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“Terrifying, isn’t it?”We both laughed.“You want a walk?Let me show you the area Lew landscaped behind the barn.There’s an old wooden swing in the style of a loveseat, a little pond, and lots of enclosed grassy areas for clandestine romantic moments.”
“Romantic, eh?”He started to walk towards the barn and I fell into step beside him as he walked.
“Yeah, romantic.”He reached for my hand and I laced our fingers.“And I’ve been savin’ something for you.”
“What is it?”
He reached into his back pocket with his free hand and took out a small cellophane bag.Inside were four white rabbit sweets.
I gasped out loud.“Oh, my God!Where?”
“They gave ‘em to me with thexiaolongbaoorder.Honestly, I clean forgot on Monday, and found them in my truck this mornin.’”
I reached for them, but he held them tantalizingly out of reach.
“Rick!”I protested.
His grin was cheeky, and the playfulness on this man was devastating.He let go of my hand and wiggled his eyebrows.“You want it?You’re gonna have to come and get it.”
And he took off around the back of the tall, golden barn.
Laughing, feeling free, I hot-footed it after him.
Above us, the bright sun hung in the sky, blazing, warming the grass.
It was beautiful here.Lewis had done a great job with the landscaping.A well-kept lawn was ringed by more lavender and other shrubs, each blooming with butter-yellow or pure white flowers.A couple of water fountains bubbled on the left side of the space, the water surrounded by big circles of stone for sitting, or resting glasses.
At the end of the gardens, about six meters away, sat thepièce de résistancethat I imagined was used plenty for photos, a towering oak tree, with a wooden swing hanging from the biggest branch.The seat of the swing was solid, shiny wood with a heart engraved where the couple would sit.Ivy curled around the swing’s hand ropes.
The whole area was stunning.It stole my breath, and I couldsoeasily imagine every kind of wedding here.Big and love-filled and loud, or small and intimate.
“I’m gonna eat ‘em if you don’t get over here,” Rick called from ten feet away, and I refocused my attention.I hadn’t eaten since lunch, and even if I had, white rabbit sweets were my absolute favorite.My dad always kept some in his house.It was the treat he’d always carried for me in his pocket when I was a young girl.
“You’re going to regret this, Callahan,” I warned, but I couldn’t keep the encroaching giggle out of my tone.This was too much fun.
I ran towards him.He jogged back a little, but it was clear that he wanted to be caught, and when I tackled him, we fell to the ground in a heap, breathless and laughing together.Rick rolled me on to my back, and I rolled him on to his, and we went like that for several feet, turning over and over in the sun-warmed grass, a tangle of entwined limbs.Finally, I won, maneuvering him on to his back, and pinning his wrists above his head, handcuff style.He was so big that it took both of my hands to restrain him, and I felt the banked power of his broad body underneath him.
He could so easily overpower me, but I knew he was willing prey.
I searched his hands.Empty.
“Give it to me,” I demanded, unable to keep the smile from my voice.
“Oh, I'll give it to you.”
“You think you’re so funny.”He was all swagger and arrogance, cocky charm with just an edge of danger, of power, and oh, God, I wanted him more than I wanted my next breath.“You know very well what I'm talking about.”
Rick’s mood changed, and he freed one of his hands to stroke a stray curl of hair back behind my ear.He did seem tolovetouching my hair, and I did not mind one bit.“Sure don’t seem like we’re in a position to do anything much like talking.Does it?”
I shifted, constantly aware of the heat of him, all muscle and strength.And the delicious sensation of him, hard and heavy and so needy, between my legs.Layers of clothing separated them, but I swore that I could feel every curve and angle of that gorgeous body beneath me.
“We can talk.Just give me the sweets,” I teased.
I ran a hand down his chest, aiming for the front pocket of his jeans.
“Uh-huh.Not so fast.”In a heartbeat, he flipped me over onto my back, and pinned my hands above my head.
The ridge of his erection pressed right where I needed it, and without a thought, I bucked up into him, softly breathing his name.
