Chapter 10
“Do we need to get Lily from anywhere?” I ask as we pull away from the bar.
“No, she’s with Aunt Paula through the weekend,” Summer replies and settles into the seat of the truck sleepily. “I have three weddings, and I won’t have much time for her, so she’s at the cottage.”
“You know, I could take her sometimes, too. She’s not a problem.”
She squeezes my hand. “Thank you. She’d probably like that a lot. So, your place or mine?”
I have no intention of dropping her off and leaving her alone for the night, so I’m happy to see that we’re on the same page there.
“As long as I’m with you, and I have you naked and writhing, I’m happy to go wherever you want.”
“That’s so sweet.” I glance over and see her grinning at me. “Especially the naked part. Well, I will have to be up and out early tomorrow, so do you mind if we go to my place?”
“Your place it is.”
The truth is, I’m glad she called. I had just gotten home, showered, and changed, and I was brooding because the day had gone off the rails from the start, and I didn’t get to see Summer this evening.
And just as I’d opened my fridge for a beer, she’d called, as if I’d conjured her out of my thoughts.
“Did your day get any better at work?” she asks as I pull into her driveway.
“It calmed down, yeah. I’m just glad I didn’t lose the whole night with you.”
“It worked out,” she agrees. “Come on, let’s go in, and I’ll tell you all about my girls’ night.”
But, once inside, I don’t let her settle in so we can have a nice chat. Not yet, anyway. I turn her and pin her against the back of the door, cup that gorgeous face in my hands, and sink into her, running my lips over hers, nibbling at the corner of her delectable little mouth.
She moans, and my dick strains against my jeans. She pushes her hand into my hair, and I reach down to unfasten her pants.
I’m a man possessed, with only one mission in mind: get inside of her.
I plant my hands on her ass and easily lift her against me and carry her to her bedroom, and she chuckles against my lips.
“I don’t think any of this is funny,” I whisper, and she grins wider.
“It’s not,” she says. “But the blinds are open, and I’m not an exhibitionist, so it made me giggle.”
Setting her on her feet, I cross to the window and close the blinds, and when I turn around, my mouth goes fucking dry.
She’s already stripped out of her shirt and bra, and she’s pushing her jeans down her hips, swaying side to side as the denim slides down those spectacular legs, her pink panties along for the ride.
“You promised me naked,” she reminds me with hot blue eyes. “So, let’s get naked.”
With three strides, I cross back to her, but she presses her hand against my chest, stopping me.
“I want to see you.”
With a grin, I gently take that hand in mine and lift it to my lips, nibbling on her fingertips.
“You’re going to see me, sugar. Trust me on that. But first…” I lift her onto the bed, hook my hands behind her knees, and drag her to the side of the mattress, before falling to my knees beside it and opening her wide. “I have something to do.”
“Oh, Jesus,” she moans as I drag my finger down her slick entrance.
“Look at that,” I murmur lazily. “All wet and hot and ready for me.”
“I’m perma-wet,” she informs me. “I need to start packing extra panties with me whenever I go somewhere because holy shit, Chase, you turn me on.”
Satisfied pride fills my chest, and I can’t resist lowering my face to her, lapping up that glistening wetness. I love how pink and swollen she is, and I haven’t even really begun.
I fuck her with my tongue, and then I move up to her clit and push my finger inside of her, and her back arches on the bed as she fists the bedsheets, writhing as an orgasm consumes her.
One down, several to go.
I tug my shirt over my head and discard it, then drop my jeans and nudge Summer back further on the bed. Gripping onto her ankles, I pull her legs straight up into the air and hug them to my chest as I slip right inside of her, unable to go slow or hold back from pounding into her, reveling at how perfectly her pussy grips me like a fucking fist.
Her arms are over her head, pushing against the headboard, and those amazing eyes practically glow with primal lust.
“Thought of this all fucking day.” My voice is a rough growl. “Tell me you thought of me.”
“All.” She licks her lips. “Fucking day. Jesus, Chase, where did you learn that move? You know what? I don’t wanna know.”
I laugh and spread those legs now so I can lean down and cover her mouth with my own as my dick slides in and out of her. Her nails rake down my back, those legs hitch up higher on my hips, and she plants her lips against my neck, just below my ear.
“So good,” she whispers. “God, Chase, it’s so goddamn good.”
I moan as she bites my shoulder.
“Go over again.” Now that I’ve given her orgasms, I can’t get enough of it. That anyone would leave her wanting is beyond me. I want her to do nothing but come every time I get my hands on her. “Come for me, baby.”
Her eyes glass over, and she bites her lip, and, with her eyes on mine, I feel her climax move through her, and it pulls me with her.
“So…”I pass Summer a bottle of water and climb into the bed, sitting next to her. “You had fun with your friends tonight?”
“I can honestly say that tonight was one of the best nights of my life.” She stretches her legs out and sips her water. “We had the best time, Chase. We laughed so hard, and we ate good food, and Pete spoiled us with complimentary desserts because I told him that we were celebrating.”
“What were you celebrating?” I brush her blonde hair behind her ear.
“Millie’s buying the coffee shop. Did you know?”
I smile, stupidly proud of my baby sister. “Yeah, she told me. Wanted my advice about it. I think it’s a great idea.”
“It’s an amazing idea, and she’s so relieved that Ryan agreed to help her. I love that your family is so tight and that you help each other out.”
Her phone rings, and she scowls and checks the display.
“Speaking of families, why in the hell is my mom calling me so late on a Thursday night?” She shakes her head, declines the call, and sets the phone aside.
“You can answer it. It might be important.”
“No.” She shakes her head and sips her water. “We don’t have that kind of relationship. I’d be the last person she’d call in an emergency. Anyway, as you can see, I don’t have the kind of family you do, so it’s refreshing to see it. And Millie is just over the moon. Nervous, sure, but also really proud of herself and excited. And it occurred to us that all five of us sitting there are businesswomen. We now all own businesses.”
“Because you’re all badasses.”
She grins and leans over to kiss me. “We sure are. And, we decided to start a…well, a club, I guess, for all women business owners in town. It’s a great way to network and lift each other up. We’re calling it the Iconic Women’s Collective.”
“That’s pretty badass, too.”
“I know. We got pretty tipsy by the end, so we’ll come up with how we want to execute this later, but it felt so good to be with other women close to my age, who own businesses and thrive doing it, you know? Take Abbi, for example. She just moved here this year, and she started her own cleaning company. She has five employees. Or is it six? Anyway, she’s kicking ass in her business. I’m really proud of all of us.”
“You should be.” This side of Summer, the passionate businesswoman, is almost as sexy as the one who was calling my name earlier.
Almost.
“It started out as just Polly and me catching up, and then the others arrived, and it snowballed into a fun evening. And then”—she reaches for my hand, lifts it to her lips—“I still got to see you, and that was the delicious icing on an already tasty cake.”
“I’m glad you had a good day, sugar.” I trace her finger with mine. “I arrested Mrs. Wilburn today.”
Summer’s eyes widen, and she gasps. “What? Why?”
I tell her the story of the old woman going so slowly and pulling her over, then her fleeing the scene, and ignoring me all the way to the beauty shop, before finally resisting arrest and biting my leg.
“Holy shit, Chase! Did she break the skin?”
“No, but it freaking hurt. I almost tazed her, but it would have killed the old bat.”
Summer is laughing now, covering her mouth as she laughs so hard that tears form.
“How long will she be in jail?” she finally asks.
“Her kids busted her out on a three-hundred-dollar bond, but I have a feeling the judge will revoke her license. She shouldn’t be driving.”
Summer takes a deep breath to help calm the laughter and then wipes the tears away. “Man, I’m sure that’s frustrating for her. But it sounds like she shouldn’t be driving anymore.”
“No.” I grin down at her. “She shouldn’t. I suppose you’re slammed this weekend. You mentioned you have some weddings?”
“Three,” she confirms. “We’ll be running all over town, starting early tomorrow. What do you have going on this weekend? Are you working?”
“No, actually, I have the weekend off. The surveyor had a cancellation, and he’s coming out to the property tomorrow to look at my place by the lake.”
“That’s awesome.” Her eyes light up.
“Then I was informed that we’re having a bachelor party for Remington.”
Her eyebrow wings up. “With strippers?”
I smirk and swipe my thumb under her eye where the cut from last night is almost completely gone. “No. Rem didn’t want one, but Brady insisted that we have to do something, so all of us brothers and our dad are going camping for one night on the ranch. The hands are coming, too, and I think Brooks and a few other friends are coming along.”
“That’s going to be so fun,” she says and leans her cheek on my shoulder. “Chase?”
“Yes, sugar.”
“I don’t ever want you to take me camping.”
I tip her chin up so I can look into her eyes. They’re full of humor. “And why is that?”
“Because it’s camping. I’ll hike, I’ll go on picnics, I’ll go out on a boat, canoe, paddleboard, and I’ll fish. But I will not, under any circumstances, sleep outside.”
“What if it’s in a tent? Or a camper?”
“Nope. Absolutely not.”
“So noted. No camping.”
“Thanks, Mark.”I shake the other man’s hand. He’s already packed up his equipment and helped me rope off where the house and shop are going to sit, and it made things really real for me.
I can’t wait to get started.
“My pleasure, Chase. If you need anything else, just call me. I’ll work you in.”
I nod after him, and he climbs into his truck, starts the engine, and pulls away from the property.
Before he’s out of sight, I see another truck coming this way, and Ryan waves at Mark as they pass each other.
It looks like all three of my brothers, along with my dad, are here.
“Are you about ready for this party?” Brady wants to know as he hops out, and then he notices the rope. “Well, look at that.”
I watch my dad, as the brothers walk to the ropes, taking it all in. And Dad’s eyes find mine.
“I hope this is okay with you,” I say as he joins me, and we stand shoulder-to-shoulder, watching the others.
“Why wouldn’t it be?” he asks. “Just look at that view. Why don’t you tell me what you’re thinking?”
I grin at him and go over my plans, the way I did with Remington just a couple of weeks ago.
And when I’ve finished, he’s nodding, and we walk over to where the others are standing.
“That shop’s going to be a honey,” Ryan says with a grin. “You need it.”
“I’m building that first,” I agree. “I’m doing as much as I can by myself, so the whole project will take me a while.”
“Why don’t you just let me make some calls?” Ryan offers. “I can have this built for you by next summer, at the latest. My gift to you, man.”
I shake my head. Leave it to my brother, the richest man in the state, to want to swoop in and handle things.
“I appreciate the offer more than you know, but I actually want to build it myself. It’ll be an adventure. In the meantime, I’m not exactly homeless.”
“If you change your mind, the offer stands,” he replies. “Man, that view.”
“I know.” The five of us stand, hands in pockets, looking out over the small lake. “It’s fucking awesome.”
“Let’s go.” Remington claps me on the shoulder. “The others are already at the barn, loading up to head out.”
“Let’s go.”
There are morepeople here than I expected there to be.
I didn’t realize that Erin’s dad, Will Montgomery, already flew out to help this week leading up to the wedding. Including Will, we have all the men in our family, the hands, Brooks and all three of his brothers, and a few other guys from town.
It doesn’t surprise me. Rem is well-liked in our community, and I know that everyone loves seeing him happy with Erin, especially since his first wife passed away when Holly was born. He hasn’t had it easy, but things sure have turned around for him.
He deserves every minute of happiness, and Erin makes him damn happy.
We’re deep into the property, in a clearing that’s surrounded by trees. We’ve come out here to camp since I was a kid. There’s a circle of rocks and dirt that make up the campfire, and there are stumps placed around for us all to sit on. Some of us brought folding camping chairs. Tents are scattered further out, already set up and ready for later.
We have a table off to the side that’s loaded down with coolers full of food and drinks.
No one will leave here hungry.
I’m staring into the fire, listening to Brady tell the group a story about Remington when Rem was in his early 20s and got caught with his hands down Mary Beth Anderson’s pants in the back seat of his car.
Ryan passes me a fresh beer and sits next to me.
“I don’t have any tales to tell,” I inform my brother, who just smiles.
“Well, we do, but we’ll keep them to ourselves.” He clinks the neck of his bottle against mine, taking a swig. “Jake starts at my place Monday morning.”
I lift an eyebrow and nod, still staring into the flames. “Good. He’s got a way with horses, and I know he’ll handle yours with care.”
“He’d better. When did his parents die?”
“Last year.” Grimly, I pull my hand down my face. “Fucking mess of a car accident, just outside of town. It was icy, and his dad was going too fast. I don’t know why, or what he thought he was late for. Anyway, they skidded into a tree, and both died on impact.”
“Jake wasn’t with them?”
“He was at school,” I reply, remembering that day clearly. I worked the scene all fucking day in below-zero temps.
“He doesn’t have any other family?”
“None that we’ve found. He’s in a foster placement.”
Ryan nods slowly and sips his beer. “Okay, well, we’ll see how this goes, then. The kid has a hell of an attitude on him.”
“Yeah, well, I think I would, too, if I were in his shoes. Thanks for taking him on, man. He’s not a bad kid; he’s just been dealt a shitty hand.”
Ryan nods again, and then there’s loud laughter, and we look over in time to see Will stand, holding his hands up like he’s holding an imaginary football and he’s going to make a pass.
“I knew he was open,” Will says loudly. “And I was going to land that pass, but suddenly, a fucking elephant plowed me down, and I saw stars.”
“You lost me fifty bucks on that game,” someone yells out, and Will laughs. “Yeah, well, I’m sure you’re not alone there.”
“Is it fucking crazy that Rem’s father-in-law is a goddamn Hall of Fame football player?” Ryan asks me.
“A little bit. But it’s also fucking crazy that you’ve managed to make a billion dollars before you’re thirty-five.”
“I’m telling you, let me help you with your investments, and I’ll make you a rich man.”
“I don’t need to be rich.” I shrug, and Ryan snorts.
“Come on, man.”
“I don’t. I do just fine.”
“If you change your mind…”
“I’ll let you know. Yeah, I get it. I’m not trying to be an asshole when I turn you down. I love you, and I’m damn proud of what you’ve built. I just don’t need the same things.”
He nods, thinking it over. “Yeah, I get it. I don’t think you’re trying to be an ass, Chase. It’s not really about the money for me.”
I lift my eyebrow at him and take a sip of my beer.
“Okay, the money is part of it. I like the wealth. I also give a shit ton of money away.”
“I know.” Ryan donates more money than any of us will ever know.
“It’s the game of it. The puzzle. It’s exhilarating, and I do really well at it. I know it’s a far cry from this life here on the ranch, but that doesn’t mean that it was wrong of me to go after it.”
I glance over at Remington, who’s chatting with Brooks and smiling.
“Rem doesn’t think it was wrong.”
“Yeah, he does.” Ryan swallows the last of his beer and shakes his head. “I worked fucking hard to make a name for myself in the world of business, and now that I have, I can be here in Bitterroot Valley. I can work from home, and I do, sometimes eighteen hours a day.”
“Technology is a beautiful thing.”
“You said it.”
“But are you happy here, Ry?”
“Yeah. I am.” He looks over at me, his gaze serious. “Happier than anywhere else in the world, and I’ve been just about everywhere.”
“Then that’s all that matters.” I slap him on the shoulder and stand. “Now, let’s go tell some of our stories after all and embarrass the fuck out of Rem.”
Ryan smiles slyly. “Fuck yeah, let’s do it.”
“I can still outshoot you,”Remington says with a satisfied grin as we both take off our ear and eye protection. All the guys stayed out on the ranch today to hike, have target practice, or just hang, taking in the fresh air.
“Maybe I’m drunk.” I smirk at him.
“You haven’t had a drink all day,” he reminds me.
“Maybe I let you win since it’s your party.”
“Whatever helps you sleep at night.” Rem pats me on the shoulder as we walk away, making room for some of the others to take their turn shooting their rifles at the targets.
“Come on, little brother,” Brooks says to his brother, Beckett. “I’ll show you how it’s done.”
“Whatever, old man.”
Rem and I grin at each other and wander over to the food table, where we both grab a bottle of water out of the ice.
“It’s nice to be able to trust the people we invite out here,” Rem says with a contented sigh. “Everyone knows and understands that this is an active shooting range, and they respect it. I don’t have to worry about anyone being stupid or showboating and getting anyone hurt or killed.”
“If it were any other way, we wouldn’t have offered this up to everyone today,” I reply with a nod, and we watch silently as both Brooks and Beckett shoot their rifles at the targets. Their family has also been around for a long while, although they’re still considered move-ins because they’ve only lived in the valley for roughly thirty years or so. Their family owns the Double B Ranch.
“What’s Summer up to this weekend?” Rem asks.
“Working. She has weddings back-to-back, pretty much through the middle of September.”
He nods thoughtfully. “Where do you think that’ll go?”
I eye him and sip my water. “I think she’ll continue designing flowers for weddings, I suppose.”
Rem rolls his eyes. “You’re a smartass. Come on, I’m your big brother. You’re supposed to talk to me about this stuff.”
“I’m… I could see myself falling for her. She’s fucking amazing, and I’ve been attracted to her for years. The chemistry is crazy. She’s driven and smart.”
“You like her.”
I eye him again and nod. “Yeah, I like her. A lot.”
“Good place to start,” he says, clapping me on the back. “I think she’s great. She’s been a good friend to Erin and Millie.”
“I suspect she’s a good friend to everyone.”
“Except the part where she talked my soon-to-be wife into hiring Charlie Lexington.”
“Dude, get over yourself. Charlie’s the best there is, and you want Erin to have the best.”
“But why does she have to be a Lexington?”
I laugh and shake my head. “Because the universe has a sense of humor, that’s why. I’m going to take the horse and go for a ride. I’ll probably be out of cell range for a while.”
“Want me to go with you?”
“You can’t bail on your party.”
He glances around, shrugging again. “Half the guys are off doing other things anyway. I think Brady took a few guys fishing. I’m surprised that you didn’t want in on that.”
“I plan to go next week.” And take a certain someone with me. “Come on, let’s go.”
“Where are you going?” Ryan calls out.
“Just for a ride,” Rem replies. “Wanna join us?”
“Hell yes.”
It’s latewhen I decide to leave the ranch and head home. We spent all weekend on the land, enjoying time with friends, and it was a good time. I have no complaints at all.
But I miss Summer, and I plan to call her as soon as I get home.
First, I stop at the police station real quick to grab my duty belt and clean my weapon before my shift tomorrow.
I’ve just walked inside when Sergeant Prescott waves me over.
“How’s Summer?” he asks.
“As far as I know, she’s fine. Why do you ask?”
He narrows his eyes. “She didn’t call you?”
My gut tightens, and the hair on the back of my neck stands up. “Why would she need to call me, Sarg?”
“She had an incident last night,” he begins.
“Is she in the hospital?”
“No, no. Nothing like that?—”
Before he can say more, I take off and run back to my truck, putting it in gear and racing toward Summer’s house before I even have the door closed.
But when I get there, her house is locked up tight, and she doesn’t answer. I call her, but it goes to voicemail.
“Summer, it’s me. I just spoke to my sergeant, and he said something happened last night. I need you to answer the phone, sugar.”
Running back to the truck, I toss the phone onto the seat and drive over to my own place, trying to figure out how to get a hold of her.
I can call her aunt. She’ll know where she is.
But when I get home, I see Summer’s car parked in my driveway, and for just a moment, my heart calms in relief.
She’s safe.
That’s all that matters.
But then I run to the front door, and when I find it locked, I key in the code and push the door open. Lily lifts her head from where she’s sleeping in a little dog bed and then pads over to greet me.
“Hey, baby. Where’s your mama? Summer!” I rush back to the kitchen, but I don’t see her, so I take the stairs two at a time.
I can see that she slept in my bed last night because the covers are messy on her side, and when I push into the bathroom, I find her in the bathtub, with headphones on. Her eyes are closed, and she’s bopping her head back and forth in time with the music in her ears.
“Summer.”
Obviously, she has the volume up, and I’m going to startle her, but I need to know what in the ever-loving fuck is going on.
“Summer!”
She jumps, gasps, and slams her hand over her mouth, those baby blues wide, and then sighs.
“You scared me!”
She takes off the headphones and sets them on the floor beside the tub.
“What the hell is going on, Summer?”
“First of all, please let me get out of this bath, and I will tell you everything.”
“Are you okay?”
Her eyes soften. “Yes. I’m okay. And I’m sorry I came here without asking you, I just?—”
“Get dressed.” I turn to leave the room. “We’ll talk downstairs.”
Lily’s waiting in the bedroom, sitting on the middle of the bed, watching with interest.
“Come on, girl.”
She follows me down the stairs, and it’s not even five minutes later when I hear Summer coming down the steps. She’s in a white tank top, no bra, and a pair of pink sweat shorts. Her golden hair is piled on top of her head, and her face is clean of makeup.
I can’t resist, I rush to her and pull her into my arms, holding on tight, and she clings to me almost desperately.
“Talk to me, babe.”
“Okay.” She pulls away and curls up on the end of the sofa, pulling those long legs up under her. “I worked late last night. Saturdays are always busy, you know? But I wanted Lily with me because I missed her, so on my way home, I stopped and picked her up from Aunt Paula. Then I took her home. At first, everything was normal at the house.”
“At first?”
“Yeah.” She swallows hard and pulls Lily into her lap and kisses the dog’s head. “I got settled, took off my shoes, put some water on to boil for tea—you know…the usual stuff. Lily had to go outside, so I took her out in the yard, and she did her business, but when I turned to go back in?—”
She pauses, swallows again, and tears spring to her eyes, so I reach over and take her hand in mine.
“Hey, I’m right here.”
“Spray paint,” she manages. “Someone spray-painted the back of my house. Fucking Whore was written all over it.”
“What in the actual fuck?”
“The cameras didn’t alert me on the app, so the police had me bring up the footage last night, and all that’s there is a hand right before he painted over the lens.”
“Jesus Christ.” My heart is thudding, my mind racing. She was alone all night after that.
“Why didn’t you call me?”
“Because you were out with the others, and I wanted you to have fun?—”
“Whoa.” I pull back and scowl at her. “You call me, no matter what, no matter where the fuck I am, Summer. Even if you just want to say hello, but absolutely when something like this happens.”
“I was safe,” she retorts. “I didn’t want to stay at home, and the first place I thought to come was here, so I loaded Lily up, and we came over. You gave me the code to the door, and I know I should have asked, but?—”
“You’re always welcome here, and I’m glad that this is where you came, but damn it, you should have called me. My guys should have called me. For fuck’s sake, I spent all day at the ranch, just dicking around, when I should have been here with you.”
“No.” She shakes her head and squeezes my hand. “I wasn’t here most of the day. I had another wedding to see to, and I took Lily with me. There was nothing to do, Chase.”
“Nothing except make sure that you’re okay. Be here for you. Investigate who decided to vandalize your home.”
“The police are working on that,” she says with a sigh. “And I’ll be honest, I’m starting to think that it isn’t just kids. It’s not random.”
“It’s not random,” I agree with her, and now I move to the couch and put both Summer and the dog in my lap. “Who have you pissed off, Blondie?”
“No one that I’m aware of.” She sighs against me. “You’re sure you’re not mad that I invaded your house?”
“I gave you the code so you’d use it.” I kiss her head and breathe her in. “I think, until we get this all figured out, you should just plan on staying here.”
Her head comes up at that, and she stares up at me with grateful blue eyes. “I was kind of hoping you’d say that.”