Page 35 of Trusting You
Huh. That sounded coded and ominous. Was I missing something? “Oh, don’t worry,” I said awkwardly. “I know how lucky we are to have her.”
“Good,” she said, giving me an icy glare. “Don’t forget it.”
I excused myself and headed back into the bar. That was uncomfortable and weird. Before I could analyze it further, a twirl of a skirt caught my eye.
The eighty-year-old band leader had grabbed Cecelia and was dancing with her to the music. She followed his lead as they pranced around to this traditional German tune that I could not name if my life depended on it.
I was mesmerized. Cece was irresistible. The outfit, her hair, her dazzling smile. She looked so joyful and free. The old man was having the time of his life and so was she. People were clapping along to the beat, and others joined them dancing. I watched him expertly twirl her, and her full skirt splayed out, rising just a few inches to display a tantalizing glimpse of those gorgeous thighs. Her wild hair had begun to escape her braid, with curly tendrils framing her face. She was incredible, and the ache inside me grew. I wanted her so badly, but what could I do about it? I couldn’t act on these feelings. I couldn’t address the tension between us. I just had to keep my head down and hope it eventually went away.
20
Liam
We were happy,tipsy, and a little messy. After closing the bar at eleven thirty, most of the crew stayed to clean up. High on the success of the day, it turned into an impromptu party. Trent set up the Bluetooth speaker we use while brewing, and we were all drinking, dancing, and eating leftover soft pretzels.
Some significant others had come by, and by one a.m. I was having a pretty good time. What a day. Things had been crazy busy but so exciting. In addition to the entire town of Havenport, hundreds of new people had visited the brewery. The parking lot had cars with plates from several other states. The band was a hit, the food was amazing, and the weather was incredible. I was feeling damn happy.
Cece sat on a folding chair with her legs up, beer in hand. She still wore her dirndl dress, but the ornate braids were coming unpinned. Her wild curls were escaping in every direction creating a light brown halo around her pretty face. The skirt rode up those glorious creamy thighs and her feet were bare. I could tell she was exhausted but happy too. All day I had been tortured by the sight of her. I was a man obsessed. It was official. She was the sexiest thing I had ever seen in my life and I knew that—rules be damned—I was going to make a move tonight. I had to at least try. Today had been one of the best days of my life. I had to take a swing.
Since I was a bit tipsy and riding the high of my professional career, I decided I needed to hold her in my arms and immediately tell her how amazing she was. At this point I was running on a few hours of sleep, adrenaline, and beer, so my plan seemed rock solid in the moment.
So I did it. I grabbed her hand and pulled her up to dance. She wordlessly complied, resting her head on my chest. Dancing together, under the moonlight and the gorgeous Edison string lights she had carefully chosen, everything felt as it should. My business was growing and evolving, and I had a gorgeous woman in my arms who challenged me and made me better on every level. For this one incredible moment, everything was awesome and I could just stand still and enjoy myself.
She laughed, looking up at me, and her eyes twinkled. “This isn’t exactly a slow dance song.” I hadn’t even noticed the music. It was a Taylor Swift song. Whatever. I didn’t even care. I shrugged and kept on dancing with her in my arms. Her quizzical gaze turned into a beautiful smile. I felt a warm explosion inside my chest. I had so much affection for her. And being the recipient of her smile, I felt ten feet tall.
I gathered my courage. “You are incredible. I hope you know that.”
She shrugged. “You’re not so bad yourself.”
“Don’t do that. This was your idea. You took this event from zero to sixty in a few weeks, and I could never have imagined the success we had.” In my wildest dreams for this place I never saw an event like this happening. We had hundreds of people, sold tons of beer and merchandise, and raised the profile of this brewery tenfold. And none of it would have been possible without her.
She didn’t reply. Instead, she leaned in and rested her head back on my chest. Our bodies were flush. I leaned down and whispered in her ear. “I am in awe of you.”
She stepped back and looked up at me with those big brown eyes. She looked so small and vulnerable. Like she had no idea what an epic badass she was. I suddenly could not control myself as I cupped her cheek and captured her mouth in a gentle kiss. She fisted the front of my shirt, kissing me back, tentatively at first. She tasted like beer and sunshine and every awesome thing on earth. Her other hand traveled down and rested on top of my belt buckle. With this one small gesture, every ounce of blood in my body rushed south. My vision tunneled and all I saw were her beautiful lips, wet from my kiss. My body pulsed with need. I wanted to devour her. I wanted to throw her over my shoulder and possess her in every possible way. Instead, I intensified the kiss, giving her everything I had and taking everything she had in return. My hands roved all over her body, and her soft warmth drove me crazy.
We were interrupted by hoots and hollers from the assembled crowd. We broke apart, disoriented by the sudden loss of contact. I looked up and saw Trent and Shane clapping and then Shane opening his wallet to give Trent some money. I saw Mark and his wife on the deck looking down at us with smug smiles, and some of the other guests and employees were clapping as well.
I pulled Cece into my arms again and she looked confused. My heart was pounding and nothing made sense. I met her eyes. “Come home with me tonight.” I felt like an out of control caveman. I normally didn’t give women commands. What the hell was I thinking?
Her chest heaved as she tried to catch her breath. Her eyes were glassy and her lips were swollen from our kiss. She stepped back and looked up at me with those gorgeous hazel eyes. “Yes please.”
* * *
After the fastest cleanup in history and making everyone go home, we finally called an Uber and made it back to my place. We had both sobered up considerably, which made me worry she might have second thoughts.
Those worries disappeared the minute she walked through the door and threw herself at me. She clung to me while our mouths clashed in a desperate, hungry kiss. I should have been embarrassed by my lack of finesse, but this woman unlocked something positively feral inside me. Her eyes, her hair, that incredible body—my mind was swirling with lust. I didn’t want to overwhelm her with the breadth of my desire for her, but I also didn’t think I could hide it for another minute.
I kicked the door shut while picking her up and carrying her into my living room. “You are so incredibly hot in that outfit, I have been distracted all day. Your tits look good enough to eat. I want to kiss every inch of your gorgeous body.” I had no idea where these words were coming from. I didn’t normally talk like this. I couldn’t blame the beer because I had stopped drinking a while ago to expedite the cleanup process and get her into my bed.
Did I just ruin everything by opening my big mouth?I stepped back and met her gaze. Her eyes were glassy with lust and her chest heaved. Her lips were kiss swollen and she met my gaze with steely determination. “If you’re lucky I might let you.”
I grabbed her and kissed her fiercely again. She broke away.
“Liam, wait.”
Oh shit. She was having second thoughts.
“Before we do anything, I just want you to know I’m not looking for another relationship, okay?”
