Chapter 5

Andre

I was playing with fire. I knew it. But I couldn’t stop myself. At. All.

I made one pass and was disappointed when I looked up and Joelle wasn’t standing at her window watching me. My dick surged hard when I saw her standing there, but it deflated in a hurry when I checked again and the curtains were in place and she wasn’t anywhere to be seen.

A whistle broke through the sound of the lawnmower, and I looked at the porch. There was the beauty.

Fuck. Me.

She was fucking gorgeous. In that blue dress the other day, she was hot as sin, but with her hair rumpled and her face flushed with the same desire rushing through me, she was a goddess.

I drove toward her, pulling the lawnmower to a stop near the edge of the porch. “Good morning.”

She arched one eyebrow. “It was until someone woke me up.”

“There are so many ways I’d love to wake you up,” I said, adding a smirk to see what she would do.

“Is that so?” She pushed off the railing and moved to the stairs.

My dick throbbed, every step she took toward me like one stroke of her hand over my aching cock.

“You have other pieces of equipment you want to drive all over this place to disturb my sleep?”

I threw my head back and laughed. Shock and delight only added to the hardness of my cock. I loved a woman who could give it right back to me and make me work for it.

Especially when she looked like a walking wet dream.

“I have all kinds of equipment for you,” I said.

She stopped, her face twisting. “Okay, I think this metaphor has run its course because now you have me a little worried.”

I laughed. “You started it.”

“You’re the one here—” she checked her nonexistent watch “—before ten, waking me up.”

I chuckled. “I am. Because I have a busy day, and it’s supposed to rain later, so I need to get through my work early. Rain and lawnmowers don’t really go well together.”

She nodded, looking slightly disappointed. “Oh.”

“Waking you up is just a bonus.”

She smirked, fighting her smile and failing. “Uh huh.” She stepped off the walkway and approached me.

I watched her, the subtle swing of her hips that was more economical than teasing but tempted me all the same. The way she pulled her lip between her teeth like she wasn’t sure of herself. The quick steps that brought her closer to me with every breath I took.

When she reached me, she stopped, then grabbed my sweaty, dirty tee before I could warn her it was gross. She yanked it over her head, shoving her arms in and tugging the hem down past her hips.

Fuck. Me. Hard. That woman looked damn good in my shirt. “You’re way too pretty to be wearing something so disgusting. It has to smell horrible.”

She lifted the collar and brought it to her nose. “It smells pretty good to me.”

Well, damn. If that wasn’t the ultimate turn-on, I didn’t know what was. “Let me smell.”

She smirked and moved closer, tilting her head back to give me access.

I pressed my nose to her neck and inhaled deep. She smelled like sleep and some expensive perfume and turned-on woman. My hand rested on her hip, pulling her closer as I went in for another sniff, unable to stop at just one whiff of her.

Her breath shuddered from her, a sound suspiciously similar to a whimper.

“You smell like breakfast.”

A laugh popped from her, and she took a step back. “Piper is making it right now. I must have picked up the scent when I was walking through.”

“You didn’t eat yet?”

She shook her head.

“Can I—?”

“Meeeowwww,” tore through the air.

“Crap,” I hissed.

“Is that…?” Joelle looked past me to where Molly was no longer sleeping in her new cage.

“Joelle, meet Molly,” I said, stepping to the side so she could see my favorite living creature. “Molly, be nice to Joelle.”

Molly stretched and eyed the woman approaching. She meowed and pressed her body to the cage, asking Joelle to pet her.

Joelle looked at me.

“She wants you to rub her back.”

She hesitated.

“She’s really friendly. She doesn’t bite, and she’s a sucker for any attention she can get. But if she doesn’t get her attention, she will make you regret it.”

Joelle’s eyes widened, pulling back before she reached for Molly. “What does that mean?”

“It means she holds a grudge.” I moved over to the cage and stuck my finger inside to stroke Molly’s side. “The first time I left her home alone to work, she screamed all day, and when I got home, she ignored me and hid when I tried to pet her.”

“No, she didn’t.”

I glared at Joelle.

She laughed. “Oh, my God. She’s a passive-aggressive cat.”

“Yeah, but she’s the best thing ever. I was pretty gone for her when I found her.”

“Love at first sight,” Joelle teased.

I smiled at Joelle. “Definitely.”

She sucked in a breath like she understood I was not just referring to Molly.

I couldn’t count the number of times I’d fallen in love. I didn’t hide my heart or hold back from giving it away. If I wasn’t out there looking for love, I’d miss it if it came along. Life was no fun alone, and I was happy to have as much fun as possible.

Unlike Landon, who was still nursing his broken heart and maybe would be for years to come. I’d never been that lost when something ended with a woman. He said it meant I wasn’t really in love with any of the women I’d been with, but I chose to believe my heart knew when it was done and was happy to move on.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been in love,” Joelle said.

“You should try it,” I said, smiling at her. “It’s a lot of fun.”

She narrowed her eyes at me. “I’m sure it is. If it’s the right person.”

“Sometimes the right person is just for right now. Sometimes they’re forever. Who are we to say the right person right now can’t be right again one day, or forever one day? We get too hung up on finding the perfect forever to enjoy what we have right now. Life is short.”

“You sound like you’re speaking from experience.”

I shrugged. “I guess I am. I moved away from here for a while, but my dad got sick, and I moved back. I picked up my life and came home to help my parents without considering any other option. Seeing my dad like that was a reminder that we never know how much time we have, so if we waste it with our ideas of what things are supposed to be like, we can end up frustrated and missing out.”

“That’s fairly insightful.”

I grinned. “I’m a very insightful person.”

She smiled at me and I got lost in her again. She was gorgeous. No frills or fanciness needed. In my dirty Davidson Outdoors tee, she was gorgeous.

“Are you keeping my shirt?”

“For now.”

My brows went up. “You’re going to give it back to me?”

“Maybe. If you ask nicely.”

I nodded slowly, not at all interested in getting my shirt back. “It looks a hell of a lot better on you.”

Her cheeks turned pink. “I’ve never worn a man’s shirt before.”

My dick throbbed. “You’re killing me.”

She smiled, understanding what I wasn’t saying. “Then I guess I’m keeping your shirt.”

“Hell yes.”

She turned and walked back up onto the porch. She sat down and put her feet up on the railing. “Don’t mind me.”

I groaned. “Killing me!”

She laughed, the sound going straight through me and making me want to hear it over and over again. Sex with her would be fun. Anything with her would be fun.

I scratched Molly again, then climbed on the lawnmower. I smiled as I maneuvered it out to the grass, making my rounds as Joelle watched me work. In my shirt.

Definitely love at first sight.

* * *

When I finished the Inn, Joelle was talking to Piper. I didn’t want to interrupt, so I loaded up my equipment slowly and waited to see if she’d say something to me. She was gone when I finished loading up, so I headed to Mountain View Retreat without another glimpse of her in my shirt.

The summer camp was getting ready to open for the season, but there were weddings and graduations booked on the property through June, so I was keeping up with it and making sure everything was taken care of.

The place was one of my favorite spots in town. It was what made my career possible and gave me a sense of accomplishment. Natalie kept trying to pay me for the work I did to maintain it, but I insisted the free publicity she gave me was worth way more than anything I would charge her.

Plus, Mountain View Retreat was where I found Molly, and I couldn’t ask for a better gift than that.

Mountain View Retreat was the one place Molly could run while I worked. She liked to enjoy the freedom we didn’t always get at home. Living in a small apartment was great for my budget, but not so great for my cat. She couldn’t get enough time outside, and there were times I wondered if she was part dog. She played fetch, and she loved up on me like every dog I’d ever known.

Plus, she was fiercely loyal and the best companion ever.

I didn’t see Molly as I worked, but I wasn’t worried. She knew the property better than I did, and she was careful to avoid the lawnmower. When I was done and had the lawnmower loaded up, she came running out from somewhere on the far side of the property. I opened the truck door for her to jump in. She curled up on her seat, a little ball of exhausted fur.

I climbed in next to her and cranked up the a/c. My body was warm from the late spring sun, even more since Joelle stole my tee. I couldn’t stop my smile at the thought.

Who would have thought the prim and proper guest was hiding a secret flirty side with a penchant for dirty landscapers?

The woman tempted me in ways I hadn’t been tempted in a long time. When I first moved back, I was so focused on my dad that I didn’t date at all. Once he was back to full strength, my parents kept finding reasons to keep me home, which was not overly conducive to dating.

~Hey, baby, want to sneak up to my bedroom in my parents’ house and make zero noise?~

Not sexy.

Getting my own place was the right call, but it wasn’t long after I moved that Davidson Outdoors expanded and I found Molly. Shortly after that, Landon and Reegan ended things, and I couldn’t be the dick best friend who waved sex under my buddy’s nose when he wasn’t getting any.

But Landon was doing better. And Molly was damn good. And my business had grown so much in a year that I could barely keep up with my schedule.

It had been years since my last relationship ended. Maybe it was time for a little fun. With a sexy guest of the Inn who liked to steal t-shirts.

I parked the trailer at Blossom & Grow, then headed home. Molly went to her bed and gave herself a bath while I jumped in the shower. I scrubbed myself twice to make sure I was clean, then got dressed and grabbed my keys before I could talk myself out of the crazy idea I had.

I smiled when I saw Joelle’s car at MacKellar Cove Inn. I parked across the lot and went inside, hoping Piper and Zoey would take pity on me and tell me where Joelle was.

Gavin looked up from the desk when I walked in. He tilted his head. “Hey. What are you doing back here?”

“Uh, hey. I was hoping to talk Joelle into getting dinner with me.”

Gavin grinned, his entire face twisting into a smirk.

The ass.

“Joelle, huh? Piper said she’s really nice.”

“I think so, too,” I said carefully.

“And that she’s in need of a little… fun.”

I tried not to smile and failed. “I was hoping she might be.”

“Are you going to hurt her?”

“Dude, I barely know her. I have no intentions of hurting her, but sometimes things get messy.”

“That didn’t sound like a no.”

“Did you intend to hurt Piper when you started dating? Because I heard there was a big misunderstanding between the two of you and you walked.” I crossed my arms and glared at the man who wrote one of my paychecks.

It might have been a bad idea to challenge him.

Gavin scowled at me. “Fine. I concede.”

“Then will you tell me where she is?”

“Oh, she’s not here.”

“What? Her car’s outside.”

“Yeah, but she’s at book club with the ladies. Sunday night. My wife and sister insisted Joelle go.”

“Seriously?”

Gavin shrugged. “Yep. Guess you’ll have to try to talk her into dinner some other time.”

“You could have led with that.”

“What fun would that have been?”

I rolled my eyes.

“You wanna hang out with Sebastian and me? The kids are asleep and the fire pit is close enough for us to keep an eye on both houses. He’s bringing the beer.”

“Since my dinner plans are shot, sounds good.”

Gavin laughed. “I’m happy to hear we’re an acceptable replacement for Joelle.”

“I didn’t say that.”

Gavin laughed even harder. “Yeah, well, I’ll believe what I want.”

“Mind if I order some food?”

“Nope. We were going to do the same. What are you thinking about?” Gavin asked.

I shook my head. “I don’t know, since I was planning to have a date tonight.”

“Aw, I’ll be your date. But I don’t put out.”

I snorted. “You shouldn’t say that to your wife.”

“She’s the exception to every single one of my rules.”

“I’m sure she’s happy to know that.”

“There are days…”

I laughed as the front door opened.

“Last check-in,” Gavin said. “I’ll meet you out there.”

I nodded and walked toward the door, passing the couple who just walked in.

“Welcome to MacKellar Cove Inn,” Gavin said. “Are you Kristen and Zane?”

“We are.”

“Welcome. We’re so happy to…”

I walked out the door as Gavin spoke. The fire pit was already blazing when I turned the corner, the glow of the flames drawing me in.

Sebastian looked up when I got closer. “Hey. I didn’t know you were here.”

“I came to ask Joelle out to dinner. Gavin said she’s at book club.”

“Joelle?”

“Yeah.” I took a seat next to Sebastian. “Why? Is there a reason I shouldn’t?”

He stared at the fire for a long moment. “Just tread lightly with her. I… She seems to be working through some things.”

“What things?”

Sebastian shook his head. “Not really my place to say. Zoey and Piper have been spending some time with her. Maybe talk to them about it before you get in too deep.”

“What are you not telling me?”

“Did you order food?” Gavin asked from behind me.

“We didn’t talk about it yet,” Sebastian said. He looked past Gavin and smiled. “Hi.”

“Hey. Gavin invited us to join you,” the guy I’d seen walking into the Inn said. He held hands with the woman I saw.

“This is Kristen and Zane. They’re up from the Finger Lakes. Do you remember Alyssa and Jake that were here when the bathroom flooded?” Gavin asked Sebastian.

“Yeah. Jake was a huge help, and Alyssa was great,” Sebastian said.

“She’s Alyssa’s cousin,” Gavin said.

“Oh, cool. Nice to meet you. My wife is a big fan of your family’s wine,” Sebastian said.

“Thank you,” Kristen said. “We are, too.”

“Join us, guys,” Sebastian said, gesturing to the other chairs around the fire pit.

I wanted to press for what Sebastian wasn’t telling me, but I couldn’t do that in front of strangers.

But what was Sebastian worried about? Joelle flirted with me. She gave as good as she got. She stole my tee. Then said it smelled good.

There was no way she was not single, and he told me before she wasn’t there with anyone.

So, what the hell was going on?

And how was I going to find out?

Did I want to? Or did I want to let Joelle tell me?

That was the right choice, and I knew it. If she didn’t want to go out with me, I wouldn’t push. That wasn’t my style. But if she agreed, I wasn’t going to reject her because Sebastian made it sound like she was fragile.

That woman was not fragile. She was spice and sweetness and sexy, all rolled up in a curvy package that I could not think about when sitting around a fire pit with three men and a married woman.

But I’d definitely think about her later. When I was alone.