“Not cool, Eddie. If Fairview gets wind—”

“Chill out.” He spotted a familiar car pull into the lot and broke into a grin. “I’m all over this.”

Jack saw whom he’d spotted and said, “You’re in over your head with that one.” Then he turned his attention back to Rob. “So tomorrow…for sure?”

Rob checked the screen one more time. “Yes, for sure that order will be in tomorrow, first thing.”

“Well, today is shot.” Jack checked the time on his cell. “I guess it’s paperwork for me this afternoon. Come on, I’ll drive you home.”

“Nah, I’m cool.” He watched Laura stride in, a baby-blue sundress fluttering around her gleaming, tanned legs. “Looks like my ride just got here.” He gave her a big smile. “Isn’t that right, sugar?”

She got that look she got, the one that said she couldn’t decide whether she wanted to kiss him or kick him. “Isn’t what right?”

Jack laughed and patted him on the shoulder. “Told you. Out of your league, brother.”

“You’re gonna give me a ride.” He gave her an affectionate wink. “By the way, that’s a real cute haircut.”

That flummoxed her. “Thanks.”

He couldn’t wait to run his fingers through those soft waves. “It’s lighter, too.”

She touched it, looking a little self-conscious. “You’re not supposed to be able to tell.”

“I notice everything about you, darlin’.”

Her eyes darted from him to the other men, as though remembering she and Eddie weren’t the only ones in the room. She put her purse on the counter and proceeded to ignore him, exchanging pleasantries with Rob.

Jack shook his head, chuckling. “So, tomorrow…we’ll hit the site seven sharp?”

He touched a finger to his cap. “It’s a plan.”

Laura cut her eyes his way. “Well…good-bye, Eddie.”

“Don’t you worry.” He leaned against the counter. “I’m not going anywhere. I told you, you’re my ride.”

She frowned, looking unsure of her next move.

Rob was the first to fill the silence, asking Laura, “What did you say you needed?”

Eddie smiled, not taking his eyes from her. “She didn’t.”

Her head swung toward him. “What?”

“You didn’t say what you needed. Our friend here is trying to clock out.”

“Did you need something?” Rob asked again.

“I think she does need something. Don’t you, tiger?”

Rob was clueless to the flirting, focused only on how many minutes it was till one o’clock.

Her cheeks flushed. “Well, if you must know, I thought I’d swing by to…”

“To?” Eddie raised his brows. He was desperately curious now—why was she acting so uncharacteristically shy?

Staring exclusively at Rob, she finished in a rush, “I came by to get the petition and ask you to take down the flyers.”

Eddie cracked a huge smile. Progress. “Taking down the petitions, huh? Does that mean I’m not such a bad guy after all?”

“It doesn’t mean anything,” she shot back.

It sounded a lot like what she’d told him during their first kiss. He rubbed his jaw. “I feel like I’ve heard you say those words before…”

She grew visibly agitated.

Rob gathered all the bright yellow flyers and handed them over. “If that’s all you need…”

“Surely you remember.” He leaned against the counter, giving her his full attention. “Doesn’t mean anything. If you don’t remember saying the words…well, maybe that means you didn’t mean them.”

“Bye then.” Rob looked relieved to finally be getting out of there. “If you need anything else, Tom is in the back office.”

“Later, Haskell,” Eddie said automatically, but his gaze hadn’t budged from Laura. “Now, let’s see…as I recall, you told me nothing was changing. Nothing would be different.”

He studied her profile, watched her chest rise with a deep breath. She turned to face him.

That was the woman he knew—never one to back off in a showdown. He loved that about her. He pitched his voice lower, wishing he could pin her up against the counter, then and there. “Were you wrong? Is it different for you now, Laura?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said weakly.

“How about I remind you?” He took a step closer and ran his hand down her smooth, bare arm.

She didn’t flinch away; she only stared up at him raptly, her lips slightly parted. She’d been with pretty city boys, but just then he wondered if Laura had ever been with a man.

She didn’t move away, but she didn’t move forward, either. But it was all good. He was happy to be the one with the moves.

He swept his hand down one last time, twining his fingers with hers. “I need to speak with you outside.”

“You do?” She was wide-eyed, resembling that cornered cat again.

There was a distant phone ringing. Tom’s voice carried to them from the back office.

He nodded somberly. He was barely keeping his head, he wanted her so bad. “I think maybe we should take this to my place.”

“All right,” she said finally. Her hand tightened, her fingers squeezing his. “Maybe we should.”

Twenty-seven

Laura felt so naughty. So recklessly, wickedly bad in a way she’d previously only fantasized about.

She was blowing off work for the afternoon…to be with Eddie. He’d taken her hand. It’d felt so good, and yet she’d had to make herself not pull away. Make herself keep her cool. Keep her head.

She barely remembered the car ride to his place.

She wanted him, and she told herself it was okay to want him. For once, she’d let herself be this person who said sexy things to sexy men.

She pulled into the gravel driveway, and the moment she yanked the emergency brake into place, he was reaching over the center console, sweeping the hair from her brow, cupping her face and turning it to his. “You’re sure?” he asked her.

She put her hand on his cheek, ready. Now that she’d made her decision, she was eager to make out right there. “I’m sure.”

But Eddie closed the gap slowly, taking a deep and gentle kiss.

“Come on, then,” he whispered as he pulled away. He was out of the car and opening the door for her before she’d even caught her breath.

He kept a hand on her lower back as they went up to the porch. He’d been so slow and deliberate in the car, but the tension between them grew with each step, his movements becoming urgent. He kept his hand on her waist as he fumbled with the keys.

The door unlocked and the keys jingled in the knob as it swung open. He swept her inside, yanked off his cap, threw it across the floor. He didn’t pause to shut the door. He simply closed in, his body hot and hard along her chest and thighs.

“Eddie.” She pressed into him, sliding her hands along his waist. “Is this really happening?”

“Yes, hell yes.” He claimed her mouth in a kiss that exploded to life. It wasn’t slow, or gradual; it was frantic and hungry. A kiss that’d been simmering for years.

“Wait.” He pulled away, looking winded. “Dammit,” he hissed under his breath. “Not yet.”

“What?” She tried tugging him back.

“I’ve got to shower.”

She curled her fingers, holding tight to his shirt. She wanted him, and she wanted him now. “No, you don’t.”

“Yes, I do. A few hours ago, I was hauling old drywall to the dump.” He cradled her face in his hands. “Laura, I’ve been waiting, what, fifteen years for this moment? I’d rather my smell not turn you off before we even start.”

This moment? She knew what he meant, and her skin tugged tight in anticipation. She debated offering to shower with him. There were women who would have. She could’ve purred something sexy about washing his back.

“You smell just fine to me,” she said instead, but she let his shirt slide from her fingers, anyway. She wasn’t that brave. Yet.

“I’ll be two minutes.” He disappeared into the bathroom and soon the sound of the shower filled the tiny cabin.

Waiting made her nervous. She fought the urge to check her cell phone, vowing she’d give herself an afternoon to be this new Laura. This carefree Laura. The one who skipped out of work for a little afternoon delight.

She knew she’d find only the usual messages, anyway. Lodge reservations, cancellations, inquiries. Maybe something from the film crew—they were supposed to be shooting in the old Town Hall today, and she got the impression the Kidd ladies weren’t well acquainted with the concept of quiet on the set. She’d probably have a few new texts from her old boss, too.

She pushed all of it from her mind. Sorrow and Hope could handle any emergencies, the film guys could deal with themselves, and as for her old CEO, she’d turned him down twice now, and it was time he got the hint.

She realized she was still standing stiffly in the same spot and wandered in, consciously trying to relax. Eddie’s place. How strange to be standing there, able to take it all in, unwatched. The last time she’d been over, a rash had been erupting all over her legs, and what she’d seen of the cabin hadn’t extended much past what she could spy from where she’d sat on the edge of his tub.

He’d built the place himself, and it was surprisingly charming. Small and tidy, holding the fresh smell of the logs it’d been built with. It had a masculine feel, decorated with rich colors, like the chocolate of the leather couch, a hunter-green throw blanket, and a soft maroon area rug atop the dark, timber plank floor.

The cabin itself was open and airy. A bar in a roughly hewn style was the only thing separating the modest living area from the kitchen. The appliances were modern, the stainless streamlined and spotless.