Page 76 of The Sugar Maple Inn

“Your rule, your answer first.”

Reese laughed. “All right. I lost mine when I was thirteen. Girl from school. We snuck off to this field near my house in Thunder Bay.”

“Thirteen? Jesus, Reese.”

“Wait, it gets better. We were halfway through when a horse showed up and nearly bit my ass. Had to run out of there with my pants around my ankles.”

Grace burst out laughing, the mental image too good. “A horse?”

“A real aggressive horse. Scarred me for life, no lie.” He was grinning, though. “Your turn.”

She hesitated. “Fifteen. With Jake, the firefighter.”

Reese went still. “The tattooed one?”

“The very same. It was an agreement. We were friends. We figured we should learn together, you know? Practice on each other so we wouldn’t be completely clueless with people we actually liked. Great friends do things like that.”

“Hmmm.” He looked like he didn’t like the sound of that: “So, who was after Jake?”

Grace bit her lip. “Just one more. Zach’s dad.” She paused. “That makes you number three.”

Reese’s eyebrows shot up. “Three? Total?”

“Don’t look so shocked.”

“I’m not shocked, I’m—” He searched for words. “I guess I’m kind of honored.”

She rolled her eyes. “Sure you are. What about you? Am I, like, number three hundred?”

“Not quite.”

“Not quite? You horndog.”

“I was a horny teenager,” he said defensively. “What can I say?”

“And then a hot billionaire,” Grace added, trying to keep her voice light. “With women throwing themselves at you.”

“Something like that.” He was quiet for a moment, stroking her hair in that gentle, hypnotic way. “But honestly? A lot of them blur together. Faces I barely remember. Names I definitely don’t.”

Great. So she’d be another blur. Another forgettable—

“You won’t be a blur, though,” he said, like he could read her mind. “Look, this isn’t like me, but…Grace, the way you let go. The sounds you made. That was…” He paused, and when he spoke again his voice was softer. “That was fucking special. I’ll never forget that.”

Grace felt heat creep up her neck, into her cheeks. “You’re just saying that.”

“I’m really not.” He tilted her chin up so she had to meet his eyes. “I mean it. That was special. Truly the hottest thing I’ve ever experienced.”

She opened her mouth, unsure how to respond. So she resorted to her default: make a joke. “You were pretty special yourself,” she managed. “For a guy whose first sexual experience results in him being chased by a horse.”

He laughed and pulled her closer. “Another reason you’re a keeper. You’ve got a way of cracking me up, even when I’m the butt of the joke.” He peered down at her. “Butt. See what I did there?”

“I did and now I’m sure your sense of humor isn’t what got you to where you are.”

A cloud drifted across the moon then, plunging the room into near darkness.

“It’s getting cold,” she said.

Reese gently eased her off his chest and went to the fire, adding more logs as he eyed the clock. “Just three more hours until my birthday’s over.”