“My dad died two years ago,” The words came out rough, scraping past the knot in my throat. “It was unexpected. He had a heart attack while he was out in his workshop.”
She shifted towards me, “Oh, Clayton. That’s terrible.”
“I had a girlfriend then.Michelle. We’d been together for three years, and everyone in town expected us to get married.” I stared at the ceiling, remembering. “But when Dad died, I just… shut down. I couldn’t talk to her about it. She was the one person who wanted in, and I couldn’t let her in. I pushed her away while I drowned in grief.”
“What happened?”
“She left. It was about two months after the funeral.” I squeezed Rachel’s hand. “The whole town blamed her for abandoning me when I needed her most. But it wasn’t true. I pushed her away. It was all on me. I tried to set the record straight and tell people it was my fault, but that only made the rumors worse. Now she can’t even show her face at the grocery store without someone giving her dirty looks. It’s the small-town rumor mill at work. That’s one you escaped when you left your hometown.”
“That’s awful.”
I tugged her into my arms, and she melted against me willingly.
“The thing is… I couldn’t let her in because when my dad died I realized I was never going to love her the way my dad loved my mom. Michelle was a sweet, small-town woman, completely perfect, nothing wrong with her.”
I paused then.
We’d had no spark. Not like what I felt with Rachel.
Spending time with Rachel was like riding on a wild freight train that was threatening to jump its tracks. I wanted to careen off the rails with her just to see what would happen.
And it was strange how easy she was to talk to.
“I needed something epic in my life, and I was too much of a coward to admit that what we had wasn’t it. I’ve never told anyone this, but I was glad when she left. I should have ended it a long time before that. It was unfair to make her do the work of breaking up with me.”
Rachel was quiet for a long moment. Then, so softly I almost didn’t hear it, she whispered, “No one’s ever thought I’m epic. If that’s what men are looking for, it’s a good thing I’m committed to being single.”
Single. That sat heavy inside me.
“I’m too fat… and definitively type A. Neurotic might as well be my middle name. Plus, I’m never in one place long enough for anyone to get to know me.”
She met my eyes, and there was something raw in her gaze that made my breath catch. “But despite all that… I wouldn’t mind if we could be epic together. Just for one night.”
Just for one night.
The words hit me like a punch to the gut. She didn’t feel for me what I felt for her. This was physical for her, a way to scratchan itch before she moved on to her next assignment and forgot I ever existed.
But I couldn’t say no. Because as long as she was still here, I had a chance of changing her mind.
“You want a night with me, Rachel?” I asked her huskily, all the heat I’d been feeling towards this woman welling up into this moment, right here, right now.
She met my eyes shyly, “Yeah. I kind of do. Is that okay?”
There was only one answer to that question, and it didn’t require words. I cupped her face in my hands, and then I finally gave in and did what I’d been wanting to do since the first moment she’d landed on my front porch, dripping wet and looking more than a little lost.
I kissed her.
The first brush of my lips against hers was gentle, questioning.
And when she gasped softly against my mouth, I deepened the kiss, sliding my tongue along the seam of her lips until she opened for me. She kissed me back with a hunger that matched my own, her fingers fisting in the front of my t-shirt, pulling me closer.
I angled her head back, taking control, and she melted into me with a whimper that went straight to my cock. My beard scraped against her soft skin as she moaned with need, her legs wrapping around me.
This wasn’t the time to make love to her. This was the time to fuck her so hard that she made bad decisions, like quitting her job and moving in with me.
It was time to give Rachel something to remember me by.
“Tell me to stop, and I will. Otherwise… you’re mine for tonight.” I growled, giving her one last chance to back out.
