Chapter 4
CHAPTER FOUR
CHASE
“Jeez, what are you doing out here so early? You look all broody and shit.” Kane mumbled, then handed me a mug of coffee.
I accepted it with barely a look down, then immediately yelped.
Scalding liquid splashed over the lip onto my flesh.
“Make sure you fill it to the brim next time, moron.” Sarcasm was the language we’d communicated through before I’d left Pineville, and damn if it didn’t feel good.
Like stepping into a well-worn pair of boots you knew wouldn’t let you down.
“You got it, dufus. Now if you’re done admiring the trees, we need to head up to Baz’ sister’s place. She’s moving into her new place today, and we’re all helping.”
Thankfully Kane wasn’t standing where he could see my expression when he dropped that piece of intel, so luckily he couldn’t see the shock that hit me square in the chest and surely appearing on my face.
Running my hand across my forehead to mask the unchecked emotion, I waited a beat before I responded.
Uneasy with how quickly I’d dropped my guard since I arrived, I had to actually think about plastering the stone-faced look onto my face that I’d been forced to master soon after going deep undercover.
“C’mon. Chassie’s got breakfast sandwiches for us. We’ll head up after we eat.” Kane didn’t indicate he’d noticed my reaction. But when he paused before crossing the threshold into his home, his eyes narrowed against the early morning sun’s rays, I braced for another sarcastic remark.
“I’m glad you came home. It’s damn good to see your ugly face. And don’t you worry. Even with that limp, there’s plenty of work around here to keep you busy. If you want it.”
Yeah, color me shocked. Again. But this time I think I did an okay job keeping it off my face. “I appreciate it. Besides, there wasn’t any other place I wanted to be after facing down the grim reaper. Now we just have to track Ross down, and our little family reunion will be complete.”
Kane tilted his head, wearing a weird look on his face which did little to take away from his movie-star handsome, the jerk got all the looks.
Oh, well, at least I got the brains. Once they kicked in during that first year in the service. It’s just too bad that the catalyst to that big life change had come at the expense of shutting off all my feelings for Astrid and breaking the first and last promise I made to anyone.
“Huh?”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“Of all the things I expected you to say. That was not it. Nowhere close. You say the bullet got you in the back, right?”
“Screw you. I’ve matured. Looks like we both have. You’re all domesticated now. Not what I would have pictured, especially after you went Hollywood. But you look happy. And damn you, married up.”
“Okay, let’s wrap up this therapy session. Good talk. It’s just really good to have you back. Now let’s make my wife happy and kick it into gear. She’s excited to go see Astrid’s house now that it’s finished.”
Nodding, I didn’t take the bait. Because he knew I had a thing for Astrid in high school.
And I’m pretty sure he had no clue what happened between her and me grad night.
But a lot of years had passed, and from the sound of things, she was involved with the Triple R somehow, or at least friends with Chassie.
Now I’d be seeing her again much sooner than I’d hoped, and I needed to lock down any visceral reactions to hearing her name.
Giving away my feelings as I dug for information about Astrid was a no-go, not with my brother and his nose for weakness.
That trait was one I’m confident he’d been born with.
The three of us chatted the short distance to Astrid’s place, which, in the less than five minutes it took to arrive, I learned quite a bit.
Chassie had the gift of gab and a way of whittling information down to consumable bites because of her podcasting and influencer background.
To say I was grateful was an understatement.
I let the information settle, ready to call it back up on the fly when needed. “This is quite the place. I wasn’t expecting so much…yeah, that makes no sense. Don’t mind me.” Damn, I never got nervous or tongue-tied. Why now?
“No, I know what you mean.” Chassie looked over her shoulder and grinned at him.
“Astrid’s been saving for years. Bought the lot from her brother when he moved up here about a decade ago.
She’s so excited to be a homeowner finally.
Have a place for her and Josh. He might be here.
You’ll get to meet him. Great kid. Almost thirteen, funny and very protective of his mom. ”
Kane parked alongside two other full-size trucks, then added, “I’ll say this about Astrid.
She’s not the girl you mooned over all senior year, Chase.
She’s stronger now, more self-assured. And yeah, her ex did a number on her and Josh.
But not my story to tell. But man, if I were Baz, I would have gone after the ex and made sure he was--”
“Kane, let’s keep it light, okay?” Chassie had laid a hand on her husband’s forearm, and even from the backseat of the truck, I saw her thumb stroking his flesh in small circles. My brother took a calming breath, then flashed her a warm smile.
“Thanks, babe. You’re right. Hey, speak of the devil, there’s Josh.
Man that kid gets taller every time I see him.
” Kane exited, ran around the front of the truck, opened the door and held it for his wife.
A simple thing, but they’d obviously done this routine a lot because she waited for him.
Then he took her hand, and she let out a low chuckle.
I sat watching the interplay between them as he snuck in a kiss just before Josh reached them. But the real sparks started when Astrid appeared behind her son, greeting Kane and Chassie with a smile. A smile that disappeared the moment she spotted me when I stepped out of the truck.
Her back had gone ramrod straight. And with her shoulders back, she turned all her attention to her son, ruffled his mop-top hair and blazed a smile at my brother and Chassie.
She could pretend all she wanted that I wasn’t there. What she couldn’t do very well was hide the pretty blush riding her cheeks. Or how she couldn’t keep her hands still.
Chassie gave her a quick squeeze, but I caught the quizzical look as she gazed from me to Astrid and back again.
“You going to explain why one of the nicest persons I know was shooting daggers in your direction?” Kane and I stood shoulder to shoulder watching the women walk away toward the wide, welcoming porch and just before they entered through the open door, Astrid flicked a glance over her shoulder toward me.
I gave her a wink and waited.
Her eyes widened and then, as if twenty years hadn’t passed and we had somehow teleported back to high school, she scrunched up her nose and stuck out her tongue, then disappeared inside.
Meanwhile, Kane barked out a laugh. “Okay, now that I didn’t imagine. What the hell is going on between the two of you?”
Yeah, she was one very agitated physical therapist. And maybe, just maybe, the ice had begun to melt since yesterday.
“Not a thing.” Somehow, I kept a straight face even as my brother stared at me as if I’d sprouted a second head.
I ignored him just as the strangest urge overtook me to go after her, throw her over my shoulder and find somewhere private to have it out.
Her slightly upturned nose, full lips, and defiant chin were just as tempting now as they’d been when I barely held it together and buried myself between her legs twenty years ago.
I realized I owed her so much more than an apology for taking off.
That night had been rushed, and I’d definitely lacked finesse back then.
Hell, I’m sure she hadn’t even orgasmed, but she’d been in a hurry too.
Both of us desperate for the other to touch, to feel, to be wrapped up so damn tight in each other, blocking out all the crap we’d dealt with in our lives.
In that moment, I realized I had a new mission besides begging for her forgiveness. Providing Astrid with the best damn orgasms, because yeah, just one would not be enough. For her or me. I’d make sure of it.