“Knock, knock! We’re here!” I called as I walked into the farmhouse.
“Kitchen!” Gigi called back.
I let go of Coby’s hand and closed the door behind us. “Okay, buddy. Take your shoes off and then you can go play.”
He toed off his shoes, then bolted toward the kids’ room, yelling, “Ben, I got a Pickle!” as he disappeared.
We were at the farmhouse for a spur-of-the-moment Saturday barbeque because the one thing Gigi Cleary loved more than her family, friends and Halloween was hosting parties. It was still early, only four in the afternoon, and Coby and I were the first to arrive. I was here to play sous chef while he ran around with Gigi’s son, Ben, who was just a few months younger.
I hung my purse on a hook in the entryway and walked toward the kitchen at the back of the house. “Hey,” I said, giving my best friend a one-arm hug, then depositing my grocery bag on the island. “I brought tortilla chips and fixings for my guacamole.”
“Perfect! I think I’ve got all of the burgers, brats and hot dogs prepped. I made a fruit salad, a pasta salad, a green salad, baked beans and spinach dip. Oh, and some brownies.”
There were only going to be eleven adults and six kids here tonight. “Yikes. We’re probably going to run out of food,” I deadpanned.
She smiled. “Probably.”
“Hey, Maze,” a deep voice said from behind me.
Gigi’s husband, Jess, walked into the kitchen with their almost-two-year-old daughter, Adeline, perched on his arm. “Hi, Jess. Hey, Miss Adeline.” I stepped up close and tickled her side.
She giggled and ducked her head into her dad’s neck.
“What’s new?” Jess asked, grabbing a handful of the trail mix Gigi had set out on the island.
“Not much. Just gearing up for tourist season. What about you? Arrest anyone lately, Sheriff?”
He smiled. “Nope. Things have been slow.”
“Just the way we like it.” Gigi slid into Jess’s free side and wrapped her arms around his waist.
I smiled. “Good.”
Blissfully happy and carefree was a great look for them. I gave myself a mental pat on the back for getting these two hooked up. I’d played matchmaker with them years ago, and though they’d gotten off to a bumpy start, they’d found peace and love in this farmhouse.
“Maisy!”
I spun away from the island and braced, ready to receive a crashing hug from Jess and Gigi’s oldest daughter. “Rowen!” Ever since she was a little girl, Rowen’s hugs had been wild and crazy. So I made sure mine were just as wild and crazy back.
“Guess what?” she shouted with her skinny arms wrapped around my waist. “Daddy finally agreed to let me get my ears pierced! Mom and Aunt Lissy are taking me to Bozeman next weekend to get it done. Can you come too?”
“Totally! I’d love to.” Roe didn’t know it but Gigi had already invited me to join her and her sister-in-law, Felicity, while Jess watched Coby. All I needed to do was convince my mom, dad or one of my brothers to be on call at the Bitterroot in case something happened with a guest.
“I’m so excited!” She let me go and flipped her long brown hair over her shoulders so she could prance around the kitchen, holding out her naked earlobes. “I’m getting diamond studs because Aunt Lissy says they’re timeless.”
I swallowed a laugh. This girl was as diva as you could get for a nine-year-old. “Well, she’s right about that.”
“Roe, sweetie, can you run and check on your brother and Coby?” Gigi asked, letting go of Jess to start setting out plates and silverware.
“Sure, Mommy.” She smiled and skipped out of the kitchen in her pink-glitter ballet flats.
I let go of the laugh I’d been holding in. “Do you think she’s going to be crushed when she realizes the ‘diamonds’ at Claire’s in the mall are fake?”
Gigi scoffed, shoving the silverware drawer closed. “Oh, didn’t I tell you?” She flicked her wrist toward her handsome husband, who was shaking his head. “Jess came home with diamond earrings for her last night. He’s going to surprise her tomorrow.”
My jaw fell. “You’re kidding.” I didn’t even own diamond earrings.
Gigi shook her head. “Nope. Tell her your reasoning,” she ordered Jess.
He just shrugged and grabbed another handful of trail mix. “Figured if I set the bar high enough, she won’t ever find a boyfriend that can live up to it. Probably won’t want to date until she’s thirty.”
I burst out laughing. Now how could I argue with that? Gigi was trying to hide her smile behind her wineglass.
“When Adeline gets old enough, she’ll have diamonds too.” Jess pressed a kiss to the soft curls of her brown hair. “All my girls get diamonds.”
“Honey.” Gigi set down her wine and went back to Jess’s side, tipping up her chin so her long brunette hair fell down her back. When Jess pressed a kiss to her freckled nose, I felt a twinge of jealously. It wouldn’t be the last time that happened tonight.
It wasn’t an evil kind of jealousy, just one that stemmed from loneliness. I’d be the only single adult at dinner tonight. My friends had all found amazing men to share their lives with and I’d be surrounded by happy couples all evening.
Beautiful women, adored by tall, strong and handsome men.
Though none of the men were as gorgeous as Hunter.
It had been two days since I’d seen him by the vending machine. Two days and I still couldn’t get his image out of my head. It was crystal clear. I was actually grateful for the two-day reprieve. I’d been using that time to get over my embarrassment for turning into a blubbering teenager when we’d met. The next time I saw him, I was determined to come across like a normal woman.
Which would be a lot easier as of next week. My part-time summer housekeeper was starting next week and I was assigning her to Hunter’s room. It would be much easier to keep my cool the next time I saw him if I wasn’t changing his bed sheets every other day, wondering if he slept naked.
“Hey, are you feeling all right?” Gigi asked. “You look flushed.”
I looked up from the counter and smiled. “Just stressed about my to-do list,” I lied. Normally, Gigi would be the first I’d tell about sexy motel guests, but something about Hunter felt different. I wanted to keep him to myself, just for a while.
“Anything we can do to help?”
“No, I’ll get it all done. Thanks, though.”
“Coby should have a sleepover with Ben tonight,” she said. “You can drink some wine, let loose for a change. If you get tipsy, Jess can drive you home. Then tomorrow you could sleep in.”
Coby was an early riser and I couldn’t remember the last time I’d slept past six. Mornings had become our special time together since the evenings were always so packed with activity. But a lazy morning? Total freaking heaven. “You really wouldn’t mind?”
“Of course not. We’d love to have him.”
“We still owe you for watching all the kids for our anniversary,” Jess said.
I did a happy clap. “Thanks, you guys! I could use a recharge before busy season.”
“Any time.” Gigi slid a full wineglass across the counter. “Cheers!”
“Woo-hoo! Cheers!” I took a healthy sip and then got started on my guacamole.
Two hours later, the kitchen was full of women drinking wine, the kids were chasing each other all over the farmhouse, and the men were congregated around the barbeque outside, drinking beer and grilling meat.
“What are you two whispering about?” Emmeline asked Sara and Gigi.
When their eyes landed on me, I knew I was in trouble.
“Oh, just an idea,” Sara said, brushing her strawberry-blond bangs to the side.
“Oh, no.” I’d seen this look before. These two were going to try and set me up on a blind date.
Again.
“Will you give her more wine?” Gigi asked Felicity.
I held out my glass, knowing I’d need every drop she poured to resist this assault. My friends had set me up with every eligible bachelor in the Jamison Valley. I’d learned that they were all eligible because they were all duds.
Emmeline was a kindergarten teacher at the school and had once arranged for me to have dinner with the music teacher. That guy picked his nose at dinner and ate his score as an appetizer.
Felicity was a real estate agent so any single man moving to Prescott not only had her help in purchasing a home, they also had her help in getting a date. The guy from Boise talked about his two cats during our entire meal, the guy from Casper stared at my breasts all night, and the guy from North Dakota only fucked brunettes—his exact words—but he’d promised to make an exception for me.
The only reason Sabrina hadn’t tried to set me up yet was because she was new to Prescott and was currently consumed with planning her and Beau’s wedding.
“So there’s this new doctor at the hospital,” Gigi started.
A doctor? “No. Absolutely not.”
“He’s really nice,” Sara pleaded. “He worked here before, a couple of years ago, but left to go back to the city. He’s so ho—”
“No flipping way! Never happening.”
“But—”
“No.” I interrupted Gigi, shaking my head and setting down my wineglass. “No doctors.” I hated being so firm, but there were some things I would never do. Dating another doctor was one of them.
Been there. Tried that. Had his baby.
Thankfully, Gigi didn’t press. “Okay.”
“Are you talking about Doctor Calvin Klein?” Felicity asked. “He’s back?”
Gigi and Sara both nodded. “I guess going back to his city life wasn’t as exciting as he’d thought.”
“Does he need a house?” Felicity asked. Her bright blue eyes lit up with the possibility of finding a new client.
Gigi shrugged. “I’m not sure. I’ll ask him on Monday.”
Felicity turned to me. “You should make an exception to your no-doctor rule. Dr. Calvin Klein is hot.”
“Wait.” Sabrina spoke up before I could refuse. “Can we take a moment to appreciate the fact that my best friend of many, many years just referred to someone by a nickname?” She lifted up her wineglass for a toast. “To Felicity Grant. I’m so proud of you. Getting married to Silas. Having baby Victoria. Those moments were all well and good. But this? I’m just so happy. For years, you’ve teased me for nicknaming people, refusing to acknowledge how awesome some of them have been. I’m glad to see you’ve realized the error of your ways and come over to the dark side.”
“Hilarious,” Felicity muttered, taking a long sip of her wine as the rest of us laughed.
I looked over at Sabrina and mouthed, “Thank you.” She tucked a lock of her blond hair behind an ear and winked. Best future sister-in-law ever.
Luckily for me, the conversation didn’t return to my love life. We all broke into smaller huddles and I was saved from more dating discussions.
“How are you feeling?” I asked Emmeline, who was standing at my side. She looked beautiful, her skin was glowing, and her long auburn hair was as shiny as I’d ever seen. But I knew from experience that those pregnancy symptoms often belied others, like back pain, heartburn and—my personal favorite—urinary incontinence.
She looked down to her round belly and smiled. “Good right now. I’m grateful that it’s almost summer break and I can spend these last three months at home relaxing and enjoying my pregnancy. Nick and I decided she’s going to be our last so I want to savor this time.”
I was happy for Nick and Emmeline, but back came the pang of jealousy. Being pregnant with Coby had been anything but relaxing. The first two months had been spent in constant worry because his father had wanted me to have an abortion. The seven months after that, I’d been dealing with the aftermath of killing the man.
Pushing those memories down deep, I focused on Emmeline and baby questions. “Did you guys pick a name?”
She leaned in and whispered, “Nora.”
“Cute! Oh my god, I love that,” I whispered back.
“Thanks. We actually let Draven pick. Nick came up with his top two names and then I came up with mine. We decided that the one Draven could pronounce the best would be the winner.”
As if he knew she was talking about him, Draven, Nick and Emmeline’s two-year-old son, came running into the room, hiding behind his mother’s legs as Ben and Coby chased after him. As quickly as the boys had come into the kitchen, they scampered out, giggling and laughing as they disappeared.
“More wine?” Felicity asked me.
“Please.” I held out my glass and decided it would need to be my last before dinner. If I didn’t eat something soon, I’d be blitzed by the time Jess drove me back to the motel.
I wanted to enjoy my lazy morning without a wicked hangover.
“Okay,” Felicity said as she poured, “so I think we’ve established you won’t be dating any doctors. But how about a wealthy investor who happens to be recently divorced and now living in Prescott?”
I looked to the heavens and pleaded, “Save me.”
“This guy is great,” she insisted. “I met him a while back when he moved up from Denver. He’s sophisticated and a real gentleman. Anyway, I ran into him earlier this week and thought you two might hit it off.”
“What’s his name?” Gigi asked.
“Warren Adams.”
“I know him,” Emmeline said. “That’s the guy that bought my old house.”
“Yep.” Felicity nodded. “Help me convince her that he’s a good pick.”
“He really does seem nice,” Emmeline said.
“I can’t trust either of you.” I took a gulp of wine and set down my glass. “You may have found wonderful husbands for yourselves, but you’re on strike three with this girl. I can only take so many bad dates.”
“Please,” Felicity begged. “Please, just one dinner.”
Everyone joined in the pleading until I crumbled under their good intentions.
“Fine!” I threw my hands in the air.
The entire kitchen erupted with cheers. When I looked over at Gigi, her mouth was set in a grin. I couldn’t help but smile back. She was coming from a good place; all my friends were. They wanted me to find a love like they had found, and maybe Warren was my shot. At the very least, I’d get a free meal.
The men started filing in from outside with Jess bringing up the rear, holding a tray stacked full from the grill. “Dinner’s ready.”
Moms dispersed, chasing after kids to get hands washed and plates loaded. With Rowen in charge of the kids’ table in the living room, the adults crowded around the dining room table.
Dinner was followed by more laughing and more wine. By the time the sun had set, my cheeks hurt from smiling and I was drunk. Not so much that I was slurring or unbalanced, but the happy drunk where everything was funny, I was talking a mile a minute and driving myself home was definitely not an option.
As people started to shuffle out of the farmhouse, exhausted children in tow, I said good night to Coby. He was so excited to spend the night with Ben I was barely able to corral him for a kiss and hug good-bye.
Then Jess drove me home, waiting in his truck while I rushed up to the loft to pack an overnight bag for Coby. As he pulled away from the motel, I went to collect Pickle from his crate for his nighttime potty trip outside.
“Aww. Did you miss me, boy?” As I carried him down the stairs, he licked my chin like a typical overexcited puppy. “I missed you too. Here you go.” When I hit the bottom step, I set him down and clipped on the red leash that matched his collar.
At the base of the staircase that led to my loft was a small gravel area where I parked my black Toyota 4Runner. Behind the stairs was a narrow swath of grass that bordered the entire backside of the motel. Stepping off the gravel and onto the grass, I let Pickle pull me around by his leash, his black nose pressed to the ground as he searched for the perfect place to do his business.
“Come on, Pickle. Come.” I tugged on his leash after he’d peed. “Let’s get inside.”
We had already walked nearly the entire length of the motel and rather than turn and go back the way we came, I led Pickle along the grass so we could cut across the parking lot. The evening air was chilly and I hadn’t thought to bring out a coat. I was only wearing jeans, tan flats and an off-the-shoulder drapey white shirt that was too thin for more than five minutes outside.
I was just rounding the corner behind the building when a dark figure stepped right into my path, grabbing the sides of my arms as we collided. I gasped, too stunned and terrified to scream, so I reacted purely on instinct. Bringing my knee up as hard and as high as I could, I crushed it into the dark figure’s groin.
Direct hit.
The man let go of my arms as he doubled in half, holding his crotch while he groaned and fell backward onto the ground. “Oh, fuck,” he panted, trying to suck in a full breath.
Oh, fuck?
Oh, fuck.
I knew that voice and I knew that dimly lit man bun.
Reality dawned and my hand flew up to my mouth as I gasped. “Hunter?”
He didn’t respond. He just rolled over and faced the ground, rocking his body back and forth as sounds of pain and agony filled the air.
“Oh, no.” Fear turned to guilt. “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry. I didn’t know it was you. I got scared and just reacted. My brother, he taught me some self-defense, and we’ve been practicing lately and I didn’t think. It just happened automatically. I thought you were a bad guy. Oh my god! I’m so sorry.”
My mouth would not stop moving. The words came pouring out faster than water over Niagara Falls.
Shut up, Maisy!
My mouth didn’t listen. The rambling apologies kept on coming.
“I’m so sorry. So, so, so sorry. What can I do? Can I get you something? An ice pack? Ooh! I think I have a bag of peas in the freezer. I’ll go get them. You stay right there, I’ll be back in a jiffy.” I carefully sidestepped Hunter, ready to sprint to the loft for my peas, when he spoke.
“Maisy, stop,” he grunted. “Just give me a sec.”
“Okay.” My feet immediately stopped.
I stood over Hunter, nervously swaying back and forth, as he stayed in the fetal position on the ground. When Pickle lunged for a chance to lick Hunter’s face, I yanked back on his leash and held him close.
What a disaster! How was I ever going to recover from this? My second impression was worse than my first.
I desperately wanted to keep apologizing but I managed to seal my lips together. The wine buzz I’d had minutes ago was fading fast and the heat from my embarrassment had chased away the cold. So much for remodeling Coby’s room. So much for getting Hunter Faraday to like me. I expected to see his room key in the drop box when I woke up tomorrow.
Pushing up off the ground, Hunter slowly stood up and faced me.
“I’m sorry.” My hand came up to my mouth again, holding back another fit of word vomit.
“Don’t worry about it,” he panted. “I’ll live, but I think I’ll take those peas.”
I nodded and burst into action, scooping up Pickle and running across the parking lot, then leaping up the stairs to my loft. With the puppy back in his crate and a bag of frozen corn in my hand, I slammed the door behind me and rushed back toward Hunter. I rounded the corner of the lobby and jogged across the parking lot toward his open door, light from his room spilling out into the walkway.
I burst right into his room. Hunter was slouched in the leather club chair by the door. His head was tipped back and his eyes were closed.
“Here you go.” I was out of breath and the words came out too loud.
Hunter’s eyes opened and he held out a hand so I could drop the corn into his large palm. “Thanks.”
“It’s corn. Peas are Coby’s favorite and I never seem to buy enough. He hates corn but it should work for your . . . um, well, you know.”
Shit! I was rambling again. Like he cared about my son’s vegetable of choice.
Hunter pressed the frozen corn to his groin, sighing with relief.
And I just stood there, bouncing from one foot to the other as the reality of this nightmare sank in. I’d just kneed the man I’d been crushing on in the balls. Mortification wasn’t a strong enough word for how I felt right now. I didn’t know what else to do, so I apologized. Again.
“Like I said before, I’ll live.” He tipped his head back again and shut his eyes. “Is your kid okay by himself? I’ll be fine if you need to get back.”
“Oh, he’s spending the night at a friend’s house tonight.”
“Hmm.” His Adam’s apple bobbed gently as he swallowed.
I really wanted to run my tongue up and down Hunter’s throat.
Really? You just assaulted the man!
Clearly, I was still drunk because that was not an appropriate impulse at this moment. I shook my head, pushing all licking thoughts aside and remembering why I was in his hotel room.
“Can I get you anything else? I have Advil or Tylenol. If you need something specific, I could walk to the grocery store and—”
“Maisy.”
“Yeah?” I braced, ready for him to tell me to get the hell out of his room.
“Sit down.”
“Right.” His request surprised me and I immediately obeyed, sitting stiffly on the edge of his bed. We both stayed quiet—a personal miracle—and I did my best to relax. Once my heart rate finally moved out of the red zone, the nervous sweating began. My forehead was damp and a drop of sweat slid down my side.
I really needed to get out of here. Why Hunter had asked me to sit was a mystery, one I didn’t really care to solve. All I wanted was to scurry back home and hide. This was worse than the time in eighth grade when I’d accidentally touched Joey Marcus’s crotch in the lunch line.
“Self-defense, huh?”
Hunter’s question caught me off guard and I jerked, making the bed bounce. “Um, yes. Beau, that’s my brother, he’s been into karate since college. He’s been teaching me some basics for a few years now.” I clamped my lips together before I could blurt my life’s story and the reason why I’d asked Beau to teach me self-defense in the first place.
“Well,” Hunter said, “the next time you see him, tell him he’s one hell of a teacher.”
I winced, my shoulders lifting to my ears. “Sorry.”
“You’ve apologized enough.” He removed the corn from between his legs. “I’m sorry I scared you.”
“It’s fine. I just didn’t expect to see anyone out this late. What were you doing out there anyway?”
“I was going for a run and thought I’d go out back to stretch in the grass.”
Now his clothing made sense. He wore a tight green T-shirt that fit his chiseled arms like a second skin. The charcoal compression pants did the same to his muscled calves. The black shorts he wore over the pants covered his bulky thighs. He wore it all well, too well, and I bet it looked even better when he was sticky with sweat.
I swallowed hard, ignoring another onslaught of sexy-Hunter thoughts and went for simple conversation. “It’s pretty late for running.”
He nodded. “I haven’t been sleeping well. I thought a run might wipe me out so I could get some rest.”
“Is it the bed? Is it uncomfortable?” My voice was laced with panic.
I had spent a fortune on new beds for each room. I’d slept in one, just to try it out, but when it came to mattresses, I wasn’t all that picky. I was usually so tired I could sleep standing up. But an uncomfortable bed was not feedback I wanted from one of my guests.
“It’s not the bed,” Hunter said.
My shoulders sagged. “Oh, thank god. I was point five seconds from a full-on freak-out.”
He grinned, sending a shiver down my spine, and stood from his chair.
I took it as my cue to leave and stood too. “I’ll get out of your room. Are you sure there isn’t anything I can do to make this up to you? Added cleaning? Extra towels? I know my way around an iron if you need a shirt starched.”
His eyes softened as he shook his head. “I’m good. I feel better already.”
I really hoped that was true and he’d still be here tomorrow. More than I wanted his reservation, I wanted the chance to show him I wasn’t a crazy person. Maybe my third impression would be the winner. I hadn’t really cared what a man thought of me since Coby’s father. But Hunter? I really wanted him to like me. My desire for his affection was slightly unsettling.
“One last time,” I said. “I’m so sorry.”
He walked to the open door and leaned against its frame. “You’re forgiven.”
“Thank you.” I crossed the room and stepped past him through the door. We were so close to touching, but I didn’t dare brush against him. With the way I was feeling—drunk on wine, adrenaline and Hunter’s presence—I wouldn’t put it past myself to do something foolish. What I needed was to get home and pretend the last thirty minutes hadn’t happened.
“Maisy?” he called before I could walk too far into the parking lot.
I stopped and turned. “Yeah?”
He stepped into the middle of the doorway, his large body filling its open space. “Actually, I do have one request.”
“Okay.”
“The next time you make peas for your son, maybe you could bring me some. I’m not much of a cook and they’re my favorite too.” He tossed me the frozen bag of corn.
“Peas. You want peas?”
He nodded. “I want peas.”
I had a hard time believing he couldn’t reheat frozen vegetables, but if that’s what he wanted, then I’d make him peas. “Okay. Good night, Hunter.”
“Good night, Maisy.”
I crossed the parking lot with a smile on my face, not because I’d had a nice dinner with friends or because I had an upcoming date with Warren Adams, but because I needed to start a new grocery list.
A list with Frozen peas x 10 at the top.