No More Secrets: A Small Town Love Story (The Pierce Brothers Book 1) (15 page)

She had been his shelter, his protection last night. She drove out the dark memories and brought him to the light of a new day.

Another sign. He wouldn’t forget that.

He pressed a kiss to the top of her head and ran his fingertips from her shoulder to her hip and back again. Her skin was the silkiest of cashmeres.

She stirred, snuggling closer. “Carter,” she murmured against his chest. He occupied her dreams, and that had the last tightness in his chest loosening.

He rolled, gently shifting her to her back.

A frown marred her pretty face as she slowly fought her way to awake. Her eyes fluttered open and he grinned at the confusion he saw.

Recognition, remembrance had her sitting bolt upright, her eyes darting around the room.

“Oh thank God! It wasn’t a dream,” she said, flopping back down on the pillows. She turned to him. “I was afraid I had sex dreams about you all last night and I’d have to play it cool all day long.”

Carter laughed, a booming sound that bounced off the rafters in the ceiling.

“Speaking of dreams,” she was back to frowning again. “What was that last night?”

Carter leaned over and kissed her on the mouth. “Nothing to worry about. Just some old demons trying to get out.”

She cupped her hands to his face, her expression serious. “Is everything okay?”

“Everything is very, very good. I promise.” Carter brought her hand to his mouth and kissed her palm. “Are you hungry?”

“Starving.”

They dressed and went downstairs where they found Summer’s t-shirt and bra on the stairs.

“How about you start breakfast while I hide the evidence?” she suggested.

“Teamwork,” Carter nodded.

When she returned to the kitchen, she found him prepping omelets and frying potatoes.

“We should probably talk about this,” Summer said, perching on the island and watching him move between cutting board and stove.

“What part of ‘this’ should we start with?” Carter asked, moving between her legs and kissing her.

She purred as his lips found hers and sighed with regret as she put a hand on his chest to push him back. “Expectations. It’s important to talk about expectations,” she said breathlessly.

Carter grinned. “I expect the rest of your time here to be a lot like last night.”

“That would be good,” Summer nodded. “Very good.”

She bit her lip. “What about after this week?”

He was going to lay it all out. No sense in hiding it. “I’m not willing to let you leave here without knowing when I’m going to see you again.”

She flushed and smiled down at her hands. “I’ll be back in a month with Niko for the photo shoot.”

“I need to see you before then.”

“Maybe we could meet halfway?” she suggested. “Spend the night together somewhere?”

“I like that,” he nodded.

“So ...” She trailed off.

“While I’m seeing you I won’t be seeing anyone else,” he said, squeezing her hips. “I expect the same from you.”

“Definitely a deal breaker,” she agreed. “So does this mean we’re in a relationship?” She didn’t sound as casual as she tried to look.

“Let’s call it the very early exploratory stage,” Carter said with a grin.

“And as such, we should probably keep it private. At least as private as possible,” Summer suggested.

Carter thought of his mother, his brothers, of the Beautification Committee. “Definitely.”

“Also, I want to keep this,” she said gesturing between them, “separate from the article. Mixing business with pleasure might be more common on this side of journalism, but I’ve never done it before and I’d prefer if the office didn’t find out I used this trip as a sexcation with my new boyfriend.”

“Boyfriend. I kind of like the sound of that,” Carter said, leaning in for another taste.

“You’re going to burn the eggs,” she whispered.

“Fuck the eggs,” his mouth was zeroing in on hers when the front door flew open. They jumped apart. Carter moved around the island to see what the commotion was.

Jax stomped back to the kitchen, his arms full. He was still wearing pajama pants. “I’m moving in. If I have to listen to Mom and Franklin through the wall —”

Carter smacked him with the spatula. “I’m going to stop you right there before I throw up or kill you.”

Jax looked at Summer on the counter and back at Carter, his eyes narrowed. “Christ. Everyone but me is having sex.”

Carter watched the blush flood Summer’s cheeks as her hands flew to her hair seeking the evidence that gave them away. She did have sex hair, he thought with a grin. Well-earned sex hair.

“What do you mean —” Summer started innocently. Until Jax dumped one of her boots and her jeans on the island.

“Found these on the porch.”

Carter tossed Summer the spatula and dragged Jax out the side door.

“What the hell are you doing here, Jax?” he asked when they were outside.

“I told you, I can’t stand listening to Mom and —”

Carter cut him off. “I mean in Blue Moon. What the hell are you doing in Blue Moon?”

His brother shoved his hands in the pockets of his plaid pants. “It’s a long story.”

“Are you in trouble?”

“What? No!” Indignation flared.

“You packed up and left in the middle of the night days after scaring the shit out of all of us. Joey was still in the hospital. You stayed away for all these years, and now you’re just back?”

“I was eighteen. And an idiot. And I don’t know how to apologize for that. There had to be more to the world than farming and Blue Moon.”

“You wanted more. You found it,” Carter said, crossing his arms. “Fancy house, beautiful women, four movies. Mr. Hollywood.”

“And now that I’ve seen it and done it, I want this back. I can still write. I can write from anywhere. But I want to be here.”

“What does that mean for Joey?”

“I want her back, too. Maybe more than all the rest of it.”

“You broke her heart when you left. If you fuck that up again, Beckett and I are going to hunt you down and break your face.”

“Fair enough,” Jax nodded. “I’m not fucking it up again.”

“Really? Because your whole ‘Hey Joey, I’m back’ thing didn’t work out so well.”

“She kissed me back before she hauled off and slapped me. It was worth it,” Jax grinned. “So speaking of women. What’s happening here?” He jerked his chin toward the house.

“With Summer?” Carter kept his tone neutral.

“Oh, don’t even try that shit with me.” Jax punched him in the shoulder. “I see the way your hairy face lights up whenever she’s around.”

Carter scuffed his big toe across the floorboards of the porch and smiled. “She’s ... something.”

“It’s good to see you happy.”

“Well, I was until my little brother announced he was moving in.”

“I’ll work for room and board if that works for you. I think Mom needs her space.”

“Don’t start that again.”

“You think you and Summer can contain your activities to the bedroom?”

“I’m not promising anything.”

“Listen. There’s something else I want to talk to you and Beckett about. Have time tonight?”

“Tonight? Yeah. Poker after? It’s been a while.”

“That would be good.”

“I’ll put out the word. In the meantime, you can take your pick between weeding the beans or figuring out why the tractor’s stalling out.”

“Dibs on the tractor. Just keep that demon hell spawn away from me.”

“You mean sweet little Clementine?”

“I hate that fucking goat.”

They went back inside and Carter rescued the omelets from Summer’s ministrations.

Jax was helping himself to coffee when the knock at the side door sounded. Joey ambled in, holding a travel coffee mug.

Carter shook his head. A week ago, he could have had breakfast buck-naked in the kitchen and enjoyed his solitude. Now he had a houseguest with benefits, a roommate, and Joey.

“Morning, Joey,” Summer greeted her. Joey took one look at Summer and her gaze darted to Carter. She smirked.

Everyone’s sex radar seemed to be working just fine today. He’d better avoid his mother. And anyone from town.

“Want some breakfast, Jojo?” Jax offered. “Carter’s cooking.”

Summer held her breath and Carter braced for the retort.

But the war didn’t come. “No, thank you,” she said politely. “But I’ll take some coffee.”

She didn’t make eye contact with Jax, but she did let him take the mug from her without braining him with it. Carter considered it progress. He winked at Summer. “Want to help me weed today, pretty girl?”

“Sure!” Those blue eyes sparkled at him and he had to resist the urge to kiss her. He was going to take a hit on this one. A hard one. But it wasn’t worth thinking about now.

Joey rolled her eyes at them.

Jax tightened the lid on her mug and handed it back. “Two sugars, right?”

She nodded briskly. “Thanks.”

“We’re playing poker tonight,” Jax said, pressing his luck. “You in? It’s been a while since I let you take my money.”

Joey frowned and took a step back as if she was trying to avoid being cornered. “Summer and I are going out tonight.”

“You are?” Carter and Jax asked in unison.

“Um, yes.” Summer cast a furtive glance in Joey’s direction. “We are.”

––––––––

C
arter texted Beckett about poker and put him in charge of contacting the usual suspects. He caught up with Jax that afternoon on the front porch after a very entertaining shower with Summer, during which they promised that no one else besides Jax and Joey would catch on to them.

Jax had brought a nice six-pack of brown ale with him from L.A. and since it was in his refrigerator, Carter had helped himself to one.

“Who’s in for tonight?” Jax asked.

“The three of us plus Cardona and Fitz. Beckett’s on his way over now so you can talk to us about this mystery thing you want to discuss.”

“Okay. A sixth would be better,” he said.

“Keep dreaming. There’s no way Joey is sitting in on a game with your ass.”

“I hate to suggest it,” Jax said, “but I’m going to anyway since it will piss Beckett off and make Mom happy.”

“Franklin?” Carter asked.

“Yeah.”

“I’ll see if he can come. Maybe he’ll bring some lasagna or something.”

“Good call. What do you think the girls are going to do tonight?” Jax asked, shooting a glance behind them at the house.

“Talk about us.”

“That’s what I was afraid of. Do you think Summer will put in a good word for me?”

“I think you could have the Dalai Lama and a children’s choir put in a good word for you and it wouldn’t help your case with Joey,” Carter said.

He put in the call to his mother, who relayed the message to Franklin.

“He’s in and he’s bringing individual portions of ravioli with garlic bread,” Carter said, hanging up.

“I’m starting to like this guy,” Jax said.

Beckett arrived, lugging a case of beer. “What’s that?” he asked, nodding at Carter’s bottle.

“Little brother’s brown ale.”

“Nice.”

“Help yourself,” Jax called after him.

Beckett returned to the porch with his own bottle. “We have a sixth? You talk Joey into it?”

Jax grinned at Carter. “No, we figured we’d keep it testosterone only tonight.”

“Meaning, Joey turned him down,” Carter supplied.

“Naturally,” Beckett nodded. “So who is it?”

“Well, you know how good that ziti was at Carson’s?”

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me! Franklin? Come on! I’d expect my brothers to at least support me here. And why is it
Franklin
, anyway? Why not Frank?”

“I don’t know,
Beck
,” Carter sneered.

“And why the hell do you look like you got some?” Beckett grumbled.

“How do I look like I got some?” Carter asked in exasperation.

“You have that smug look on your face, at least from what I can see of it. Summer?”

“I’m not talking about this. And leave my beard and Summer out of it.”

“One of these days I’m going to sneak in here while you’re sleeping and shave it off.”

“Not while Summer’s in his bed,” Jax snickered.

“So it
was
Summer.” Beckett was like a dog with a bone or a goat with Jax’s pants.

Damn it. Carter and Summer weren’t doing well with the whole secret thing.

“I’d appreciate it if you kept your stupid mouth shut about it. We’re trying to keep this quiet while we figure things out,” Carter said.

“I should have put money on it,” Beckett muttered.

“I was going to,” Jax said, taking his phone out. “But the odds weren’t worth it.”

“Don’t even tell me this is on Facebook,” Carter barked.

“Just messing with you,” Jax said, slapping him on the back.

“Sometimes I hate you guys,” Carter grumbled.

“Feeling’s mutual,” Beckett said.

Joey interrupted their bickering in her gleaming ’67 pick-up.

She hopped out in curve-hugging jeans and a deep V-neck. Her hair, normally pulled back from her face, hung down her back in soft, loose waves.

“Close your mouth,” Carter muttered to Jax, who was gaping at her like a fish.

“Play it a little cool at least,” Beckett ordered.

“Summer ready yet?” She asked crossing her arms and leaning against a beefy fender.

“I’m here! I’m coming!” Summer hustled out of the open front door. She was wearing some kind of tiny patterned shorts paired with her ankle-breaking sandals that showed off her legs. A body-hugging boat neck sweater didn’t show any flesh, but also didn’t leave much to the imagination. Her blond hair had a little curl to it and those full lips of hers were covered in a slick coat of gloss.

She paused in front of Carter, unsure what to do with an audience. “I’ll see you later?” she asked a little breathlessly.

Carter gripped her by the shirt and yanked her in to him. Even in heels she barely came to his shoulder. He saw the surprise, the quick burst of excitement, just before his mouth claimed hers.

“Oh, for Pete’s sake —”

“Would you two knock it off?”

“For the love of — get a damn room!”

Carter pulled back, smiling when she followed. “Have a good time. Be safe.”