I was so ready. My hips bucked up against him. He murmured something against my neck before lifting his head and drawing his fingers out. “Let’s slow this down.”

  “No!” I protested.

  Something rose fiercely inside me. It felt almost feral, tangling with emotions I didn’t want to contemplate.

  He brushed my hair away from my face. He didn’t reply with words, but the kisses he dropped on my lips and then on my neck said easy, easy.

  I wanted to buck against it. I felt like a wild pony, but somehow, he soothed me. His hands mapped my body. He kindled the fire higher and higher inside while my restless need rose sharply and the bite of unsettled emotions dissolved.

  He dusted kisses across my trembling belly, pushing a knee to the side. On the heels of a gasp, his mouth was on my sex, and my hands were gripping his hair. I cried out sharply. I was so close to the edge, my orgasm just waiting. One wave of pleasure rolled into the next, and then his fingers sank inside when he licked deeply into me.

  The wave broke, crashing and catching me in it. I shuddered hard, hearing myself let out a keening cry. I pulled his hair so hard I was surprised it didn’t hurt.

  A moment later, he was rising above me. We hadn’t discussed birth control, but apparently, he had more sense than I did because he had produced a condom out of seemingly nowhere. I could only think he must’ve planned ahead. But then, he was a prepared kind of guy. He smoothed it on swiftly. His gaze bored into mine as his weight came over me.

  I should’ve been surprised. I liked to be in control. But then, it was obvious I wasn’t in control.

  With Tucker, I didn’t suppose I had been in control since before he even kissed me that first time. All of it felt as if I was spinning loose, like flotsam across the surface of the ocean in a storm.

  I felt the muscled planes of his chest, the hot shock of his skin against mine. His eyes were almost violet in the dim light in my living room. I felt the nudge of his crown at my entrance, followed by the thick stretch and glide of him filling me. I heard myself whispering, “This.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Tucker

  I kept my eyes on Skylar’s, watching as they widened as I felt her silky clench tighten around me until I was sheathed fully inside her. I let out a groan in my throat when I seated myself deeply and nudged once again as if in punctuation.

  She whispered, “This,” again, and I knew precisely what she meant. This, all of this. Her, me, us. Twined together, a shimmering net of passion holding us close.

  She stared at me, something like fear flickering in the depths of her wide eyes for a moment. I didn’t sense she was afraid of me. There was an emotional quality to it, almost primal. The same emotion I’d picked up on earlier. The recklessness, the dashing, the shying away from any feeling. It was almost as if she was afraid to feel.

  At this moment, I didn’t have much control. I clung to the thread of it, frayed but not yet snapped. I held still for several beats before dropping my head and kissing her. Her tongue darted out, gliding boldly against mine. Drawing back, I filled her, again and again. Her hips arched to meet every thrust. Her skin was dewy against mine.

  My release was already spinning tight. I tried to hang on, to slow down, but she urged me on. One heel dug into the back of a thigh, the other against my hip. She was so wet and so tight, and the sounds she made, oh, my god. Fuck me. Raspy moans and throaty whimpers.

  I saw her sassy, bossy side. “Hurry, please. Now,” she demanded.

  I couldn’t do anything other than give her what she asked for because it was exactly what I wanted. I felt her release threatening again when she tightened, clamping around me. She shuddered roughly, crying out and shouting my name.

  My own release finally snapped, lightning sizzling from the base of my spine as I surged to fill her once more. A guttural cry followed, and I trembled all over. I fell against her, gulping in air. For a moment, I couldn’t even move. Gathering myself, I braced on one elbow so I didn’t crush her.

  I shifted, rolling over as soon as I could. I was still inside her as she fell against me, sated and soft. I could feel the beat of her heart against my chest as my own thundered along with it.

  I had no idea how long we lay there. When my awareness flickered, my fingers were sifting through the ends of her hair. Her palm was flat against my chest. I wanted to stay right there, but that was crazy.

  I wondered what she was thinking. Eventually, she lifted her head, and we stared at each other. That fear I’d seen earlier flickered in her eyes but disappeared just as quickly. I wanted to say something, but I knew that was treacherous. This whole moment was treacherous for me, and I sensed it also was for her.

  “You have to go home,” she announced.

  “I do?”

  She nodded. I wanted to ask why, but I knew she wouldn’t tell me, so I didn’t.

  “Okay.”

  A moment later, she was scrambling off my lap and handing me my clothes. I got dressed although not as fast as her. She had her clothes on inside of a minute, or so it seemed.

  A weighted few moments later, she was standing by her kitchen counter, eyeing me warily. You’d have never known we’d just been tangled up skin to skin.

  “Thank you for dinner,” she said politely.

  “Of course. Where are we having dinner next?” I asked, knowing I was pushing it.

  When she opened her mouth to speak, I was pretty sure she was going to argue the point. Then she closed it and took a breath before replying, “How about the ski lodge?”

  I felt like I had won a major victory, but I didn’t dare gloat. “Next Friday?”

  She nodded. I kissed her before I left, but it was brief. Driving home, I wondered if I had lost my mind. I didn’t want to see that look of fear and vulnerability in Skylar’s eyes. I wanted to make it go away forever.

  But there was a catch. That meant facing my own fear. I thought I knew something she didn’t believe. People could be good. You could count on someone. But trying to show her that meant me counting on the universe not to play another cruel joke on me.

  My faith was shaky on that point.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Skylar

  I heard a soft swishing sound, or maybe a slipping sound, followed by a heavy tumble. I had just finished work for the day and spun in my chair to see Ludie on the floor across the hallway.

  “Oh, my god!” I exclaimed, leaping up and dashing into her office.

  “I’m fine,” she murmured, her voice thready.

  “Ludie, I think you just fainted.” I knelt beside her.

  “No, I didn’t, sweetie,” she said, her voice a little stronger.

  “I’m calling 911,” I said as I fumbled for my phone in my pocket.

  She shook her head. “Call Dan. He’s outside helping Flynn and his brother with something,” she managed between shaky breaths.

  I dialed Dan’s number quickly. He answered immediately. “Skylar, Dan here.”

  “Hey, Dan. Ludie fainted. I wanted to call 911, but she told me to call you.” I was already questioning why I’d done as she asked.

  “I’m completely conscious, for God’s sake,” she said, her voice even stronger this time.

  “Be right there. Call 911,” Dan ordered me.

  I knew Ludie could hear him because her eyes narrowed. I sat beside her on the floor, holding the phone to my ear after I dialed 911.

  “911, what’s your emergency?”

  “Hi, I’m out at the small airport, and my boss fainted.”

  “I didn’t faint,” she protested beside me.

  The 911 operator ran through a few questions before asking how Ludie was now.

  “She is conscious and has been since I got into the room, but her skin is pale and—” I held my fingers to the pulse on her wrist. “Her pulse feels thin if that’s a thing. I don’t know.”

  “Ma’am, we’ll have an emergency vehicle there within five minutes. Will you be able to wait with her?”

  “Of course! I’m not going anywhere.” As if on cue, I heard the door burst open from out front. “Her husband just got here too. Should I stay on the line?”

  “You can if you’d like, or you can call again if you need to. The EMTs are already on the way.”

  Ludie glared at me. “I’ll call back if I need to,” I said hurriedly.

  As soon as I hung up, Dan entered the room. He knelt in front of Ludie. “What happened?” he asked gruffly.

  He stared at Ludie with so much love in his eyes that my heart felt pierced by it. It took my breath away for a few seconds. Not that I’d ever doubted Dan’s love for her or hers for him, but they’d been together a long time. They had a shorthand, casual manner with each other that tended toward practical. This moment felt intimate.

  “I’m fine,” she insisted. “If Skylar wasn’t still working, she wouldn’t even be over here. She heard me slip. That’s all.”

  “Ludie,” Dan said, a hint of warning in his tone.

  “All right. I fell. I’m glad she checked on me, but I swear, I’m okay. I was never unconscious.”

  “You have that thing going on with your heart,” Dan interjected.

  “What’s going on with your heart?” I burst in.

  “Her heart skips a beat sometimes,” he explained. “Sometimes, she gets weak because she doesn’t get enough oxygen in her blood.”

  “Should we be doing something about this?” I practically yelped.

  “I take medicine,” Ludie said defensively.

  I might have only known Ludie and Dan for less than a year, but they were more family than I’d ever had. They treated me like their own, and I cared about them. More than I wanted to admit.

  “She takes medicine, but sometimes, she forgets. I’m getting you one of them pillboxes,” Dan announced.

  Ludie rolled her eyes, pressing her lips together. I knew she was feeling stronger for that alone. “Pillboxes are for old people.”

  “Well, Ludie, we are officially old. Nothing wrong with a pillbox,” Dan said.

  “It’s like a calendar. It’ll just help you keep organized for the day-to-day. That’s all,” I offered, trying to ignore the lump in my throat and the way my chest ached.

  “Fine, I’ll get a pillbox,” Ludie muttered, her eyes bouncing between Dan and me. She looked as if we’d betrayed her.

  At that moment, we heard voices out front, and I leaped up, hurrying down the hallway to greet the EMT crew. A police officer was with them, and I instantly got nervous. I didn’t know why, but if a cop was in the vicinity, I assumed I had done something wrong. I used to joke with Emily that if I came across someone who’d been murdered, even if the murderer was standing there with a knife over the body, I would feel like I had done it just for being present. We both speculated that perhaps that was an unintended side effect of being in foster care. You had so many authority figures coming in and out of your life and making decisions for you that you tended to feel like you were always out of place and being judged.

  I thought this man might be Risa’s husband, which should have relaxed me, but I was still nervous.

  “Ludie okay?” the police officer asked.

  “I’m not sure. She fainted,” I said over my shoulder as I led the group down the hallway.

  All the while, my heart thudded in my chest. I wanted to cry, but I needed to keep my shit together. Dan had shifted from kneeling in front of Ludie to sitting on his hips beside her. They were both resting against the desk. The EMTs went into action.

  Ludie swatted them away. “What are you doing here?” she asked, her eyes swinging up to the police officer.

  “I happened to be nearby when I heard the call. I wanted to make sure you’re okay,” the man said easily. He glanced at Dan. “How’s it going, Dan?”

  “Hey, Darren. Ludie’s being stubborn again. She doesn’t want a pillbox so she’ll remember her heart meds.”

  Ludie looked horrified. Dan was spilling her personal tea right here. One of the EMTs asked Dan a question, and the cop glanced at me. “I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Darren Thomas, chief of police for Diamond Creek.”

  “I’m Skylar, Skylar Bridges.” My voice felt as small as I felt. “I work here,” I added.

  “I know,” Darren said with a nod.

  “Oh, you probably know everything, huh?”

  “No, I definitely don’t. But you rent from Risa. She mentioned you’re a friend. Any friend of hers is a friend of mine,” he said easily.

  I didn’t know what to do with this, so I just nodded. Risa’s husband and Diamond Creek’s chief of police was one handsome man. With chocolate brown hair and eyes to match, he was relaxed and masculine. After our brief conversation, he was swept into chatting with Ludie and Dan. The EMTs didn’t end up taking her to the hospital, but they gave her oxygen on-site and procured a pillbox from their vehicle, donating it to her. She wanted to argue the point until they pointed out she donated funds to the town’s emergency services every year.

  “We’ll just pretend you gave it to yourself,” one of them said.

  Ludie laughed softly. Her color had come back.

  “You might want to think about getting an emergency button,” Darren commented.

  “What?!” Ludie barked.

  “In here, in the bathroom, and at your house,” Darren added.

  “Why?” she demanded. “I’m fine.”

  “If Skylar hadn’t been here and heard you, you might’ve needed more help,” Dan said pointedly.

  Eventually, the emergency crew filtered out. Darren left with a wave, and I made sure Ludie and Dan were buckled up in Dan’s car, insisting I would close up everything. I returned to the office, looking around and thinking about how I’d never been in here without Ludie and Dan.

  It was getting dark outside. The office layout was simple. The front entrance faced the parking area with the runway just beyond that. The rows of plane hangars lined it on the other side. In the distance beyond that, Diamond Creek’s larger airport, the one where the big planes landed, was visible. There were a few chairs and a desk with some magazines strewn across the top in the front area. No one ever sat at that desk. I walked down the short hallway that led to Ludie’s office on one side with the break room across from it. That room had a round table, a microwave, and a small refrigerator. Just past that, at the end of the hallway, was the room where we manned the airwaves to coordinate transports and online scheduling. It held an L-shaped desk with computer monitors and phones.

  Ludie and Dan had started this business well before the era of cell phones. They still had the old dial-up phones lined up even though we never used them. I needed to ask Susie about a small business loan. If something happened to Ludie and Dan, I really did want this to be mine.

  Oh, I’d be scared as hell, but I loved this job, and I thought I was actually pretty good at it. Having something to focus on kept my mind from spinning off down myriad tracks of anxiety, worry, and regret, and recrimination. They were all there waiting in my thoughts. I took a deep breath, almost jumping out of my skin when I heard the door open out front.

  I hurried down there to see Tucker coming in. “Hey, I was coming into land, and I heard from Flynn that Ludie had an emergency. He said Dan called and said she was okay, but I thought I’d see how she was doing.”

  “She did. She fainted,” I said.

  “She okay?” he pressed.

  I nodded, my eyes stinging with the tears threatening to spill over. “I think so. Apparently, she has some kind of heart condition where her heart skips a beat sometimes. She’s supposed to take medicine, and she forgets. I guess she doesn’t always get enough oxygen. That’s what Dan told me.”

  I was standing by that desk out front, my fingertips resting on the edge. Tucker’s eyes held mine from across the room. “You okay, Skylar?” he asked, his tone gentle.

  It actually hurt to swallow, but I tried to put on a brave face. “Yeah, I’m fine,” I croaked.

  In a second, Tucker was right in front of me, pulling me into his arms. I buried my face in his chest and burst into tears. He smelled like the wind and the trees with a hint of salty ocean air clinging to him. I wasn’t the kind of girl who burst into tears. I wasn’t the kind of girl who let any man comfort her, even though it was always what I’d been desperate for.

  I tried to pull myself together, but I couldn’t. Every time I lifted my head and tried to look at Tucker, I cried even harder. Everything I attempted to say came out in a garble of hitched breath and sobs. He simply held me, one palm moving in slow passes up and down my back. His touch was so soothing, and it felt beyond good to be in his arms.

  He was warm and strong and seemed entirely unruffled by my explosion of tears. I finally reached a point when my crying slowed. By then, I was afraid to even look at him. I was mortified.

  My head was tucked against his chest. I heard the rumble of his voice against my cheek when he spoke. “Everybody needs a good cry sometimes.”

  “I know,” I mumbled to his chest. “But I don’t cry.”

  “I do sometimes,” he said, his voice low and gravelly.

  That punctured my embarrassment. I cautiously lifted my head, peering up at him. I had one arm banded tightly around his waist and the other tucked between us. I knuckled my tears with my fist as a watery, sheepish smile stretched across my face. “Sorry about that.”

  “It’s okay. You worried about Ludie?”

  I swallowed and nodded. “Maybe this sounds weird, but Ludie and Dan are like family for me even though I haven’t been here that long.”

  “I get it. There are different kinds of family.”

  “She scared me today.”

  He nodded, his palm still soothing me with those slow passes. “What do you want to do?”

  “What do you mean?” I asked, genuinely puzzled.

  “Well, I’m not leaving you alone tonight,” he said bluntly. “After a cry like that, I’d be a shitty friend to walk away.”

  “No, you wouldn’t.” I shrugged, feeling foolish. “It’s just me and my drama.”

 

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