8. Chapter 5 - Hillary
I held the squirming eight-month-old in my arms with what I hoped to be a loving embrace. My snotty-nosed nephew wriggled and drooled on my designer dress as he beamed up at me with soft hazel eyes.
I grinned at the cheeky spawn of my best friend and kissed the tip of his nose as the amused group of fathers watched from the other side of their kitchen island.
“He looks good on you, Hilly-Willy.”
Shane—perhaps the most irritating of Winter’s husbands, but a good man, nonetheless—scooped him out of my arms and placed little Noble in the highchair at the other end of the kitchen, already prepped with an array of fresh fruit for his snack.
Winter was in the shower. Cam had gone upstairs to let her know I was here, so I expected her down shortly.
I had arrived early, wanting to get the most of my morning with Winter and her family. We didn’t see each other nearly as much as I would have wanted, between our demanding schedules and the four-hour distance between Carlisle and Brenton, so our monthly morning date was a sacred ritual for both of us.
Sometimes the five men in her life left us alone to catch up. Other times, they stuck around to catch up themselves. In the six years since Cascade Falls, they’d wormed their way beneath my defenses, and I had a tender spot for all of them.
Mostly. Shane still pushed my buttons whenever he could, and Logan—because of our history—knew just what to say to light a fuse; fitting, since our relationship had developed into close sibling territory after all we had gone through.
Cam, Travis, and Drew were sweet, doting husbands and fathers. Too sweet for my tastes, but they treated my best friend like gold. For that, I was grateful.
“Versace looks good on me, Shane.” I moved to make myself a coffee on the beautifully crafted espresso machine I had bought for Winter as a birthday gift. Really, it was a gift to me, so I could guarantee the perfect cup of coffee whenever I visited. “Your son looks good all on his own. I’m his accessory.”
Logan snorted and held out his empty mug. I screwed my face up, then took the mug out of his hand. Returning to the coffee grinder, I prepared his coffee the way he enjoyed it best. Strong and bitter—just like him.
“Me too, Hill. Please?” Drew asked hopefully from the other side of Logan.
I t urned around and surveyed the four men in front of me. Cam hadn’t returned, and I’d bet shares in my company that he and Winter were enjoying a shower together while I played barista.
Get it, girl. It was far more action than I was getting these days.
“Alright, gentlemen. Give me your drink orders and I’ll make you the best cup of coffee you’ve ever had. But as my tip, let’s talk about Winter. Tell me honestly—how’s she holding up? Talk fast—I don’t know how many orgasms Cam’s promised her.”
Travis shifted uncomfortably in his seat, but of all of them, he would be the first to speak up. “The meds are working. She’s in a much better place right now.”
Winter had been recently diagnosed with prolonged postpartum depression. It had killed me to watch my sassy, fierce friend become a shell of her former self. I had missed all the signs for months—we all had. But now she had six people monitoring her every move.
Shane spoke up as he wiped a gob of smushed mango from the tiled floor. “She’s started her Pilates workouts again. She’s wearing makeup again too, although we’ve all told her she doesn’t need it.”
“No, makeup is good.” I handed a fresh triple-shot espresso to Logan and took a colorful hand-potted mug out of the cupboard for Drew. “That means she wants to take care of herself. Great signs.”
“I can hear you, you know.” Winter strolled into the kitchen with a serene smile plastered to her pretty face, Cam only a step behind. Her auburn hair hung in wet, darkened waves, and her vivid blue eyes brightened when she saw me.
Freshly fucked, indeed.
“If you want to know how I’m doing, Hill, you can just ask me.” She stopped at Noble’s highchair and kissed the top of his little blond head. “Or you know, reread the many texts I’ve sent you, telling you how I’m doing.”
I handed Drew his drink and grabbed another mug for Winter. “You lie, Sweets. I have backup in case I think you’re trying to spare my feelings.”
“It would take a Russian nuke to hurt your feelings,” she sassed back, and that alone brought me some reassurance. “I’m trying to spare your worrying .”
“I’m protective , not a worrywart.” I shrugged as I passed her the fresh coffee and started on Travis’s cup. “We’ll talk about this later, when I can corner you properly.”
I stopped pressing the coffee grounds and spun to face the group, recognizing the opportunity in front of me. “And speaking of protective, care to tell me why Kellan is back in town?”
Cam stared blankly back at me; his piercing blue eyes careful. “I didn’t know he was back in town. We don’t talk business, Hillary. We’re not putting our family at risk, especially with Noble to consider.”
Travis nodded in agreement; his normally smiling lips tight in a firm grimace. “We stay away from the ‘family business’ entirely, Hill. I have no idea what he’s up to.”
Winter took a cautious sip of her coffee, guilt flashing across her features. “Okay, I knew he was in town, but not for any specific purpose. When he messaged me, I figured you two had another blowup and it wouldn’t hurt for him to apologize.”
Her eyes filled with a na?ve hope as she posed the question, “Did he? Apologize, I mean.”
I barked a disbelieving laugh and rolled my eyes before shifting back to the machine to finish the last two orders. “Yes, Winter, the man who is possibly more stubborn than me , waltzed up to my office with flowers and diamonds.”
“ Too bad,” Logan drawled, his grin one of wicked intent. “Make-up sex is the best sex.” He winked obnoxiously at Winter before turning his dastardly grin on me.
My annoying bastard of an ex-husband knew just what buttons to push.
“Wouldn’t know,” Drew said cheerfully, leaning in to kiss Winter’s temple. “You’re the only one who pisses her off enough to get make-up sex.”
“We’ve had make-up sex,” Shane piped up, wrapping his arms around Drew from behind, nipping the tip of his pinkening ear. “And it was very, very good, wasn’t it, baby?”
“Enough sex talk, please!” I snapped, shoving the sloshing mug into Cam’s waiting hands. I pulled Winter from Travis’ hold and pushed her in front of me, aggressively nudging her toward the patio door.
“Time’s up—I’m stealing her for the rest of the morning.”
“Hey! What about my coffee?” Shane protested.
I didn’t miss a step. “Stop pissing me off, Quicksilver. I don’t make coffee for delinquents.”
“You made Logan’s coffee.” I caught his grumble before I marched my friend out onto the sunny concrete patio facing the beautiful view of the Rocky Mountains.
We spent the rest of our time together giggling, reminiscing, and catching up on the chaos in our lives.
I made a vow to myself I would keep a sharper eye on Winter in the coming months. I couldn’t be in her presence every day, but I’d be in her ear, making sure she never forgot how much she means to me.
Lane Loyalty was a pact for life. And few would ever get such a luxury.
Vis iting Winter had been the best pick-me-up treat I could ever give myself, but Cam’s Southern cooking was a little too much so. My body wasn’t used to processing the pounds of butter in each bite. I hoped my morning run would work it through my system and not out of my pores.
The noxious fumes of burning asphalt and car exhaust filled my lungs, as the traffic symphony provided the perfect beat to set my pace. Pavement rose to meet my feet as I ran through the streets of the busy downtown core. My condo building sat at the edge of a large public park, but it wasn’t big enough for my usual ten-mile run, and I got bored of the same landscape every day.
I enjoyed the challenge of dodging vehicles and pedestrians in the most trafficked district in the city, and used my daily cardio as its own practice ground of sorts. Bodyguards and personal drivers were a requirement in my line of work, but when all else failed, we only had ourselves to rely on—a lesson I would never need to learn again.
I didn’t run to music, preferring to keep my wits sharp. My runs were the exact opposite of meditation; an exercise in heightened awareness to sharpen my predator instincts.
I felt the redheaded man’s presence long before I saw him in my periphery.
“’Allo, Blondie.”
Lucky, the apparently always happy leprechaun, smoothly fell into step beside me; our combined width on the sidewalk an obnoxious presence for pedestrians to move around. Still, I didn’t move to make any more room for him. He was intruding on my run—he could be the one taken out.
I s lowed my pace just enough to take him in. Leprechaun was an unfair assessment; other than his Irish heritage and impish grin, Lauchlan was anything but.
He wasn’t slim and taut like Aaron, and he didn’t have Kellan’s bulk either. He was dressed casually in basketball shorts and a loose tank, revealing temptingly honed shoulders and biceps, decorated with colorful Celtic symbols. Sweat ran down his temples in rivulets, darkening his hair and highlighting the freckles along his cheekbones. His green eyes held my stare, their mischievous glint checking me out in the same way.
Whoever this mysterious man was, there was no denying he was hotter than sin, and he knew it.
I turned to face forward, ignoring him for the remainder of my route. He kept pace, not interrupting my flow, but he ended up putting his headphones back in when I didn’t keep conversation.
When I was done, I stopped at my usual park bench by the duck pond across from my home. The condo building had been my first major investment after I received my grandmother’s inheritance. The true start of Hillary Lane Enterprises without my father’s gruesome shadow tainting its shine.
Lauchlan stepped up beside me to stretch his calves against the wooden platform.
“Christ, Blondie. You gave me a good go this morning, didn’t you?” He grimaced as he massaged his hamstrings with large, deft hands.
I continued my own stretches while throwing an unimpressed side-eye. “Don’t sign up for the race if you can’t take the heat.”
He laughed and the masculine, raspy sound settled into my insides with a warm glow. I liked that laugh.
“Are you a stalker, Lauchlan? Should I be worried?”
“ Me?” He clutched his chest like my accusation wounded him.
I had a feeling it took a lot to wound this man.
“No, Blondie. Nothing to worry about, Mumsy’s place is just around the corner, and I’m a magnet to a beautiful woman. Can’t resist the attraction. No impulse control.”
Hmmm. Who was his mother? Not that I knew everyone in this neck of the woods, not by far, but to afford a place in this area meant she’d have the income to be running in certain social circles. Circles I would have been a part of over the years.
“Now that I know you’re here, we’ll have to make this a regular date, ay? I love a woman who can kick my arse.”
He winked and plopped himself down on the bench in front of me, stretching his arms above his head, and revealing a taut abdomen with a strawberry blond treasure trail of hair below his belly button.
Hotter than sin, indeed.
“I’ll bet you do.” I flipped my hair over my shoulder and pushed off from the bench, still discreetly assessing this man’s intrusion into my life.
I hadn’t looked him up yet—I had far more important things in my life to investigate than a randy Irishman, but I’d make the time soon. He was sex-on-a-stick, but sexy men were a dime a dozen in the world of the rich and the richer. I was more intrigued by his playful nature; it was a welcome reprieve for a man to joke with me.
I was intimidating; intentionally, most days. But sometimes, a woman just wanted a great laugh and a good fuck. Not necessarily in that order.
Unfortunately, this morning wasn’t the morning for it. I had a day full of meetings and then attending an important dinner with the Governor tonight. There was no room in my schedule for a delicious casual release with a sweaty almost-stranger.
“ I have to go.” I released my ponytail and fluffed out my frizzing hair. Hot hands held me hostage by my biceps.
“Don’t go yet, Blondie.” His voice deepened an octave, and the request came on a gravelly murmur as the man stepped into my space. “I was hoping to have coffee with you.”
The enticing redhead reached his hand up to tuck an errant strand of sweaty hair behind my ear and his piercing gaze stared through me the moment I let him in.
Lauchlan was an attractive package, but his eyes were the true windows to his appeal. Pale, like the muted tone of sea-glass, they were the farthest thing from dull. They twinkled with a captivating promise of misbehavior, yet held a soft restraint; like nothing you could do would phase him or deter him.
I was drawn to him instantly. But today was not the day for personal indulgences.
I stepped away from his hold. “Do you have your phone?”
He pulled it out from his pocket and unlocked it, handing it to me with a playful smirk. I typed in a number on the Notes app, and handed it back to him.
“That’s Marty’s number—my assistant. Send him your contact information and I’ll reach out.”
“Is this for business or pleasure, Blondie? Should I make it clear that I want a date, not a meeting?”
His eyes danced as he teased me, and I couldn’t help the shadow of a smile on my own lips.
“Message received, Lucky.” I shot him a saucy wink before turning to the path that led to my building.
“I like my nickname, by the way!” he hollered after me as I retreated onto the tree-lined path.
I laughed to myself and picked up my pace. Time to slay the day.