by BJ Harvey
She growls under her breath, making me chuckle.
“You’re adorable when you’re trying to be feisty.”
“I’m not trying. I’m plotting ways to dispose of your body.”
I flick on my indicator, turn into a driveway, and pull the truck to a stop. Then I’m undoing her seatbelt and dragging her across the seat so she’s sitting right next to me. Turning my body toward her, I hook my hand behind her head and tug her mouth to mine, plunging my tongue between her lips and kissing her until her body sags into mine.
“If you kill me, who else could do that to you?” I whisper in her ear before I straighten and lean back against the truck door.
She shakes her head, her eyes narrowing. My smile gets bigger the longer she tries to pretend she’s annoyed.
It’s then she looks out the windshield, her eyes widening as she takes it in. The house is three levels—two stories and a basement—with a big front yard, and even bigger backyard that she can only just see beside the garage in front of us. It’s a renovator’s dream, and this is going to be the biggest project I’ve ever done. But there’s some more important business to attend to first.
“Wait there,” I say, jumping out of the truck, rounding the hood, opening the passenger door, and holding my hand out to April. Locking the truck behind me, I lace my fingers with hers and lead her up the front steps and onto a wrap-around porch. Letting her go for just a second, I find the right key on my key ring and slide it in the lock, opening the door.
I start the tour on the lower level, pointing out features I want to keep, talking about plans Ezra and I have already started to work on together, and then telling her about all the things we’re planning to do to the rooms. Then I lead her up the stairs to where the master suite will be, a room that will take up half of the top floor and include a small balcony overlooking the back of the property.
“So, what do you think?” I ask, stopping on the edge of the room.
“It’s amazing. It’s just the kind of house I hope to buy one day. With a lot of love, this place will be even better once you’re finished with it.” Her smile is radiant; her eyes drifting around the room as if she can’t stop herself. “What about the other houses we looked at? You never showed me this one.”
“The others were great, but this one is different,” I say softly.
“It’s so much more than just different.”
“Yeah…”
She tilts her head to the side, her gaze turning skeptical. “What aren’t you telling me?”
My lips twitch. “I can’t get anything past you, can I?”
“Well, I damn well hope not,” she says with a laugh.
I walk toward her, place my hands on her hips, and draw her in close. Circling her wrists in my hands, I lift them up and loop them over my shoulder before my arms snake up her back.
“It’s different because I bought it for us. We can renovate it exactly how we want and then—if you’re ready—all four of us can live here.”
Her eyes are now glassy. Her lips part and for the first time since I met her, I think I’ve rendered her speechless.
“I wonder if Betty would like to live on her own again?” April says softly, her voice rough.
My heart stutters, the final part of the dream I once thought impossible now within my reach. I can feel my fingertips almost touching it. “I want to build a life with you and Axel. Betty is more than welcome. As long as it’s you I come home to, you I go to bed with, and you that I wake up to, I’ll be happy.”
She looks around the room again, her small smile growing larger than life. Then it’s as if time stops still and my chest is collapsing in on itself until she nods, small at first, then faster, and suddenly, I can breathe again.
“Yes, I want to make a home with you. A life, a future,” she rushes out. “God, I love you.”
She launches herself at me. My hands clamber to catch her under her ass as she wraps her legs around my hips and kisses me like her life depends on it. I deepen the connection, and I never want it to end. Reluctantly, I gently ease her back down until her feet are firmly on the floor.
“So, we’re really doing this?” I ask, needing to hear it one more time.
She cups my jaw in her hand, and I lean into her touch. “Yeah, we’re really doing this,” she whispers.
“Then you are going to need this.” I reach into my pocket and pull out the house key I had cut for her yesterday. I brush my fingers over her knuckles and lift it up between us. I open her palm and carefully place the key ring in her palm, closing her hand over it.
Leaning in, I rest my head against hers, taking a second to breathe her in and calm my nerves. I thank my lucky stars that I’m the one who gets to have April Williams by my side for the rest of my life. “Open your hand, lovely,” I murmur.
Shifting back, she opens her hand, unfurls her fingers and looks down. Her entire body goes still. Her eyes are glued to her hand because on the key ring I just gave her is a house key, but there’s also a beautiful solitaire diamond engagement ring. Watching her face, I see the first tear fall onto her cheek, soon followed by another and another.
Unable to resist, I hold her face in my hands and kiss her again, this time soft and slow. Our eyes are locked on one another, my heart close to bursting. When we pull apart this time, I look over her shoulder and smile.
I place my hands on her shoulders and gently spin her around toward the door to see Betty and Axel standing there, huge grins on their faces. In Axel’s hand is a big bunch of his mom’s favorite flowers, and Betty holds a bottle of champagne and a can of soda.
Cupping my hand on her cheek, I tilt her face toward mine, then whisper the most important question I’ll ever ask, “April, will you marry me?”
With her eyes brimming with tears, she says the word that makes me the happiest man on the planet. “Yes!”
Axel cries out an enthusiastic “whoop” before running to us, tackling our legs, the flowers in his hand an unfortunate casualty as they drop to the floor. In a moment like this, I don’t care. I’ll go out and buy a hundred more bouquets.
When we step apart, Betty is there, holding out the champagne and glasses for me, and handing the can of soda to Axel. Then April looks over at her and loses it, pulling her mother-in-law in for a huge hug as they both cry in each other’s arms.
“I’m so happy for you,” Betty says, both women pulling away with a smile and tear-filled eyes.
“Not as happy as I am,” I say, sidling up to them and wrapping my arm around April’s waist and holding her close.
“Does this mean we’re moving, Mommy?” Axel asks.
I lean down and lift him up in my arms, bringing him between us. “It means that all of us are going to work on this house and make it absolutely perfect for us.”
“Really?” he asks, excitement dripping from his words.
April giggles. “Yeah, baby.”
“Does this mean I get to paint my own room too?” he says, his voice getting louder and more high-pitched.
I chuckle as April grins at her son. “Yeah, buddy. I’m going to need a lot of help with this one. We’ve gotta make Mommy happy. You up for the job?”
He nods furiously. “Absolutely. I’m your man.”
God, I love him just as much as his mom. “Then you’re hired.”
“Yay,” he says, wriggling down to the ground and running over to the window overlooking the backyard. “Wow. It’s so big!”
I turn back to Betty and April—my fiancée, a title that will change as quickly as possible to wife. “Should we go grab dinner? We’ve got reservations to celebrate.”
April pops a hip and quirks her brows at me. “You were that sure I’d say yes?”
I lean in for a hard and fast kiss. “I was pretty damn hopeful.”
“Lucky for me.”
“Oh no,” I say with a laugh. “I’m the lucky one.”
“As long as you keep believing that, you’re gonna do just fine, Jamie Cook
,” she says with a smirk before looking over toward Axel. “Hey Ax, should we go to dinner now?”
“Yeah. I’m starving! But can we come back here tomorrow to get started?” he says, sending hopeful eyes my way.
“Sure thing. We can plan where your room is going to be.”
“You mean I can’t have this one?” he asks, his forehead scrunched together.
“No, baby,” April muses. “But you can pick the biggest one downstairs.”
“Awesome,” he shouts. He walks toward us, stopping right in front of me. “But Jamie, I’ve just got one last question.”
“Yeah, buddy?” He tilts his head, stroking his chin like he’s an old man stuck in a six-year-olds body. It’s the most ridiculous image I’ve ever seen, but it’s totally him.
Axel looks up at me and pulls his favorite puppy-dog-eyed look. “Dad boss, we need to talk about a raise.”
I pull April and Axel into me before I burst out laughing.
“I don’t know what’s funny,” he mumbles, which makes all of us adults chuckle.
It’s fitting because, with Axel and April in my life, I think it’s going to become a common occurrence.
And I can’t fucking wait.
The End
Work Violation - Book 2
1
Jax
“Please join me and raise your glass to toast Jamie and April on their engagement, and for finally finishing their house. April, you’re definitely a brave woman, taking him on, and remember, the most handsome Cook male is still single,” I say, waggling my brows.
The crowd of our friends and family snicker. Jamie narrows his eyes, but his curved lips give him away. My big brother may seem like a moody son of a bitch, but he’s protective and loyal, and he’s always one of the first people I call when I need something.
This house—the house—almost caused World War Three between us four brothers. There were even times April threatened Jamie with bodily harm if he didn’t finish in time.
At least now that it’s done, we can start our next project, our most ambitious yet: a two-story ex-bed-and-breakfast that has had years of neglect but holds a whole lot of promise. It’s also pink … everywhere. Every room, every painted surface, even the garage trim—it’s all magenta, fuchsia, and rose.
It’s going to be a big job. Jamie and I decided before we closed on the property that it would only be possible if we were both working on it. Given I’m teaching a few college classes for the upcoming summer semester, it’s ideal since I’ll have guaranteed income. I won’t have to be out there hustling for photography jobs, which means my time is free to help Jamie with the house, and I can live rent-free for three months. It’s a win-win. Well, it will be.
After working their way through well-wishers, Jamie and April walk over to where I’m standing, April giving me a big hug when they reach me.
“Who knew you could give a good speech when you had to?” she says. “Thank you, Jax.”
I look over her shoulder to where Jamie is smiling at us, a look that soon morphs into a scowl when I run my hand down April’s back toward her ass.
She giggles, Jamie growls, and I burst out laughing, tucking my soon-to-be sister-in-law under my arm, much to my brother’s annoyance.
“You sure you want to marry this grump? I’m a lot more fun.”
Jamie gently pries April out of my hold and back into his side. “Get your own woman.”
I see April’s lips twitch before she shoots me a wink. She tilts her head toward my brother and lifts a brow. “Your woman? Is that why you’re marrying me? Me man, you woman?” she says, sounding like a caveman.
Jamie just smirks, hooking his hand around the back of her neck and crushing his mouth to hers, his tried and true way to shut her up when she starts sassing him.
April’s best friend, Veronica—Ronnie—appears at Jamie’s side, watching the two lovebirds making out and rolling her eyes. “Do they ever stop sucking face?”
“Nope,” I say, forcing myself to look away from her.
Over the past year, there have been many family events Ronnie has come along to. And every time, it’s the same thing. I can’t stop watching her. I just can’t help admiring the view every time I see her. Ronnie has her own force field, and it’s larger than life. She lights up a room the second she walks in.
We met in the front yard of our very first flipped house. I was covered in dirt and sweat, and April, Ronnie, and April’s ex-mother-in-law had set up camp on April’s front porch to watch us work. So naturally, since they wanted a show, I chose to give them one by peeling off my shirt.
I felt Ronnie’s presence before I even saw her, and the moment I met her eyes, it was like I could see right into her soul.
Then I found out she was April’s best friend and, well, that was the end of that. I was not going to do anything to cause problems for Jamie and his budding relationship with April. Not after he’d been through so much and finally had what he wanted within his grasp. So every time since that first meeting, I’ve forced myself to either act indifferent around her, or tried to ignore her completely. It’s been a fool’s errand though because she’s not a woman any hot-blooded male could ignore.
But tonight, Ronnie is the personification of boho beautiful. I’ve tried to avoid her for most of the party, but with her standing here, smelling like summer nights and peaches, she’s becoming harder and harder to resist.
“How have you been, Jax? It’s been a while,” she says, her warm voice reaching deep inside.
“Yeah, I’m good.”
She elbows me gently, her gorgeous face now shining up at me, her smile huge. “It was a good speech. You might’ve just put yourself in the running to be Jamie’s best man.”
“I have my moments,” I reply with a wink.
“I bet you do.” The innuendo is definitely on point. “What other talents are you hiding away?” Her sly smile and body leaning close to mine are doing crazy things to my brain, threatening my ability to think rationally. Needing to escape, I scan the yard to spot any other member of my family to use as an excuse to extricate myself from a conversation that could only end in disaster. Thankfully, April and Jamie rejoin the conversation.
“Ronnie, thank you so much for staying with Axel tonight. He lasted longer than I thought,” April says. Axel is her seven-year-old son, who I secretly want to kidnap. He’s the coolest kid I’ve ever met because he’s like a mini-me. He’s now asleep upstairs in his brand-new aviation-themed room. As the ‘artist’ in the family, Jamie asked me to design a bedroom that would make Axel the coolest kid in school. From the way the kid’s eyes lit up and then filled with tears when he first saw the finished room, I’d say I met that goal. The added bonus is that I’m now his favorite uncle.
April turns to Ronnie. “How’s school?”
“School?” I ask, my interest piqued.
Ronnie offers a small gift of a smile. A pink tinge blooms on her cheeks, which has me imagining other ways to make her blush. “Yeah, I had an ‘I’m turning thirty-one and I don’t like my life’ crisis.”
Jamie chuckles. “I had one of those at thirty-five. I think they can come at any age.”
“I’m still so proud of you,” April says, pulling Ronnie in for a hug.
“Let’s see if it works out first. I may have given up a six-figure salary for nothing.”
What the hell did she do for a job to earn that kind of money?
No. I don’t need to know. My attraction to her miles of curves, long legs, dark blonde hair with the golden streaks threaded through, and her ruby-red lips that makes me want to grab her and kiss her senseless, has never been rational. I’ve had to force myself to be outwardly indifferent, being standoffish to stop myself from entertaining thoughts of getting involved with her. With Jamie finally getting what he wants with April, I don’t want to be the cause of any complications if things were to go wrong between Ronnie and myself.
“I need a drink,” I announce sharply before spinnin
g around and walking away towards the coolers storing all the alcohol.
I don’t dare look back. That would be tempting fate, and I’ve got enough things to focus on without courting complications like Ronnie.
An hour later, I’m sitting in a corner by myself, a bottle of Jack and a bottle of cola my companions. The party is still going strong around me, the happy couple moving around the guests, my parents dancing in the middle of an imaginary dance floor, swaying side to side like they’re the only ones in the room.
“You good?” my twin brother, Bryant, asks as he takes a seat beside me.
I slowly turn his way. “I’m good.”
“Doesn’t look like it.”
I lift my half-full tumbler of whiskey to my mouth. “Jack and I are just fiiiine.”
He chuckles. “Sounds like it. Give me some of that.”
I slide the drinks his way and watch him pour the liquor.
“Cheers then,” he says, knocking his glass to mine. “If you can’t beat them, join them.”
“Or if you can’t touch them, get drunk and avoid them.”
“What?” he asks with a startled laugh. “Who can’t you touch and why the fuck not?”
My eyes drift across the yard to a laughing Ronnie who is standing with a group of Jamie’s friends.
“Ahhh.”
Dammit, the one time I wish he couldn’t read me like a book.
“But why can’t you touch if she wants you to?”
“What?” I ask, my movements a bit slower now as the Jack starts to take effect.
“Why can’t that happen?”
“I don’t need complications, and I definitely don’t need to piss Jamie off by tapping and gapping his fiancée’s best friend.”
“Why would you tap and gap when you actually like her?”
“Slam and run?”
He grins. “How about jerk it and go back to work?” His lips twitch, and we both start chuckling. We’re identical twins, I’m the older one, but there are differences between us. He has short, cropped, well-maintained hair; I lean towards the shaggy, creative, just-rolled-out-of-bed look. He’s an assistant professor in biology; I’m a photographer who shoots sports and events, and takes the occasional road-trip for landscape shots.