Chapter 17
Fact or Fiction?
Phase two is going to be a bitch.
Luke
from my front porch. I yawn and stretch, my muscles screaming from one of a myriad of things I’ve done to it in the past week:
Man of the Mountain competition
Man of the Mountain medical emergency
Clenching my entire body while I waited for the six-foot-tall local lumberyard owner to run me off his property with a shotgun
Clenching my entire body while I waited for my mom to grab me by the ear and kick my ass
Moving my new fake/not fake wife into my cabin only shortly after said mountain activities
Fighting off a raging boner I had pretty much the entire night as I dreamed of a dark-haired beauty sleeping only ten feet
away from me
But the honeymoon is already over so I clomp my ass into my bathroom for a cold shower and to prepare myself for another fun-filled
day at Fletcher Brothers Construction.
It’ll be good to lose myself in work for a bit. I need to not let thoughts of Addison living with me and the fact that we’re married and planning a traditional wedding completely consume my thoughts.
Although, it meant a lot to me when she opened up about her brother last night. That’s the side to Roe I love the most. The
soft side. Normally, she’s this tough, ballsy, outspoken person . . . which I also like. But when she’s sensitive and lets
her guard down—that’s when I really feel like I see her. A perfect dichotomy of sweet and savage unlike anyone I’ve ever met.
But I have to have an identity outside of her in the next several months or I will drive myself crazy. So work will be good
for me.
Plus, I like my job. There’s a deep satisfaction I feel bidding out jobs. I enjoy reviewing blueprints from architects and
researching the materials and costs to compile a detailed proposal. Wyatt might be the big ideas guy but I’m the one who figures
out how to turn those ideas into a reality. The success we’ve found in our recent smart housing development is due in large
part to my work behind the desk. It’s good I remember that.
I lace up my work boots and slip my Carhartt coat over my flannel before quietly making my way out of my bedroom, careful
not to wake Addison. My thoughts are all in vain though because as soon as I step into the hallway, I nearly barrel right
into Roe as she pads barefoot out of the bathroom at the exact same time.
“Shit, sorry,” I say, backing up and holding my hands up to try to get out of her way, feeling much too close to her in this
tight proximity.
“Good morning,” she says around a yawn as she rubs her eyes, her hair in a messy ball on top of her head.
“Good morning,” I answer, trying really hard not to check her out in the T-shirt she’s in.
“You headed out already?” She squints up at me as her eyes adjust to the sunlight beginning to peek through the windows.
“Yeah. Sorry if I woke you.”
She shakes her head and yawns. “You didn’t. It was—”
“Rufus,” I finish her sentence with a knowing tone. “He’s a pain in the ass.”
She shrugs. “You warned me.”
The corner of my mouth lifts at that. “Did you, um . . . sleep okay otherwise?”
She wrinkles her nose. “Yeah, I slept fine. Oh . . . can you drop these off for me?” She grabs me by the jacket and drags
me down the hall into the kitchen where I see two loaves of bread wrapped in clear plastic baggies. “One for Calder and Dakota
and one for Trista and Wyatt.”
“When did you make these?” I ask, admiring the golden crust.
“Last night.”
I blink back at her before reaching out to force her to look up at me in the daylight. “Did you sleep at all?”
“I slept,” she exclaims, looking up at me with sleepy eyes, her face bare of her normal makeup. I like seeing her out of her
makeup. It feels intimate. “I just wanted to thank them for helping me move and for the food last night. Mildred was super
active yesterday, so I started some loaves before we moved and sitting in the heat all day, they rose so well, I got them
all out.” She smiles softly as her eyes move over my body. “So this is what you wear to work every day, huh?”
I chuckle and shrug. “You’ve seen me in my work clothes before.” I lean in close and waggle my brows. “Spoiler alert. They’re
not any different from my everyday clothes.”
She licks her lips and looks up at my hair. “Never seen your hair wet like this before though.” She reaches up and ruffles
my damp locks with her fingers, causing my eyes to close as the sensation flows through my entire body.
When I open my eyes, they lower down to her chest. She’s wearing a baggy orange Monroe Lumber T-shirt with slouchy socks and I’m guessing a whole lotta nothing underneath. “And this is what you wear to bed every night?”
“Pretty much.” She shrugs and crosses her arms over her chest, pushing her breasts upward.
“Were you cooking in my kitchen last night in just this little thing?” I reach out and grip the waist of her shirt, noting
the thinness of the fabric.
She pokes her finger into my chest. “It’s my kitchen now, Fletcher, so you just make way in here, alright?”
Silence grows between us and I have to swallow the knot in my throat as my eyes drop, noticing how hard her nipples are as
they poke through the fabric. I can’t help but wonder if she might not be wearing panties either. I bet she wakes up wet in the mornings.
My cock thickens inside my jeans at the illicit image of her being completely bare in front of me like this. Just a tiny layer
of fabric is separating us and all I’d have to do is press her up against the fridge and reach my fingers under her shirt
to find out if she’s wet.
She releases a shaky breath and I clear my throat and turn my back to her, acting like I’m looking for my phone. “I, um . . .
better get going or the carpool is going to leave me.”
She shoves the two loaves toward me and murmurs, “Have a good day, Luke,” before beelining down the hallway, looking almost
as bothered as I feel.
“See you later, Roe,” I offer weakly and, when she’s out of sight, I adjust the groin of my jeans and attempt to collect myself
before gathering the bread and my work bag off the dining room table.
Fucking hell.
My best friend has been here for less than twenty-four hours and I’m getting hard in the kitchen before morning coffee. I better get my shit together or I could scare her the fuck away.
I head out my front door, breathing in the fresh mountain air to try to cleanse away my dirty thoughts. Making my way down
the hill, I spot Wyatt and Calder seated on the tailgate of Wyatt’s truck waiting for me, work boots swinging back and forth.
Shit-eating grins permanently in place.
“Well, well, well . . .” Calder says with a dirty look. “Did you consummate the marriage, baby bro?”
I frown over at him. “How do you know that word?”
He smiles. “It’s my word of the day. Fitting, isn’t it?”
“Shut the fuck up.” I toss the heavy loaves of bread at both of them simultaneously and they catch them against their chests.
“Roe made you losers bread as a thank-you for your help.”
Calder laughs and shakes his head. “I told you, Wyatt. He didn’t close the deal before he married her and now he’s got to
live with a woman who would rather bake bread than fuck him.”
“Can we go please?” I growl, yanking the truck door open.
Wyatt fights back his own smirk as we all pile in. Me in the back because I need a moment alone with my unruly cock. And no,
I am not referring to Rufus. No doubt it will start waking me up at six every morning too, knowing what my wife wears to bed.
Fuck.
We drive down the mountain in silence and the smell of sourdough starts filling the car when my phone starts buzzing in my
pocket. I pull it out and wince when I see who it is.
“It’s Everly, isn’t it?” Calder asks with a knowing tone. “No one else calls this early.”
I exhale heavily.
“Did you not tell her the news?” Wyatt asks, glancing at me in the rearview mirror.
“I crashed early last night after I called Max.”
“That means he told her first and you’re about to get your ass reamed.” Calder giggles excitedly, turning in his seat to watch
the show.
I let out a pained noise before swiping my screen to answer. Everly’s bright blue eyes pierce right through me, her long blond
hair framing her face like the angel I know she’s not.
“Who is with you in the car right now?” she growls, skipping right past a nice, normal hello.
My brothers cut each other a knowing look as I reply, “Just Wyatt and Calder.”
“How dare you!” she screams, launching right into her ass chewing. “I had to hear that you and Addison got married from my
dad . . . my dad! Even Ethan knew before me. Ethan! I should have been the first one you called, Luke.”
“Everly, I’m sorry,” I reply, turning my hat backward so she can see my face. “Everything happened so fast.”
“So fast you couldn’t’ even call to tell Grandma?” She presses her hand to her chest, her face stricken with disappointment.
“I can get over it. But Grandma? Luke. That is unforgivable.”
“I know, okay? I already heard it enough from her, I don’t need to hear it from you too. I’ve had a lot on my mind. This shit
is like . . . getting real now.”
“I’d say! Grandma said she’s planning a wedding?”
For fuck’s sake, how long was I asleep? “Yeah, it’s something Addison’s dad wanted done before the end of the year I guess.”
“You better plan it over my Christmas break so I can be there or I will straight-up kill you. I’ll use one of those logger
supplies and gut you in your sleep.”
“Good grief.” I roll my eyes and look out at the pine trees, wondering how much it would hurt if I just jumped out of the
moving truck right now. “Text me the dates and I’ll discuss it with Roe. We won’t do it without you.”
Everly murmurs some expletives under her breath before asking, “So what’s your plan now?”
“I have no idea.” I frown and lift my shoulders helplessly. “You told me not to worry about phase two until we were done with
phase one.”
Everly eyes me speculatively. “How is it living together? What’s your sleeping arrangement?”
Calder and Wyatt exchange another look that has my eyes narrowing. It is fucking humiliating doing this in front of all of
them. But I suppose I asked for this the moment I let them help train me for the lumberjack competition.
“Addison is set up in the guest room.”
“And last night was your first night together?” I nod. “How did it go?” she adds.
“Fine I guess. She was busy unpacking a lot. And she must have been up real late because she had freshly baked bread for the
guys this morning.”
Everly puzzles over this. “That’s kind of weird, isn’t it?”
I lift my shoulders. “She’s mentioned she doesn’t sleep well so I don’t know. Maybe it’s normal for her.”
“Making bread in the middle of the night is only normal if you’re hammered drunk.”
“She wasn’t drunk, Everly,” I snap, my body tensing at the accusation.
“I know that. I’m just saying if she’s up making bread all hours of the night, it has to be a mental thing.” She taps her
fingers to her lips, already in plotting mode. “You should try to find relaxing activities to do in the evening with her to
help her feel more at ease. Watch a movie or something. Talk to her more maybe?”
“I know how to act around a woman, Ev, especially Roe. We are friends after all.” I grumble, my face feeling like it’s in a permanent state of scowl because I feel like a kid being told what to do by his mom when he’s at sleepaway camp.
“And we talked plenty when we ate the food Trista made us and I fed Rufus with her.”
My niece perks up at that. “What do you talk about?”
“I’m not going to tell you every conversation I have with her,” I growl and pull the phone away.
“Fine, jeez. Stop being so testy. You must not have slept well either.”
Hell. I am in hell.
“After talking to Grandma, I decided I think you should definitely be a part of the wedding planning.”
“Really?” I ask, cringing because what the fuck do I know about wedding planning?
“Try to contribute some ideas to the wedding that you know Addison would love. Think about her personality and make it all
really cute and personal. Plus, these are the moments you get to spend more time with her. You do want to spend more time
with her, don’t you?”
“Of course I do,” I reply honestly and flinch when I realize how true that is. It was fucking hell going to sleep in my big
bed all alone while she was just a couple walls away from me, also alone . . . and apparently naked under that T-shirt.
I turn the phone away, horrified at the fact that I just pictured my wife naked while my niece was on the phone with me. That’s
sick even for Fletcher brothers standards.
“I’m going to text Grandma with some wedding planning ideas I have so just go with it, okay?
We’re still maintaining the secret from Grandma and the ladies.
” She pulls out a pink notebook with a furry pen and starts jotting some things down.
“Let Addison settle in a bit this week but start thinking about what else you can do outside of wedding planning. This is your time to woo her, Luke. Listen to what her interests are. Try to anticipate her needs. Act like a husband, not a roommate. Set the mood in the cabin. Maybe pick up her favorite coffee on your way home from work one day. Decaf if she has sleep issues.”
My brows furrow as I contemplate all of that. “Why are you acting like this is so urgent? We’ve got a year to do all this,
Evs.”
Everly shakes her head from side to side. “She has to fall in love with you before the wedding ceremony, Luke.”
“Why?” I ask and notice both of my brothers looking at each other with concern.
“Because the moment she walks down the aisle and sees the way you look at her . . . she’ll know the truth anyways.”
A heaviness grows in my chest over that sobering reality and, somehow, the stakes got as high as that ninety-foot pole I ate
shit on.
Everly’s voice is thick when she adds, “And you deserve for her to be looking back at you the exact same way.”