She’d given up hoping for another pair of purple boots—literal or figurative ones—but she had to admit that the pie shop was beginning to feel that way.
“We need to come up with about 10K,” Cori said. “We owe five on the loan, then to pay for supplies and advertising and stuff. And of course electric…and all the eggs and sugar we keep going through.”
Ava rolled her eyes.
“I’ve got a woman making valances for the front windows, but we need to pay for the material and her time,” Cori went on.
“You’ve got a woman making us valances?” Ava asked.
Cori shrugged. “Walter’s wife’s sister. She’s pretty inexpensive but not free.”
Ava almost looked impressed. “How did you pay for the paint and stuff? I assumed you’d used the account.”
“I applied for a business credit card online,” Cori said. “I fudged and used my own bank account on the application even though we’re not supposed to be spending our own money on the business. I figure we’re not spending it. We’re charging it and will pay it off with pie shop profit.”
Ava’s look of admiration grew.
“Fudging? Like when you kissed Evan?” Brynn asked. “Since kissing isn’t really dating.”
If it wasn’t for the glint of mischief in Brynn’s eyes, Cori would have been more irritated, but she really did like the little bits of spunk in her sister. Cori looked at Ava. She’d told Ava about pretending to be her for Evan’s mom and Holly, but she hadn’t shared the kissing part.
“You kissed Evan?” Ava asked. “When? Where?” Her voice grew panicked as she sat up straighter. “Cori! You can’t do that! If I don’t have a steady boyfriend for six months we’re screwed. And I don’t know if you cheating with my boyfriend will be great for business.”
“Calm down,” Cori said. “Everyone thought it was you. It was at the shop with his mom.”
“Oh.” Ava deflated slightly. She frowned. “What kind of kiss?”
Cori swallowed as the memory of the kiss played in her mind. She felt like she’d just rubbed hot sauce on her lips—tingly and hot.
And maybe dropped it on her nipples. And a little lower.
“It was hot,” Brynn supplied when Cori didn’t answer right away.
Ava groaned. “It was?”
“Very,” Brynn confirmed. “His hand in her hair, her clutching his shirt, tiptoes, tongues—the whole thing. And everyone thought so. Noah did this ‘damn’ thing under his breath.”
“Hey, yeah, you and Noah are hanging out a lot,” Cori commented. “Is he date-boy number one?”
“No,” Brynn said quickly. “Those aren’t dates.”
Cori lifted an eyebrow.
“And,” Brynn added, “don’t try to distract me from you and Evan.”
“So, Noah distracts you,” Cori said.
But Brynn shook her head. “Nice try. Let’s talk about how you practically climbed Evan in the middle of the pie shop.”
“I did not.” But her protest was weak.
“Well, crap,” Ava interjected.
“What? They all thought it was you,” Cori insisted. “I promise Brynn and Evan were the only two who knew it was me.”
“And Noah,” Brynn added.
“Yes, Noah. Brynn’s new best friend who she is not dating even though she sees him almost every day and he’s doing stuff like painting and finishing chairs and tables, and even stitched the edges of some cushions the other day.”
Brynn frowned. “How did you know that? No one was there.”
“I noticed the Band-Aids on the tips of his fingers. He’s a mechanic, good with his hands, I’m sure.” She waggled her eyebrows, loving Brynn’s slight blush. “The only reason he’d need Band-Aids is if he’s using little tiny needles that he’s not used to.”
Brynn rolled her eyes. “He’s a mechanic. He scrapes his knuckles and pinches his fingers all the time.”
“No way does ex-Marine, mechanic extraordinaire Noah, use Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Band-Aids. Like the ones you bought the other day.” Cori grinned as Brynn shifted on her chair.
“They were the only ones they had at the grocery store the other day,” Brynn said.
“Did you kiss his fingers better when you put the Band-Aids on?” Cori asked.
Ava laughed. “I haven’t minded having Noah around,” she said, adding to the teasing. “That guys looks very nice without a shirt while sanding and sawing and pounding.”
The same CEOs who would have been shocked by her sticking out her tongue, would have probably fallen over, hearing Ava say pounding in a tone that clearly didn’t mean nails.
Brynn’s face was bright red—she was the only one of the triplets who blushed—and she said through gritted teeth, “Cori kissed the hell out of your boyfriend in front of his mom.”
Ava’s frowned. “Oh yeah. Dammit, Cori.”
“What? I totally pulled it off,” Cori said. “Everyone thinks you’re crazy about each other. You’re welcome.”
“But now I have to kiss him like that,” Ava exclaimed.
And Cori’s stomach tightened. Well…crap.
“If you kiss like that in public, obviously you’re all over each other in private. We have to keep up the hot and horny thing now,” Ava said.
“I don’t know if I’d say horny,” Cori protested.
“I would,” Brynn said cheerfully, obviously happy to have the conversation off of Noah and his half-naked pounding.
Ava shoved her pie away, hardly touched but for the marshmallows and two tastes of chocolate. “Dammit.”
“It’s not like I set you up to have to eat broccoli every day or something,” Cori said, annoyed. Though she wasn’t sure if it was because Ava would be kissing Evan, at least in public—which meant Cori might have to see it—or if it was because Ava didn’t want to.
Which was stupid.
“But I like broccoli,” Ava said.
“You don’t like Evan?” Cori asked, actually feeling offended. She did not want Ava to kiss Evan. She did not want Ava to want to kiss Evan. But regardless of the kissing, Evan Stone was very likeable.
Ava blew out a breath. “Sure. I like Evan. Evan’s fine. He’s certainly easier to get along with than Parker.” She scowled briefly.
“You don’t like Parker?” Brynn asked. “He’s growly but seems…nice.” Though she said the last word as if that wasn’t quite the right word.
Ava snorted. “Nice? Um, no. I saw someone ask for sugar the other day. When he found out they were going to put it in their tea, he took it away.”
“The sugar?” Brynn asked.
“The tea. The whole glass.”
Brynn’s eyes were wide, but Cori grinned. “Hey, that can only be good for our business, right? The only other food place in town.”
Ava suddenly slumped back. “I wouldn’t call us that.”
“You’ll get the hang of the pie,” Cori said. “I promise.”
“We’re not really known for food though,” Ava said.
“Um, pie shop. Baked is in our title.” Though it still didn’t sound so much as the eating kind of baked as the smoking kind of baked.
“Dad’s pies sucked,” Ava said. “No one came for the food. Parker told me. The pies were bad, he undercharged, it was all just…like he ran away from home and found the most opposite thing he could do.”
“Like make bad business decisions?” Cori asked.
But Ava didn’t smile. “Yeah. It was like he left New York and his success and hard work and just…stopped. Stopped working, stopped planning and strategizing and…trying.”
“Evan makes it sound like he was happy though,” Cori said. It was puzzling. But things just didn’t always make sense and go according to plan. She’d learned that away from New York. Maybe that was part of what Ava needed to learn.
“Yeah,” Ava nodded, clearly thinking. “I guess Parker does too.”
“Noah too,” Brynn added softly.
“But we don’t have
the luxury of not working or strategizing,” Cori said, fully aware that those were not words she typically used.
Her sisters were aware too. And seemed slightly amused by it. And maybe a little worried. Well, they weren’t the only ones. But Ava wanted to buy an oven and Brynn wanted to just spend all day ‘painting’, i.e., watching Noah’s naked, tattooed arms and shoulders, and Cori wanted…well, a photo booth and heart-shaped pie pans. But first she needed to get them out of debt and a positive bank balance.
She rubbed her middle finger on the center of her forehead and then caught Ava doing the same thing.
“Okay, business plan. New menu items—”
Ava’s phone rang and Cori sighed. Ava never didn’t take a call. She glanced at the screen. “I can’t handle more or new,” she said, getting to her feet. “Hell, I can’t handle what I have. Let me work on that.”
“But we have to start bringing in—”
“I have to take this,” Ava said. “It’s my eight o’clock call.”
She picked the phone up as Brynn said, “Crap, it’s already eight? I need to check in with Jeffrey.” Jeffrey was one of the scientists in Brynn’s lab who was keeping her updated on what they were doing.
Ava was already up from the table and headed toward the room off the main living room that she’d designated as her office.
“Go ahead,” Cori told Brynn. “We’ll talk later.”
Brynn leaned over as she came around the table and gave Cori a quick hug. “We’ll make it work.”
“Well, at least Noah’s working for a currency we can afford,” Cori teased, squeezing her.
“What’s that?” Brynn asked, straightening.
“Time with you. And the view of you in shorts on a ladder.”
Brynn blushed again, but didn’t deny it.
“You’re sure you’re not dating him?” Cori asked.
The tattooed ex-Marine mechanic wasn’t the nerdy scientist type Cori would have thought of for Brynn, but he was hot and could definitely take care of the head-in-the-clouds, or rather head-in-the-microscope, Brynn. And he seemed a little enamored. Brynn deserved enamored. And hot.
“I’m not dating him,” Brynn said firmly. She paused, then confessed, “Because then I’d have to stop. Right? Six different guys in six months.”
Ah. Suddenly it made sense. “If you don’t date him, you can keep seeing him.”
Brynn blushed. “I don’t know if he feels the same, but that’s how I’m looking at it.”
Cori grinned. “Good for you. Just enjoy it.”
With a smile that was definitely a little dreamy, Brynn headed upstairs to the fourth bedroom that she’d taken over for her office.
There were five bedrooms in the huge, old two-story house, along with three bathrooms, a living room, formal dining room, enormous kitchen, den, full basement, and attic.
But none of those were serving as Cori’s office. Cori didn’t need an office. Cori didn’t do work that required an office. Well, she’d been a personal assistant to a publisher for a while. And she’d run the front desk at an eye doctor’s office for about six months. But like everything she did, she hadn’t stuck with either of those jobs long enough to count them as any kind of career.
Cori sighed and got up from the table, gathering the dishes. Her sisters hadn’t gushed over her s’mores pie either, dammit. Baking and cooking were two things she was good at, and she’d really love to have someone gush over something she did. And, not that she was shocked, she thought of Evan. She’d love to feed Evan. She’d love to do a lot of things to and for and with Evan.
Now she was the owner of a pie shop where she couldn’t bake, doing books that were barely books, and lusting after a guy who was going to have to now kiss her sister like he wanted to do her up against the nearest firm surface. Because yeah, that’s exactly how she and Evan kissed.
She threw the dirty spoons into the dishwasher with a satisfying clang. If Rudy’s intention had been to give her a lesson in deprivation and self-control, this was well played.
She was nearly done cleaning up when the doorbell rang. The doorbell—a grand chime with three tones—fit the old house with the high ceilings, original woodwork, built-in china hutch, and wall sconces perfectly and made Cori smile as she headed for the foyer.
She pulled the heavy old door open, not even bothering to look through the window first. And her smile immediately widened.
Evan Stone stood on her front step. Well, their front step.
“Hi.” He gave her a big grin.
Did he know which sister she was? Was he grinning at her or just whoever opened the door? Evan grinned at people all the time. She just knew it. He looked really good wearing that grin too. And she really wanted him to know who she was. “Hi.”
She did not want him kissing Ava. The thought was hardly shocking, but the intensity with which she felt opposed to the idea was a little.
Movement behind him caught her eye, and she glanced over his shoulder to see their neighbor across the street, Jason, taking a box from the back of his truck. He lifted a hand in a wave.
And it seemed clear what she needed to do. She stepped forward, wrapped her arms around Evan’s neck and pressed her body against his, kissing him like, well, like she wanted to put him up against the nearest firm surface.
Evan didn’t hesitate for an instant. He cupped her ass, pulled her up against him, and opened his mouth.
Tongues and tiptoes. That was what Brynn had said of their kiss at the shop. The tiptoes made her taller and the tongues, well, those made her think of hot, wet thrusting of another kind.
Evan’s hands were in her hair again and she was glad she had it down tonight. It allowed him to slide his fingers against her head and then drag them through the long strands in a deliciously decadent way that made her want those hands and fingers all over her body.
No. He could not kiss Ava like this. Dammit. Cori couldn’t handle that.
She finally pulled back, but Evan didn’t let her head go as he looked into her eyes, breathing a little harder.
“Hey, Cori,” he said gruffly.
Relief swept over her. She hadn’t admitted it, even to herself, but that first night in New York had been bugging her. That he’d poured all of that heat into a kiss with another woman. And that had been before she’d gotten to know him better. That was why the kiss at the shop two days ago had felt even more satisfying. He’d known it was her. And had kissed her like he’d never get enough.
“Hey,” she said, just to confirm that he was completely correct. Then she went back in for more.
Their lips met and the kiss turned hungry almost immediately. He backed her up against the door and slid his tongue along hers. One of his big hands ran from her butt to her thigh, lifting it so that he could press against the hot, aching spot where she needed pressure. And friction. And a lot less clothing.
His other hand slid into her hair, gripping gently. He angled her head to the side and moved his lips over her jaw to her neck. “Damn girl,” he said huskily. “You smell like chocolate, and you feel like the place I want to be for the next several weeks, straight, and you kiss me like you’ve had every dirty thought about me that I’ve had about you.”
A little chorus of yes, yes, yes! sang in her head. He knew it was her. And hell yes, she’d stay right here for the next several weeks—although with the less clothes thing—and she’d love to share a few of those dirty thoughts.
She gave a soft laugh, then a moan as he sucked gently on the skin just behind her ear. “Man, I hope so. I don’t want to be kissing someone who doesn’t have the kinds of thoughts I’ve had.”
“Those thoughts are keeping me up at night,” he confessed, his hand sliding down her back and then under the edge of her shirt.
Her skin erupted in goose bumps as he trailed his finger over the bare skin just above her shorts.
“I could tell you about a few of them,” he said, running his hand higher, spanning her rib cage and getting so clo
se to her breast.
“One of mine includes us breaking one of those little round tables in the pie shop,” she told him, arching closer, hinting that she wanted his hand higher.
He pulled back a little, his eyes burning. “Oh, really? One of mine has to do with the very big, very sturdy table in the conference room in New York.”
She laughed. “Probably safer.”
“I think sturdy will be important.”
She caught her breath. He’d said will. As in it will happen. “Good.”
He lowered his head and kissed her again, finally moving his hand to cup her breast. Her shirt pulled up on her stomach and cool night air hit her suddenly feverish skin. Evan ran the pad of his thumb over her nipple and Cori felt it in every inch of her body. Some more than others, of course. Then he rolled it between his thumb and finger and all of the tingles all over her body seemed to laser focus into a pulsing need between her legs.
“Evan,” she moaned into his mouth.
“Cor—”
But he was interrupted by a car driving past the house. And the little beep beep the driver gave that said they’d seen it all.
Cori sucked in a breath and looked down. She was still mostly covered, only her stomach exposed, but it was very clear where Evan’s hand was.
The hand that he slid out from under her shirt as he leaned back.
“I’ve had a few dirty thoughts about you against doors and walls too,” he said, his voice rough. “But we should maybe not do front doors. Or at least, not the outside of front doors.”
Cori ran a hand through her hair and Evan’s gaze dropped to the breast he’d just had in his hand. She dropped her arm, very aware that her nipples were pressing insistently against her shirt, begging him for more attention. She coughed. “Yeah, that’s maybe a good plan.”
“Wouldn’t want to scandalize our little town,” he said with a grin.
Our little town. Was Bliss her town? Strangely, that didn’t seem completely…strange.
And then the word scandalize sunk in. Yeah, doing her sister’s boyfriend against the front door—or any door for that matter—would be scandalous.
Diamonds and Dirt Roads Page 14