Page 10 of Hot Times in Heart Falls, Vignettes Vol 3

A whole lot of people had somebody they were going home with tonight.

And not that she wanted to think too hard about her family and sex, it was natural. As her mother insisted with her far too blunt conversations, sex really did make the world go on.

Ignoring the parts of that particular bunny trail that made her brain get squicky, Petra focused on the fixable problem. Maybe she was pumped up on emotion. Maybe there were pheromones in the air, but she was definitely running hot, because the instant she thought about finding someone to enjoy a different sort of dancing with, her mind set on a solution.

Saturday night in Heart Falls? Rough Cut pub was right there. She could be on the dance floor in under fifteen minutes, and the place didn’t close until two.

Some dirtier dancing with someone not related to her…

If she was very, very lucky she’d find someone perfectly happy to help her enjoy her own pleasure-filled night.

It was a moment’s work to slip from the party pavilion. She was already dressed up, her pretty wedding dress only a little fancier than she’d usually wear to go out. Her hair was good, her make up as much as she ever wore.

The pile of coats that had accumulated in the room her family had taken over caused a brief problem when she couldn’t easily spot her purse.

“Thank God there’s an app for that.” Petra snickered at herself as she opened her phone and cued up the AirTag finder. After too many lost purses and bags over the years, Petra had given up being embarrassed by her bad habit and gone with the flow.

She dug straight to the source, looped her purse over her shoulder, and made her escape. She sent mental waves of happiness and love back to her family, but what she was hoping for now was a physical sexual escapade hot enough to make her see stars.

2

Aiden

Aiden Skye swallowed the last bite of his burger then washed it down with a swig of a decent local brew, the growing sense of rightness sinking in deep.

Heart Falls was exactly what he’d been looking for.

As the Saturday night crowd flowed across the dance floor in Rough Cut pub, he mentally did one final shift through the list of requirements and could honestly say every box had been checked. Heart Falls was small enough to stay under the radar, yet close enough to a big city to be able to access everything they’d need and reach the people who needed it.

It would take them a couple of years to be ready to move, but this was the first, all-important step. Finding the perfect spot to locate their rescue ranch.

While Heart Falls already had an animal rescue, they planned to quietly focus on people. To create a safe place for those who needed a brief getaway en route to a better life and give them a chance to get their feet under them. A place for ladies to escape bad home situations they didn't deserve to be in.

Right now, it was all one big, glorious dream, but the details would come. Aiden and his brothers, Declan and Jake—especially Jake—would get the details in place. Jake wanted out of his career in law enforcement, and Declan…

Declan insisted that having a new goal to focus on would only help as he mourned his wife. A terrible situation that would lead to something good and powerful.

For now, this was Aiden’s job. They knew they wanted to be somewhere in the area, and he lived the closest. Since the spring, he’d been taking his free days off work to explore all the small towns in southern Alberta. He finally hit Heart Falls, and another shot of this is right slammed into him.

Oh, there was a whole lot more they needed to do, but at least knowing where to aim was a good start.

Aiden turned his attention to the dance floor, preparing to enjoy a couple of hours of pleasurable distraction. His motel room was on the small size, and while it was comfortable and clean, he didn't need to head there until after closing time.

He spotted her the instant she walked into the room. She power-walked as if she’d installed a new set of batteries, bouncing with each step. Eagerness flitted in her eyes as she positioned herself to the side of the room and surveyed the dancers.

Tall and leggy—damn, he liked them leggy. Her dark brown hair was done up fancy-like, with ringlets off her temples and the rest of it in curling swoops that played around her shoulders.

Aiden had a sudden dire need to see that shiny hair laid out on his pillow.

He eased to his feet and headed her direction.

Suddenly, she hustled toward him, gaze still mostly on the dance floor. Halfway between them, an oversized cowboy chatting with his buddies raised his beer high and tipped sideways, backing directly into her path.

Aiden was too far away to stop the collision, but he dashed forward quickly enough to tuck an arm around her waist and spin her aside before anything more than a slight bump and redirection occurred.

He held her close, twisting her to safety before making eye contact with the big bruiser who glared at them even as he caught his balance.

“Hey, buddy,” Aiden offered cheerfully. “You okay?”