“I got it,” I whisper. Scarlett releases the mug to me, rings up the order, and I pay, but I don’t take my eyes off her.
Once my transaction is complete, Scarlett turns around to poke her head into the kitchen behind the counter. “Bathroom break,” she announces to someone. “Just a few minutes.”
“Take ten,” Zara’s voice wafts out to the main café, and I watch as Scarlett quickly walks to the hallway where the restrooms are located.
Oh no.
Rushing after her, I catch the door to the ladies’ room, and Scarlett spins to face me.
“You really need to go, sweetheart?” I nod toward the toilet.
Her shoulders fall, and her face turns away from me. “Bull, I—”
Stepping forward, confident she’s only avoiding me, I lock the door behind me and lean against it, watching her.
“You stayed,” I mutter, keeping my eyes on her. She’d told me she wasn’t staying in town. Did she lie to me? Then again, we agreed on only one night. Still, I haven’t been able to get her out of my head, and here she is.
“I can explain. Sort of.” I wait her out. “I didn’t think I was staying, but then I changed my mind. My life was falling apart . . . is falling apart . . . and this place just feels like a good fit for a while. Until I figure things out for my future.”
“And your future is being a barista in Colebury?”
“For now.”
“For how long?” I ask, unease coming over me.
“I don’t know, Bull, honestly. I’m confused about . . . a lot of things.” Her head pops up, and she swipes back at her hair, holding her fingers in those lush red strands on either side of her neck. She cut her hair a little shorter, and it springs in loose curls around her head. “You were gone the next morning.”
“I had milking to do.”
“Excuse me?” Her head tilts.
“I need to be up at four each morning to milk the cows.”
Scarlett turns her face away from me. “You left me alone in bed to milk some cows.” Her arms cross, disbelieving such a thing before she glances back at me. “That is the worst excuse I’ve ever heard. It’s like me saying I have to wash my hair to get out of a date.”
I snort. “Do you say that?”
“Say what?”
“That you need to wash your hair to get out of a date.”
“No.” She snorts, scrunching up that elegant nose, which accentuates her freckles at bit. “I don’t date.”
“Why not?”
“What do you mean ‘why not’?”
“Why aren’t you dating someone?” She’s fucking beautiful, and men should be lined up to date her. Hell, I’m grateful I got one night with her, and the reason I’m standing in the women’s bathroom is because I wanted a second night.
Scarlett takes a deep inhale and then slowly releases the air. “I’m newly divorced . . . or nearly divorced.” Her arms flail out from her sides before falling to her hips.
“Which one is it?” I ask, hating how my insides twist with the idea of being with a married woman.
“Nearly. I have roughly six more weeks before it’s finalized. There’s no contest, though. I don’t want anything, and he got what he wanted.”
“What’s that? What’d he want?” What kind of fool wants something other than her?
“A med student who he got pregnant while still married to me.”
“Shit.” My head tips back, knocking softly against the door. Fucking idiot.
“What about you?” she snaps. My head pops forward, and I blink at her. “You were here on a breakfast date the other morning, and I’ve heard about you and all your proposals.”
“Oh yeah, and how many am I up to now?” I snark, hating the rumor mill around my history, and feeling as if she went right for the jugular with her snarky tone.
“Five.”
I snort. “It’s a small town. Stick around a little longer, and I’ll probably be up to seven before you leave.”
She glares at me, something unreadable in her eyes. Wait? Is she jealous?
“Do you do what you did with me often?” It’s wordy, but my tongue ties with her looking at me the way she is. Our eyes lock together as her dark ones swirl. She’s a red blanket, and I’m ready to charge, living up to my namesake.
“Bull, I know you don’t know me, but I swear on a stack of coffee menus I have never had a one-night stand in my life.”
I press off the door and stand taller.
“And I’ve never felt the way I felt when I was with you,” she adds, her chest heaving as if she’s ready to charge me.
Something in me snaps with those words, and I step toward her. Or maybe she steps toward me because we collide in a crash of lips. My hands slip into her hair, and hers clutch at my broad back. We kiss and kiss, and she makes that little noise I can’t describe, but I’m instantly hard.
“Bull,” she mutters in a soft whimper of want.
“What do you need, sweetheart?” I ask between kisses under her ear and along her jaw. She’d told me that night she just needed to feel wanted, and I was more than willing to want her.
“This is crazy.” She groans against my cheek as we can’t get enough of each other.
“Tell me. I’ll give you anything.” My lips crush hers before she can immediately answer. Our mouths move like they never want to be separated again, and I’d be happy kissing her the rest of my days. The thought forces me to abruptly break from her, but then she speaks.
“I need you inside me.”
Holy shit.
Next thing I know, I’m unbuckling my belt, and she’s hitching up her skirt. Her panties slip to her ankles, and I shove down my pants a bit. I pick her up by the back of her thighs, spinning her for the door, and her legs wrap around me. Her hand comes between us, positioning me where I need to be, and I thrust upward as her back hits the door.
“Jesus,” I mutter, pressing my lips to hers as my hips dance. She’s freaking wet and warm and clenching at me. Scarlett breaks the kiss and scrapes her fingernails through my hair.
“God, I’ve missed you,” she admits, and I hammer into her harder, wanting to remind her of what she missed.
“You should have looked for me.” I grunt, surging upward, and she softly gasps, covering my mouth with hers again. Her hands cup the back of my head, and she kisses me like I’m the air she needs to breathe.
“Bull,” she gasps, pulling back once more. “It’s gonna be so quick. It’s happening fast. I’m . . . ermygawd.” Her mouth comes to my neck, stifling the scream as I rock faster than I ever have.
“That’s it, sweetheart,” I mutter to her ear, clutching at her ass until my own telltale signs occur. My lower back tingles. My balls stiffen. I thrust one final time before stilling and emptying into her. Jolting within her, I give into the glory of all things good and holy shit.
“Scarlett, I wasn’t wearing a condom.” I lean back only enough to look at her face. Her beautiful, flushed face with a crooked, goofy smile of contentment.
“It’s okay.” Her voice is groggy and rough as though she could melt into the door behind her. Then her eyes widen, and her hands tighten on my shoulders. “Oh my God. Bull, put me down.”