Sometimes, seeing is believing, right?
Four
I took a deep breath and knocked on the door of Haylee’s office. When she glanced up, her eyes told me she was more than a little surprised to see me.
“Hey. I thought you went home.”
“I did,” I said, stepping into the small space. I glanced down at my black tech shirt as Haylee’s eyes roamed over my chest, taking in my hard abs in something other than my chef’s coat. I could see the appreciation in her gaze, and I liked it. I liked it a lot. “I was going to the lake and thought you might like to go, too. We could sit on the dock and drink this,” I said, holding up a six-pack of craft beer.
“Tempting,” she agreed, her brow in the air. “Extremely tempting, but it’s late, and I have to be back here to start baking in a few hours.”
I leaned against the door frame with my shoulder and lowered my brow at the woman. She was way too gorgeous and way out of my league, but I didn’t care. I hadn’t given up trying to convince her otherwise. “It’s only eight. It’s still light outside. One beer, and then I’ll walk you home. You work too hard, cupcake. Sometimes you have to take a break before you burn out.”
“I prefer to think of it as keeping my business alive,” she joked, but she stood from behind her desk at the same time. She wore a pair of hip-hugging denim shorts that made my groin tighten instantly. This woman was going to be the death of me if I didn’t figure out a way to make her mine. I’d taken so many cold showers over the last seven years I didn’t even need a hot water heater anymore. “I suppose I have time for one beer before bed.”
I offered her my famous Brady Pearson smile. “Excellent. It’s a beautiful night out, and it would be a shame to waste it locked up in the bakery.”
Once the lights were shut down and the business was locked up, we strolled toward the lake and the large, public dock that stretched out into the water. It was a favorite place for the locals to hang out on a warm, sunny day. Some liked to fish from it, some wanted to take a running start and dive off the end, and some just wanted to sit on the wooden boards and take in some sun.
Tonight, I wasn’t interested in the dock, the lake, or the view, unless you counted the picture-perfect view beside me. I struggled to keep my eyes in front of me instead of on Haylee’s gauzy blouse that billowed in the night breeze. Every time her ivory shoulders peeked out, they teased my senses with the suggestion of what else I would find if I ever pulled that shirt off her beautiful body. It was rare to see Haylee Davis in anything other than her white chef coat with her hair pulled up in a tight ponytail and covered in a very unsexy hairnet.
That wasn’t the case tonight.
Her gorgeous chestnut hair was down and bouncing against her shoulders with every step she took, the natural body of it curling against her neck. Haylee Davis made Little Brady stand at attention every time she moved for the sole reason that she was who she was. Between the gauzy blouse, the sway of her hips, the way she cared about everyone she worked with, and her gigantic brain I couldn’t hold a candle to, I was utterly smitten with her. I also felt like a teenage boy trying not to get a boner in the middle of math class when my crush walked up to the board to work out a problem. I’d be working out my problem tonight—alone in the shower. I moaned softly at the thought of how much better it would be to work out the problem in her bed together.
“It’s a beautiful night tonight. A little sticky, but it is June,” she said as we approached the dock. I turned left away from the public space when I noticed how many people were still hanging out there. I should have predicted it would be that way in early June when the air was finally thick with summer. Haylee hurried to catch up and grabbed the sleeve of my shirt. “Where are you going? The dock is back there.”
I cleared my throat before I spoke, so my words didn’t sound garbled. The heat of Haylee’s hand burned against my arm and made me think about what it would be like for her to touch me in other places. “Too many people. I don’t want to share the beer,” I joked, holding up the case again.
I noticed this time it was Haylee who swallowed hard. Her beautiful, long, sleek neck bobbed once before she stuttered about for words she couldn’t find. “But there’s no place else to go.”
Slinging my arm around her shoulders, I winked at her. “That’s where you’re wrong. I know this great little spot, right up there,” I explained, pointing at a small patch of sand on the shore of the lake.
“Are you sure that’s not private property? I have to work in the morning. I can’t spend the night in jail for trespassing.”
I grinned and motioned for her to go ahead of me. It was purely selfish. If she was in front of me, I could watch the sway of her hips. It was pure torture and pure bliss at the same time. I groaned at the thought of those muscular thighs wrapped around my waist while I brought her to orgasm.
Fuck, man. You have to dial it back a few hundred notches. She’s your boss and your friend. You’re worse than that horny teenage boy in math class.
When she turned back, I coughed and plastered a smile on my face. I already had half a hard-on and her delicious bottom was going to make it a whole one in ten more seconds.
“You’re right, it is private property, but I know the guy, and he told me I was welcome to use it whenever I want. It might be the size of a postage stamp, but at least it’s private.”
I helped her sit down on the sand and sat next to her, handing her a beer after I twisted the top off. We clinked the necks together and sipped the hoppy liquid in the warm night air. The sun was thinking about setting, and the sky was turning brilliant reddish-orange in the sky. The light reflected on the water until a boat broke the image for a moment. Idyllic was a good word for the sight before us.
“Lake Pendle is so idyllic at this time of day. The epitome of a small-town lake community,” she said, lowering her beer to the sand.
“I was just thinking the same thing,” I agreed, shaking my finger at her. “Being from Milwaukee, which is anything but a small town, this view always captivates me.”
Not as much as her body captivates me all day, every day, but I wasn’t going to mention that. I valued my job and my balls too much.
Haylee tipped her beer bottle at me before taking another drink. “I was just thinking today how surprised I was that you stayed in Lake Pendle. I didn’t think you’d last long here before you moved on.”
“Almost seven years now, and I have no intention of leaving, Haylee.” My arms stretched wide across the space in front of us. “What’s not to love about this?” I’d play off the lovely town before I’d admit that the reason I stayed was her.
Her head was nodding when I tuned back into the conversation. “I agree, but I grew up here, so I stay for different reasons. Most city slickers can’t find enough to do here, especially in the winter.”
I shoulder bumped her carefully and winked. “My boss keeps me too busy in the winter to worry about things to do. It’s bread, bread, bread, day in and day out.”
She chuckled, and the sound cut right through me. Her laugh was a faint melody that reminded me of wind chimes on a warm summer night. “She sounds like a real bitch. Can’t believe you keep working for her.”