6. Sadie
Chapter 6
Sadie
I study Barrett’s expression through lowered lashes and unwrap the lollipop. I run my tongue along the tip of it, imagining that it’s him I’m licking with these short, teasing tastes. Judging by the way his nostrils flare, he’s thinking the same thing.
“I’m just here to enjoy myself,” I answer the question he asked earlier about what I was doing. I smack my lips together then open wide. I suck the lollipop deep, making a quiet moan at the back of my throat.
My cheeks are warmer than the sun. I’d feel silly doing something like this except the look in Barrett’s gaze tells me the last thing he’s thinking is that I’m silly.
I’ve never tried seducing someone. I’ve never wanted to, but knowing that Barrett wants me makes me feel powerful. I’m his to ruin, if only he would just claim me.
He reaches for the end of the lollipop stick, plucking it gently from my mouth, and I let him. The phallic shaped candy is slick with my saliva. He glares down at me, his chest heaving. He’s so big and broad that he’s blocking out the rest of his family. We’re alone together in this early morning bubble.
“I was enjoying that!” I protest. He seemed to be enjoying the show too.
“You can enjoy it all you want when there aren’t other men around,” he growls. What is it about that possessive note in his voice that just makes me want to fling myself into his arms?
“The only other men here are ones you’re related to.”
He grunts, looking almost pained. “Don’t care. I’m the only one that gets to watch you hollow those little cheeks.”
I fake a pout, surprised to see even more heat spark in his gaze. “Then take me somewhere private.”
“That’s exactly what I should do. I should take you somewhere private and put you over my knee. Might teach you a thing or two about what happens when you tease your man.”
A shiver works its way down my spine, but it’s not fear. It’s anticipation. He’s so close to the edge. If I can just push him a little more, his self-control will break. “You’re not my man.”
He tosses the lollipop in a nearby trash can. “Fight it all you want. Defy me at every turn, but I already told you: you’re mine.”
What is it about this man? How does he always manage to say things in that gritty tone that go straight to my clit? “You’re pretty damn confident.”
He lets his gaze sweep down my body, caressing me with just that look. “I’m a cowboy who knows what he wants, sweetheart.”
Before I can respond, Greer calls Barrett’s name, interrupting our precious bubble and reminding me of where I am.
“You can put her back here if you’d like,” Ginger gestures for me to follow her to the small, fenced garden.
“Thanks. She can be a troublemaker,” I tell Barrett’s sister as I carry Coco. We’ve just finished breakfast, and everyone is cleaning up. Pretty soon, they’ll start the framing work.
“She’s a cutie.” One hand rests casually on her bump as she surveys her garden.
Linda called me last night and invited me to help out. She claimed that they needed another body to help with the work. But judging by the number of hot, virile cowboys currently roaming this mountain, I think she just wanted donuts for breakfast.
“Thanks for having me today. It’s been…a while since I’ve had anybody,” I tell her around the lump in my throat. The gentle teasing and soft laughter as everyone works together is making me wish I had a family even more.
She gives me a soft smile. “Courage County is where you find home.”
After we’ve settled Coco in the garden where she can happily chase small lizards and flitting butterflies, we move to the back of the cabin.
Ginger settles in a lawn chair at Grizz’s scowling insistence, giving her husband an indulgent smile. He kisses her on top of her head. I have to look away from the sweet moment between them when he places a hand on her belly and asks how his son is doing.
Barrett and his brother, Greer, are standing at the folding table, pointing to a large piece of butcher paper that someone has hurriedly sketched schematics on.
Evie, one of my book club friends, is next to Greer. She’s his live-in girlfriend. She’s pressed up against him, and he has his hand resting on the small of her back. All of the Maple men are possessive cowboys.
I join Barrett at the table, squishing right against him. Standing next to him like this makes me feel small and protected at the same time. He keeps talking, but I don’t miss the slight flare of his nostrils.
Sometimes Greer asks a clarifying question, but it’s obvious that Barrett is the one in charge of this project. He’s issuing all the commands and telling Greer what everyone should be doing.
It’s making me squirmy to see him so bossy. I want to push him to the brink. I want to watch one night as he loses his control while he’s deep inside of me, panting above me, whispering filthy things into my ear.
So slowly that he doesn’t notice, I slip my hand beneath his red t-shirt. I hesitate for only a second before I place my hand on the bare skin of his back. He’s warm and tight here, his muscles instantly tensing under my touch.
He grips the table tightly and issues his final command to his brother, “Anything else you need, come find me.”
Greer and Evie leave to begin their assigned tasks, and I drop my hand from under his shirt. I give him an innocent smile. “How can I help?”
“You’ll be with me.” He bends to rummage in his tool bag and pulls out a pair of work gloves and passes them to me. “First rule of the work site is that you protect yourself.”
Without waiting for me, he takes my hands and slips the gloves on. They’re too big, but it makes me feel warm inside to know he cares so much.
After that, he reaches into the bag again and produces a big red tool. He pops open the back and nods to the bag. “Grab the nail cartridge.”
I peek inside, quickly grabbing the long row of nails that I’m assuming passes for the nail cartridge.
He slides it into the machine easily, showing me how it snaps into place. He keeps leaning close, invading my space. His spicy smell is making my brain go haywire. All I want to do is rub myself up and down his body.
“I want a turn with the nailer,” I tell him.
“It’s important you understand the proper technique for nailing first,” he answers, his voice deep and raspy.
I give him a flirty smile. “Teach me everything you know.”
We step onto the work area where Barrett’s brothers have already begun the framing. The sound of air compressors, hammers, and good-natured teasing fill the air as his family works together. Their close bond is evident in the way they work around each other seamlessly, passing tools around and answering questions that Evie’s younger brothers ask.
Barrett demonstrates how to use the nail gun twice before passing the heavy tool to me. He stands behind me, using the opportunity to wrap his body around mine. He puts my gloved hands around the trigger. “What you want to do is hold it firmly and squeeze with just the right amount of pressure.”
His beard is resting against my cheek, his big body engulfing mine in heat. Can girls get blue ovaries the same way guys get blue balls? I think mine are definitely blue. “Then the release happens?”
His voice sounds just as breathy as mine does when he says, “Yeah, sweetheart. That’s exactly what happens.”
I squeeze my eyes closed and pull back on the trigger, my arms quaking from the effort of holding it still. The nail shoots into the yellow pine wood with ease and I breathe out a sigh of relief when I see that it’s exactly where it should be. “I did it! I used the nail gun!”
He’s still wrapped around me and when he smiles, I feel his beard tickle my face. “That’s my good girl.”
We work together like that for the next hour until my arms are too sore and too wobbly to keep going. I’m used to working hard in the bakery every day, but the power tools are a different kind of workout.
Barrett plucks the heavy tool from my hands with ease. “Let me finish up here. Your friends have shown up.”
I leave him with the framing nailer and hurry to greet Lizzy and Dotty who just arrived. Lizzy bypasses my hug and runs to Noah, flinging herself into his arms and peppering his face with kisses. He’s the only one of the Maple brothers that doesn’t have a big, bushy beard like the others do.
“Ugh, they’re in love. We get it,” Dotty complains with a hitch in her voice that sounds a lot like longing.
“I’m happy for her,” I answer, twisting the cap off a water bottle. When I go to lift it, my arm shakes. I manage to guzzle it anyway. I could blame my mushy muscles and sweaty appearance on the hard work, but it had more to do with being held in Barrett’s arms for most of the morning while he growled safety instructions into my ear.
Dotty plucks at the unraveled hem of her t-shirt, avoiding my gaze. “I’m happy for her too. Just wish it could happen for the rest of us, you know?”
I don’t answer because I don’t know what to say. Like me, Dotty is alone in the world. She has family, but she never sees them. They never call to check on her. She always shrugs and tells me it doesn’t matter.
Dotty nods to where Barrett is back to work already. “What’s going on? You two looked pretty cozy when I saw you together.”
I sigh, my blue lady balls aching, “He won’t give up the D . Something about my heart.” I shake my head. My heart isn’t what I want him to fill. “All I need is a few good O s from him, and everything will be fine.”