Maverick

by Juliana Stone

  Charlie held on to his shoulders, rocking into him, already feeling that flicker of heat, that tight coil of desire building. It expanded until she was trembling all over. They were perfect together.

  Rick was like the missing piece to the puzzle that made up Charlie Samuels and the realization hit her hard.

  “I’ve never felt like this,” she said, not knowing she’d said the words out loud until he stopped moving.

  Charlie whimpered and then stilled.

  His hands moved from her hips and he cupped her face, pulling her down so that he could kiss her. It was a soft, gentle sort of thing, at odds with the heat and desire that boiled inside them both.

  “You make me feel things,” he said, his mouth still on hers. “Damn, but you make me feel.”

  He began moving again and she cried out, her hands clutching his shoulders as they rocked into each other. Faster. Harder. Skin on skin. Heart to heart.

  Charlie tightened around Rick, her orgasm building and contracting, and when she came her screams were softened by his mouth—by the sweetest kiss ever.

  Rick rocked against her, his body tight and hard, his lips soft and gentle. He shuddered into her, his release filling her, his body hot beneath hers.

  When it was over, they didn’t move for a very long time. Not until the water became tepid, and they both began to shiver.

  Charlie would have stayed in that tub forever if she could have because something had just shifted. She’d felt it like when she’d looked into Rick’s eyes. It was subtle and elusive, but it was there. She knew it was there.

  And what exactly was that something? She had no freaking idea.

  Chapter Twenty-five

  Charlie brought up two beers and a bowl of popcorn.

  My kind of girl, he thought.

  She’d pulled on his T-shirt—a vintage Rolling Stones no less—and he smiled, catching sight of that delectable ass as she slid into bed beside him.

  “Looks good on you,” he said, reaching for a handful of popcorn.

  He was starving, but then they’d worked up an appetite. After the tub, he’d brought her back into her room and went in for round two. He’d worshipped every inch of her body. He couldn’t seem to get enough.

  “You’re not getting it back.”

  “Sounds like a challenge.”

  “Does it?”

  “Sounds like you want me to take it off you.”

  “Maybe later,” she said with a grin. “If you’re lucky.”

  They settled back and he took a long pull from his can of Bud. Maverick was satiated and his body was lethargic, but his mind was moving a mile a minute.

  “So, about all those questions,” he said, glancing her way. They hadn’t had a chance to really talk since his return from Florida, and it was time.

  Her eyes were on him, and she swallowed a handful of popcorn, nodding slowly. “I have a few.” She studied him for a bit and then grabbed her beer though she didn’t take a drink.

  “Go for it,” he teased, but Maverick was well aware that they weren’t joking around. Things were serious.

  She flicked the edge of her fingernail against her can. “Does anyone else call you Rick?”

  Okay. That wasn’t what he’d been expecting, but Maverick preferred to ease into the details of his life.

  “Everyone calls me Maverick most of the time except for you and one other person.”

  “Who’s that?”

  “Donovan James. She’s always called me Rick.”

  Charlie whistled. “Wow. Donovan James. She’s like big time country star. So you and she were… were you guys…”

  Maverick shook his head with a chuckle. “No. We’ve never been more than friends. Though there was a time when I wanted more.” He wasn’t going to lie to Charlie. “But she’s always been Jack’s girl, and even though at first I pushed her away, I learned that her friendship meant more to me than getting into her pants. Of course, she’s the one who had to drill that into my head.”

  “She sounds like someone I’d like.”

  “You would.”

  “She’s married to your cousin. Teague’s brother?”

  His girl had done her homework. Shit. He wondered what else she’d uncovered online.

  “Yep. She and Jack are expecting their first kid any day now.” He paused. “My turn.”

  She reached for more popcorn. “Go for it.”

  Maverick studied her for a few seconds. He drank in those blue eyes and the pale, almost translucent skin. He thought of her little brother.

  “You and Connor look so much alike, I can’t help but wonder where the hair and eyes come from.”

  “My mother,” she replied, not missing a beat. “My dad was tall and skinny, with a full head of coal black hair and eyes as dark as yours.” She picked at a thread in the comforter. “I loved his eyes. I could always tell what he was thinking. They were so expressive.”

  She glanced back at him. “Have you ever been engaged or married?”

  “Nope.”

  She almost looked disappointed.

  “Oh. What about Elle Mason? I thought I read something online.” She blushed. “I’m not going to lie. I Googled you.”

  “That’s two questions, but I’ll let it slide.”

  “That’s kind of you,” she retorted.

  He hoped like hell she could see the naked truth in his eyes. “One hundred and fifty percent, no to Elle. We had some fun for a while and then it went south pretty quick. Her publicity machine made a lot more out of our brief time together—and trust me, it was brief. We didn’t live together. There was never a secret pregnancy and there was never going to be a ring.”

  He grabbed some more popcorn. “What about you? Ever get close to heading down the aisle?”

  She didn’t answer at first and Maverick watched her closely. Was there someone in her past that he needed to worry about?

  “No. I dated a guy from town on and off, but we definitely didn’t have what it would take to make a marriage work. Though without a whole lot of prospects in Fisherman’s Landing and no time to meet new people, I suppose we would have ended up married eventually. If not for a couple of deal breakers.”

  “Deal breakers?”

  “Jeremy wasn’t into a moody, quiet little kid and Connor was a deal breaker for him.”

  Douche bag.

  “And your deal breaker?” he prodded.

  “Jeremy slept with a married woman while we were still together and knocked her up.”

  “That right there is a dick move.”

  “It was more than a dick move. She already had two kids with her husband.”

  Maverick was trying to figure out what kind of guy would toss aside someone like Charlie Samuels when she nudged him in the shoulder.

  “My turn.”

  “Sure. What else do you want to know?”

  “How long are you staying here? In Fisherman’s Landing?”

  And just like that, the ease of the moment fled. Maverick took a few moments, trying to come up with the right answer. But then he realized the only right answer was the truth. And the truth was…

  “I don’t know, Charlie. I came out here because I needed to shake things up. I thought a change of pace was what I needed. But the thing is, I’ve got obligations that I can’t ignore and right now my home is on the other side of the country.”

  “And did it?”

  “Did what?”

  “Are things better?”

  “It’s getting there.” He dropped a kiss onto her nose. “It helps when you have inspiration.”

  “Is that what I am?” she said the words softly, eyes on the piece of thread she’d pulled from the comforter. “Inspiration?”

  “You’re a hell of a lot more than just inspiration.” He said the words slowly because he knew he needed to get this right. “Look, I had no intention of getting involved with anyone out here. That wasn’t my plan. I have a film to score this spring, and I’m working on some songs for Donnie.
That was it. I was going to push through my mental block and get some work done. But then you walked into that diner and…”

  Could he sound anymore like a damn Hallmark card?

  “I’m surprised you didn’t run the other way.”

  “I thought about it,” he replied wryly, thinking back to how prickly she’d been.

  For a few moments there was silence and then Charlie took a good long pull from her beer can. She set it on the table beside the bed.

  “Eventually you’ll leave.” Charlie glanced up at him. Her expression was shuttered and he couldn’t get a good read on her. And for a guy who made a living penning lyrics, he was lost.

  What the hell did he say to that?

  “Jesus, forget I said that,” she said in a rush. “This conversation is getting way too serious. Of course you have a life to go back to. I know that. Hell, I’ve got my own stuff to deal with.”

  “Charlie, whatever this is between us, we’ll figure it out.”

  She held his gaze for a few moments and then smiled. “Of course we will.”

  She set the popcorn bowl on the floor and snuggled up against him, her head near his heart. She felt so good, right there beside him. Solid. Real.

  “Just so you know…before when we…” She squirmed a bit as if she was uncomfortable. “And just now when we…”

  He chuckled. “When we did IT.”

  That earned him a fist in the chest. “Yes. When we did IT. I…”

  He sat up a little straighter. Shit. He knew what she was getting at.

  “I’m on the pill, so you know we don’t need to worry about, well, you know.”

  He wove his fingers through her long and hair and tugged so that she was forced to look up at him. “Okay.”

  “And I just had a physical so…” God, she was cute when she blushed.

  “I’m good,” Rick said. “I mean, I’m clean if you’re worried about that sort of thing. I haven’t had sex without a condom since I was a horny teenager.”

  She bit her bottom lip and stifled a giggle and he couldn’t help himself. Rick bent forward and kissed her, loving how she melted into him.

  “Have you talked to your brother today? How’s Teague doing?”

  Maverick exhaled and relaxed a bit. “Cooper called me just before you got back from the garage. A couple hours after we left, a car showed up and Teague took off for parts unknown.”

  “What?”

  “He told my aunt and uncle that coming out here was a mistake. Said he needed to be alone to work through some things and that was that.”

  “Your aunt Eden must have been so upset.”

  “They’ve dealt with a lot in their day, but this is different. Teague is their son and they know he’s hurting. Hell, I can see how screwed up he is. But maybe he does need to do this on his own. Work things out however he needs to without his parents looking over his shoulder.”

  “Promise me something?”

  “Anything.” He glanced down at her, surprised at the sadness in her eyes. “Hey, he’ll be fine. No worries.”

  “I’m sure he will, but life has a way of throwing us curveballs, you know? And sometimes we tell ourselves that a person will be okay because it makes it easier for us to get on with our lives.”

  Maverick had a feeling that Charlie was talking about someone or something else entirely. But who?

  Did he ask? Were they there yet?

  Charlie groaned. “Here I go again, getting all serious. Sorry.”

  “Don’t apologize for saying how you feel.”

  She turned out the light and settled back against him.

  “What are you doing tomorrow?” she asked softly.

  “I thought I’d stay here and work. Maybe meet you for lunch?”

  A heartbeat passed.

  “I like the sound of that.”

  Maverick held Charlie close, inhaling her scent. He was content and warm and not surprisingly, happy.

  And for now, his world was about as perfect as it could be.

  Chapter Twenty-six

  By Tuesday Davis was back from the dead so to speak, which meant that by Thursday the workload at Charlie’s garage was back to normal. In fact, they were so caught up that Davis started working on the Shelby.

  The body needed a lot of work and they were bringing in a specialist for it, while Davis would work on the interior. Charlie let him have at it. She’d already taken stock of the engine and other components under the hood, and Rick’s brother had authorized them to spend whatever it took to get the car back to mint condition.

  Things were good. Rick spent his days at her place writing music and his nights in her bed. He was the guy every girl should have, but that didn’t mean he was easy by any means. He could be arrogant and opinionated, but then again, so could Charlie. She’d lost count of the arguments they’d had over things as trivial as foreign cars versus domestic (She was all about domestic; he of course was not).

  Rick Simon was also funny as hell, he was genuine and passionate in his beliefs and good Lord, but the man knew his way around a woman. She should be in her happy place.

  But she wasn’t.

  Of course Charlie wasn’t unhappy. In fact, she was pretty damn content. But Charlie and content had never been best friends, and she couldn’t shake that nervous feeling that had taken hold a few days earlier.

  She’d learned the hard way to listen to her gut. Something was going to happen. She could feel it.

  But what?

  “You look like someone pissed in your cornflakes this morning,” Davis said, shuffling up beside her and reaching for the coffee pot.

  “Well that would be wrong, because I don’t particularly care for cornflakes.”

  “Ah. Right. You drink those flavorless protein shakes.” Davis shook his head in disgust. “Whatever happened to the simple things in life like eggs and bacon for breakfast?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe something called cholesterol?”

  Davis poured himself a coffee, ignoring her dig as he glanced up at the clock. “Huh,” he said, crossing his legs and leaning back against the workbench.

  “What?” she said sharply, irritated with him and not really knowing why.

  “Rick’s late.”

  She busied herself putting away the parts that had been delivered a few minutes earlier. She’d been thinking the same thing, but there was no way in hell she’d let Davis know it.

  “Just because Rick dropped by for lunch yesterday doesn’t mean he’ll do the same today.”

  “No?” Davis pushed off from the workbench and took a sip from his coffee mug. “So Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday don’t constitute some kind of pattern?”

  Her head whipped up and she was just about to tell Davis to mind his business when the door from the front of her garage flew open and in walked the only man who’d ever made her heart feel as if it was beating out of her chest.

  Jesus. She was really going to have to do something about that.

  He wore his mirrored aviators, which gave him a dangerous edge, and with the black leather jacket, faded jeans and black boots, he looked the part. Sure the wavy hair that peeked from underneath the plain black toque softened the effect, but it only made him that much more adorable.

  He really did take her breath away. Literally.

  He stood there for a few seconds and stared across the room at her, that slow, sexy smile sweeping across his face.

  “You’re late,” she said softly.

  Davis snorted, but she ignored him. How could she not? Every single cell in her body was electrified just by Rick’s presence. Should she have taken a moment to think about that? Probably. Did she? Hell no.

  Even if she wanted to, she didn’t get the chance.

  Rick walked toward her, his long legs eating up the space in no time and he didn’t stop coming until his mouth was on hers. It was a gentle kiss, but one full of promise and Charlie had to drag her lips from his because she was suddenly weak in the knees.

 
“Sorry,” he said with a grin, setting down the takeout bag that he held. “Jackie was busy and made me wait.”

  “Whatcha got in there?” Davis asked.

  Rick chuckled. “What else? Clam chowder.”

  The three of them tucked into their meal and Charlie was content to sit back and listen to the two men discuss the Shelby. She smiled as Davis argued the merits of the American made car, and giggled at his outrage when Rick admitted his love of Ferrari.

  At one point the conversation became heated and just when she thought she was going to have to step in and play referee, Ava showed up. Dressed in her pharmacy jacket and blue scrubs with her dark hair flying all over the place, she looked cute.

  Charlie glanced over to Davis. Cute enough to eat. Davis was acting as if it wasn’t a big deal Ava had popped by, but Charlie knew that Rick had been dismissed and all of Davis’ attention was on the petite brunette.

  “What is this, some private lunch club that I wasn’t invited to?” Ava asked, walking over to Davis and scooping up the last of his biscuit as if she had every right to. She popped it in her mouth and didn’t bother to swallow before launching into a tirade.

  “So did you hear about Back Alley dropping out of the fish fry? Un-freaking-believable. Who does that a week before a fundraiser? How in hell am I going to get a replacement? I’m so pissed, I could…I could….”

  “Hit something?” Charlie asked.

  “Yes,” Ava said. “Pulverize is more like it.”

  “Hit Davis,” Charlie said.

  “I would but he’d probably like it.” Ava shook her head.

  “I probably would,” Davis chuckled.

  Ava sighed dramatically. “This is a big deal and I have no clue what to do.”

  “What’s Back Alley?” Rick asked, nudging Charlie with his knee.

  “It’s some band from the city. Ava’s on the fundraising committee for our local community support center and there’s a big event next Friday. There’ll be a silent auction and a live auction, dinner and entertainment. That sort of thing. The event always brings in a lot of money for our senior programs like Meals on Wheels and transportation to doctor appointments.”