Sweet on a Younger Man, page 1
“I really need to go.”
Ivy released a heavy sigh of disappointment. “I understand.”
As the sun magnified the color of his eyes, it came to her which paint hue she would need to fully capture them. Gold. Just a hint to bring out the true rich color of his eyes. Ivy cataloged his face in her mind. It would stay there, along with the wonderful memory of this afternoon with him, but one thing was missing.
As if he’d read her mind, Jaxon leaned in. His hesitation was a silent question, asking her if she was on board with what he was about to do next.
She was.
He brushed his mouth over hers. The firmness of his lips paired with slow, soft kisses had a drugging effect on Ivy. As she slid her hands up his chest and around his neck, he settled his in the curves of her waist. Jaxon gently sucking her bottom lip prompted her to release a small sigh, allowing him to glide in past her lips. As his tongue caressed hers, she was lost in a rush of delicious heat. She rose on her toes for more as he explored her mouth.
A long moment later, the kiss reluctantly came to an end. Ivy’s heart bumped in her chest. He rested his forehead to hers and she closed her eyes, soaking in the wonderful aftereffect as they both breathed unsteadily. Those electric-like sparks of desire she’d wondered if she would ever experience again. Oh, she’d felt them all right, but with someone she wasn’t going to see again. The unfairness of it all hit with a bittersweetness that turned into sad disappointment.
“Come to the Wavefront tonight,” he said.
Dear Reader,
Welcome back to Bishop Honey Bee Farm, located in Bolan, Maryland. As the sign just outside of town says, Friends and Smiles for Miles Live Here. If you’ve visited before, it’s great to see you again!
Sweet on a Younger Man is the second book in the Bishop Honey Bee Farm series. In this story, you’ll find out where Brooke and Harper’s aunt, Ivy Daniels, landed after flying off and leaving them in charge of the bee farm. I’ll give you a hint. She ran into her former fiancé. The ending of their engagement over a decade ago was amicable. Now they possibly have a second chance, right? Maybe…or maybe not.
While vacationing with a friend in Hilton Head, she meets Jaxon Coffield, bartender and former business entrepreneur. The difference in their ages isn’t a problem. She’s turning forty in a few weeks, and he’s in his late twenties. According to her friend Amelia, he checks all the boxes for the perfect younger guy relationship.
Their night together is supposed to be a onetime thing, but fate leads to a reunion in Maryland. What starts out as a happy coincidence ends up being overshadowed by family, past relationships and expectations. Staying away from each other is impossible. Seeing each other in secret while enjoying a few fun adventures together is the perfect solution. Jaxon is leaving in a few weeks, and no one will be the wiser. But there’s a problem. They can’t hide what’s taking hold of their hearts.
I love hearing from readers. You can reach out to me through the contact page on my website, www.ninacrespo.com. While you’re there, sign up for my newsletter and follow me on social media. Instagram and Facebook are two of my favorite places to share about my books and upcoming appearances. I look forward to seeing you there.
Happy reading!
Nina
Sweet on a Younger Man
Nina Crespo
NOTE TO READERS
This ebook contains the following accessibility features which, if supported by your device, can be accessed via your ereader/accessibility settings:
Change of font size and line height
Change of background and font colours
Change of font
Change justification
Text to speech
Page numbers taken from the following print edition: ISBN 9781335180209
Nina Crespo lives in Florida, where she indulges in her favorite passions—the beach, a good glass of wine, date night with her own real-life hero and dancing. Her lifelong addiction to romance began in her teens while on a “borrowing spree” in her older sister’s bedroom, where she discovered her first romance novel. Let Nina’s sensual contemporary stories feed your own addiction to love, romance and happily-ever-after. Visit her at ninacrespo.com.
Books by Nina Crespo
Harlequin Special Edition
Bishop Honey Bee Farm
A Honey for the Beekeeper
Sweet on a Younger Man
The Fortunes of Texas: Digging for Secrets
Expecting a Fortune
Small Town Secrets
A Chef’s Kiss
The Designer’s Secret
Second Take at Love
Tillbridge Stables
The Cowboy’s Claim
Her Sweet Temptation
The Cowgirl’s Surprise Match
Visit the Author Profile page at Harlequin.com for more titles.
For Elizabeth Rose
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Excerpt
About the Publisher
Chapter One
Having a fabulous time in the Caribbean. Can’t wait to hear about everything that’s happening as soon as I get back from my cruise!
Ivy Daniels added a kissing emoji to the text. Searching through the photos on her phone, she chose one of her smiling on the beach. In the picture, she wore a crimson-and-gold bathing suit with a long, matching wrap skirt. The wind swept her dark hair back from her face. Behind her, the expanse of azure-colored ocean looked crystalline, perfect, and refreshing…unlike her conscience at the moment. It was cluttered with guilt because where she sat, alone at a table, the ocean or a ship were nowhere in sight.
A couple of yards away, a group of children happily shrieked as they splashed around in a hotel swimming pool while their parents and other guests relaxed in lounge chairs nearby. Tall palm trees shading the outdoor space at the resort swayed in a light summer breeze, partially obscuring the sun and the other high-rise buildings located in downtown Miami.
Ignoring a pang of self-reproach, Ivy included the photo with the text and tapped Send. Her message wasn’t a complete lie. She was wearing a similar blue bathing suit and skirt, and she actually had been vacationing on that ship.
Since the ending of the cruise eight days ago, she’d been hanging out at the resort. But altering the truth was an extra deterrent, just in case her nieces, Brooke and Harper, were thinking about contacting her. She couldn’t mediate a dispute if she was away on a ship. Her absence was the only way to prompt her nieces to work together in running Bishop Honey Bee Farm and encourage them to repair their fractured relationship.
After losing their mom and dad to a tragic car accident years ago when they had just been teenagers, Brooke and Harper had grown apart. As soon as Brooke was old enough, she’d left the family bee farm and distanced herself from everyone. For a few years, she’d traveled from place to place doing temporary work and had only come home once a year to fill in as beekeeper for a few weeks so Ivy could go on vacation.
Meanwhile, Harper had become a workaholic, practically tying herself down with the running of the farm, and she resented Brooke for not being there to help full-time.
When Brooke did return to help out, from her sullen attitude, she seemed to view it as a punishment. And worse, as soon as she walked in the door, the farm transformed into a battleground with she and Harper sniping each other.
By the time Ivy would return from her vacation, they’d usually reached a chilly détente primarily based in silence. No amount of talking or trying to help them resolve their differences had been able to allow the two sisters to understand each other. Ivy had grown more concerned about it every year until finally, she’d decided to take action.
As Ivy mulled over the worrisome situation, a server from the bar dropped off the drink she’d ordered earlier.
“Thank you,” Ivy said.
“My pleasure.” The young woman flashed a friendly smile. “Can I bring you anything else?”
“No, this is perfect for now.” The lemonade cocktail in a tall frosted glass promised coolness to beat the heat.
“Just let me know when you’re ready for another one.”
“I will.” If only she could order what her nieces needed from a menu just as easily and send it to them. I’ll take a heap of understanding with a few helpings of listening and communication on the side to go, please. Unfortunately, she couldn’t. Abandoning them had been the best way to handle things.
But even as she justified what she’d done, more guilt piled on as Ivy remembered the looks of panic and disbelief on Brooke’s and Harper’s faces when she’d told them, almost three months ago, that she would no longer help manage the family enterprise in Bolan, Maryland. She’d signed over everything to the two of them, fifty-fifty. Right after delivering the news, she’d promptly rolled her luggage out the door and gone to the airport.
Brooke had just arrived at the house for her usual stay-for-a-few-weeks visit to fill in as beekeeper when she’d found out she would need to stay long-term. Harper had been caught off guard as well at the prospect of her sister as her new partner in handling day- to-day activities at the farm.
Leaving and then practically ignoring them afterward had probably felt unfair, especially to Brooke. She no longer lived in town and had planned on being at the farm for only a few weeks. But Ivy had needed to avoid them talking her out of the decision to leave. It wouldn’t have taken a lot to change her mind. Ever since becoming Brooke’s and Harper’s guardian when their mom and dad died twelve years ago, they’d become like her own children. She loved those girls so much. No. They weren’t girls anymore. They were women capable of solving their own problems and handling the legacy left to them by their parents. The time had come for them to start communicating with each other instead of letting hard feelings or unresolved grief completely erode their sisterly bond.
Still, it was hard sometimes not to just see them as the young girls they once were.
On her phone, Ivy scrolled through past photos of her nieces from years ago and paused on one of them. When it was taken, Brooke had just turned seventeen years old. Harper had been fifteen. They were standing in the honey extraction room at the farm dressed in white hairnets and blue coveralls. Nowadays, most of the farm’s honey processing was done at a cooperative facility in another town, but back then, they’d all had to pitch in at the farm to get it done on site.
In the photo, the sisters’ personalities were on full display. Brooke grinned as she skillfully balanced three full jars of honey in her hands. She was free-spirited and trusted her intuition when it came to making decisions. Harper was more methodical and restrained. She held one jar with both hands wrapped tightly around it. Even today, she was careful and disciplined and relied on facts as her guide.
As teenagers, the two had squabbled over borrowed clothing, which TV shows to watch, or one of them hogging the bathroom. But eventually, they’d always forgiven each other. She’d never envisioned her nieces growing so far apart.
A wistful smile tugged up Ivy’s mouth as she scrolled through more photos of Brooke and Harper from past holidays, birthdays, and other occasions. It pained her not to have more recent pictures of her nieces happily posing together, but there was hope. According to a friend in Bolan who was discreetly keeping an eye on them, Brooke and Harper had become a bit closer. And there was a major change in Brooke’s life. She had gotten together with their new neighbor next door, Gable Kincaid, and apparently, their relationship was serious.
Ivy toyed with the straw in her glass. She had planned on spending a few days with her friend Amelia and then taking a train tour across the country. After weeks of traveling on cruise ships, she’d wanted to change things up. Maybe, instead of taking the tour, she could pop back in at the bee farm. Even though she hadn’t decided where she was going to live yet, she still needed to pack up her things and choose what came next for her.
In addition to wanting to push the girls together, something else had prompted her to take such a humongous step. Her fortieth birthday was on the horizon. For the past year, she’d felt the need to break from responsibility and find out what she wanted more of in her life.
While she was figuring out what she was going to do next for a career, she could check in on her nieces and make a few friendly suggestions to Brooke and Harper about how they could navigate the changes they were facing. Nothing too heavy-handed, just a nudge in the right direction.
Or you could continue to stay out of it, and trust them to figure things out on their own… As the voice of reason resonated within her, Ivy sat back in the chair and sighed. Her nieces had made a lot of progress over the past few months. Pride in their accomplishments, along with sadness at the idea of having to let them go, formed a lump in Ivy’s throat. She washed it down with a sip of her cocktail. Tart, sweet, and with just the right amount of alcohol, it tempered some of her concern. They’re okay without me, right?
As if in answer to her half musing, half prayer, a soothing breeze ruffled her hair over her shoulders. With it, a calming sense of rightness washed over her.
“Ivy…?”
The familiar voice caused her to glance up. “Von! Oh my gosh.” Shocked to see her former fiancé, astonishment pushed her up from the chair.
Over a decade had passed since the amicable ending of their engagement. He looked different. He was older, of course, and instead of a full head of black hair, he had a shaved head. It suited him, and so did the neatly trimmed dark beard that brought contrast to his deep-brown face. But his wide smile was the same.
“It’s so great to see you,” he said as they embraced.
“You, too.”
“Are you here on vacation?” They both spoke at the same time then laughed.
“You first.” He graciously gestured to her.
“Yes, I’m here on vacation, or at least I was. I’m leaving for South Carolina day after tomorrow.”
She and Amelia, who lived in New Jersey, were spending a week at a town house they’d rented in Hilton Head near the ocean. Lounging on the beach, girl chat, sipping cocktails, and shopping were on the agenda.
“What about you?” she asked.
Dressed in a crisp pullover and shorts, he looked as if he was headed to the golf course. “A vacation with business mixed in. Unfortunately it’s been heavier on the business side of things than I’d hoped. I haven’t gotten much relaxation in.” His expression softened. “Enough about me. How have you been?”
The answer to that question spanned so many years, starting from the moment they’d said goodbye to each other after agreeing they should end their engagement twelve years ago. Where did she start? “Well, I’m a retired beekeeper now—”
His phone chimed. Glancing down at it, he sighed. “I’m sorry. I want to hear all about it, but one of my clients is impatient to discuss a business matter. We’re meeting for lunch this afternoon, but I’m free later on. Have dinner with me tonight. I’m flying back to New York in the morning.”
The genuine interest in his expression prompted her response. “I’d love to.”
After exchanging numbers, Von hurried off and Ivy sat back in her chair, caught in the pleasant spin of unexpectedly running into him. She had just been wondering if Brooke and Harper would be okay without her. Maybe seeing her former fiancé was a sign she could stop worrying about them and focus on her own life.
Chapter Two
Six days later…
Ivy sat with Amelia inside the Wavefront Bistro in Hilton Head. They were enjoying an early Saturday lunch after spending another glorious morning lounging under umbrellas on the beach.
The white, ruffle-strapped cami Amelia had on accented her skin, which was lightly kissed by the sun. Her dark auburn coils not secured by her messy bun or the sunglasses on top of her head brushed her light brown cheeks.
Ivy wore her favorite tangerine sundress. After spending most of her time in practical boots, jeans, and button-down shirts at the farm with no makeup and her hair firmly pulled back out of the way, the chance to wear her hair down and put on a pretty outfit, sandals, and makeup was a refreshing change.
Amelia poured citrus dressing on a grilled salmon salad with arugula and cherry tomatoes that looked almost too perfect to eat. “This restaurant is great. I’m glad we found it.”
“I agree. This place was a good pick.”
The food was excellent, and the establishment had a relaxed, enjoy-the-moment vibe. A variety of plants thrived in the space with walls and furnishings in soft purple, white, and yellow hues. An outdoor dining area at the back of the restaurant was nestled in the midst of trellises with raised garden beds filled with budding plants.
That part of the restaurant reminded Ivy of the flower field at the farm. At this point in the early summer, forager bees from the apiary would make several visits to the nearby field. They would collect nectar and pollen from the array of blooms to take back to the hives for the worker bees to produce honey.
