Chapter 15

When my cock slipped from her body, I pushed off her and went to the bathroom to get rid of the condom. I smiled at the soreness all over me. I couldn’t remember ever feeling the way I did. Knowing the woman in my bed was going to change me forever, and being happy about it.

Reality didn’t have a place in that moment. I wasn’t going to think about it.

She used the bathroom after me, then crawled into bed next to me and rested her head on my chest. She trailed teasing fingers over my stomach, not speaking.

The soft feel of her hand had my eyes fluttering closed before she whispered something I didn’t quite hear. “What was that?”

Her body shook. “Are you sleeping?”

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

She shook her head against my chest. “It’s okay. Orgasms seem to make men pass out. For me, it’s like energy a lot of the time. All those endorphins make me want to stay up all night.”

“Well, if that’s the case…” I rolled her under me and kissed her until she stopped giggling. Our bodies lined up without effort, her thighs parting to make space for me between them.

Her heat drew me in, almost making me forget about a condom before I sank into her. Once I was covered, I pressed into her body, rubbing my pelvis against her clit with every slow stroke.

“I’ve never come like this,” she whispered.

“Are you going to?”

She nodded and bit her lower lip.

I licked over her lip, drawing it into my mouth as I continued the slow thrusts deep into her channel.

Her heels slid up my calves and hooked around my thighs. Her body tensed and trembled.

I didn’t adjust my pace, letting everything build between us until an orgasm washed over her and set off my own with very little warning.

“Holy shit,” she breathed, pulling me down on top of her.

I kissed her neck and jaw and worked my way to her lips. “Yeah.”

She laughed softly, her eyes falling closed before she let out a huge yawn.

“Wow, way to make a guy feel like he sucks in bed,” I teased her.

She shook her head and smacked my arm. “It’s a compliment. You wore me out.”

“Slow and steady does it for you, huh?”

She shrugged. “I think you do it for me.”

I knew she didn’t mean the words the way I felt them, but damn, did they go straight to my heart.

Falling for her felt inevitable. I didn’t hold back on love. I enjoyed falling in love. But as I rolled out of bed and we went through our routines to get ready to sleep, I knew love had never been like it was with Joelle. Comfortable. Easy. Right.

When we crawled into bed that time, her breathing evened out before mine did, sleep claiming her a lot faster than it did me. I whispered the words I couldn’t say in the daylight and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, telling myself I would enjoy every single day we had together and that it would be enough.

* * *

I dropped Joelle off at the Inn the next morning. I had a full day of work, which I hated when I didn’t know how long she’d be in town, but I vowed to stop wasting my time and spend as much of it with her as possible.

She agreed to dinner Friday night, telling me she was staying with Piper and Zoey Thursday night to watch kids with some of the other women she met at book club.

“You’re making friends here,” I teased her as I parked my truck.

She nodded. “I am. It’s… different. I like it.”

“There are some pretty great people here.”

She leaned across the console. “Yes, there are.”

I met her in the middle and kissed her until my phone buzzed.

She pulled back and reached for the handle. “Go work. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Enjoy tonight,” I said, waving as I dug my phone out of my pocket. I didn’t recognize the number. “Davidson Outdoors.”

“Mr. Davidson, this is Dan Hernandez. How are you today?”

“I’m good, Mr. Hernandez. How are you? Things going okay at the schools?”

“Actually, no. That’s why I’m calling. Karl Downs has been trying to get what he needs for the equipment we have, but he doesn’t think it’ll arrive in time to take care of the properties this weekend. He said you might be able to help us out again.”

I sucked in a breath. “Honestly, sir, I’m not sure. I’ve been trying to figure out how I could do it all. I would love to, but I typically spend all Sunday at MacKellar Cove Inn and Mountain View Retreat. The Retreat has an event on Saturday so I can’t shift that this weekend, and I know the schools are usually taken care of during the week or on Sundays. I might be able to take care of the Inn on Saturday, but I’m not sure I’d have enough time to get through all the schools in the time I have left on Sunday.”

Mr. Hernandez sighed heavily. “Karl had some of it done before you came last weekend. And you deserve some downtime, too.” He inhaled, and I heard the hesitation before he continued. “Would you be willing to let the school use your equipment when you’re not using it? We could work around your availability. Karl has two part-time employees that are great, from what he tells me. He could supervise them like he does now, but we could sign a contract to use your mower since ours is out of commission.”

I considered the option. It would mean a little income for me, helping the district, and not working more hours. “Would you be willing to let me meet with them? All three of them? I like the idea of that, but Karl also mentioned there’s not a lot of work for them during the winter. I’ve also had other contracts I’ve had to turn down because of time. It wasn’t enough work to hire someone else, but if I could work it out…”

“You could put them to work and not have to do everything yourself. We’re kind of desperate, Mr. Davidson. Karl tells me the part he ordered might not be here for a few weeks, and he’s having trouble finding something within the budget the district has for things like this. Karl is pushing hard to outsource the landscaping, and if you think it’s something you could take on permanently, we would sign a contract now for that.”

“Wow. That’s… Karl mentioned that, but I didn’t know if it was where you were going to go. Listen, I have a job I need to get to right now, but if I can meet up with Karl and the part-time workers later today, maybe we can come up with a plan. If that’s okay with you.”

“Absolutely. Thank you. We really appreciate it.”

“So do I, Mr. Hernandez. Thank you for the opportunity.”

“There’s no one else we’d rather work with. I’ll let Karl know you’d like to meet up. Do you have his contact information?”

“I do, yes. I can set something up for us to meet up.”

“That’s perfect. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I hope we can work something out.”

“So do we. We’ll be in touch.”

I hung up and rubbed Molly’s head. She was sitting on the seat, watching me as I took the call. She meowed at me and bumped my hand with her head, asking for more attention.

I sent a quick text to Karl asking for a meeting, letting him know around when I would be free.

I scratched Molly’s head as I pulled out of the Inn parking lot and headed across town to my first job of the day. My phone buzzed before I made it to the next spot, so when I parked, I checked the messages.

Karl offered a time range that would work to meet up. I sent him a text back that I would be there after I was done with my last job of the day, before I packed up for the night.

Molly jumped out of the truck with me and rode along on the mower as I worked my way through the daycare center, then a handful of homes in my parents’ neighborhood. I saved my parents’ house for last and let myself in before I started on their lawn.

“Hello!” I called out when I walked in.

“Back here,” Mom replied from the screened-in porch at the back of the house.

I followed their voices, and Molly, and found my cat already curled up on Mom’s lap when I got to the back. I chuckled.

“She knows she’s loved,” Mom said.

“Yes, she does.” I kissed Mom’s cheek, then clapped Dad on the back. “How are you guys doing today?”

“Good,” Dad said. “Enjoying the fresh air. Wondering when you’re going to have dinner with us again. Maybe tomorrow night?”

“Oh, um, I sort of have plans tomorrow.”

“Landon? We already spoke to him, and he’s going to come,” Mom said.

“You called Landon?”

My parents looked at me like I was crazy.

“I asked him when I picked up flowers yesterday. It was our anniversary. I was going to get roses, but Landon was adamant that I get something more unique. Something special. He showed me those peonies and added in hydrangeas and tulips with those other little ones. What are those called?” he asked my mother.

“Baby’s breath,” Mom said, pointing to the small white clusters.

“That’s right. Your mother cried. I’ve always gotten her roses, but these are different and special. We wanted to have a dinner to celebrate our anniversary, so I invited Landon.”

My head spun as the conversation bounced from topic to topic. All it came down to was I couldn’t say no to my parents.

“Since he already agreed, you can come, too,” Mom said, chuckling when Molly licked her hand. “You, too, my precious girl.”

“I… I didn’t have plans with Landon.”

My parents exchanged a look.

“Who did you have plans with?” Mom asked. “Do you have a date?”

“I do, actually.”

“Oh, bring her. We would love to meet her. Wait, is this a first date? That might be weird.”

“It’s not a first date,” I answered before I thought about what I was saying.

“Perfect. Then bring her.” Mom sipped her coffee and glared at me over the rim, daring me to argue.

I couldn’t. When my parents decided on something, I went along with it. It didn’t matter that I was thirty-seven and living on my own, they were my parents. And after almost losing my dad, I did whatever they wanted me to do. “Okay.”

“Good.”

I warred with myself about inviting Joelle to meet my parents as I cut their grass. I had never introduced a woman to my parents. Mostly because I hadn’t dated at all since moving back to MacKellar Cove. I met women for drinks, had a few casual flings, but I hadn’t dated anyone. Not seriously. Not until Joelle.

Not that we were serious. But I knew I would want that if she was sticking around.

I pushed all the worries I had about Joelle aside as I pulled into the school parking lot and headed for Karl and two young people standing near him. Karl waved as I pulled up and parked next to them.

I climbed out, letting Molly out with me. She chirped and took off running to the grass.

“Is she going to take off?” the young woman asked.

I shook my head. “She knows how good she has it, but she was a stray, so she likes to run a little. I’m Andre.” I offered her my hand.

“Gail. Nice to meet you, sir.”

“You, too.” I turned to the young man and offered my hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m Andre.”

“You, too, sir. I’m Carson.”

They both had firm handshakes and met my gaze. With Karl’s glowing recommendation, I had high expectations for these two.

I turned to Karl. “Good to see you again. Although I imagine not so good for you.”

Karl chuckled. “Yeah. It’s been a rough few days. Thanks for coming over here again. Dan said you might be willing to figure something out.”

I shrugged. “I have time when the equipment isn’t running. Everything for landscaping fits on the trailer. But I only have so many hours in me.”

Karl nodded, and we both turned to Gail and Carson.

“You’re considering hiring one or both of them to take over some projects,” Karl stated.

“I am. But that’s where we all have to come to an agreement.” I laid out my thoughts, from maintaining the school property to the other projects I’d turned down recently. I reached out to the companies I’d declined before and found out they were still looking for a solution. Running one of the only landscaping companies in town was working in my favor.

“It sounds to me like you might have enough work to keep them busy, but it’s a lot on your equipment,” Karl said.

I nodded. “It is, but it’s new. I bought it two years ago, and I’ve been slowly building my business since then. The first year, I only did residential work. Last year, I picked up Mountain View Retreat and added a few commercial projects on top of the residential. This year, I’m about at my limit, but the equipment has been great. Stone Auto Repair maintains it for me, even though it’s a little outside their normal stuff. They have one guy who’s great with everything, and he’s the only one who touches the mower.”

“What would you ask us to do?” Gail asked.

“The first thing is this property. You both know it better than I do. You’ve been doing the work. I would keep you aware of my schedule and make sure we work around each other. If things continue to go well, I would look at getting another mower next year and seeing what other opportunities we could find. There is an upper limit, though. Work like this takes time. There are no shortcuts, and the earning potential is somewhat capped.”

“Sir, if I may?” Carson asked.

I nodded for him to go ahead.

“Gail and I both came to this career knowing the risks. We love being outside, we work well as a team, and we are willing to do hard work. We’ve been best friends since we were seven. We are roommates and enjoy each other’s company. But neither of us has much interest in being in charge. We like the work, not the business side of things.”

I chuckled. “So what you’re telling me is you want to do the work, and you’re not going to learn everything you can, then start your own business and steal all my clients.”

“No, sir,” they said together.

I met Karl’s gaze. He smiled, nodding like he knew they would say this. “It sounds to me like we can make this work. If you two are willing.”

“Yes, sir,” they said.

“I’ve never been a boss before,” I admitted. “We’re all going to be learning together. We can work out all the details, but I know this project needs to be done this weekend.” I looked to Karl for confirmation.

“Sunday is usually when we get the bulk of the work done since the school is open five days a week and there are sporting events most Saturdays. We can do some of it during the school day, but on Sunday, everything is quiet.”

“I typically spend Sundays at Mountain View Retreat and MacKellar Cove Inn. I can take to them about handling the Inn on Saturdays, but the Retreat is harder since they have events on Saturdays and will have campers there during the week.”

“But when the camp is in session, school will not be. Is there a weekday you are normally off? We can do everything then,” Gail suggested.

“I try to take a day off every week, but it shifts depending on the weather.”

“We might have to do this over a few days if we have more limited availability,” Carson said.

“We will figure something out. Let me go through my schedule and see if there are things I can shift around some. Since I never had to worry about it before, I never tried. But I think we can make this work.”

“You’re doing us a huge favor, Andre,” Karl said.

“I’m looking forward to it, too.” I turned to Carson and Gail. “Let’s get you two on the mower and drive a little.”

They agreed, eager to learn. They took turns while Karl and I coached them on the intricacies of the controls.

When we were done, I called for Molly and headed to Blossom & Grow to drop off the trailer. I stopped in to see Landon as he was closing up.

“You’re not ready,” he said when I walked in.

“Ready for what?”

“I thought we were going to O’Kelley’s tonight. Meeting up with the guys.”

“Shit. I forgot.”

“Sex brain?”

I rolled my eyes. “Speaking of, thanks for not telling me about my parents’ anniversary.”

He snorted. “I assumed you knew.”

“That we’re going to their house for dinner tomorrow night? And so is Joelle?”

Landon’s brows shot up. “Interesting.”

“Yeah. Got caught on that one when I told them I had plans, and they assumed my plans were with you.”

Landon laughed. “Well, it’ll be a fun night, that’s for sure. Go home and shower. You stink. I’ll pick you up in thirty minutes.”

I waved my hand and headed out the back, Molly on my heels.

On the drive to O’Kelley’s, I told Landon about the job to maintain the school district property and hiring two employees. We talked about it after I helped the district on Sunday, and he knew I liked the idea of expanding. But he also understood the struggle of time and money. He’d been talking about hiring someone for years but hadn’t jumped yet.

We were still talking about it when we took a seat at the bar, and Ramsey Holland turned to me.

“Do you need some help?” Ramsey asked.

I’d forgotten he was a lawyer and considered the offer. “Actually, I might. I’ve never had employees before. What do I need to know?”

Hudson chuckled and set a drink in front of me. “Good luck.”

“It’ll be fine,” Ramsey said. “Can you stop by tomorrow?”

I ran through my schedule in my head and nodded. “Yeah, I can be there around ten or after one.”

“Either works.”

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. It’s what I do,” Ramsey said.

“What do you do?” Dr. Nico Allison asked.

“I help businesses get up and running,” Ramsey said.

Nico nodded. “He does. Damn good at it, too. You have the landscaping company, right?”

I nodded. “I do. Andre Davidson.”

“After you talk to him, come talk to me. The guy who’s been doing my landscaping is moving, and I need someone new. If you have time.”

“He will after he hires two new people,” Landon answered for me.

“Yeah? Give me a call,” Nico said.

I nodded. “I will. Thanks.”

“No, thank you. I was trying to figure out what I was going to do. I don’t have a lawnmower.” Nico rolled his eyes.

“He owns an island and a condo,” Ramsey provided. “No need for landscaping at home.”

“I’d rather pay someone else to take care of it.”

“I understand that. It’s why I’m in business.”

“Do you have a plow service, too?” Nico asked.

I chuckled. “Yes, I do.”

“Even better.”

I exchanged contact information with Nico and smiled. Maybe this was all going to work out.