As a licensed contractor and real estate agent, Nate did not like the idea of milking the time on one project. The forty hours Amelia had paid for had gone by quicker than expected, especially since the episode Monday in the front seat of his SUV. Nate had decided he’d refrain from taking advantage of Amelia until he finished the job. He had diligently worked his forty hours, finishing up this morning when he turned off the engine of the cement truck at five. Now when Helen Marlow came home Monday morning, she’d get inside with the ramp hidden behind her bushes right up to her porch.
Had it not been for the rain, the job may have been done earlier. A part of Nate was thankful for the bad weather. It had given him a chance to help Amelia with some heavy lifting and get to know her better. Besides rearranging the furniture, they’d sorted through the items in the breezeway. Amelia reminisced over each piece of equipment from her family’s business. It suffered the most when the locals stopped coming in for ice cream. Eventually, her parents had to shut the shop down. His heart ached at the sound of the pain in her voice.
Trying to maintain his gentlemanly reputation over the last three days with Amelia had been hard. Literally. Tuesday evening, Amelia had bent fully over into the deep freezer, trying to find a container of homemade ice cream. Her lace shorts roamed his dreams that night—at least the pieces he imaginarily shredded off her frame did. Wednesday morning, she had stepped out onto the porch in the smallest pair of denim shorts ever and a bright yellow halter top. She’d had the nerve to break out an old-fashioned ice-cream maker and wrap her legs around the brown wooden bucket as she turned the crank; Nate should have been inducted into sainthood. Hearing the shower every morning drove him insane with the temptation to peep through the barn’s window. At least he sought a bit of mental revenge by bringing Amelia daisies every day. She might not have had any idea why he chose the flowers and in a sick twisted way it satisfied him even more.
“No one is trying to get naked for you. You’re crazy.” Amelia laughed, pressing her hand against his beating heart, bringing him out of his trance. Did she feel the way his heart beat for her? Nate glanced down to where her hands curled against his chest.
Nate cleared his throat and willed his body to stay in control with the mental image of Amelia stepping out of this romper in front of him while he sat in a chair. The only thing he focused on was the spot on her glass where her lips curled. Nate took her by the hand and led her back to the low table where he and a few of the guys were sitting. A waitress came by and took away the empty glasses and wiped up the wet circles where the glasses had sweat.
“Are you having fun tonight?” Amelia turned toward him in the couch. She pulled her right leg up onto the couch to angle herself better to see him. Nate’s eyes grazed over the triangle she made with her legs. The hem of the shorts rolled up, offering a view of the sweet nectar his hands wanted to have the plea
sure of seeking.
“Me?” Nate realized he’d leaned too close to her. He sat straight up and looked forward, counting to ten backward and in Spanish. “I’m enjoying myself now.” Body settled, he turned toward her and bumped her shoulders with his.
The waitress returned with two more glasses of champagne. “Sam didn’t hold back on the expenses tonight,” he said.
“I’m sure he’s grateful Emily stuck by him all these years,” Amelia said, draining the drink in hand before taking another. “Did I tell you the two of them were the first to break the ice for all of us in the same class? She invited him to our Sadie Hawkins dance and they were the first boy-girl pair to dance together. Can you imagine?”
“Uh, no.” Nate tried to contain his laughter.
“I bet you were asked by all the girls in your graduating class.” Amelia brushed a piece of lint off his left shoulder and let her hand lie there. Her fingertips drew circles on his collarbone.
“Not all.” He shrugged off the memory. “Remember, half the girls were related to me.”
“Ah, the infamous Torres clan.”
Nate nodded his head. “You don’t believe me?”
“No.”
“Dating in Villa San Juan was hard,” said Nate. “I had to check all the girls’ family trees before asking them out.”
“Aw, you poor thing,” she cooed against his ear. “Is that why you left town? Did you go through all the women there?”
“If I hadn’t...” Nate cocked his head to the side and leaned closer. His lips brushed against hers. “I wouldn’t be here with you.”
“Well, let’s toast to getting off the island.” Amelia left his side for a moment to grab new glasses of champagne for the two of them. Nate gave her wrist a gentle push for her to set the drinks back down. Instead of taking what she offered, he took a kiss. His hands sunk into her silky hair and brought her face closer.
Everything else around them blurred out of his mind. Nate closed his eyes, wishing they were anywhere but here. Amelia’s sweet lips opened for him and it took no coaxing of his mouth to taste her tongue. Three days of no touching or kissing came out with the kiss. Nate pulled Amelia into his lap. She straddled his legs and cupped his face with her soft hands, eager for more. He loved the way her hands roamed through his hair. His leg threatened to twitch when her fingernails scratched his scalp. If ever he wondered about heaven, he got a taste of it sliding his hands down her waist and grabbing a handful of her butt cheeks. The tempo of the music set the pace of each stroke she ground down on his hard body. Amelia broke the kiss only to torture him more, nibbling his ear once, then turning his head to face the other direction of the VIP room so she could give him some more of her sweet torture.
In the heartbeat of a changeover between songs, someone above them cleared his throat. Nate wanted to curse his brother out but reality hit him. Any moment now, the rest of the wedding party would find them up here in this position. Gently Nate pulled Amelia against him in a bear hug. “We have company,” he whispered into her ear.
“Whoops.” Amelia smoothly slid off his lap and stood up, using the sides of her thumb and index finger to wipe away any remnants of her makeup. Too late; he’d already kissed it off. While Amelia inconspicuously tugged at the hem of her romper, Nate lounged back in the cushions. The crew she’d walked in with made their way up the steps but turned to follow Amelia. “I think I may need to freshen up my lipstick.”
Stephen watched the three women walk off, waiting until they disappeared down the steps. “Bruh, what are you doing?”
“I thought I was spending time with Amelia. What’s up?”
“Brittany is here.”
Nate shrugged his shoulders. “So?”
“So?” Stephen mocked his brother. “She’s been pissed off since she hasn’t seen you all week.”
Nate shrugged. “Again, so? I am not with Brittany and I’ve made myself perfectly clear.”
Stephen sighed and scratched the top of his bald head. “She thinks you’re taking her to the wedding.”