Chapter Seven
SEE LEXIE’S PRETTY DRESS
The following week, they met for an hour each night at the library to work on his business plan but had agreed to wait until the following weekend before hanging out together. Lexie needed to work on her B&B and Joe on finishing up some other plumbing jobs so he could focus on her repairs. With that done, he arrived at the beach cottage Friday midday while Lexie was at the library.
Joe accomplished a lot in the afternoon, but every time he walked through the kitchen, he got a hard-on remembering what they’d done there. Although a delightful torture, it made him hungry for Lexie to come home.
Finally, the sound of a car approaching in the driveway drew him out to meet her.
“Joe, hi. I’m surprised to see you.” She smiled at him and the fading sunlight suddenly blazed brighter.
“I finished another job early and decided to get a head start on the weekend’s list.”
“That’s so nice of you. I’ll make us something to eat.”
“You don’t have to make dinner. You weren’t expecting me to be here, and I don’t want you to go to any trouble.” Aiming for a casual tone, he added, “We could go into town and grab a pizza or something, unless you’ve got plans already?”
Joe crossed his fingers behind his back, wanting to take her on a real date.
“Pizza sounds wonderful. But it should be my treat,” Lexie added with firm conviction, “Since you just spent an afternoon in the hot sun working on my plumbing for free.”
“It’s not for free. You helped me each night this week on my business plan.”
When she started to argue, he said, “We can work it out later.” Joe had no intention of letting Lexie buy him dinner.
He worked for another hour trying to get as much done as possible, while Lexie did an hour of painting inside. Finally, he stowed his tools and quickly sponged off in the guest bath before changing, glad he’d thought ahead to bring some clean clothes. He waited for her on the veranda. The house might be in bad shape, but the view of Lake Michigan was priceless.
Joe went to sit on the swing and saw a paperback lying open, facedown. Angling his head, he saw the image of a kneeling submissive woman and realized it was the same book he’d caught Lexie reading at the library. Curious, he picked it up and turned it over. The words flew out at him as he sat on the swing.
Over and over, the general spanked her flaming ass. It was punishment for a slave’s misbehavior. And it wasn’t punishment at all, the spanking making her moan and her pussy drip.
Joe snorted, surprise flaring his nostrils. He’d teased her about it before, but now he wondered if Lexie really would get off on this sort of thing. All sorts of possibilities flashed through his mind, and his cock stirred.
The screen door rattled, and he slammed the book down on the seat next to him.
“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Lexie said.
He turned toward her, and a powerful jolt of lust speared him, making him as hard as a steel sword. Images of her naked and bent over his knee continued to play in his mind and words failed him. He stared at her, eating up the sight of a deliciously sexy Lexie in a dress that seemed to be made of handkerchiefs. It fluttered around her legs but fit tightly to the curves of her body. Joe swallowed hard.
“Is everything okay?” Her smile faltered.
Joe moved quickly to her. “Yeah. Absolutely. You look pretty.” He coughed and added, “Sorry for staring. You just blew me away, that’s all.”
Lexie beamed and swished her skirts playfully. Spinning once in place, she said, “I’ve had this for a while, but since I spend most nights covered in goo, I haven’t had a chance to wear it.”
“The dress is nice, but I think you’re the reason it looks good.”
“That’s so sweet.” She glided closer and smiled up into his eyes.
“Shall we?” Joe held out his elbow and thrilled to the feel of her small hand sliding into the crook of his arm.
“Just a minute, I forgot my sweater.”
She hurried back inside, and Joe fought the urge to pick up the book and read more. The idea of spanking her bare ass was now permanently fixed in his brain. Somehow, he had to find out if she read just for fun or if she secretly wanted this fantasy made real.
“Okay, all set,” Lexie called, sweater in hand.
He walked her to his truck, and they settled into companionable silence on the drive to town. When they entered the village of Blue Haven, he suddenly offered, “Hey, let’s eat at Blue Heaven.”
Joe sucked in a breath, surprised by his own suggestion—it was the town’s only fine dining establishment, the place you took a date for something special. He added, “’Cause, hey, it’s a beautiful night, and we can enjoy the view out on the deck.”
“It sounds lovely, but I’ve heard it’s kind of expensive.” Lexie paused a moment, clearly thinking it over. “You know what. You’ve done so much for me, of course, let’s eat there.”
“Well, that settles it. If you haven’t had the pleasure, we’re definitely going there. And, it’s my treat since I suggested it.”
“It doesn’t seem right for you to pay after working all afternoon in my yard.”
Stopping the car at a red light—one of only three stoplights in the tiny town—Joe turned toward her. “Please, Lexie. I would like to be the one to introduce you to Blue Heaven. Would you let me do this for you?”
“Okay, I guess.” Lexie’s expression softened into something lovely and feminine. “Thank you.”
He smiled at Lexie and couldn’t hide how much he cared. How could he hold back when she looked at him with such open appreciation?
Joe turned left on Main Street, toward the water. Pulling into the full parking lot, he worried his lofty plan would vaporize. “I should have called ahead for a reservation,” he muttered, not looking at her, not wanting to see disappointment in her eyes.
“It’s no big deal either way.”
It was a big deal. He wanted this night to be special.
When the hostess told them there’d been a cancellation, relief made him buoyant. Even better, they were seated on the deck overlooking Lake Michigan.
“This is beautiful,” Lexie sighed once they were seated.
“I’m realizing now that it’s actually no different than the view from your veranda.” Joe made sound that was half snort, half chuckle, feeling foolish. “I guess it’s nothing special, really.”
“No. You’re wrong. It is special.” She looked around, and Joe could almost see the place from her eyes. White linen and fine china covered the tables. Small vases of wildflowers sat next to electric candles that wouldn’t blow out from the breeze coming off the lake. The sun tilted toward the horizon, casting a rich orange and pink glow on the puffy clouds that were also reflected on the lake’s calm surface.
“It’s beautiful,” her voice a breathy whisper.
“Yeah, beautiful.” But Joe wasn’t looking at the view or the restaurant.
After they ordered dinner, they started talking. The kinds of things lovers talk about. Everything and nothing. Their past lives and future hopes. Joe asked about her name, and Lexie explained she was part Greek. She learned that Joe, or Jozef, was Dutch, with family roots in nearby Holland, Michigan, that dated to the earliest settlers.
The meal came quickly, and Joe dug in, realizing how hungry he was.
“This is delicious,” Lexie said, before taking another smaller bite of her lake trout.
Later, Joe told her about joining the military to see the world, rather than staying to help on the family’s blueberry farm, south of town. “It’s the reason I joined the navy right out of high school.”
“Your father wasn’t disappointed about you leaving the family business?”
“I think so, a little, but at the same time he was proud that one of his sons was serving his country.”
“I’m sure he was.”
“I hadn’t planned on becoming a plumber when I left here at eighteen, but I’m happy with how it turned out. It was much harder telling Dad I was never coming back to the farm, but he took it well, and by then my younger brother was practically running it anyway.”
“But you live close by. It’s not like they don’t see you often?”
Joe chortled. “Very close by…as in I still live at home. I made the decision to plow all the earnings from my biz right back into it, to help it grow. So, they see me every day.”
He shrugged, studying her face to see if she thought it lame that a twenty-nine-year-old man still slept in his childhood bed while she had bought an entire house and was single-handedly turning it into a B&B. “It’s been a few years. I suppose I should start thinking of finding an apartment to rent.”
“If you’re feeling the need for more space, sure, but I think it’s smart and mature of you to put your business first, make it secure before taking on other expenses.”
“That’s nice of you to say. Not all women are as open-minded.”
“Oh, boo.” Lexie abruptly straightened, looking concerned.
“What is it?” He leaned in to her.
“I feel awful now. If it weren’t for all the time you’re spending working on my place for free, you might be able to save more money and get the apartment you want. I wish I could pay—”
“No. Stop!” Joe reached out and grabbed her hand. “I don’t care about the apartment.” He silently debated how much to say, wanting to tell Lexie how much he enjoyed every second he spent with her, but it was too much, too soon. “It’ll be nice at some point to have my own place but, honestly, it’s not a priority. And I made the decision to take on your job. I know what I’m doing, and you’ve nothing at all to feel bad about.”
She tried to pull her hand from his, but he tightened his grip, not ready to let her go, liking the feel of her small warm palm against his.
“I’ll say this only one more time…I’m getting something valuable in return for my work.” Joe lifted his wineglass in a toast to Lexie. “Thank you for your help this week. I’ll take the business plan to the bank next week and, fingers crossed, I’ll get that loan.”
“Thank you, too! Fixing my pipes at cost and on credit. That’s about the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me.” She clinked her glass against his before taking a sip.
“I enjoyed the pleasure part, too.” He winked.
“Liked that, did you?”
“Yeah. I’m thinking we should put some more effort into it, so I can get that five-star rating.”
Lexie laughed, but Joe’s thoughts were back in the kitchen, their hot scene replaying in his head.
“Jozef, is that you?”
Pulled abruptly from his hot daydream, Joe looked up with annoyance at the interruption. The elderly lady looked familiar. He stood to greet her. “Hi, how are you?”
“It is you, Jozef Van der Meer, the newest member of Blue Haven’s city council.”
“Yes, that’s me.”
“Do you remember me? I’m Linda Curtis. I went to high school with your dad, but I don’t think I’ve seen you since you joined the Navy. I’m also friends with Mayor Klanderman.”
“Yeah, of course. So nice to see you again. Let me introduce you to Blue Haven’s newest resident, our new town librarian, and soon to be proprietress of a B&B out on Beachfront Road.”
Lexie stood up also and greeted her. They exchanged pleasantries for a few minutes, but the other woman kept returning to the topic of Lexie’s B&B.
After she left, Lexie whispered, “That seemed a little weird, the way she kept asking me those nosy questions.”
“She’s really tied into the community.” He looked at the woman’s retreating back. “Oh, I remember now. She owns a big B&B in town. Maybe she wants to help you.”
“For some reason, it didn’t seem that way.”
“While I don’t like to talk trash about people, I guess you should know that the town is pretty much run by a few citizens. The mayor, that woman, and her brother. He’s the manager of our local bank.”
“Oh. I remember now. My friend Janet Baxter, who you met briefly the other day, she’s the head of the library committee and oversees the volunteers who help out. She told me that Mrs. Curtis quit the committee when Janet was elected to chair it by the members. It’s sad, really. It ended their friendship. She’s told me all about the threesome that runs the town. People call them The Triad.”
“It’s the reason I ran for city council. We need new blood here. I sometimes feel like the town’s slowly dying, and we need new ideas. New energy.”
“I think it’s really great that you won a spot on the city council.”
Joe was pleased by her praise, but he shrugged his shoulders as if it were nothing. “It’s a lot of work and doesn’t pay anything.”
“Nothing?”
“Well, I get a twenty-five-dollar honorarium for attending council meetings. And, free pie donated by Blue Heaven restaurant. That’s the best compensation by far.”
The waiter interrupted their conversation to ask if they needed anything else while he put their dessert on the table.
After they told him they were good, Joe took a bite of blueberry pie. “So, I know how you ended up working at the library, but how did you end up owning a future B&B? That’s quite a big step.”
“It was the only way I could afford to buy the place and make it my home.”
“Sure, but how did you even find it? Were you looking for a possible site?”
“No. That never entered my mind.”
Lexie smiled, her eyes looking distant, like she was remembering something or someplace. “When I came to interview for the job last spring, I saw an ad in the newspaper for a ‘Fixer-Upper Beach Cottage’ and drove out to see it on a lark. The widow who owned it had already relocated to Florida, and the place was a shambles, but I took one look at the big old house and incredible view and I was hooked. I spent summers at my aunt’s cottage, swimming in Lake Erie as a teen, and seeing Lake Michigan, all that expanse of water, it looked so peaceful. The large yard so private and tranquil. This is going to sound stupid, but it felt like I was home. I never expected to feel that way since I grew up in a big city, but I guess you could say it was love at first sight. Silly, I know.” Lexie broke eye contact and looked away.
Joe grasped her hand and squeezed it. “Not silly at all. I can’t say I had that experience, exactly, but returning home from the Navy after seeing the world… Well, it just felt right. I felt right again.”
Lexie returned the squeeze. Joe’s chest grew tight with emotion, but in a good way, as if the chaotic, off-kilter world had righted itself and settled into place. Being there with Lexie. Knowing they both shared a drive to reach their goals. Hoping to share more nights with her.
“Let’s go now,” Joe said, his voice husky with need, and Lexie readily agreed.