Chapter 22
22
Spencer
The door in front of me is large and looming. I raise my fist to knock, fighting against the tightness in my throat. I don’t normally venture out. People come to me. I decided last night that if I’m doing this, if I’m all in with Cortney, then I need to be all in with everyone who means something to me.
My knuckles strike the door in three sharp taps. I shove my hands in my pockets and drop my chin to my chest, folding in on myself as I wait.
A booming bark sounds in the background, followed by a practiced command.
“Hey, what are you doing here?” Sutton leans out the doorframe and twists his head left to right. “Everything okay?”
“Up for some company?”
He shoves the door wide and backs up. “Absolutely. Come on in.”
This is only about the third time I’ve been in Sutton’s home. During my first return to Fairview Valley, I tried my best not to impose. A couple of tea parties with my niece, Nellie, got me over here, but the visits were far between. I didn’t want anyone to feel like they had to take care of me.
The place looks much the same as it did over a month ago, which is to say, it’s still a mess. I step over cluttered shoes in the foyer. The space opens up into a small galley kitchen on the left and the living room to the right. An office and a playroom exist down the hall. Stairs directly ahead lead to the bedroom suites in the finished basement.
The house itself is clean- ish , but it’s cluttered. Dishes are piled on the counter waiting for the dishwasher to stop running so they can be placed inside. Unopened mail litters the table, leaving only two spots uncovered. They’re occupied by homemade laminated placemats. One that says Daddy, and the other says Nellie, colored in pink and purple crayons.
Dog hair from Sutton’s German shepherd, Merit, collects in the corners. The loud, lovable canine sits patiently in her dog bed, ready to greet the new visitor. I lean over to run my fingers through her fur as I follow Sutton into the living room.
“Don’t mind the mess.” He dumps the pile of laundry on the couch on top of the overfilled basket. Tiny purple socks tumble to the floor. “It’s my only day off this week.”
“Do you need a hand?” I frown at the toys scattered across his floor.
He waves me off. “Nah. We got it.”
“You ever think about hiring someone to help?”
My oldest brother fixes me with a glare. “I can manage.”
I take in the picture frames lining his mantel. Each one has a small gray blanket of dust. The sentiment overrides the need for a quick clean. Most are of his daughter. A black-and-brown frame holds a somewhat recent picture of our mom at what must have been her birthday. Sutton and Silas stand on each side with a hand on her shoulder. The three of them smile at the camera together, mouths slightly parted as if they were laughing.
My gut tightens at the streaks of gray and the deepening wrinkles surrounding Mom’s eyes. She’s lived a hard life. Something I made worse by disappearing only a couple years after my father left her.
I scan over one of the three of us as teenagers, arms looped around each other’s shoulders. This was only a few weeks before I left town.
“Who’s this?” I look over my shoulder and point at one of a woman at the very front.
“That’s Nellie’s mom.”
I should have known. Her hair has the same shade and waves, and they share a smile. “That’s nice of you to keep this here.”
“She passed when Nellie was a year old,” Sutton says quietly. Reverently. In that tone people use to speak of the dead.
Shame and guilt war within me for the dominant emotion. Both suck equally. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”
“I didn’t expect you to. Couldn’t have exactly called you with the news.”
No, he couldn’t because I left without a way to get in touch.
“If I could take it all back—”
“You can’t.” Sutton shrugs. “That’s life, Spencer. You’re here now, and we’re happy about that.”
That seems to be true.
Although I can think of one person in this town who doesn’t share that sentiment.
“I’m happy about it too.”
His phone rings. He fishes his cell from his pocket. “Hang on a sec. I have to take this.”
He turns his back, listening with a few yeps and uh-huhs thrown in. I give him some privacy and shower Merit with some attention.
“I hate to do this, but I have to run to the station. Any chance you can grab Nell for me and take her to Mom’s? Her class ends in fifteen minutes, but this can’t wait.”
“That’s not a problem.”
“Great. I’ll call the daycare center on the way and let them know you’re coming. I also promised her ice cream, so if you could help make good on that, I’ll owe you one.”
Taking my seven-year-old niece who I barely know out for ice cream doesn’t sound all that hard, but I’m suddenly insanely nervous to mess this up.
“You got it.”
Sutton rushes around the room, throwing a few things into his pockets. I follow him back to the foyer when he suddenly stops. “Oh, hey, did you need something?”
Did I need something?
What I needed was to find a way back to my family. To show them I’m serious about sticking around. Getting handed babysitting duty seems like I accomplished at least part of that task, and I didn’t even have to open my mouth.
I clap him on the shoulder. “Just trying to make myself more available. I’m here now, Sutton. I don’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon.”
His serious gaze finds mine over his shoulder. “’Bout damn time.”
I follow him out into the sun. He jogs down the steps and flips a pair of sunglasses onto his face.
“There’s a retirement party coming up for Sheriff Perry in a couple of weeks. I’ll text you the info if you want to come by. Should give you enough time to settle in first, but it’d be nice for the folks around town to see you again.”
Bile churns in my stomach. The lack of information robs me of the chance to decline. Now isn’t the best time to share with Sutton what I think about Jim, but I mentally prepare myself to find the opportunity.
I’ve kept our secrets long enough.
“That guy’s still around?” I offer instead.
“Sure is. Took Silas and me under his wing. We owe our careers to him.”
Angry heat twitches my fingertips. “Didn’t know that.”
“You wouldn’t.” Sutton chuckles. “I’m texting you the address and the name of Nellie’s teacher. Gotta run. If you hang around Mom’s until I get there, we can grab dinner.”
“Sounds good.”
He waves and hops into his truck. At a much slower pace, I climb into mine.
* * *
I walk into the daycare center and approach the front desk. There’s a direct view into one of the play rooms, and I find Nellie almost instantly. She works on an art project with popsicle sticks, her tongue poking out the side of her mouth in concentration. Paint splatters stain her fingers all the colors of the rainbow.
Her eyes brighten when they meet mine through the window, reminding me so much of a younger Sutton that my gut tightens. I offer her a subtle wave.
“Can I help you?”
The door to her playroom opens before I answer. From my periphery, I see Nellie bound out into the hall.
“I’m here to pick up my niece. I’m Spencer Stone.” I hand her my ID, ignoring the way her eyes slide over the scars on my hand.
“And what’s your niece’s name?”
I wink at the receptionist. “I think her name is… Jelly.”
A little giggle sounds from the hall.
Catching on, the receptionist says, “Hmm. There’s no Jelly here.”
“No? What about… Belly?”
My niece laughs louder, her little footsteps bringing her closer. The receptionist scans her clipboard.
“I’m sorry. I don’t see a Belly.”
“You know what, you’re right. I think it was Smelly.”
“Smelly!” Nellie’s laugh is music to my ears. She runs behind the desk. “Uncle, I’m not Smelly, I’m Eleanor!”
“Oh, that’s right! It’s Ellie.”
“No, it’s not Ellie. It’s Nellie!”
I snap my fingers. “Nellie! How could I forget?”
Without hesitation, that little girl who shares half my brother’s DNA comes to my side and slips her small hand in mine. “Hi, Uncle.”
I drop down onto one knee, resting my elbow on my thigh and shake her hand still clasped around mine. “Hey, kiddo. Got all your stuff?”
“Yep.” She throws her hands out to her sides. “It’s just me.”
“Easy, peasy. Ready to go?”
“Are we getting ice cream?”
I tuck my ID back into my wallet and finish signing her out. “Definitely. Your dad was so sad he couldn’t come get you that he said I can even get you two scoops.”
“Yippee!” She skips out the front door. “Daddy never lets me get two.”
Whoops.
Picturing Sutton’s scowl has me debating whether or not I should get her three. And sprinkles.
“It’s your lucky day.”
I let her skip ahead of me as we walk down the block to the ice cream shop. The July sun is making itself known. My habit of packing on the sunscreen every morning is paying off. The freshly healed skin on my face and neck is exposed, but the short duration shouldn’t be enough to do more damage.
Nellie comes to a stop at a storefront a few businesses away from our destination.
“What’s caught your eye, Nellie?”
“Can we go in here?” She presses her face against the glass. “There’s a kitty!”
Oh hell. Sutton is going to kick my ass if I get her hooked on some animal at a pet store. Merit would probably turn a kitty into dinner.
By the time I catch up, she’s already tugging open the entrance.
“Hang on there, Nell.” I wrap my fingers around the closing door as she slips inside the crack.
“Hi, do you have kitties here?” Her little voice sounds full of confidence as she inquires to the receptionist. This girl is going to give her father hell, and I’m on my way to earning a front row ticket to the show.
A bell rings as I yank the door wider to step in. With one glance around the lobby, it becomes obvious this isn’t a pet store.
It’s a vet clinic.
The unfamiliar woman at the reception flits her amused gaze to me before addressing Nellie.
“You have to bring your own kitties here. We don’t have them.”
Nellie looks back at me with a pout. “I don’t have my own kitty.”
I open my mouth to apologize to the both when I’m rendered mute by the gorgeous woman in purple scrubs rounding the corner.
“Oh. Spencer. Nellie. Hi!” Cortney pulls the two black and brown kittens in her arms closer to her chest. She looks at her assistant. “I thought we were on lunch.”
“I didn’t get a chance to flip the sign before these two walked in,” the receptionist grins.
“Flip it now, please,” Cortney replies.
The woman behind the desk gathers her purse. “I’ll be back in thirty.” On her way out the door, she turns the Open sign around and locks the entrance behind her.
“What are you two doing here?” Cortney gives me a radiant smile that stalls my heart mid-beat. I swear she’s going to put me into cardiac arrest.
“We were on our way for ice cream when Sutton’s girl here saw your animal posters on the window and thought you were a pet store.”
“I really wanted to pet a kitten.” She’s set her target on the two kittens in Cortney’s arms.
“Well, I think it’s your lucky day, Nellie. These two babies came in this morning and have just finished their exam. If you guys have a few minutes, I don’t mind if she gives them a little attention.”
“Really?” Nellie breathes, her eyes growing round at the prospect of her wish coming true.
“Of course. They could use some socializing.”
Cortney leads us around the corner to an exam room. I try not to stare at how good her ass looks in those tight scrub pants.
I might as well go ahead and change my name to failure.
She sets up Nellie on the floor and deposits the two small kittens in her lap. Nellie immediately gets to work petting one kitten with each hand.
“We’ll be right out here, honey. Just yell if you need anything.” Cortney shuts the door softly behind her.
“We can watch from the window,” she says, peering inside to make sure they’re still fine.
I give her ten seconds of watching my niece before my patience runs out.
“Cortney,” I rasp.
“Hmm?”
“Don’t make me ask you for a kiss.”
Amusement sparkles in her dark brown eyes. “Oh, I wouldn’t dare.” The tips of her sneakers nearly touch mine, and she flattens her palms against my chest.
At six-foot-one to her five-foot-nine, I only have about four inches of height on her, so her mouth is right there. One tiptoe lift from colliding with mine. An eternity stretches between us as she delivers a teasing grin and slowly rises.
The curves of her hips fit perfectly in my palms. I grip her tight and yank her flush as my need takes over. In the exhale before our lips touch, I decide then and there that I’ll never get sick of kissing Cortney Powell.
Not in this lifetime or the next one.
Raw desire consumes me as my mouth slams down on hers. The intensity pulses between us like a living, breathing thing. The air is thick, and my heartbeat thunders in my ears. We begin a game of push and pull, a tug-of-war that has no losers. We’re both winners here, gripping that rope tethering us together and pulling one another closer.
She gasps around a throaty moan, her head falling back as I trail kisses down her throat. The trip is short as I eagerly return to her succulent mouth. I walk her backward until her back presses against the wall beside the exam room door. Cocking my knee, I wedge my thigh between hers as we make out for long minutes like two hormonal teenagers beneath high school bleachers.
She loops her arms around my neck and plays with the hairs at the back of my head. Her touch is electric, sending a frisson down my spine. I find the edge of her scrubs and fiddle with the neat bow tied tightly at her waist.
“Careful there, Casanova. One slip and my pants will be around my ankles.”
“Maybe that’s what I’m going for.”
Her sneaky fingers find their way beneath my shirt and crawl across my abs. They jump beneath her touch. “Bridget’s lunch break isn’t long enough,” she murmurs against my lips.
I capture her bottom one with my teeth, tugging lightly before letting it go. “That’s a damn shame.”
“Mmm. We better quit now to give my nipples a chance to calm down before I get back to work.”
At my curious glance, she laughs.
“If you don’t want me to look, don’t draw my attention there.”
She curls her fingers into the waist at the front of my jeans. The backs of her fingers are warm against my abdomen. With a sharp jerk, she tugs me close and brings her mouth to my ear. “Never said I didn’t want you to look.”
The exam door opening has us jumping apart. Cortney smooths her hands over her scrub top, and I run a hand through my messy hair.
“Miss Cortney, can you take the kitties?” Nellie pokes her head into the hall. She has both kittens held up to her cheeks.
“Of course.”
Nellie hands the tiny felines over. “Uncle, I want ice cream now.”
As much as I’d love to keep kissing Cortney, my niece is not to be denied. Not when I need to prove to my family I intend to stick around and do this right.
“Let’s go, kiddo. See you Wednesday, gorgeous.”
“I’ll text you my address.” Cortney maneuvers the kittens to one hand and waves with the other. “Thanks for the visit.”
Nellie slips her tiny hand around mine and begins skipping toward the door.
“This is the best day ever.”