One Last Dance (Oak Grove Series Book 2)

by Stopper, Nancy

  She paused and leaned closer to him, her voice a whisper. “Right up the road from my brownstone, tucked down an alley, is this great park. Not too many people know it’s there. It’s got deep green grass. Manicured, although I’ve never seen anyone cut it. There are two large shade trees, and a row of tall bushes surround it, which is probably why it’s such a well-kept secret. Underneath one of the trees there’s this great bench. It’s got a brass plate on it, the engraving nearly worn off.” She placed her hand over her heart. “It memorializes the adoration a man had for his wife and her love of that garden.” She sighed. “I love to take a book and sit and read. And for a few minutes, feel like I’m not in the city, but transported somewhere else. Somewhere quieter, slower, more peaceful.”

  He couldn’t believe his ears. He opened his mouth to respond, but nothing came to mind. Every word out of her mouth was a contradiction—a city girl looking for a quiet, peaceful place. A small-town girl who loved living in the city. A woman who asked after his family but hadn’t spoken to her own. He shook his head. Regardless of what he thought he saw below the surface, she was, in fact, a city girl. He wasn’t about to pursue a relationship with her only to have his heart stomped. Again.

  With her back to him, she stared out at the water as he readied his gear. He itched to reach out, run his hands down her back, touch her in some way, but he knew better. He just needed to get through today and then be done with Brittany Carlson.

  After dropping his gear on the dock, he grabbed the hull of the boat and pulled it close to the edge, motioning for Brittany to step in. After she settled on a bench across the middle, he handed her his tackle box and two rods, and she tucked them expertly beneath the seat. He untied the moorings and then pushed the boat away from the dock with his foot. It drifted away faster than he intended, and he barely landed on the floor of the boat. Good thing, too, or Brittany might have gotten stuck in the river without him.

  From his position at the stern of the boat, he had a fantastic view of Brittany’s heart-shaped, rounded behind. Not the stick-thin figure he associated with most ladder-climbing city girls. He imagined wrapping his hands around her, squeezing her soft, curvy ass as he thrust his tongue into her mouth, or into…

  “Are you going to let us drift downstream, or are you going to start the motor?”

  Joey jolted and refocused. If he wasn’t careful, he’d be scraping the bottom of his boat on the rapids. He started the motor and pushed the throttle, pulling the rudder to steer them upstream and away from the rocks. See, this was why he didn’t want her to come along. All women did was get in the way and screw things up. But it wasn’t her fault he’d gotten distracted daydreaming about her instead of paying attention. He wouldn’t let it happen again. He couldn’t. He didn’t have the time or the energy to be worrying about a woman.

  While the two of them enjoyed the serene quiet of the rolling stream, he steered them to one of the deeper parts of the creek, a ten-foot cavernous area with thick trees creating a canopy over the water. One of his favorite fishing holes. After dropping the small anchor over the side, he turned toward Brittany, prepared to tie on a lure or bait a hook, to find she’d already dragged his tackle box out from underneath the seat and was digging through his lures.

  He laughed. “Anything I can help you find?”

  With her head still down, her sweet voice rang out. “You said there are bass in these waters?”

  “Yes, but—”

  “Great. You’ve got exactly what I want.” She raised her head and proudly waved one of his best bass lures in the air, a spinnerbait he’d used to win the bass fishing contest the previous fall.

  He laughed again. “You continue to surprise me, City Girl. How do you know about bass fishing and lures?”

  Her eyes sparkled, a mischievous glint in them. “Oh, there’s a lot you don’t know about me, Mr. Bennett.”

  Things he was more and more interested in finding out.

  They tied off their lures, and before long, he succumbed to the lulling back and forth of casting and reeling. Brittany sat opposite him, the steady whoosh, whoosh of their lines the only sound between them. He never brought women out to the cabin, and certainly never fishing with him, because they usually never shut up. Chatty Cathies and fishing didn’t mix. But not Brittany. She seemed relaxed as she cast her line and pulled it in over and over.

  He sat silently for a moment, watching her without her realizing it. A small smile graced her lips, and her entire posture screamed comfortable. He shook his head again, cataloging yet another thing that surprised him about her.

  Just as quickly, everything changed. Her muscles tensed, and her knuckles whitened where they gripped her rod.

  He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, she leapt from her seat, rocking the boat. “I’ve got something. I’ve got something.” She looked to him, pure joy on her face. Her contagious smile coaxed an answering one from him. Her face lit up, and she became even more beautiful when she allowed herself to be happy. He leaned forward to help her, keeping his weight low in the boat. But before he could grab her, her arms flew out, throwing her off balance. He opened his mouth to yell when she tumbled over the side into the creek, pole and all.

  “Brittany!” As the drops of water landed on the surface from her splash, Joey peered below the water. He spied her brown hair floating beneath the clear-as-glass water. He dropped his rod, kicked off his shoes, grabbed a life ring, and dove in after her.

  She could hit her head on a rock or get tangled in the roots of the trees growing out of the creek bed. His heart thumped in his chest as he hit the water and dove down. He reached her quickly and pulled on her T-shirt.

  When they broke the surface of the water, he drew in a huge gasp of air and turned to her. She was laughing. A huge belly laugh that, before long, had him joining her. He clung to her shoulder, kicking his feet gently beneath him.

  “I think he got away,” Brittany said, a laugh still in her voice.

  “Ya think? What were you doing?”

  “I lost my balance. I hadn’t planned to fall in. But once I did, I was enjoying the water. You didn’t have to come in after me.”

  Her tone sounded happy. Any other girl would be sputtering about her ruined hair and makeup. Shoot, he was none too happy about his drenched shoes and water-logged jeans. But not Brittany. She wrapped her arms around him and planted a quick kiss on his cheek, their feet intermingling as they treaded water. “Thank you for bringing me out here today. I had forgotten how much fun hiking and fishing could be.”

  Before he could respond, she dunked him and kicked away. The little brat. He scrubbed his hand down his face while she swam to the boat. He waited in the water as she braced her arms on the edge and pulled herself up. When he followed, she extended her hand to help him into the boat.

  Two could play at this game. He wrapped his hand around her wrist and tugged her back into the creek beside him. She hit the water with a splash, her hand still in his. She burst through the surface, sputtering water out of her mouth.

  “You stinker. I’m gonna get you.” She reached for him and he allowed her to push him under the water. Beneath the surface, he grabbed her waist and dragged her with him. He flipped so he lay on his back, the life ring under him. With her body floating on top of his, he enfolded his arms around her. She sank into his embrace, and the two of them floated down the gentle creek.

  His eyes scanned the bright blue sky above them and he concentrated on the beautiful woman in his arms. The thick green leaves on the trees filtered the sunlight, creating dancing images of sun and shade on the clear surface of the water. He closed his eyes, and his mind wandered back to last night, when her soft curves had pressed against him, her arms around him much like his were around her now. Her body had moved in perfect harmony with the music.

  The first inklings of sexual awareness fluttered through him. Not that he’d act on it with a virtual stranger. Damn, he hadn’t thought this through. He hadn’t expecte
d to find himself hugging her, floating down the rapids. He shifted so she wouldn’t feel the evidence of his attraction. He wasn’t sure he even wanted to act on what he was feeling. It was a biological response. Nothing else.

  They floated for a few minutes longer until they reached a stretch Joey knew to be shallow. He could have just kept floating, giving him more time with his arms around her. She would never know. But this was for the best. At least that was what his head was saying. A little further south, his body had different ideas.

  He reluctantly released her from his embrace and pressed his feet into the shallow creek bed. With a gentle tug, he pulled her beside him. She raised to her full height, her eyes nearly chest-level. Her wet T-shirt clung to her body, her hardened nipples straining, as if begging to come out to play. After he released her, his arms felt empty, and that surprised him.

  Her gaze locked on his as she stood to full height, the deep brown exposing so many things, conflict and desire taking center stage. His eyes drifted to her lips, the water dripping off them a seductive draw. He began to lower his head when she faced upstream. “This has been a most unexpected day. But how are we going to get back to the boat?”

  He drew in a deep breath. This was for the best. It really was. The sooner they could return to the boat and he could put some distance between them the better. He waved his hand, distracting her while he adjusted his soaking wet jeans over his straining erection. “We can climb onto the bank here and head back upstream. The boat is anchored around the bend.”

  He extended his hand, and Brittany stared at it for a moment. Once her hand was firmly in his, Joey headed to the shore. “The rocks can be pretty slippery here, so watch where you step.”

  Together they made their way onto the grassy bank of the creek. They reached more level ground and headed up stream, but Joey didn’t release her hand. The danger had passed, and his reason for holding her hand had changed. He liked it. And that surprised him, too.

  She didn’t yank her hand away, like he’d expected her to, when they reached the top of the hill. They walked in companionable silence, him only releasing her hand to help her over tree roots and rocks until they reached the cove where he’d anchored the boat.

  “What now?” she asked, the expression on her face concerned.

  “Follow me.” He grasped her hand tighter. With a smirk on his face, he jumped into the deep pool at the edge of the creek, pulling her in behind him. She screamed as they hit the water, and the sound was muffled as they both sank beneath the surface. It only took a few strong strokes before they reached the boat where he motioned for her to climb on ahead of him.

  “No way, mister. Not again. You can climb up ahead of me.”

  Smart girl. She was probably right not to trust him to pull her back down into the water, where she seemed to let down her barriers and allow her emotions to show through. She could have protested the wet and the cold, but instead, she made the most of it and enjoyed it.

  That was why Joey came out to the cabin—to spend time with the beauty of nature. Maybe he’d finally met a woman who agreed.

  He hauled himself easily into the boat then turned and extended his hand to Brittany. She grasped it and he pulled, easily dragging her into the boat. They both sat for a moment, breathing heavily from exertion… or attraction. He looked at her, her long hair pulled out of her ponytail and hanging wet and stringy around her face. She’d lost her ball cap somewhere in the creek. Water streamed down her face and dripped onto her T-shirt, showcasing her breasts and her pebbled nipples.

  Her eyes followed his, and realization crossed her face. He averted his gaze. He wasn’t embarrassed she’d caught him looking. She was a beautiful woman and should be appreciated. Instead, his gaze made her uncomfortable, and that was the last thing he wanted.

  He grabbed two towels from a box beneath the bench and extended one to her.

  “Here.” He pulled up the anchor, fired up the engine, and headed back to the cabin. Brittany perched on the edge of the bench in front of him, her back straight and her eyes forward the entire trip. Before long, he had secured the moorings at the dock. The smile that had been on her face for most of their trip was gone. Instead, her brows furrowed. She stared at her hands, which she wrung in her lap. Her shoulders were scrunched against her ears, like they had been at the beginning of the day. There was no sign of the happy woman who had floated down the river wrapped in his arms. He’d give anything to put that smile back on her face.

  “I have some sweats and a T-shirt in the cabin you can change into. Sorry I don’t have a dryer, but they’ll be functional enough for us to hike back to the truck.”

  “Thanks.”

  They headed into the cabin, the silence growing between them. Grabbing the sweats out of his dresser, he motioned. “Bathroom’s right through there. You can take a shower if you want.”

  “Thanks.”

  After Brittany closed the door between them, he headed into the kitchen. What had just happened? Brittany had shut down and he didn’t know why. Puzzling that thought, he pulled out the lunch Emma had prepared. He’d broken his cardinal rule, bringing Brittany up here today, and he planned to remedy that as soon as possible.

  A few moments later, she walked into the kitchen, her wet hair brushed and her face scrubbed clean. His T-shirt swallowed her, and his sweat pants hung loose on her hips… and she looked even sexier than she had last night. Thank God she couldn’t see below his belt behind the counter. His erection strained against the zipper, the heavy, wet denim no match for his rapidly growing attraction. Every instinct he had to distance himself from this woman went straight out of his head whenever she walked into a room, when her scent filled his senses, when her soft curves brushed up against him.

  “I laid out your sandwich. You can eat up while I take a shower, and then we’ll head out.” Joey shuffled past her and into the bathroom. He wasn’t sure he could get the shower cold enough to douse the fire that was burning in his veins.

  Chapter Six

  IN KAREN’S OLD high school bedroom, Brittany stared in the mirror, not recognizing the woman reflected back. She no longer saw the strong, confident woman who took charge in any situation. Her normal posture, shoulders back and smile easy, was nowhere to be seen. Now only a woman with rounded shoulders and a tentative look in her eye stared back at her. The small, weak girl who’d left home at eighteen threatened to sneak back in and take over—and she couldn’t let that happen. But she struggled. The battle raging inside her was difficult to withstand. And she was tired of fighting.

  She’d exposed too much of herself to Joey today. Parts of herself she’d long buried. It was as though Joey could read her like a book, every emotion, every thought broadcast without words. She hadn’t felt that kind of connection, that deep of an attraction, to anyone before. Their relationship had changed today. Butterflies had danced in her belly when Joey wrapped his arms around her in the water. She’d liked it. Too much.

  She smiled. He was fighting this as much as she was.

  An ache had formed deep in her gut, one she tried and failed to stuff back down. It scared her. She couldn’t get involved with Joey or anyone from this town. Or any small town. She knew how things operated. She’d never put herself in the position her mother had found herself in, trapped in a situation she couldn’t escape because of the powers that be.

  Joey’d had a wolfish look in his eyes when Brittany sat in the boat, her wet T-shirt clinging to her body. Her nipples had stiffened beneath his perusal, but the leer was more than she could bear. She’d seen a similar expression in her father’s eyes before, directed at any number of women in town. Women he’d shacked up with, right under her mother’s nose, with no shame. Brittany had told herself she would never be a hookup, and that was all this attraction with Joey could lead to. He lived here and she lived in New York, and neither was going to change.

  “Hey, girl, you about ready? I can’t wait to go to the bonfire.” Karen poked her head around the doorf
rame, a wide smile on her face.

  Brittany screwed on a similar smile. “Almost. Sorry I’m taking so long.”

  “No worries. You ready to tell me why you showed up after your hike with your clothes in a bag and wearing the sexy Mr. Bennett’s sweats?”

  “Not really.” Until she could figure out for herself what was going on, what she was going to do about this unwelcome attraction to Joey, she had no chance of explaining it to Karen… or anyone else.

  “Fair enough. Let’s head out.”

  Brittany smiled. Karen understood her—knew when to push and when to back off.

  Brittany stood, brushing her hands down her jeans. It didn’t sweep away her nervousness, though. She’d promised Karen to go tonight. Brittany would much rather stay at home and not risk running into Joey again. Things had been uncomfortable between them on the ride back from their hike, and she hoped that didn’t continue tonight.

  The drive to J.J.’s was quick. Too quick. It didn’t give her enough time to mentally prepare to see Joey. She eyed the exit as she pulled in. She didn’t have to stay long. She could hide in the corner, not talk to anybody, and scoot away before anyone noticed. As she climbed out of the car, she scanned the lot and the grassy area to the side of the building. No sign of Joey. She sighed in relief.

  “He’s probably around back behind the bar. They built a huge new fire pit. I can smell it from here.”

  She must not have hidden her interest very well if Karen picked up on it. Brittany drew in a deep breath, and the deep, rich scent of burning wood filled her senses. She closed her eyes. Bonfires were a regular summer event during her childhood, where she crushed on a boy from her school and giggled with her girlfriends. Friends who likely still lived in the same town she’d left, married to their high school boyfriends with two-point-five kids, and stuck in the same dead-end jobs. Thank God she’d escaped.

  “You coming?” Karen headed around the building, Brittany following at a slower pace. Her stomach pinched and her hands shook. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d gotten this worked up over a guy. Any guy, especially one who was off-limits.