He ducked his head, his breathing shallow. Then he closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them again, intent was stamped onto every feature of his handsome face. He was going to kiss her. Stacey was sure of it.
Her breath caught and she leaned forward, straining toward him in answer to his invitation. Or was she the one casting the invitation? Didn’t matter. All that mattered was his next move. This time, she dropped her gaze to his mouth.
He lowered his head, and his lips lightly brushed hers. The kiss was soft, tentative almost. So not like the last kiss they’d shared before. She might have been the one to initiate it then, not that she’d known she was kissing him, of course, so it was important to Stacey that he want this enough to be the first to act.
It wasn’t long before the kiss turned deeper, more insistent as his tongue teased the seam of her lips apart. About time.
Heat spiked through her, drove her down a path that would have an inevitable conclusion. She shivered in anticipation.
Ever since that kiss a few nights ago, she’d been more than curious if the spark between them was just a fluke. That if she knew she was kissing Grant, the experience would fall flat. Now, it was impossible to deny that the spark was anything less than a roaring, all-consuming fire. One she was more than happy to walk into.
His hands lightly caressed her, even as they pulled her closer. His heat transferred past the thin barrier of her gown, over her hips, her waist, until she felt his hands on the small of her back.
She trailed her fingers over his chest, his shoulders. He was broad and hard. And, for the moment, hers. All the while his tongue teased, dueled with hers, so much so that she drew him closer, wanting to deepen the kiss, wanting to lose herself with this man, this moment.
Then he tensed before pulling back. What the—
Damn. Someone was behind Grant, not that she’d peer around him to see who it was.
“Yes?” he said, his gaze locked onto Stacey’s, and his arms tightened around her. She should’ve moved away, would’ve under normal circumstances, but right now, it felt like the safest place for her to be.
“The photographer finally showed up.” A woman’s voice registered from somewhere behind him. “It’s time to do the formal photos for the distillery’s brochure.”
It took a moment for Stacey’s brain to register that the voice belonged to the marketing specialist the distillery owners had hired to direct Grant’s public life. Was that regret in his eyes?
She eased in a deep breath. “You’d better go,” she told him with a small smile. “I’ll get a ride home.”
He hesitated, his mouth a tight line before he briefly nodded. “I’ll call you later.”
The lust fogging her brain began to clear. She shook her head. “Don’t. I need to run some errands and plan next week’s client dinners. I’ll see you at Mom and Dad’s tomorrow?”
He raised an eyebrow and squeezed both her hands. “If that’s what you want.”
No, it wasn’t, but it was definitely what needed to happen. She nodded. Because as much as she wanted the kiss to continue, as much as she wanted to see where they’d go together, Stacey knew damn well that Grant had no interest in a real relationship. Ever. And she also knew that starting down a path with him beyond the friendship they had was worse than a dumb idea. It’d be one that could irreversibly wound her.
And she wasn’t a glutton for punishment.
Chapter Seven
Grant stared out the huge kitchen window into the Winters’ backyard at what Mrs. Winters had sworn would be a small gathering. By his estimation, she’d invited everyone on the payroll of Winters Construction, the company she and her husband had founded long before the first of their five daughters was born.
He lifted his beer bottle and took a long pull. He was familiar with the Winters family, who was dating whom, who’d broken up with whom, which sister had a crush on another sister’s guy. After all, he’d been treated like family since he was eight, and had even worked summers in their construction company so he could help pay for college.
Which made it only natural that he’d be with them on a Sunday afternoon, surrounded by the clan and their closest friends.
What wasn’t natural was what he’d done with Stacey yesterday.
What the hell had he been thinking? Kissing her was stupid. A mistake. One that wouldn’t be repeated if he had a say in it. Trouble was it hadn’t changed how damned good it felt to hold her, to pull her close the way he’d imagined doing the past few days. Only an idiot wouldn’t like that, and Grant was no idiot.
Or was he?
Damn. He’d not only liked it, he wanted more. Thank God Stacey had come to her senses even though he saw how badly she wanted to give in, knew how badly he wanted to give in. Never mind what he’d been thinking—what the hell was he doing? Was it worth the risk of losing their friendship? Of losing her completely?
He reached up and massaged the back of his neck. How many times had he asked himself these same questions last night? He’d wanted to text her, but she’d said she’d be busy, which basically meant “leave me alone.” And he respected her, was man enough to stop his primal instincts from taking over.
Still, he wasn’t any closer to getting answers. He blew out a breath. Maybe he truly was an idiot. Normally, he’d have called Aidan, but his brother was on a late honeymoon, and effectively out of contact for a couple of weeks.
“Penny for your thoughts?”
He turned as Carly plopped onto the kitchen bench beside him. A couple of years older than Stacey, she had the same straight brown hair and easy grin, one that she threw at him as she straightened the collar of his polo shirt. He tilted his beer bottle in her direction. “I hear congratulations are in order for you and Isaac.”
She laughed, the sound not quite as rich as Stacey’s.
He frowned. Was he going to spend the rest of the afternoon comparing everything to Stacey? He had to fucking get her out of his system or he’d end up with balls too tight to comfortably move.
“There aren’t any secrets in this family, are there?” she groaned.
He stared at her hand. “No ring? I expected you to be sporting some huge rock. You sure Isaac loves you?”
She slapped his upper arm. “Very funny. You know I’m not into that sort of thing. But, yeah, he loves me.” She sighed and stared off into the distance. “Just as much as I love him.”
“I’ll try not to vomit.”
She grinned. “Even if you do, it won’t change a thing. I’m still marrying the guy.”
Anyone with a minimal power of observation could see that Carly and Isaac were meant to be together since they’d had their first formal high-school debate at a regional competition nearly a dozen years ago.
That it had taken them to get through college before they acknowledged each other was no surprise, either. Carly was independent, stubborn, and determined to make her place in the world. On her terms.
And just like Stacey, she accepted help from no one, not even her parents.
He blinked. Shit, he was doing it again. He cleared his throat. “How’s the catering biz going?”
“Great.” She grinned. “Dinners for Two has really helped me get the word out, so now I’m pretty well booked through summer. Best move I ever made, getting out of law and running my own business.” She cocked her head to one side. “So was it Stacey who spilled about the engagement?”
And now they were back to that. To Stacey. “Nope.”
“Really.” She narrowed her eyes. “She didn’t say anything?”
“Don’t bother to wait for an answer, because even if she had, I’d never rat her out.” Stacey had shared that little bit of news as soon as she’d received it. It was a perk of being her best friend. If a guy could actually call it a perk.
At any rate, that’s where he needed to firmly stay. In the friend zone.
“She told me about Leo.” Carly shook her head. “What a rat bastard. Good thing you showed up when you di
d.”
“Yeah…” Grant took another swallow of his beer and looked away. Stacey wouldn’t have shared all the details of that evening with her sister, would she? He grinned and stared her straight in the eyes. “Good thing, all right.”
“Yeah, well…” She shrugged. “All things pay off in time. She just has to wait for Chinaman Hat to work its magic the way it did for me.”
He groaned and plunked his bottle on the table. “You don’t seriously think burning an offering has anything to do with anything, do you? I thought you had more sense than that.”
“Are you saying Stacey’s silly?”
“That’s different. She’s a romantic. She’s into white knights and princesses and shit like that.” Not that there was anything truly wrong with any of it.
Carly took a swig of her drink but kept her eyes trained on him, a move that Grant was sure she’d perfected in a courtroom. “What about you?” she said after swallowing. “You dating much these days? Or you still chasing the recipe for making the best bourbon around?”
He grunted. Normally a guy didn’t talk about stuff like dating with a girl, not that he discussed gory details with anyone except Aidan. But the Winters girls? In the end, Carly was every bit a sister to him. Just the way Stacey was. That is, until he’d kissed her last night.
Who the hell was he kidding? He’d had less than brotherly thoughts about her since she’d kissed him awake last weekend. Was it just last weekend? His dick would swear it had been longer than that.
Damn it. He couldn’t get the woman out of his brain. And she was definitely both a woman, and on his brain.
“That’s your trouble.”
He gave Carly a sideways glance. “What’s my trouble? Or do I really want to know?”
“You don’t date enough.”
“You have no idea how often I date.”
“Maybe not, but I do know it’s weird for you to be sitting apart from everyone.” She swept an arm out, indicating the large crowd assembled in the backyard.
“How does that even make sense to you?”
“You’re acting out of the norm, my friend. Bottom line, I think you need to go out more instead of immersing yourself in yeasts or whatever the hell it is you do to make a batch of bourbon.” She waved her hand again. “When all is said and done, coming up with a recipe can’t be half as much fun without having someone to share the experience with.” She leaned forward. “Right? You know I’m right.”
“What’re you right about?” Grant looked up as Isaac placed a hand on Carly’s shoulder. “Not that I don’t think you’re right about almost everything.”
The mushy words, the mushy looks. This might be how it started for other people, but he knew better than to believe a relationship like theirs was anything he could have. Ever. Not that he wanted anything like that, of course, because he knew how it’d play out. Before long he’d end up attached and thinking a woman loved him unconditionally, only to have her drive off without a look back.
Carly beamed up at her fiancé, complete adoration on her face. “Grant needs to go out more. Know anyone?”
“Actually, yeah.” Isaac looked over at him. “She’s here, as a matter of fact. Want to meet her?”
He raised an eyebrow. “That’s convenient,” he said, alternating his gaze between his two friends. “Did you guys plan this?”
She grinned. “Consider it an opportunity.”
Why the hell not? This woman might be just the person to erase the memory of kissing Stacey out of his brain.
Grant pasted on what he hoped was an interested smile, then stood. “Let’s go.”
…
Stacey loved her family, really she did. Between her parents, sisters, aunts, uncles, and cousins, get-togethers in her parents’ sprawling backyard were always memorable.
There were times, though, when her family tended to be a bit on the overwhelming side. Case in point, her sister Carly’s play-by-play of how to bake the perfect lemon flan.
Normally, she’d show some interest in her sister’s work, even if only to be polite. Instead, images from yesterday’s brunch floated through her brain. A romantic setting, a gorgeous guy, kissing in the moonlight. Well, okay, so there was no moonlight, and while the setting was romantic, she was kissing Grant.
And it was perfect.
She’d satisfied her curiosity, all right, so now what? Was it all a big mistake? She drained her glass of strawberry lemonade. Hadn’t she read somewhere that life didn’t have mistakes? That everything happened for a reason?
The way burning an offering at Chinaman Hat had ended up with you kind of in bed with Grant?
Okay, that one had to have been a mistake. Or a cruel joke.
I don’t do relationships.
Grant’s frequent claim looped through her head. Kind of like the way she’d drive a couple of loops through a Milestone roundabout whenever she was deep in thought.
Speaking of Grant… She searched through the crowd of family and close friends. For a spring day in central Oregon, they’d lucked out with sunshine and relatively warm temps when their part of the world was just as likely to get snow. She thought for sure he’d be outside, but no. Where had he gone off to? After a brief “hello” when he’d arrived, he’d pretty much disappeared.
Was that on purpose? She did shut him down pretty firmly yesterday. Had she hurt his feelings? Maybe he had regrets about kissing her in the first place? Hell, she wasn’t sure she had regrets, let alone knew what he thought. There was only one way to find out: go talk to him.
Yeah, it’d be uncomfortable, but didn’t one of the relationship blogs state that talking things through was healthy for the relationship? Not that theirs was a relationship relationship, but still. And it was best to get it over and done with rather than stew all night. She hoped.
Stacey set her dessert plate down, looked at the chatting circle of women, and caught her sister’s gaze across the table.
“Who’re you looking for?” Carly asked.
“Grant.” Stacey scanned the huge backyard. “Maybe he’s inside.” Although why he’d choose that was beyond her. The weather really was perfect.
“He’s with Meredith.”
Meredith?
“God, this chocolate cream pie is da bomb.” Carly glanced at Stacey’s plate. “You hardly touched it. Don’t you like it? I’m trying to pry the recipe from Rose, but she insists that there’s a reason Grandma Rose willed it to her for safekeeping.” She huffed out a breath. “I don’t understand why she’d do that just because Rose was named after her. I’m the chef in the family.”
Normally Stacey would take the opportunity to tease her sister, but right now there was only one thing on Stacey’s brain. She pushed her plate forward.
Act cool. Act casual. Act like it’s no big deal. “Who’s Meredith?”
“An attorney at Isaac’s law firm. He introduced Grant to her, so I suppose they’re off somewhere getting to know each other.”
Stacey’s heart sank and she made herself take slow, deep breaths.
Carly licked her fork before sticking it into the pie on Stacey’s plate. “Any idea what’s in it that makes it taste so good? Probably something sinfully decadent. Cream or a rich Belgian chocolate or something like that.” She blew out a slow breath. “There’s got to be a way to get Rose to give up the recipe.”
Uh-oh. Carly was coming up with one of her weird ideas. It was the same face she’d made when she’d talked Stacey into accompanying her to Chinaman Hat to burn the offering that eventually netted Isaac. Only this time, Carly’s focus was on their older sister. “I’m going to have to blackmail her for it.”
“Whatever you decide, leave me out of it.” Even as she said the words, Stacey forced herself to stay still. Grant was off with some other woman, getting to know her, and she was happy for him, damn it. He needed to find someone who’d reach through his commitment-phobe exterior and into his soul. Who knew? Maybe this Meredith woman was exactly the one to do that.
And the stab-through-her-heart thing? Well, Stacey would just have to deal. The guy deserved to be happy, so if that meant he found someone new to hang out with, someone he could maybe even fall in love with, that was more than okay with her. It had to be.
The ache in her chest would go away. Eventually.
“You okay?”
She pasted a smile on her face and met her sister’s gaze. “Perfectly okay.” Because she willed it to be so. Because while Grant wasn’t interested in any sort of relationship, he was more than free to pursue any woman he found interesting. In much the same way she could pursue any man she found interesting.
But that kiss… Both times… Every touch, every nip, was indelibly stamped in her memory. Right along with the sexual tension that snared her from the moment she’d found him in her bed.
She blew out a long breath. Although her head understood the logic, her heart, well, it was having a way harder time.
Chapter Eight
Chinaman Hat loomed above them, large, majestic, and regal.
While Grant didn’t get the whole romantic dinner thing, he did recognize a great backdrop when he saw one. Yeah, Julian had something going when he’d insisted that Stacey plan something here.
Which was the whole reason Grant had shown up this afternoon. It was easy to see that she was greatly affected by the old man’s terminal cancer diagnosis. While business was important to Stacey, her clients meant far more to her. She was warm and caring and sincere. Always had been.
He pulled a couple of boxes out from the back of her Subaru and turned to find her hunched over a box, her back to him. His brain registered other parts of the scene well. Very well. Like the jeans she wore, which were nicely molded to what he knew was a firm ass, one he’d had the privilege of exploring when she’d straddled him the other night. Damn if he’d be able to erase that from his brain anytime soon. Did he even want to?
He tried to tear his gaze away, to admire the scenery. Something, anything. But she was like a beacon, like a set of flashing lights that had him mesmerized. Besides, shouldn’t a guy look in the direction he was going? Otherwise, he’d trip. And if he tripped he could hurt himself, which wouldn’t be doing her any favors. So, yeah, it was a safety issue.
The Best Friend Incident (Driven to Love) Page 6