Chapter 5
Chapter Five
L evi put the hammer down when his cellphone started ringing, frowning as he glanced at the screen.
“Paul?” he said, answering quickly. He’d exchanged phone numbers with the Riley twins yesterday, telling them to let him know if they had any issues on the farm.
Kasi would kick his ass all the way to next Tuesday if she knew he’d done that, but he didn’t care. He was determined to take as much off her plate as possible.
“Hey, Levi. Wanted to let you know Pete’s going to open the stand, so we’re not going to finish picking the green beans today like we planned.”
“Why is Pete opening the stand? Where’s Kasi?”
“Her brother drove her to the hospital.”
“What?” Levi left his tools where they lay, dug his keys out of his pocket, and headed to his truck.
“Took a tumble in the barn. Hit her head on a shelf. I cleaned up the blood.”
“Blood?” Levi threw his truck into drive and kicked up gravel as he pulled away from the cabin. In addition to the B&B his parents operated, there were ten rental cabins located around the farm. Mina had pulled him aside after the family meeting this morning to ask if he could fix a few loose boards on the porch of this one, since it was vacant the next month.
Mila intended to give it a bit of a facelift. Every two or three years, she chose a cabin to renovate, so they didn’t all get run-down at the same time. Once he was done, he’d intended to head to Kasi’s to try to mark a few more things off her honey-do list.
“Head wounds bleed,” Paul said matter-of-factly, like every word he spoke wasn’t shaking Levi to the core.
Pete and Paul Riley were good workers, but damn if they didn’t have the personality of rocks. He wasn’t sure he’d ever seen either man laugh, just as he’d never seen them get upset or angry or…anything. Their lives consisted of work, home, and church. And that was it. They didn’t go out to bars, didn’t date, and didn’t attend any of the local town events.
“Was she conscious when Keith took her to the hospital?” Levi took a turn a little too quickly, struggling to keep his phone pressed to his ear with his shoulder. He should have put the damn thing on speaker.
“Yeah. Kicked up a fuss about going, but her brother was pretty shaken up and insisted.”
That made two of them. Levi’s opinion of Keith just rose a few levels.
“Good for him. I’m heading to the hospital now. I’ll see about getting one of my cousins to man the stand so you and Pete can finish harvesting those beans.”
While Kasi hadn’t said as much, he got the sense when he’d mentioned her ledger that she was worried about money. Pete had confided yesterday that the green beans they were harvesting were supposed to be delivered to the local grocery store, as well as a couple of restaurants tomorrow. If money really was an issue, Kasi wouldn’t want to miss those deliveries.
Paul grunted, which Levi assumed was his way of saying goodbye because the call disconnected right after that.
Tossing his phone in the center console, he tried to calm down as he drove off the mountain. It wouldn’t do any good for him to wreck his truck trying to get to her. Of course, that didn’t mean he slowed down because he couldn’t get the image of Kasi hitting her head on a shelf out of his mind. Once he got onto the main highway, he called Remi, who promised to head over to Lucky Penny Farm to work the stand for Kasi.
If Remi was wondering why the hell he was racing to get to her best friend and the hospital, she didn’t ask. Obviously, her brain hadn’t kicked in on that fact yet—too worried about Kasi’s accident—but she’d start asking questions soon enough. Not that he had a problem with her asking because he was going to tell her the same thing he’d told Kasi.
She was his.
Period.
He made it to the hospital in less than twenty minutes, which meant it was a miracle he hadn’t been pulled over for speeding because ordinarily, that trip took closer to half an hour.
Walking into the ER, he spotted Jessica James behind the desk. He and Jessica had graduated from high school together and she now worked as a nurse.
“Hey, Jess.”
“Hi, Levi. What brings you here today? You alright?”
“Yeah. I’m fine. I understand Kasi Mills was brought in by her brother.”
Jessica nodded. “Oh yeah. She’s here. Doc already fixed her up, and I’m just working on her discharge papers.”
Levi released the breath he’d been holding since Paul’s call. If they were letting her go, her injuries couldn’t be too serious. “Can I go back and see her?”
“Um. Sure, I guess. She’s in exam room three.” Jessica grinned, clearly intrigued by his request. She was a big gossip, so he suspected she was currently working on how she was going to spin this conversation later when she called her girlfriends.
“Thanks,” he said, hastily walking toward the exam rooms. He heard Kasi before he saw her, her raised voice carrying down the hall.
“I don’t give a shit if it is policy, Monty. I’m not getting in that thing.”
“Kasi.”
Levi recognized Monty Bly’s voice, noting the resigned tone. Gracemont wasn’t a large town, and Levi had spent every single second of his life in it, which meant he knew pretty much every person who lived here.
“Don’t you ‘Kasi’ me. I’m not getting in that wheelchair. I’ll look like an idiot.”
Levi peered through the doorway of the room and spotted Kasi sitting on the edge of the exam table. She was wearing yet another pair of cutoff denim shorts and a pink T-shirt that was splattered with drying blood. She had a small bandage near her hairline, and she looked madder than a wet hen.
Keith stood off to the side, leaning against the wall, looking at his phone. If he’d been concerned back at the farm, it appeared to have worn off because now he just looked bored.
Levi stepped inside before Monty could continue the battle.
“What are you doing here?” Kasi asked, still scowling.
Levi crossed his arms, not bothering to hide his annoyance at her tone. “Paul called me.”
“Why?”
“Nope. That’s not the question. The question is why didn’t you call me?” Levi was looking at Keith as he asked.
Keith replied with a scowl. Levi figured Kasi’s brother probably had some choice words he wanted to add, but he held back.
Levi crossed the room to her. Now that he was closer, he could see a lump beneath the bandage and a large, painful-looking bruise on the side of her forehead. “You okay?”
Kasi nodded.
“She passed out,” Keith replied. “Hit her head when she fell.”
Levi looked over at Monty, who’d been an ER nurse here for close to twenty years. “What did Doc say?”
Monty spared a glance toward Kasi, who shrugged. Monty interpreted that as permission to respond. “Doc put in a half dozen stitches and said she might have a slight concussion. Bruised up her arms pretty good too. He gave her some pain medication and she’s supposed to take it easy the rest of the day.”
Kasi scoffed. “All caught up now?” Damn, she was not a happy camper. “Can I please go? The stand should have been opened by now.” She hopped down from the table, clearly intent on walking out.
“Kasi,” Monty started again, rolling the wheelchair toward her.
Kasi held up her hand. “Keep that thing away from me.”
“Here we go again,” Keith muttered.
“Little bear,” Levi said, loosely wrapping an arm around her middle to halt her escape. “You can either sit your cute ass down in that wheelchair, or I’m carrying you out of here.”
Keith snickered.
Kasi whirled on her brother. “You think that’s funny?”
“I don’t think it’s not funny,” Keith replied, pure smart-ass. Apparently that trait ran in the family.
She scowled, then turned back to Levi. She clearly intended to give him the what-for as well, but he wasn’t in the mood. Every bit of her face was lined with exhaustion and pain. He was finished playing nice.
“Sit down, Kasi. Now ,” he stressed.
She blinked a few times at his heated demand, then gave in, dropping down into the wheelchair. She started muttering something, but the only words Levi heard were “look stupid” and “cocky asshole.”
As he rolled her out of the exam room, Levi glanced over his shoulder at Keith. “I’ll drive her home.”
Not to her home, but Kasi didn’t need to know that.
“You don’t have to come back to the farm. I’ll ride with Keith,” Kasi said.
Levi ignored her. “Why don’t you head on out, Keith. We’ll see you later.”
He pushed Kasi to the front desk, where Jessica waited with the discharge papers. The nurse’s eyes lit up when she saw Levi pushing the chair. Gossip was as treasured as gold in Gracemont, and he and Kasi were about to star in whatever romantic tale Jessica cooked up to spread around.
“Okay. I’ll see you guys there.” Keith left the hospital, while Kasi signed the discharge papers. Jessica made some comment about how nice it was of Levi to pick her up, but Kasi didn’t take the bait, merely shrugging without saying a word.
The second they hit the exit to the hospital, Kasi hopped out of the wheelchair, storming toward his truck so quickly, he had to jog a couple steps to catch her. When he did, he wrapped his arm around her waist. She’d just passed out. The last thing he needed was for her to take another tumble.
“Slow down,” he said.
Kasi shot him a dirty look but matched his more leisurely pace.
Levi opened her door, helping her inside before leaning over to buckle her seat belt.
“Seriously?” she muttered. “I’m not an invalid, Levi.”
He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek then shut her door, circling his truck to climb behind the wheel. Rather than start it, he twisted to face her. “That bump on the head knock the grumpy into you?”
Kasi’s arms were crossed, and she was silently fuming. His question, however, knocked some of the wind out of her sails, and her shoulders drooped.
“No. I’m sorry. I just…” She sighed. “I didn’t need to go to the hospital. I told Keith I was fine. The last thing we need is another fucking bill. And now I’ve lost a couple hours of sales because the stand isn’t open.”
“Pete opened the stand on time, and Remi’s probably there by now, taking over so he and his brother can finish picking the beans for tomorrow’s deliveries.”
Kasi’s eyes widened. “Oh.”
Her astonishment told him just how accustomed she’d become to doing everything on her own. It hadn’t even occurred to her to ask for help.
Levi frowned, certain Kasi wouldn’t have said anything about the money if she wasn’t so rattled and pissed off. It certainly answered his concerns about her family having financial difficulties. He tucked that information away to discuss with her later. For now, he had bigger fish to fry. “By the way, those stitches in your head seem to say something different about you needing medical care. Your brother was right to bring you here.”
“Fine. Whatever,” she said dismissively, leaning back against the seat wearily. “Can you just take me home?”
Levi studied her face, the dark circles under her eyes even more pronounced than they’d been yesterday. “Keith said you passed out again.”
She turned her head to look out the window, not bothering to answer him.
“Did you eat today?” he asked.
Kasi continued to look away from him, even as she shook her head.
Levi growled, pissed. “Did you go to bed right after I left last night?”
The slight hesitance before she nodded let him know she was lying.
“Want to try answering that again? Maybe with the truth this time,” he said sternly.
Kasi’s eyes darted in his direction, some of her anger resurfacing. “I needed to take care of some things, okay?”
When he left last night, he’d expected Kasi to crawl into bed and—hopefully—dream of him. Because that was sure as hell what he’d done. “What things?”
“Levi. I need to get home.”
“Then answer my questions.”
Kasi was a stubborn woman, but Levi was pretty damn sure he could out-stubborn her right now. He was determined to help her, but she was fighting him every step of the way.
She blew out an exasperated breath. “I needed to pay some bills, and then I did a bit of cleaning because I haven’t had time in the last few weeks. It was getting to the point where I could write my name in the dust on every flat surface in the living room.”
Levi’s temper went from zero to sixty. “You stayed up to clean?! Dammit, Kasi. What the hell is wrong with you? You can’t do it all.”
“So you keep saying,” she fired back. “But the fact is, Levi, I can. Because I have . For eight fucking months! Now take me home.”
Kasi turned away from him once more, and he knew by the determined tilt of her chin she was finished with this conversation.
That was fine by him.
He’d told her she was his and he’d fucking meant it. It was time to show her exactly what that involved.
He started the truck, pulling out of the hospital parking lot. Kasi was silent, the uninjured side of her head resting against the passenger window. He kept his eyes on the road until they passed the turn to her family’s farm. He expected her to kick up a fuss, but when she didn’t say a word, he glanced in her direction.
She was asleep.
Good. That would make this trip a lot easier.
Taking the turn to Stormy Weather Farm, he drove slowly, not wanting her to wake until they reached their destination. When he pulled up in front of the vacant cabin where he’d just been working, he turned off the engine and unfastened his seat belt.
Kasi jerked awake, frowning in confusion as she looked around.
“Where are we?” Her voice was huskier after her too-short nap.
“We’re at one of the cabins on my family’s farm.”
“Why?”
Levi climbed out of the truck, crossing around the hood to open her door.
She shook her head. “I’m not getting out, Levi. I need you to drive me to the stand.”
“You’re not going to work today.”
Her eyes flashed with anger. “That’s not your call to make.”
Levi leaned into the cab of the truck, reaching across her to unfasten her seat belt. Kasi tried to push his hand away, but her strength was no match for his.
Grasping her waist, he tugged her from the truck and lifted her into his arms, intent on carrying her inside. He was careful to be gentle, not wanting to hurt her. Unfortunately, Kasi wasn’t making it easy, fighting him every step of the way.
“Let me go!” she demanded, slapping at his hands and arms, then pushing against his chest. He juggled her a bit, trying to get a firmer grip, determined not to drop her.
“I mean it, Levi,” she said, pinching his arms.
“Hold still, Kasi,” he snapped. “Or as God is my witness, I’ll rip down these shorts and spank your ass, concussion or not.”
His threat stunned her to silence—for all of three seconds—before she doubled down on trying to escape his hold.
“Dammit,” he cursed, shifting so that he could toss her over his shoulder, firefighter-style.
“Levi!” she screamed, pounding her fists on his back.
He lifted his hand and smacked her ass, hard, while walking toward the cabin.
When she gasped—but didn’t complain—he spanked her three more times, then he opened the door and carried her inside, not stopping until they were in the bedroom.
Bending forward, he dropped her onto the mattress, prepared for her next attempt at escape. He placed a firm hand in the middle of her breastbone and held her down, dodging the legs she was kicking his direction.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Her fingernails dug into his wrist, but he didn’t release her. Instead, he straddled her knees, tightening his thighs so her legs were immobile.
“Calm down, Kasi. Right now.”
“I’ll calm down when you let go of me and take me to the stand!”
Levi shook his head. “That’s not happening.”
“ Please ,” she demanded. “I have to?—”
Levi cut her off with a kiss. He kept it soft and gentle, even as his body clamored for more. Every time his lips touched hers, it fired off some primitive part of him that sought to claim and capture.
Kasi struggled a moment or two more, but whatever fight she had left was clearly spent. And despite her complaints, she didn’t hesitate to join the kiss, pressing her lips against his, her tongue stroking his.
When they parted, he stroked her cheek, smiling.
“You can’t kiss me whenever you don’t like something I’m saying,” she said. She didn’t return his smile, but her scowl was gone.
“We’re gonna have to agree to disagree on that one, little bear. But that’s not why I kissed you.”
“Why did you, then?” she asked.
“Because I can’t resist you,” he confessed. “Every second I’m with you, I just want you more.”
Kasi drew in a soft breath, and he could practically see her brain trying to process his words. “Oh.”
“You have to sleep, Kasi.”
“I don’t have ti?—”
“You do,” Levi insisted. “You do have time because I’m forcing you to make it. You’ve passed out twice in the last few days. If you’re trying to work yourself to death, you’re doing a hell of a good job of it.”
Levi released his grip on her, sitting next to her on the bed. Kasi remained on her back, her legs hanging over the edge of the mattress, staring at the ceiling to avoid looking at him.
“Do you know how I felt when Paul called and said you’d hit your head? When he told me you’d been bleeding?”
Her body sagged in exhaustion and her gaze slid to his face. “I don’t understand why you care.” There was no malice in her tone, just genuine confusion. “Three days ago, we were nothing more than neighbors. Just acquaintances.”
“I told you how it was with my dad. How he knew the second he saw Mom.”
“Levi, you’ve seen me a thousand times in the past twenty-plus years.”
“You were a kid for most of those years,” he pointed out.
“Because I’m thirteen years younger than you.”
Levi ran a hand over her hair, trying to find the words to explain it because the truth was, he’d been just as blindsided by this instantaneous need to be with her. He hadn’t been looking for love. Hell, at thirty-seven, he was starting to think he’d never find his woman.
“You’re a woman now, Kasi. A strong, beautiful, intelligent woman. I’m not sure how I missed that the past few years, but when you fainted, when I caught you, whatever was blinding me just fell away, and I knew I’d never felt anything more right than holding you in my arms.”
“I’m not…” Kasi bit her lower lip. “This is too fast. I’m not…ready.”
Levi shifted, reclining on his side next to her. He drew his fingertips over her cheek. “I’m trying not to rush you. And yes, I’m failing,” he added with a wink. “So for now, let’s just leave it at I care about you, Kasi. A lot. You could have been seriously hurt. Head injuries are nothing to fuck around with. I’m glad Keith forced you to go to the hospital.”
“Okay,” she said. “I get it. I need to sleep more. I need to eat better. I promise I will.”
Her words might have carried more weight if she’d managed to maintain eye contact. As it was, she was studying the ceiling again like it was the most fascinating thing she’d ever seen.
“I’m getting tired of you lying to me, Kasi, but that’s not something I can fix right now. You’re bruised and concussed, so those consequences I told you about will have to wait until you’re healed.”
He thought he saw a glimmer of—fuck him—desire, but she locked it down quick. Not that it mattered. He’d seen it, and it had the effect of throwing tinder on a dying fire. Sweet Jesus. He couldn’t wait to take her to his bed. A grocery list as long as his arm started playing in his head as he considered all the ways he’d make his sexy girl come.
But now wasn’t the time for that. His gaze locked on her bruised forehead and tired eyes. He placed a soft kiss on the side of her head, wishing he really could make it better with just that touch.
She sighed, and it was the saddest sound Levi had ever heard another person make.
“You’re not taking me home, are you?” she asked woodenly.
He shook his head. “Not right now. No.”
“What do you want?” He hated how resigned she sounded, but he refused to back down. Even if she couldn’t see it, he knew what he was doing was for her own good.
“So fucking much, Kasi. But for now, I just want you to go to sleep.”
She nodded. “Okay. Only for a couple of hours. I still need to get home and figure out dinner for Daddy.”
Levi didn’t respond to that because, despite the fact she had no problem lying to him, he refused to lie to her. She wasn’t taking a short nap, and she sure as shit wasn’t making dinner.
When he didn’t answer her, Kasi tugged her cell from her back pocket and set an alarm before placing it on the nightstand. Then she sat up slowly, toed off her sandals, and climbed on top of the duvet.
If he wasn’t so frustrated and worried, he might have laughed at her corpse-like pose as she lay on her back, her hands folded together over her chest.
Levi stood up, reaching for her hand. She slipped hers into his without thought—something he liked—but she resisted when he tried to pull her up.
Two minutes ago, she couldn’t get off the bed fast enough. Now she wouldn’t leave it.
“What are you doing? You said you wanted me to sleep.”
“I do,” he said, “but I want you to be comfortable.” Once she stood next to the bed, he pulled down the duvet.
Kasi’s hands flew to his when he started unbuttoning her shorts. “Wait.”
Levi shook his head. “Your clothes have blood on them, Kasi. You’re not sleeping in them.”
“Fine.” She continued to try to pull his hands away. “Go away, then, and I’ll take them off.”
Levi grinned. “Nope.”
“Levi.”
Once again, he won the battle, mainly because her energy was completely shot. It took less than a minute to tug off her shorts and pull her T-shirt over her head. Kasi stood in front of him in just her bra and panties, attempting to shield herself with her hands, her cheeks flushed bright red.
“You don’t have to be shy with me, little bear. You’re beautiful, and very soon, I’m going to see it all anyway.”
“Cocky asshole.” This time, he heard her loud and clear, and he chuckled as he reached behind her, unhooking her bra with one quick flick of his fingers.
She gasped, holding the cups up. “How the hell did you do that? I can’t get myself out of my bra that fast.”
Levi gave her a shit-eating grin, but she shook her head before he could respond.
“Forget it. I don’t want to know.”
“Thought you might be more comfortable without it on. I know my cousins always swear the bra is the first thing to come off when they get home from work.”
Kasi clearly agreed but refused to let him know that. Instead, she narrowed her eyes and quickly returned to bed, pulling the covers tightly around her body, before drawing the bra off and dropping it to the floor.
When she managed to establish eye contact again, her expression had morphed from annoyance to sadness. “This thing between us…it can’t happen, Levi.”
It was the first time she’d genuinely tried to push back against the future he saw for them.
“Give me one good reason why not.”
This time, she held his gaze as she rattled off her list. “Because I’m too busy for a relationship. My life is a dumpster fire. Because up until a few days ago, you viewed me as one of your cousin Remi’s little friends. And because…” She paused, then gave him a look that was downright contrary. “I’m not interested.”
Levi couldn’t help it. He laughed. “I asked for good reasons, little bear. Not lame ones and outright lies.”
Kasi rolled her eyes, then winced in pain.
“You have a headache.”
She lifted one shoulder. “The doctor gave me something for it at the hospital. It’s starting to kick in.”
Levi walked to the windows, closing the curtains so that the room would be darker, even though, nestled as deeply in the trees as the cabin was, there wasn’t a great deal of sunshine getting in anyway. This particular cabin was one of the original three hunting cabins that had been on the property when his great-grandfather purchased the land. It had been renovated at some point, updated with modern appliances, but it still had a rustic feel to it that Levi liked.
Returning to the bed, he fluffed her pillow, tucked the duvet around her more tightly, then gave her a kiss on the forehead before leaving. He turned at the bedroom door to look back at her one last time. Unsurprisingly, she’d already drifted off to sleep.
Tiptoeing back to the nightstand, he grabbed her phone, taking it with him.
Closing the door behind him, Levi walked over to the couch and sank down, his thoughts jumping from one thing to another.
Sadly, none of his contemplations were peaceful.
Kasi was working herself to exhaustion day after day, and he was struggling to figure out a way to stop that. He’d thought helping with the chores would alleviate some of her stress and allow her more time to rest, but all he’d accomplished was freeing her up to do more…like dusting the fucking furniture at midnight.
It was also clear her family was in trouble financially. Levi wasn’t sure how bad it was, but it couldn’t be good if it was keeping her up at night, stressed out. Considering a huge portion of their farmland hadn’t even been planted this year, he feared their money problems were only going to get worse.
Someday very soon, he was going to sit down with Kasi and have a long chat about the chores and the finances. They’d come up with a plan together, one where she was crystal clear about the fact she wasn’t doing everything alone anymore, and he would be helping her.
Once he settled his mind to that, the third and final thing rattling around in his brain started to take precedence, and he was disturbed again.
In a hot and bothered way.
Jesus. Christ.
Seeing Kasi just now in her bra and panties had literally taken his breath away. He’d tried to convince himself he should be a gentleman and not look. After all, she was injured and hurting.
That lasted all of a second and a half before his inner caveman kicked the gentleman to the curb, drinking in every gorgeous curve on her body. Her breasts were full, the perfect size to fill his hands, and her waist nipped in, creating an hourglass shape, that showcased her gorgeous ass. His dick stirred and started to thicken despite the fact it was not seeing any action today. Or in the near future.
Kasi still needed time to come to grips with what Levi had figured out in mere seconds.
They were meant for each other.
So he closed his eyes, gave his cock a “be patient” speech, then started making a mental list of next steps.
Kasi was too thin, her ribs protruding more than he liked. He had every intention of making sure she ate three meals a day from this point on. There would be no more leaving Kasi to her own devices. She’d proven today she couldn’t be trusted to take care of herself.
So from now on, he’d spend every morning at her house, eating a big breakfast with her. Lunch would be a bit trickier, especially with the busiest part of the harvest approaching, because he would be working at the vineyard all day. Hell, if he had to, he’d have lunch delivered to her.
Dinner would be the same as breakfast. He’d join her at her house, or she could eat with him and his brothers.
As for the chores, they’d divvy them up between him, Kasi, her brother, and…
Levi mentally added her father to that list. He wasn’t entirely sure how to help Mr. Mills, but it was clear his children tiptoeing around him wasn’t helping.
He recalled Kasi telling him how her father had always worked from the list his wife provided. Maybe what he needed was that kind of structure again. It was worth a shot, at least.
Feeling better now that he had a plan, Levi returned to the bedroom, peering inside. Kasi was sound asleep, looking more peaceful than he’d seen her in nearly a year. Closing the door behind him, Levi picked up his phone and walked outside.
Sleep was only the first thing she needed.
It was time to start providing the rest.