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The edge in his voice made my stomach tighten. I nodded briskly, wishing he’d just get on with it.
“We brought a friend to town; she’s getting a fresh start. I need you to look out for her, alright?”
“Alright. She okay? You sound weird.”
“Yeah, she's just going to see if she likes the small-town life.”
“Alright,” I said, relaxing and returning my focus to the dinner platter still clutched in my hand, sponging it off. “I’ll swing by and say hi.”
“Thanks. I should head home to Brex. She was super wiped out.” He bumped my shoulder as he stepped by. “Love you, man.”
“You too. See you soon.”
My brother saw himself out as I wrapped up dishes, then wrestled the trash bag free of the can. Forehead throbbing with the beginning of a tension headache, I slipped into my loosely laced, well-worn work boots and headed out back. The chilly night air greeted me as the evening gray began to chameleon into the blue light, promising midnight.
Rhyett and I had purchased one half-acre lot and split it down the center so we could build houses side-by-side a few years back. A fence would only have interfered with family football games. So the gap between us was unhindered, our trash cans gathered between the two in the hopes of reducing the temptation for bears to pillage their goods, which was fine until I had to walk the fifty yards lugging four bags of beer bottles.
The trash can lid flipped open with a plastic clap, and I was halfway to hefting the bulging bag in when movement caught my attention. Heat assaulted my chest. I should mind my business, drop the trash and scuttle inside like the bottom feeder I was.
But I was frozen. Frozen…watching the most goddamned beautiful creature I had ever set eyes on, the faint hint of her voice trailing through Rhyett’s cracked bathroom window as it gathered fog from the running shower.Frozen, as she tossed her dress straps off either shoulder, revealing the full, creamy length of her naked back. The window frame cut her off right where her spine curved before what I could only presume was a perfect ass. Because the rest of her was perfect. Lean. Not like an athlete, but in the way women were when they never held still. And I…couldn’t peel my eyes away. Knew I should. Knew this was wrong. But she inexplicably captivated me. My body pulled towards her like there was a magnet between us.
Chest heaving, pulse pounding, blood heading south, I watched her arch her back, arms stretching up to pull pins out of her hair, freeing it from the cute little bun. I’d have to tell Rhyett to buy a damn curtain for the bathroom. The idea of some unsuspecting creep catching an eyeful of this–fuck, some creeplike me.
Jesus, I’d turned back into a teenager.
Go inside, asshole. You shouldn’t have seen this much.
The woman turned around; her breasts both perky, mouthwatering globes adorned with rose-colored nipples. She was fucking exquisite. Face relaxed as she basked in the shower's steam. Some figment plucked out of an ethereal dream. When her eyes fell open—directly on me—they went Disney princess doe-eye wide and the lyrics stopped pouring from her lips, which parted in surprise.
I snapped my mouth shut, bowing my head and—like an imbecile—raising my hand in the assholiest of all assholes kind of casual, neighborly greeting as I rushed to dump the damn bag in the damn can and slam the damn lid closed. There was a yelp, a curse, and then a great crash that made me wince. Had she justfallen over? Oh shit, what if she hit her head? I was going to hell. I likely had an engraved plate on the door to my three-bedroom suite.
Should I go make sure she was okay?!
Despite the press of curiosity, I didn’t dare look back. Felt like a slimy fucking prick as it was. I did the only thing any sensible, thirty-three-year-old man who still had some semblance of survival instincts could: I bolted. But retreating like a coward didn’t erase the perfect image of that body. My dick was still at attention, the bastard not catching the hint, as I booked it back towards the porch. Adjusting myself did absolutely nothing. A cold shower was in store. Or two.
Oh sweet Jesus,shewas thefriendI was supposed to look out for, wasn’t she? Had to be. Welp, this was off to a swimmingly fantastic start. Oh hell, she was going to tell Rhyett, and Rhyett was going to promptly beat me to death.Au revoir, solid food.Adios,once-attractive face.
Halfway through the beeline for my back door, a pissed-off, beautifully feminine voice sliced through the gray night.
THREE
NOEL
“Hey!” I barked, tightening the knot on the adorably fluffy robe Rhyett had hung in the guest bathroom. The creep either didn’t hear me or wanted to pretend he hadn’t, no doubt still blinded by my never-seen-the-sun boobs. Where Brex and Rhyett both had delicious caramel Florida tans, I had the complexion of a survivalist’s flashlight. A flashlight bedazzled in many,manyfreckles.
“Hey!” This time it came out with a bit more force as anger heated my neck. “Peeping Tom!”
It wasn’t technically possible, but I swore I heard him sigh as he froze in the doorway, shoulders slumping.That’s right, asshole, you can’t skate your way around this one.Not only had he been gawking through the window between houses, but I’d freaking fallenintothe shower when my deer-in-headlights delayed instincts finally faded and I lunged—okay,tumbled—for the plush safety of the bathrobe. I was fairly certain my knee was bleeding, but I was too mad to slow down and check.
I kept my focus on the man’s broad shoulders as he slowly, pointedly, turned until we were face-to-face, one hand tugging at the back of his neck. Okay, maybe I hadn’t meant to climb right up into his personal space, but for one outraged moment, I forgot what boundaries even were. The man smelled better than he looked, and that was freaking saying something. Dark lashes framed intense eyes, below a gorgeous head of thick, nearly black hair. The arm he’d waved in the most patronizing salute known to man was covered in dark ink I would have loved on any other day.
But that was beside the point.Mad, Noel. We’re big mad.I jabbed a blush-painted nail into his chest–not that it went far since the man was as solid as the rock Mistyvale was founded on. Sweet baby cheeses, he was built like a brick house.
“What. The.Hell?” I demanded, crossing my arms over my chest. Not that it mattered at this point, he’d already gotten an eyeful, right down main street. Honestly, I was thanking all that was holy it came out mad and not breathless.
“What do you mean ‘what the hell’?” he whisper-growled with all the tact of someone hushing a child, making my cheeks flame hotter. The man held his ground, a furrow in his brow as he stared me down. “You’re the onewaking the neighbors at a quarter to midnight.”
I glowered up at the still-bright sky. For fucks sake, was it reallymidnight? It was just getting dark out. Hearing about the Land of Midnight Sun and seeing it were two disconcertingly different things.Focus, Noel.
