“That’s pretty cool. I’ve never been fishing before, but I’ve always wanted to try.” She drank more of her pilfered drink, finishing it off. And again, instead of reaching into the cooler, she slipped my mostly full one from my hand, wrapped those sexy-as-fuck lips around it, and drank deeply.
My dick was hard enough to snap the hell off. “I’ll get the fish.”
“Do you have stuff for a salad? I can whip one up.”
She followed me in, and I showed her where everything was, then tried hard to ignore the way my heart pounded and my stomach tightened having her in my house again, treating it like it was her own. I liked it way too much.
I covered the fish with slices of lemon, wrapped it in foil, and put it on the grill. Music came on inside through the Bluetooth speaker I had in the kitchen…and then she was singing. That sweet, smoky voice I remembered from her performance at the bar.
I grinned, it was impossible not to with the happiness in Trixie’s voice coming through loud and clear.
When she walked out a little while later, she had plates, cutlery, and a bowl of salad. She put them on the table. I served up the fish, then got us both another beer.
She made an mmm sound when she slid a piece of fish into her mouth, and I tried like fuck to ignore the way that affected me as well.
“This is amazing. Did you fish a lot when you lived here before?”
“Yeah, all the time. With Bull or my old man mainly.”
She tilted her head, her gaze going to my arm, and she reached out, sliding her finger along my forearm. I froze, watching her pink-tipped fingernail trace one of the pine trees inked there.
Trixie glanced up at me from under her lashes. “I studied your ink, you know…that morning. I’ve seen enough of Bull’s work to recognize that there were similarities. I just assumed someone else out there had a similar style to him.”
She pulled her hand away, and I wanted her to touch me again instantly. “I wish you’d woken me,” I said before I could think better of it.
We both stilled.
We’d taken it there, again. We couldn’t seem to help ourselves.
I expected her to change the subject.
“Why?” she said instead, then picked up a piece of cheese, popping it in her mouth and chewed.
“You really have to ask?” This not-thinking-before-I-spoke thing was becoming a problem around her. But yeah, I’d woken up hard and hungry for her that morning, and she’d left without even saying goodbye.
She blushed, and her mouth tipped up on one side. “We were pretty good together, huh?”
“Trixie,” I growled in warning, needing her to stop, and at the same time desperate for her to keep talking.
She took another sip of her beer. “I wish I’d woken you as well.”
Fucking hell. “Why is that?”
She licked her lips, not meeting my eyes. “You really have to ask?” she said, throwing my words back at me.
“Yeah, I do.” Shut the fuck up.
Her gaze lifted to mine. “I left because I didn’t want to ruin it. I didn’t want the awkward morning after or the part where you reluctantly ask for my number because you think that’s what I want, but you have no intention of calling.”
I didn’t know what to say. Yeah, I got it—still, I hated that she’d left that morning, left me wondering, worrying, wanting her. “I would’ve called.”
“Maybe…maybe not.” She toyed with her salad, then her eyes came back to me. “I did regret it, though. I regretted leaving as soon as I walked out the door. I had to stop myself from going back, from crawling back into bed with you.” Her lashes fluttered, but she didn’t look away. “I’ve had a lot of disappointment in my life, Mason, and I wanted to leave before what we shared got tainted. I wanted one good thing that wasn’t scarred in some way.”
I sat frozen, her words sinking in, fucking with me, tormenting me.
But she wasn’t finished leveling me.
“I don’t know about you, if it was the same for you…” She shook her head, color darkening her cheeks. “God…okay, what I’m trying to say is, I’ve had a handful of boyfriends and a couple of casual relationships…I’ve had enough experience to know what’s good.” She smiled, and it hit me behind the ribs, then grabbed me by the dick. “…enough to know that what we shared was the best I’ve ever had.”
I sat frozen in my seat, trying to breathe, to stop goddamn shaking.
I wanted her.
Right the fuck, now.
She leaned in then and pressed her lips to mine, just that, not asking for more, not trying to deepen it. Just that soft, sweet press, and it tore me down the center.
She pulled back before I could lean into it and smiled at me.
“What was that for?”
“A thank-you, for giving me that.” Her gaze dipped, then came back to me. “And for making me feel good when I needed it more than anything, when I thought I never would again.”
“Trixie…”
She let out a shaky breath and sat back in her seat. “It’s good that we can talk about this stuff…clear the air, you know? I was in a…a weird place this morning. I shouldn’t have kissed you like that. But I’m glad we can put it all behind us and be friends.”
I hadn’t put shit behind me, but it wasn’t like I was in a position to do anything about it. “Yeah,” I said instead, because what I wanted to say was, Fuck being friends.
Trixie played with her food some more. “Quinn…she’s so incredibly important to me. I’d never want to do anything to worry or upset her. Did she tell you her blood pressure was up a bit when she saw her doctor today?”
I dipped my chin. She had. She was okay, but Bull wasn’t taking it well.
Trixie put her fork down. “She needs to take
