Chapter 17 Amber
amber
He didn’t know what he was saying.
The pain?
We were from two different worlds. Sure, I’d started off a Haven girl, but not anymore. Was I supposed to get hooked on this man and have to be away from him? That would never work.
Would it?
The quiet voice in the back of my mind—or maybe hiding behind my heart—asked.
He was beyond dirty. I couldn’t stop myself from watching him earlier. I’d only meant to get a glimpse of what was going on to report back to my mom and dad. Maybe to Cindy, who was seriously invested in their TikTok page now that I’d talked about it.
I’d never been one to get thirsty about a muscular working man.
But when it came to Tate, it seemed that nothing was off limits when it came to turn-ons.
And it wasn’t just his big, beautiful, strong body. It was that he threw himself into everything he did.
I wasn’t just afraid of this not working.
I was afraid of falling in love with him and screwing it all up because of who I was.
He lowered his mouth to mine and like a magnet, I rose up to meet him.
The kiss was soft at first. He brushed those incredibly talented lips over mine as if learning me all over again.
But it never stayed soft. Not with what grew between us like lightning over the water.
He was the calm water to start, but there was always so much under the surface when it came to this man.
When I wrapped my arms around him, he smiled against my mouth. “I’m dirty, babe.”
I shivered at the word. Usually it rankled, but when he said it with that rumble it made everything inside of me purr.
“You have a very nice shower.” I rose onto my toes and the grit scraped my fingers and arm, but I didn’t want to break whatever this thing was between us.
He was right. I couldn’t stay away from him.
I’d snuck over a few times, but he hadn’t spotted me until today. Or at least he hadn’t let on that he’d seen me.
“Tate?”
I groaned into his mouth.
The familiar voice rankled. While part of me knew Molly was a better fit for him, I didn’t feel the same about Valerie. I knew a schemer when I saw one and she had plans for Tate that were all about what he could do for her both in money and prestige.
“Ignore her,” Tate murmured against my lips.
I nodded and lost myself in his kiss again. In the wide expanse of his shoulders that felt so good and safe in ways that I couldn’t resist.
“Tate—Oh.”
Tate’s body stiffened as he hid me behind him. “What is it, Valerie?”
“I had a question about something.”
“Can it wait?”
Her voice went sharp. “We’re still working aren’t we?”
He found my hand when I started to move back. “I’ve been busting my ass all day. Why don’t you take off for the day.”
I peeked around his shoulders and Valerie was practically vibrating with anger as she spotted me. “So you can go off with her?”
“That’s none of your business. You’re dismissed.”
Valerie’s blue eyes flashed with temper, but she stomped off.
“I’m sorry about that.” He looked down at me, then brought my hand up to his mouth. “She is becoming a problem.”
I arched a brow at him. “Becoming? That girl has plans and I am not a part of them.”
“Well, neither am I. I don’t know how to convey it without pissing her off.”
“Might not have a choice.”
He drew me down the path toward his house. “You gonna save me?”
I laughed. “I have been known to be a hard-ass in some circles.”
I didn’t bother to deny that I was going to follow him home. I paused as we crossed the bottom of the property where the trailer was. He stood behind me, drawing me against him as he pointed at the mini village taking shape.
“All the retail spaces are here. It’s starting to actually come together.”
“It really is. I can actually see your vision with the little houses set up now.”
“They’re actually sheds. You know the kind that have become all the rage for separate work or craft spaces?”
I glanced up at him. “A bunch of she-sheds?”
He laughed. “Kind of.”
“It’s pretty genius.”
“Thanks.” He took my hand again and led me to his gate. “Don’t tell me no.”
I shook my head. “I can’t.”
He narrowed his eyes.
“I don’t want to.”
His face cleared. “Better.”
Instead of going to the front, he walked around the side of the house to a deck with massive furniture built for a man like Tate.
Thick cushions were made for outdoor relaxing.
There was even an outdoor heater tucked against the side of the house.
Instead of a pool or Jacuzzi, Tate had made an oasis for himself and maybe a partner.
It wasn’t made for partying, it was more intimate in design.
A continuation of his bedroom that suited him.
He kicked off his muddy boots at the back door before drawing me inside his large bedroom. “I’m going to shower off this stink and grime.”
“Want me to make us some food?”
“That would be great.”
Part of me wanted to follow him into that shower, but I needed a second to get myself together.
Missing him was annoying. I couldn’t deny that the days and nights of the last week had been endless.
I’d thrown myself into baking with my mother and boardgames with both of them after dinner.
Anything to avoid the empty room where I stared at the damn ceiling.
I’d even been avoiding the music room.
The only words trapped inside of me were full of yearning and I didn’t even want to own up to those either.
In the end, this was where I wanted to be.
Fighting it was impossible. Especially when I really didn’t want to fight it. How funny that this man was so much braver than I was.
I kicked off my UGGs and padded down the hallway to his kitchen. It was a blustery day. Rain had held off while he’d been working, but the darkening sky was full of dark clouds. I dug around in his fridge and found a few different kinds of cheeses and a half loaf of Italian bread.
I opened a bottle of merlot to let it breathe as I made a quick dinner of grilled cheese and tomato soup.
“Smells amazing,” he said on his way down the hall to me.
I grinned and held out a glass for him. “Nothing special.”
“I beg to differ. My idea of a grilled cheese is Wonder bread and Kraft Singles.”
I laughed. “Nothing wrong with that—well, except for the Wonder bread.” I wrinkled my nose.
He accepted the glass, giving me a heated look over the rim as he tasted the dark wine. His hair was still damp and he wore a fresh white thermal shirt over a pair of sweats. Somehow the bare feet felt more intimate than anything else.
He dipped his head, his lips tasted of wine and a hint of mint. He’d put on his aftershave and cleaned up the scruff on his neck making me wonder just what else he cleaned up under all that soft cotton.
I couldn’t help myself from dipping my fingers under the hem of his thermal shirt to tease the soft hair at his belly. His muscles rippled and he jerked away.
“Ticklish?”
“Maybe.”
I trailed my fingers up the ridges of his abs then back down to rest at his hip. “I can’t seem to stop touching you.”
“I can’t say I mind.” He brushed his lips over my jaw to my ear. “I’ll spend the entire evening touching you if you let me.”
I gave him access to my neck. “You’re far too good at this.”
He leaned back. “At what?”
“The whole seduction thing.” I turned away from him and lifted my wine. It didn’t quench my thirst, so I took my bowl and plate instead.
“It’s you I want to touch, not just because you’re an available body, Amber.”
I set my plate down with a clatter. I gripped the edge of the breakfast nook’s table. “I’m sorry.”
He came up behind me and lightly squeezed my shoulders. “You must have known some real assholes.”
I huffed out a laugh. “Being around musicians can be hazardous to your health and your underwear.”
He lowered his mouth to the nape of my neck. “Is that so?”
My chin touched my chest as I let him kiss me there. As I enjoyed the way his nose brushed my skin right before the heaviness of his beard painted my skin pink. “I got burned a few times. Believing sex was more than just sex.”
His teeth grazed my ear. “And that’s why you think I’m the same?”
“It can be just sex.”
He paused “And if I don’t agree?”
I turned in his arms. “How do you know?”
“I know the difference between a sweaty hookup and what’s going on between us.
” His green eyes were intense and focused on me.
There was no smolder. No sly seduction. It was just Tate with his sea glass eyes and heavy brows.
His lips already stained red from the wine, his insanely appealing face that made my knees weak. He was so open.
I wanted to trust it so very badly.
I linked my arms around his waist and buried my face into the waffle texture of his shirt, to burrow into the heat of him.
His arms came around me, one hand cupping the back of my head. He felt too good. I’d learned over the years that good things were lost to the stresses of my life. To the aggressive paparazzi and vitriolic reports that hammered at everything soft inside of me.
I wasn’t sure how long we stood like that.
The reassuring beat of his heart finally calmed my brain that was always on fire waiting for the worst.
He sat me down on the bench, then took our food to reheat.
When he came back everything was piping hot thanks to the microwave and air fryer.
We didn’t really speak through dinner, but it wasn’t a heavy silence.
It was gentle as the rain that started outside the window.
We cleaned up together as the awareness rose between us.
A touch of hands as we traded wet plates and bowls to the other to dry.
When we finished, he took my hand and led me out of the kitchen.
I expected us to go to his room, but instead he guided me to the couch.
He came back with the wine and glasses and unobtrusive instrumental music piped through the hidden speakers in the room.
He settled beside me and waggled a book. I hid my smile in his chest and settled against him. It was one I hadn’t read before. Heavily atmospheric and filled with winding prose, I found myself tapping his finger to turn the pages faster.
He grinned down at me, and we both lost ourselves in the book as the evening grew darker. The rain heavy on the roof made the night feel cozy and safe. When the two leads of the book finally took a breath and found shelter, my heart tripped at the way the author brought both of us into the moment.
To the end of the world feelings that ramped up the tension between them until they couldn’t stop themselves from taking advantage of the moments alone. The author didn’t shy away from description, and I found my heart racing in time with the lead female in the story.
I tipped my head back, studying his face. He read like I did. Completely focused and lost in the words and worlds. I lifted my hand to his face and he turned to me, his eyes a little unfocused. I took the book from him and set it on the table behind the couch, then climbed onto his lap.
His big hands gripped my thighs, tugging me tighter against him until I could feel the hardness there for me. “Liked that scene, huh?”
I smiled down at him and covered his mouth with mine. The kiss was deep and drugging. That he understood me was sexier than anything else I’d ever experienced before. “I think we can do it better.”
He huffed out a laugh against my lips and burrowed his fingers under my sweatshirt. The blankets and pillows around us ramped up the heat and I wiggled out of the sweatshirt.
His hungry gaze roamed over my simple bralette.
It did little more than keep the girls from being free under the sweatshirt, but he didn’t seem to mind.
He dug his fingers into my thighs as he leaned forward to taste me through the lace.
One hand coasted up my ribs to cup my breast, his thumb teasing one nipple to a point before he rolled up the fabric and tore it off.
I tipped my head back, enjoying his rough touch. I rocked against him as he sucked and nibbled his way between each breast. He dragged his chin against my tight nipple until I gasped out his name.
“It drives me crazy when you wear my marks.” He cupped me with his massive hand. “Your skin is like silk.” He gripped the back of my neck with his free hand to draw my mouth to his.
I kept rocking against this thick cock, already lost to the heat that swelled up between us so fast. The kiss was messy and wild, his growls hitting a deep bass note that echoed in my chest.
“It feels like I haven’t touched you in forever.” He said against my ear, before he raced down my neck and over to my shoulder before reversing over the same path. My skin sang and the roughness of his beard made my breath come out in pants.
I pushed at his shirt until it fell behind him and off the back of the couch. I rubbed my breasts against his chest, the abrasions like a drug in my bloodstream.
I rolled my hips harder and God, I might go just from the friction between us.
“Ride me, baby.” His eyes were wild as he gripped my hips to help me. “So fucking wet for me.”
I nodded. “You make me insane.”
“Are you a mess under here for me?” He grinned as he lifted his hips and hit me just right.
“Fuck.” I dug my nails into his shoulders.
“Come for me first.” He buried his head into my neck, his tongue laving over my pulse point. “Your heart is racing for me. How close are you?”
“Close.”
My voice shook as I ground down on him. I was probably ripping a layer of skin off him, but he didn’t stop.
He gripped my ass to rock me faster and longer along his length. “Remember, I like the sweet pain of it. Of you. Of making you feel so good you can’t think. Until you believe this magic is just ours.”
I cried out his name as the room fizzed and sparkled. As I tried to drag in a breath, but couldn’t because I was so far gone.
But he didn’t stop there.
He wanted more.
He always wanted more.
He lifted me off him and threw me onto the couch, dragging my pants down enough to get his mouth on me. I arched off the couch, pushing away the blankets and pillows as I screamed as another orgasm ripped into me.
My nails raked through his hair, pinching at the skin of his neck as I lost control.
Feeling safe to let go.