Passion, Vows & Babies: Pink Sunsets (Kindle Worlds Novella) Read online

  “All right, I’m sorry. He’s just a really nice guy. And I’m sure you noticed how handsome he is.”

  “I may have noticed.” I felt the anger fade away, and let a giggle of my own escape.

  “Well, here’s to a fruitful summer, Miss Fallon Fitzgerald,” she said, as she raised her glass to meet mine.

  Chapter 6 - Everett

  She was bewitching. I know—dramatic, but true. The way her facial expressions gave her thoughts away; she’d be terrible at cards. I had planned to tell Flynn at work I’d met her that afternoon , but he and I were on different jobs that day, so I never saw him. That night, I tried to study, but found it damn near impossible. I couldn’t get her off my mind. It was frustrating, but also kind of nice to have someone to think of. I knew it wasn’t going to go anywhere; it couldn’t. She was definitely not the kind of girl to stick it out in Nebraska, not when she had a life in the big city. Regardless, she didn’t have anyone here besides her cousins, who were newlyweds with a baby. She could use a friend for the summer, and I could definitely be that guy.

  The next day, I didn’t see Flynn again, and while it wasn’t a date I was having with his cousin, I felt a little like I had a secret that I should tell him. It wasn’t the kind of thing you texted without it seeming shady or making it a bigger deal than it was, so I just kept it to myself and thought about it all day long. Maybe over thought about it all day long. I didn’t have any way to reach Fallon to confirm, so I was just going to go to the house like I said I was, and expect the plan was solid.

  For whatever reason, maybe it was my immediate attraction to the dark haired beauty, but I spent more time going over a simple night out in my head than I did about anything else in my life. My desire to show her a good time was giving me anxiety, and the distraction she caused wasn’t something I was used to. I had a simple life, a good life. It was easy to be alone—go to work, study and take classes at night, and just work on my goals. I was already taking a night off from my law school obligations to take her out, and part of me was excited about it. The other, more responsible, part was balking at myself and the irresponsibility of the whole idea.

  In any event, I finally got through the work day and headed home quickly to shower. I had mentioned to her that the sunsets were one of my favorite things about where I lived, but we’d miss the moment that night. There wouldn’t be any way to get to a good spot by the time I picked her up, and she needed to see the pink sunset for the first time when it was the focus of the whole evening.

  Tonight, I was going to take her to my favorite little places to read, hang out, and eat. Simple, easy, no pressure, no big deal. Then why did I have insane butterflies in my stomach? I needed to squelch the fantasy that this was anything other than me showing her around, but I couldn’t get it out of my head. I pushed it to the back of my mind, and headed out to Flynn’s house.

  When I knocked on the door, Jacinda came to greet me.

  “Hi there, Everett, so nice to see you. Come on in.” She stepped aside for me to enter. Even though I’d been to their house before, I was still impressed every time I visited. Flynn was a master woodworker, the best at his craft. I admired the care and attention he put into the work he did, and his own home was even more beautiful than you could ever describe to someone.

  “Thanks so much, Jacinda. You look awesome.” She looked a little tired, but my compliment perked her up, as I’d hoped it would.

  “Your flattery will get you everywhere.” She laughed. “Fallon will be right down. She didn’t know where you were going, but I assured her that casual was perfect, no matter where you went.”

  “You’re right,” I agreed. If you wanted to do fancy, you needed to drive out of town, and suddenly the thought of taking Fallon someplace nice in the near future crossed my mind. At this point, I’d planned at least three more outings we needed to go on, and we’d only spent twenty minutes bantering back and forth at a coffee shop. I needed to get my shit under control.

  Flynn walked into the foyer where Jacinda and I were standing. “So, taking my cousin on a date, are ya?” He was teasing, of course, but in that moment, I was caught off guard and started to stumble on my words.

  “Oh, I… uh… it’s not a date.”

  He laughed. “I know, I’m just giving you shit. Can I get you anything? You want a beer or something?”

  “No, I’m good, thanks though. I had planned to tell you I ran into Fallon at Smokey’s, but I didn’t see you on the job.”

  “Everett, relax. It’s cool. You’re big kids now, you can do what you want.” He paused. “Well not whatever you want, but you know what I mean.” He gave me a dad-like look, indicating I better behave, even though we both knew I would. I’d never been a player of any kind; it just wasn’t in my nature. But he had to say what he had to say.

  “Oh my God, Flynn! You’re not my dad, leave the poor guy alone!” Suddenly, all of our attention turned to the top of the stairs where Fallon was standing. My jaw completely dropped at the sight of her. Her long dark hair was cascading around her shoulders, which were both covered in tattoos I’d not seen at the coffee shop. Beautiful flowers in full color that seemed to wrap around each of them, and down her right arm, all the way to her wrist. When I met her, she had a little sweater on, so I didn’t notice them. They were stunning. Her green tank top brought out her pale skin and highlighted the color down her arm. Her tight jeans showed off her amazing figure, and I was awestruck.

  “Hi, Fallon,” I managed to get out.

  “Hello there, Everett. Are you ready to go? My makeshift parents look they’re going to make this awkward at any moment, and I feel we should spare them, and ourselves, of that.”

  Flynn cleared his throat, and Jacinda giggled out loud. “I’m ready when you are,” I replied.

  She sauntered down the stairs, and I managed to put my jaw back where it belonged, however, I couldn’t take my eyes off her. When she reached the bottom, she smiled sweetly at me before announcing our departure.

  “Okay guys, now stay out of trouble while I’m gone. No shenanigans here.” She was teasing Flynn and Jacinda, which lightened the mood.

  “Funny girl. Now look, stay out of trouble, for fuck’s sake. I promised your mother—”

  “I’m a grown up,” Fallon cut him off. “I’m not going to get into any trouble. Not with this nice young man looking after me. So relax.” She rolled her eyes and then quickly turned back to me and smiled again. “Shall we?”

  “We’re just going to grab some food, and I was gonna show her a few places downtown. I promise nothing crazy,” I said to Flynn.

  “You don’t have to explain yourself to him,” Fallon interjected.

  “Just go,” Flynn said, opening the door for us. This could not have been any more awkward. My heart was in my stomach, and I couldn’t swallow. We needed to get out of here before anyone else said anything at all.

  “See you later,” I said, as I followed Fallon out the front door.

  I jogged ahead of her after the door shut behind us, just barely able to meet her at the door to my truck where I opened it for her.

  “Well, aren’t you the gentleman,” she said, a coy smile crossing her lips.

  I didn’t know how to respond, so I just smiled, and helped her get into the lifted truck. At that moment, I wished I had a second vehicle for taking her out in. The truck was pretty redneck. It was a lifted pickup, which I’d spent some time fixing up on my own. It was in terrible shape when I bought it, and I restored it to its former beauty; however, it wasn’t a particularly practical ride for a five-foot-two beauty to hop into.

  I ran around to my side and climbed in. Taking a moment before we left, I turned the truck on, and shook off the embarrassing and thorny moment we’d just had.

  “Well that was fucking awkward, huh?” she blurted out in the silence.

  I couldn’t help but to burst out laughing. “It really was.”

  “You’d think they were my parents sending me off to prom,
for Christ’s sake. Good Lord. Let’s get out of here.”

  Still laughing, I put the truck in drive and off we went. “I thought we could grab a bite, and then walk around downtown, where I can give you the rundown on the shops and stuff. Sound good?”

  “Sounds great.”

  Chapter 7 - Fallon

  It was feeling more and more like a date with each passing moment. He opened doors for me, talked to me like he was interested in my opinions, and listened. I wanted to open up to him. He was attentive, and insanely attractive. Even though I was wearing jeans, and summer was upon us, the evening grew chilly as we walked along the little downtown strip of shops, most of which weren’t open.

  “Are you cold?” he asked me.

  “No, no. I’m fine,” I replied.

  “You’re cold. Don’t lie.” He pulled me into him, and wrapped his arm around me. I could feel his muscles, and his touch was comforting, but also sexy.

  “Thank you.” I leaned in a little, copping a minor feel at his abs. My angle was good. And it was one-hundred percent worth it. I didn’t take him for a gym rat, so I was guessing that washboard came from good old fashioned manual labor. That was hot. I’m no saint, that had already been established, and any girl in my position would’ve done the same.

  “It probably didn’t seem like much, but did you have fun?” he asked, as we walked back toward his truck.

  “I did. But you don’t have to keep comparing it to Denver.”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t even realize I was doing it.”

  “I don’t even really miss home. It’s nice being here. I forgot all about it while I was with you.” I meant it. I hadn’t been gone long enough to miss it, and I was enjoying the evening. Mostly Everett’s company. He was charming, but not in an off-putting playboy way. He was just charming in general.

  “Good.” He squeezed me closer for a moment, and as I caught a whiff of his cologne, my lady bits rose to attention. I had found myself in a moral dilemma after only two days in Nebraska. I wanted to jump him. As I worked to calm my libido down, we walked in silence the rest of the short journey.

  He let me go, giving me a brief chill as he helped me into the truck again. When he got in, he reached into the back seat and grabbed a hoodie, handing it to me. “Here you go, put this on.”

  I hesitated, but not because I didn’t want to put it on. Oh, I wanted to. I was cold, but I also knew it probably smelled like him, and once I sniffed it, I was going to have to work twice as hard to not pounce on him. I pulled the sweatshirt over my head, inhaling deeply and closing my eyes. Yep, it smelled fucking heavenly. Like hot guy. Every girl knows the smell of hot guy. It’s a mix of whatever cologne or aftershave he wears, and dirt or musk or something. I don’t know what actually makes up the scent, but it exists, and I was enveloped in it.

  “Thank you.” I smiled at him across the bench seat.

  “Warmer?” He smiled back, genuinely.

  “I am. I didn’t realize it still got so cold at night. I wasn’t thinking.”

  “We almost always get a little chill in the evenings until about mid-July. I think that’s why there’s so many nighttime bonfires. People hanging around drinking, circled around a fire pit. We’ll have to do that this summer.”

  The idea of curling up against him, a roaring fire before us, was almost the last straw of my self control. Turned out, I wasn’t the only one feeling that way.

  “We definitely will. There’s a lot that we can do this summer,” I said in a hushed tone, gazing in his direction. The implication was obvious. I wanted to spend more time with him, and he with I. But then what?

  In an instant, he was crushing his lips to mine, pulling me against him. Feverishly, we kissed, as if we’d never have another chance. And who knew if we would, but it tasted like the sweetest of forbidden fruit. He ran his hands through my hair as his tongue gently ran along mine before he’d consume me again. Practically sitting in his lap, I ran my hands along his sides, feeling those deliciously hard abs again. As my fingertips neared the waist of his jeans, he shuddered, then pulled away, still breathing heavily.

  “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that,” he said, looking at me with apology in his gaze.

  I didn’t want him to regret kissing me. Frankly, I regretted not fucking him right then and there at that point. I couldn’t keep my hands off him.

  “Don’t apologize. I wanted you to kiss me.”

  “But, we shouldn’t.”

  “Says who? We’re both adults, Everett. We both know the nature of the situation. I’m temporary. But that doesn’t mean we can’t have fun together.” I phrased it as though it were a proposition, and I awaited his acceptance of my proposal.

  “I’m pretty sure Flynn will kill me if anything happens between us.”

  “I’m pretty sure he’s not my dad, and doesn’t need to know we’re anything more than friends.”

  “So you’re suggesting sneaking around?”

  “I’m suggesting we do what we want, and make it our business, not the town’s business. That includes Flynn.”

  “Interesting,” he said thoughtfully as he moved closer again, resting his hands on my sides.

  “What do you say? You up for a summer fling, Everett?”

  “A summer fling…” he repeated.

  “It’s all I can offer you.” I meant what I said, but the words didn’t feel right when I said them.

  Pulling me in for a deep, passionate kiss, he hesitated before replying. “Then a summer fling it is. A secret summer fling.”

  I felt like we should high five, or shake on it or something, but instead, we made out like horny fucking teenagers in the parking lot of a pizza joint we’d had dinner in, each kiss deeper and more passionate than the last. He was definitely not getting the hoodie back, but I think he knew that when he gave it to me.

  Chapter 8 - Everett

  Everything in me knew it was a bad idea. Irresponsible and imprudent. I didn’t care. We snuck around for weeks, completely unable to keep our hands off each other the minute we were alone, but we’d managed not to take it all the way just yet. Something about that seemed wrong, until now. Her family knew she was coming to my house to watch a movie; it had become our Saturday night ritual since she moved here, and it had quickly become my favorite night of the week.

  The movie wasn’t particularly good, but the company was magnificent, and she curled into me, letting me play with her hair while she ran her fingertips along my leg. She drove me fucking wild. The distraction was much needed for me, as it turned out. I didn’t study as much because I spent a lot of that time with her, but I wasn’t as frustrated as I’d been in the last several years. I relaxed around Fallon, completely able to be myself.

  She had become so comfortable with me that she didn’t even dress up to come over. She had on leggings and flip flops, and a small tank top, once again showing me every bit of her perfect body. As the movie droned on, I didn’t want to watch it anymore, I wanted to kiss her again. I wanted to run my hands all over that body of hers. But I dared not make the first move, especially if she was enjoying the movie.

  Without warning, she quickly rose up from her spot in the crook of my arm, and straddled herself on my lap, instantly making me hard as a rock. Just seeing her there in that position, rubbing against my cock without even realizing it was more erotic than any movie I could have watched. Guess she was having similar thoughts.

  “Done with the movie?” I whispered, looking into her eyes for an indication of what she wanted.

  “Shh,” she replied as she leaned in, her pussy now completely against my aching cock. As she got closer, she tilted her head away from me, avoiding a kiss, and positioned herself at my neck. When I felt her tongue drag up toward my earlobe, I tightened my grip on her tiny waist.

  “Fuck. Fallon, what are you trying to do to me?”

  The heat of her breath was just below my ear, and her hips had started to rock gently against me. “I want you, Everett.”


  “Are you sure?” I had to ask. We hadn’t really ever discussed how far this might go.

  “I want you tonight. Now.”

  I took my direction from her, and she was in. I stood up, with her on my lap, her legs now wrapped around me. I placed a kiss against her lips, and carried her toward my bedroom. She was light as a feather, easy to carry, and the closer we got to my room—and my bed—the more excited I got.

  I sat down on the edge of the bed, putting us essentially in the same position we were on the couch. She straddled me, and I tightened my grip on her hips, holding her close to me. She continued her assault on my neck, nearly causing me to forget what was actually about to happen. When she leaned back to look at me, I had to hold her in place on my lap so she wouldn’t fall. She trusted me completely, not faltering at all.