by Quinn, Taryn
“Noon.” Seemed reasonable enough. I knew Ian wouldn’t mind regardless, no matter how much shite he tossed my way.
And I was far more focused on tonight.
Ten
The minutes passed like hours between then and when I was due to see Ivy again.
How had I made it through a month without her?
Work. Always work. It was my savior and my crutch.
I ended up going with Kellan to his home recording studio after lunch, despite our plans to visit Happy Acres the next day. At best that would just be an inspiration sort of trip, since a farm wasn’t exactly equipped for serious work.
Or serious anything, except perhaps picking wild, growing things.
Kellan seemed excited to meet Ian, which was a bit of a surprise. But Ian was an up and comer on the rock scene who had already been making waves, so maybe it wasn’t so shocking. Kellan had his ear to the ground and obviously had an open mind when it came to exploring the possibilities.
Seemed like that was a trait I needed to acquire too. When I was with Ivy, it had seemed easier somehow.
Kellan and I made our way through the song we’d worked on last month, hammering out lyrics and melodies and arrangements. When that one seemed to be coming together, we shifted into a second one that, to me, would work better as a duet. And not with me, although I’d seen the light of interest in Kellan’s eyes.
The guy was like a damn sponge. Eager to try anything I suggested.
In this case, I suggested we call it a day. If he wanted a duet partner, well, then, we’d just see if Ian had a gap in his schedule. Ian’s pipes were as pretty as the rest of him, and I was no singer.
Maggie made more scones for me, and I filled my pockets with them like the beggar she’d turned me into. I even held Wolf, who was in much finer form than the last time I’d seen him.
He also tried to rip out a hank of my hair, but I was assured that was because he liked the pretty copper penny color of it.
His mother was probably a liar, but she was very sweet.
I didn’t leave until shortly before eight, which was when Ivy had requested I meet her at the diner. By then, scones were inadequate to fill my belly, no matter how delicious they were, but I bypassed the offer of dinner in case Ivy was hungry.
It was almost easy for me to find my way back to Crescent Cove now. The roads were just as winding and lacking in appreciable landmarks, but I was beginning to find my way around. The lack of snow didn’t hurt either.
I parked down the block from the diner, slipping into the last available spot. It offered me a gorgeous view of the lake and the gazebo strung up with fairy lights that twinkled in the darkness. Sunset came later this time of year, and it seemed as if half the town was out and about. Coming and going in and out of pubs and restaurants, wandering through little shops while carrying even tinier shopping bags. Most were in groups or couples.
Normally, I didn’t notice stuff like that, but this was a place for families. Between the town itself and spending time with Kellan, Maggie, and Wolf, I was paying attention to things I usually did not.
Then there was Ivy, who made me pay attention as well.
I hadn’t had a relationship in years. Didn’t know how to have one, truthfully. What had happened with Darla had soured me on them.
And how.
Not that Ivy and I were in true dating territory. But I wasn’t a dummy. Repeats meant it mattered.
The scent of steak on the grill wafted toward me as I walked past a surf and turf restaurant and down the block to the diner. Passersby smiled at me, and without thinking, I smiled back.
Crescent Cove was infectious. It sneaked into your blood and before you knew it, you weren’t a grouchy, aloof, serious music dude anymore—minus the few times I got a little too deep into my cups. Exactly why I rarely imbibed.
Here, I didn’t even have to. I had a sense of humor anyway. My step was just a little lighter. LA seemed like it was on the other side of the world.
The bell jangled as I opened the diner door. A harbinger. Of what, I wasn’t sure.
Something country was on the juke. Conway Twitty maybe? Not my usual style of music. The place was half full with families and couples clearly fueling up for a night out. Polly, the waitress who’d waited on us earlier, was nowhere in sight. Neither was Ivy.
My heart started to beat too fast. Probably in the back. She hadn’t skipped out.
“Hey there. Back again?” Gina, the waitress I remembered meeting with Ivy the last time I’d visited Crescent Cove strolled toward me. “Let me guess. You’re looking for something special tonight.” She winked and I narrowed my eyes to keep from flushing like a kid.
“Maybe I just want a chicken fried steak.” I didn’t exactly know what that was, but it didn’t sound appealing.
“Oh, I just bet. Prepared by our sweet Ivy?”
“Perhaps. Is she around?”
“Ah-ha. Trying to play it cool. Don’t worry about that with me. I’ll keep your secret.” She grinned. “If the price is right.”
Something about her joke made my hackles rise. I moved past her and walked down the aisle between the booths, heading straight through the pass-through door into the back of the diner. People were calling to each other, and the guy manning the grill swore a blue—no, purple—streak.
I waited for someone to notice me and toss me out, but everyone was preoccupied. And Ivy was nowhere in sight.
Needing a quick escape, I headed toward the back door. I pushed it open and stepped out onto a small raised patio that fronted the lake.
Bingo.
Ivy was leaning on the railing, her long, flame-red ponytail whipping in the wind.
I came up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist. She stiffened and craned her neck to see who was behind her, but she didn’t relax when she saw it was me. If anything, she braced even more.
“You know better than that, Aug. There’s no such thing as being friends with your ex. At least not when it comes to you and Serafina.”
Serafina? That sounded like a Disney princess.
“I didn’t say I was an expert, just warning you to be careful. And you shooing me out of the place tonight says to me that you aren’t planning on keeping it platonic. You know how thin the walls are.”
Hmm. A little late to find out considering our prior romp at the Becks’ place, but good to know. Seemed like sex there was extremely risky.
So, why did that make my cock even harder?
Yes, harder, because I’d gone to stone the moment I’d seen her firm little ass pointing upward as she leaned on the rail. Pity those pants didn’t have the hole in the pocket so I could shamelessly ogle her underwear.
Pervert.
Also, I’d probably better loosen my grip on her waist, since she didn’t believe exes could be friends.
Not even “special” friends? Hmm.
We weren’t exes though. Not exactly. Were we friends with benefits? Strangers with benefits who’d become friends?
This was why I didn’t have relationships. I was such an analytical guy. Exactly why the production side of music suited me so well. It had mathematical aspects that many lay people didn’t realize. Sure, creativity was a big part of it too, but oftentimes mine took a backseat as I figured out the best way to help someone else shine.
Ivy’s hair blew against my face in the breeze and it took everything I possessed not to bury my face in it. In her at the rail where she stood.
So…no labels. We’d just enjoy the moment. That had held us in good stead last time, right?
“Okay, okay, fine, Aug, you do what you want. Me? Uh, why do you want to know?”
Ivy’s apron dipped just enough to allow me to see her tank top and the pink bra strap that matched her panties. I tugged the bra strap aside with my teeth, kissing her shoulder in the process. Freckles exploded over her skin. They were everywhere. A dusting of cinnamon on the palest snow.
Huh, I’d have to integrate that into my
song.
The song I’d written for the woman I’d had a meaningless hookup with.
My teeth scraped her skin, more roughly than I’d intended. She gasped, although she quickly hid it under a cough.
Since that wouldn’t do, I reached around and slipped my hand under her apron, dragging my knuckle between her legs over the seam of her trousers. Rather than closing me out, she opened her thighs and tipped back her head.
I transferred my kisses to the side of her neck, climbing higher until I could suck on her earlobe. Her delicate earring tapped against my teeth. I rubbed my knuckle harder against the fabric, wondering if I was imagining how damp it was already.
Voices sounded below us as people strolled on the sidewalk to the pier that led to the lake. Behind us, someone dropped a plate in the kitchen and a curse rang out.
But Ivy didn’t stop me. She just arched against me and slid the phone away every time she couldn’t hold back a moan.
“You’re going to come for me,” I murmured against her throat.
I told myself her brother couldn’t hear me.
And even if he could, I still wouldn’t stop.
I shifted my hold on her, bringing her more tightly against me so my cock imprinted her back. She whimpered and held the phone away, dangling it over the water while she rocked into the determined movement of my fingers. Still through the cloth. It didn’t matter. Already I’d begun to learn how to touch her. To give her what she needed.
She brought the phone back to her ear. “I’ll just hang out with a…friend tonight.” She barely managed to get the words out before she shattered, gasping and bucking into my palm as she moved the phone between her breasts.
I whirled her around and covered her mouth with my own, needing to taste her first few breaths as she came down from the high. Enjoying far too much how she softly moaned, letting the sound free as if I’d given her permission.
“Say goodbye to your brother,” I said against her lips.
She nodded and lifted the phone. “Sorry. Bad connection. Have fun with Serafina. We’ll talk later.” She clicked off and stared at me with glazed dark brown eyes. “He could’ve heard.”
“He didn’t. You’re very quiet when you come. We have to change that.” I slanted my mouth over hers again, sliding my tongue against hers with the same kind of slow friction I’d use when I drove into her body.
Not that first stroke. The first would be wild and uninhibited, just enough to hurt. Then I’d slow it down, delaying my pleasure until she found hers.
Okay, that was the ideal scenario.
Reality? At this rate, I’d probably come in my pants before she stripped.
“God, I want you.” She wrapped her arms around my neck and we fed off each other like animals, hungry and desperate.
Until the door behind us opened.
“Ladybug?”
Ivy jerked away from me and slammed backward into the railing. I reached around her to rub her back and she flailed, shoving me away.
“Yes, Mitch. Sorry. Just clocked out. I’m off the clock,” she said loudly, as if she expected to be fired at any minute.
If she was going to be let go, I intended to make the reason worthwhile. I’d fuck her against the railing before we left.
“You again. You came back for her?”
I shifted, slipping my hands into the pockets of my trousers. “I came back. Nice to see you again, Mitch.”
He grunted. “A gentleman doesn’t maul his lady in the back of her workplace.”
“Good thing I’m not a gentleman,” I said at the same time Ivy answered him.
“He didn’t maul me.”
Ivy glanced at me. “You so are a gentleman.”
“Whatever he is or is not, we can’t have public displays back here.”
“Yes, the ducks might get jealous. Quack, quack.”
Ivy shot me a look.
I slid my arm around her waist. “You’re right, sir. We’ll just be on our way.”
Mitch nodded. “I think that’s best. Just for your information, I keep a shovel and a shotgun in the trunk of my car.”
“And a concealed carry permit, I hope.”
He grunted at me again and held open the door to the kitchen, ushering us inside.
Ivy gathered her things and quickly said her goodbyes to a few coworkers. Gina waggled her brows, but Ivy didn’t stop to chat.
We made our exit and gazed at each other as we stood on the sidewalk, basically cutting off the flow of Friday night foot traffic.
“The inn?” Ivy asked.
Just as I asked, “Your place?”
She frowned. “You heard me on the phone. August has a friend over.”
“A friend you don’t want him to fuck. He won’t, if he’s too worried about you hearing him fuck.”
“Yes, but I want to fuck. Hello.” She stepped forward and grabbed me by the lapels of the light jacket I’d put on after visiting with Kellan. “Did you miss the part about me wanting you?”
“No, and the feeling is definitely mutual.” As if we weren’t on a busy sidewalk, I grabbed one of her hands and discreetly brought it down between us. She gripped me shamelessly, moving so close that no one could see.
Maybe.
“You’re a little exhibitionist.”
“You’re a big one.” She licked her lips. “So, let’s go somewhere and show each other…things.”
I laughed and she blinked up at me as if the sound was foreign. It almost was. Away from Ivy, I definitely didn’t grin and laugh and feel all the things she so effortlessly brought to life inside me. She made me feel young again, in a way I’d never been. Outside of cutting up a few times a year with some mates, frivolity wasn’t a part of my life.
Except with her.
“We can’t go back to the bed and breakfast yet.”
“Why not?”
“I’m afraid of Sage.”
Ivy stared at me for a long moment before letting go of my cock to cover her mouth. She laughed so hard her face turned a shade of red not commonly seen in nature.
I crossed my arms. “Go on, enjoy yourself at my expense.”
She dropped her hand. “Afraid of sweet Sage Hamilton. Why?”
“She says things.”
“Oh my God, no.” She touched my arm. “I’m so sorry.”
I shook her off. “She’ll make all sorts of insinuations if I bring you up to my room.”
“Insinuations she’s already made?”
“Well, yes.”
“That are actually true.” She moved closer to me and lifted her hand to my cheek. “I didn’t get a chance to tell you I like the thicker scruff.”
I covered her hand with my own. “I didn’t get to shave.”
“Don’t.” She inched up on her tiptoes and rubbed her nose against mine. That move should not have been hot, but it definitely worked for me. Especially when she followed it up with, “I want to feel it between my thighs.”
“Christ. I’m never shaving again.”
She grinned up at me. “One little victory. I liked our room at the bed and breakfast.”
The word our made me itchy between the shoulder blades. And surprisingly happy.
I shouldn’t encourage her to think of us that way.
Shouldn’t encourage myself.
It was just an accident of timing that I was back in this town with her.
That you asked Kellan to meet you at the diner, because she was your first thought.
“We’ll go back under the cover of darkness.” Then again, Sage had been manning the desk at midnight last time. “Super darkness,” I added when Ivy tipped up her head to stare at the star-speckled night sky.
“Whatever you say, LC.” She slipped her arm through mine and I led her over to my rental car. She grinned and patted the roof as if she’d missed it. “Got her back again, huh?”
“Why are all vehicles female?”
“Because they purr when they accelerate.”
“This one d
oes not purr. More like rumbles.”
“Same difference.” The vehicle unlocked and she slid inside the passenger side before I had a chance to grab her door. Then she stuck her tongue out at me.
Shaking my head, I came around to the driver’s side and slipped inside. “Where are we headed? Since you won’t go home.”
“And since Sage is so super scary.”
I arched a brow and waited.
“I know a place. Do a U-turn here and make a left at the blinking light.”
“Uh-uh, you’re not directing me back to the bed and breakfast, ginger fairy. Also, seatbelt.”
She sighed heavily and put it on. “So suspicious. Just trust me.”
I waited for a break in traffic and did as she asked, sliding a look at her when I came to the blinking light. I turned left, cruising past the bed and breakfast.
“Keep going.”
After about five minutes, during which I followed the curving road past increasingly larger and larger homes—some damn near mansions—and a golf course, I finally reached over and pinched her thigh. “Are you leading me into the woods?”
“Better. Stop up there.” She pointed.
I squinted into the darkness. The street lights were few and far between up here. “Where?”
“See those two huge trees? Veer left between them. But be careful.”
“Because I’m driving into the fucking forest?”
“No, because if you go too far, you’ll drive into the fucking lake.”
I hit the brakes with a loud squeal.
Ivy doubled over, laughing. “Seriously, it’s easy. Just coast off the road. You have plenty of warning where to stop. It’s a clearing. There’s just no fencing on that one tiny part.”
“No fencing. Right. If I sink this car, I won’t be getting my deposit back.”
She laughed harder.
I obliged her, and lo and behold, she was right. The clearing was tucked away enough to be unobtrusive to passing cars, but if one was careful—and I was nothing if not that—it wasn’t hard to figure out how far to go.
The sign my headlights flashed over that warned about the boat launch helped as well.
I turned off the engine and turned to her. “Now what?” I was pretty sure I knew, and I was okay with it. Chilly spring weather or not, I was certain we’d keep each other warm.