease her in the office, ask her to go get lunches and whatnot, and I think it would be a good thing for her to land a deal like this.”

  Ian smiled at his son. “While that’s commendable, Quinn, you can’t expect your brother to buy over two hundred acres of land simply for Anna’s sake. It wouldn’t be a smart business move.”

  “What’s not a smart business move?” Zoe asked, walking back in with a platter of assorted cookies.

  Aidan waited until she placed it down before snagging her around the waist and pulling her close. “Is the coffee ready yet?” he asked instead of answering, and Hugh marveled at how they seemed to know without speaking this wasn’t a subject that needed to continue right now.

  “Anna’s bringing it out.”

  For the remainder of the evening, the family stuck to safer topics—Quinn’s new shop, how Darcy was doing at school, and local events. When those topics were exhausted, everyone seemed to turn collectively toward Hugh and Aubrey. “So I hear you’re going to be doing quite a bit of traveling over the next month,” Zoe began. “What’s this big project?”

  Hugh looked to Aubrey, but she smiled serenely and deferred to him. He gave a very brief description of his business arrangement with William Bellows and what Aubrey was bringing to the table.

  “Basically, I need her to get a feel for each of the resorts so she can customize these events. It’s why we’re taking this whirlwind trip. I don’t have any major expansions or happe
nings going on right now, so my schedule was flexible.”

  “And there’s no time like the present,” Aubrey chimed in.

  “Do you do this sort of thing for a living?” Zoe asked.

  “Oh…um…” Aubrey stammered, looking to Hugh before answering. “I…I used to do a lot of charity work and fund-raising for my father’s company. I’m used to coordinating those kinds of events, and after talking with Bill while I was in Napa, I threw in my two cents out of habit. I was kind of surprised he was listening and took me seriously.”

  “Why?” Anna asked as she came to sit back down. “From everything you’ve told me, they sound like great ideas. Why wouldn’t he take you seriously?”

  “He didn’t know me,” Aubrey replied. “He had no idea what my qualifications were, and for him to not only listen to my idea, but to more or less force me on poor Hugh… Well, it was far from your typical job interview.”

  Without thinking about it, Hugh placed his hand on top of hers and squeezed before smiling at her. “I think it all worked out for the best.”

  Conversation picked up on neutral topics while they ate dessert, and by the time they were done and everything was cleaned up and put away, Hugh was anxious to get Aubrey alone. He walked over to Aidan and Zoe and thanked them for dinner.

  “Everything was amazing, Zoe.” He kissed her on the cheek. “I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about the whole thing, but this was a pleasant surprise.”

  She swatted him away playfully. “I’m glad you enjoyed it. Aidan said you’d probably be the one to give me grief about it, but I figured I’d win you over.”

  Hugh looked at his brother in mock annoyance. “You think you know everything?”

  Aidan smiled broadly. “Yup. Sure do. You’re a stick in the mud who likes everything done a certain way.”

  Hugh laughed out loud. “Um…pot? Meet kettle.”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Aidan replied. “But I got my head out of my ass. Yours is still firmly rooted there. When you feel like taking it out and joining this millennium, let us know.”

  “Smart-ass,” Hugh grumbled, saved from saying anything else when his father came over to wish them a good night.