Tragic (Lark Cove, #3)

by Devney Perry

I was numb. There was nothing. Nothing except the weight of four pounds, two ounces wrapped in a pink blanket resting in my arms as I said good-bye. One or two. What would Shannon want? One. She’d choose one. So I’d bury them together. Then surrender to the black.

He had a tragic allure, one that screamed sorrow and loss. I knew that pain all too well. Recognition hit me in a flash and I spun around, hurrying back in the direction we’d come. That man was up here to grieve, and we’d just intruded on his private moment.

“I want the mountain house. It’s just what I need.” Some peace. The quiet forest. A project to throw myself into headfirst. And maybe a hot, sweaty fling with my grouchy, soon-to-be-next-door neighbor. He had no-strings-attached sex written all over his handsome face.

What was her name? Piper. Piper Campbell. God, even her name annoyed me. Why? I wasn’t sure. Probably because of how quickly Piper had gotten under my skin.

One look at her and the pain in my hand vanished. Her chestnut hair was long and full, parted in a perfectly straight line down the middle. It hung past her shoulders in thick, silky strands. Her deep-set eyes were the color of my favorite dark-roast wood stain. Her lips were plump beneath the regal bridge of her nose. The green forest light illuminated her olive skin. Her classic beauty was out of place on my dusty porch.

“God, you’re a piece of work.” “And it’s time for you to run along.” She flung out a hand, waving me away. “Go be grumpy somewhere else.”

What the hell was I doing? I’d come over here to put my neighbor in her place. Not to kiss her.

It hurt knowing I was unable to give him a family. It hurt knowing that someone I’d once loved with my entire being was in pain.

Her construction crew could make all the noise they wanted. She could light that house of hers on fire and I’d steer clear. No matter what happened on her side of the property line, I’d be staying on the other.

But she wasn’t afraid as I knelt by her side. She didn’t shy away as I pulled her into my arms. Her body was stiff for a few moments but then she melted. Her frame sank into the embrace and she burrowed her head into my neck as the sobs returned.

What was I doing? I didn’t want personal attachments. My mind screamed to let her go, but my arms refused to listen. Let her go. I hugged her tighter.

Piper was either the craziest person I’d ever met or she saw right to my core, distracting me before I could give in to the rage.

A dining room table that looked exactly like the one I would have made for myself.

Head to toe, Kaine Reynolds was magic.

Kaine’s social circle consisted of the small herd of deer I’d seen walking around our mountainside over the last week.

Awesome sex between neighbors didn’t have to get messy.

Of all the neighbors I’d had before, and there had been many, Kaine was far and away my favorite.

Though if she did get stuck, she’d probably be pounding on my door, begging for help. I’d have to haul out my towrope from the shop, then drive to wherever she got stuck and drag her car back home. She’d probably ask me to take her up to Kalispell and go car shopping. What a pain in the ass. “She needs a new car,”

Seeing each other that much would be too risky. She might develop feelings. She might confuse sex with love. She might? That was bullshit. I was really worried about myself.

She didn’t ask about my past, and I didn’t ask about hers. And even though we didn’t know much about one another, the undercurrent between us was familiar.

It had been three years since I’d touched another person. Three years of no handshakes. No hugs. No nothing. For three years, I’d avoided all physical contact because I never wanted to forget the last person I’d held in my arms. I didn’t want to forget how her little body had rested against my chest. How her weight had felt in my arms. I still felt her. I still felt that ghost.

But I felt Piper now too. And that scared the hell out of me.

This woman. She was ruining me.

This cake brought out a relaxed and carefree side to Piper I’d never seen. Magic cake.

“This is beautiful.” So are you. My lips barely managed to keep the words from spilling out.

“That’s amazing.” He was amazing. “Your work is . . . breathtaking.” He shrugged and ducked his head. Was he getting shy? He turned his back to me, but before he hid his face, I swore I saw a blush. He was shy. My god, that was sexy.

He came across so rough and cold, but in this shop, I saw an entirely new side to Kaine Reynolds. He was full of hidden passion and bursting with creativity. He’d poured his heart into these pieces.

“I want to fuck you.” “Yes,” I moaned. “I want to fuck you with those shoes digging into my back.”

Kaine’s laughter was deep and hoarse, almost like he hadn’t used it in so long that it needed to have the rust broken free.

A sense of pride filled my chest, squeezing out the pain from past memories. Knowing I was the cause of his smile and laugh was empowering. I did that. Me. I made Kaine smile. He made me forget.

No. I wouldn’t let myself get attached to Kaine Reynolds. I wouldn’t let myself believe that I could heal his broken heart. Or that he could heal mine.

Who was this man who’d swept into my life? What was his story? We’d agreed on casual, but feelings were beginning to stir. Did he feel them too?

I reveled in his company, his smell in my bed and his hands on my body. Kaine chased away the homesickness. When he held me in his arms, I wasn’t alone.

When he was in the room, I wasn’t the loneliest person there. He was.

Kaine kept his demons locked up so tight they were silently wreaking havoc on his soul. He seemed determined to fight that battle alone.

I’d realized another thing on my road trip—I was not made for casual sex. My bruised heart was on the line and it required careful relationships, not callous. Friendship was the most I should offer Kaine.

he sighed and relaxed, the weight of his neck and head on my thighs. Of their own volition, my fingers found their way into his silky, dark hair. “I can’t feel anything.” Kaine’s eyes held mine. “But I can feel you.” “I feel you too,” I whispered.

“This turned out so . . .” I trailed off, without words to describe the masterpiece. “It’s yours.” My hands froze. “What?” “I was going to wait until your house was done, but I decided to give it to you now. This is for your dining room.” “But what about the person you were making it for?” He shrugged. “It was always for you.”

I was falling in love with my grouchy, tormented neighbor. I was falling in love with a man who was sweet and kind. I was falling in love with a man who had a little magic of his own.

I pictured her, pregnant with our child, trapped in a crumpled car as life seeped out of her body in a crimson stream.

I wanted her to have Shannon’s comfort in the grave too. I didn’t want my daughter resting alone.

And since I hadn’t been able to put her name on the granite, I’d given her wings instead.

“It broke me,” I whispered. “I was so excited about the baby. We all were. It wasn’t the ideal situation, but still, I wanted to be a father. A good father. And I just . . . I loved her. I’d never even met her, but I loved her.”

I’d never regret finding my mountain. It was where I’d found Piper. Or maybe she’d found me.

“With everything that happened to you. I can’t imagine. Do you . . .” She took a deep breath. “Do you want—” “Yes.” I stepped into the room. “I want them.” Them. Her. Us. I wanted it all.

Piper Campbell had broken past all of my walls and made me fall in love with her. She’d worked her way into my broken heart, filling the black holes with light.

We’re doing everything backward. Piper had been right about that. Maybe backward was the only way we’d end up forward.

There hadn’t been another time in my life when I’d felt so cherished. Kaine cherished me.

He was holding something back. Which meant I was holding back something too. My heart. How could I trust him with my heart when he didn’t trust me with his past? How could I love him completely when he kept his secrets locked away?

Magic hands. Magic sperm. Magic man.