She nods, pretending to be serious. “He was huge!”
“What did he watch you do?” Cora’s eyes are wide as she waits for a response.
“Well, the giant saw me going crazy, so he went crazy too, and then we fell asleep. I’m thankful your dad came to help me. It was so realistic that I got a little scared.”
Cora gasps. “Dad says giants aren’t real anymore. They all turned into mountains and rocks or something.” She bounces off the mattress. “Can we eat candy breakfast now?”
“Definitely.” Violet grins and rubs her eyes as she pushes toward the edge of the bed.
“Okay!” Cora races out the door, making a B-Line for Jake’s room across the hall. Every morning, without fail, she wakes that boy with a loud whirlwind of energy. I reckon he’ll pay her back when they’re teenagers.
Teenagers!It’s hard to believe these two cute kids will be fire-breathing teenagers someday.
“So,” I lean into Violet’s head for a kiss, “a giant came after you in your dreams, huh?”
She pauses and stares at me, as though she’s unsure of what to make of the early morning affection.
Can’t say I blame her. I’m not sure what I’m doing either. Last night was a night I’ll never forget, and I want more, but I know I can’t go back there again.
“He did.” She grins. “I feel bad for him, though. I don’t think he got what he needed.”
I nod slowly, admiring this morning version of her, hair wildly everywhere and an unguarded smile. “Oh, he’s always going to want more.”
“Me too.”
Jesus Christ. As my cock hardens, my worst fears are confirmed.
I’m confident now that this is hell.
It was one thing to want her from a distance, but knowing what she tastes like, knowing what she sounds like, knowing I was so close to sinking inside of her… it’s a fresh type of torture.
God damn it all!
I want to tell her she’s mine, demand she never speak to another man again, and fuck her little pussy raw until she’s dripping my come everywhere she goes, but that’s the problem…and even the Devil knows it!
I exhale loudly and roll up from the bed, pacing the room as I drag my hand down over my beard, fighting with the beast clawing at me from the inside out. I shouldn’t want her like Ido. I shouldn’t have the thoughts I do. I was there when she graduated high school. Hell, I brought the fucking balloons. Sure, it’s been years since then, but still, I’d bet this is one of those seven deadly sins everyone was warned about.
“Are those horses supposed to be in the creek?” Her gaze narrows as she leans forward. “Sorry, I just saw them out of the corner of my eye, and—”
“No,” I glance out the back window to see my gelding guiding the herd toward the rising creek bed, “they’re not. I better get changed and get down there. Just promise me that we can talk tonight.”
“Sounds good! You want me to bring you some breakfast after I get the kids to summer camp?”
“Always,” I say, leaning into her head again for yet another kiss I’m not supposed to want.
Fuck. This is going to be hard.
*****
It’s another cool, rainy morning, which doesn’t fare well for a property like this. Thankfully, the house is set on the hillside, but the barn and the pasture are sunk down into the gully. Most years, we don’t get enough rain to worry about it, but this season’s been different. The ground is already saturated, and every new drop feels like it’s testing the limits of what the land can hold.
I jog down to the barn and hop into my side-by-side, then head out to the fence on the corner of the lot. I need to replace the whole line of fencing.
Lord knows it’s been here since before my grandparents owned the place, but I’m not sure that’s in the budget with the way the distillery is going. Unlike the first two locations in the Springs, this place has been bleeding money for months, and it’s only getting worse.
I’ve got the wire wrapped around the post, the metal groaning when I get a call from my brother, Ryker, about the party tonight. I should probably answer, given the fact that the party is at the distillery we’re trying to save, but I’m really not in the mood.
“Hey, man. What’s up?”
