Page 63 of Taken By Storm

“I’m not stealingmygirlfriend from you,” Levi stressed the pronoun, then gestured across the bar to where his brothers were sitting, still watching them. Theo waved, grinning widely. “The boys wanted to blow off some steam after a hell of a long week.”

Remi had spent a few days with them in the fields, so she knew exactly how hard they’d been working.

“I’d intended to head to your place to steal a good night kiss,” he said to Kasi, “until I was informed you were here. So I made a little detour.”

Kasi clearly didn’t mind his detour. “I thought you’d be working on the destemmer until late.”

That was exactly what he’d told her on the phone. “Yeah. Well, I was blessed with the greatest mechanic on the planet for a brother. Jace fixed the thing in no time.”

“He really does know his way around an engine,” Kasi concurred. “Our piece-of-shit tractor is running like a dream ever since he worked on it. Paul swears it’s like having a new tractor.”

“Fellas,” Levi said, acknowledging the two men who were now awkwardly shifting on their feet, wondering where to go from here. “Having a good night?”

“I will be if I can get this one out on the dance floor with me,” Henry said, smiling down at Remi.

She rolled her eyes playfully, even though it was obvious Henry was getting that dance.

“We never miss ladies’ night. So…you and Kasi, huh?” Ezra asked.

Levi nodded.

“Not going to say I’m not disappointed. I was happy to see you back out,” Ezra said to Kasi. “It’s been a while.”

“It has,” she agreed.

“Well, you caught yourself a good one.” Ezra gave Levi a friendly punch on the shoulder. “Happy for you two.”

The two men quickly moved on after Remi promised to find Henry later for a dance.

“Marking your territory?” Remi asked.

Levi snorted. “Damn right.” Then he leaned close to Kasi again. “You didn’t mention going out when I called earlier.”

Kasi gave him an adorable grin, looking at him over her shoulder. “It wasn’t even a plan until about an hour ago. Remi showed up with wine, intent on chilling with me in the kitchen, but I knew that wasn’t going to cut it.”

He frowned, suddenly worried. “Why not? Bad day?” She hadn’t given him that impression when they’d spoken on the phone.

The shadows in Kasi’s eyes answered the question for him, but he noticed they passed quickly.

“Not really,” she said. “Just…more of the same.”

He’d spent enough time with her to know exactly what that entailed, so he assumed her father had hidden in his room most of the day. And it was probably a good bet that Keith had been a little shithead. Those two things were the primary reasons Levi had been pushing harder this year with the harvest, pulling longer hours in hopes of finishing sooner.

He wanted to get back to the routine he’d established the week prior to this one, splitting his days between the two farms. Levi knew that wasn’t going to work in the long-term, mainly because he couldn’t keep asking his brothers to cover chores for him, but damn if he wasn’t determined to make it work for as long as he could. Because even with makeup on, he could still see the faintest hint of the dark circles under Kasi’s eyes that said she wasn’t getting as much sleep as she needed.

“I’m glad you took the night off to enjoy yourself. You deserve it.” He took a couple steps away from the table, ready to excuse himself because he reallydidn’twant to crash girls’ night. She needed it badly, and he knew from personal experience that Remi was good for the soul, the perfect person to cheer up Kasi and ensure she had a great time.

Then he tallied the empty shot glasses on the table, taking in the flush on Kasi’s—and Remi’s—cheeks, thanks to the vodka.He tipped her head back with a finger under his chin. “Did you eat dinner?”

He expected her to say yes because she’d promised to take care of herself…so when her eyes lowered, darting to the side, he narrowed his own.

“Kasi.”

She lifted one shoulder. “I wasn’t hungry earlier. Then Remi came by, and we started getting ready to go out, and I forgot.”

Levi pressed a quick kiss to her forehead. “I’ll order a couple of apps for you and Remi when I get back to my table. You need something in your stomach to soak up the alcohol.”

“You’re not hanging with us?” Kasi asked, clearly disappointed.

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