Snow Angel (The Hope Falls Chronicles) (17 page)

favorite color was.

And he didn’t think finding that information out would be as easy as a conversation since she wasn’t

open to talking about those things. Sure, it could be because she was shy or private. But Eric knew better.

There were things in her past that she didn’t want anyone to know. Things that, after seeing her last night huddled in the corner of her couch, he believed still haunted her today.

His instinct was try to get her to talk to him and then figure out how to fix whatever it was that had

caused her so much pain that she was unwilling to let people in. Because as strong and independent as Lily

was, she was also lonely and scared. He’d seen it deep in her eyes.

As many question marks as he had regarding Lily and her past, the truth was that the facts he did know

about her far outweighed the unanswered questions. He knew that Lily was sweet and kind to everyone

he’d seen her interact with. She was also extremely disciplined. He’d seen her out in her studio—the one

he’d built—until two or three in the morning some nights, and then the next morning she’d be up at the

crack of dawn, headed back to the studio.

He knew she was a hard worker who would step in to teach a seniors dance class in the blink of an eye

because the mayor of the town she’d just moved to roped her into doing it. He knew when she laughed that it felt like the heavens opened and shined down directly on him. Okay, that was a personal fact but a fact

nonetheless. And most importantly, he knew that Shadow loved her.

Eric had always had the belief that dogs could sense good and bad in people. They had an intangible gift

of breaking through any bullshit people were trying to dish out and getting right to the heart of the person.

And Shadow adored Lily.

Well, Eric had said he didn’t want “simple,” and as Henry would say, he “dang sure got his wish.” He

knew for a fact he wanted to be with Lily. But that didn’t erase all of the questions, which meant one thing.

They needed to talk.

Shadow began barking seconds before headlights appeared on his street.

She’s home.

He’d seen her less than twelve hours before, but in that time, he’d missed her. Badly. Shadow ran to the

front door and jumped up on it. “All right boy, I know. You want to go see Lily.”

Shadow barked just once as if he were answering him. Now Eric really did feel like he was in an

episode of Lassie. He opened the door and it sounded like wild horses were galloping as Shadow raced

across the yard to meet Lily when she pulled into her driveway.

She was grinning from ear to ear as she turned off her engine and stepped out of her Jeep. Before she

even had a chance to shut the door behind her, Shadow was pressed against her, his tail wagging like crazy.

“Hello, my handsome boy.” Lily leaned down to pet the happy dog. “Are you happy to see me? Did you

miss me?”

“Yes,” Eric answered. For the both the dog and himself.

Lily looked up and smiled a knowing smile before returning her attentions to Shadow. “Well, I missed

you too.”

She stood and they all three walked up to her front door.

“Have you guys been waiting for me?” she asked as she pushed her key in the deadbolt and turned it.

“Maybe,” Eric rasped. He heard the need in his voice that was spiraling through his body.

From the first time he’d laid eyes on Lily until now, every time he saw her, his body instantly responded

as if she’d broken down the floodgates of every ounce of passion and desire he had, causing the waters of

lust and need to rush through him. It was hard to think straight when that happened.

Talk. They needed to talk, he reminded himself.

As they stepped inside, she set her purse down on the small entryway table and turned as he shut the

door.

“We need to talk,” Eric blurted out.

She took off her black gloves and white down coat, turning to him as a small smile appeared on her

face. She simply said, “Okay.”

Her eyes. Her lips. The way she looked at him. Her smile. The sound of her voice. The fresh flowery

scent wafting through the air that was uniquely hers.

That was it. His senses were on overload, and he just couldn’t stand there one more second without

kissing her. He stepped forward and she backed up a step so that she was flat against the wall.

He stood only inches in front of her. Her chest rose and fell at a rapid pace as she tilted her head up to

see him. Her large, smoky brown eyes were shining up at him. She seemed so open. So vulnerable as she

stared up into his eyes that it caused an ache inside of his chest.

He reached up and threaded his fingers through the soft, silky strands of her hair. His fingertips grazed

her scalp as his hand reached the nape of her neck, tilting her head up to give himself better access to her plump lips. Leaning down, he stopped when they were a breath apart. “Do you know how incredibly

beautiful you are?” he gritted out, his lips lightly meeting hers as he spoke.

The soft sound of need that was now becoming his favorite sound in the world escaped her throat and

she reached up. Her hands landed on his shoulders as she dug her fingers firmly into him, sending a jolt of arousal shooting straight to his groin.

He needed her. Now.

Crushing his mouth to hers, he felt her body instantly melt against his. The second their lips met, she

opened to him and their kiss became hot and aggressive. She met his tongue stroke for stroke. He ravished

her mouth with a frenzy he couldn’t control. She tasted sweet, almost like candy.

Her pelvis rocked hard against him. Searching. Seeking.

Without breaking their kiss, he reached down and hooked his hand under her knees, lifting her so her

legs were at either side of his hips and he was positioned at her core. She immediately locked her feet

around his back, causing even more intimate contact.

A guttural groan he didn’t even recognize ripped from his chest as he felt the heat of her center through

his sweats. His rock-hard length pressed firmly against her femininity as she rocked seductively into him.

His fingers gripped her thighs and he could feel her muscles tighten as she moved her body in a rhythm that made him think he’d be coming if he were inside of her right now.

He needed to feel her. He wanted to touch her skin. Lifting his hand, he moved from her thigh as he

skimmed his fingertips up her hip and under her sweater. He felt her baby soft skin beneath his touch

tremble as his hand traveled up her body.

Still locked in their passionate kiss, Eric paused for a moment when he came into contact with her bra.

Then, slowly, he traced its outline, her full mound rubbing against his knuckles as he did. Reaching down,

she gripped his forearm and pushed his hand up towards her chest. He spread his hand wide, and the

second he felt the weight of her breast in his palm, he wrapped his fingers around its fullness.

Lily pulled away from his kiss, saying his name through short pants. “Eric.”

Kneading her breast in his hand, he reached down to kiss her again. Just like the needy sound she made

had made his favorites chart, her kisses were very quickly becoming his favorite thing in the whole world.

She pulled away once more, causing him to still. Her breathing was labored and her eyes were heavy-

lidded as she said, “You’re vibrating.”

What?

He had no idea what she was talking about.

She shook her head slightly as if trying to clear it. “I mean, I think your phone is vibrating.”

Oooh.

Eric reluctantly pulled his hand out from under her sweater and sat her down so her feet touched the

floor.

Pulling his phone from his pocket, he saw that he had three missed calls from the station.

Shit.

---~---

As Eric checked his phone, Lily used the distraction to straighten her clothes and run her fingers

through her hair. She noticed as she did that that her hands were shaking. Of course they were. She always

started shaking right before she came, and if they hadn’t been interrupted, Lily was pretty sure she would

have had an orgasm up against the wall of her entryway from just from kissing, dry humping, and Eric

getting to second base.

She would be embarrassed by that fact except that she had felt Eric’s erection pulsing harder and faster

as they had been making out. He may not have been on the brink yet, but she was pretty sure he was headed

in that direction. The thought that she could get him to that point while they were both fully clothed made her feel…happy.

Each time they kissed, she was surprised by how connected and perfect it felt. His lips were somehow

firm, soft, aggressive, and gentle all at the same time. She had no idea how he managed to pull that off.

Then there was his tongue, which was the perfect combination of hot and wet. He controlled their kisses,

never letting them feel sloppy no matter how frenzied they got.

Eric kissed her with passion and authority while catering to her body’s every need. When he kissed her,

it felt like he was making love to her. And when his hands wrapped around her, she felt the innate safety in his touch as well as the promise of the heights of ecstasy he could bring her to.

After listening to his messages, he tapped on his phone and placed it to his ear. His jaw tightened as he

spoke. “It’s Maguire. Tell Sullivan I’ll be there in fifteen.”

He returned the phone to his pocket, his crystal blue eyes lined by dark eyelashes as he looked down at

Lily. He sighed as he reached out and brushed a stray hair from the side of her face. Leaning his forehead

against hers, he sighed again, “I have to go.”

“I figured,” she said, her voice still sounding a little shaky.

“I don’t want to,” he said with regret, his tone sounding much too serious.

“I figured,” she repeated, smiling as she attempted to lighten the mood.

He smiled at that, and she felt a little flutter in her chest knowing she was the one who put that grin on

his face. He leaned down and pressed his mouth to hers for one more all too brief, scorching hot lip-lock

before turning towards the door.

As he stepped outside, she moved to the doorway. He patted his leg, calling Shadow, but the dog just

plopped down beside her. She wanted to ask if he could stay with her, but she didn’t want to sound needy.

Eric raised his gaze to hers. “I’ll probably need to pull an all-nighter. Do you mind if he stays with

you?”

“No! Not at all,” Lily exclaimed, not even trying to hide her excitement.

A huge smile spread across Eric’s face. “You be a good boy for Lily.”

Shadow barked.

“I’ll see you guys in the morning,” Eric said as he made his way across Lily’s yard.

“Be safe,” Lily called out as she shut the door.

She’d said the words without even thinking about them. But after she had, she realized that there was a

reason she had. Eric’s job was not safe.

It may not be as dangerous as being a cop in a big city that had high crime rates, but it was still a high-

risk job.

Lily didn’t know what she felt about that. Maybe his job was the very reason she’d been attracted to him

even though he didn’t fit the typical cookie-cutter ‘bad boy’ mold. There was a good chance that her

pheromones, hormones, sexmones—whatever you wanted to call it—were responding to the fact that,

although Eric himself wasn’t dangerous, his job was.

Or maybe she’d just been attracted to him because he was ridiculously hot and then thought about him

all the time because of his toe-curling kisses and the fact that he was just fun to be around.

Shadow barked at her as she remained standing in the entryway.

“Sorry, my handsome boy.” She knelt down to give him some love. “Or maybe I just like Eric because

he has the
best, smartest, most handsome
dog in the whole world.”

This time when Shadow barked, he spun around in a little happy circle.

Sitting on the floor of her little rental house, playing with a dog that wasn’t even hers as her lips still tingled from the knock-down, drag-out, mind-blowing kiss she’d just experienced, she honestly felt like she had everything she could ever want in the world.

Chapter Fifteen

Eric took a heaping helping of spaghetti before passing the bowl to Nikki. She glanced down at the now

almost empty bowl then, scowled and said, “Mama, I think the boys should have to fill their plates last.

There’s never any left when it gets to us.”

“Oh now hush. They are growing boys and they need their strength, Nicoletta,” his mom told his sister,

using her full name. “Don’t worry. I have more in the kitchen.” As his mom stood, gathering the bowl,

Laverne and Shirley, his parents' two corgis, woke from their naps and were hot on her heels, barking

excitedly as she went to the kitchen to get more food.

Eric looked across the table just in time to see his brother giving Nikki a smug, satisfied grin.

Nikki rolled her eyes at Jake. Calling into the kitchen, she yelled, “They are not ‘growing boys,’ Mama.

Eric’s thirty-four and Jake’s thirty-one. They are grown men. Not that they act like it.”

“Don’t listen to her, Mom! We’re still growing boys,” Jake shouted.

Eric’s dad spoke for the first time since sitting down at the table. “No yelling at the table.” Sean Maguire was infamous for inhaling his food. Rarely did he stop to talk or even take a drink of water. If food was on his plate, he just shoveled it in.

“Why didn’t you invite that beautiful Lily over for dinner, Eric?” his mom asked as she set the now full