by J. H. Croix
Danger, danger.
The heat coiling low in my belly was precisely why I tried to keep my distance from Levi. It was no easy feat, seeing as we shared many friends. Romance in general wasn't my thing, but trying to do anything like a relationship in the fishbowl of Willow Brook was annoying beyond reason. Everyone thought they had your best interests at heart, but God help me. Everybody knew everybody here. Lately my friends were dropping like flies. Amelia had gotten back together with her the love of her life, Cade, when he came back after seven years away. Thank God he came back though, otherwise she probably would've married the idiot she didn't even love. I might not be an expert on romance personally, but I knew what I saw.
Anyway, I digress. Levi was hot, like make-me-stupid hot. He had dark honey blonde hair and deep blue eyes. I didn't want to think he was hot, but there was no sense in arguing with myself over it. Here I was, planning to crash on his couch apparently. This had the makings of a very bad plan. I hoped he was involved with someone else now. The minute I thought that, disappointment stabbed at me. Even though he’d annoyed me with his attempts to get me to go out with him, a teensy, tiny part of me had enjoyed the attention. Ugh. This was how ridiculous he made me feel.
As we drove, he started to make small talk, chatting about the weather, the fire outside of town, asking me about a few construction projects and whatnot. Basically just being a polite and decent human being. I couldn’t shake the restlessness and nervousness inside. The last twenty minutes or so had probably been a record for the amount of time I spent alone with a man since high school. It was something I avoided.
Levi holding me in his arms when he kept me from falling was the physically closest I'd been to a man since high school. It was the modern world now, and I didn't need to feel like I was turning into an old spinster, but that's how it felt sometimes. At twenty-eight, I was headed straight for plenty of years of being by myself. I hadn't meant to go this long without dating, or anything even remotely resembling it. Something happened, and I meant to get past it, Yet, I never did. I stuffed it into a box in my heart and in my head and decided it was best left there.
Despite my pulse running along at a wild patter and that inconvenient prickly sensation I felt inside whenever I was near Levi, I managed to make small talk as he drove. He turned down one road and then another before looping into a small circular driveway. It was midsummer in Alaska. That meant the sun hardly ever set. At going on one-thirty in the morning, darkness had fallen, yet with the moon high in the sky, it lit up the area around Levi’s home. There was a small pond in a field to one side. His home was rather cute. I felt his gaze on me and then he chuckled.
I swung to him.
“What so funny?” I asked, willing my pulse not to lunge when I met his eyes.
It was hard to keep that from happening. He had obscenely beautiful eyes—a deep, sapphire blue. He had no problem with straight on, direct eye contact either. Sometimes it felt like he could see right through me.
“You look surprised. I live in a decent place, is that what's surprising?” he said with a low laugh.
I couldn't help but return his grin. I didn't know what I’d expected, but it wasn't this. He had a small home with a wraparound porch set at an angle on the property. The front of the house had a wall of windows stretching up to the second floor. It was stained a soft shade of gray with purple trim. The moonlight made the purple seem brighter somehow.
“It's the purple that surprised me,” I added, gesturing towards his house.
He flashed another grin, making my belly do a little flip. “Yeah, that was my sister's choice.”
I vaguely knew he had a sister. She didn't live in Willow Brook, otherwise I probably would've known more. He climbed out of the truck and before I realized it, he was opening my door. My spine stiffened, and I glared at him, annoyed he’d done that.
“It's not like I can't get the door, you know.”
He chuckled. “Yeah, I had to beat you to it. I'll be honest. I was trying just because I knew it would get under your skin.”
I wanted to be angry, but it was funny. That's how shameless Levi was. He didn't even try to hide his intent. I looked up at him and my breath caught. He was too handsome for his own good. He might as well have been in those sexy firefighter calendars. He had a rugged, almost regal look to him paired with a rock, hard body. He had a blade of a nose, sculpted cheekbones and a strong jaw. There was a scar that ran along one of his cheeks, making me wonder how he got it. It gave him an edgy quality.
I gathered myself, tamping down my annoyance because I didn't want him to know how much he got to me. With him holding the door as I stepped out of the truck, I could actually feel the heat of his body. His presence was strong and solid. He was the kind of man who made me want to lean into him. Strength made me nervous though, so the moment I felt that I got skittish inside. I wanted to dart away like a startled deer. I managed to contain the urge as I stepped past him.
The sound of the truck door closing behind me was loud in the quiet. I heard wings beating through the air and glanced up to see a raven, dark in the silvery moonlight, flying just above us. I took a breath, the scents of Alaska summer washing over me—the cool air with the subtle hint of the ocean not too far away and the earthy richness of all the greenery.
I walked at his side up the steps to his house. I noticed he didn’t even bother to lock his doors when he opened it, holding it for me. I filed that thought away. I noticed little things like that because I always locked my doors. The habit was born out of a moment that was stuffed away in that box in my mind. He flicked on the lights once we were inside. I paused to look around. I was again surprised, but figured perhaps his sister might've also cast her touch in here.
“Nice place,” I commented, taking in the space.
We’d entered into the kitchen. An L-shaped counter separated the kitchen from the living room. It had barely hinted lavender granite counters, stainless steel appliances, and light maple cabinets. Seeing as I spent most of my days building houses, I noticed details like this. I knew he’d spent a pretty penny on those cabinets, and they looked custom. The floor was tiled in a silvery gray tile with a hint of lavender to it. The tile met hardwood flooring in the living room. The living room had cathedral ceiling and a soapstone woodstove in the corner of the room. A sectional couch was to one side and a TV on the opposite wall. Stars were winking in the sky outside the windows, the moonlight illuminating the field and small pond.
I spun around, looking upward. A railing circled all three sides, except for the one with the windows. There was a single door on each of the three walls. I presumed those were the bedrooms. There was only one door downstairs, which must've led to a bathroom. Levi stepped past me.
“Come on, I'll show you the guest room,” he said.
“Oh, I can sleep on the couch.”
He stopped and glanced at me, his eyes puzzled.
“You’re not sleeping on the couch. I actually have three bedrooms. You’ll have one all to yourself if that's what you're worried about.”
Oddly, I wasn’t worried about that. I opened my mouth to argue. I had no problem admitting I could be an argumentative person, especially when it came to Levi, or any guy for that matter, trying to suggest what I should do. I snapped my mouth shut when I realized the futility and the silliness of it all.
I shrugged, feeling a little sheepish. “Okay.”
His rich blue gaze held mine. I felt like he could see right into me, and I looked away because I didn’t like how exposed I felt.
“I’ll show you upstairs,” he finally said before turning away.
I followed him up the stairs.
“Bathroom,” he commented, pointing to the door in the center back wall. “My bedroom’s over there,” he added, gesturing to the left.
He led me to the door on the opposite side. I stepped into a small bedroom. It was furnished simply with a bed and two night stands. The furniture was light maple with clean modern lines. The bed had a
cream-colored, fluffy down quilt with pillows piled high. The room was sparsely decorated with a few landscape photos.
I felt his gaze on me and looked over at him. When he didn’t say anything, I felt compelled to speak. “This is nice. Thank you. I’ll be out of your hair first thing tomorrow. I’ll call Amelia for a ride and…”
His gorgeous blue eyes narrowed. “You’re not calling Amelia for a ride. That’s ridiculous.”
He looked truly affronted I’d even suggested someone else give me a ride. For a flash, I felt a little bad, but my annoyance at his assumption he could tell me what to do was stronger.
“If I want to call Amelia for a ride, I’ll call her for a ride,” I said.
I huffed, I actually huffed, and then spun around.
Levi put his hand on my shoulder, pausing me from stomping away, which was what I wanted to do. His touch was like a brand. That single point of contact was hot and sent sparks of heat through me. I was so rattled at my body’s reaction, I didn’t yank away.
“I’ll give you a ride wherever you need to go in the morning, okay?”
His tone was a tad less authoritative this time. I was too annoyed with myself at my reaction to him to carry on. I was also exhausted, my arm ached, and I desperately wanted to sleep. I needed to burrow into the covers and forget everything. Most particularly, forget how much my body was drawn to Levi. I nodded. “Okay.”
His eyes held mine again. God, I wished he wasn’t so comfortable with direct eye contact. Just now, his gaze felt soft, as if though he could sense how unsettled I was. He let his hand drop and stepped out of the room.
“Good night,” was the last thing I heard as he closed the door.
I stripped out of my clothes and crawled into bed. The sheets were cool and the quilt light and soft over me. I drifted into sleep, thoughts of Levi tumbling through my mind.
Chapter 4
Lucy
I woke up, feeling more rested than I had in years. For a moment, I was disoriented and then I remembered I was in the guest bedroom at Levi’s. Given the events of yesterday, it was a miracle I’d slept as deeply as I had. I rolled onto my side and looked out the window, which faced the field in front of the house. Mist was rising off the tall grasses as the sun rose above the trees, its rays landing on the dewy grass.
I took a deep breath and let it out. I had no idea what time it was. I didn’t have my purse, or frankly anything. I’d left my purse in Amelia’s truck when she took me to the hospital to have my arm looked at. I lifted it, relieved to experience only lingering soreness when I carefully shifted my wrist inside the foam cast. I sighed, recalling I’d subsequently gotten into a fight with my landlord and had no good plan for where to stay. Finding a new apartment in the summer in Willow Brook was no easy matter. Most places were booked to capacity with tourists.
Levi.
It was so odd he’d been the one who happened who helped me yesterday. I hated thinking of what happened in these terms, but rescue me he did. I briefly wondered why he’d ceased his teasing attempts to get me to go out with him and then forced my mind off of those thoughts. Romance wasn’t in the cards for me. It didn’t matter that Levi made my body feel all kinds of crazy. Restless, I kicked the covers off and hopped out of bed. I dragged my t-shirt on and put my ear to the door. It was still early, so I was hoping I could sneak to the bathroom.
When I didn’t hear anything, I slowly opened the door. Levi’s bedroom door, directly across from me on the opposite wall, was closed. The house was completely quiet. I stepped out quickly and ran on my tiptoes to the bathroom, dashing inside and closing the door quickly.
I took care of business and tiptoed back out, only to find a hamster in the middle of the balcony walkway. It was brown and white. It paused to look at me and then scurried over to sniff my foot.
What the hell? Levi has a hamster? Wow.
The incongruity of it made me burst out laughing. I leaned down to stroke my fingers over its fur. The little hamster wiggled under my touch and looked up.
“Ah, I see you’ve met Ham.”
Levi’s voice was low and gravelly, roughened from sleep. The sound sent a prickle down my spine. I stood quickly and spun to find him rounding the corner of the balcony.
Sweet hell.
The moment I saw him, heat unfurled in a wave through my body. Did I mention he was calendar material? I knew he was handsome, but my imagination had not done him justice. He wore nothing more than a pair of navy blue cut off sweatpants that hung low on his hips. His chest might as well have been carved from stone. Every muscle was delineated. He was so fit, it should’ve been illegal. My eyes soaked him in. I couldn’t look away. My mouth went dry and my pulse took off like a rocket.
All the while, I stood there with a hamster who decided to climb on my foot. I was so discombobulated, I’d forgotten I was wearing nothing other than a t-shirt. It hung just past my hips. When this fact occurred to me, I flushed straight through. I realized Levi probably just had a perfect view of my bottom when I bent over to pet the hamster who was apparently named Ham. This ranked up there with one of the most mortifying moments I’d experienced. Ever.
I couldn’t seem to snap out of it, just staring at him while heat bloomed in my center and radiated outward. If Levi noticed anything amiss, I couldn’t tell. He closed the distance between us until he was right in front of me. Only inches away.
I wanted to touch him. Desperately.
My hand apparently had a mind of its own. Because I touched him without even thinking, reaching out and sliding my palm down his chest. His skin was warm, lightly dusted with hair. His rich blue gaze locked to mine. The air around us felt alive, shimmering and pulsing with need.
I couldn’t seem to take my hand away, but I suddenly got anxious, nudged by my past and all the reasons why I didn’t do this. With anyone. As if he could predict my next move, he curled his hand over mine. His touch was warm and strong. His thumb brushed across my wrist in that spot where the skin was so sensitive, it made me ache. Hot shivers raced through me.
I swallowed, beating back against the anxiety building. Somehow it was mingling with the intense desire I felt and amping it higher and higher.
“Have coffee with me,” he said.
I didn’t know what I’d expected, but it wasn’t this. He made no other move, simply standing there with my hand held in his and his thumb hypnotically coasting over the wild beat of my pulse.
“Okay,” I blurted out.
He uncurled his hand. I had to force myself to take mine away. I instantly missed the feel of his warm skin under my touch.
His mouth curled at one corner. “So this is Ham,” he said, gesturing to the hamster.
Ham had his haunches propped on my foot as he stared ahead. “Um, you have a hamster?”
Levi nodded. “I do. My sister gave him to me. She said I needed company.”
“You let him run loose?”
I was hyper focused on this because I couldn’t seem to get my body under control. With my channel clenching with need and my belly fluttering, it was all I could do to stay sane. I was also way, way too aware of how close Levi was and how insanely sexy he was. With his honey amber hair mussed from sleep and his glorious chest there for me to see, it was fair to say I wasn’t thinking too clearly. At all.
He shrugged. God, even his shoulders were sexy, the muscles rolling with his easy shrug. “Yeah. He got out once and nothing came of it, so now I leave his cage open. He goes in and out and does his thing. Anyway, did you need the bathroom?” he asked, thumbing to the door.
I shook my head wildly. “Nope. All set.”
At that, I dashed off.
***
Coming Soon!
Burn So Bad
Go here to sign up for information on new releases: http://jhcroixauthor.com/subscribe/
Find My Books
Thank you for reading Slow Burn! I hope you enjoyed the story. If so, you can help other readers find my books in a variety of ways.
1) Write a review!
2) Sign up for my newsletter, so you can receive information about upcoming new releases & receive a FREE copy of one of my books: http://jhcroixauthor.com/subscribe/
3) Like and follow my Amazon Author page at https://amazon.com/author/jhcroix
4) Follow me on Bookbub at https://www.bookbub.com/authors/j-h-croix
5) Follow me on Twitter at https://twitter.com/JHCroix
6) Like my Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/jhcroix
* * *
Into The Fire Series
Burn For Me
Slow Burn
Brit Boys Sports Romance
The Play
Big Win
Out Of Bounds
Play Me
Diamond Creek Alaska Novels
When Love Comes
Follow Love
Love Unbroken
Love Untamed
Tumble Into Love
Christmas Nights
Last Frontier Lodge Novels
Christmas on the Last Frontier
Love at Last
Just This Once
Falling Fast
Stay With Me
When We Fall
Hold Me Close
Crazy For You
Catamount Lion Shifters
Protected Mate
Chosen Mate
Fated Mate
Destined Mate
A Catamount Christmas
Ghost Cat Shifters
The Lion Within
Lion Lost & Found
Acknowledgements
To my fans: you keep me writing and make every book possible! Many thanks for your input on all the fun stuff, including hot cover models, titles and even town names. No book would make it out to the world without my editor. In that vein, Yoly Cortez makes every cover more amazing than the last and does so with patience and kindness. My proofreaders angels - Terri D., Terri E., Janine, Heather H., Mary & Pat - hugs & kisses for making every book just so.