by Terra Kelly
“So much.” I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer. “And the truck is not so bad.”
He laughed at my admission and kissed me.
My best friend’s brother and the only man I truly cared about was wrapped tightly in my arms.
Finally after waiting for way too long, Levi Appleton, my apple farmer would be all mine.
“Should we go to the fair?” I snuggled closer to him and rested my head on his chest.
“We did say we were going.” He combed his fingers through my hair. “If someone from Appleton Farm doesn’t see us there, my family will wonder what we were actually doing tonight.”
I sat up and rested my hand on his chest. “They know. They totally know.”
“You think?” He scrunched his nose up. “My mom better not start talking about the birds and the bees with me.” He winked and dropped his head back on the edge of the truck.
“Should I stay the night so the conversation is easier?”
“What? No.” He lifted his head up so fast I thought he would strain something.
I could picture Autumn now if I did stay the night. She would probably barge into Levi’s room and jump on the bed in between us. “Yeah, maybe that’s a bad idea.” I burst out laughing and patted the bed of the truck with my hand. “This can be our secret spot.”
“I like the area even better now that you’re here.” Levi kissed my temple and pulled me closer.
“I would love to still go to the fair though. I haven’t been to one since I moved away.”
My mind wandered back to the night before I was set to move. Autumn had convinced me to take a trip to the fair and eat our way through the night. I still had packing that needed to happen but I went anyway. At the time, Levi’s family had a booth but they were only selling donuts, apple chips, cider slushees, and a few other baked treats. Hell, now they had so much more. They had a food truck for their award-winning fried apple pies, four varieties of hard cider, and so many other irresistible goodies. That night Levi was helping at the booth. He only said hi to me, but I couldn’t get the look he gave me out of my mind. Thinking back on the moment now, his face looked pained. He seemed sad. I could remember the vision that ran through my mind, he walked around the table at the booth and begged me to stay. Of course, it was just a dream. Instead, he handed me a slushee and turned away to help another customer. He didn’t even say goodbye.
Our community loved the local fair. Everyone wanted to be a part of the festivities. Appleton Farm was the most popular apple farm, but the competition always made an appearance, too.
“Do you remember the night before I left?” It was weird bringing up the topic.
“Like it was yesterday.” He lazily dragged his fingers up and down my forearm.
“You do?” I sat up suddenly.
“Livy, I remember every moment that had you in it.”
I dropped back down beside him and snuggled in closer. “You seemed so sad that night.”
“I wasn’t sad.” He paused for a moment. “It’s hard to explain.”
“Try me.” I laced my fingers with his.
“Well,” he cleared his throat. “I had finally talked myself into sharing how much I cared about you. The moment you walked up to our booth I freaked. I saw Autumn with her arm wrapped your bicep and laughing about something.” He looked down at me. “I freaked myself out. Autumn seemed so happy and I worried my feelings for you would change all that.”
“Do you still think that?”
“No. Not even a little bit.” He traced his finger down the side of my face. “Autumn has already had a come to Jesus meeting with me.”
I sat up and grabbed the edge of the blanket to throw it over my lap. “That sounds serious.”
“No, not serious. She just made it clear I was being an idiot.”
“You’re definitely not an idiot.” I grabbed his hand. “We both let silly factors get in the way of our true happiness.”
“I hate that I missed out on time with you.” His admission tugged at my heart.
“We both needed extra time to find ourselves.” I reached over and grabbed my bra. “Let’s make new memories and go to the fair together.”
I couldn’t believe how long we had waited to be together. We let too many things get in the way of our true happiness. Now it was time to take what we wanted. Each other.
Nine
Levi
“Finally,” Autumn said and snuck in between us. She wrapped her arms around our waists and rested her head on my shoulder. “I was worried you wouldn’t show.”
“Where else would we be?” I teased and kissed her cheek.
“Oh probably off fucking somewhere.” Autumn said the words at the same moment she stepped away from us.
“Autumn,” I yelled and glanced at Olivia.
“What?” She shrugged her shoulders. “You both look satiated.”
I glanced over at Olivia. “What are you talking about?” Did we look different? I glanced down at my wrinkled clothes and realized we had to look like we were just rolling in the sheets. “She’s right.” I whispered to Olivia.
“Good.” She kissed me and wrapped her arms tighter around my waist. “Now, what are we going to eat first?”
“So you don’t care that we look like we had a little too much fun in the bed of a pick-up?” I had to ask.
“I really don’t.” She grabbed my hand and tugged me over to the french fry truck. “Want to share a cup?”
The woman stuck her head out of the window. “Oh, hi Levi. What can I get you both?”
“Can you give us just a minute?” She held up her index finger and pulled me away from the window. “I’ve been back in town less than a week and I’m already head over heels for you.”
“Oh yeah.” I smiled and wrapped my arms around her waist.
“Yeah. Shouldn’t that be a little shocking?” She placed her hands on my chest.
“Why? We knew what we wanted and didn’t need to wait to tell each other this time.” I traced my finger around her lips. “When I saw you the other day”–I shook my head–“I knew I needed to shit or get off the pot.”
“The way you talk is just so damn sexy.” She couldn’t stop laughing at my words.
“We have only one problem.”
“Only one. Are you sure about that?”
“Well, one very important problem. One of us needs to get a place of their own.” I kissed the tip of her nose. “Unless you like having sex in the bed of my truck?”
“Levi.” She giggled and wrapped her arms around my neck. “I know, maybe we should buy a tent.”
I leaned back slightly and turned my head to the side. “A tent?”
“Sure.” She grabbed my hand and pulled me back over to the window. “It would give us some privacy.” The woman leaned back out. “Hi, can we have a large cup of fries?” She waited until I paid to say anything else. “Plus, if it rains we’re protected.”
“I really like the way you think, Olivia Hart.”
She moaned the moment I said her name. Instead of saying anything more on the subject, I reached over and grabbed our order of fries. “Malt vinegar on top?” I held up the bottle.
“Is there any other way?”
OLIVIA
I popped a fry into my mouth and thought about the last twenty-four hours. Since grade school the Appleton’s were a big part of my life. My family loved to go every year to the farm. Then I met Autumn on one of the trips and started to go more often. I loved everything about the farm. Even the sexy farmer. Maybe I was supposed to find my one true love at Appleton Farm. I just had to wait a few years to get that answer. Fate had a funny way of working its magic.
“Have you tried all the flavors of my hard cider yet?” Levi pointed to the fried apple pie food truck. “Jesse has all four flavors tonight.”
“Even the fried apple pie flavor?”
“No, that first batch I made was a bust. Soon though.”
As we inched clos
er to the food truck I could hear fighting. “Do you think everything’s okay?”
I noticed Levi sigh. “Hold on.” He opened the door to step up into the truck. There was a woman standing in front of Jesse and they were in a heated conversation. Jesse looked pissed.
“Livy,” I heard from behind me. “Where’s Levi?”
“Autumn.” I gave her a hug and then pointed to the truck.
“Are they at it again?” She rolled her eyes and opened the back of the truck to step inside.
Now I was curious. Without looking too obvious, I stepped around to the window to try to catch what was being said. Jesse and this woman were not backing down. They were nose-to-nose. Autumn and Levi were on either side trying to calm them down.
The woman noticed me standing by the window and she instantly flashed the biggest smile. “I’m sorry. Have you been waiting long?”
“Hannah, she’s with Levi,” Jesse said and left the food truck
“I’m good. Thank you.” I smiled and tried to stay neutral.
Hannah didn’t have a chance to say another word to me. “Hey Livy,” Jesse was behind me. I turned and he wrapped his arms around me. “Did you come over here to try the famous Appleton fried apple pie?”
“And some hard cider.” Levi walked up beside me and handed me a bottle. “What was that all about, Jess?”
“It’s fine. Hannah is still settling in. Don’t worry about it.” He waved it off and headed back into the truck. “Let me get you an apple pie, Livy.”
“See what you’ve missed all this time.” Levi clinked his bottle against mine.
“Your brother fighting in public?” I took a sip of the cider. “Holy hell.”
“What?”
“Which flavor is this? It’s damn amazing.” I took another sip. “Please tell me you’ve entered it in contests.”
“Um, no.” He turned his head away.
“Levi.” I grabbed his forearm. “You’re sitting on a gold mine here.”
“Livy, the only gold mine I see is standing in front of me.”
I had to smile at his words. “But–”
“You don’t get it, I make this hard cider for the farm. I don’t care about its popularity.” He took another drink. “The only thing I care about right now is you.”
I sat my bottle down on the little table by the truck and wrapped my arms around his neck. “Want to know a secret? When I decided to come back home, you were the first person who popped in my mind.” I placed my palm on the side of his face. “You’ve been on my mind for years. I was just an idiot and waited.”
“We both were idiots.”
“Now that we finally told each other the truth, let me help you.”
“Help me with what?”
I reached over and grabbed the hard cider. “Share this beauty with everyone.”
“You are in charge of marketing.” He winked.
“We need to find a tent.” One minute my mind was wrapped around how to market Levi’s hard cider. The next minute all I could think about was a tent set up in the middle of nowhere.
“So are we talking about marketing the hard cider or a tent?”
“The hard cider. No, the tent.” I dropped my head to his chest. “You make it hard to think sometimes.”
“I make it hard?” He tickled my side. “Every time you flash that gorgeous smile I get hard.”
“Levi Appleton.” I wrapped my arms around his neck and peppered him with light kisses. “My apple farmer.”
Epilogue
Levi
Six months later…
“Thank fuck.” I grabbed the hem of Livy’s shirt and pulled it up over her head. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”
“It’s just a motor home. We’ve outgrown the two-man tent.” She pulled my shirt off. “Our secret spot could become a hot commodity. The other workers at Appleton Farm have caught wind of this section of the farm.”
Olivia Hart had managed to change my life in just a few short months.
She was determined to share my homemade hard cider with the world.
I was determined to find a way to have her all to myself without nature surrounding us on all sides.
“Doesn’t matter.” I unhooked her bra and let it fall to the side. “I’ve already let the family know this area of Appleton Farm is all mine.” I circled my tongue around her nipple. “They can find another area to set up shop.”
“Jesse seemed determined to have a house next to you.” She fisted her hands in my hair and pushed her chest closer to me. “That could be fun. We could live an acre apart from each other with trees dividing our homes for privacy.”
I reached down and picked her up into my arms. “Maybe. We’ll see.” I nuzzled my nose into the crook of her neck. “I still can’t believe you bought a motor home.”
“My dad had a connection.” She traced her finger around my ear and dragged it down the side of my neck. “Can we discuss sex now?” She pointed to the small bedroom. “We need to test out that bed.” The motor home could sleep up to six people. The table and couch could make into a bed. The back was private bedroom and even had a door to close out the rest of the space. “But I don’t think–” Levi still had me in his arms as he attempted to walk down the narrow hallway to the bedroom. My back and legs hit the wall. “We’re going to fit down the tiny space like this.”
“You think you’re so smart, don’t you?” I teased and let her down. She started to walk forward out of my reach but I was quick. I poked at her sides and tickled her all the way to the bed.
“Levi,” she cried out in fits of giggles.
She let her body fall onto the bed and I knelt down in front of her. “Marry me,” I said out of the blue.
“What?” She pushed her hair out of her face and sat up on her elbows. “Levi.”
“Olivia Hart, will you marry me and make me the happiest man on Appleton Farm.” I reached out my hand to grab hers. “Talk about poor planning. I don’t have a ring but I promise to get you one.” She threw herself at me causing my body to fall back onto the floor. “So is that a yes?”
Livy started to giggle and kiss every inch of my face. “Yes,” she said in between kissing me. “Yes, yes, yes.”
“Really?” I had no plans to ask her to marry me. Then she flashed that smile and the idea popped in my mind.
“Fuck yeah. Let’s get married out here on this special piece of land.
“It’s ours, Livy.” I pulled her up into my arms and sat down on the bed. “I want all this to be ours.”
“Does that include a log cabin and kids?” She combed her fingers through my hair. The movement made my body come alive.
I spun her around so her back was on the bed. “I want so many kids with you, Livy.”
“Careful there, Tiger, I’m the one who has to pop them out. Let’s have maybe four.”
“Four is a good number.” I left a trail of kisses as I inched down her body. “Hell, two is wonderful.”
“We can name them after an apple.”
“Like Crispin and Cortland.” The apple varieties popped in my mind.
“Oh, I love those.” I dragged my tongue along the inside of her leg. “Levi,” she cried out.”
“Is it wrong that I want to start all this now? Should we get married first?”
She spread her legs further apart and let her body fall back onto the bed. “We can do whatever the hell we want. It’s our lives.”
“Then I want to start here first.”
“We do need to christen this bed,” She teased and pushed my head down.
After all these years, Olivia Hart would be my wife.
How did I get so lucky?
Levi Appleton does age like fine wine. Whew! Okay, now it’s time to find out if Jesse and Hannah will ever stop fighting for even just a few minutes. Get ready for some serious apple pie love, preorder Mr. Apple Pie (Man Card Book Nine) here.
A note from the author
Levi and Olivia both knew w
hat they wanted, they just took a little longer voicing their true feelings. Thankfully, Autumn helped with getting all that mushy stuff out in the open.
There’s a fun bonus epilogue that takes you six years in the future. You’ll even meet their two kids! Dive in here.
Let’s stay at Appleton Farm for a little bit longer. We need more cider donuts and fried apple pies.
Mr. Apple Pie shares Jesse and Hannah’s story. This sexy enemies to lovers romance will have you craving more than just apple pie.
If you love fun, easy to read romantic comedies, then the Man Card series is sure to make you laugh out loud.
Preorder Mr. Apple Pie here.
Sending love, Terra
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About the Author
Terra loves walking her dog, snuggling with her cat, and relaxing with her amazing hubby. A steamy romance book is never far from her grasp, and 2:00 a.m. seems to be the sweet spot to finally put a book down and sleep. She laughs loudly, smiles often, is a bit of a klutz, and tries to always find the positive in everything.
After a few years writing steamy fun, Terra had an urge to write romantic suspense. You can find her grittier stories under T.M. Kelly.