His Southern Temptation

chapter Fourteen


He wasn’t going to let her ignore him this time.

Lucky wasn’t playing fair. Taylor was wrapped in his strong arms, his face tucked against her skin and his cock still buried in her body, reminding her of how well they fit together. She had nowhere to run—this was her house and she had to stay to finish the task.

“What, no snappy comeback?” Lucky unraveled them, releasing her to dispose of the condom and drop his jeans on the floor beside the bed. She lay there, watching the play of his muscles under his skin, the movement highlighting his ink. She clenched her hand against her belly to resist reaching out to touch.

He rolled back over, facing her head-on with a wolfish grin that only made him hotter and harder to hurt.

“C’mon.” Lucky tugged at her skirt and then her hand, pulling her into a sitting position. “Take off these clothes and climb in here with me. We both need to be comfortable for this.”

She acquiesced, welcoming the time to gather her thoughts and calm down the frantic beating of her heart. Sweaty palms made removing the uniform a little tricky, but Lucky helped, hands caressing her skin as it was exposed to his devouring gaze. He was still aroused, pupils large and dark in his baby blues, and one move from her would take them back to a place where words weren’t necessary. A place where they didn’t hurt each other.

“Don’t even think about it. Get under the covers.” Lucky wagged a finger in her face and tucked her in beside him, pulling her against his chest when she would have scooted to the far side of the bed. She wasn’t sure what would make this easier, distance or intimacy, so she let him take the lead.

“You didn’t like what I said.”

“No.”

“Well, I’m not sorry I said it.” He paused, fingers now tapping lightly against her waist. He always did that when he was thinking. “I want you to stay in Elliott. With me.”

“I can’t.”

“Can’t or won’t?”

“Both.” She wiggled out of his arms, sitting up cross-legged on the bed, near him but without the befuddling addition of his hands on her body. His touch had the power to make her forget what she needed to do. “You’re asking me to move back here and give up my life, my business. For what? Diamond rings and empty promises?”

“I didn’t hear anyone proposing.”

“So, what? Shacking up? Dating?”

“I’d love to wake up with you every day, but we can live however you want. I’m just asking for a chance.”

“A chance?”

“To figure this out.” He gestured between them, his large, warm palm landing on her knee with a gentle squeeze. “To see what we can be if we have the time.”

“Damn it. And you just thought this up?”

“No. It first popped into my mind two years ago in Hawaii.” He reached up, caressing her bottom lip with his thumb. His half smile was sexy and indulgent. “It scared me so bad, I hopped the first plane out of there. You remember.”

She did remember. It had scared her too.

“And now?”

“Now, I’m looking for more and I want it with you.”

His words thrilled her, the icy, hot rush coursing through her veins. She wanted to run and wanted to stay. She wanted to scream and she wanted to kiss him senseless. Emotions morphed together into a huge ball of frustration that sat heavy in her gut. The urge to lash out in frustration was one she barely contained.

“So I’m supposed to give up all my plans to come back here and play happy farmer’s wife?”

“You can have your business here.”

“With your mom?”

“Yes. Or with a spa in Roanoke, or you can open your own business and be independent.”

“Lucky, I have an amazing deal on the table that I have to sign within the next couple of weeks or it’s gone forever. I don’t have enough in savings to get a loan to do it on my own and these guys are covering a good part of what is normally my investment cost. I cannot just throw away years of hard work to see if we’d work out.”

“You know how good we are together.”

“Only for a few days at a time. In bed. Most couples never last past the honeymoon stage, and that’s all we’ve ever had.”

“What made you such a cynic?”

“Oh, Bobby wasn’t my only poor choice. Just the first.” She brought up another option. “Why can’t you come to Hawaii? It’s beautiful, modern, so much more to offer than here.”

“The farm is here.”

“So your dad is going to sell it to you?”

“He will.” Lucky’s jaw was set, eyes hard with determination.

He scooted forward, large hands hooking under her body to pull her into his lap. She pushed against him, resenting his manhandling but also finding his touch comforting. In his arms she could pretend they weren’t really at odds.

“I’m not asking you to decide right now. Just promise me you’ll keep an open mind.” His words were a soft caress against her skin, in perfect complement to the way his calloused hands petted her back in long, soothing strokes. “Think about giving us a chance.”

She groaned against his shoulder, the urge to flat-out deny his request not as powerful as she expected. The fact that she was even considering his suggestion told her that she should hitch the first flight back to the islands. “Why couldn’t you just let this go? Why couldn’t we go along as we always have?”

He nudged her face up with his hand, forcing her to look at him. He was smiling, his eyes bright blue and smile boyish. It was the expression of a man who knew what he wanted. Damn.

“Because I want you.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. Oh.” He leaned down, brushing a soft kiss across her mouth, dipping in to taste and making her squirm with the shot of desire it produced. He nudged back, the beginnings of an erection nestled against her thigh. “Beck told me I needed to use our time here to convince you to stay. I realized he was right.”

“Well, hell, if you’re taking relationship advice from Beck, then this is already a disaster.”

He chuckled against her hair, shaking them both. “True. His relationships usually only last the time it takes to zip and unzip his pants.”

They moved, scooting back under the covers to lie face-to-face, legs tangled together. For a while the only sound was their breathing and the various creaks and pops of the old house. Taylor let her mind wander over the day’s revelations.

“Why didn’t you tell me about my mother hitting you at the church?”

“I didn’t see the point. Your mom needed to be mad at somebody and I was happy to take the brunt of it.”

“She never did like you.”

“Understatement of the century.” His words were partially muffled as he pressed a soft kiss just under her ear. “What did she say when you told her about Bobby cheating on you?”

“She told me to get over it. That a successful marriage required compromise and this was one of the first of many.”

“What?” His head lifted, anger and shock warping his expression and causing his fingers to tighten against her hip.

“My father’s latest fling wasn’t the first. Now Mother feels betrayed because after all these years he didn’t follow the plan.”

“That’s really…” Lucky struggled, his brow scrunching up in concentration.

“F*cked up?”

“I was going to say sad, but yeah, that’ll work.” Lucky wedged a knee in between her legs and shifted around until his erection was nestled against her *. She gasped, moving against him, each glide shooting sparks up her spine. She needed to say something before they disappeared into the oblivion of what they did best.

“Lucky. I don’t think I can give you what you want.”

“You’re going to have to spell it out for me, Tay. What can’t you give me?”

She couldn’t say the words.

Her thoughts must have been written all over her face because his expression morphed from confusion to understanding. In a flash, she was under him, her entire world funneling down into the space of shared breaths and full body contact. It was heaven and she wondered if she could give it up.

“Taylor, all I’m asking for right now is an open mind. We’ll see how it goes from there.” Lucky brushed hair off her cheek, joining their lips in a warm kiss.

“And what if I still want to go back to Hawaii?”

“I’ll drive you to the airport myself.”

She knew he would do it. Lucky was a good as his word.

She just didn’t know if it was a promise she wanted him to keep.