Baked (Love Burns #3)

CHAPTER TWELVE

A girl’s night was way overdue. It didn’t even matter that they couldn’t hit the Tipsy Cow, all Rachel wanted was her friend fix. And that’s what she was getting. That and way too much information about Cat’s sex life.

Cat, Rachel, and Libby had been sitting in Libby’s yard for hours, laughing, gossiping, and catching up. When Rachel had parked her butt in the white plastic chair, the sun was still up. But that was no longer the case. The only light on the patio right now was the glare from the kitchen bulb. That was okay though. It added ambiance.

“Okay, okay, enough about me and Cody.” Cat laughed. “What’s going on with you and Hunter? Is it true what they say ... big hands, big feet?”

The remnants of Rachel’s mouthful of wine sprayed over the table as her friends giggled.

“Uh, subtle, Cat,” Rachel mocked. “And never you mind. A lady doesn’t kiss and tell.” She knew a smug smile had formed. If only they knew just how big his feet were.

“True. Lucky there’s no ladies here, huh?”

“Speak for yourself!” Libby pushed at Cat’s arm.

“Oh please, don’t pretend you and Zach don’t get down and dirty at the fire station every other week,” Cat squealed.

“No!” Rachel gasped, her eyes on Libby’s now very pink cheeks. “You do?”

Libby hummed for a moment before replying, “Zach and I might have gotten carried away a couple of times at the fire station.”

“A couple?” Cat smirked at her and then turned back to Rachel. “She’s got a thing for fire station storage closets.”

“You make it sound like a weird fetish!” Libby protested.

“Isn’t it?”

“Uh, no. My fiancé just so happens to be hot as hell.”

“Okay, fine. Lib, you just have a thing for sliding up and down your fireman’s pole.” Rachel was laughing now. But Cat wasn’t done. “See, Rach, no ladies here. Now spill. You been helping Hunter prime his pump?”

“Oh my God!” Rachel feigned offense through her chuckles. “You’re just one big walking innuendo, aren’t you?”

Cat simply winked and snatched up her wine glass.

“Anyway,” Libby piped up, “all jokes aside, are things with you and Hunter going well? You both seemed pretty loved up at Matt’s birthday party.”

Things were going amazing. Hunter was amazing. He’d taken three weeks off work just so he could look out for her, and he was spending all day, every day with her. She couldn’t decide what she liked most: him helping out at the bakery, the drool-worthy dinners he cooked her, or the brain cell-frazzling he managed to do every night.

Who are you kidding? It’s totally the brain frazzle.

“Honestly, yeah, things are going well. Scarily well. So much so, I feel like sometimes it’s just a bit too good to be true.”

“Yes, because being hunted down by your dad’s loan sharks is peak goodness, Rach.” Cat had a point. Even if it was dripping in sarcasm. “I don’t think it’s too good to be true, I think it’s about damn time you got some happy. You deserve it, honey.”

Who even knew what happy was? She’d spent all of her life going through the motions. Surviving. But maybe Cat was right. Maybe she was due something else. Something more.

“I hope so. I really like him, I’m just scared of messing things up,” she confessed.

“What makes you think you’d mess things up?” Libby asked.

“You mean apart from the fact that I don’t know what I’m doing?” Rachel sighed. “I don’t know, I just feel like I’ve gone through life experiencing the knock-off version of relationships. And Hunter is like a designer label I can’t afford.”

“What the fuck?” A booming, pissed-off voice forced all of their attention to the double doors.

Hunter.

Isn’t this about the time the ground swallows me up? Can it hurry up, please?

Dark eyes were burning into her, which only made her sink further into the chair.

“Uh, I think I hear Zach calling.” Libby stood and grabbed Cat’s arm. “Come on, Cat, let’s go check.”

Subtle.

Traitors!

She would have to remember to scold her friends for abandoning her later because right now she had bigger problems. Hunter was stalking toward her, not stopping until he was bent over her chair, big hands curling around the plastic arms. His face was in hers a moment later.

“What the hell do you mean you can’t afford me?”

Seriously? Thanks again, universe.

“Is there a reason you’re eavesdropping on girls’ night?” Distraction tactics were all she had.

“Answer my question, honeybun.”

Damnit.

“It’s nothing. I was just joking around. I take it you’re here to pick me up?”

“Try again, baby.”

She took it back. The man wasn’t a designer garment. He was the itchy label that irritated your skin and drove you to near insanity.

“Can we talk about this at home?”

She saw something flash in his eyes. Whatever it was, it was enough to uncrease the wrinkles on his forehead.

“If you think I’m going to forget, you’re wrong.”

“Is that a yes?” She gave him the puppy dog eyes he couldn’t resist, suppressing a smile as a sexy rumble emanated from his chest.

It was totally a yes.

***

“B aby,” Hunter groaned , “I know what you’re doing!”

What she was doing, was Hunter. Her teeth had begun scraping down his neck as soon as she’d straddled his lap. She wanted to taste every part of him. It also helped that every lick and suck she applied to his skin was met with goosebumps. It was almost addictive.

Her hands wanted in on the action too. They started at his shoulders and trailed down his chest, her fingers committing every hard ridge to memory.

As Rachel’s mouth latched onto the curve of his neck, she smiled as another hoarse groan left Hunter’s lips. Her heart was racing now, and not just from the sound of his growls. His big hands had begun molding her ass cheeks. Combine that with her rocking and his thrusting, it was no wonder her eardrums were pounding.

They were like horny teenagers, fully clothed and dry humping on the couch, racing to get each other off. And she couldn’t get enough. Her body ached for him in ways she wasn’t sure was normal.

Needing another taste of his lips, she released the abused skin on his neck, but before she could reach his mouth, she was being flipped onto the gray cushions. Hunter easily slipped between her thighs as he put all his weight on one elbow and hovered over her.

“Honeybun,” he panted, “if you want me to take care of you, then you’re gonna have to explain what you said earlier first.”

No fucking fair.

This was madness. He was just as turned on as her. She not-so-subtly looked down at his bulging jeans as if to make her point.

He was smirking by the time she met his eyes again. “Something up, baby?”

“Something is definitely up.” She grinned back at him. “Want a hand with that?”

“Oh, I want more than your hand.” His voice had dropped, making her actually quiver. “But I can wait.”

An exasperated huff slipped out. “You really wanna do this now? While you’re in between my legs?”

“Yep.”

Infuriating.

“Fine, Hunter, but I don’t know what you expect me to say. You sneak up on me and overhear my private conversation with the girls, and now what? I’m just supposed to divulge every single insecurity I have because you demand it?” It was really hard to be mad at him when she was this turned on, but she was trying.

“Pretty much.”

Oh, she was going to hit him.

She tried to push him off her, but he didn’t move. So she glared, willing her eyes to do what her body couldn’t.

“Honeybun, I wasn’t trying to invade your privacy, but I can’t take back what I heard. You have to understand that having you think for one single second that I’m too good for you breaks my heart. How can you even think that? You’re the beauty and I’m the beast in this relationship—you know that, right?”

Okay. So she didn’t want to hit him anymore, but it didn’t mean he didn’t deserve a scoff for that comment.

“You are not a beast. You’re a freaking six-foot-five muscley firefighter with an annoyingly symmetrical face. You’re like a living, breathing fantasy. Add in who you are and how you treat me, and we might as well call it quits now ’cause there’s no way in hell I’m ever gonna be enough for you.”

He should at least look a tiny bit flattered, but no, he looked pissed again.

“Have you lost your mind?” He didn’t give her a chance to answer. Not that there was much to say to that. “How can you not know how fucking incredible you are, Rachel? If anything, I’m the one who’ll never be enough for you .”

She shook her head profusely. “Don’t do that. I know who I am; I’m not ashamed. I’m the girl who dropped out of high school. The girl with the alcoholic dad and the mom who didn’t even bother sticking around. And, apparently, I’m the girl whose first proper date was at the grand old age of thirty-three.”

Hunter tried to interrupt, but Rachel’s fingers covered his mouth. She wasn’t done.

“And that’s my point. I’m not the kind of girl a guy takes to nice restaurants or buys expensive jewelry. I’m the girl guys hook up with for a few months and then dump. Or ghost.”

There was more, but Hunter copied her and covered her mouth. “What does you dating assholes have to do with anything?”

“Does it count as dating if there are no dates?”

“Honeybun,” he warned, clearly getting impatient with her.

“I’m just trying to tell you that I know who I am. And I’m okay with that. I’m not the prettiest girl in the world, but I’m not the ugliest either. I’m on the average side, whereas you’re on the really fucking hot side.”

“Yup. I was right. You’ve lost your mind.”

Hunter didn’t even get a good look at her narrowed eyes, because he was off the couch just a second later. And she was airborne, slung over his shoulder. She did have time to appreciate the irony of being in a fireman’s lift though. Literally.

“What are you doing?”

“Fixing this,” he said as he took off out of the living room.

Sliding down Hunter’s body was always a good time, but she had a feeling that this time would yield very different results.

He took her to the bathroom before dropping her back onto her feet. Next, he spun her around to face the mirrored wall above the sink, his bulky frame standing guard behind her as his hands dragged down to her waist, his intense, dark eyes never leaving hers.

What was going on?

“I’m gonna show you what I see, honeybun.”

Rachel looked at her own reflection. She saw messy red hair that needed a brush. A faded T-shirt that she’d washed one too many times. And yet another pair of jeans that were part of the rotation.

Nothing damn special.

“I see the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid eyes on.”

He placed a kiss on her neck, his eyes still not leaving hers.

“I see a woman who’s lived through a lot of shit and come out stronger.”

Another kiss.

“I see a woman with a big heart who would do anything for the people she loves.”

And another, his lips dropping to her shoulder.

“I see a woman who taught herself how to bake the most delicious damn cakes I’ve ever had the pleasure of tasting.”

Yet another kiss.

“I see a woman with more ambition in her pinkie finger than most people have in their entire lifetime.”

Moisture pooled in her eyes as his mouth continued to lay kisses along her shoulder.

“I’ve been single for ten years. In ten years , not one woman turned my head. Tempted me. Prompted me to do anything other than walk away. But you ... you , I couldn’t just walk away from. And when I realized you had the power to hurt me way more than my harpy ex-wife ever could, even then, I still made excuses to see you. To get my fix. Now look into the mirror, baby. See what I see. Your beauty. Your strength. Your heart.”

She wanted to tell him that this was yet another prime example of why he was too good for her, but she bit her tongue. She had an inkling that wouldn’t go down so well.

“Take a good look, honeybun, ’cause right there, that’s the woman I’ve fallen in love with.”

Fallen in love with?

Oh my God. I can’t breathe. Have I stopped breathing?

Rachel whirled around so fast she felt a little dizzy. “You what?”

“I’ve fallen in love with you,” he repeated.

Cool as a cucumber, while she was sweating buckets. Goddamn, even her boobs were sweating.

“But ... how? When? It’s only been a few weeks ... I mean—” This was not going well. Hunter must have thought so too, or he wouldn’t have silenced her with his finger.

“It’s okay. I’m not expecting you to love me back. Not yet anyway. I know technically it hasn’t been that long, but I realized something today. The reason I couldn’t stay away from you ... it’s because you’re it for me, Rachel. You’re who I want to be with, for however long you’ll have me. Even if that means one day getting my heart ripped out. The risk is worth it. You’re worth it.”

Her mouth was dry. And she was acutely aware that no words were coming out of her mouth as Hunter looked down at her expectantly.

He loved her.

How was that possible? She never got the guy. Especially not the hot one. She was the weird friend. The one who gave advice and pretended she knew what she was talking about. Since when did the weird friend get their own love story?

The disbelief causing her throat to restrict was palpable. Love was something she’d craved. All her life. And now here it was, standing before her. Telling her it was okay to trust it. She was safe. Her heart was safe.

“Baby.” Hunter’s outer calm was beginning to splinter. “Say something.”

“I-I ...” She stopped as soon as she heard the crack in her voice. Come on. You can do this. Trust it . “I think I love you too.”

“You think?”

“No.” She gulped. “I know . But it’s too soon, isn’t it? To be feeling this way?”

Hunter’s megawatt smile filled her vision, and she was no longer scared that it was too soon. “You love me?”

She found herself nodding. “Yeah, Hunter, I love you.”

His mouth came crashing down onto hers in an instant, each of them fighting for control as they skipped the sweet and gentle and went straight to urgent and claiming. Hungry moans bounced off the navy ceramic tiles as they fought to take the kiss even deeper. She would never get enough of him. His taste. His touch. His everything.

Their bodies collided as she tried to get closer, a new type of heat warming her insides as they pulled at each other’s clothes. When she was down to just her black bra and panties, he let go of her lips and spun her around until she was peering back at her reflection.

He stood behind her again, shirtless, with his belt open, as he pressed into her back. The rise and fall of her chest only got more strained as he bowed his head down until his mouth met her ear.

“You’re going to watch,” Hunter whispered, his eyes meeting hers in the mirror.

All she could hear was the sound of her own breath as he unhooked her bra. And as she watched it fall, she saw the exact moment Hunter caught fire.

“I don’t want your eyes leaving mine as I feed you every inch of me, do you understand?”

Fuck yeah.

She loved him like this. All dominant and demanding. She never knew she wanted this until now. Until him.

She nodded and bit down on her lower lip as she watched him discard her panties next.

“Bend over,” he grunted.

Rachel’s hands went to the granite counter in front of them, the cool surface soothing her now overheated skin. She kept her eyes on Hunter like he asked and felt liquid heat fill her belly as she watched him remove his jeans and boxers in one move.

“Tell me again,” he asked as he lined himself up behind her.

“What?” Her brain had stopped functioning a few minutes ago, so his request wasn’t registering.

“I wanna hear you say it.”

It was his eyes that gave him away. She understood now.

“I love you.”

Feeling him at her center, he began pushing her apart. “Again.”

“I love you,” she said again through heavy breaths.

Nothing could compare to the feel of him slowly pushing inside of her. She wasn’t just aching anymore. Her whole body was pulsating.

“Again,” he commanded through gritted teeth.

“I-I love you.”

His groans and her whimper echoed around the room as he slammed home.

Holy shit. Did it get any better than this?