Traveling down the gravel drive toward my house, I couldn’t stop the thoughts swarming my mind. Something had definitely gone down between the Monroe men while I’d been on the phone with Hannah. The way Tucker bolted out of the house made me assume it had something to do with me. I didn’t like that thought—the idea of me coming between him and his family. It was the last thing I wanted.

At the same time, I understood his frustration. I’d barely maintained my own cool through dinner with all the snide remarks Beau Monroe would sneak in, little landmines concealed by his charm. The man was a real snake in the grass. He was toying with me. I’d seen right through him. He was only after the farm.

I never had a problem with Beau until tonight. His words of advice irritated me like tiny needles pricking my skin. I didn’t like the thought of any prospective buyers tearing down my family’s home. It shouldn’t matter to me. Yet, it did.

“I’m sorry about my dad. He can be an ass sometimes.”

I snorted a humorless laugh, staring straight ahead at the headlights shining on the dirt road. “You don’t need to apologize, Tucker. I’ve known your father for many years. It’s no secret he’s been after our land since before I was born.”

“Don’t sell it to him, Lottie.”

Why do the men in this town feel like they have the right to tell me what to do with my farm? I looked over at his handsome profile, his jaw still ticking with his fists tight around the wheel.

“Why not, Tucker?”

I had no desire to sell it off to Beau. But I was curious why Tucker wouldn’t want me to. It would benefit him as much as his family.

He rolled the truck to a stop in front of my house, a refusal in his eyes. I wasn’t getting an answer from him.

* * *

The next morning I woke up to a warm body at my side and heavy arms pinning me to my bed. It was the first night Tucker and I had been able to stay together. I told myself I didn’t like it. There was no way I could get used to this—waking up to a beautiful man, relaxed and satisfied from the orgasms he’d given me the night before. Who would want that?

The smile I couldn’t wipe from my face was zero indication of how I truly felt. Nope. I was so not content with this, I thought as I nuzzled further into his chest like a feline in heat. His arms tightened, his eyes still closed, a slow smile spreading across his face.

I kissed his bare chest, each side of his neck, along his jaw, making my way over his tanned skin until my mouth found his. He let out a guttural moan, rolling to his back, pulling me to straddle him as his eyes flicked open. His hand teased between my legs, maddeningly stimulating until I couldn’t take it anymore.

I lifted and slid down his thick length, taking him deep as I rode him slow and steady. Our fingers weaved together above his head as I lowered myself back to his lips. He kissed me, his mouth strong and warm, our bodies moving seamlessly. The power of his thrusts rocked through my core as he surged deeper. Our hands untangled as he gripped my hips, guiding and increasing our tempo to bring us both to the finish line.

I gasped and whimpered, breathing his name as he grunted and moaned with a final thrust of his hips before he shot through me. I collapsed on top of him, never wanting to move again. His hand stroked my hair, tickling down my spine.

“Mmm…that was nice,” I purred, smiling lazily into his neck, giving it one swift peck.

“Nice?” he asked with an incredulous teasing in his tone.

“Mmm-hmm.”

“Sweetheart, that was anything but nice. Nice is when you receive a pie from your neighbor or a sweater from your grandma. What I just gave you was not nice.”

I laughed, lifting my head. “Well, maybe you should try again. Because the only word I can think of to describe that was nice,” I lied.

I squealed with a giggle as he flipped me to my back, pinning me to the bed, his eyes bright, his smile scheming. His body made a slow crawl south. My eyes rolled back in my head as his tongue swirled between my legs—the frenzy building, his morning scruff deliciously scratching.

“Ohh…that’s definitely…nice,” I mocked with a pant, on the edge of another free fall to ecstasy.

My eyes flicked open with a gasp when his teeth nipped my inner thigh. I lifted to my elbows with warning eyes as he lifted to his knees. He shifted to the edge of the bed, grinning like the devil as he pulled his jeans over each leg, taking my impending orgasm with him.

“Now that was so not nice.”

He chuckled, standing to his feet, zipping up his pants. He leaned forward, towering over me, our faces aligned, a hand on each side of my frustrated and deprived body.

“Maybe next time, you won’t call sex with me nice.”

He pecked my lips and stepped away, headed for the door. I picked up the pillow next to me, throwing it at his head as he laughed, ducking away from it.

“Jerk!” I yelled through a grin, his laugh contagious.

“At least you’re not calling me nice anymore!” He shot back before disappearing from my view.

Damn.

* * *

After our breakfast of cold pop tarts and Keurig coffee, Tucker got to work on the bathroom, promising he should be able to have my new fixtures up and running by the end of the day. The countertops arrived and were installed halfway through the day, pulling Tucker from his work in the bathroom. He finished installing the kitchen sink and the appliances to give me at least one fully completed and functioning room.

It was beautiful. A contrast of darks and lights, modern but classic, the perfect farmhouse kitchen. I ran my hand along the smooth, black granite, marveling and admiring.

“What’d ya think?” Tucker’s deep voice asked from behind me.

I rotated to the handsome and talented man who’d built me a kitchen anyone would be jealous of.

“I think your dad is a moron.”

His head cocked to the side with a confused half-grin.

“How can he not see how talented you are at this? It’s amazing, Tucker. Truly. I’m in awe. It’s no wonder your company is in high demand.”

He tucked his hands in his pockets, modestly shrugging his shoulders, his smile huge. I walked up to him, my palms on each side of his face, kissing his lips.

“Thank you. I love it. And I’m sure the new owners will too.”

His face fell as he stepped from my touch, an uneasy hand scratching at the back of his head.

“Thanks. I should get back to work on the bathroom.”

He turned to leave, but I stopped him, grabbing at his arm.

“Tuck? Is everything okay? Did I say something wrong?”

I searched my head for what I’d said or did to upset him.

“Everything’s fine, Lottie.” He kissed the top of my head with the passion of a friend.

He turned and left the room without another word. I slumped against the counter’s edge, fingers and thumb massaging my temple and forehead, confusion and stress a common occurrence as of late.

* * *

I buried myself in my chores, needing to preoccupy my mind. Something had shifted between Tucker and me. Our normal flirty banter was absent all day. Tucker hadn’t stopped working on the bathroom since our moment in the kitchen. The feeling he was avoiding me spun in my head and twisted in my belly.

It wasn’t until late in the evening when he finally graced me with his presence. He leaned in the doorframe of the room as I was sorting through and packing up, so we could finish painting throughout the house.

“I’m gonna take off.” His voice drew me from my efforts.

“Okay,” I replied, the inexplicable tension still thick in the air.

“You can use the sink and the toilet, but you’ll have to still shower at Grams’ until we can tile the shower surround.”

“Who’s we?” My gut twisted some more.

“I’m going to send a few of my guys over tomorrow to do the tiling, and then Monday to finish installing the floors through the rest of the house. I figure by then you can have the house cleared and painted.”

“Tuck—” I took a step forward.

He pushed off the frame, retreating one step back into the hall. “I need to go, Lottie.”

“Will you be back tomorrow?” I feared I already knew the answer to my own question. His gesture alone was all-telling.

He shook his head. “I need to look in on some projects. I’ve been gone too long as it is.”

“Right. Okay. I get it,” I clipped, hating the bite in my tone. I was the queen of deflection. The queen of breaking off flings. This wasn’t new territory for me. Though, I was usually the one doing the breaking.

He sighed, his body defeated. He took the few steps to me, kissing me on the cheek. “I’ll call you.”

Those were his final words as he walked out the door. Words that meant the opposite. Words that meant things for him were over. I shouldn’t care. I should be thankful he was making it easy on me. It was what I wanted after all. A clean break to a summer fling I never intended to have.

* * *

“You know, for as smart as you are, you can be pretty dumb sometimes.” Leighton took another bite of her slice of pizza, crossing her ankles as her legs stretched out in front of her.

We both sat against the wall of my now empty living room, legs stretched in front of us, a bottle of red wine and a pizza box on the floor between us. After bribing Leighton, Aaron, and Billy with pizza and booze, the three of them came over to help me finish packing up the house to store everything in the barn—where the guys were still busy organizing everything.

I scoffed, “Am not.” Because that was the most intelligent answer I could come up with.

“Are too,” she mocked me.

I narrowed my eyes. She nudged my shoulder.

“Lottie, of course he’s going to try and distance himself from you right now. The house is almost done…which means you’re about to leave. He knows that. But it doesn’t mean he has to like it. The man is still head over heels for you.”

“Doubtful. It’s just sex for him.”

“You mean for you. Because I know for a fact, if it was just sex for him, he wouldn’t be publicly warning Billy away from you.”

“What the hell are you talking about? When did he do that?”

“Yesterday.” She looked at me as if this was common knowledge. It probably was for half the town of Billingsley. “In the middle of Kathy’s café. Walked right up to Billy’s table and told him to back off.”

“He did not.” I folded my lips between my teeth, hiding behind my wine glass. I should not be feeling a hum of happiness about this information.

“He did. And I’d be willing to bet he’d tell every man in town who gave you a second glance.”

“He hasn’t called. It’s been over twenty-four hours since he said he would.”

“What are we, thirteen again? Call him if you want to talk to him.”

I took another drink of my wine, mulling over everything she’d just said.

“You know what, you’re right.”

“Usually am.”

“I’m gonna call him.”

“Great idea.”

“This isn’t the sixties. I don’t have to wait for him to call me. Or ask my father’s permission to court me!”

“Sing it, sista!”

“I’m a modern-day woman. I have a career, my own condo. I even own my own damn farm.”

“For now.”

“Right.” I nodded once. “For now.”

I picked up my cell phone with a new determination. I was going to demand answers. If he wanted to call things off, so be it. But he was going to at least tell me to my face…via phone. I found his name and pushed to connect the call.

“Oh, will you ask him if he’s going to make it to our cookout next weekend? He never responded to my evite.”

I shushed her with a flittering hand. She shrugged, taking another long sip of her wine. I was pretty sure she’d drunk most of the bottle on her own.

The phone rang once.

My heart stilled.

Then twice.

I couldn’t breathe.

By the third ring I was in full-on panic mode, immediately ending the call.

“I think I’ll just text him,” I explained, my heart still pounding, Leighton’s judging eyes on me. “What? It’s late. I don’t want to wake Lily.”

“Sure. How considerate of you.”

I stared down at my phone, trying to figure out what to say. Leighton ripped the phone from my hands, taking pity on me before I had a nervous breakdown or maybe just wanting to torture me—one of the two. She typed something, pushing send before I could read it or stop her.

“Leighton!”

She laughed as I grabbed the phone back from her hand.

“What did you say?” I looked down at my screen, seeing the word “Hey” in the green conversation bubble. I looked back up at her. “Really?”

She shrugged.

“Oh my God. He’s responding.” I slapped her arm excitedly.

I gripped the phone with two hands, staring at the three gray dots as if my life depended on it. The phone chimed with his new text. I stared at it dumbfounded.

“What? What did he say? Tell me already!”

I showed her the screen with his one-word reply— “Hey.”

“Well, at least he responded.” She tried to be helpful, which was so unhelpful.

The phone rang in my hands and both of our eyes widened as we looked up at each other and then back down at his name glowing on the screen. “Shit! He’s calling.”

“Answer it, you idiot!” she squealed, bouncing onto her knees to get a closer look at the screen.

The two of us acted like a couple of teenage girls getting their first call from a boy. I’d say it was déjà vu, but I was pretty sure we’d done this before. With the same boy calling. Minus the wine, of course.

I took a deep breath, allowing it to ring a few more times…you know, so he didn’t think I was just waiting by the phone. I brushed my hair to the side before answering the phone and lifting it to my ear.

“Hey.”

I did my best to sound casual with a bouncing Leighton next to me. The wine was definitely buzzing through her body.

“Hey.” His deep voice vibrated in my ear. “I saw you called. Sorry I missed it. I was putting Lily to bed.”

“Oh. That’s fine. I understand.”

“Did you need something?”

“Um…well…” I looked at Leighton, who was mouthing “what’s he saying” at me. I shoved her away, standing to my feet, walking away for some moderate privacy.

“Not really. I was…I just…I called to let you know your guys did a really good job with the tile. You should be very proud of them.” I ran a hand over my face as I shook my head. Smooth, Lottie. Real smooth.

“I’m glad to hear that.” He gave a short chuckle, his laugh making me smile. Silence hung heavily as I searched for something else to say. No man had ever unnerved me like Tucker Monroe.

“Tuck…are we good?”

“Yeah, Lottie, we’re good.”

Aaron and Billy decided to rejoin us at that moment, their manly laughs and bro pushing echoing in the empty room.

“Sounds like you have a full house.” There was an irritation in his voice.

Jealous maybe? The thought he cared enough sparked excitement in me.

“Not really. Just Leighton, Aaron, and Billy. They came over to help me finish packing and move everything out of the house.”

I scanned the empty room, the three of them still laughing and talking on the other side. I left them to it, making my way to the bedroom. I closed the door behind me, taking a seat on the only furniture left in the house—the bed.

“I see…” His tone was sharp. “Look, I should go. I have an early morning tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

“Nite, Lottie.”

“Wait. Tucker?”

“Yeah?”

“Would you want to come over for dinner sometime? I can cook for you in my fancy new kitchen. And we could have a meal without the rest of the Monroe family for once,” I quipped. “You know, as a thank you for everything you’ve done.”

“Sure. Sounds good.” The smile in his voice had returned.

Relieved, I grinned. “Okay. See ya soon, Tuck.”

“Nite, sweetheart.”

I hung up the phone, falling back on the bed from my seated position, arms spread wide. A sigh of relief left my lungs. It was a dangerous feeling. The relief. The happiness. The anticipation of seeing him again. I shouldn’t want these feelings. I shouldn’t be reveling in them. Or soaking them up like summer sun. I should be slathering myself in sunblock and hiding from these golden rays of happiness.

There was a soft knock on my door. I sat up as it creaked open.

“Hey.” Billy poked his head in, bracing himself between the door and the frame. “Am I interrupting?”

“Nope.” I smiled.

He opened the door the rest of the way, striding into the room. “You look happy. Does that mean you two worked stuff out?”

“Leighton has a loud mouth.”

He chuckled, taking a seat beside me on the bed.

“But in answer to your question…I think so.”

“Glad to hear it.”

“Really?”

“Sure. You deserve to be happy, Lottie.”

“Thanks, Billy. I know I told you I wasn’t wanting anything while I was here. And honestly, I hadn’t planned for any of this to happen with Tucker…it just did.”

“I get it, Lottie. No hard feelings.”

“Did he really threaten you at Kathy’s?”

He laughed again. “Leighton?”

I shrugged with a nod.

“At this rate, she’s earning herself the nickname Loud Mouth Leighton. That woman can’t keep a secret for the life of her.”

“I don’t know…she kept all of mine for years.”

He looked back at me, the humor gone from his eyes. “Can I ask you something?”

“What’s that?”

“You two always seemed so perfect for each other…why did you run off the way you did?”

“It’s a long story, Billy. One I don’t really want to talk about. He deserves an explanation before anyone else.”

He nodded his understanding, patting my leg as he rose from the bed. “We’re taking off. I just came to let you know. See you at Leighton’s next weekend? Or will you be gone before then?

“Nope. I’ll see you there.”

“Okay. Bye, Lottie.” He gave the frame two swift knocks before walking away.

After my houseguests left, I cleaned up the leftover pizza, beer bottles, and wine glasses. I switched off the lights as I walked through the house. It had come a long way in a short period of time. All that was left was painting the last few rooms in the house, the exterior, and the new hardwood floors that would be going in tomorrow.

I brushed my teeth and washed my face in the brand-new bathroom. It looked much like the kitchen with the same cabinets and counter finishes and white subway tile on the shower walls.

Slipping under the fresh sheets, I lay in my bed with thoughts of Tucker, the house, Apollo, the farm. There was a shift inside me. An unexplainable, subtle change when picturing my future. Something I never expected to see.