6. Chapter Six
Chapter Six
T he idea had been simple enough. Walk in a park on a chilly night. Maybe cuddle. Perhaps then get a hot chocolate to warm up.
Reality bit.
Big time.
First of all, without moonlight, they had to rely on the lamps in the park. Abbeyvale Park sounded nice enough. But with several bulbs out and rough, uneven pavement, Avery lost her footing twice. Only lightning reflexes on Will’s part kept her upright.
Which frustrated Will to no end. This was one of your dumbest ideas ever. The only places to get hot chocolate this late on Christmas Eve were fast-food restaurants. Nothing wrong with them, of course. Every Canadian, to his mind anyway, loved Tim Horton’s.
“This was a bad idea. I’m sorry.” Even as he said the words, the first flakes of snow fell.
Avery linked her arm in his. “Never say that. It’s—”
“Cold?”
“Well yes, but—”
“Dark?”
“Okay sure, yet—”
“Miserable?”
She yanked him.
He stopped.
“Stop being such a party pooper.”
Rex woofed, as if agreeing with his mistress.
Okay, that made him chuckle. “I don’t think anyone’s called me that since my eighth birthday. We played spin the bottle, and Calvin got me. I refused to kiss him.”
“Fair enough.”
“Except I liked him. Liked him . You know?”
Avery glanced up at him. “Romantically?”
“Yep.” He grinned. “I knew I liked boys and girls, even back then. I dated a couple of guys in agricultural college, but I met Darla, and that was that.”
“Have you thought about dating men again? Might be less painful than with a woman.”
He snorted. “Darlin’ if you met the guys I work with, you would never say that. Charming, they are not.”
“And probably all straight.”
“Never cared enough to ask.” Will held out his hand, letting a few flakes of snow hit his gloved palm. He glanced down at her. “You’ve got snow in your eyelashes.”
She snickered.
He took advantage, leaning down to press a gentle kiss to her lips.
Apparently not satisfied with chaste, she opened her mouth.
Not one to pass up an opportunity, he took her invitation. He removed his hat, so he could get closer, then he swooped in for a kiss.
She weaved her arms around his neck and tugged him closer so their bodies pressed together.
Time stood still.
Her body pressed against his felt so damn good. Even through their winter coats, her slender frame fit his perfectly. Her soft lips parted, and the welcoming warmth and heat shot straight through him, heating his blood and hardening his cock. He looped his arms round her, settling his hands on her ass so he could pull her closer.
He couldn’t remember the last time his body had reacted like this. To anyone. Sure, he’d used his right hand when the urge overtook him, but he hadn’t felt the desire to be with someone in far too long. To make them his—if only for the night. Pulling back, he then pressed his forehead to hers. “I want to invite you home with me…but I don’t have a home—”
“I do.”
She gazed at him, and even through the crappy light, her deep-blue eyes shone.
“Text your sister that you’ve met a friend and come home with me.”
“Will you get in trouble with Kennedy?”
She laughed. “Kennedy told me to enjoy myself. You’re not my client. And, although Justin would never break confidence, he made it clear he wasn’t worried about you all that much.”
Will rubbed his nose against hers. “I appreciate him being honest with you. I am okay. Just a misunderstanding.”
“That you can tell me all about in the morning.” She blushed. “I mean, if you want to stay—”
He cut her off with a fierce kiss that went on and on.
She shivered.
From cold? From anticipation? From arousal?
He didn’t know. But the tip of his nose was getting cold. He pulled away from the kiss, hating to end the beautiful interlude. “You want me to follow you?”
“Yeah. It’s not far from here. You can park in my driveway.”
“Won’t your neighbors wonder?”
She burst out laughing. “You think I care one hoot what my neighbors think? You won’t be the first person who’s spent the night. My friend Mikhail has. One day he was moping—nasty breakup. I dragged him home and got him shit-faced. Needless to say, he stayed the night. He also never gave the asshole another thought. I make killer cosmos.”
“Ah, well, I’ll pass on the cosmos. Right now, I just want a warm bed.” Oh my God, did I just say that? She’s going to think—
“Perfect. Although maybe a hot chocolate in the living room by the fire while we warm up?”
“Oh, you’re speaking my language.” He put his hat back on.
They hotfooted out of the park, with Rex leading the way, and soon Will found himself following Avery through a convoluted neighborhood. He’d never find his way out without the aid of the GPS that Darla gave him for his birthday seven years ago. He’d thought it extravagant and completely unnecessary, given he knew where everything was.
She’d insisted.
He’d given in.
Now, he was glad he had.
Darla would be happy for me .
Yeah, she really would.
Avery entered a covered garage in her townhouse while Will parked in the spot before the three-story home. Hers was the last in a long line of townhomes.
He locked his door, then stepped into the garage when she beckoned him.
She shut the garage door, then opened the one to the house. “Justin used to live here before he got married. I’d just paid off the last of my student loans, and he might’ve given me a bit of a discount.” She smiled shyly. “Stanley is…wealthy. Justin doesn’t like to take any of his husband’s money for himself, but if he can help out a friend, he’s always fine with that.”
They removed their boots and hung their coats on a rack.
Avery unhooked Rex’s harness. She gave him a once-over with a towel, but it hadn’t been snowing hard, and the little guy was barely damp.
He scampered up the stairs.
Holding her arms out wide, she said, “Welcome home.” She grabbed his hand and guided him upstairs.
Welcome home or welcome to my home? Because the omission of two little, albeit very important, words made a tremendous difference. He didn’t want to get ahead of himself…but could he see this place as a home? He knew Mission City, of course. This complex hadn’t been here when he’d left over a decade ago, but he knew the town.
He also knew, in his heart, that he was a cowboy. Even as he gently laid his hat on her coffee table, and as she gave him a tour, he could acknowledge this wasn’t where he’d choose to live.
Unless it was with her…
Okay, point to his subconscious.
“You said you were good with hot chocolate, right?” She twirled a lock of her golden hair in her fingers. Long, delicate fingers.
“That’d be great.”
“Right. You can hang out wherever.” She moved from the family room, through the eating area, to the kitchen. The space spanned the entire length of the house.
Naturally, he followed her. Admiring her ass in those tight jeans.
Yet he’d say she didn’t wear them to attract attention. She honestly seemed pretty confident in herself and not flaunting her beauty. He liked that about her.
Darla had been the same way. Subtle. Not brash.
“There are three bedrooms?”
She nodded as she got the milk out of the fridge. She put a saucepan on the stove, poured milk in, and turned on the burner. “Yeah. I’ve left it the way Justin had it. The master bedroom’s plain, but the two other bedrooms are decorated with children in mind. He used to be an emergency foster parent.”
“And now he’s married with two children.”
“Yep.” She stirred the milk slowly while angling herself to face him. “I honestly envy him that. He’s a couple of years younger than me, but found a man to love, a son to adopt, and a little girl who’ll likely be his as well soon. Her mother’s in jail—sad story, that. Justin and Stanley are willing to continue to just be foster parents, but Opal’s mother is facing a long stretch. Justin said she’s been asking them to consider adopting Opal.”
“That’s a tough one.”
“Yep. I don’t envy any of them. That being said, Opal couldn’t be in better hands. Stanley and Justin were just made to be dads. Even if Stanley didn’t believe it at first.”
Will cocked his head.
Avery waved off the thought. “Too complicated to explain.” She offered him a sly glance. “But I’d love to hear more about being a real cowboy.”
So he regaled her with a few funny anecdotes about life on a cattle ranch. He didn’t talk about the births of cows that went wrong. He didn’t talk about his coworker who got injured when the idiot tried to pretend he was on the rodeo circuit. Instead, he found the levity. The stuff Darla had loved when he shared.
Eventually the hot chocolate was consumed. They’d made their way into the living room and settled onto the couch.
The little Christmas tree’s sparkling lights were the only illumination.
Avery took Will’s mug, placed it along with hers on the coffee table, then took his hands. She gazed into his eyes. “You tell me if I’m being too forward—”
“You’re not—”
She squeezed his hands. Tight. “We’ve only met twice.”
“And yet I know I want to spend more time with you. And yeah, I’m going to leave, and that’s going to suck for both of us, but I want to spend the rest of my time in Mission City with you.”
“As well as your family,” she prompted.
“Of course.” Yet he’d honestly spent the past two weeks with them and, after the bridge incident, had been constantly under his sister’s watchful eye. He needed a break.
Taking the initiative, he grasped her chin, gently tilting it up.
She grinned, wove her hands around his neck, and pulled him in for a kiss.
A kiss much like the one they’d shared in the park, only this time they weren’t worried about freezing or layers of coats.
Soon, she straddled him, pressing her heat against his hardening erection. “I want you.”
“Yeah.”
“In my bed.”
Their gazes locked. He grinned. “Yeah, I can do that.”
“Text your sister and then follow me.”
So he did.