Chapter 1 #2
Mila agreed but didn’t say so out loud. “He’s the minister. It’s not like he can go out every night and get wasted or sleep around. He has a reputation to uphold as a spiritual leader in the community.”
Nora held her gaze, not responding to that with anything more than one quirked eyebrow.
“Besides, it’s not like there are a ton of single guys running around town, and I can’t help it if the only ones I seem to attract are the…” She realized how stupid her next two words were going to sound, but they were the only ones that worked. “Nice guys.”
God. What the hell would she give to go out with a bad boy just once? No, not a bad boy. A man, a dominant, commanding, strong, virile man.
Her fantasies ran dark and dirty and kiiiiiinky, something she’d never been able to explore because, well, her dating pool consisted of nothing but a bunch of nice guys…
like Pastor Joshua. The type who asked before they kissed her, who held her hand like she was made of glass…
and who’d freak out if she begged them to pull her hair or spank her.
What she wanted more than anything was a man to lay claim to her—every part of her—and she didn’t want him to say “pretty please.”
She just wanted him to say “kneel” or “bend over” or—best of all—“good girl.”
“Mila, I say this with all the love in the world, but you are too fucking sweet, and you need to knock it off.”
Mila laughed, but deep down she hated the sweet descriptor. She’d always hated it, even though nine times out of ten, the first thing anyone ever pointed out about her was how sweet she was.
The problem was she’d lived in Gracemont, Virginia, the smallest town in the world, for her entire life. As such, the locals—as well as her family—had pigeonholed her into that category. They’d placed all her sisters into specific categories.
Lucy was the adventurous one, the one who’d always dreamed of leaving the farm and seeing the world. And she was currently doing that with her two boyfriends.
Nora was the quirky one because her OCD had OCD. Remi was the wild one, and Mila was the sweet one.
Gag.
Now that she thought about it, there was a good chance Pastor Joshua probably found her just as boring as she found him.
That idea stung. Because she knew there was a much different Mila chomping at the bit to escape. But that Mila was one she’d never revealed, too afraid of…well, she didn’t know what she was afraid of, exactly. All she knew was, holding that woman inside was starting to chafe.
Nora, still on a roll, added, “Next time Pastor Joshua calls, say no.”
Mila didn’t respond to that. Mainly because she hated letting someone down.
She was worried he’d ask if he’d done something wrong—which he hadn’t—and she couldn’t come up with an excuse to break things off that wouldn’t hurt his feelings.
Confrontation was not her strong suit, and pair that with her deeply ingrained people-pleaser personality and it was a recipe for a quiet, mundane life, as well as few and far between, lackluster dates. A lifetime of them, to be exact.
“You need help?” Nora offered, gesturing to the strand of lights still hanging. The B&B had a large wraparound porch, but she’d only hung lights from the two sides visible from the driveway and road that ran beside it.
“Nope. I’ve got it. Only a few more up and downs on the ladder and I’ll be done. I’m counting this as my daily cardio.”
Nora snickered. “That’s more than I’m going to get in. I better run this into Aunt Claire. I’m training Lark to work as a server part-time and she’s due to show up soon.” Nora waved and walked into the house.
While the Storm family was large, they ran so many different businesses on the farm that they needed to hire a lot of outside help.
It was that hiring that had brought Theo’s new girlfriend to them in September.
Gretchen had been employed to serve as Stormy Weather Farm’s event coordinator, setting up special celebrations at the winery and brewery, as well as overseeing their new event barn.
She was just one of countless people employed to keep things running smoothly on the farm.
Mila blew on her hands to warm them, then decided the sooner she got the lights down, the sooner she could join Uncle Rex for a nip of his special hot tea. She hadn’t exactly exaggerated about that New Year’s hangover lingering, so hair of the dog and all that.
Reaching inside her coat pocket, she pulled out her phone and fired up Spotify. Music always made work feel less like work. Despite her de-Christmasifying the house, she remained loyal to the holiday playlist that had been her go-to since November.
She cranked up Mariah’s “All I Want for Christmas” because, seriously, who could ever get sick of that song?
“One side down and one to go,” she murmured to herself, as she began the arduous process again, singing along with the Queen of Christmas.
Mila had underestimated how many trips up and down the ladder would be required, her knees killing her after the seventh climb.
She was so close to finishing.
Maybe…
Mila stretched forward, attempting to reach the final hook without having to move the ladder yet again.
Unfortunately, her laziness wasn’t working in her favor, because that last stupid hook was just an inch or so out of—
The ladder began to wobble, so she reared back too quickly, overcorrecting. The top of the ladder shifted away from the roof, hovering with no support, and her along with it.
She jerked from side to side like a new clown trying out stilts for the first time.
Mila was too off-balance to push the ladder forward again. Despite her efforts, she was going to fall. There was no combating gravity, but she fought it for as long as she could.
One last-ditch attempt at recovery failed as her foot slipped. While the ladder fell forward, she went back. Closing her eyes, she cried out as she braced herself for the painful impact.
It didn’t come.
Instead, she heard a grunt that didn’t come from her.
Opening her eyes, she realized she had hit the ground. Or at least, the guy under her did, leaving her sprawled in his lap. He’d caught her and broken the fall. She blinked a few times, fighting to focus, and when she did…
Holy shit.
The rugged mountain man seriously looked like he’d stepped straight out of her fantasies.
He was large and muscular, with a thick beard and piercing brown eyes so dark they looked black.
There was a slight crook in his nose that indicated it had been broken before, but rather than detract, it simply reinforced his attractiveness.
His tanned skin was indicative of someone who spent a lot of time outside and reminded her of her farmer cousin Levi’s complexion.
Those words bad boy flashed through her mind, but she dismissed them instantly because there wasn’t one boyish thing about the stranger.
He was all man.
“Miss,” he said, and she realized it wasn’t the first time he’d said it.
Mila shook herself for staring so hard at the sexy man. “I…”
“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice deep and delicious.
Dear God. She’d knocked them both to the ground with her fall.
“I am.” She tried to wriggle her way off his lap, but the man held her still. His large, calloused hands rested on her waist—underneath her jacket—and the tight, protective grip sent her thoughts to some very naughty places.
“Stop,” he practically barked.
She instantly froze in response, gasping slightly, her body reacting before her brain could catch up.
The man’s eyes narrowed briefly, his head slightly tilted as if she was familiar to him. Which was unlikely because there was no way in hell she’d ever forget meeting this man.
“Take it slow, darlin’. Make sure you didn’t break anything.” His words were spoken softly, but with an edge that said he expected her to do exactly as ordered.
It took a few seconds for Mila’s brain to start to function again, and when it did, she was tempted to point out that he’d taken the brunt of the impact, but there was something about him…
About her that longed to obey, to please him.
And not in her normal people-pleasing way, but in a visceral, instinctual way she couldn’t fully understand.
“I’m fine,” she murmured, aware she was still sitting on his lap. She shifted slightly, her eyes widening when she felt something hard press against her hip.
Holy. Crap. Was he hard?
Embarrassment kicked in and she tried to stand again.
He pinned her with a hard stare. “I told you to take a minute. I don’t like repeating myself.”
Oh yeah. This guy was dangerous…in all the right ways.
His hands tightened, gripping her waist harder, and she wished they weren’t just under her jacket but under her sweater as well. The idea of his hands on her bare skin made her dizzy.
Mila mentally shook herself out of whatever spell this man was casting.
She lifted her own hands and made a show of wiggling her fingers and then her feet for him.
She even managed a grin as she did so, though given his stern look, it was clear he either wasn’t convinced or amused.
Not that it mattered how he felt because she was definitely floundering—drowning—in an ocean of lust, her thoughts hazy with a need she’d never experienced in her life.
“I’m, uh, fine,” she repeated, intending to reassure him but failing because, woo-damn, her tone was way too breathless to sell it. She cleared her throat and tried again. “What about you? Did I hurt you?”
The man chuckled. “A little thing like you? Not likely. All I have is a bruised ass and wounded pride.”
“Pride? Why?”
“Because I’m pissed I didn’t manage to catch you midair without falling. Falling makes me look a lot less like a stud.”
Mila giggled—until another voice entered the conversation.
“Gross, Dad.”
Mila peered over the man’s shoulder and saw a young preteen girl.
Great, Mila. Nothing like ogling a man while his daughter was watching.
She scrambled to her feet, the man rising as well.
When she swayed slightly, he reached out, gripping her hands to steady her.
And that was when she felt it.
It.
The thing her uncle Rex and Levi and Theo all talked about.
Lightning strike.
Earthquake.
Tsunami.
Love at first electrifying touch.
This man was the one. The one she’d spent a lifetime dreaming of while terrified she’d never find him.
She’d known since birth she would never leave this mountain.
After so many single years, she’d recently started to fear her fantasy man didn’t live in Gracemont.
While she hadn’t lied to Nora about attracting a certain type, what she didn’t add was, she didn’t even attract many of those.
Her dating history was so pathetic, she wasn’t sure it classified as history.
More like a handful of tiny little footnotes.
Given the fact she knew exactly what Gracemont had to offer, as far as available bachelors, and the fact she rarely left town, she was most likely destined to live alone or—God forbid—become the pastor’s wife.
Now, as Mila looked into this man’s eyes, it felt as if her world had suddenly clicked into place.
Levi had said it was the same way for him. Kasi had passed out in his arms, and he’d realized she was his.
Theo claimed all it took for him was one handshake, and every fiber of his being recognized Gretchen as his soul mate.
The man was steadying her while at the same time, rocking her world down to its foundation. She’d never felt so lost, and yet so found.
And as amazing as that should have felt, there was something she couldn’t ignore.
The man had a daughter.
Did that mean he also had a wife?
God.
How cruel could fate be? To put this man in her orbit when he couldn’t be hers.
While it was utterly ridiculous, Mila mourned the loss of him, feeling as if her heart was breaking.
Over a man who wasn’t even hers.