“I miss you, duck,” he whines, “duck” sounding like “dook” which rhymes with “book.” He’d had to spell it for me to realize what he was saying. We’d had a good laugh over it then. It’s not so funny now.
“Go home, Aidan.”
“But, love, I miss you so much,” he says, again trying to push his way inside.
Brody finally pulls up in his truck and gets out, thank God. “Hey, buddy, you might wanna go get yourself a room,” he says to Aidan trying to pull him away from my door.
Aidan jerks himself free and spins on Brody, almost falling in the process. “Keep your hands off me, you wanker!” Aidan hisses. Oh, lord.
Brody cracks up. “Wanker? Seriously?” He looks at me like, would you get a load of this guy?
“Who is this, Amelia?” Aidan asks.
“His name is Brody. Let him take you to the motel,” I tell him.
“Come on, buddy. I’ll take you to Shull’s. You can sleep it off, okay?” Brody puts an arm around Aidan’s shoulders and leads him toward his truck.
“I’ll be back tomorrow, Amelia!” Aidan yells back at me. “I guess I am a bit pissed tonight.”
“He means drunk, Mill!” Brody looks at me with glee, proud that he knows what Aidan’s said.
I snort as I nod.”Thanks, Brody.” I wave at them as they drive away, Brody taking them to the other end of town where Aidan can book a room in Mr. and Mrs. Shull’s motel they’ve owned since before I was born.
I start to go in and hear Kade call out my name. I stop and hang my head. What else is going to happen tonight? I turn to face him and when he gets near, I stiffen because I don’t want to argue anymore and I’m sure he just saw Aidan here.
“Was that him?” he asks.
“Yes, that was him,” I answer and see that he’s most definitely trashed.
“Baby, I’m sorry,” he says, then puts a hand behind my head and pulls me in for a kiss.
I taste the whiskey he’s been drinking but his kissing technique does not suffer due to his drunkenness. No, he’s a great kisser and even drunk, his kiss is mind blowing.
“Can I stay with you tonight?” he asks sweetly. And this is something I’ve forgotten about him. He’s always been the sweetest drunk and that makes me giggle. “What, baby?” He smiles goofily down at me.
“I love you. Yes, you can stay with me,” I say.
He leans down and rubs his nose a little clumsily against mine, which makes me giggle more. “Love you too, Mill.”
I take his hand and lead him inside then upstairs where he immediately falls on my bed and passes out.
I take his boots off then climb in bed, pulling the covers over us. As I stare at the ceiling before falling asleep, I have to admit that even though tonight was kind of shitty, having Kade here beside me is the nicest thing that’s happened to me since I woke up next to him this morning.
~~~
The next morning I’m up and at it at six. It’s our opening day! I sit at the counter downstairs drinking coffee and working on the computer looking at the information I recently entered. I’d found Meemaw’s ledger last week, as in a physical ledger book, and entered the information into a ledger program I’d downloaded online then I’d created balance sheets for each quarter. I’d only entered the past three years’ worth of information but planned to go as far back as ten when I download my own software.
Clara and Jason come in at seven and Chance shows up at a quarter after. The garage doesn’t open until eight, so they’re all early which is promising. I go over some things I’d forgotten to tell them yesterday morning and when I’m finished, I hear Kade moving around upstairs. I’d left some aspirin and a glass of ice water on the nightstand for him and I’m hoping he found it. I hear the shower start and guess he’s okay, but I go up and check on him anyway as my employees busy themselves getting prepared for opening time.
Upstairs, I stick my head into the bathroom and say, “Good morning.”
Kade looks out around the curtain and smiles sheepishly at me. “Hi, babe.”
God, he’s insanely hot. His hair’s wet and dripping at the ends and that chest. Damn. “Just making sure you found the aspirin.”
“Yeah, I got it. Thanks.”
“Welcome.” I give him a small smile. This is kind of awkward and I worry for a second that we’ve hit a wall and things won’t go back to normal.
“Sorry,” he offers then. “I was an asshole. You know I’ve always been insanely jealous when it comes to you.” He looks at me regretfully. “Forgive me?”
I go to him now not able to stay away any longer. “You’re forgiven,” I say then tiptoe up as he leans down, and putting my hand to the back of his head, kiss him hard feeling the water from his beard trickle onto my face and down my chin, which makes me giggle and I pull away. “Coffee’s on downstairs. And it’s my first day!”
“Be down in a minute. Proud of you, Mill.” He smiles at me and I smile back then leave the bathroom, going downstairs to wait for eight o’clock.
~~~
The first day is a success as far as small towns go. We had about thirty customers stop and fill up and two came in to the garage, one for a new battery and the other for an oil change. I’d had to send Chance home at noon since we weren’t that busy, but I told him that when word got around, we’d have more business.
Aidan had come by to apologize and had actually filled his Porsche before leaving. I couldn’t find it in me to be angry at him. He wasn’t a bad guy. He just needed to learn to be faithful to whomever he was with, whether Gemma took him back or he ended up with someone new.
Right before we close at six, Kade brings his truck over and fills it then tells me he’s taking me to dinner at Anchor’s End, a steak and seafood restaurant that’s close to the beach.
“How’d you get reservations?” I ask, impressed. Anchor’s End is as busy as Maggie’s, and since it’s only open Tuesday through Saturday, it’s harder than hell to get in to eat there.
“Got contacts,” he says with a wink. “Go shower, get dressed, pack a bag. Reservations are for eight. You wanna drive out to the house or do you want me to pick you up here like a real date?” He smirks at this.
“I’ll drive out and pick you up like a real date.” Now I smirk.
“It’s a date, gorgeous.” He bends and touches his lips to mine then takes off.
~~~
I get out of my car at Kade’s and go inside to see he’s on the phone in the kitchen. He doesn’t hear me come in so I get to take in all that’s Kade Kelly, and oh, my dear sweet lord. He’s wearing a light gray sports coat over a black cashmere sweater with a V-neck, jeans and boots. I thought only David Gandy could pull that look off, but Kade’s rocking it spectacularly. God, he’s handsome.
When he turns and sees me, he stops talking and stares, his eyes burning so hot I can feel them on my body. I kind of pulled out all the stops here and must admit I’m looking kind of hot. I’ve got on a black sheath cocktail dress that has sequins of all sizes covering the bottom but they thin out as they go up only the right side, over the shoulder and down the back leaving the top of the left side void of any sparkle. It has a high boat neck and long sleeves, but it also has a sexy deep V in the back. It’s simple yet elegant. I’ve paired it with my fabulous sequined Louboutins that I love so much I slept with them on the first night I got them. I know, ridiculous, but they’re amazing, seriously. My hair’s pulled up into a messy bun with some strands hanging around my face and my makeup is what I’d call evening-dramatic.
“Gotta go,” he says and hangs up. “Fuck,” he mutters as he walks toward me, his eyes still doing the burning thing making my entire body feel the heat of his stare. It’s like a torrid blast of desire slamming into me. God. His eyes come to mine before he walks around me, gliding the work-roughened pads of his fingers across my bared back, which sends shivers down my spine. When he comes back to the front, his eyes stay intense as he states, �
��You’re beautiful.”
“Thank you,” I say quietly then pull him down for a hot kiss, happy that he likes what he sees. And he’s happy all right. I can feel how much against my stomach. And then the kiss gets hotter as he jerks my body tighter into his, moving his hand down behind my knee and pulling my leg up, hitching it around his thigh as he grinds into me.
“Gotta fuck you, Mill,” he says against my lips. “Left things shit yesterday. Making it up to you.”
He tugs my skirt up to my hips and yanks my thong down and off so quickly I’m kind of in shock. Next thing I know I’m on the counter and he’s kneeling in front of me, pulling me closer to the edge then his mouth is on me. My hands grip the edges tightly as my head goes back because he’s right there. Right there.
“Kade!” I gasp, so close, so damned close, and I know it’s going to be big, when suddenly he stands, undoing his belt, and then he’s in me and I come hard around him. Oh, my God.
The sound he makes as I pulse around him is enough to send another wave through me, making me gasp his name again. His hands are behind me, holding my ass as he pumps inside, his forehead against the cabinet and what we’re doing now is wild. Primal. This isn’t making love. This is downright fucking and I love it.
I wrap my legs around his waist, pulling him in closer and he groans because I know my heels are digging into his lower back through his jacket. His thrusts then become stronger and faster and he roars out a curse as he comes, his head going back, neck straining as he shoots his hot cum into me.
His forehead goes back to the cabinet as he breathes heavily. “Fuck, Mill,” he rasps. He pulls back and looks down at me, eyes narrowed. “That’s some dress, babe.”
I burst out laughing and wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him in for a kiss. “All for you, honey,” I say against his lips.
“Fuckin’ luckiest man alive,” he mumbles. “Stay there.” He rights his jeans then goes to the sink, opening a drawer beside it and getting out a towel then comes back to clean me up. He helps me off the counter and I push my dress down as I look around for my thong. “Lookin’ for this?” he asks, dangling it from his fingers, his eyes dancing as he teases me. I reach for it but he shakes his head, putting it into his jacket pocket. “Want you bare. Wanna know what’s waiting for me when we get back here.”
Holy crap. That’s hot. He’s hot. He smirks at me then takes my hand and leads me out the back door. We decide to take my car so I don’t have to step up so high to get into his truck. He helps me in then goes around and gets in the driver’s side then we head to Anchor’s End.
~~~
The food was fantastic. We both had the steak and lobster dinner that was to die for. Their key lime pie topped off an amazing meal. And now we’re back at Kade’s.
“Wanna talk to you about something important,” he says.
We’re in his bedroom changing into more comfortable clothes. I’ve already put on a pair of his boxers and now pull my huge fisherman sweater over my head then look at him, ready to hear what he has to say. He walks to me and cups my face in his hands.
“Know I love you, Mill.” I nod as I look up at him. “Want you in my life.” He leans down and brushes his lips over mine then drops his hands, turns and starts pacing.
Oh, boy. He’s got something serious to say. I suck in a breath not knowing if I want to hear it. Things have been good between us lately, well, except for the I had two boyfriends thing, but I haven’t even thought past what’s been happening to us in the present.
And I’m shocked.
My brain has actually stopped with all the thinking. I’ve just been playing it by ear and realize how great it’s been because thinking all the time is exhausting. But now the old noggin starts its cogitating once again. Yay.
“Don’t wanna jump into anything too serious for you,” he continues, stopping and turning to look at me, I guess wanting to know if I’m freaking out by now, which I kind of am. “But I’d love it if you thought about moving in.”
I suck in another breath.
“It doesn’t have to be now,” he rushes to say seeing the panic starting in me. “We could start with you just staying weekends. Then eventually, if you decide to move in, you could drive to Richmond for your job. People do it every day.”
He has a point. It wouldn’t be so bad driving two hours a day, would it? Just think about all the thinking I could do. Ugh. But I love him. I love this house. We could make it work.
My eyes go to his and I can see behind his tough exterior that he’s a little worried about what I’ll say. When I nod, the smile that comes to his face is one worth remembering for a lifetime, and I burn it on my brain to keep with me forever.
“Yes,” I say. “We can figure something out.”
And he’s here in front of me so quickly I swear I didn’t even see him move. “Fucking love you,” he mumbles against my lips before kissing me deep and hot and wet and I’m swooning when his phone rings. He frowns and lets me go, pulling his phone out of his jacket on the bed. It’s after ten, so it’s probably Brody or Cass. He talks for a couple minutes as I find my fuzzy green house shoes and slide them on. When he hangs up, he glances down at my feet then back up at me. “Sexy kinda.”
I grin. “Didn’t know if you could handle all my hotness in one night, but decided to chance it.”
He barks out a laugh and wraps his arms around my waist pulling me into him. “Gotta leave for a bit. Mr. Jacobs thinks he has a broken pipe under his house. Needs me to turn his water off. I’ll be back in a bit.” He bends to touch his mouth to mine. “Be sure to have those on when I get back.” He jerks his head down toward my fuzzy feet and I giggle.
“I’ll see what I can do.”
Chapter 24
After Kade leaves, I go downstairs and piddle around in a couple rooms, mentally mapping out what I’d like to put in each. I go into the living room, looking around and know exactly where I’d put my red chair and new end tables. I don’t even think of any of the furniture back at my condo in Richmond. While I’m caught up in rearranging Kade’s furniture to go with mine, I hear a floorboard creak like someone’s walking in another room and I freeze.
Shit.
Of course, my mind immediately goes to serial killer. When I hear the creak again, I turn and face the foyer that leads into the hallway waiting to see Jason Voorhees or Michael Myers or Freddie Krueger walk out with their machete/huge-ass butcher knife/razorblade fingers flashing at me. When no one comes out (which is good because I would’ve just died of fright right there if they had) I back my way across the living room and into the kitchen. I pull the cleaver out of the knife block on the counter, hey, it’s the biggest thing in there, and wait, moving back to the doorway to keep an eye on the living room. I think about calling Kade, but I don’t want to pull him away from his job for something that’s probably just my imagination.
After a couple minutes of standing at the ready, I chuckle a little at myself for being such a scaredy cat. This is an old house. Of course, it’s going to have some creaks and groans. I should know this. I grew up in an older house, but it’s much different when you’re used to the noises. I set the cleaver on the counter and shake my head at how silly I’m being then fix myself some hot tea. Hot tea always makes everything better. I have to search a bit for the kettle but find it in a lower cabinet with a couple Thermoses. While waiting for the water to heat, I picture where I’d put the new tea service I bought from Piper as I look around the kitchen. I have such big plans for this place! When the kettle finally starts whistling that the water’s ready, I pull it off the burner and pour it into the cup I’ve already put a teabag in.
I already feel better after I take a sip and decide to go into the living room and watch some TV, maybe put in a DVD while I wait for Kade. As I’m leaving the kitchen, I reach to grab the cleaver, I’m no idiot, and my heart jumps to my throat when I see that it’s gone.
I stand there and try to keep from cry
ing as I make myself breathe as normally as possible. I’m scared out of my wits now. But as I wait and nothing happens, as in, no killer jumps out to chop me to pieces, I wonder if my mind’s just playing tricks on me. I glance at the knife block and see there’s still an empty slot where the cleaver goes, so, no, I’m not losing my mind. Okay. I’m going to set my cup on the counter then make a run for it. I’ve got an extra set of keys to my car in a little magnetic thingy under the driver’s side wheel, so I’ll grab them, jump in my car and get the hell out of here.
I set my cup down and just as I spin to make a run for it, Aidan steps out from the mudroom, the cleaver in his hand hanging at the side.
“Hello, Amelia.”
~~~
Holy shit. Holy fucking shit.
I freeze again as I watch him. This shit only happens in the movies! I scream inside my head.
He walks into the kitchen and stands in front of the table, trapping me in. There are cabinets to either side of me, and the sink that’s behind me with a window above it, which is my only option of getting away.
“I-I thought you left,” I say as I look around for something that might help me. There’s a platter sitting on the counter that I could grab and use as a shield so he couldn’t cleave me to death when I ran by.
“No, Amelia. I came here for you and I’m leaving with you.”
“I don’t want to go with you, Aidan.” If I can stall him, maybe Kade will come home and save me.
“You’re coming with me. Tired of this,” he says, getting angry, holding the cleaver up and pointing at me with it. “I loved you! I loved you!” he screams which makes me flinch. Then he starts crying. “I watched you fuck him on the counter tonight. Why would you do that to me? Why?” he yells again.
I think he’s having a psychotic break. He’s always been a pretty intense guy, letting work get to him. I remember having to hold him a couple times as he cried about the pressure of his job (which at the time I thought was sweet). When I broke up with him, I was surprised that he hadn’t blown a gasket worse than what he did, but I guess it’s just been building under the surface and now it’s all coming out. Great. Okay, maybe I can talk him through this, get him to put the cleaver down.
Bigger Than the Sky (Serenity Point) Page 20