Written in the Stars Page 15

  “So you’re saying that I make you weak in the knees?”

  “Apparently so.” She gazed up at him, drinking in the sight of his gloriously naked body. “I don’t think there’s a body part on me that isn’t reacting to you.” She gave him a slow smile. “One area in particular.”

  “Then let’s concentrate on that particular area.”

  “Oh, please do.”

  Mason joined her on the bed and kissed her shoulder. “There?”

  “Nice...but, no, not quite,” she said, and sucked in a breath when he grazed his hand over her breasts.

  “Then I guess I’ll go on a treasure hunt until I find the right spot,” he said, and began kissing every inch of her body, slowly, seductively, except for where she wanted him most. Her body quivered when he kissed a hot trail down her torso. “Am I getting warm?”

  “Yes!”

  “Good.” But when he got to her mound, he veered to the left and nibbled on the tender skin of her upper thigh.

  Grace could feel the warmth of his breath so very close to where she needed him. She arched her back, wild with wanting his mouth on her core. She felt rather dazed, almost out of breath. “Mason...” Grace was going to ask if he enjoyed torturing her when he grabbed her ankles and slid her to the edge of the bed. He tugged her panties off and tossed them aside.

  “Here?” The touch of his tongue to her core sent a jolt of hot desire through her.

  “Yes, oh God, yes.” She felt a deep ache, an intense longing that only he could fulfill. She fisted her hands in the comforter and her heart hammered in her chest. His mouth was gentle at first, but then he explored her folds, licked, sucked, as if he couldn’t get enough of her. She came up on her elbows, thinking that the sight of his dark head between her thighs was the sexiest thing ever. When he took her to the brink, she fell back against the covers. But then he slowed down, making Grace attempt to sit up and pound his back in protest, but her limbs felt as if they were made of liquid. “Mason,” she said breathlessly, pleading. “Don’t stop.”

  He paused for a second, making her moan, but then he slid his big hands beneath her bum to get better access and began licking until his silky tongue sent her flying over the edge. Waves of exquisite pleasure washed over her, and she sure hoped that her cry of sheer joy wasn’t echoing across the river, alerting all of Cricket Creek and the creatures in the woods that she had just experienced the most delicious, mind-­blowing climax of her life. “That was...mmm, uh...”

  Mason scooted up next to her and looked up at the ceiling. “Wait—­did I just render Grace Gordon speechless?”

  “I...do believe...so.”

  He chuckled and then ran his fingertips down her body, making her shiver and gasp. “And we’ve only just begun.”

  Grace groaned. “I’ll be more than happy to carry on as soon as my body floats back down to earth. I...I just need a moment to regroup.”

  “Maybe I can help rekindle the fire,” he said in her ear.

  “Oh please, do go on, then.”

  11

  Must Be Doin’ Something Right

  MASON RAN HIS HANDS OVER GRACE’S WARM, SOFT SKIN, thinking that touching her, tasting her, was something he could never get enough of. He loved hearing her sighs, her moans of pleasure, her low, sexy rumble of laughter. Most of all he loved having her body wrapped around him like kudzu.

  When she left the brewery earlier, he’d felt a sense of panic, afraid to go after her but even more afraid not to. Danny had found him sitting on his couch staring off into space and had talked some sense into him. His little brother, of all people, had been dead-­ass right. If Grace chose to leave, Mason couldn’t do anything about it, but he sure as hell was going to do his best to make her want to stay. He knew he was putting his heart on the line and taking a risk, but not taking it wasn’t something he could live with. He was falling for her hard, so hard that there wasn’t any use fighting his feelings.

  Mason came up on one elbow, leaned over, and kissed her. She responded by turning toward him and pressing her body to his. She entwined those long legs with his and moved against him, letting him know that she wanted him too. He hadn’t come over here with the goal of making love to her, but once he kissed her, all bets were suddenly off. “Gracie, God, you’re driving me wild,” he said, but he paused to give her time to be sure that she wanted to go this far. He didn’t want her to have regrets.

  She cupped his cheek. “Make love to me.” She looked into his eyes and then smiled. “Please.”

  And that was all the encouragement he needed.

  Mason paused for protection and then came back to the bed. She opened her arms and beckoned him. Mason somehow knew that the gesture was meant to convey to him that she was taking a chance too but she was willing and ready. And wasn’t that what love was all about? Putting your heart out there and taking a chance? Giving Lauren the power to hold him back from finding happiness was giving her something she didn’t deserve. Mason had learned by watching his parents that real love wasn’t just about the good times but about standing by the one you loved through thick and thin.

  Letting go of his fear of getting hurt felt so damned good!

  “Ah, Gracie.” He kissed her with the pent-­up passion that had been driving him nuts for days. She responded by threading her fingers through his hair, kissing him back with wild abandon. When he moved his mouth to her neck, she sighed and slid her hands down his back. He could tell by her touch that she wanted this every bit as much as he did. When she reached his ass, she squeezed.

  “You have the best bum on the planet.”

  “Why, thank you.”

  “You’re welcome,” she said, but then gasped when Mason caressed her breasts. Taking a nipple in his mouth, he licked, nibbled, and sucked, teasing until he heard her moan. “Dear God...”

  Mason wanted to learn every inch of her beautiful body and find out what drove her wild. When he trailed his fingers lightly over her skin, he could feel her shiver. She arched her back, moving sensually against him, letting him know that he was doing something right.

  When Mason lightly touched her mound, she gasped. Knowing what she wanted, he slid a finger into her silky heat, exploring, caressing, dipping into her folds until he knew she was close to climaxing. But when she reached between them and wrapped her delicate hand around his cock and stroked, he couldn’t wait another second to be sheathed inside her body.

  While kissing her deeply Mason entered her with one sure stroke. She gasped and wrapped her arms and legs around him, tilting her hips. “My God, you feel good.”

  “I was thinking the same thing.”

  Mason moved slowly, holding back, wanting to savor the feeling of being inside her sweet, tight body. But she bucked beneath him, grabbing on to his shoulders. Her teeth found his earlobe, sending a hot shiver down his spine; holding back flew out the window and never looked back.

  Gracie made love in a wild and free way that he’d somehow known she would. He loved her taste on his lips, her scent filling his head, and her soft cries of pleasure. When she pressed her head against the pillows and arched her back, Mason thrust deeply, taking her over the edge. A ripple of pure pleasure gripped him, suspended as if in midair, and then rushed through him with an intensity he didn’t know existed. In that moment he knew with certainty that this went beyond sex, beyond physical attraction. Mason knew that she felt it too, because she didn’t say anything. She didn’t need to.

  Sometimes words got in the way.

  Rolling to his side, Mason held her close, and she clung to him. Breathing deeply, she shuddered once, and Mason understood how she felt. He was blown away too.

  Wanting to know her thoughts but unwilling to break the spell, he remained entwined with her for a few more minutes. Mason knew that everything between them had shifted, and he wasn’t quite sure how to handle it. Finally, she kissed his shoulder
and caressed his skin, drawing patterns over his chest. Damn, he couldn’t believe it, but he was getting aroused all over again, and he thought he could do this all night long. Or at least give it a try.

  Gracie’s fingers circled his half-­hard cock and she chuckled low in her throat. “I’m impressed.”

  “As you should be.”

  She chuckled again, and he smiled, glad that there was an easy flow between them and not something awkward, another clue that this was perhaps meant to be. But he fell silent, wondering what would come next.

  “You’re wondering what to tell people, aren’t you?” Grace lifted her head and looked at him.

  Mason nodded. “What do you suggest? You have to know, however we put it, us being together is going to cause quite a stir.” He wasn’t going to bring up the business end of their relationship right now.

  “Should we keep it under our hat until we figure it out?”

  A stab of disappointment shot through him. “Is that what you want, Gracie?”

  Lowering her eyes, Grace ran her fingertip back and forth over his bottom lip. “No.”

  “But?”

  “We have to figure out what this is first, though, don’t you think?”

  Mason nodded, and he could feel her pull away a little bit. He understood, though. This was his territory, his home. He was the one who had the most risk of getting hurt. When she glanced away, he put his hand on her cheek. “I know there are complications.”

  “I don’t want to be the bad guy. I make a really awful bad guy. I have this need to have everybody like me.”

  “You’re way too pretty to be a bad guy,” he tried to joke, but her eyes turned serious. “Or even a bad girl.”

  Mason cupped her chin and rubbed his thumb over her cheek. “Hey, you were up front and honest with me. I’m going into this with my eyes wide-­open. You didn’t pull any punches, but I’ll throw some punches if anyone talks trash about you.”

  “Ah, my bighearted but tough country boy.”

  “And don’t you forget it,” he said with a grin. While he knew she referred to him as being hers as a joke, he liked the sound of it way too much. He was already in over his head, but his damned heart just wouldn’t listen to his need to slow down. “And just so you know, I still hate the whole Broomstick Brewery thing.”

  “You won’t when you start making piles of money,” she said with some heat behind her words. Good. He wanted to keep the challenge in place for her, because the longer she stayed in town, the better the chance he had to convince her to stay.

  “You ready to get something to eat?” he asked lightly. “The storm has let up.”

  “I’m suddenly starving. I’ve worked up quite an appetite.”

  When she grinned at him, Mason almost sighed with relief. “You wanna head up to Sully’s and grab a bite?” he asked casually, but he really wanted to get her out in public with him. “Maybe do some two-­steppin’ with your country boy?”

  She winced. “I don’t know how.”

  “I’m a good teacher.”

  “I’m a slow learner when it comes to dancing.”

  “Ah, a challenge. I like it.”

  “I’ll do some steppin’ all over your feet. Just fair warn­ing.”

  “I won’t mind.” In fact, there wasn’t much he wouldn’t mind her doing to him.

  Except leaving. That, he could do without.

  But Mason decided not to think about the future at the moment. He was going out on the town with Gracie Gordon on his arm. For now, that was enough.

  12

  Honky-­Tonk Heaven

  “OUCH, YOU WEREN’T KIDDIN’,” MASON SAID AFTER Grace stomped on his foot again.

  Grace pulled up short on the dance floor. “Hey, don’t go there. I warned you that I was a terrible dancer.”

  “Yeah, but there are degrees of terrible.”

  Grace smacked his shoulder.

  “Okay, one more time. It’s quick, quick, slow...slow. And no bobbing up and down. Keep your chin up and look past my shoulder.”

  “Too many rules!” Grace shook her head, knowing it was a lost cause. “It’s a weird way to dance.”

  “It’s classic,” Mason responded, clearly affronted. “Want to give it another shot?”

  “Did you just say something about doing a shot? Now you’re talking. I’ll have a pineapple upside-­down cake.”

  Mason glanced up at the ceiling and then sighed. “Okay, I’ll get you the shot if you promise to slow dance with me.”

  Grace winced. “I suck at that too. Slow, fast, or anything in between. The dance floor and I never did get along. Can we just sit down? Where’s the corn hole?”

  “That’s an outdoor game.”

  “Oh.”

  “Darts, then?”

  “I have a feeling you’d maim somebody.”

  “True. So let’s just go with the shot.”

  Mason nodded. “Only if you promise to slow dance.”

  She rolled her eyes. “You’ll be sorry. What are you? A glutton for punishment?”

  “Maybe.” But then he leaned in close and said, “Slow dancing with you in my arms will be worth a little bit of pain.”

  “Oh, you say that now,” Grace said, but in truth she felt a flash of pleasure slide down her spine. She knew that there was a charmer behind that broody exterior, but what she didn’t know was how it would affect her. All it took was his smile, saying something flirty or sexy, and she was putty in his hands.

  When Grace walked over to their high-­top table, he put his hand lightly at the small of her back. She liked the feeling of being with him, being his girl. And when he headed over to the bar to order her shot, she noticed other women giving him the once-­over. Grace sat up a little bit straighter and felt territorial. She couldn’t remember when she’d felt this kind of jealous reaction.

  Oh boy, I’m getting in deep, she thought, and swallowed hard. Moving back to the U.S. wouldn’t be a big deal, though, would it? She, Sophia, and Garret all had dual citizenship in the States and England. When living in London, Grace used one of her mother’s furnished flats, so except for clothes, she had nothing much to ship over here. Although Sophia lived in New York, Grace would be able to visit with her sister much easier from Kentucky than from all the way across the pond.

  Grace toyed with her napkin, twisting and rolling it between her fingers while she thought about the crazy turn her life had suddenly taken. She never would have thought that her brief visit to Cricket Creek would turn into a life-­altering event, and yet here she was, sitting in a honky-­tonk tavern with the cutest country boy in the world. The same country boy who had made it clear that he wanted to give their relationship a go.

  Grace had noticed curious looks directed their way when they’d first walked in. When she’d asked Mason about it, he’d explained that it had been a long time since he’d been out with a girl. Something in his eyes had suggested more to the story, but tonight wasn’t about anything serious, just kicking back and having a good time.

  Still deep in thought, Grace was surprised by someone coming up behind her and putting her hands over her eyes.

  “Guess who?” Sophia asked, while trying to disguise her voice with a low pitch, but it was a complete fail.

  “Sophia!”

  “How did you know?”

  “Because you’re the only one dorky enough to do that.”

  “I’m not a dork. I’m super cool.” Sophia pointed to her outfit and did a little spin.

  Grace slid from the stool and turned around to hug her sister. “When did you get here?”

  “A few minutes ago,” Sophia said, and she did look cute in a pink floral shirt, faded denim skirt, and cowboy boots. Her long toffee-­colored hair was braided in one of those fishtail things that only a hairdresser could do.

  “Look a
t you, all cowgirled up.”

  Sophia laughed. “When in Rome?”

  Grace tilted her head and gave her pretty sister a once-­over. “Well, you totally pull it off. Where did you get it?”

  “At Violet’s Vintage Clothing up on Main Street. I need to take you there.”

  “Definitely.” Grace gestured toward a stool. “Join us.”

  “Okay, whoa, wait a minute.” Sophia arched an eyebrow. “Us?”

  “I’m with Mason. He went to get me a pineapple upside-­down shot but got sidetracked with talking to people he knows,” she said casually, trying to ignore Sophia’s gasp of surprise followed by a little jig in her boots.

  “So are you two seeing each other?”

  Grace opened her mouth and then shut it, not sure how she wanted to respond. “It’s complicated.”

  “Oh, I hate when people say that. It’s not complicated. Are you seeing him or not?”

  “Yes, sort of, I guess, but—”

  “I knew it would happen.”

  Grace lifted her palms upward. “Oh, come on, how?”

  “The way you look at him like you want to eat him up with a spoon.”

  Grace felt heat in her cheeks.

  “Oh my God,” Sophia whispered in her ear. “Are you sleeping with him?”

  “That’s an incredibly rude question.”

  “No, it’s not. You’re my sister. I have the right to know these things.”

  “Don’t you dare tell anyone—­not even Mum.”

  “You know me better than that. But why are you so uptight about it?”

  “I know you’ll keep it under your hat.” Grace gave Sophia a quick hug. “I’m uptight because Mason is Mattie’s brother, for one thing. I don’t want to do anything to stir up any family trouble.”

  “The Mayfields are cool people. They won’t hold a failed relationship with Mason against you. But it won’t fail.”

  “We’re not in a relationship,” Grace said, and looked around to make sure nobody was listening. “So there’s nothing to fail.”

  “Um, you are or you wouldn’t be getting so riled up.”