Page 34 of The Pumpkin Pie Book Nook

Her pulse thudded in her throat as she sank to her knees between his thighs. The carpet was rough under her knees, the air warmer back here, smelling faintly of paper and cinnamon and his cologne.

She looked at the way his jaw tightened, the way his hand flexed like he didn’t know what to do with it, whether to touch her or hold back.

“Tell me if you want me to stop,” she said, because she needed to hear it—needed to know they were choosing this, together.

Tyler’s voice went low, ruined already. “Don’t stop.”

She leaned in and made him feel it.

She started slow, teasing him through his khakis, rubbing back and forth, patient enough to make him breathe harder, to make his hands flex. Then she undid his belt, eased down the zipper, freed him. She lowered her mouth, teasing, just enough to make him jolt, before taking him deeper, her hand fisting him, matching the steady rhythm of her mouth. She felt his control fray one careful inch at a time. She took her time, because she could. Because the fantasy belonged to her, and for once she wasn’t overthinking, wasn’t planning, wasn’t trying to be good.

And when he finally came apart, she barely had time to savor it before he turned the tables, lifting her, setting her back, her bare legs draped over his shoulders as he sank between them.

His hands slid up her thighs, thumbs pressing in. Then his mouth was there. The feeling was warm and sure as he slowly dragged pleasure out of her.

She braced a hand against the wall, teeth sinking into her bottom lip to keep herself quiet, but the sounds still built in her throat.

He kept her right there, hovering, teasing her closer until her whole body shook with it, and then he eased back just enough to make her gasp, to make her chase it.

“Robyn?”

She blinked.

Tyler was looking at her from across the counter, head tilted, a smile playing at the corner of his mouth. “You okay? You went somewhere.”

Her face burned. “Fine,” she said. “Totally fine. Just… thinking about inventory.”

Tyler’s grin widened, like he didn’t believe a single word. “Sure you were.”

“Yoo-hoo! I hope I’m not interrupting anything…” Edith called, her tone lifting on the last word. “But this just couldn’t wait.”

The mayor’s wife, and Madison’s grandmother, swept in with a tote bag on her arm and an expression that said she had the juiciest bit of gossip Maple Falls had seen this fall. Her silver hair was pinned up in its usual twist, though a few wisps had already made a break for it, and her green eyes, those striking eyes with their gold flecks that Madison had inherited, were sparkling with mischief.

Robyn pasted on her professional smile and ignored the fact that her pulse was still sprinting. “Hi, Edith.”

Tyler cleared his throat, recovering faster than Robyn. “Hey. What’s up?”

Edith stepped forward with excitement. “I found something. I was going to share it in the group chat but thought I’d surprise you first instead.”

Robyn’s stomach dropped—then leapt. “You did?”

Edith marched right up to the counter, then pulled out a photocopied page and slapped it down dramatically.

“City Hall records,” she announced. “You’re welcome.”

Robyn leaned in, scanning quickly.

Page sixty-two.

It was a black-and-white photo taken during the planting of a maple tree in front of the Cinnamon Spice Inn. A time capsule was being buried at the base of the tree during the dedication ceremony.

Robyn’s gaze snapped to Tyler’s.

“That has to be it,” she whispered. “Right?”

Tyler read over her shoulder, his focus sharpening. “It must be.”

Edith tapped the caption again, triumphant. “Read the rest.”