Page 109 of Meet Me in Ivy Falls

‘Is it because of Teddy Ray?’

Ever since we’d won the Brinkley account, he’d been relentless about wanting to see the property Manny and Torran suggested for the future site of his restaurant in Ivy Falls.

‘No. Manny pretty much told him and his minions that we wouldn’t be able to talk about plans for the new restaurant for at least a few more months.’

I gulped. ‘How’d he take it?’

‘I’m pretty sure he’s met his match in Manny.’

‘Then why is Manny in such a funk?’

She gave me that knowing gaze.

‘Still in the friend zone with Tessa?’

‘Yep. She’s been quite clear that she wants to focus on the store and the girls. That she has no room in her life for a relationship.’

‘That makes sense but I also know what a great guy Manny is. I think Tessa will let him know when she’s ready.’

‘Maybe after the divorce is final, she’ll finally let herself be happy.’

I reached out and squeezed her hand. ‘We can always hope.’

She leaned in and pressed her forehead to mine. I held her close. Pushed the corner of the dress off her shoulder and marked her collarbone with my warm mouth. She leaned her head back giving me more access until the sharp click of heels moved down the hall toward us.

We both held our breath until Lauren’s footsteps faded. I leaned back against the counter and glanced around the room. Torran had outdone herself. The antique pieces that were originally on the wall above the sinks had been destroyed during the party. She’d been scouring antique shops within a hundred-mile radius of Ivy Falls to find replacements but had come up empty until Piper found a gorgeous pair of turn-of-the century pieces on Etsy.

‘Your sister did a good job finding the sconces,’ Torran said, meeting my gaze.

‘Thank you for letting her help out as part of making amends.’

‘I see her fighting every day, Beck. She’s really strong.’

‘Yeah, she’s like my mom. A fighter.’

Torran reached up to make sure one of the sconces was level. ‘How are things working out for her at Sugar Rush?’

‘Barb and Susan have been good to her. The other day she was so excited to tell me about how she’d learned to make her first latte.’

‘One day at a time,’ she said, snuggling into my side.

‘That’s right.’ I bent down to press a kiss into her hair but froze when the footsteps returned. I pressed my finger to her lips. Her right eyebrow arched in annoyance and she licked my finger.

A flash of heat went through me and I spun her around so her back was pressed against the sink. I leaned in close, my mouth brushing over the shell of her ear. ‘This room is where it all started.’

‘Yep.’ She grinned. ‘This is where I almost took your head off.’

I played with a loose hair that danced near her face. ‘That’s not what I remember about that day.’

In one quick move, I lifted her up onto the counter and spread her legs apart. I stepped in between them and circled my arms around her waist. She sucked in a cute little gasp when I slid my hands up the hem of her dress, first caressing her calves and then inching up toward her thighs.

With mischief sparking behind her eyes, she leaned in and pressed a kiss to my neck.

I loved that not even a flicker of her armor remained.

When I woke up with her in bed next to me every morning I had to take a minute, a deep breath, to remember she was real. That I wasn’t just dreaming her into existence. For so long I’d pictured her being in my life again, but a big part of me had lost the ability to hope and dream after my parents died. Slowly, I was seeing that allowing myself to be vulnerable with her, letting her see both the light and dark in me, was not something I should be ashamed of. That while I’d been through hell, and I was still walking a rocky path with Piper, I could focus on the future. A future with her that held so many possibilities.

‘How quiet can you be if we do a re-enactment without any interruptions this time?’ she taunted.