Monroe
“This is why you shouldn’t have left California.”
“No, Vaughn. This is why I shouldn’t have ever listened to you, Remi, and Deacon. I should have kept my Boxster and I wouldn’t be in this predicament.”
“Yeah, Monroe, you’re right…because a Porsche Boxster would have done really well in the snow. And sorry to say, kid, but you likely drove over a nail and that’s why you have a flat now. It has nothing to do with the actual car you are driving.”
Ugh. I hated when he made sense.
Vaughn was the second oldest of my three older brothers. Remi was the oldest and Deacon was the youngest. My brothers and I were all very close, but they were some of the most overly protective guys I’d ever had the pleasure of knowing. It came as no surprise then that when I told them I made the decision to move to Rising Sun, Wyoming they completely lost their shit. They were worried about me and I understood their concern; however, I needed the change I believed moving here would bring. I loved my brothers, my parents, and my job, but I was missing something in Ventura. I had a feeling that if I hadn’t found it there yet I wasn’t going to find it sticking around.
A few weeks ago, I was overjoyed at my decision to move. Then, I did something really, really stupid and immediately regretted the decision. Unfortunately, I’d already signed the lease transfer papers on the condo that my best friend, Nikki, and I would be taking over from our two other best friends, Charley and Emme. In addition, Nikki and I had both already signed the lease on the building that would now be home to her new salon and my new dance studio. Despite the embarrassment I faced a few weeks ago when I’d done that really stupid thing, I knew that I’d never hang Nikki out to dry. So, as it stood, I was stuck here for at least the next two years.
Once I signed the leases and made it official, my brothers finally gave in. They didn’t like it, but they accepted my decision and did their best to respect my choice. This isn’t to say that they didn’t insist on a few things happening before I made the move. One of those things was that I had to get a car that would be practical for the snow. So, I went from my beautiful Porsche Boxster to a GMC Yukon. I loved my Boxster and was so sad to see it go, but I really thought the benefits of moving would have made it all worth it. Being humiliated three weeks ago made me rethink my logic.
My current predicament was that I was now sitting on the side of the road about two miles from my new studio, which wasn’t exactly new in the literal sense, and I had a flat tire. The only upside to the Yukon up to this point was the fact that I could comfortably drive the roughly one-thousand-mile trip from Ventura to Rising Sun and fit almost all of my belongings in the vehicle with me. Having a flat tire after owning this thing for just over a week now was plain ludicrous.
I called Vaughn hoping for a bit of guidance on the situation. If I were still in California and this happened, one of my brothers would have come to where I was and changed my tire. One of them would have just taken care of it and I wouldn’t have needed to give it a second thought. Unfortunately, I no longer had access to their unwavering help in situations like this. I figured that if I called Vaughn he could walk me through what I needed to do to change the tire.
I wasn’t so lucky.
He decided it would be better to give me a lecture on this and explain further why moving was such a bad decision. I wasn’t going to tell him that not long after I signed the lease I regretted my decision. That would lead to an even bigger lecture that I was in no mood to deal with, so I kept my mouth shut on that topic.
“Are you going to help me and tell me what I need to do to change this or are you going to keep lecturing me on my decision to move?” I asked. Then, and because I wanted to avoid more lecturing, I added, “I am standing out on the side of the road in the freezing cold right now, so I’m hoping you’ll choose to help me.”
He stayed silent a moment. “I hate you being out there alone, Monroe. Fuck. Alright, I’ll help you. You need to get out the tire changing tools. They’re in the back of the car. Go open the back gate of the Yukon and pop out the compartment next to the cup holder on the driver’s side next to the third-row seating. The tools are located under there.”
“Okay, hold on.”
“We should just call roadside assistance, I think,” Vaughn speculated as I walked around to open the back of the Yukon.
“Yeah, but who knows how long I’ll have to sit here waiting for them to show up. I should at least try to do this first. Besides, I need to meet the guy who is dropping off the supplies I ordered for my studio soon,” I replied as I climbed in and popped the compartment out of its place. Sure enough, the tools were under it. I pulled them out. As I set them out, I eased my way back out of the Yukon. “Okay, now what?” I asked.
“You’ve got to pull the cover off the middle of the rear bumper and put your ignition key in to unlock the pin for the spare.”
I did as he said and pulled out the pin. “Alright, done. Now what?”
Vaughn explained how to remove the actual tire. I inserted the tool he told me to use and began turning it to lower the tire. Unfortunately, I hadn’t realized how heavy the freaking tire would be.
“Hang on, Vaughn. I need to put my phone down a minute so I can use both hands to pick this tire up.”
“Be careful.”
I set the phone down and pulled the tire out. It was heavier than I thought it would be and I struggled a bit. Eventually, though, I managed to stand it up and lean it against the back of my new mammoth vehicle. I picked the phone up again and said, “I’ve got it. Next?”
“You need to jack up the vehicle,” he declared. He then told me which tool was the jack and where I needed to put it under the car.
As I walked to the driver’s side rear tire and was about to bend down to use the jack I heard something off to my right side.
I looked to my right to see a truck had pulled up directly behind me. “Wait, Vaughn, someone just pulled up. Maybe they can help me.”
“Close the door and get in your car, Monroe. Lock the doors and we’ll call roadside assistance.”
The door to the truck opened and I saw the boots as they stepped out and on to the ground. The sun was practically blinding me that I couldn’t see behind the windshield when the truck pulled up. When the door to the truck closed, I saw him.
Xander Stone.
The most beautiful man in the world.
The man I moved here for.
The man I thought would be the man with whom I’d fall in love.
The man I thought would give me my happily-ever-after romance.
Of course, this was all before my failed attempt to seduce him at Emme’s birthday party a couple weeks ago with a karaoke rendition of Toni Braxton’s You’re Making Me High. Did I mention it was a failed attempt? Remember that stupid thing I alluded to earlier? This was it. After my performance that night, which was directed right at him, Stone got up and walked out without a word. I haven’t seen or spoken to him again since that night.
That is, until now.
“Monroe?” Vaughn’s voice filtered in my ear.
As I stared at Stone stalking over to me, I said, “Yeah, Vaughn?”
“Are you in the fucking car with the doors locked?” he asked.
“No.”
“Get your ass in the car and lock the doors,” he demanded, no patience left in his voice as Stone came to a stop right next to me and looked down into my eyes.
Damn him and those baby blues.
I turned toward him and stood there silently staring at him. Every time I’ve ever looked in his eyes I always noticed a hardness in them. Now, I was seeing that hardness mixed with a bit of something else I couldn’t quite put my finger on.
“Monroe?” Vaughn bit out, now slightly more impatient.
“Yeah, Vaughn?” I asked as I continued to stare at Stone.
Stone’s eyes narrowed.
“Are you alright?” Vaughn questioned.
Without a word, Stone took the jack out of my hand and bent down to jack up the car.
“Yes, I’m okay. I’ll call you in a little.”
“No you fucking won’t. Is someone there?”
“Remember I told you about Charley and Emme’s fiancés?” I reminded him.
“Yeah.”
“One of their best friends is here. He’s already started changing my tire for me. I’ll call you back. I’m okay, I promise.”
“You sure?”
“Yes, Vaughn. I’m sure,” I insisted.
“Ok. Please let me know once you are back on the road,” he requested.
“I will. Thanks for the help,” I added.
“Miss you, kid.”
“I miss you, too.”
With that, I disconnected the call. When I looked back down at Stone I saw that he had already jacked up the vehicle and was removing the flat tire.
“Thank you,” I offered, after he removed the flat and replaced it with the spare.
He didn’t say anything. He just continued tightening the lug nuts on the wheel. When he finished, he stood and put the tools away for me. Then, he took my flat tire and put it in the bed of his truck. When he walked back to me, he finally spoke.
“Luke’s brother has an automotive shop. I’ll have him fix your tire and then I’ll get it back to you. I’m assuming since you are out this way you are heading to your studio?”
I nodded. He knew where my studio was because Nikki and I told everyone about it back when the group of us went out for breakfast the morning Emme and Zane announced their engagement. That was also the day before I made a fool of myself in front of Stone.
“Going to be there a while?” he asked.
I nodded.
“Anyone else going to be with you?” he continued.
I shook my head. “I have a guy delivering a bunch of supplies I ordered for the studio that I need to meet there in thirty minutes, but otherwise, no.”
“Go ahead and get in your car out of this cold. Luke’s brother’s garage is a couple blocks down from your studio. I’ll go get the tire taken care of and bring it back to you.”
“If you want to just give me the name of the shop I can take it later,” I proposed. I didn’t need to be seeing him again. This was already incredibly awkward and I wasn’t sure how much more I could handle.
“Was already heading there anyway,” he shared.
“Oh. Well, you don’t have to bring it back for me. I can just pick it up afterward,” I offered. “I don’t want to inconvenience you.”
“It’s not a problem. I’m going to have to drive past your studio to head back home anyway.”
I wasn’t going to win this battle and I was really beginning to feel the effects of the cold on my body.
“Okay,” I acquiesced. “Thanks again, Stone.”
A look I couldn’t read washed over his face and he didn’t walk back to his truck. I didn’t move either.
“Get in the car, Monroe.”
I stared at him a moment before I turned and walked to the driver’s side door. I opened the door, took one last look at him, and climbed in. I let out a breath as soon as I got in. That was fucking brutal. I felt this unimaginable attraction to Stone. I couldn’t explain it. I hadn’t ever felt this way around anyone…ever. My belly would get these uncontrollable nerves, my heart would start beating a little quicker, my body temperature would rise, and my nether regions would begin to tingle every single time I was around him. It was a completely new experience for me.
It should be noted that I was roughly two weeks away from turning twenty-five and I was part of what my friends sometimes joked as a rare, dying breed.
I was still a virgin.
When I was around Stone and my body reacted the way it did, I thought for certain he was the man with whom I’d fall in love and give my virginity. Apparently, I was wrong because after my humiliating performance Stone made it very clear that he had no interest in me. Unfortunately for me, I couldn’t help but remember the way I felt wrapped in his arms a week prior to my performance when Emme was kidnapped and assaulted by her ex-boyfriend. That night was one of the worst nights of my life; I was consumed with worry and fear for my best friend and I spent the night crying my eyes out. Stone wrapped me in his arms that night and held me until the morning. Despite the anguish I had been feeling about Emme’s kidnapping, I’d never felt more content in my entire life. Stone gave that to me.
I looked up in my rearview mirror and realized he was still behind me, waiting for me to drive away. I turned on the car, put it in drive, and drove to my studio. Stone stayed behind me the entire way there, but then continued down the road in the direction toward what I assumed was Luke’s brother’s garage. I parked, grabbed my purse, stereo, and bag filled with some of my music, snacks, and other random necessities, and made my way into the studio. After letting myself in, I set my things down and pulled out my phone to call Vaughn. I knew if I didn’t he’d completely freak out. It rang once.
“You okay?” he asked in greeting.
“I’m fine. I just got to my studio,” I answered.
“Thanks for calling me back.”
“I knew you’d send in a search party if I didn’t.”
“It’d be a hell of a way to get us to come out and visit you because you know we’d be the search party, right?”
I took in a breath and let it out. I had to smile into the phone. I loved how much my family, particularly my brothers, cared for me. “I know,” I said softly.
“I’ll let you get back to your studio then. Stay safe, kid.”
“I will. Thanks, Vaughn.”
I disconnected the call and set my phone down. I still had about fifteen minutes before the delivery guy was scheduled to arrive so I took to getting my stereo set up. Dancing was my life and if I was going to be spending the next couple of weeks sprucing up the place and putting my personal touch on it I needed to have music. I was hoping I’d be able to officially open for business within the next two or three weeks, but I was one person needing to paint the entire space plus add mirrors in all four of the rooms, and a barre in at least two of the rooms. This, of course, didn’t include the chairs, coffee table, end tables, and decorative pieces I needed for the reception area and throughout the rest of the space. I also wanted to replace the toilets because, well, I was just weird about stuff like that.
I got my stereo set up and popped in a CD, but kept the volume low so that I’d hear the delivery guy come in when he arrived. I walked through my new space. It had, amazingly enough, beautiful light wood floors throughout that were perfect for my usage. The front reception area was spacious and would allow for lots of seating for parents who stayed while their children were getting lessons. I had four separate rooms for teaching dance, which I intended to decorate based on the type of dance I’d want to do in each room. The colors and feel of the rooms needed to be such that they’d only add to the beauty of each and every piece into which my dancers would pour their heart and souls.
As I stood in the middle of one of the rooms I heard the door chime notifying me that someone had walked in. Finally, the delivery guy was here and I could start making this place my own. I turned around and walked out of the room. I made my way down the hall and began talking before I even made it out into the reception area.
“I’m coming. I was just down here at the back of the…Oh,” I stammered and halted in my tracks. Stone was standing in my reception area. “I’m sorry. I thought you were the delivery guy.”
He shook his head indicating that he was not, in fact, the delivery guy. I stared at him. Damn, he made me weak in my knees. Unfortunately, now he also made me want to run and hide.
“Need your keys,” he said.
My brows drew together.
“I have your tire fixed and want to get it back on the car,” he explained.
“Wow. That was fast,” I began as I walked over to my purse. “How much do I owe?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“What?”
“Nothing. Don’t worry about the cost,” he repeated.
“Okay, so should I just stop down to the garage and pay them?” I wondered, pulling the keys out of my purse.
“You should definitely not do that,” he started. “I already took care of it. I said not to worry about the cost.”
He took care of it?
“You can’t pay to fix my tire,” I insisted.
“Monroe, it’s the least I can do right now considering I was dick to you a couple weeks ago.”
Fuck. There it was. Now I really did want to run and hide. Fortunately or, maybe, unfortunately, I heard the chime again. Saved by the delivery guy.
“Delivery for Miss Archer,” he announced.
“That’s me,” I claimed, walking over to him.
“Need you to sign this and then I’ll bring everything in,” he explained as he stretched out his arm to hand me a clipboard with a piece of paper attached to it.
“Sure.”
Stone immediately took it out of his hand and advised, “How about you bring everything in and then she signs once she’s certain everything is here?”
The delivery guy looked to Stone and, for a moment, I thought he was going to say something, but he must have realized that Stone could easily mop the floor with him. At that, the delivery guy nodded and went back out to get my supplies. I stood there motionless.
“Don’t ever sign for something without making sure they’ve actually delivered what you’ve purchased. It’d be very easy for them to take advantage of you,” he cautioned.
I swallowed and nodded my head. “Noted.”
He held his hand out and reminded me, “Keys?”
I gave him the keys and he handed me the clipboard. He then turned and walked out the door. I watched him as he walked back out into the cold, knowing he was going out there to do something for me. On that thought, I felt warmth spread through my body.
I stood and waited while the delivery guy and another worker who was with him came in and out of the studio bringing in my two new toilets, several five-gallon buckets of paint, a refrigerator, and all the necessary tools for painting. They also brought in my mirrors. Lots and lots of mirrors. Once they had everything inside, I confirmed it was all there and signed the paperwork for the delivery guy as Stone walked back in. The delivery guy took the clipboard and left.
Stone handed me my keys and confirmed, “Truck is all good.”
“Thank you. I’m completely unimpressed with it thus far.”
His brows drew together.
“That enormous vehicle out there,” I went on, pointing toward the front door. “I had to get rid of my baby that I drove back in California so that I’d be able to survive the weather out here. Needless to say, I’ve owned the thing just barely over a week and it leaves a lot to be desired.”
“The flat tire doesn’t haven’t anything to do with the vehicle. You know that, right?”
I dipped my chin in acknowledgement. Was he going to lecture me on this, too? It wasn’t that I believed this was a bad vehicle; I just missed the Boxster.
“It’s a good vehicle for the snow. What did you have to give up?”
I took in a deep breath and let it out. “My Porsche. I miss it so much and it hasn’t even been that long. I loved driving that thing around. This monstrosity is just…ugh, I don’t even know the word to describe it.”
His head tilted to the side and he looked at me funny, but said nothing in response.
He turned his gaze from me, looked around the reception area, and asked, “You have someone coming to help you with all this?”
I shook my head. “I mean, I’m sure the girls will come over and help me here with painting if I ask, but I didn’t ask them to come this weekend since it was a bit last minute.”
“New toilets?” he began. “I thought you were leasing the place?”
“I am, but I wanted new toilets so I sprung for them. The landlord didn’t have a problem with it.”
“Do you have a plumber coming to install them?” he questioned me.
“Not yet. That was first on my list today. I’m just hoping I’ll find someone who can do it for me soon.”
“Don’t call anyone; I’ll do it for you,” he offered.
“You know how?” I confirmed, shocked at this news.
He nodded.
“It’s really okay, Stone. I appreciate your help with the tire today, but I can’t ask you to install the toilets here.”
“You didn’t; I offered. I’ll help you this morning with whatever is next on your list and when we go out for lunch we’ll get the tools needed so I can change the toilets for you.”
“I’m sorry. What?”
“Did you not hear me or are you confused about something?”
“You are talking about helping me and going out to lunch. I’m sure you’ve got plenty of other things you could be doing right now not to mention that the last time I saw you, well, you weren’t exactly thrilled to be around me.”
He shook his head. “Didn’t have anything important planned this weekend. And, I told you a little while ago that I was a dick to you at Emme’s party. You didn’t deserve it and I’m trying to make it up to you.”
Every time he brought it up I felt more and more humiliated; though, I guess this time I was the one who brought it up. My eyes welled up as I recalled finishing the song that night, looking to him, and seeing him walk out of the saloon like it was nothing…like I was nothing. I turned my head away from him and begged, “Can we not talk about this?”
“Monroe, look at me.”
I brought my eyes to his.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry for walking out and hurting you.”
“Stone, please. It’s humiliating. Just let it go.”
“No. I want you to know that what you did that night undid me. I wanted nothing more than to walk up on stage, throw you over my shoulder, and take you back to my place so I could fuck you senseless.”
My eyes rounded and my lips parted.
“I’m not shittin’ you, babe. From the first time I met you, I’ve wanted nothing more than to sink myself between these gorgeous fuckin’ legs of yours,” he said as he brought one hand out to squeeze my thigh.
His hand was on my thigh. I felt the wetness immediately pool between my legs as a shiver ran through my body. Stone noticed my reaction and pulled his hand back.
I swallowed hard and barely rasped out, “You have?”
He nodded and continued to torture me with his words. “The way you dance, the way you look, the way you sing, the way you smell, these fucking legs, and your pouty, pink lips…fuck me, Monroe, I’ve thought about taking you every single day since that night.”
Oh. My. God.
“So why did you walk out?” I asked softly.
“I’ve heard things you’ve said, babe. It’s not lost on me that you’re looking for love — the kind of love your girls have found. You want something serious and you should have everything you want. Unfortunately, that’s not something I can give to you. I walked out not because what you did on that stage was a turn off. Fuck, Monroe — I couldn’t get my ass home fast enough so that I could jerk off to the images now burned into my brain of you singing that song to me while you danced and touched your body.”
My jaw dropped. Literally.
Curiosity killed the cat.
Stone chuckled and continued, “Two of your girls are in serious relationships and engaged to my best friends, men who are like brothers to me. As a result, I expect we will be seeing each other on occasion now that you’ve moved out here. I’m not going to do something to create tension in the group. I realize what I did that night created tension. I’m hoping you’ll be gracious enough to accept my apology, forgive me, and be my friend.”
Well that stung.
I’m not sure if I was a glutton for punishment or what, but I continued to ask stupid, freaking questions. “So, let me get this straight. You want me, but you don’t?”
“Oh, I fuckin’ want you, Monroe. Make no mistake about that. I just don’t want a relationship. And since I can’t offer that knowing that’s what you want, I have enough respect for you, your friends, and my friends that I’m not going to cross that line.”
I swallowed hard past the lump in my throat and nodded. “Okay,” I murmured as I looked away trying to blink back the tears. I moved over a thousand miles away from my family thinking there was more here. I guess in a way I was right since he admitted his attraction to me, but if Stone refused to act on how he felt it didn’t matter. My brothers were worried about me being out here alone and now I knew they had every right to be. I had Nikki, Charley, and Emme, but there was a void in my life that not even those girls could fill.
“Fuck,” I heard Stone mutter under his breath. My eyes came back to his and I saw pain in them. “I’m sorry, Monroe.”
I shook my head attempting to regain my composure, but it was useless and my mouth seemed to have a mind of its own. “I feel like an idiot.”
“Don’t say that. You shouldn’t feel bad at all. I know this is the worst thing to say to someone, but it really isn’t you. It’s me.”
My voice was just a hair over a whisper when I looked him in the eyes and admitted, “I left my family behind to come here because I thought there was more here for me.”
I watched as Stone went solid.
Trying to get some control over my emotions, I took in a deep breath and let it out. Once I felt I had everything under control I attempted to brush it off. “It’s fine. Don't worry about it. I need to get to work. Thank you, again, for the help with the tire.”
I walked over to my purse and threw my keys back in. Then, I went back to the first five-gallon bucket of paint and tried to lift it. It was heavier than I expected.
Shit.
I started to drag the bucket. I was struggling and I probably looked like a complete fool. The funny thing is that I didn’t care. I’d already embarrassed myself enough in front of Stone so it’s not like this could be any worse. As I was bent over trying with all my might to move the paint, I felt one of Stone’s strong hands wrap around my tiny wrist.
God, I loved his hands.
“I’ve got it, Stone. I’m fine. Really,” I insisted, really wishing his hands were wrapped around my body.
“Let me help you,” he replied gently.
“Listen if you need me to say that I forgive you for what happened at Emme’s party, then I forgive you. I’ll be nice if we’re ever in the presence of everyone else and I won’t make it awkward, but I can’t have the pity party,” I explained, all while not looking at him.
“Monroe? Look at me,” he pleaded.
I was too fired up. I was too angry. I was too hurt. I refused to look at him. If I did I’d burst into tears. Thankfully, at that moment, my phone rang. I let go of the bucket and walked over to my phone. I was in so much of a state that I didn’t even look at the display to see who was calling.
“Hello?”
“What’s wrong?” Remi’s voice filtered into my ear.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
“What? Nothing,” I said trying to play it cool.
“I called to make sure your delivery went okay. Vaughn called me earlier and told me about your flat tire. I didn’t expect to call and hear you on the verge of tears. What happened? Are you okay?”
I shook my head, but said nothing.
“Monroe?”
“Yes, Remi?”
“Talk to me,” he urged.
“It’s nothing. I’m fine.”
“When a woman says she’s fine it means the exact opposite. I know you aren’t fine. What is wrong?”
“Remi, the delivery went well. And you are right, but I don’t want to talk about it right now.” Or maybe ever.
“We were worried before you even left here. Hearing you upset like this does not make me worry less.”
I needed to give him something.
“I miss you. It’s not easy, but I’m sure it’ll get better soon,” I assured him, knowing I wasn’t telling him the real reason I was upset, but I wasn’t lying either. If Remi, Deacon, or Vaughn were here they’d take care of my toilets, move my refrigerator, and carry my buckets of paint. I really did miss them.
“We’ll come visit soon,” he promised in response.
“I know.”
“Call me later, okay? Want to know you are doing alright.”
“I will.”
“Love you.”
“I love you, too.”
I disconnected the call and tossed my phone back in my purse. I turned around and saw Stone watching me with that same look I couldn’t read on his face. He lifted the paint like it weighed no more than a feather and asked, “Where do you want this one?”
I let out a frustrated sigh and answered, “Down the hall, first room on the left.”
With that, Stone turned and walked down the hall. I grabbed the bags that had the paint brushes, rollers, paint trays, and tarps. Then, after taking a deep breath, I followed behind Stone into the first room.