Page 88 of Sundown Somewhere

“I don’t prefer brunettes,” I cut her off. She stops, eyes going wide, her head tilting like she wasn’t sure she heard me correctly.

“That’s all you’ve ever dated. Skinny brunettes,” she tosses back.

She has me there. That is pretty much all I have ever dated. And we can use the term dated loosely—she’s already accused me of being allergic to relationships. But there’s a reason for that. One I’ve never admitted out loud.

Until now.

“Because as long as there was a thinner brunette in my bed, I wasn’t going to be thinking about the curvy blonde I wished she was.”

The smart, sassy, insanely beautiful, absolutely perfect wild child who has always been, and will always be, too good for me. The one that I will never ever come close to deserving.

“You mean…”

I nod. She doesn’t have to finish that sentence. We both know exactly who I mean.

Dolly throws herself at me, pressing her mouth to mine in a hot, hard kiss. Her lips are soft, supple, but without a doubt in charge as she pulls me close, wrapping her arms around my neck. I reach down, grabbing her ass and lifting her up so she can wrap herself around me. There’s nothing gentle about this kiss. It’s passionate, punishing, and full of so many unsaid things that I’m not sure sparks aren’t flying off us.

Rocking her core against me, Dolly mewls into the kiss. My dick stiffens and I groan, knowing that once I can finally get my hands on her for real, it will be game over. These curves are mine, and I plan on worshipping them.

“Hux,” she whispers, breaking the kiss.

“Yeah, beautiful?”

“Take me home and get me out of this dress.”

23

DOLLY

There is this very specific feeling—one without a name—that lasts only a split second, but stays with you forever. That half a heartbeat as it leaps into your throat, and you’re so sure it’s going to stop, never to beat again. But that’s more than okay, because the elation you feel for that fleeting millisecond is worth it.

I’ve been chasing that feeling since I was a tween. Ever since the girls and I watched Casper, wide-eyed and barely breathing, as Devon Sawa whispered, “Can I keep you?”, unknowingly setting the bar for romantic encounters for the rest of our lives.

A feeling I was sure was fictional. One that I would only ever feel when characters like Casper whispered well-crafted lines like “Can I keep you?” or some book character pulled off an epic grovel.

Until today.

Until Huxley Hayes told me he missed my curves.

The door of my Jeep opens seemingly on its own, making my pulse skip and my breath catch. I exhale slowly, forcing the air from my lungs, the sound lost to the click of my seatbelt filling the still air.

“Allow me.”

Hux’s deep voice rumbles through me, goose bumps scrambling up my skin, any coherent thought I had flying right out the open door. I was already pushing it driving over here—the short trip via well-worn off-road trails over the Hayes property one I probably could have done in my sleep—my mind focused on something that was not the heavy machinery I was operating.

More like heavy petting…

Strong arms wrap around me—one sliding under my knees, the other behind my back—as Hux lifts me out of my car, kicking the door shut behind us. The move is so swift, simple, and easy, I’d almost think he’d rehearsed it. But there’s something about the way he holds me, drawing me in close, positioning my head on his shoulder in the perfect spot to nuzzle into the crook of his neck, that tells me he hasn’t. Why, I’m not sure. But I know.

This move is one that belongs to me. Only me.

“You don’t have to carry me all the way upstairs,” I say, as we cross over the threshold of the cottage and into the small foyer, the staircase leading up to the second floor to our right, with the office adjacent to it and the long narrow hallway that leads to the rest of the house off to the left. I know this house well, the knowledge of its layout comforting as it greets us.

“Not a chance,” Hux replies, tightening his grip on me. “One, holding you like this isn’t just for you, baby, and two, Gus will have a cow if you track all that mess from your dress in here.”

Oh, I didn’t even think about the dress being wet and muddy…

Taking the steps quickly, Hux steals a kiss, not letting my thoughts take over.