by Various
Harry stood by the table with the silver tray in both hands, coaxing his charges. “It’s team building. Puts hair on your chest. Takes the edge off. Whatever floats your boat. And if it doesn’t make you feel better, the shots are on me.”
“To Harry!” Brooks urged them on by toasting Harry with his glass.
“To Harry,” the group grumbled, following suit.
It wasn’t pretty, but when the job was done and everyone’s shuddering subsided, Brooks looked at Harry and asked him to bring each of them an ice-cold beer. Then he sat down next to Lolly and rubbed her back.
Vance arrived, fresh-faced and full of energy. “Well, what do we have here?” Vance grinned, pulling out the chair next to Brooks for his grandmother, Emelina. “Don’t tell me y’all closed The Situation down. Aren’t we getting a little old for that?”
“Old,” Duncan echoed. “Way, way too old,” he agreed.
Miraculously, the group seemed to be moving a little easier as they filled Vance and the Big Em in on how Lewis had earned the prestigious honor of being named Contest King.
“Lewis, you old dog, you!” Vance teased. “Since when have you been interested in anything going on south of a woman’s brain?”
“I was completely interested in the size of their…brains last night. Obviously, since I asked compelling questions.”
“Right. Like if you were a flavored vodka, which flavor would you be?” Darcy rolled her eyes.
“Please tell me that was not one of the questions,” Lewis groaned.
“That was the one question you asked them all,” Darcy said. “And I’m still irritated with the way you were so enamored with Darla Weaver’s cantaloupe-sized breasts that you could not comprehend the word blueberry when she answered the question.”
Duncan came to Lewis' defense. “Let me assure you that none of the men present could reconcile blueberries with those cantaloupes. Lewis, you were not alone.”
Harry arrived and began placing pints of ice-cold beer in front of everyone. He even had Big Em’s preferred Long Island Iced Tea.
“I was alone when I woke up this morning,” Lewis grumbled.
“Good thing,” Brooks sneered under his breath.
“Oh My God,” Lolly snapped. “They are engaged. You are such a prude.”
Mirth floated across the table. Most everyone reached for their beer to cover it.
“She’s my sister,” Brooks countered. “And they are staying under my parents’ roof. I’m not a prude. I’m a proponent of propriety.”
Lolly spelled, “P…R…U…D…E. Prude.”
“Like hell,” Brooks mumbled, taking a sip of his beer.
Lolly turned to the rest of the table. “I finally spent the night at Brooks' home last night. And I’m still a virgin!” she said, causing all four men to spew beer across the table.
“Sweetsie, that’s certainly refreshing news,” her mother said as she kissed Lolly’s cheek. All the men immediately stood to greet Genevra and Hale, who had managed to extract themselves from the DuVals at just the right time to hear Lolly’s pronouncement. The two of them circled around the table, greeting everyone individually.
The engaging grin Brooks offered Mrs. DuVal as she thanked him for taking such good care of her daughter shifted to a reserved look of surrender when Hale shook his hand, apologizing for their timing. But the look Brooks leveled on Lolly when he sat back down ricocheted between utter disbelief and an angry glower. He leaned close to her ear and whispered, “You are not serious about that virgin thing, are you?”
“As far as you’re concerned I am.”
“That’s not exactly answering my question.”
“Does it make a difference?”
“Of course.”
Wide-eyed and outraged, Lolly turned her whole body toward Brooks. “How exactly would it make a difference?”
Brooks leaned in, closing the distance between their faces. “Because tonight wouldn’t just be our first time. It would be your first time.”
“And you’d what? Handle things differently?”
“Probably.”
“Hmm,” she said, letting her gaze wander all over his face. “You really are perfect, you know.” She leaned in and kissed him.
Brooks kept his eyes closed and whispered over her mouth. “They don’t call me the Golden Boy for nothin’,” he said before giving her another quick kiss.
Their table was invited to line up for the buffet, but Brooks held Lolly in place as the others rose, eyeing her speculatively.
“No special consideration will be necessary,” she finally said. “So you can relax.”
“You’re kidding, right? Now I have to worry about surpassing whatever phantom lovers have come before me.”
Lolly popped a loud laugh. She put her arms around Brooks’ neck and snuggled onto his lap. “You surpassed even my wildest dreams on our very first date,” she told him as she kissed his cheek.
Brooks turned his head and slid his lips under hers. He let himself ignite while they were alone in the crowd. With Lolly on his lap, his tongue in her mouth, and his body hardening, it was as delicious a torture as he could imagine. The sun wasn’t close to setting, but that was okay because tonight was the night he was going to finally make this pretty young thing his.
“I love you,” she said.
“I love you back,” he responded.
“What do you think of this dress?” she asked.
“I told you earlier it’s fun and sexy, just like you.”
“You said that? When?”
“When you first came downstairs, back at your house. Don’t you remember?”
“I was still feeling off,” she said. “You said the dress was fun and sexy?”
“My exact words.”
“Oh.” She smiled, hopping off his lap.
She twirled around, showing off the red raw silk halter dress tied with a big blue satin bow at the back of her neck. The bow’s tails hung down Lolly’s bare back in a sexy dare that tempted him to tug one to see what would happen. A dare he was so taking, in just a few short hours. The front of her dress fit like a glove from the waist up. In fact, at the moment, he could see her nipples were as erect as his Johnson. He really did love this dress. He glanced down at the short, full skirt and wondered at the little bit of blue netting showing at the hem.
“Very patriotic. Very sexy,” he said, standing up and grabbing her hand.
“Did you notice Annabelle’s dress? Or Darcy’s? Or my mother’s?”
“Should I have?” Her big grin along with her head nodding up and down told him he’d missed something, so he turned and looked toward the buffet line.
He saw Annabelle in her traditional white. It was a strapless dress. Simple and beautiful with a big red sash tied into a large bow at the back of her waist. Definitely eye-catching. It stood out in the crowd. But then again, Annabelle always did.
He looked for his sister, Darcy, and found her smiling up into Lewis’ face like she was crazy in love with the guy. He still didn’t get those two, but if she was happy, he was happy for her, he supposed. His eyes scanned her dress as she moved through the food line. He didn’t know much about fashion, but Darcy’s dress looked like a throwback to the fifties. And it suited her personality beautifully. It was fresh and fun. Easy. Royal-blue with red trim and a wide white band of ribbon circling the hem.
“You girls certainly got the day’s color scheme right,” he said. “What? Did y’all go shopping together? The dresses are different, but similar, if that makes any sense. And, I have to say, now that I’m looking around, they’re all very dramatic compared to what the other women are wearing.”
“Dramatic?”
Brooks looked back at Lolly. “More exciting? I’m not up on fashion so maybe I’m not using the right word. They stand out in the crowd.”
“Good. We’re probably a little over-dressed, but we’re hoping to be noticed.”
“And your mother,” he said, his eyes locking on the very
happy future Mrs. Hale Evans as she chatted with a crowd that had surrounded her. “Well, she looks like a bride today, doesn’t she?”
Lolly nodded her agreement. Brooks' gaze drifted back toward her mother. “White lace dress. Off the shoulders. Shows off her figure but in a Jackie O way.”
Lolly smacked his arm. “Jackie O? And you said you didn’t know fashion. That’s exactly what I was going for.”
“Lolly.” It came out on a breath, Brooks’ eyes opening both physically and metaphorically. “You did this? Those? They’re your dresses? Your designs?”
She nodded brightly.
“Lolly,” he said again in awe, looking down at her dress and then looking back toward the others.
He was so proud. His chest puffed up and he smiled. Just as he turned to tell her how brilliant she was, he had a moment of clarity, felt his stomach clench and a shooting pain spike through his heart.
“What?” Lolly asked.
“Ah, nothin’. Nothin’. They’re brilliant. You’re brilliant. No wonder you’ve been so busy.”
“Brooks, what’s wrong?”
He looked over her head and ran his fingers through his hair, sighing deeply. “Lolly. I’m kidding myself, aren’t I? You’re too good to come back to Henderson after you get your master’s. You’ll need to go…where? Paris? New York?”
“Well, I was thinking…I mean, Annabelle suggested—”
“Laura Leigh, I love you. But I’m not going to be responsible for holding you back. You go where you go and I’ll…I’ll,” he put a hand on his waist and spread his other out in jerky motions.
Lolly’s face turned accusing. “You’ll what? Hook back up with that old, decrepit Tansy Langford? Brooks Bennett, either you love me or you don’t!”
“I love you,” he soothed, rubbing his hands down her arms. “I do. I was going to say I will follow you. To New York or Paris, I will go where you need to be.”
Lolly took a step back and poked him in the chest. “Well, now you’re just being ridiculous. What about this town? What about your dream of being mayor? You’re like the king around here. You’d never be happy leaving all this behind.”
“I’m not going to be happy without you, Lolly. Not after getting to this point. After all these years? I don’t know much, but I sure know that. I’m ready to settle down, but I’m willing to wait until you are too.”
“You’d wait for me?” she asked, amazed.
“What else can I do?”
“I think you’re really gonna like what I have to tell you.”
“I hope so,” he said. He really did because he hated the idea of New York or Paris.
“Annabelle says there’s a severe lack of dress shop options for debutantes. Every season the girls have to go to the same old dress shops or bridal salons that are owned by the same old—and getting older—merchants. She wants me to design deb dresses and other party dresses. Since she has such a corner on that market, she’ll send the business to me.”
“So you’d open a shop in Raleigh?”
“No. I’d open a workshop here in Henderson,” she smiled. “We’d transport sample dresses to Raleigh for shows. Or anywhere for that matter. We could carry them right onto the college campuses I suppose. Annabelle said she’d take care of all that. All I have to worry about is designing gowns that will wow the younger crowd and their mothers.”
“Why their mothers?”
“Their mothers pay for the dresses.”
“Oh. Right.”
“Which is why I asked you about the dresses we are wearing. Today we are hoping to drum up interest in the House of DuVal.”
“‘House of DuVal.’ I like the way that sounds.” Oh God, he did. He really did. He liked the way all of it sounded. “Lolly, not only are your dresses brilliant, the business plan is brilliant. With the Keeper of the Debutantes involved you’ll get the exposure every new business craves. With no storefront your overhead will be lower. Henderson is cheap, especially if you’re just looking for space for a workroom. And it’s good for our citizens. Eventually you’ll need labor and be starting a whole new business for the town. As the future mayor, I gotta say I love this idea.”
“I thought you would!”
The rest of their crowd was starting to return to the table, their dinner plates loaded with corn on the cob and barbecue. “Vance!” Brooks shouted. “You’re the economic development guy. You’re going to love what Lolly and Annabelle have planned.”
“Wait.” Lolly grabbed his arm and his attention. “Suddenly I’m starving. Let’s go get some food and we can tell everyone over dinner.”
“Good idea,” Brooks said leaning down to peck her on the lips. “And aren’t you just full of ’em?”
Chapter Thirty-two
“Oh My God. Can you believe all that?” Lolly exclaimed. She’d been giggling uncontrollably during the fireworks display, unable to contain her elation. Now that they were alone in his truck, stuck in the parking lot, she couldn’t wait to discuss all of it with Brooks.
“How many deals went down tonight?” He stared at her in just as much disbelief.
“I don’t know. I don’t know,” she said in rapid-fire. “When Mr. Evans asked to see our business plan for the House of DuVal, I thought I’d hit the jackpot.”
“You did hit the jackpot.”
“And when Vance chimed in saying he’d like first dibs, well, I didn’t know what to say. Who knew Vance was interested in investing in small businesses?”
“Just like his dad.”
“Just like his dad! So when his dad agreed to let Vance make an offer first, I figured, okay, well, having two interested investors was better than none for sure. I just didn’t know how I felt about Vance being heavily involved. But then his dad’s seemingly off-hand comment about the two of them going into business together….”
“And the next thing you know, Duncan’s in the middle of it, designing a deal between the two of them.” Brooks shook his head in complete awe. “I couldn’t be happier for Vance. Or for what all this means to Henderson. But, Lolly, you have to know that none of that matters as much to me as your having a plan that will bring you home.”
“To you!”
Lolly gave a startled shriek as Brooks grabbed her up and dragged her across his body. His mouth was on her before she’d settled on his lap with his thumbs pressing the hinges of her jaw, forcing her to open for him. His tongue initiated a no-holds-barred mating dance, causing Lolly’s excitement to boomerang into hot, greedy lust––her fingers gripping handfuls of his curls while she moaned against his mouth.
Brooks moaned back, sliding his palm along the raw silk covering her torso and claiming her breast in hot demand. Lolly felt her internal core wind tight and felt Brooks grow hard beneath her, his erection pressing against her thigh. His mouth devoured, as if he’d become desperate for what he’d been denying himself. So it was a shock when Brooks broke the connection, knocking his head back against the headrest, breathing heavily.
“I shouldn’t have done that,” he said, panting. “I’m so—” He sucked in air between his teeth as if in pain. “Hard. I’m not going to be able to drive.”
“You want me to help you with that?” Panting just as hard as he was, she really wanted to help him with that.
“No! God, no. I mean, yes,” he clarified, pulling her in for a quick kiss. “But not here.” He turned his head to check the long line of traffic jammed up on Country Club Drive. “I wonder how much shit I’d catch if I put it in four-wheel drive and tore off across the tenth fairway.”
“I think you might like my idea better,” she said, coaxing his mouth back to hers, seducing him right back to where they’d been. When Brooks wrapped both arms tight around her waist and pressed her down while canting himself up, they both moaned and then smiled against each other’s lips.
“Let’s try this,” Lolly whispered while ever so slowly sliding out of his lap.
“Lolly,” she heard Brooks say as she twisted arou
nd. The palm of her hand stroked the swollen length bulging his khaki shorts. “Lolly. You don’t have to….I can wait.” But she noticed he slid down in the seat, easing her work of unbuckling his belt and releasing the button. She pulled up his shirt and pressed her lips to a spot of bare skin just above his zipper.
“Jesus,” he said, sucking in his abdomen, making it easy for her to pull down the zipper. As the soft, black fabric of his boxer briefs was exposed, she wondered if Brooks had his eyes closed or if he was watching. She stroked him over the fabric once more before tugging the band of his boxers over the top half of his erection. She’d felt it in her hand before, felt it pressed against various body parts, but she’d never laid eyes on it until now. It was thick and proud, and as she exposed him further, it became apparent that Brooks Bennett’s most masculine appendage was completely in proportion with the rest of his very large body.
Her mind went straight into the gutter thinking about the dirty things he might do to her once they finally got into bed, which wound her core even tighter. Unsure about technique or exactly how to pleasure Brooks with her mouth, she was eager to try––eager to give him a little of what he’d given her. So she pushed herself up, positioned her mouth over the head, puckered her lips, and went down on him slowly.
From the sharp sound he made and the way his stomach muscles tightened, she worried she was killing him, though from pain or pleasure she wasn’t sure. When he arched himself further into her mouth, she concluded he was probably okay with what she was doing. And that thought made her laugh, causing her to hum against him. He let out an appreciative groan. She attempted to use her tongue on one side and the roof of her mouth on the other to create suction as she pulled her head back up slowly. Another loud groan met her ears as she started down again, breathing through her nose so she could keep the suction tight. His hips tilted to press further into her mouth, and then retreated to draw himself out as her head came up.
“Laura Leigh,” he said as her mouth continued to work on him. “I’m struggling here.” His hips pushed back up. “You’re making this feel too damn good.” That made her smile, releasing the suction. She took that opportunity to sneak her fingers into his bunched-up boxers and scrape her fingernails lightly over his balls. She moistened her mouth, closed her lips over his shaft, and renewed her efforts.