by Box Set
She glanced at the counter, glad of the distraction. “You mean you went to The Golden Circle and got take-out?”
The Golden Circle was her favorite restaurant so she didn’t have a problem at all. She couldn’t afford it very often; the treat was usually reserved for her birthday or when Billy-Bob showed up for a long stretch and they made a profit.
“Yeah. I found their menu on the fridge with your favorites circled so I took a chance.”
A little piece of her heart squelched that he’d noticed and ordered for her.
“Thanks,” she said. His eyes held hers and she caught the unspoken vibration running between them.
“Welcome.”
She kept her eyes on his, refusing to look at the water dripping from those abs. “I think clothes should be on the menu.”
His panty-dropping grin threatened the elastic on her underwear.
Dear God, that came out all breathy.
He chuckled and went into the bathroom. He’d better be changing, because she’d have rapid indigestion if Walker sat at her little table dressed in the equivalent of a loincloth.
She let out a breath, poured herself a glass of wine, and headed to the porch after kicking off her shoes. If she didn’t get rid of the tension rioting through her body she’d explode.
She sat on the bench, feet tucked beneath her, sipping a pinot, taking in the land she loved. She breathed in the wild mint and honeysuckle dotting the property. Birds bustled into beautiful, ancient balsam firs. A light, teasing wind brushed her hair. The sky was streaked with lilac and tangerine as the day slipped into dusk.
Her father had never loved Montana and spent most of his time traveling. As owner of a vast manufacturing company his visits were fleeting. But Savannah loved her mother’s birthplace.
There was so much right here she would miss. The deep soul-cleansing air, the right amount of hustle-bustle, and the quiet. The warm summers with the occasional dramatic lightning storm to remind the good people nature was as powerful as it was beautiful. The people who’d give their last cent to help out a friend, and in her town everyone was friends, which made leaving that much harder.
A bubble of emotion lodged in her chest and expanded.
As if sensing her jumbled thoughts, Walker sat beside her, his hard thigh pressed against her.
They’d moved talking about their day to the porch.
“Out of curiosity, Sav, what plans did you have for the diner?”
The plans and sketches she’d had when she’d opened the diner were still in binders in her head. Little by little she’d planned on renovating and had spent hours with swatches and tiny paint cans until she’d created her dream diner.
She smiled. “Dark blue walls on the exterior with white shutters. Flowers would spill out of boxes that hugged window frames. A dog run. Some patrons keep their dogs in their cars with windows open. I thought it would be nice for the dogs to hang and play.”
Walked nodded. “Good business idea.”
“Thanks.”
Her heart threw in a gooey beat.
She imagined one day adopting a dog, once she got settled and in her own place.
That bubble in her chest expanded another inch.
“Would the inside be blue, too?”
Walker’s voice pulled her out of her head.
She flicked open a binder in her mind. “No, the walls would be a crisp white and hung with photos of this town and Montana. There’d be cute round tables. I’d keep the glossy butcher paper as a tablecloth. It’s easy to replace and kids love drawing on it with complementary crayons.” She tucked her feet tighter underneath her. “Once I could afford a waitress or two, they’d wear black, and possibly the name of the diner on the front of the black T-shirt.”
“Would you change the name of the diner?”
“Yeah,” she said on a sigh. “Second Chances. It was about starting over, giving life another shot after change. Everyone deserves a second chance.”
His serious caramel gaze held hers.
“Sounds like you have it all sorted out, Sav, so why are you leaving?”
Her phone vibrated from her pocket. She pulled it out, glanced at the screen, and ignored Lawrence’s call. So like him to try to kill her happy buzz.
She stared out at the land she loved. “Have you ever wanted to go to a place where no one knows you? Wonder why you run a diner instead of leading a life where you could have every possession your heart desires, but only if you lose all independence?” She paused. “But it’s more than that. Until the diner, I’ve never stood on my own. Not really. I’ve always had my father to fall back on, or Miss Hattie to run to. I know the diner failed, but I didn’t fail. I tried, and it didn’t work, but being on my own, making decisions, standing on my own two feet has been liberating.”
Walker turned to her, a thoughtful look on his face.
Her arm brushed Walker’s, and Lawrence vanished from her brain. Their connection set her nerve-endings on fire.
She moved backward into the seat, trying to put distance from the wall of pure male next to her.
“Any news on John?” Surely a change of subject would drain the lust corkscrewing through her, twisting her tighter and tighter.
Please don’t let him notice.
She took a long gulp of the delicious pinot Walker had found out she liked on the second day and had six cases delivered.
“No.” His face tightened. “I went and saw him today.”
“I’m sorry …” she let the words trail off. John was a much-loved icon in the area. The stroke had been massive and with no sign of improvement the prognosis wasn’t good.
She jolted when Walker’s hand brushed hers and her body heated.
Oh, God, I can smell me.
Mortified, she stared straight ahead, holding her body rigid, hoping he hadn’t picked up on her scent.
She made a mental note to buy a bulk pack of batteries. With Walker around and her body on fire for him, all the tension in her body had to be expelled.
Going for a run hadn’t helped.
To be fair, she’d put in a poorly executed mile.
She’d made a mental list of things to relieve the tension.
She could ask Walker to move out because her breasts wanted to be acquainted with his tongue? Nope.
She could refuse to look at him, but that wouldn’t work because his delicious scent filled her house and her brain and all the girly parts made her want to lick him, everywhere.
There was sure one way to expel the tension and Walker had offered… She eyed the calendar in her brain and the giant X marked on the day Walker was leaving. She was leaving, and they’d be no reason to see him again.
Hattie’s words spun in her head.
Baby, live a little. Don’t get to the end of the road and have done nothing but stop at signs. Maybe once in a while, you should take the scenic route.
She gnawed her lip. Technically, when she sold the diner she’d be paying him back the money she owed, so she could do this with a clear conscience.
Why not be plastered against him naked? The slutty part of her brain whispered.
Remember how much he hurt you? Her heart replied.
He won’t hurt you if you don’t let him. The body parts that wanted Walker’s tongue on them chorused.
She gave herself a mental test.
Six times six equals thirty-six.
Nope, not the wine talking, she could still do math in her head.
She wasn’t the naïve girl home to start a new job at the council who’d thought she’d found the man she’d spend the rest of her life with. That girl was gone.
She was a grown woman who could keep her emotions out of a friends with benefits equation.
Her phone buzzed again. She ignored Lawrence’s text and the words ‘Call me.’
Instant buzz kill.
Walker’s eyes narrowed on her phone. “Why don’t you block him?”
She sighed, hating that once again Lawrence ba
rged into her life, albeit via a text. “I would, but it’s his work and personal phone. He uses the diner as an excuse to contact me.”
“Isn’t there some harassment suit you could file?” The bottle of beer jerked to his mouth.
She shrugged. The stress used to get to her until she had to throw up; now she’d learned to let it slide. “It’s one of the reasons I’m leaving. Lawrence’s tentacles go far and wide. I’ve spoken to a lawyer, but since Lawrence hasn’t ever threatened me, there’s nothing I can do. He’s more like an annoying insect.”
Walker snagged her phone, slid his finger across the screen, typed out a quick text, then dropped her phone beside her.
She glanced at her phone and her jaw dropped. “You told him to fuck off and not to call or text because you’re balls deep in me?”
“Figure that will give any man the information that you’re over him and have moved on.” A wicked grin transformed his face
He turned and faced her, and she got a full shot of his testosterone slamming into her. Her blood turned to syrup when his bottom lip parted, and he stared at her mouth.
Her pheromones heard his testosterone call and whipped up a reply.
Live a little, take the scenic route, see where it takes you.
She licked her lips and his eyes dropped to her mouth then turned molten.
Nights wrapped up in Walker without any emotional attachments. Yeah, she could let loose and live a little.
Time to test the theory.
She inched closer to him.
“So have you ever remembered yourself balls deep in me?”
Chapter 5
Walker’s head whipped at Savannah’s words. One part of his anatomy tucked in his jeans was trying to burrow out of the restrictive denim. Her mouth was open, her cheeks flushed, and her voice rough.
She’d never know that thought occupied most of the hours in his days. He dreamed of how her hair had once fanned across his chest. Her purring his name when he’d hit the spot she liked was imprinted on his brain. They’d been lovers in the past, but it had mostly been figuring out what their bodies liked and what their bodies could do to each other. He ached, one part in particular, to see what they could do to each other now.
“Yeah,” he said.
She set down her glass and faced him, dangerous heat pouring out of her body and powering into his.
“You’re here for ten more days.” She licked her bottom lip and it took all of Walker’s self-control not to plonk her on his lap.
“Yeah,” he said, realizing he was only able to come out with single syllable words due to his brain vacationing in his pants. He had no idea where she was headed, but he liked the look on her face.
She inched closer. “We’re both leaving and won’t see each other again.”
“Yeah.”
Jesus, he had to pull out a dictionary or something.
“I want that,” she said.
Hell, yeah.
He pulled her onto his lap, so she faced him in a straddle. The hard length of him between them.
Ten days of being with Savannah before they each walked away? His dream.
She shifted her hips, putting her in proper alignment with his throbbing cock.
He stood, taking her with him, his fingers gripping under her gorgeous butt while she wrapped her legs around his hips and whimpered. Her soft breasts flattened against his, her hard nipples drilled into his chest. Those poor nipples needed extra treatment from his tongue; they’d been wound tight for days.
“I’m leaving, you’re leaving, we’ll never see each other again.” She kissed the side of his neck.
Probably not the time to tell her he had a whole other plan.
She traced her tongue across his jaw, and he growled. “I want to live a little. I want to have fun.”
Oh, they’d be having fun.
At the word fun, he walked straight through the kitchen, kicked open her bedroom door, and laid her on her bed.
“What sort of fun do you have in mind, baby?” His gaze never left her face.
He’d be filing a claim if he didn’t get his dick out soon and into her, he’d be claiming for an exploded cock on his insurance.
“One more thing if you’re up for it,” she panted.
“I’ll be up for it.”
“I’ll teach you to be domesticated if you’ll teach me to be wild.”
Had he died and gone to heaven?
“Get your clothes off.”
His mouth went slack when she shimmied out of her jeans. His hand went automatically to the front of his jeans and he rubbed himself. Her mouth parted when her gaze landed on his crotch.
She pulled her T-shirt off and he was drunk on her curves, the sharp rise and fall of her chest, the slope of her hip.
She pushed forward and unclasped her bra, freeing her beautiful breasts, then dropped the lace to the side of the bed. He stood with a slack jaw when she inched her cotton underwear down her thighs.
She’d gone from the promise of a woman’s body to what he’d only dreamed she’d be.
He removed condoms from his wallet and put them on her nightstand.
“Open your legs,” he grated out.
Right on cue she opened her long, gorgeous legs.
“Wider.” His jeans were off, followed by underwear. He stroked one hand along his cock as she widened her legs, her eyes hazy.
The top of her thighs glistened with her moisture.
He ached to be inside her, but he ached to do something he’d been wanting to do since he’d first set eyes on her again.
He leaned down and kissed her soft lips.
He’d dreamt of those lips for years.
Better than his dreams.
She arched off the bed when his tongue angled into her mouth on a glide.
He swallowed her groan and bit back a moan when her tongue tangled with his.
He broke the kiss, wanting to kiss every inch of her unbelievably beautiful body. Her skin so soft and smooth.
He ran a line of kisses down her neck to her breasts. His tongue flicked a tight nipple.
“Oh, God,” she moaned, pushing her other breast upwards to meet his greedy mouth. He pulled harder on her nipple, teasing her with his tongue, dividing his time equally between each breast until Savannah squirmed.
“You like that?” He grinned at her.
“Yes,” she gasped, her hands fisting the duvet cover.
He could stay there all day, feasting on her breasts, loving the sound of her panting, drinking in her scent, but he had plans for another part of her beautiful anatomy.
He kissed a line down her quivering stomach and, using his elbows, pushed her legs wider. He took his time, using his tongue to flick her clit and was rewarded when her hands clasped his head, and she pushed herself toward him.
Beautiful.
He sank a finger into her hot, tight heat and her deep moan nearly undid him. Her body started to wind tighter, breathing harder. Her stomach muscles convulsed, and she jerked underneath him as her orgasm rocked through her body. He was transfixed. Her hand was flung over her head, her body was covered in a fine layer of sweat, her hair lay in a wild mess around head, and a dreamy look on her face that matched her dazed eyes completed the package.
He reached for a condom and sheathed himself in record-breaking time and positioned himself above her. Leaning down, he kissed her. Her hands wrapped around his shoulders, pulling him closer.
He nudged her opening and swallowed her moan.
She was so tight and so hot, he had to hold himself back and take control or the mind-blowing sex for both of them, would turn into a sad, one-sided affair where he’d last under a minute.
She pushed her hips to meet his.
Unable to stop, he thrust into her and stopped at her gasp.
He froze.
“Did I hurt you?”
He stared down into her hazy eyes.
“No,” she said with a sigh, a hint of a smile curving her lips. “
It’s…it’s been a while.”
A growl ripped out of his throat.
“Move, please.” Need spilled out of her eyes. Her body quivered underneath his as she rocked her hips.
He grinned at her and was rewarded by a nip to his shoulder that surged straight through to his balls.
He rocked into her. Her legs wrapped around his hips, her arms pinning him to her body as they moved.
Her inner muscles milked the length of him. He bit his lip, reaching for control that was slipping from his grasp with each ragged breath and thrust of their hips.
The way she purred nearly killed him.
Usually, he could rock into a woman for a long time, gauging her build, until he had them at the point he wanted.
Not today.
On a final thrust, he tipped over the edge, falling into sweet oblivion, pumping into her. He collapsed, taking his weight on his elbows. He kept his eyes closed, savoring every last beat of their synched hearts.
“Wow,” she whispered.
He opened his eyes to find Savannah looking up at him, a hazy, sexy grin on her face and smiled back. “Yeah.”
He loved sex. But he’d never had sex like this. They’d had a sweet thing once, but sweet had morphed into volcanic.
She wiggled beneath him.
He was going to have to stock up on condoms.
His body twitched. One part of his anatomy was semi-onboard with her actions.
“You’re going to have to give me about ten minutes.” He brushed the hair from her face.
“Okay, we can reheat the Chinese, then…”
She reached up and brushed her lips against his.
Something he’d been meaning to clarify wandered into his mind and sat.
“Hate to bring up another man’s name while I’m still balls deep in you, but why did Larry say ‘you’re him’ at the diner?”
She bit her lip and turned her head to the side. A cute red stained her cheeks.
She took a breath and looked at him. “Okay, this is totally embarrassing, but apparently as I was dozing off while we were married, Lawrence claimed I said ‘only call me Savvy if you love me,’” she said in a rush.
He froze.
Better stop calling her Savvy.
He brushed his lips against hers, then reluctantly left her body, stood, and walked into the bathroom.