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“Good morrow, everyone! And well met!”
Title check!
“And yes, I’m back again this year too, doing my best to fill Sean’s shoes.” His smile fell fast, and he ran a hand over his close-cropped brown hair.
Oh no.
Another short sigh. “Glad to see you’re putting a lot of thought into this.”
What an ass.
To my horror, Mitch caught me looking at one point and sent a wink my way, along with finger-guns.
Oh no.
I liked this side of the Ren Faire Killjoy. “Shakespeare wrote Shakespeare. Please tell me you don’t think someone else did.”
Best nickname in a book.
Simon cracked a smile, and although he immediately swallowed it, there was still interest in his eyes.
Because today, Mitch wasn’t Mitch. Today, Marcus MacGregor had come to play. Mitch was wearing the Kilt. The Kilt. The kilt I’d been promised when I’d agreed to this whole shebang in the first place.
But then he strutted over in our direction, his eyes focused about six inches south of my chin, and I bit back a sigh. Yes, the boy was hot. But, much to my libido’s chagrin, looks weren’t everything.
the rush of blood back to my extremities, the relaxing of my flesh, the ability to take a good deep breath again, all felt better than the best orgasm I’d ever had. Not that any of mine had been particularly great.
Clearly. 😢
He’d been back here for a tree. A very specific tree.
I really hope this is not where his brother died.
Out here, I was looking at a pirate, all black leather and open shirt, with kohl smeared around his eyes, giving them a hooded bedroom look.
My mind was full of the memory of Simon’s hand warm around mine, and how surprisingly soft his lips had been.
Fine. I crossed my arms. “But you and I made no such arrangement!” I called back. “We shall discuss this later.” Ooooooh, went some of the cast members, accompanying his wincing expression.
I heard Captain Blackthorne before I saw him. While Simon was pretty reserved in general, my pirate (oh, no, had he become my pirate?) easily made his presence known.
🥵
“Odd.” He tilted his head and considered me, his eyes doing the same slow travel mine had done on him. It took everything I had not to fidget under his gaze. “Typically women don’t mind when I’m on my knees in front of them.”
Jaysus. 🔥🔥
“Well, love. I’d be fighting for you.” His mouth was so, so close to mine, and his voice was low, almost gravelly, like he was telling me a reluctant secret. “That would be a fight worth winning.”
Suh-woon.
“So, what, am I just supposed to pull an extra bard out of my ass now?” “Not a bad idea,” I shot back. “Maybe it would dislodge the stick that’s up there.” Oh, crap. I hadn’t meant to say that.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
He groaned again, and kisses became nips at the base of my throat as his hand tightened at the small of my back, pulling me into him.
Ugh. I love the grip and pull.
“He was the one who made me become a pirate. He said I was too quiet, too serious all the time. Making me do this—he thought it would give me swagger.”
“After he was gone I had three years. Three years of him still being my older brother. But this year . . .” “This year you’re twenty-seven.” “I’m twenty-seven,” he repeated. “I caught up with him.”
😢😢😢
Nothing about this summer was going the way I’d intended.
“I . . . I can’t imagine Mitch likes it much when I do.”
Just this once, I could kiss the girl I wanted and there wasn’t a damn thing Mitch could do about it.”
“Christ, Emily, you have no idea how much I want to . . .” He swallowed hard and didn’t finish the sentence.
The angst. My heart.
I pictured us standing here in his kitchen until the world ended around us, just staring. After somewhere between thirty seconds and an eternity he ran his hand down my arm and up over my shoulder again.
“Seriously. Who the hell would tell you . . .” His mouth stilled on the side of my neck, then he sighed. “God damn it. I swear to God I’m going to find that ex of yours and punch him in the nose.”
Yes!!!
Simon broke the kiss, sucking in a breath when I closed his hand over my breast, and his other hand tightened on my back. “Fuck.”
😏😜
His breathing deepened as my body reacted to him. “Christ, Emily.” His mouth brushed against mine, almost compulsively. “You’re perfect.”
😍
“Oh, Emily.” He made my name sound dangerous. There went his eyebrow again, and his lips kicked up with a wicked smile I didn’t know he could make. “I do a lot of things with this mouth.”
For fuck's sake. 🤤🤤
I’d never seen anything in my life more beautiful than this man, on his knees in front of me in the moonlight.
He never did turn on the light that night, but I didn’t mind. Everything I needed was easy to find in the dark.
He tasted like coffee, smooth and dark and rich, and I remembered something Chris had said once about Simon being an acquired taste. She was right. I was hooked.
Why was it so easy when it was someone else’s problem? Why couldn’t I give the same advice to myself?
I feel this.
Another kiss on my cheek, and then his teeth grazed my earlobe, and I shivered. “I don’t think you’ve ever been wooed. Have you?” The words were a low whisper in my ear, and the shiver intensified.
“I’m going to woo your ass off.”
🤗🤗🤗
Let the wooing commence.
He wouldn’t let me fall.
“I can’t wait that long. Come over now. I’ll take care of you.” When his voice was pitched that low I felt it deep in my chest, and there was no way I could say no.
But here’s the thing: you can do this Faire the same way every year, exactly the way your brother left it, and he’ll still be gone. He’s never coming back.”
That’s harsh.
And Emily . . .” He was so close now, his eyes searching mine, and I was as caught in his gaze as I ever was. “The only thing I’m sure I want in that new life is you.”
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
But then you came along, Emily, and you weren’t a should. You were a want. Being with you was the first thing I wanted, the first thing I chose for myself, in years.
🥰🥰🥰🥰
“I do.” He nodded in agreement. “I love Faire. But I don’t need Faire. I need you, Emily.” He reached for me then, his palms cupping my face. “I love you.”
❤️❤️❤️❤️
