Page 50 of Taken By Storm

There was no fucking way a woman as beautiful as Kasi was a virgin. It simply wasn’t possible. And if so, what the hell was wrong with the men in Gracemont?

“My mama was pretty strict,” she said. “And very overprotective. To be honest, the only friend she ever let me sleep over with was Remi because she knew your parents and grandparents and trusted them to keep an eye on me. Of course, that’s not to say Remi and I didn’t sneak out, but that was just to steal a bottle of wine from the vineyard.”

“Is that supposed to be an answer to my question?” Levi knew it was, but he needed her to keep talking before he gave himself away. His inner caveman had emerged with a vengeance and was currently beating his chest in true Tarzan style.

Kasi had never slept with anyone else. A woman’s sexual experience had never mattered to him before, and to be honest, it wouldn’t have mattered this time.

But goddamn…

He was going to be her first, last, and only.

Kasi shrugged. “You want me to say it? Fine. I’m a virgin. But not an intentional one. It’s just like I said. Mama was overprotective, and I’ve always had a lot of chores on the farm. Even before she passed away.”

“You’ve never had a boyfriend?” Levi thought back, but that fact wasn’t something he would have noticed because he hadn’t ever looked at her and thoughtmine. She’d been underaged for most of their acquaintance. The thirteen years between them was a hell of a lot less significant now that they were both adults, but prior to that, it had been as wide as the damn Grand Canyon.

“I’ve gone out with a few guys, done some dating, but none of them were…” She bit her lower lip, and Levi could see she had something more to say.

“None of them were…” he prompted.

He thought she’d been flushed when she came, but that color didn’t hold a candle to the red in her cheeks now.

“None of them were you.” She spoke the words so quickly, he wasn’t entirely sure he’d heard her correctly.

“Me?”

Kasi blew out a slow breath. “I had a crush on you when I was younger.”

“I know.”

“You knew?”

Levi chuckled. “You started hovering when you were in high school, always trying to catch my attention, even when Remi was trying to get you to do something else.” He ran his knuckle over her pink cheek. “And this blushing started whenever you talked to me.”

“Ugh. That’s embarrassing!”

Levi shook his head. “No, it’s not. It was sweet. It’s just… I thought the crush ended at some point. I mean, I’d never gotten the sense that you were interested in me since you became an adult.”

“I saved you a pie every damn day,” she pointed out. “For years.”

“Doesn’t exactly sound like someone who’s,” he finger-quoted the last bit, “not interested in me.”

She laughed. “You already called me out for that lie.”

Levi chuckled as he gripped her ass, tugging her closer, then wrapped his arms around her. “You’re right. I did. And I guess I should have realized you still had feelings, but up until a few days ago, I didn’t know you were saving the pies. I only suspected. What did your mother think about your feelings?”

“She teased me about it a little. I think, like me, she knew nothing would ever come of it.”

“Like you?” Levi didn’t care for that response at all.

“You’re older than me, Levi. And you’d never given any indication that you were looking for a relationship. I think a lot of the matchmaking mothers in Gracemont have put you in the confirmed bachelor column. Plus, Mama knew and trusted you, so she knew you would never take advantage of my schoolgirl crush.”

“You’re not a schoolgirl anymore.”

“You’re right,” she agreed. “I’m not.”

“You think she wouldn’t have approved of us as a couple?” That idea bothered Levi a lot. One, because he’d always respected Mrs. Mills, and two, it was clear her mother’s opinion was important to Kasi.

Kasi grinned. “Mama was ten years younger than Daddy. Honestly, I think this—the two of us—would have made her really happy. She liked you. Always said you were a good man and a hard worker, just like Daddy. I know her biggest hope for me was that I’d find a love like what she and my father shared.”

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