Page 45 of Bourbon & Bonfires

Our kiss is fast, fierce, and full of promise. I hear the pole hit the dock as his large hands wrap around my waist and pull me toward his body. I moan the moment I feel his erection, and his lips curve into a smile. I mimic the smile and soon we’re both laughing.

“Not that I’m complaining, but what was that for?”

“You look hot, and I wanted to kiss you. Plus, I need to thank you for this weekend and apologize for earlier.”

“You don’t have to apologize. Maybe tell me what I did, but never apologize for feeling, Addy.”

I run my hands under his T-shirt, which must startle or tickle him because he squirms in my arms.

“When you were talking about the summer, I got a little defensive. This is all new for me. I never really dated, I never brought a man around Mason. You make plans, giving him hope and he’s already so disappointed by the one man who is supposed to do all the things with him you’ve promised. I worry for him. It’s not only me you’re dating, we’re a package.”

“Addy, I would never do anything to hurt you or Mason. I love that damn kid. He drives me crazy, and half the time I want to knock some sense into him, but he’s part of you, and that makes him important to me. If for some reason you get sick of me and dump me, I’ll still be there for him. Always. His idiot father may have dropped the ball, but I won’t.”

And that is the moment I fell in head over heels in love with Landon Montgomery. The moment the final wall collapsed, and I gave myself to him.

“He called you my boyfriend.”

“Well, it’s about time someone did. I was starting to get a complex.”

I smack him in the chest as he steps away. “You did not. And what do you mean ‘about time’?”

“I didn’t want to push, but I kind of thought the labels were a given by this point. Addison, I’m just waiting for you to catch up to me, babe, that’s all.”

“I’m just waiting for you to catch up to me ...”

Landon’s comment from earlier on the dock is in a constant loop running through my mind as I walk along the lake. After our lunch and a little nap on the dock, I decide to take a walk. Landon and Mason are not the successful fishermen they claimed to be so I don’t expect the big fish fry they are talking about. Instead, I am quite certain we’ll be dining on the steaks and potatoes we brought instead.

I spot a clearing in the distance and turn toward it. A log lies along the water’s edge and I sit down, looking out at the vast lake. I can see why Jameson purchased this property. It’s beautiful and serene. And quiet. Far too quiet for the thoughts consuming me.

Landon saidcatch up. Catching up means he’s there. He’s been there. I’m the one who is dragging my feet.

Of course I have. It’s fast, so fast. Hell, for the first few weeks I knew him, I thought he was a cheating on his pregnant girlfriend. When I found out he wasn’t, I agreed to friendship. Not even friendship, acquaintances. If this were a race, I’d absolutely be the tortoise.

That’s what you do when you’re a parent. You put the well-being of your children first.

I was serious when I told him Mason and I were a package deal. I have seen too many people in my life jump into relationships and bring their children into the fold for it all to crumble. In the end, the adults survive the chaos, but the children suffer. I swore to myself I would never do that to Mason. He’s suffered enough with an uninvolved father.

I assumed with my rules and boundaries, my slower than molasses approach to dating, Landon would have moved on. He didn’t. He hasn’t pushed. He hasn’t asked for more. He’s stepped back and let me set the pace. And somewhere along the way I fell for him.

I know I did.

If I were a hopeless romantic, I’d admit it was that first kiss on New Year’s Eve. But I’m not. I’m a realist who reads about hopeless romantics. I lose myself in a romance novel and absorb every single word like it is my last breath, but in real life, I’m less of a believer in happily ever after.

Or I used to be.

He makes me believe there’s a chance at that happy ending. That somehow, someway, we can make it. But, it isn’t only him; it’s Mason. I had no idea a teenage boy could so easily accept a new man in my life. Perhaps it isn’t that there’s a new man in my life but because Landon is in our lives. A package deal, even when it comes to the new man in our life.

When a frog croaks nearby, I jump and scream.

“Holy shit, froggy. You scared me half to death.”

The frog croaks again and I laugh. Maybe that frog is my reminder of the frogs I had to kiss to find a prince. I can be a romantic realist. If that’s a thing.

Standing from the log, I brush off my backside and turn toward the cabin. As I approach the area, I see a fire in the pit. The sun is beginning to set, and there’s a light chill in the air. A fire will be a must tonight. The closer I get to the fire, I see Mason in the distance with an ax held above his head. I take off running as he swings it, splitting a log in two.

“Wha ... wha ... wha ...” I should not have run. Holy shit. Bent over, my hands on my knees, I try to catch my breath with next to no luck.

“Whoa, babe. You okay? Take a deep breath.” Landon steps next to me and rubs my back.

---