Page 38 of Won't Back Down

Willa stirred against me, and I held my breath as her knee shifted against the erection that hadn’t wilted one damned bit. Her palm flexed against my chest, almost like a cat making biscuits, then heavy-lidded eyes met mine and a slow, sleepy smile curved her lips. “Hi.”

What would it be like to be greeted by that smile every day?

“Mornin’. Sleep okay?”

“Like the dead. You’re apparently good at scaring away nightmares.”

I stroked the hair back from her face. “Anytime.”

Roy grumbled and head-butted her between the shoulders. With a laugh, she rolled over, removing the threat of her knee from my groin.

“Good morning, sweet boy. Are you ready to go out?”

With a woof, the dog scrambled out of bed. Willa swung her legs out of bed and lifted her arms high in a stretch that pulled her sleep tank tight across her breasts. That had my big boy brain jumping on the campaign for keeping her in this bed.

“I’ll let him out and start the coffee.”

“I’ll be down in a little bit.” After I’d done something about this reaction to her.

She snagged a light robe, sliding it on as she strode into the hall after a dancing Roy.

By the time I made it downstairs, I smelled bacon. The dog was hunched over his bowl, snarfing down his breakfast. Willa herself stood at the counter, cracking eggs into a bowl. I fought the urge to cross the room and slide my arms around her from behind, pressing a kiss to the little tattoo on the back of her neck. In the bright light of day, such things didn’t feel quite as possible. Instead, I moved to the coffeepot.

“You had yours yet?”

“Not yet. I wanted to get this started first.”

“I’ll make it for you. How do you take your coffee these days?”

“A little less sweet than back in high school. Cream, one sugar.”

I pulled mugs down from the cabinet and poured, moving over to hand her one of the blue speckled stoneware pieces I recognized as Mimi’s work. Those eyes met mine over her shoulder. Paired with that shy smile, it just hit me right in the gut, and I found myself smiling back. Damn it, I liked the domesticity of playing house with her. I liked everything with her, way too damned much.

Lifting my own mug, I kicked back against the counter. “So, what’s on deck today?”

“Well, I checked the weather report. That hurricane watch has been amped up to a warning. We’ve already got a lot of supplies here. Hurricane panels for the windows and the like. But we’ll need to take stock and go into town for other supplies. And while we’re there, I want to go ahead and stop by City Hall to see what Miles wants.”

“Not gonna put it off? As I recall, you never much liked him.”

“He’s an ass. That opinion hasn’t changed since high school. But it’s part of the gig as a Sutter. Given the impending hurricane, he’s probably going to be pretty busy, which means I should be able to get in and out pretty quickly.” She transferred bacon to a plate covered in paper towels, then turned back for the eggs. “My hope is that surprising him will catch him on his back foot, and I’ll have the upper hand in the conversation. I’ll take whatever advantage I can get.”

“Fair enough.”

We ate and drank our coffee at the kitchen table, and I did my best not to notice how her robe kept slipping off one shoulder, exposing a tantalizing stretch of creamy skin I wanted to trace with my lips.

“Where are all the hurricane supplies stored?”

“The hurricane panels are in a rack in the shed off the back of the garage. There’s a generator out there, too. I can show you after my shower.”

Do not picture her naked. Do not.

“I’ll just pop on out and take a look while you’re upstairs.”

“Okay. I won’t be long.” She shoved back from the table.

“Thanks for breakfast. I’ll get the dishes.”

There went that smile again. “Thanks for my grilled cheese last night.”

---