Small-Town Sweetheart (The Spring Grove Series Book 2)

by Toni Aleo

  I’m sitting in my office chair when she walks in.

  Delaney’s long lashes brush her cheeks before her eyes meet my gaze. Her hair is down, in large curls that she brushes off her shoulders. A small, teasing smile pulls at her glossed-up lips, but she looks tired. I smile to myself, knowing I wore her out. Not to sound smug, but it’s true. I know for a fact that she made it hard for me to sleep last night. I couldn’t shake the thoughts of her, the feel of her, or even the taste of her. I tossed and turned all night. I’m on my fifth cup of coffee.

  Each second that passes is heavy and breathtaking. All I can do is look into her sweet brown eyes as she looks into mine. It’s almost like I’m seeing her in a new light. I saw her naked. I felt her bare body against mine and kissed her in her most precious spot. We aren’t kids anymore; we’re adults, and we like sex together.

  Her lips curve a bit as she leans into the doorway. My cock comes to life when her eyes move along my lips. “Hey.”

  “Hey.”

  It’s almost like we’re in slow motion. Her lashes kiss her cheeks before they flutter at me, taunting me. “Anyone else here?”

  I lick my lips, turning my seat so I’m facing her. “I don’t think so. I came in the back with my key. Haven’t seen anyone.”

  She drops her bag and then comes toward me. She rests her knee between my legs on the chair as she wraps her arms around my neck. The chair cries under the weight of us, but I can barely hear it. When her lips drop to mine, I bring my hands up, holding her perfect ass in my palms. Her lips are soft, needy, and within seconds I’m hot everywhere. As she straddles me, I hold her to me, drinking from her sweet mouth as her center lands right over my straining cock. She tears her mouth from mine, kissing along my jaw, licking my neck, and nibbling on my ear.

  “Shit,” I mutter roughly against her hair. I nuzzle my nose into her hair as she sucks on my earlobe. Man, she smells so damn good. Like roses with sweet morning dew clinging to them… Jesus, did I just think that? I gotta get my wits here. I grip her ass as she moves that warm center against my slacks. Of course, my cock is ready, but all I hear is my fucking mom in my head. “Del.”

  “Yeah?” she asks, but she isn’t stopping. She runs her tongue down my jaw and then kisses my bottom lip. Fuck, she’s so hot.

  “Um, I think we need to talk.” Actually, I don’t think that at all. I think talking is the last thing we should do since we probably have only ten minutes before someone gets here. As she bites into my bottom lip, tugging it as her eyes meet mine, I feel I may need a different coffee date.

  She runs her tongue along my bottom lip before letting it go, her eyes still locked with mine. “Talk?”

  “Yeah,” I choke out, and it sounds like I’ve never had a girl in my lap. I have. Just not recently. “My mom thinks—”

  She pulls back, her brows arching and causing a deep crease in her forehead. “Your mom? You told your mom about last night?”

  I move my hands along her ass, squeezing and molding it. “No. Mawmaw did.”

  She gives me a dark look. “She makes me want to throw her in a grave. I’m sorry. She has a mind of her own and—”

  “Don’t be sorry. I didn’t force you not to put those pants on.”

  Her lips curve up a bit. “You didn’t.”

  “Why would I, when without them, I was able to slide my hands up your sweet pussy?”

  “I mean, you had a solid plan.”

  “I did,” I say, nibbling at her jaw. “But Mom says we need to be honest with each other.”

  Her shoulders fall. “I’m pretty sure being honest will take time from me fucking you on this chair.”

  I swallow hard. “That’s a legit observation.”

  “And I think we have maybe twenty minutes before anyone gets here.” She drops her lips to mine, her eyes burning with lust. “I feel as if we could use those twenty minutes in a different way.”

  “I’m intrigued,” I tease, and her eyes brighten as she holds back her laughter. “And feel all that too.”

  “Well, I can suck your cock, ride you, or you can bend me over the desk. I mean, the world is your oyster.”

  “All in twenty minutes?”

  She winks. “Yup, but the choice is yours. Bang a lot. Or talk. I vote bang.”

  “Oh yeah?”

  “Yeah, ’cause I did not get my fill last night.”

  I didn’t either. I search her gaze. Her big, beautiful brown eyes burn with such hot lust, they scorch me. She feels amazing on top of me, and I want her badly. There is no doubt about that. I hear my mom telling me over and over again to be honest and do right by this girl I’ve known my whole life. Delaney’s been hurt; I don’t want to add to that. She’s too good for that. But with what I’m feeling, what I’m sure she is feeling too, I think we’re good to talk later.

  So without giving her an answer, I take her by the back of her knees and lift her off my lap. I hold her to me and push my keyboard out of the way before sitting her ass on my desk. “I love the idea of banging,” I whisper against her mouth.

  “Well,” she says, moving the tips of her fingers along my jaw. “Two votes are all we needed.”

  “Exactly.” I capture her mouth with mine, and then we scramble to remove her pants and then mine.

  It’s easy to say what happened next. While it was great, wonderful, and totally hot, especially with the chance of someone catching us, I feel bad. I shouldn’t, though. I’m having a great time with one hot-ass girl. Yes, said hot-ass girl is someone I can remember running around in a diaper. While I don’t know who she is as an adult, I sure do love her body, and I want to know who she is now. I think I can like her a lot, which will only make the sex even better. Six weeks of great sex with this girl is something I’m fully committed to signing up for.

  Which only gives me more reason to find a new coffee date.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Delaney

  I move my lip-gloss wand along my lips as Gen leans into the sink, watching me. While I’m working the bar, she’s here with the guys for a night out. She looks adorable in a cute blue sundress and dark-brown cowboy boots. Her hair is up in a little braid bun, and of course, she looks beautiful. There is a furrow in her brow that I’ve brought on, and I’m pretty sure she has a lot to say about that. I wish I cared a bit more than I do, but my body is still tingling from Reed.

  He is just yumm-o.

  I’ve been fucked against a desk before—it was cool and good; I got off—but it was different with Reed. He held my legs back with pressure from his shoulders, and he fucked me hard. He wanted me so bad, and I wanted him just the same. His thrusts were strong, efficient, and I felt each and every one. When he kissed me, I felt like he was worshiping my lips. When I came, I felt it in my pinky toe. He is so delicious. He’s all washboard abs…and that cock. Mouth. Watering.

  But I have no clue what we’re doing, and because of that, my heart is being a brat. I’m falling for this brooding, dark-haired sex god. Hence why my best friend is looking at me like I’m dumb.

  Probably because I am.

  “Twice?”

  I shrug. “Maybe.”

  “Maybe?”

  “Yeah,” I say with a shrug. “Okay, yes.”

  She rolls her eyes. “So you two are banging, and you don’t know if it’s just a booty call or you two are dating?”

  I make a face. “Why can’t two people have sex and there be no reason for it?”

  She gives me dry look, narrowing her eyes. “Because one of the two people you speak of is you, Delaney Kate Abbot, who could fall in love with a rock if it was the nicest and prettiest rock in the rock garden.”

  I move my hair out of my face. I’m wearing shorts and a tank that reads, “I’m made of sugar, spice, and whiskey on ice.” My hair is in a high ponytail, and I just want to get back to work. But I can’t ignore what she is saying. “I mean, rocks need love too.”

  She rolls her eyes. “Delaney, it’s Reed. Someone you’ve—” />
  “Yeah, I get it.” I look over to her as she pulls back a bit. She’s probably surprised I cut her off. “I know, I do. I know how I am. I know that I want to be in love and have all that happily ever after shit. I also know he’s leaving. He won’t stay. This isn’t his place, but I’ve wanted Reed McElroy for as long as I can remember. The first time I ever got off, it was to thoughts of him. I’ve always had a thing for him. And if that means I get the summer living out that thing, I’m gonna do it. I won’t ruin it.”

  “But what happens when it ruins you?”

  I look away, hating her at this moment. I won’t say I hadn’t thought of that. I have, but when I did, I ignored it. I’m always so responsible and smart when I make choices, but I don’t want to be like that with Reed. I just want to enjoy him. Enjoy what we do together. But like everyone in this town, Gen wants me to figure out what Reed and I are doing with each other.

  Why does it matter?

  She takes my wrist in her hand, and I know she’s trying to get me to meet her gaze, but I can’t. “I don’t want this to turn into something nasty. I think you both need to be on the same page. If it’s fun and awesome, have fun. But remember that when you want to fall headfirst in love with him. ’Cause you will, if you haven’t already—”

  “Be real—”

  “The thing is, Del, you’re not in love with him. You’re in love with the idea of him, the memory. You don’t even know this guy.”

  Her words sting on my skin. I swallow past the lump in my throat. “I do. He’s great.”

  She rolls her eyes. “I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

  I shake my head, completely over this conversation. “Okay.”

  “Okay?”

  I head out, leaving her behind in the bathroom as tears burn my eyes. I love how people come at me and tell me things I already know. I get it; I’m aching for a once-in-a-lifetime love. I yearn for it. I want to be Theo and Gen. The kind of love to last lifetimes. I’ve never had that. I’ve never experienced it. Mawmaw’s husband died when I wasn’t even a thought. She never remarried, and I don’t think she ever will. My mom, hell, she was never in a healthy relationship. She didn’t even know who Cataway’s or my dad was. She was just fucking her way through life and doing drugs along the way. When she dropped Cataway and me off to Mawmaw, I wasn’t even sad. I was glad to be rid of her, but I still yearned for my happily ever after. I want my Prince Charming. In boots, of course. Maybe a vet coat… Damn it.

  Maybe Gen has a reason to be worried, but I’ve got this.

  Totally got this.

  From where I’m standing outside the bathroom, I see his shoulders first. They’re so wide, his waist trim as his ass hangs off the back of the stool he sits on. He’s leaning on the bar, his gaze moving up and down it, almost like he’s looking for me. The thought that he could be looking for me gives me those stupid fuzzy feelings in my gut. I push a little hair behind my ear and head toward the bar. The guys are all sitting at a table in the corner by the jukebox, and I hear them call my name, but I go to the bar instead.

  “Sweetheart, there you are. I need a refill.”

  I grin at Butch as I reach for the McElroy’s Classic and head toward him. I don’t look at Reed, nor do I acknowledge him. I can’t act like I want him all the time, even though I do. I refill Butch’s glass and then Tom’s before leaning back on the bar. A small grin sits on my lips even though my thoughts are anything but sunny. I’m confused, and I don’t know what to do with myself. Do I talk to him? Do I figure this out? Or do I just enjoy every single thing about him? I feel Reed’s gaze on me. I look over at him, and he shakes his glass at me.

  “Hey there, sweetheart,” he teases, his eyes burning into mine. “Can I get a refill?”

  I could die tomorrow and be okay with that after him calling me sweetheart. I reach back for the bottle of McElroy’s and lean on the bar as I fill his glass. “Don’t call me sweetheart unless you mean it.”

  His gaze moves along my face. “What, do I need to be a citizen of this town to mean it?”

  I shrug. “Maybe.”

  “Well, that’s bullshit.”

  “Is it?”

  “Yes.”

  I fight back my grin. “Please explain, because we both know you don’t think I’m a sweetheart.”

  “Eh, I wouldn’t say that.”

  “What would you say?”

  “I’d say you have one sweet ass.”

  I hold his gaze. “But I’m not a sweetheart.”

  His eyes are saying something more that I have to ignore or I’ll get in so much trouble. I top Reed off, but as I go to put the bottle back, he stops me. “Why don’t you pour yourself a glass?”

  Our gazes meet, heat rushing through my body within seconds. My heart stops, my gut clenches, and of course, I grin back at him. “You buying me a drink, Mr. McElroy?”

  “I am.”

  He slaps a twenty on the bar. I grab a glass for myself, pouring my own cup. He holds his glass up as I lean into the bar, our gazes locking while I press my glass to his. I’ve never looked into his eyes as much as I have in the last few days. It’s amazing. When we were kids, everything went by so fast, and we were always on the go. We never had a moment to look at each other, appreciate what the other had. Well, I’ve been appreciating him. Pretty sure I’ve memorized everything about him.

  “You have really stunning eyes,” I mention, and his lips quirk.

  “Aw, look at you, being nice to me.”

  “It happens.”

  “It does.” He swirls his drink, the ice clinking just as hard as my heart is beating. “I happen to be a big fan of those lips.”

  Of course, they curve, my heart jumping into my throat. “Making a girl blush… How unlike you.”

  “You don’t know me.”

  “I don’t.” I hold my glass up. “To getting to know each other.”

  He nods as we bring the tumblers together and then to our lips. I down the glass before placing it back on the bar. He takes a hearty sip before shaking his head. “This is a sipping whiskey.”

  “I don’t have time to sip,” I call back to him as I get some beers for my waitress and then make sure my regulars are good. I assumed he would go sit with the guys and Gen, but he stays where he is, sipping on his whiskey. I move down the bar, wiping with a rag and then pausing in front of him. “You don’t want to sit with the guys?”

  “Nope.” He takes another sip.

  “No? That’s weird.”

  “Why?”

  “They’re your friends. Aren’t you here with them?”

  “No.”

  I shoot him a look. “Please, don’t elaborate.”

  He shrugs. “Maybe I’m here ’cause you said earlier you were working.”

  I lean on my elbows, holding my face in my hands as I watch him sip on his whiskey. “Here for me, then?”

  “Maybe.”

  “What for? Expecting to take me home?”

  “Maybe,” he says once more. His lips curve, and I shake my head.

  “You’re trouble.”

  “Me?”

  “Yup, with those grins and those eyes, thinking you can get me out of my panties.”

  “I can’t?”

  I giggle like a little girl. Pathetic, I know. It makes me sick because what the hell am I doing? Gen’s stupid words rear up in my head, and I just want to scream. Why does this have to be difficult? “What are we doing, Reed?”

  His glass stops right before it reaches his lips, his eyes meeting mine. “Doing?”

  “You know what I mean,” I say simply, leaning toward him. “Pretty sure you wanted to talk about this earlier.”

  He sets his glass down, running his thick fingers through his hair. “I did.”

  “So?”

  “So.”

  We hold each other’s gaze. A part of me doesn’t give one shit about what this is or what we’re doing. But of course, the other part needs to know. I need to tread carefully if this is wha
t I think it is. His gaze is dark, and I know he’s waiting for me to say it. If I wait for him, we’ll be here all night. “Are we just fooling around?”

  He shrugs. “At first, I think we were.”

  “It’s only been twice.”

  “Well, three after tonight,” he says with a wink, and I roll my eyes.

  “So, what does that mean?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Okay.”

  “Which I know doesn’t help, but I know that I want to see you. That I want to continue doing what we’ve been doing.”

  I swallow hard, looking down at the bar. I want the same, but I don’t want to be just his vacation fuck. “Do you like me?”

  I meet his gaze, and his eyes soften as he brings his glass to his lips. “I mean, you’ve given me tons of shit since I got here—”

  “You ignored me for the first week.”

  He waves me off. “I hate this place, you know that. And after losing my dad, well, you know.”

  I did know, and unlike everyone else, I understood him. I never paid attention to the front he put up; I knew who he was on the inside. How he always protected me. How he was always there to lend a hand when someone needed it. He may have always disliked the majority of this town, but I don’t think it was the people, per se. More the way he found out about his real mom. In Lexington, he doesn’t have the reminder Shirley isn’t his biological mom.

  “But, yeah, I like you. You’re beautiful, Del.” His words surprise me, kind of knock me off my rocker. “You always have been.”

  I’m taken aback. “What?”

  “I’ve always found you beautiful,” he says simply around the glass at his lips. “Always.”

  “Even when I was ‘Chubs’?” I ask, and I’m opening a can of worms. I know I am, but I can’t stop myself.

  He doesn’t laugh, nor does he smile. He looks deep into my eyes. Such guilt flows in those green depths, but it’s unneeded. I wasn’t healthy or even pretty. I was round, hungry, and pissed off that I was fat. “I was a shit kid, Del. I know I apologized for that.”

  He did, the summer before I started ninth grade. It was very quick, and no one heard him except me. We were out on the river, tubing, and I wasn’t in any hurry. I had my chips and my Coke and I was a happy girl, but Reed waited back for me. He didn’t even look at me as he apologized. He was too embarrassed. A part of me wondered if Shirley had gotten on to him, but when we finished, he looked at me. Really looked at me, and then he smiled. I felt like that smile was just for me. So I forgave him.