Chapter Twenty-two
Beckett
I jogged from my SUV to Sadie’s front door, a bag full of deliciousness from Bear Belly Tavern clutched to my chest. The sunny autumn day had unfortunately surrendered to a rainy, cool evening and I pulled my Hartley’s Nest fleece tighter around me as I knocked.
When the door slowly opened, however, I wasn’t cold at all.
Sadie stood in the doorway, soft, golden light from behind her illuminating the outfit she wore. Silky, hunter green lingerie covered her amazing body.
Well, actually, the mini-dress-style of it hardly covered anything and that was the beauty of it.
Thin straps rested on her delicate shoulders.
The neckline plunged down between her breasts, allowing me teasing peeks at the mounds.
The bottom hem fell to the tops of her thighs and when she shifted her legs a bit, matching green underwear flashed for a millisecond.
I actually licked my lips at the sight of her. With all that red hair falling like a curtain about her shoulders and the green of her eyes made deeper by the color of the lingerie and the sultry grin on her lips, Sadie was absolute perfection.
“Amelia gave me a picture she colored today,” I said.
“It was of a fairy princess from one of her coloring books. She made the hair red and the eyes green and told me it was a picture of Sadie. She ordered me to put it on my refrigerator so, of course, I did. The picture was funny and cute, but looking at you now . . .” I gestured to her with my hand.
“Now I see that picture was one hundred percent accurate. You are a fairy princess.”
I expected Sadie to laugh or tell me I was silly. Something. Instead she bristled, her head shaking a bit as she stared at me, all traces of that temptress smile erased. A heartbeat of silence drifted between us then she squared her shoulders.
“I’m not a fairy.” Her mouth opened and closed a few times. “I’m not a fairy,” she repeated then stepped aside. “Come in.”
I crossed the threshold, wiping my feet on a mat by the door. “Did I say something wrong?”
Because Sadie’s aura had definitely darkened. And, hey, look at me. Reading someone’s aura.
“No.” Sadie took the Bear Belly Tavern bag from me and walked into the kitchen. She set it on the kitchen table while I removed my shoes so I wouldn’t get Hank’s lovely hardwood floors all wet. “You always say all the right things.”
That seductive smile was back as she slinked her way over to me.
Grabbing hold of the sides of my fleece that I’d unzipped, she pulled me in close and captured my mouth in a steamy kiss.
Her right leg rubbed against mine as she slowly dragged it up, up, up, and I grabbed hold of it, snapping her closer so our bodies met.
My free hand dove into that crimson mane of hers. When I fisted some of that hair and coaxed Sadie’s head back a bit so I could nip at her exposed throat, she released a low hum that acted like a starting flag at a car race.
Our mouths fused again, tongues tangling, tasting, tantalizing until my legs were like, Bro, we need to get horizontal. Like now.
Sounded like a fabulous idea to me.
I broke the kiss, loving how Sadie let out a small whimper as if she hadn’t gotten her fill of the smooch yet.
“Don’t worry,” I whispered. “More is on the way.”
I scooped her up and her arms immediately looped around my neck. Luckily, Hank’s cabin was small and the trip to the bedroom was short.
But something snagged my attention. More specifically, something snagged my nose.
I paused and inhaled deeply, still holding Sadie in my arms. “Do I smell . . .” I met her gaze. “Did you make gingerbread cookies?”
Sadie nodded. “Your mom said they were your favorite dessert.”
“You asked my mom about my favorite dessert?”
“Yes. I didn’t want to make something you wouldn’t like,” she said. “I have to admit, I’m not a skilled baker, but I think they came out okay. Your mother was kind enough to text me the recipe she uses.”
“You made my mother’s gingerbread cookies? For me?” I shook my head. “No one I’ve ever dated has baked for me. They certainly didn’t go through the trouble of researching what I’d like.” I squeezed Sadie closer to my chest and dropped a kiss to her nose. “Thank you.”
She shrugged one shoulder. “It was nothing. Not really. Certainly not in comparison to all you’ve done for me.”
“It’s huge, Sadie.” I kissed her cheek this time. A loud, smacking, sloppy kiss. “It’s huge to me and I’m going to devour several of those gingerbread cookies.” I shook her a little in my hold. “Right after I devour you.”
She let out a squeak as I ran for the bedroom.
I plopped her onto the bed and basically dove onto her, pretending to bite her neck, her shoulder, her arm.
Her laughter echoed in the room and I was happy to see that her aura had brightened again.
Maybe that dimness back at the door had been about her not being confident in her ability to play the role of temptress, but as far as I could see, she was crushing it.
Lingerie and cookies? Was there any better way to snare me?
Not even cutting edge electronics would interest me as much.
I slowed my love bites to dragging my lips along Sadie’s smooth flesh, pressing kisses along the way, until I reached that deep-V neckline of the lingerie. Nudging the silk aside, I teased her nipple with my tongue until it peaked to a hard bud and Sadie wiggled beneath me.
Her fingers raked into my hair as she arched toward me and I gave her other nipple the same attention.
I then slipped the straps of the lingerie down her shoulders and slid the fabric off her completely.
Her exposed stomach begged to be kissed so I obliged as I hooked my fingers onto the waistband of her underwear.
I scraped those away so Sadie was completely naked on the bed and spread out like a delectable buffet.
I planned to sample absolutely everything.
But Sadie had plans too. She pushed my fleece off my shoulders and yanked at the cuffs of the sleeves until I was totally free of it.
Wasting no time, she pulled my long-sleeved thermal T-shirt off along with my undershirt, her hands then coasting over my bare chest up to my shoulders where she hooked them and met my gaze.
“I never get tired of this view.” Her pupils were huge as she surveyed me. “You’re beautiful, inside and out, Beckett Hartley.”
“Likewise.”
Smiling, Sadie went to work on unbuttoning and unzipping my jeans. I slid off the bed, standing to remove the pants, catching my boxer briefs and socks in the process.
We were both naked now, and with the scent of gingerbread cookies in the air, I slid into Sadie after donning a condom. The moment I was fully seated inside her, she released a shuddery breath and wrapped her arms around me.
“Being like this with you is my favorite thing in the world, Beckett,” she whispered.
I propped up on my elbows so I could look her in the eyes. “Same. There is nowhere I’d rather be than right here with you.”
She rewarded me with a big smile that made her green eyes sparkle in the dim light of the lamp on the bedside table. Her hands came to my cheeks and she lifted her head slightly to brush several soft, slow kisses to my lips.
I moved my hips and the kiss turned into something deep and lingering as we found our rhythm.
I surged and retreated, surged and retreated, as Sadie undulated in time beneath me.
I tangled my hands in her hair as our mouths ravaged one another and her fingers went from smooth strokes along my back to clawing at my skin as if something feral had been unleashed inside her.
As we fell deeper into each other, I lost all sense of time and space.
We were eternal and free-floating and when Sadie’s inner muscles tightened around my erection, I had this overwhelming sense of contentment.
As if I was exactly where I was supposed to be in this particular moment.
As if stars had aligned so perfectly to allow Sadie and me to come together like this tonight.
As if everything I’d ever wished for in a partner had been poured into Sadie Rodgers.
As if I never wanted to let her go.
Sadie pulsed around me and soon we were moving together in a frenzied fashion, each chasing our release. Neither of us attempted to fill the silence with anything other than blissful moans, whispered pleas, and desperate rasps of our names. Words were impossible, unnecessary, meaningless.
I let loose at the same time a breathy cry tore from Sadie’s throat and we jumped from the mountaintop of bliss together. Floating, falling, finding such pleasure on the playgrounds of each other’s bodies.
I draped myself on Sadie and we spent long moments breathing together. My head rested on her chest and the fast beat of her heart filled my ear. My own heart matched the pace of hers and we were so synched it was as if a single heart beat for the both of us.
Sadie’s fingers raked through my hair, her nails scraping along my scalp. “You said you were going to devour me.” She tipped my head up and her gaze locked onto mine. “I believe you’ve accomplished that mission.”
I pressed kisses down to her stomach and back up before sliding out of her and disposing of the condom.
“If your mission was to make me feel like the luckiest guy on the planet,” I said as I strode back into the bedroom and kneeled on the bed beside her, “you’ve accomplished that as well.”
She stretched out, cat-like, then got to her knees in front of me. “Well, aren’t we accomplishing a great deal tonight?”
“Real over-achievers.” I cupped her cheek and pressed my mouth to hers, fully enjoying the way her hands coasted up my arms and settled at the back of my neck as she kissed me back.
After a few moments, Sadie broke away, her tongue coming out to lick her bottom lip as if she’d tasted something delicious.
“Now that we’ve had appetizers,” she said with a grin, “let’s get dinner going. I’m starving.”
I rubbed my hands together in anticipation. “Then gingerbread cookies.”
Sadie stood then bent to pick up her discarded lingerie. As she slipped both pieces back on and added a matching robe, I almost said to forget dinner and cookies because I didn’t want to leave that bedroom.
“Why don’t I bring dinner in here?” Sadie suggested.
“A perfect idea.” I loved that she wanted to continue being in the bedroom as much as I did. “But I’ll get it.”
“Okay,” Sadie said. “I’m going to pop into the bathroom and I’ll meet you back in here.”
“Deal.”
She left while I gathered my underwear and my T-shirt and put both of them on.
I then padded out to the kitchen to collect the Bear Belly Tavern bag from the table where Sadie had deposited it.
I brought it over to the counter, took two plates from the cupboard, and heaped them high with the tavern’s famous macaroni and cheese, fried chicken, and green bean salad.
The food had cooled while Sadie and I had been otherwise engaged so I popped the plates into the microwave to heat them back up.
While I waited for the reheat to complete, I grabbed two beers from Sadie’s refrigerator and poured them into glasses.
I brought those and some coasters into the bedroom and set them on the bedside tables.
As I turned to head back to the kitchen for our dinners, something in Sadie’s open closet snagged my attention.
The bedside lamplight illuminated a rich burgundy color.
I wandered over and opened the closet door a little farther.
Brushing my fingers over the fabric revealed it to be velvety and no doubt expensive.
I pushed the hanger it was on back so I could take a better look at the garment.
Which appeared to be a cloak of some kind. I’d never seen Sadie wearing it. Was it a costume? Had she picked up something for the All Hallow’s Eve Walk at Hartley’s Nest already? I’d thought we were still debating about what to dress up as, but perhaps she’d made a decision.
A small patch on the cloak made me turn it so the front of it faced me more fully.
The shape of a shield, the patch had a set of green mountains with a faint plaid design on them.
Three peaks lined up next to each other made up the small mountain range.
The two end peaks were topped with yellow stars while the center one sported a white crescent moon at its summit.
It was a simple design, but I’d never seen anything like it.
Backing up to pick up my jeans from the floor, I fished out my phone and took a picture of the crest as the microwave dinged. I set my phone on one of the bedside tables, collected our dinners, and met Sadie in the hallway as she emerged from the bathroom.
“That smells delicious.” She took one of the plates from me and stepped into the bedroom ahead of me.
“Hey, did you get a costume for the All Hallow’s Eve Walk already?” I asked as we both climbed onto the bed with our plates.
“No.” Sadie’s brows crinkled. “We didn’t make a decision yet, did we?”
I shook my head. “I saw that cloak in your closet.” I gestured to the open door and the cloak that was still facing out.
Sadie’s gaze flicked to the closet then she popped off the bed. She maneuvered the cloak back into the mix of clothing hanging in there and closed the door.
“That’s not a costume,” she said. “I . . . found it in a vintage store. The fabric is interesting. I might make something out of it. Pouches for the jewelry I sell, maybe.” She came back to the bed and immediately shoveled a big mouthful of macaroni and cheese into her mouth.
Closing her eyes and throwing her head back, she hummed. “Oh, this is so good.”
My gaze went to the closet again, but when Sadie launched into the details of her first client appointment today, I devoted my attention to her. She nearly glowed as she recounted the experience and it delighted me to see her so happy.
By the time we hit the gingerbread cookies—which were exactly like my mom’s—I didn’t care about cloaks or patches. All I cared about was enjoying the company of a woman who was becoming more important to me than I’d ever expected.