Desire overwhelmed him, rising from the tip of his toes to the top of his head, and the next time Avery shook, biting her knuckle to keep from crying out, he came too. Tucker dropped his head to the pillow next to hers. Stars exploded. The universe wheeled around them and went dark. The only thing that mattered was Avery.
“Tucker?” Her voice came from far away.
“Yeah?”
“Let’s go again.”
8
Avery rose slowly from a deep sleep the next morning, her muscles aching. Something was wrong. What was it? Ah—the bed. She reached over to find cool sheets where Tucker had been the night before. Where he had been, the night before, sleeping with her.
She rolled onto her side with a squeak and pulled the blankets tight around her shoulders. Wow, had it been good. Every moment of him had lit her on fire with the need for more. And yet worry seeped in around the edges of the blanket like the chill from her room. Had she done the right thing, letting him back into her life? He did have a right to know about Shanna. She could see that now. But she’d never expected him to care. She’d never thought she would be letting him into her life like this. Her stomach rolled with anxiety. They could remain amicable, right? It was a small town, and he’d need her vet services. They would be seeing each other, no matter what.
Avery snorted. Amicable? Sure. She had missed him, though she’d never allowed herself to think about it in any kind of depth. And he wasn’t the teenager she’d known before. He was all man, with serious skills. She took a deep breath. Avery would not let herself be jealous of the women he’d learned them from. No. Nope.
Voices floated up from beneath her bedroom. Tucker and Shanna, down in the kitchen. She pushed all her anxious thoughts away. How late was it, even? Late enough that she should have been up by now, judging by the light pouring in through her bedroom window. Avery threw on some clothes and went down.
Only to find that the three of them were not alone.
Cade, Tucker’s older brother, sat in one of her armchairs.
“Hey, Avery.” He put down his coffee mug on the side table and came over to shake her hand. She’d seen Cade once, back when she’d first moved to town. The grocery store, or maybe the post office—somewhere. “I’m here to rescue you from Tucker. Now that the snow’s tapered off a bit, I thought I’d hop over and break up the party.” He laughed. “But really, my girl Joey would love to spend some time with her new cousin.”
Avery blinked, trying to keep the smile on her face. Cade’s daughter was about the same age as Shanna, from what she could remember from their brief conversation.
Shanna nudged her in the arm, and she looked down to find her daughter offering a mug of coffee, wearing puppy-dog eyes and biting her lip. “Can I, Mom?”
“Wow, I—” She chuckled, turning her attention back to Cade. “How’d you get over? Are the roads clear?” Maybe it won’t be so bad, she thought. Shanna needed family. And cousins her own age. Maybe it was convenient that they lived so close together.
“Yep. Plow’s been out most of the morning. I even brought my trailer along with the truck. Our horse is loaded up and ready to go. Hey, thanks for taking care of my brother.” Cade’s expression went solemn. “Means a lot to us.”
“You’re welcome,” she said. “Any time.” Oh, man—any time.
“You ready to go, Tuck?” Cade’s gaze went to his brother.
Tucker nodded, catching Avery’s eyes. He stood up from the loveseat and came to Avery, hands in his pockets. Heat covered her face.
“Thanks, Avery.” Tucker’s voice, low and gravelly, made her want to take him by the hand and drag him back upstairs. “For everything.”
Don’t go, she wanted to say. Stay, so we can talk everything through. Just…stay. “All part of being a good neighbor.” She stepped forward and gave him a quick embrace. It felt…weird.
He nodded, then followed his older brother toward the front door. Avery and Shanna trailed after, and Avery had the distinct sensation of the day after Christmas, when all the guests left and the fun was over. They let a blast of cold in when they stepped onto the porch, then Cade poked his head back in. “We’ll give you a call soon about a get-together for the girls, all right? Joey can’t wait.”
“Sounds good.”
The door nearly swung closed, then Tucker burst back in. “I don’t know what I was thinking.” He stepped in, cold clinging to his skin, and wrapped them both in a hug. “I’ll be back soon. I can’t wait to spend more time with you, Shanna. And Avery, we do need to talk. Soon.”
“That’s right.” Warmth curled through her, along with a twist of desire. Really soon. “We’ll be in touch, okay?”
Tucker let go and stepped back, looking them over one more time like he might be going for good. Avery hoped that wasn’t the case. Cade called for him from outside. “All right. I’ll be back. Have a good day, okay?” He gave them both a jaunty salute and went outside, pulling the door gently closed behind him.
Avery let out a deep breath. Her stomach growled. Shanna stood with her face pressed against the window, watching Cade’s truck
