It Started with a Kiss (McKenzie Cousins Book 12)

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any
electronic or mechanical means, including information storage
and retrieval systems, without written permission from the
author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Published by HFCA Publishing House

http://www.lexibuchanan.com
http://ronajameson.com

M C K E NZI E F A M I L Y T R E E

Elias and Pippa McKenzie

Lucien & Sabrina (Entice #4)

Alexander (Kissing Cousins #4)

Olivia (A Cowboy for Christmas #8)

Michael & Lily (Seduce #1, The Wedding #1.5)

Michael Jr (A Business Decision #2)

Charlotte (Secret Kisses #3)

Sirena (Baby Makes Three #1)

Joshua (A Secret Affair #9)

Sebastian & Carla (Rapture #2)

Madison (If Only #5)

Dylan (One Christmas #10)

Ruben & Rosie (Delight #3)

Ryan (It Started with a Kiss #12)

Sofia (A Bakers Delight #7)

Jaxon (The Pregnant Professor #11)

Ramon & Noah (Cherished #5)

Paige (Princess & The Puck #6)

Rachel (Kissing Cousins #4)

P R O L O GU E - R Y A N

URROUNDED

WITH

MERRIMENT

THIS

EAR

’

Eve,  I  cast  my  eyes  once  more  to  the  girl  my
cousin,  Alexander,  brought  with  him.  Alex  doesn’t
appear  to  be  into  the  poor  girl,  especially  as  I
haven’t  seen  him  in  a  while.  As  it  is,  she  tries  to
blend  into  the  wall,  which  is  not  going  to  happen.
She’s young and fresh-faced, which tells me the girl
is  innocent—too  innocent  for  me.  It  doesn’t  stop
me from casting glances in her direction as I listen
to  my  sister,  Sofia,  babble  on  about  a  new  cake
creation she’s come up with.

It’s not that I don’t care about what she does

because I do, it’s just that she talks about different
flours, sugars, icing, and I get lost within the first
sentence. I’m more about alcohol and spreadsheets
—not that anyone knows this about me. The drink
they know plenty about as it’s what we serve at

Kenza, the club my parents own, the one I manage.
What my siblings and cousins forget is the volume
of  figures  I  have  to  go  through  daily.  Luckily,  I’m
good  with  numbers,  and  it  didn’t  take  me  long  to
have  a  program  up  and  running  to  log  everything,
including staff wages.

I’m a people person, so managing and working

at  Kenza  is  fun,  not  to  mention  the  perks  of  the
pretty  ladies  that  come  through  Kenza’s  door.  It’s
because  of  this  reason  that  I  think  the  girl  is  too
innocent for me to sweet talk.

“Ugh,” Sofia stamps her foot, snapping my

attention to her. She continues, “You did not hear a
word I just said.”

“I did.”
“Repeat what I said then?” She stands with her

hands on her hips and an angry scowl on her face.

“It’s a minute to midnight,” Aunt Lily shouts,

dancing past us.

I grin at Sofia, who rolls her eyes and waltz’s

off while my eyes stray back to the beauty who
looks like she’d rather be anywhere else but in this
room.

The countdown starts, vibrating through my

body.  The  girl  slowly  starts  to  move  toward
Alexander, who looks more panicked than excited.
My  brain  switches  down,  and  before  I  know  what
I’m  doing,  I  lightly  wrap  my  fingers  around  her
delicate  wrist  and  tug  her  from  the  room.  She

follows without digging in her heels.

Out of sight, I press her into the alcove in the

hallway. Her eyes widen, and she nervously chews
on her bottom lip before running her tongue over
the chewed spot. My eyes heat, and I force myself
to meet her gaze. “Tell me your name?” I whisper
as the countdown continues.

Four…three…two…
“Gretchen.”
One.
I press my mouth to hers, which opens with a

gasp of surprise. Her innocence hits me full force at
the  way  she  tentatively  reaches  out  to  my  tongue
with hers. I give her time to get used to our tongues
gently  sliding  together  before  I  angle  my  mouth
over hers and show her what a real kiss feels like.
My  hands  flex,  wanting  to  touch  so  much  more  of
her.  My  brain  starts  working  again,  and  I  know  I
have to stop this…then, she wraps her arms around
my  neck,  her  fingers  digging  into  my  nape.  Her
moan  goes  straight  to  my  dick  while  my  hands  go
straight  to  her  ass.  The  moment  I  start  thrusting
against  her  and  consider  where  I  can  take  her  to
ease  the  ache  I  have  in  my  groin,  I  come  to  a
sudden stop.

I can’t fucking do this to her!
Pulling my mouth free—which is not easy

considering how much I want her—I reach for her
shoulders and hold her away from my body. “We

can’t do this,” I hiss, breathing heavily. “You’re a
nice girl. I’m not a nice guy.”

Tears hover in her emerald green eyes, and I

feel like a bastard. Instead of walking away without
another thought, I cup her face and press my lips to
her forehead and whisper, “You’ve no idea what
I’d like to do to you.” The kiss lingers, and then, I
do move away—not just to another room, but out
of the house.

Large fat snowflakes fall from the sky as I stand

and look up. Closing my eyes, I inhale and exhale
slowly, begging for my body to cool from the fire—
lovely and innocent—Gretchen has ignited.

The girls I meet in Kenza are not the nice girl

next door kind. There is no innocence about them.
Is that why Gretchen called to me—because I felt
her sweet innocence from across the room?

P R E S E NT D A Y - R Y A N

’

BEEN

NEARLY

FOUR

YEARS

SINCE

KISSED

Gretchen at my aunt and uncle’s New Year’s Eve
party. Four years of looking for her in all the other
women I’ve been with since that night. And now
she is in my club. Everyone else disappears because
all I see is her.

Silky red hair shines under the lights and her

cheeks become rosy pink with my eyes on her. She
knows who I am, and I’m betting she knew that
before she even came here this evening.

She still looks sweet and innocent, but since the

time I last saw her, that can’t be true. No way has
she not felt the touch of a man. Anger swiftly
clouds my vision at the thought of someone else
touching her, which is ridiculous.

I shake my head to clear it and finally move my

gaze from Gretchen when I hear someone laugh

close to me—my brother, Jaxon, and he’s here with
his pregnant girlfriend, Poppy. A slight heat creeps
onto my face as I cough to clear my throat from the
lust stuck in there.

With only a slight hesitation, I move closer.

“Two  nights  in  a  row,”  I  comment.  “What  have  I
done  to  deserve  this?”  I  drawl,  casting  a  sidelong
glance  toward  Gretchen,  catching  her  eyes  on  me
before she quickly averts her gaze.

“Who’s the girl?” Jaxon asks.
“What girl?” I ask, but only after casting

another glance toward her.

I’m an idiot.
My brother’s eyes roll, and he laughs. “I’ve

seen  her  before.”  He  taps  a  beer  mat  while
thinking,  and  then  he  announces,  “She  was
Alexander’s  date  for  New  Year  at  Aunt  Lily’s  and
Uncle  Michael’s  before  he  got  together  with
Rachel. I can’t remember her name.”

“Gretchen,” I say immediately. “Leave it.”
Poppy smiles softly and asks, “How long have

you been managing Kenza?”

Relieved to have the subject changed, I reply,

“Around five years.” I shrug and place bottles of
water in front of them. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

Disappearing around to the back of the bar

where it’s dark and quiet, I lean against the boxes
of wine I have stacked up. They’re against a wall,
so not going to tip from my weight. I need a minute

to  catch  my  breath  after  seeing  Gretchen.  She’s
beautiful  and  hasn’t  changed  from  the  last  time  I
saw her. My heart beats hard in my chest knowing
she’s  so  close.  However,  I  force  myself  to
remember why I walked away before, although the
reason  doesn’t  mean  I  don’t  want  to  go  and  claim
the girl.

I need my head screwed on right.
Nothing has changed.
I’m still Ryan, the carefree womanizer.
I can’t even deny that about myself. My

womanizing  increased  after  Gretchen,  and  it  eats
away at me. I’m more stained than I was before. I
joke and fool around with my family and friends. I
flirt with the females who spend time in Kenza and
do  a  lot  more  with  some.  None  of  them  have  ever
appealed  to  me  on  a  more  permanent  level.  Until
recently,  it  had  never  bothered  me.  Being  the  only
McKenzie  without  a  significant  other  to  take  to
family  events  has  started  getting  to  me—not  that
I’ll ever admit that to anyone.

Gretchen, though, I see so much more, and I

shouldn’t. She’s too sweet to want to be with
someone like me.

I run my hands through my hair, cursing,

“Fuck!”

“Hey, boss? You back here?” Rob pauses when

he sees me.

Clearing my throat, I ask, “Everything okay?”

“I need to take a leak.”
I chuckle. “Go.”
Moving out from my hiding spot, I cast another

glance over to where Gretchen was, and she’s gone.
My eyes search, but I don’t see the girl.

For the best!
Not having far to look for my brother, I grimace

at him and his girlfriend getting it on. “Can you
two”—I lean close—“please not have sex on my
bar?”

Giggling, Poppy hides her face against Jaxon’s

chest.

“You need to get laid,” Jaxon comments.
“And you need to take your girl home,” I say,

grinning. “Otherwise, I’ll call Dad.” I wink and
move away, hiding how miserable I’m suddenly
feeling.

My family would laugh if they knew the

carefree bachelor was lonely. Don’t get me wrong,
as much as I love babies, I’m in no rush to become
a Dad. Thought alone scares me to death—a small
baby relying on me for everything. I shudder at the
thought. However, having a girl to call my own has
started to sound nice. Really nice in fact.

Clearing my throat, I ignore the smirk on Rob’s

face as he joins me. “The ladies at the far end have
been asking about you?”

My eyes stray in that direction, and on any

other night, I’d be over there, sweet-talking my

way inside the girl’s panties. Not tonight. Tonight,
I’m going home alone.

“You’re not going to go over and talk to her?”

Rob questions. “Are you coming down with
something?” He presses his hand to my forehead,
which I knock away laughing.

“Asshole!” I hiss and give him my back.
I hear him laughing as he moves down the bar

to entertain the girls with his version of charm and
wit.

Shaking my head, I occupy myself with drying

glasses. I may be the boss, but I’m a firm believer
in digging in with the rest of the staff. I’d be bored
out of my mind stuck in an office all day and night.

As it is, the crowd has thinned out, meaning I

don’t need to be involved in the serving of drinks.

Unable to help myself, I cast my eyes over the

large room once again and don’t find what I’m
looking for or rather whom I’m looking for.

“She’s in the far corner,” Rob laughs when my

eyes snap to his. “She’s hot. Don’t blame you for
looking.”

I scowl and ignoring Rob, my eyes search the

dark corners of the club. My heart flutters when the
lights briefly catch her red hair. Since I last saw
Gretchen, I’d only have to walk past a woman with
red hair and I’d be taking a second glance—hoping
it would be Gretchen even though I had no idea
what I would have done had it been her.

My cousin, Alexander, would have known how

to get in touch with her if I’d only asked. I hadn’t,
no matter how tempted I’d been. Gretchen and I,
had been at a different place in our lives.

I’d been managing Kenza alone for twelve

months,  and  she’d  looked  so  young—a  college
student.  A  clever  one  as  well  from  what  I
discovered online. Social media isn’t something she
took  a  lot  of  time  over,  but  there  had  been  posts
now  and  again.  The  photos  saved  on  my  phone
were buried, so only I knew how to bring them up.
I’m  not  a  stalker,  but  I  couldn’t  help  myself  from
checking her out, seeing what was happening in her
life.

It's the first time I’ve seen her in the flesh since

the night she knocked me on my ass with such a
powerful kiss.

“If you clean that glass anymore, it’s going to

break.”

Blinking, I force my eyes to the glass in my

hands. “Okay, smartass.” I laugh and snap the hand
towel on his arm.

He grabs it and snapping it back, tosses it at me.

“That’s why you hired me.”

“Shut the fuck up, and announce we’re closing

in ten minutes.”

I refrain from looking for Gretchen because she

mixes me up inside. Hopefully, she won’t keep
coming back to the club. Lifting my hand, I rub the

ache in my chest as I admit the lie. I do want her in
my club. I want her in here, alone, sitting at the bar
with her attention on me alone.

Rubbing a hand down my face, I sigh, feeling

tired  and  damn  lonely.  The  woman  from  earlier
appears, moving toward me like she has a mission. I
know what she expects from me. However, I’m not
inclined  to  give  her  that.  I’ve  been  going  through
the  motions  with  countless  women.  It  isn’t  what  I
want. Not any longer.

My family knows me as the one who likes to

play. Thanks to Jaxon hooking up with the Prof,
I’m the only single one amongst the family now. I
enjoyed being single. Now, I think I want what my
cousins have—a real home with a girl of my own.

“You look tired,” the woman says in a voice

meant to entice. “I’m sure I could”—she glances to
my groin and back—“wake you up.” Her pouty red
lips do nothing for me. She is attractive and perhaps
if I hadn’t seen Gretchen tonight, I would have
taken the woman in front of me up on what she is
offering. Then again, maybe not.

Stepping back, I say, “We’re closing.” I nod

toward the exit. “Have a nice evening.”

Her gasp of surprise hits my ears as I turn and

walk away. Rob stares from his position behind the
bar, and I give him the finger as I head down the
hallway and into the office.

Dropping my tired ass into the chair behind the

large mahogany desk, I sit back and try and relax.
The desk I casually rest my feet on has been in this
office since before I was born. My dad had hauled
it in here with one of his brothers before the club
had opened.

Sighing heavily, I find relaxing is easier said

than done when my head is full of thoughts of
Gretchen. I want to be selfish and take what I want
from her. However, I already know that I’ll want a
whole lot more than I ever have from anyone with
Gretchen.

Her sweet innocence has played hell with my

mind and body since that night and I have a feeling
it’s  going  to  be  worse  than  ever  now  she’s
reappeared  in  my  life.  The  sexy  innocent  needs  a
man who isn’t a flirt or manwhore. A scowl creeps
onto  my  face  at  the  last  thought.  I  need  to  change
so I’m the only man she’ll look at.

Not only do I want her trust, but I need to

figure  out  exactly  what  else  I  do  want  from  her
because  I  don’t  have  a  fucking  clue  how  to  be  a
boyfriend. Boyfriend.  I  like  the  sound  of  that.  Not
too  long  ago,  I’d  run  like  hell  if  that  word  was
mentioned.  For  now,  I’m  going  to  give  myself  six
months  to  live  like  a  fucking  monk.  No  partying.
No dating. And definitely, no sex. I can do this with
Gretchen being the end game.

Six months.
I can do this!

GR E T C H E N

YAN

ENZIE

BEHIND

THE

BAR

HIS

FAMILY

owned  club  looks  more  enticing  than  he  had  been
the night he’d kissed me in the most fantastic way.
A  way  that  I  haven’t  been  able  to  forget.  His  lips
hadn’t  just  pressed  gently  against  mine—they’d
been firm and demanding. His tongue had been hot
and  slippery.  My  body  had  become  swollen  and
achy  with  a  need  I  hadn’t  experienced  before  or
since.

In the dark corner that I’ve moved to after he’d

spotted  me  in  the  opposite  corner,  I  still  have  the
perfect  view  of  him.  The  man  oozes  testosterone.
He dresses in black jeans, fitted to his firm ass. His
black  button-down  is  open  at  the  neck,  stretching
across his chest as he moves. Don’t get me started
on the strength I see in his arms. The shirt has been
pushed up his forearms and his biceps strain against

the fabric. What I wouldn’t give to have those arms
around  me  again—to  be  pressed  tightly  against  his
body  so  that  his  erection  gets  trapped  between  us.
I’ve imagined many times what it would feel like to
have  his  long  thick  cock  sliding  inside  of  me…of
course,  having  never  had  one  inside  of  me  before,
it’s hard to imagine properly.

I’ve waited a long time to come back to

Lexington  and  see  Ryan.  I’d  wanted  to  find  out
whether  or  not  my  reaction  to  him  that  New  Year
had been blown way out of proportion. Looking at
him  now,  I  knew  it  hadn’t.  I’m  sure  he  recognized
me,  so  why  hadn’t  he  acknowledged  the  fact?
Perhaps, that evening hadn’t been as memorable to
him  as  it  had  been  to  me.  I  mean,  it  had  changed
my  whole  life  in  the  seconds  our  mouths  had
connected, and our bodies had pressed together.

My head is telling me to leave this alone—go

back to Boston and forget all about Ryan
McKenzie. It’s what I should do. However, I’m not
ready to do that yet. Over the next week, I’ll do
everything I can to attract his attention to the point
that he approaches me because I’m not sure I dare
to approach him.

Not like the woman who approaches him now

with  all  her  curves  visible  and  breasts  larger  than
melons.  Her  fingernails  flash  under  the  light,  and
Ryan  barely  misses  those  claws.  I  smile  as  he
shakes  his  head  and  backs  away  from  the  woman.

He snaps something to her, and then gives the
bartender the finger, before he disappears down the
‘staff only’ hallway.

My heart pounds, knowing he turned her away.

Is  it  because  he’s  seen  me?  My  belly  is  full  of
nerves  making  me  feel  unsettled  at  the  thought.  I
want  to  hope  I  had  something  to  do  with  that
rejection  I  witnessed.  Ryan  won’t  have  behaved
with the women—that I do know. I’m aware of his
reputation just like I had been all those years ago.

Not liking the way my thoughts have turned, I

move toward the bar and place my empty glass on
the black granite surface.

“I’m Rob.” The bartender appears and moving

my glass out of his way, leans on the bar. “I’ve
noticed you like the boss, huh?” He grins. “And
you are?”

Heat creeps onto my face. “Gretchen.”
“Nice name.” He glances around and adds

under his breath, “Will we see you tomorrow
night?”

Nodding, I swallow around the lump in my

throat. “I’ll be here.”

“Good. I think it’s going to be fun.”
I frown, wondering what he meant by fun and

move through Kenza to the street outside. The Uber
I  ordered  is  waiting,  so  I  jump  inside.  After
confirming  my  destination,  I  settle  back  for  the
short  five-minute  journey.  I  would  have  walked,

however, at two o’clock in the morning, I grab a
ride.

The 21c Museum Hotel is central, modern, and

welcoming. I tip the Uber driver and have the door
opened by the hotel doorman, who has a warm
smile.

“Did you have a good evening?” he enquires

while I retrieve the keycard I have to use if I want
the elevator to move upwards—it doubles as a
room key.

“I did. Thank you.”
In minutes, I’m locked behind my bedroom

door and I let out a deep sigh.

I did it.
I went on my own to a nightclub. Not only did I

do that with my knees trembling, but I stayed for
hours watching Ryan.

He probably thinks I’m a stalker or something,

which is, um, maybe a little bit accurate. I’m not
crazy or anything, though.

Kicking my shoes off, I flex my aching toes

after they’ve been squished in the high heels all
evening.

The soft pile carpet feels good as I move into

the  bathroom,  stripping  my  clothing  as  I  go.  The
cold  air  conditioning  pebbles  my  nipples,  making
them  ache.  I  turn  the  shower  on  and  while  I’m
waiting  for  it  to  warm  up,  I  look  at  myself  in  the
mirror  over  the  sink.  I  spread  my  fingers  over  my

R Y A N

“ S

’

HERE

AGAIN

,” R

SAYS

I glance at him with a brow raised when he

indicates with his head toward the dark corner
closest to the bar.

My heart lurches in my chest as I move away

from  my  annoying  friend  and  assistant  manager.  It
takes  control  not  to  stare  in  the  direction  Rob
indicated.  Instead,  I  continue  placing  cleaned
glasses back on the shelves and slowly cast my eyes
around the room. I try not to be too obvious about
it…and then there she is.

The moment my eyes focus on the girl, she

quickly  averts  her  gaze.  I  smile,  knowing  she’s
watching me as closely as I’m going to be watching
her.  I’m  under  no  illusion  that  the  sexy  girl  knows
exactly who I am. Just like I know exactly who she
is—the  girl  I’ve  been  unable  to  forget.  On  nights

alone,  I  remember  the  feel  of  her  lips  on  mine.  I
remember  the  way  she’d  clung  to  me—her  soft
curves against my harder shape. My cock had been
so  hard  from  the  moment  our  lips  had  met  that  an
hour later, I’d been in the shower with my hand for
pleasure.

Giving my back to the growing crowd, I quickly

slip  my  hand  into  my  jeans  and  straighten  my
throbbing  dick.  I  get  some  relief  now  that  it’s  not
squashed.  Knowing  she’s  so  close  yet  so  far  is  a
cause of frustration.

Rob laughs as he moves past my loitering figure

to reach for a new bottle of vodka. “What’s gotten
into you?” he asks on his way back to finish making
the cocktail.

“Nothing.”
“That’s what women say when they mean

everything is wrong.”

“Shut up,” I hiss. “Don’t I pay you to serve the

customers?”

“Don’t worry, I won’t be charging you extra for

the advice.”

“I should hope not considering you haven’t

given me any.”

Rob pauses. “Go and talk to her.” He grins.

“That’s your advice!”

“Idiot,” I mumble. “I have paperwork to do.”
Rob grins and shakes his head.
A guy is allowed to go and work—hide—in his

office.

Without one more glance in Gretchen’s

direction, I forcibly shove my sleeves up. I come to
a surprising stop when I recognize my cousin
blocking the way through to the office.

My grin widens as we hug tight. Levi is a

second cousin. He’s the son of my father’s cousin,
Dante De La Fuente and his wife, Emelia. Growing
up, we’d see a lot of Levi and his sister, Emma,
because they lived in Essex, Vermont, while the rest
of their family lived in Montana.

“Not that I’m complaining,” I say, my arm

around his shoulders while leading him to the
office, “but, to what do I owe this visit?”

Levi grins. “I’ve finally got the money together

to open another Emelia’s here in Lexington.” He
laughs.

“Sooner rather than later, huh?”
“Hmm.” He sits back in the guest chair and

rests an ankle on his knee while he debates how to
say what he’s here for. I know him that well.

“Go in with me.”
I blink a few times, thinking I’ve misheard and

Levi laughs. “Never thought I’d see the day you’re
left speechless.”

Shaking my head, I reply, “We talked about this

years ago.”

Levi nods. “When your parents took you, Sofia

and Jaxon, on holiday to Vermont.”

I frown. “You wouldn’t stop looking at Sofia as

I recall.”

“What can I say she was hot. Still is.”
My frown deepens and he laughs. “Sofia is like

a sister to me, get your head out of your ass.”

“Leave my sister out of this and you might have

a deal.” I sit forward, resting my hands on the desk.
“Do you think this could work between us?”

“I don’t see why not. It’s what we used to talk

about  as  teenagers.  As  adults,  you’ve  been
managing  Kenza  for  years.  I’ve  been  managing
Emelia’s  in  Essex  alongside  my  sister  for  three
years.  I’ve  talked  to  Emma  about  this  and  she’s
more  than  happy  to  stay  in  Essex.  Mom  and  Dad
are  onboard  with  the  plan.  Emma  is  going  to  be
involved at some point.”

“You have it all planned.”
“I want you to come and see the building with

me tomorrow.” He stretches in the chair. “I’ll email
you  the  plans  and  proposal.  The  building  is  run
down  and  I  own  it.”  He  grins.  “I  wasn’t  letting  a
bargain  get  away  from  me.  It’s  out  past  the
Kentucky  Horse  Park  in  a  small  town,  Blossom
Creek.  Just  remember,  it  needs  a  lot  of  work.  It’s
more the location that I want you to see. The view
behind is worth everything. It’s amazing, Ryan.”

“I believe you.” I have paperwork on my desk

and bills needing paying, but I’m excited to see
what Levi has planned. “Send me that email in the

next hour and I’ll read it tonight.”

“Will do.” He stands and glances toward the

door. “I think I might hang around for a while. Lots
of pretty ladies out there.”

Rolling my eyes, I add, “Email me before

leaving this office. Otherwise, you’ll get carried
away and forget.”

A few seconds after punching buttons on his

phone, he slips it into his back pocket. “Done.” He
leaves the office door open and shouts over his
shoulder, “I’m hoping the redhead is still out
there.”

I scramble from behind the desk and jog to

catch up to him, which I do, and steer him over to
the bar. “Let me get you a drink on the house.”

“I thought you had work to do?” His head turns

as he looks around the club. “She’s gone.”

My head snaps to the corner where Gretchen

has been partly hidden, and to my dismay, she has
gone. When I look at Levi, his eyes are filled with
humor. “I watched you watching her when I
arrived. I couldn’t resist teasing you. She watched
you too if you want to know.”

“Asshole,” I mumble, secretly excited to hear

she had her eyes on me.

Levi laughs, tips his beer toward me in a salute.
I leave him to it.
A smile on my lips as my cousin disappears

through the crowd of people on the dance floor. It

soon  slips  when  I  realize  Gretchen  has  left.  It
doesn’t  stop  me  from  slowly  searching  over  the
sweaty bodies for her. I do see Levi dancing with a
couple of girls. They’re regular and always up for a
good  time.  Unfortunately,  I  have  firsthand
knowledge of that.

Wincing, I continue looking but don’t see

Gretchen anywhere.

Has she left?
Before I even realize what I’m doing, the cold

evening air hits me in the face. I’m standing on the
sidewalk watching cabs pull away from the club. I
don’t see her. Then again, the pavement is bustling
with people waiting to get inside the club. Even
though she has a head of red hair, her petite frame
keeps her hidden.

GR E T C H E N

IVE

DAYS

LATER

AND

I’

STILL

CLOSER

talking  to  Ryan  than  I  was  when  I  first  arrived  in
Lexington.  If  I  weren’t  frustrated,  I’d  love  this
game  I  seem  to  have  fallen  into.  However,  I  am
frustrated.  I  want  his  sole  attention  on  me  and  not
on the women who bid for his attention when he’s
working  the  bar.  He’s  flirty  and  although  I’m  well
aware  of  his  reputation  with  the  ladies,  so  far,  I
haven’t  seen  anything  to  believe  he’s  really  like
that.

As I wiggle into the red dress and pull it down

over  my  bottom,  I  gasp  when  I  catch  sight  of
myself in the mirror. I chew on my bottom lip as I
try  and  tug  at  the  material  of  the  dress  to  cover
more  flesh.  It  doesn’t  work.  When  I  bought  this
sexy number, I had no idea I’d be so revealed.

The top part of the dress is made up of four

pieces of material—two at the front and two at the
back—they  are  held  together  with  a  jeweled
choker.  My  intention  tonight  by  dressing  in  this
seductive  way  is  to  get  his  attention  to  the  point
that he reacts.

Slipping my feet into the matching red high-

heels, I twirl in front of the mirror, knowing I look
hot. I feel uncomfortable, though. This is going to
be the first and last time I’m ever in anything
remotely like this. I’d much prefer yoga pants and a
t-shirt with everything covered. Even a skater dress
with a pair of boots is preferred.

Inhaling deeply, I grab my purse and quickly

leave the hotel room before I can change my mind.
In the elevator, an older man and his wife join me
on the floor below. My nerves are so profound at
this

point

that

I’m

surprised

I’m

not

hyperventilating on the floor. The man only stares,
making  me  so  uncomfortable  that  I  scramble  out
and  quickly  walk  outside  to  where  the  doorman
gives  me  a  second  glance  before  whistling  for  a
cab.

My heart pounds until I arrive at the club. The

moment security spots me, I’m waved through into
the  beautiful  place.  In  part,  I  wonder  whether  or
not  Ryan  has  said  something  to  security  because
each  night  I’ve  been  here,  I  haven’t  had  to  wait
outside. That first night I had for a short time until
the  security  guard  had  taken  pity  on  me  waiting

alone. Kenza is a popular place and the word is that
nothing illegal goes on at the club. The McKenzie
family has a strict policy on the subject of drugs or
any kind of underhand dealings.

Thinking of Ryan, he’s already behind the bar

serving  drinks  to  the  flirting  ladies.  He  appears
distracted  from  where  I’m  standing,  while  he’s
keeping  an  eye  on  the  dark-haired  man.  The  man
has been at the bar for the past few nights.

A throat being cleared drags my gaze to Rob

leaning across the bar toward me. His eyes are full
of mischief as he looks me over before casting a
glance toward his boss. He chuckles. “What can I
get you this evening, Gretchen?”

“Water, please.”
“Coming up.”
I swallow around the lump in my throat and

force myself to concentrate on the man getting me
a bottle of water from the small fridge behind him.

“Are you sure you don’t want anything

stronger?” He asks me this each evening.

I shake my head and notice his eyes shift to my

hair that falls around my shoulders.

“I have a feeling the boss is going to need a

drink when he catches sight of you.”

“Oh.” My legs feel weak as the man disappears

to serve other customers.

His words give my confidence a boost, so

before I end up on my ass on the floor, I move into

my  corner.  It’s  challenging  to  keep  my  gaze
elsewhere,  but  I  read  an  article  online  last  night
about ignoring the man you want. It said if he’s as
interested  in  you,  then  being  ignored  will  irritate
him  and  have  him  making  the  first  move.  So,  I’m
trying  that  out.  If  it  doesn’t  work,  I’ll  be  leaving  a
negative review.

Keeping my gaze away from the bar, I search

around  looking  for  a  man—a  red  herring.  I  find
him. Medium build with shaggy blond hair. He’s in
a  group  of  three  men  drinking  beer.  He’ll  do.  He
appears safe because his attention is on his friends
as  they  talk.  I  don’t  want  to  encourage  anyone  to
approach  me.  I  shudder  at  the  thought  and  would
have  no  clue  how  to  handle  that  situation.  I’m  not
all that sure how to handle Ryan if I’m honest with
myself. Something is compelling me to go after him.
It’s not only lust. I want to be near him. I do want
to  experience  being  in  his  arms  again,  but  there  is
more to it than that. I wish I could put my finger on
it. However, I can’t.

“I haven’t seen you before.”
I’m pulled from my woolgathering by the guy

I’ve been staring at. My stomach dips as he moves
closer, his eyes staring at my boobs.

“Gretchen!”
I jump, hearing my name shouted seconds

before an arm wraps around my waist from behind.

“Don’t fight me,” Ryan hisses, moving me to

his side.

“I saw her first,” the man glares, making no

move to go away.

“She’s been mine for four fucking years.” Ryan

tightens his hold and marches me from the central
part of the club, down a hallway, and into an office.

He lifts me by the hips and plonks my ass down

on his desk. His eyes, when I work up the courage
to  meet  them,  are  dark  and  heated.  I  lick  my  lips
and  watch  his  eyes  narrow  before  I  feel  his  hands
on  my  legs.  They  slide  upwards  and  he  pushes  my
knees so that I open to him. He wastes no time and
grabbing  my  ass  brings  me  up  against  the  front  of
his jeans as he steps between my spread legs.

His face is inches from mine as I wrap my

hands around his biceps. There is a lot of strength
in this man and I want it all. I want him.

I slide my hands up over his shoulders and feel

him shudder at my touch on the nape of his neck.

Ryan drops his forehead to mine and holds my

gaze. “You looked at me. Tonight, you looked at
him. I didn’t like it.”

“It got your attention,” I whisper.
“You’ve had my fucking attention for four

years, Gretchen.”

“Then why have you ignored me?”
Breathing heavily, Ryan catches his breath

when I wiggle my hips, rubbing on the hardness
pressing against my softness. “When I saw you in

the club for the first time, I told myself I had to go
six  months  without  sex.  It’s  been  two  up  to  your
arrival  here.  I  had  four  months  to  go.”  He  rotates
his  hips.  “I  lasted  days,  Gretchen—fucking  days
before I came after you.”

Frowning, my hands drop from around his neck

and  I  push  him  away,  wiggling  from  his  desk.  I
stumble  slightly  in  the  high  heels  and  end  up
dropping down into the chair opposite his desk. He
looms  over  me,  as  I  ask,  “What  you’re  saying  is
that you’ve abstained from sex for two months and
I’m convenient?”

Ryan narrows his eyes and very slowly perches

on the desk. He crosses his ankles and grips the side
of his desk. My eyes stray to the bulge behind his
zipper—that he doesn’t try to hide—before I drag
them up to his face. The asshole smirks.

“There is nothing convenient about you,

Gretchen.” He pauses. “Four years ago, you blew
my head off with that kiss.” His jaw twitches. “I
had to jerk off three times that night before I could
sleep.”

The pulse between my legs throbs while I feel

my breasts swell, my nipples tight as I inhale
nervous breaths. Ryan’s gaze dips and as he stares
at my breasts, he grows thicker between his legs.

Averting my gaze, I feel a blush creeping up my

neck and onto my face.

Ryan gently grips my jaw in a large hand and

turns  my  attention  back  to  him.  “The  reputation
that  proceeds  me  is  from  when  I  was  fresh  out  of
college  and  really  enjoying  life.  That  hasn’t  been
me  in  a  long  time.”  He  winces.  “I’m  not  a  choir
boy.  However,  these  days  you’d  think  so.”  He
clears his throat and moves to sit behind his desk.

My body feels alive from the way he’s looking

at me and I find my voice has deserted me. What
I’d say to him, though, is unclear because all I want
to do is walk around his desk and sit on his lap.

R Y A N

“ G

RETCHEN

,” I

HISS

COMP OSURE

breaking. Doesn’t she realize how much I want her?
How many times I’ve imagined her lying on my
desk while I lick her pussy.

The innocence surrounding her tells me to go

slow.  However,  I  wish  my  body  would  get  the
message.  My  cock  is  hard  and  thick,  leaking
precum in my pants with how aroused I am for the
beautiful girl. Her sexy legs are smooth and begging
for  me  to  continue  touching.  Gretchen’s  arousal  is
easy  for  me  to  see  in  the  way  her  breathing  has
changed.  Her  round  breasts  have  swelled,  and  the
hard tips press against the material of the thing she
calls  a  dress.  I  struggle  to  look  away,  especially
when I’m wondering if she has a nipple piercing.

My eyes watch as she fidgets in the chair before

slipping her tongue between those plump lips and

licking along them. I have a visceral reaction to the
tempting girl with the head of my cock, ready to fly
off. The image of those red lips wrapped around me
has my eyes snapping closed while I concentrate on
breathing through my frustration. “We need to talk.
Just give me a minute.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” she whispers.

“Ryan?”

I open my eyes and see her head tilted to the

side with a frown on her beautiful face.

“I’m an asshole.” Standing, I hold my hand out.

“Let’s  get  out  of  my  office.”  My  fingers  wrap
securely  around  hers.  And  much  to  her  delight,  I
bring  her  hand  up  to  my  lips,  where  I  leave  a
lingering kiss. I love how her cheeks go rosy when
she has my full attention.

“I don’t suppose you have a t-shirt I can

borrow?” she asks her tongue once again, slipping
between her lips. It might be a nervous gesture, but
it turns me the fuck on.

What did she ask? T-shirt!
“Why?”
She sighs. “Now I have your attention, I’d be

more comfortable if I were covered back up.”

I give her a wolfish grin and chuckle. “You

have no idea how much I appreciate this dress.” I
trail a finger down from her collarbone to above her
belly button. Her skin breaks out in goosebumps,
hardening her nipples. My hand is so close and I’m

dying of curiosity.

Holding her gaze, I slowly stroke the skin at her

side before moving my hand upwards and slipping
it inside to cup a full breast. Gretchen catches her
breath, trembling from my touch. She grabs hold of
my biceps, clinging to me. Her head drops back and
she moans.

I’m in dangerous territory now because I don’t

want to make love to this girl in my bar. I want to
spread her out on my bed, where we can stay for a
long time.

Her reaction, though, is an aphrodisiac and with

my thumb and finger, I hunt for the hard nub.
When I find it, I nearly fucking come in my jeans at
the feel of that pierced nipple.

I tingle from the top of my head to the tip of my

toes and everything hard in between. Gretchen
moans, her breasts heaving with every twist and tug
I do to her nipple. I can’t get enough and have to
see it.

Pressing her up against the wall with my hips, I

shove the material covering her beautiful breasts
out of the way and know I’m about to react like a
fucking teenager.

The silver ring is hooked through a nipple and I

can’t  hold  off  any  longer.  I  don’t  know  why  a
nipple ring is turning me on, but fuck if I don’t care.
She’s  the  sexiest  girl  I’ve  ever  seen.  Capturing  the
bud  in  my  mouth,  I  let  my  tongue  play  with  the

silver  in  between  sucking  and  tugging  with  my
mouth  and  teeth.  The  other  doesn’t  go  unattended
as  I  squeeze  and  rub  with  my  fingers  while
Gretchen rubs frantically against my cock.

With my balls ready to explode and my cock

leaking  precum  behind  my  zipper,  I  finally  come
back  to  my  senses.  Holding  Gretchen  steady,  I
slowly  lick  around  her  nipple  before  lifting  my
gaze.  Her  cheeks  are  flaming  red  while  she
struggles for breath.

Good!
I’m glad I’m not the only one having a hard

time—no  pun  intended—pulling  back.  My  hands
tremble  as  I  cover  her  gorgeous  tits  before  resting
my  forehead  against  hers.  “A  nipple  ring,”  I
whisper, unable to hide the lust in my gaze knowing
what she has hidden under her clothing.

Gretchen swallows hard and says, “I’m a good

girl. I don’t do anything spontaneously.” Her
cheeks grow hotter and I grin in delight.

“I’d say that was spontaneous combustion.”
“Yes, well.” She pauses. “I was teased on my

twenty-first birthday for being more into reading
than being wild. So,” she smirked, “I showed them
I could be wild if I wanted to and got the piercing. I
went in and made an appointment. Paid. Told the
woman I’d be back after I had numbed the coming
pain.”

“In other words, you got drunk as a skunk

before letting someone touch your boob, huh?”

“Something like that.”
“Well, whatever led up to you having it done,

I’m really grateful.” I wiggle my brows and kiss the
tip of her nose. “It’s such a big fucking turn on.”
Shoving a hand to the front of my jeans, I rearrange
my cock into a more comfortable position.

“I took a chance coming here, Ryan. This isn’t

like me. At all.”

“Why did you keep coming back?” I wrap my

fingers with hers, needing to keep the connection
we have going. I want her to talk to me and not be
embarrassed.

“I wanted you to remember me.”
I burst out laughing. “I never forgot you. I

spotted you the first night you were in my club.”

She winces. “I’m in town for a few more days.”
My stomach drops, hearing a few more days.

She can’t leave now she’s back in my life.

“Ryan?”
“Move in with me,” I blurt before I can form

any other words. “I mean, I have space. There are
two bedrooms upstairs. You’ll save money not
staying in a hotel, and unless you have something to
do in Boston, then…stay with me.”

We’ll share a bed.
Letting out a loud breath, she moves away and

my fingers twitch to pull her back so that she’s
close. Having her across the office means I can no

longer smell the light flora scent that I get a whiff
of every time she moves her head.

“I didn’t think this far ahead. I only wanted to

get you to notice me. I wanted to know if what you
made me feel four years ago had been real.”

“And was it?”
She nods, giving me a shy glance. “I can’t just

move in with you.”

With the way she hesitates, I know she wants

to. “I’ve never had another woman in my
apartment.”

She raises a brow and laughs. “You expect me

to believe that Mr. Casanova?”

I deserved that after my reputation, but it hurts

hearing it from her lips.

“Ryan?” She reaches for me, pressing her hands

against my chest. “I’m sorry. I was teasing with that
name. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I’m not like that.
It’s just all so sudden. One minute I’m in the club in
this ridiculous dress desperate for you to notice me,
and the next, we’re all hot and bothered in your
office, and then,” she rapidly inhales and exhales,
“and then, you’re asking me to move in with you.”

“My reputation has followed me through the

years  since  I  first  started  working  at  Kenza.”  I
cover  her  hands  and  press  them  into  my  chest.  “I
promise,  Gretchen.”  I  kiss  her  forehead  and  add,
“No  girl,  unless  we’re  related,  has  stepped  foot  in
my  apartment.  It’s  my  space  and  I’ve  never

welcomed anyone in there. It irritates me having
family visit me, if you must know. So, the fact I’ve
asked you to move in there with me is a huge step
for me too. However, I’m serious. I don’t want you
in Boston. I want you here with me. Four years ago,
I walked away because I didn’t know what the fuck
had happened to me when I kissed you.” I chuckle.
“You scared me to fucking death.”

“You’ve been in my dreams ever since. My lips

tingled that night, not to mention other parts of my
body.”

“Is that so?” I try to hide a laugh,

unsuccessfully  I  might  add.  “Parts  of  me  tingled
too.”  I  press  a  lingering  kiss  to  her  cheek.  “So,
tomorrow,  we’ll  pick  your  stuff  up  from  the  hotel
and move you in here, right? I’ll give you a key.” I
slip an arm around her waist and tugging her close,
drop  my  face  into  the  curve  of  her  neck.  “Please
say yes.”

“My heart’s racing,” she murmurs.
“Does that mean, yes?”
“What if I don’t want a separate room?”
I tighten my hold around her before slowly

separating our bodies. The caveman in me wants to
say,  “fuck  it,”  and  yank  her  panties  off  and  have
her  spread  out  on  my  desk  while  I  pound  into  her.
Unfortunately,  the  decent  guy  in  me  forces  my
body  to  get  ahold  of  itself.  “If  you’d  rather  share
my bedroom, I won’t have any complaints.”

“Didn’t think you would, but it’s nice to have it

confirmed.”

“We’re still in the office, which isn’t a good

idea  as  I  can’t  keep  my  hands  off  of  you.”  I  open
the  door  and  taking  her  hand,  move  us  into  the
hallway.  “I  forgot  you  wanted  a  t-shirt.”  I  glance
around.  “Come  to  the  bar  with  me  for  a  few
minutes and then I’ll get you settled upstairs.”

“I can go back to the hotel tonight.”
“Hell, no!” I wince at the sharpness of my

words. “It’s okay.” I squeeze her hand. “I have this
need to make sure you stay where I put you.”
Stopping abruptly, she slams into my back. I turn
and grip her shoulders. “I don’t know what the fuck
is wrong with me.” I shake my head. “Look, I know
I’m coming across controlling, but I’m not, okay?”

“Oh?” She cocks a brow and it’s the hottest

thing.

“Maybe a little bit,” I concede.
“I’ve already agreed, Ryan. I don’t have any

plans to leave.”

“Good.” I quickly kiss her smiling lips and

putting her in front of me, walk her toward the bar
and Rob, who can’t wipe the smirk off of his face.

GR E T C H E N

ELAXING

YAN

’

HUGE

BED

, I

CAN

’

SLEEP

matter which way I turn. The t-shirt he gave me is
comfortable, but I have a belly full of nerves. He
showed me the spare room after getting me a shirt
to wear and left me to decide which bed I wanted
to sleep in.

I’d chosen his room the moment I’d seen his

unmade  bed.  I  knew  it  would  smell  of  him,  which
probably  explains  why  I’m  struggling  to  sleep.  It’s
late,  gone  two  in  the  morning  and  Ryan  has  only
just  come  back  into  his  apartment  above  the  club.
The  soundproofing  works  its  magic  because  I
haven’t  heard  a  sound.  Not  even  the  sound  of
traffic in the street has gotten through the windows.

Feigning sleep, I wait with anticipation as I

sense Ryan standing in the doorway of his bedroom
with his eyes on me. I know this without even

having  to  turn  my  head  and  look  at  him.  I’m  not
sure  whether  to  let  him  know  I’m  awake  or  to
continue pretending I’m asleep. While I’m trying to
make  my  mind  up,  I  hear  the  rustling  of  clothes.
The light in the bathroom goes on, followed by the
shower.

Willing myself to sleep before he climbs in the

bed, my eyes snap open when I hear a loud groan.
The sound suddenly cut off, followed by a curse.

My body grows hot and uncomfortable when I

realize he probably did more than shower. Heat
rushes into my cheeks and I feel my nipples tighten
into hard buds. I swallow around the lust rising and
try not to fidget. The man is going to kill me with
need at this rate.

The light goes off in the bathroom and I try and

listen  for  his  footfalls.  However,  my  pulse  is
throbbing so hard through my ears that I can’t hear
anything.  The  bed  dips  and  then  I  feel  him  sliding
under  the  covers  with  me  seconds  before  a  warm
arm wraps around my belly, tugging me against him.

“I know you’re awake,” he whispers into my

ear, sending goosebumps racing down my spine.
“Did you hear me?”

My face is on fire, but I’ve waited a long time

to be with this man. My embarrassment has no
place in this room with us. “I heard you.” I swallow
around the lump in my throat, and ask, “Did it feel
good spilling all over your hand?”

He presses his hips into my ass. “It didn’t feel

as good as it will coming inside you.”

I moan and rock against his long and thick

erection.

Ryan asks, “Did it make you wet, knowing

what I was doing?”

“Find out,” I dare, wanting his hands on me

more than anything.

His arm around me tightens before he lays the

palm  of  his  hand  on  my  belly  and  spreads  his
fingers  wide.  He  slowly  pulls  the  t-shirt  up  until
he’s  touching  bare  skin.  Unable  to  help  myself,  I
wiggle  in  his  hold.  The  ache  I  feel  is  deep  and
needy and I can’t catch a breath. My impatience is
growing for his touch where I ache.

Laughing, Ryan uses his other hand and lifts the

back of the t-shirt, baring my ass. I want to die of
embarrassment, but the moment he presses his
pulsing cock between my cheeks, I can’t think.

“No panties,” Ryan mumbles, his dick jerking

against my bottom.

I reach up for his hand on my belly and slowly

pull him lower. He chuckles, which turns into a low
growl as his fingers slide over my mound and
continue moving until they’re pushing through my
arousal.

I find myself flipped over to my back. He

nudges my legs open and kneels between. His eyes
glitter, dark and filled with lust. “Get rid of the t-

shirt.”

Tossing it to the floor, Ryan stares at my chest. I

have to fight with the urge to cover myself. My
breasts shake as I breathe slowly and my legs
twitch, wrapping around his waist.

“Fuck!” Ryan pants. “You are so beautiful that

I don’t know what to touch first.”

A spontaneous laugh bursts out of my mouth,

stunning Ryan…and just like that, I’m comfortable
being naked and turned on with the man. I smirk. “I
know exactly what you want to touch first.” I raise
a brow and play with the ring through my nipple.

Ryan wraps a hand around his shaft and slowly

strokes himself as I play, arching upwards.

“Stop!” Both my wrists are pinned over my

head with his large hands as he comes down over
me.

My breasts tingle as the hair on his chest teases

them  while  his  dick  throbs  and  leaks  against  me.
Tightening my legs around his hips, I raise my hips
and  rub  my  pussy  along  the  hard  length  of  him.
Ryan  clenches  his  jaw  tightly  and  closes  his  eyes.
“I’m going to be coming all over you in a minute.”

“I want you inside me.”
His eyes snap open and he lets out a long

breath. “Are you sure?”

“I’ve waited four years to be naked with you.”

I reach between us and brush my fingers over the
head of his wet cock. “I’m very wet and I’m aching

with a need to have you filling me.”

His eyes search mine and once he knows I’m

serious, he leans over, retrieves a condom from the
nightstand. In seconds he’s rolling it down his
length.

The man is beautiful with a body hard and

unyielding,  tanned  with  dark  hairs  sprinkled  over
his  chest.  His  shaft  sprouts  from  neatly  trimmed
hair,  and  his  balls  hang  heavily  beneath.  As  my
eyes take him in, his cock twitches hard.

Ryan slowly settles on top of me and drops his

forehead against mine. Holding my gaze, he lifts to
one side and slowly runs a hand down over my
chest and belly, landing between my legs. It’s
reasonably easy considering I’m spread wide open.

A finger slips between my lips down there and I

jerk in surprise when he enters me with a thick
digit.

“So wet,” he whispers and then his lips cover

mine.

His kiss is just as powerful as I remember, and

I’m lost in the smell of him. The taste of him. The
feel of him. His finger never stops moving as I feel
myself swell and something powerful gathers in my
belly.

Groaning, I beg, “Ryan, now, please.”
Removing his finger, he presses at my entrance

with his penis and slowly enters me with the tip.
“Oh,” I moan. “Can you feel me around you.”

“Fuck!” He curses. “I don’t want to hurt you.”
“It won’t hurt for long. I’m ready for you. You

feel good.”

“God, help me.”
I chuckle. “He’s not going to help you now.”
He presses in further, his eyes never leaving my

face. “You feel really good,” he pants, his face
tight. “Hot. Wet. Tight…Fuck! You’re squeezing
the fucking life out of my dick.”

“I can’t help it. You feel good.”
His forehead drops to mine. “I’m not all the

way in yet.”

“Ryan, I need you.”
“Hold on to me.” He slides out to the tip and

wraps me up in his arms. His lips find mine and he
kisses  me.  He  doesn’t  stop.  Our  mouths  are  hard
and  heated,  and  then  I  feel  him  withdraw  slightly
and  shove  in;  hard  and  fast.  I  gasp,  breaking  from
the kiss, and dig my fingers into his back.

I feel my muscles spasming around his dick,

trying  to  push  him  out.  Ryan  clenches  his  jaw  and
breathes  heavily  while  I  can’t  stop  squeezing  him.
I’m not sure what I want him to do, nor am I sure
what I should do. However, Ryan dips his head and
suckles  my  pierced  nipple  into  his  mouth.  Instead
of  my  body  calming  down,  I  convulse  and  ripple
around  his  penis  as  I  come.  Rockets  go  off  behind
my  eyelids  as  I  hold  Ryan  to  me,  the  pleasure
intense  and  beyond  anything  I’ve  experienced

before.

Hearing Ryan growl, he pulls out as far as I’ll

let him, and slamming home, he grinds down, his
cock spilling a powerful release into the condom.
He grabs my hips, pushing me into the bed while his
penis does a slow glide back and forth, causing little
aftershocks to run through my body.

A guttural moan leaves his mouth as he

collapses on top of me in an exhausted heap before
withdrawing from my body. He rolls to his side, and
whispers, “Give me a minute.”

When I think he’s asleep, Ryan rolls from the

bed  and  walks  into  the  bathroom.  I  watch  him
remove  and  flush  the  condom  before  he  comes
back  with  a  washcloth.  He  doesn’t  say  anything,
just  cleans  between  my  legs  and  throws  the  cloth
back into the bathroom.

Climbing into bed, he pulls the covers over us

and snuggles me into his arms. “Please don’t
leave.”

“I have nowhere else I’d rather be,” I reply

softly, my eyes drooping.

R Y A N

OLDING

RETCHEN

’

HAND

, I

HAVE

FORCE

attention  to  stay  on  the  road  in  front  of  us.  The
vision of my girl kneeling between my legs with my
cock  in  her  mouth  is  the  most  erotic  thing  ever.
How  the  fuck  I’d  slept  through  some  of  that  is
beyond  me.  I’d  woken  as  my  orgasm  was  being
sucked  out  of  me.  I  thought  the  head  of  my  dick
was about to blow off with how strongly I finished.

The beautiful girl has a wicked side to her, and I

wanted  to  see  what  else  she  dared  do.  And  there
was  me  thinking  she  was  a  shy  virgin.  The  virgin
part was accurate, but the shy part is none existent.
It  would  appear  whatever  the  fuck  is  going  on
between us, has gotten rid of that. I’m glad. I love
the teasing  side of  her,  even if  I  think it’s  going  to
kill me.

I desperately wanted to stay in bed for the rest

of the day. Unfortunately, I’d arranged to meet Levi
out at the restaurant he wants me to be part of. I’ve
already  decided  I  want  in,  but  there  is  fun  in
watching  him  become  impatient  for  my  answer.
Emelia’s  is  well  known,  so  I  know  without  even
checking,  that  if  Levi  wants  to  build  a  restaurant
here, then it will be just as successful.

“Tell me about your aunt and uncle.”
“Who?” I’m confused.
“Levi’s parents?”
“Oh!” I laugh. “Dante and Emelia are cousins

to my dad. It’s just easier calling Levi a cousin.” I
glance at her and notice I have her full attention, so
I add, “Dante was a priest and Emelia, his
stepsister.”

“What?” She laughs. “That’s crazy.”
“Yes! Love in purgatory.” I grin. “You’ll have

to ask Levi his parents’ story. He’ll tell you.”

“I can’t get my head around it.” She settles with

her head on the seat, but her eyes are all over me.
“Does your family have any other crazy stories?”

“Hmm, you mean like my kissing cousins?”
She sits up straighter and then laughs. “You’re

talking about Alexander and Rachel, right?”

“I forgot, you know, Alexander.”
“Not really. My sister is friends with him, that’s

how I ended up being there that New Year. I hadn’t
wanted to go, but my sister bribed me. I’m glad I
ended up where I did.”

“Me too.” I squeeze her hand. “What did your

sister bribe you with?”

Glancing over to her, I catch a soft smile on her

lips.  “Handmade  macaroons—passionfruit.  She
makes the best. Whenever I tried, they’d look like
burnt  blobs.  Rina  has  so  much  patience  when
cooking,  whereas  I  want  the  food  ready  in
minutes.”

“My sister, Sofia, is a baker. It’s all she’s

wanted since she was old enough to walk.” I smile.
“Her husband Shane reaps the benefits, although he
spends time in their home gym so he can keep on
doing so.”

“I remember Sofia.”
“I think Levi wants her to have some input into

the  dessert  menu.  Maybe  come  in  and  make  them
up  on  the  weekends.”  I  shrug.  “He  runs  Emelia’s
with  his  sister  in  Essex  over  in  Vermont.  It’s  been
around more than twenty-five years.”

“How amazing is that?”
“I know, right?” Turning the truck along the

dust track leading to the old barn and land that Levi
has already purchased, I turn the engine off and sit
staring at the site. “Until Levi turned up asking me
to go in with him, I’d never given thought to a
venture outside of Kenza.”

“Would you be able to manage it with Kenza?”
“That’s something we’d need to discuss,

although I have a feeling Levi is really talking

about me being a silent partner.” Jumping down
from the truck, I run around and open the door.

“My lady.” Reaching into the cab, I grasp her

hips and haul her into my arms. “Let me show you
around and you can give me your thoughts.”

“Really?” she asks, surprised.
“I need advice as to the feasibility of going in

with  my  cousin.”  I  kiss  the  tip  of  her  nose  and
taking her hand, tug her toward the barn. “I’m sold
on  the  venture.  The  idea  excites  me.  Your  opinion
matters  to  me.  So  yes,  I  want  to  hear  your  true
thoughts.”

Perking up and grinning, she says, “Then lead

the way,” running off in front of me.

My eyes stray to her silky legs in a pair of my

shorts  that  hang  loosely  on  her.  A  safety  pin  holds
them  up  and  knowing  she’s  naked  beneath  my
clothing  is  driving  me  crazy.  As  she  bounces  in
excitement,  her  magnificent  tits  jiggle  under  the
thin white t-shirt she has knotted at the waist. Just
the thought of one jiggling tit, in particular, has me
hard as a rock. The silver piercing is so fucking hot
that  I  can’t  get  enough.  Who  knew  I’d  be  such  a
goner for a pierced nipple?

“Your eyes are burning a hole in my chest,”

Gretchen whispers, casting her eyes around us
before she smirks.

I narrow my eyes, wondering what the hell

she’s up to…seconds later, I bite my tongue at the

sight of her hands cupping her breasts. Her fingers
and thumbs work the hard buds of her nipples until
I notice her thighs rubbing together.

It’s painful to walk with my cock trapped in my

jeans, but the need to have my hands on her drives
me forward.

She reaches for me as I reach for her. “What

the fuck have you done to me?” I groan, shoving us
through into the barn. “All I want is you naked in
my arms.”

Chuckling, Gretchen runs her hands through my

hair. “All you want is to play with my nipple ring.”

“You know me already.” I shove the t-shirt up

and clamp my mouth around the arousing flesh.
“Never seen anything as sexy.” Cupping the breast
in my hand, I hold it to my mouth while I play with
the other.

She hooks a leg over my hip and starts rubbing

her  sweet  pussy  on  my  dick,  driving  me  nuts.  It’s
the strong urge to come that finally slows me down.
I  gentle  the  suction  on  her  tit  while  I  slip  a  hand
behind her back and caress along her spine. Kissing
the  tight  nipple,  I  press  butterfly  kisses  over  her
chest  and  up  along  her  neck  to  her  waiting  lips.
“You are so beautiful,” I whisper, brushing my lips
over hers. “And, as much as I want to fuck you in
here, I’m not going to. However, when we’re back
at the apartment, I am going to make love to you.”

“You make my legs weak.” She grins. “Other

parts of my body react to you as well.”

Chuckling, I admit, “You make one particular

part of my body ache.”

“Tell me more,” the minx teases.
I pinch her bottom and quickly move out of

reach. “I’ll show you a lot more when we get back
to Kenza.”

Her smile suddenly slips as she meets my gaze.
“What just happened?” I ask.
She swallows hard. “What are we doing,

Ryan?”

My legs eat up the distance between us and

reaching  out,  I  draw  her  closer  and  gently  cup  her
face. I take a moment to think because her question
surprised me. What are we doing? What do I want
to  happen  between  us  is  what  she  really  wants  to
know?  Searching  her  gaze,  I  smile  and  leaning
forward, press a soft kiss to her lips. “We are doing
what we’ve both wanted for years—each other.” I
laugh realizing how my words sound as Gretchen’s
eyes fill with amusement.

“Well, we’re certainly doing each other,” she

mumbles.

Coughing to hide a laugh, I say, “Honestly

Gretchen, I’m taking this thing—whatever it is—
between us, one day at a time. One thing I do know
is that I want you to be my girlfriend.” I grin like a
loon. “I’ve never had a girlfriend before, but I want
that with you more than anything. Just you,

GR E T C H E N

COULD

LISTEN

YAN

TALKING

ALL

DAY

. H

voice is strong and deep and such a turn on. He is
well  aware  that  I’m  hanging  on  to  every  word  he
speaks.  The  cocky  smirk  on  his  lips  tells  me  he
knows  exactly  what  his  voice  is  doing  to  me,  and
he’s enjoying it. His phone chooses this moment to
ring  and  with  a  glance  at  the  screen,  he  says,  “I
need  to  take  this.”  He  blows  me  a  kiss  and  heads
outside.

He brought to life for me how the barn will look

once it’s been converted into a restaurant. I imagine
the entrance side of the barn all in dark glass, fairy
lights  sparkling  in  the  night  to  lead  guests  inside
where  they’ll  receive  a  warm  welcome.  Tables  in
dark wood with burgundy and white tablecloths. A
small  vase  with  fresh  flowers  on  the  center  of  the
table. Soft music playing throughout the evening, a

small dance floor to one side.

Swaying to imaginary music, I smile and let out

a contented sigh when Ryan pulls me into his arms
and carries me along to the music in my head. I
smile in delight.

“My brother, Jaxon, is getting married this

weekend. Will you be my date?”

Butterflies flutter in my belly. “Really? You

want me to be your date at a family wedding?”

“Yes.” He kisses my forehead. “I want you with

me.”

“Then, yes, I’ll be your date.” Grinning, I add,

“It gives me an excuse to go shopping.”

“I’ll come with you.”
Raising a brow, I laugh. “You like to shop.”
He winces. “No. I hate it. But if you’re going to

be trying on clothes, then I’m sure the store
assistant won’t mind if I help you. It’ll be fun.”

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”
He burst out laughing. “Hey, I’ve never done it

in a store before.”

And just like that, I want him again. I rub my

thighs together and enjoy him watching me. “I can
still feel you inside of me from last night. You’re
really big.”

He cups himself and groans. “I’m more than

willing to spend the day playing with you,” he
raises a brow and licks his lips as his eyes linger on
my chest.

I back away and tease, “I never thought my

piercing would turn you on so much.”

“It’s attached to you and your perfect set of tits,

so how else do you think I’m going to react?”

Heat blooms on my cheeks as the wicked man

stalks me like his prey. I guess that’s what he’s been
to me these past few days of wanting him to make a
move toward me in Kenza—prey.

“Have I told you how delicious you look in my

clothes?”

“A few times.”
He reaches out and grabs my wrist, hauling me

in close to his warm body. I wrap my arms around
his neck as he holds me close. “You are so
unexpected,” he breathes the words against my lips.
“But I want to keep you.”

I’m sure my smile lights up my whole face. “I

don’t mind you keeping me.”

“Good. I want to show you the view from the

back, and then we’ll swing by your hotel and get
you packed up.” He caresses along my jaw with the
tips of his fingers before rubbing them over my lips.
“I’ve never wanted anyone to call my own, until I
saw you.”

Sliding my fingers into his short hair, I massage

his scalp as I pull myself closer to capture his lips.
The kiss is supposed to be short and sweet. It ends
up hot and erotic. He kisses me until I get dizzy
with the need for air, and even then, I have time for

a  quick  inhale,  and  then  he’s  on  me  again.  My
breasts  swell  and  tingle,  there  is  an  ache  inside  of
me, throbbing for more. His erection presses against
my belly, every solid inch of him. He doesn’t let me
up  for  air  until  the  sound  of  a  car  door  slamming
penetrates the fog.

“We have company,” he pants, his hands

trembling as he puts me away from him. “Give me
a minute.” He lets out a shuddering breath and
makes sure his t-shirt covers his groin.

I smirk. “You’re good to go.”
“I may be, but your nipples are beacons.” He

chuckles as I glance down.

He isn’t joking either. You can even make out

the piercing.

“I should have given you something else to

wear.” Frowning, he continues to stare and only
moves his eyes up to my face when the door behind
me opens. “It’s Levi.”

Ryan wraps an arm around my shoulders.

“Levi, meet my girlfriend, Gretchen. Gretchen, my
cousin, Levi.” He squeezes my shoulders before
taking my hand. “I’m going to show Gretchen the
view from the back.”

“Is that what you’re calling it now, huh?” Levi

laughs.  “I  forgot  to  take  pictures  and  Emma  is
bugging  the  shit  out  of  me  to  send  her  some.”  He
winces.  “Emma’s  my  sister,”  he  adds  for  my
benefit, lifting his phone and snapping a picture of

Ryan and me. “She’ll want one of you two as well.”

Ryan shakes his head and leads me outside,

where  I  find  myself  mesmerized  with  the  view.
Fields  and  fields  of  sunflowers  go  on  for  miles  in
front of my eyes. Rolling hills are just full of yellow
flowers.  I’ve  never  seen  anything  so  beautiful
before.

“I bet you didn’t know these were out here,

huh?” Ryan slips behind me and wrapping his arms
around my waist, drops his chin onto my shoulder.
“This, right here, is what made my decision to go in
with Levi a no brainer.” He sighs. “I was most of
the way there once I heard his idea, but seeing this,
my decision was made. This side of the barn is the
one to be opened up. Imagine dining during the day
or early evening with that view, and once it’s dark,
the moonlight will be overhead.”

“It sounds amazing, Ryan.”
“We’ll have to have some sort of glass over the

outside dining area to keep the bugs out. However,
it’s going to look good…and I’m going to have you
on my arm when we open.” He kisses my cheek.

I turn my face toward Ryan and reaching for his

face, I cup his whiskered cheek as I lift my lips to
his. “I’d like that a lot.”

“Hmm, me too.” He moves his lips in sync with

mine, tightening his grip on me as our kiss grows
hotter.

“I hate to interrupt,” Levi drawls.

We slowly break from the kiss and Ryan kisses

the tip of my nose before replying, “Don’t you
have anything better to do.” He laughs.

“No. What are cousins for but busting your

balls?” Ryan winces. “At least stop with the
touching and everything.” He waves his hands
around. “It’s damn frustrating.”

“Hang out at Kenza a bit longer and I’m sure

you’ll get hooked up.”

“Maybe, I will.” Levi glances between us. “I’m

heading back into town.”

“Join us for lunch first,” Ryan invites. “I

promise we’ll keep our body parts covered.”

“Jeez, thanks!” He shakes his head. “I’ll meet

you at the Italian down the road.”

“We can do what I promised, right?” Ryan

whispers, his lips trailing down my neck.

“I’m not dressed for a restaurant.”
“There’s a small boutique next to the

restaurant. We’ll get you a dress.” He kisses along
my jawline. “And a pair of shoes that fit you.”

“The red shoes I wore last night fit me.”
“Those shoes are ‘fuck me’ shoes, and no way

are you strutting around in them today. I’m having
a hard enough time not taking you back to my
apartment and spending all day between those
beautiful legs of yours.”

Clearing my throat, I move out of his arms and

take his hand. “As much as I’d love that, I’m not

sure my little pussy could take your penis over and
over again in one day.”

My words have the desired effect, and his

mouth falls open before snapping closed. I grin as
he walks me back to his truck. Every step he takes
is one of frustration. He even limps once or twice.
It feels good and fills me with excitement, knowing
he reacts to me in this way.

At the truck, he lifts me inside and gives me a

pointed look.

I smirk in return.
“You know,” he grabs his erection and after

some wrangling gets the large bulge to lie against
his groin, “I think I was in high school the last time
I had blue balls.”

Giggling, I add, “It will be good for you to

wait.”

“Easy for you to say,” he grouches.
I kick the too-big chucks from my feet and curl

into the seat, spreading my knees in a way to tease.

Ryan’s eyes go straight between my legs as a

curse leaves his mouth.

“Drive, Ryan.” I love teasing this man, and the

way he reacts to me is all the confidence I need to
sit in this way.

“Close your legs,” he hisses, forcing his eyes to

the road as he turns the truck and points it in the
direction of the restaurant.

“Why?”

He doesn’t answer until he comes to a stop at

the lights, and then he slowly turns his face toward
mine. His eyes narrow and drift downwards.
“Because”—he inhales and slowly exhales—“my
dick is hard as fuck with you sitting there, showing
me your wet pussy.” He licks his lips and continues,
“Your little pink clit is swollen. All I want to do is
pull over to the side of the road and shove my face
between your legs.”

“Oh!” I finally do as he asks and close my legs,

but only because I need to ease the ache that is
building. I rub them together and give a little moan,
which has Ryan cursing.

“You win,” he hisses.
He slides a hand up the leg of the shorts. I

whimper and slide further down in the seat to give
him better access.

R Y A N

“ A

NOTHER

ONE

BITES

THE

DUST

,” R

LAUGHS

making up a couple of cocktails while I pull a glass
of beer.

I give him a sidelong glance and feel myself

smiling  when  I  focus  on  Gretchen.  She’s  sitting  at
the  bar  with  Levi  for  company,  while  I’m  helping
Rob,  and  the  two  other  servers  this  evening.  I
couldn’t  be  happier.  Her  smile  alone  is  enough  to
set me up for the day, in more ways than one.

Coughing to hide another laugh, he says, “I’m

curious, though.” He pauses, composing himself,
“If you’re wearing multiple condoms at the same
time, do you feel anything?”

I go still and watch him trying not to bust a gut

laughing. “Haha, very funny.”

“I thought so.”
I roll my eyes. “You’re still okay for Jaxon’s

bachelor party tomorrow night, right?”

“Before you closed Kenza to the public, I was

on shift, so it’s all good. Besides, I’m curious as to
what your uncle Sebastian has planned.”

“God, don’t remind me.”
Rob laughs. “You haven’t said what the girls

are getting up to.”

“They’re not. Poppy is asleep by seven each

evening, so they’re going to do something once
she’s had the baby.”

“Ah, okay.” Rob moves along, serving drinks.
Thinking back to the condom remark, I cringe

because those words had left my mouth. I mean,
when you have a sister and cousins popping out
babies, it’s scary shit, especially when at the time of
the remark I was still a carefree bachelor.

Rapidly blinking, I find a stacked blonde

leaning on the bar toward me. “You’ve been staring
at me.”

I frown.
Have I?
“Sorry to burst your bubble, but I was thinking

about something else.” I smile. “What can I get
you?”

“Are you sure you don’t want to play?” She

pushes her boobs together and I’m happy to know
the move does nothing for me.

Shaking my head, I pour her a glass of red wine.

“On the house.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I notice a hand

with sharp fingernails moving toward my wrist so, I
quickly avoid her grip and move to the end of the
bar. Levi laughs and Gretchen looks nervous.

“Everything okay, here?”
“I was going to ask you that,” Levi smirks.

“You legged it over here as though your jeans were
on fire.”

“Very funny. I wasn’t talking to you.” I lean

toward Gretchen, wrap a hand in her long hair and
bring her toward me. “I wasn’t aware that I was
staring in her direction until she came over and
pointed it out.” I brush a soft kiss across her lips. “I
got lost in thought thinking about…things.”

“I believe you.”
“But?”
“She’s stunning.”
Incredulous, I move out from behind the bar

while quickly unfastening the apron, which I push it
into Levi’s chest. “Take over for me. Back soon.”

I grab Gretchen’s hand and drag her down the

hallway and into my office. The moment the door is
locked,  I  push  her  forward  over  my  desk,  flipping
the  skirt  of  her  dress  up  over  her  round  ass.  The
black  thong  she  wears  is  soaked  as  I  pull  it  down
her legs, forcing her to step out of it.

Making quick work of my zipper, I take my

cock in hand and press the length between the
cheeks of her ass. My hand's cup and squeeze her

butt, pressing her flesh together, giving me friction
as I rock my hips.

Gretchen uses her hands to push up slightly

from the desk, and my view over her shoulder and
down between her tits is superb. However, I nearly
fucking come all over her lower back when she
unzips the front of the dress and her tits spill out.

“This is going to be the quickest quickie,” I

hiss,  align  my  dick  and  slide  home  in  one  hard
thrust.  I  freeze.  So,  fucking  good.  Then—  “Fuck
me!  No  condom.  Oh,  fuck!  Don’t  move.  Don’t
even squeeze me because I’ll come. Fuck!”

“Ryan,” she gasps, moaning loudly. “Come

inside  me.  I’m  on  birth  control.  Don’t  stop.”  I  cup
her tits and start pinching and rolling her nipples. I
hammer my cock in her wet heat, pull on the silver
piercing, which drives me out of my mind. My dick
jerks  so  fucking  hard,  and  when  Gretchen  pulses
tightly around me during her release, I squirt a long
stream of semen. The stuff just pumps into her and
I  never  want  to  stop.  The  pleasure  unravels  me  as
I’m  on  my  toes,  trying  to  get  deeper.  With  each
small  twitch  of  her  pussy,  I  spill  more,  rocking  my
hips in the warmth.

Entirely spent, I collapse on top of her, pushing

her face-first into the desk. “I’ll move. Give me a
minute.” I pant, my hands squeezing her breasts.

“I like having your weight on me. Your hands

on my breasts,” she comments. “You’re getting

hard again.”

“I can’t help it. I’m too fucking excited being

inside you without a condom.” I pull out and help
her to face me with her butt on the edge of my
desk. Her red hair hangs in disarray around her face
and she looks like she’s just had the best fucking of
her life. Not that I’m going to tell her that.

Too distracted looking at how fucked she is, I’m

only  aware  she’s  moved  when  a  small  hand  wraps
around  my  cock.  Her  thumb  rubs  over  the  head
before  she  puts  me  at  her  opening.  “I  want  you
again.”

She wiggles, trying to get me inside of her,

which I accommodate by shoving my hips forward.
Her eyes roll as she lies down on my desk.

“I’m never going to be able to work on this

desk again. You know that, right? All I’ll see is you
naked, offering me your pussy.”

Arching, she clamps around my flesh, her tits

heaving. I’ve only just come, but my release is
building in my balls at the sexy nymph.

“Fuck me, Ryan.” She trails a hand over her tit

and tugs on the silver, moving her hand lower and
lower.

I can’t move my eyes from that hand and

swallow my tongue when she starts playing with
her little clit.

“Don’t stop doing that,” I hiss, gathering her in

my arms and clamping my mouth over her tit. My

tongue  tickles  and  tugs  on  that  piece  of  silver,
which  drives  me  insane  and  she  blows  apart—her
orgasm  triggering  my  own.  I  spill  into  her  in  sync
with the tight convulsions wrapping around me.

Panting, I lie her back down and follow her, my

face between her tits while I try and catch a breath.

“What was I doing before you turned my

head?”

Her hands caress my head while she laughs. “I

think you were serving bar.”

“I don’t think I can walk.”
“That’s my line considering how wide my legs

are spread.”

“I push myself up and give her a sated grin.

“You can spread your legs anytime you want for
me.”

Sliding free of her body, I wince when semen

follows my dick.

“I’m covered in it, right?”
My eyes follow a trail of semen running down

between the cheeks of her ass as it dangles for a
moment and then drops to the floor. “You are.”

“You don’t need to sound so pleased with

yourself.”

“It’s hot as fuck.” I yank my t-shirt over my

head and use it to clean her up, taking my time. She
watches me through narrowed lids as I make sure
she’s dry before I wipe up the drop on the floor.
Unable to help myself with her pussy in my face, I

lean closer and press a kiss on her clit.

“Oh God,” she wiggles. “Too sensitive.” One

last kiss and I stand, helping Gretchen to do the
same. “I can’t believe how you only have to look at
me and I’m wet,” she mumbles, distracted with
putting herself together. “And when you touch me,
my nipples throb and my pussy aches.”

“Are you trying to get yourself fucked again?”

I  hiss  the  question  through  clenched  teeth.
“Because  I  have  to  tell  you,  I’m  not  sure  how  the
hell  I’m  going  to  finish  working  tonight  knowing
that.”

Smirking, she moves closer and cups my

substantial package, squeezing in a way that means
business. “I’ll wait upstairs for you,” she whispers
into my ear, nibbling my lobe. “I’ll be naked in
your bed.”

“Fuck!”
Chuckling, she walks out of the office while I’m

left standing in the room like a fucking teenager
with my cock so hard, I could pound nails.

Something has to give, though. We can’t go on

fucking like bunnies. We can’t be together without
my dick being inside her tight little pussy. Snapping
my eyes shut, I know I’m screwed, and it’s only
just hit me.

I’m in a serious fucking relationship. There is

nothing to panic about. I’m a grown-ass man at
twenty-eight. I’m the only one in my family who

doesn’t have a significant other, so why the fuck is
my heart about to beat out of my chest with panic?
Gretchen is beautiful on the inside and out
and…and I’m in love with her.

Oh. My. God!
How the hell did that happen?
Stop being an idiot.
I wipe my sweaty palms down the leg of my

jeans and move to grab a clean black t-shirt,
dropping the other in my gym bag. Swallowing
around the lump in my throat, I exhale a shuddering
breath and head back to work.

Rob gives me a knowing glance and Levi is

busy kissing face with a dark-haired girl. At least I
can avoid one of the two or I can keep my head
down and avoid both.

Gretchen is the only girl for me, that is all I

know. I just need to figure everything else out
because the thought of marriage and kids scares me
to death. However, we’ve only been together a
week even though it was four years in the making.

No need to panic.

T H E M C K E NZI E M E N

EBASTIAN

STALKED

INTO

ENZA

WHERE

HIS

nephew’s  bachelor  party  was  taking  place.  He
looked  around.  Found  his  brothers.  And  headed
straight  toward  them.  They’d  already  claimed  the
large  round  booth  nearest  to  the  bar.  He  shook  his
head.  Apart  from  getting  older,  the  dynamics  were
the  same.  However,  Noah  had  been  part  of  the
brothers  since  he’d  met  Ramon.  Also,  Sebastian’s
son-in-law—he still hadn’t gotten used to referring
to Derek, who was nearly as old as he was, in that
way—and  his  brother,  Michael’s,  son-in-law,
Garrett, tended to join them.

He’d never seen that coming. His daughter,

Madison, was head over heels in love with Derek,
so who was he to complain? All he ever wanted for
his daughter was to find a man who cherished her.
She had in Derek. Didn’t mean Sebastian didn’t

wince every time he heard the man referred to as
his son-in-law. Made him feel twenty years older.

Lucien, his oldest brother, sat nursing an Irish

whiskey,  his  eyes  on  him.  Sebastian  grinned  and
shoved  his  brother  over  to  make  room.  “So”—he
met  each  one  in  the  eye—“I  think  we  need  to
embarrass  our  kids  and  give  them  the  condom
talk.”

Ruben choked on his drink while Garrett and

Tanner gave him a confused look.

Sebastian explained, “As the boys reached the

age  of  fifteen,  we  gave  them  the  ‘sex’  talk  and
showed  them  how  to  put  a  condom  on  a  banana.”
He  grinned.  “At  least  there  were  no  accidental
pregnancies while they were still at school.”

“Jaxon was still at school,” Ruben added, about

his son.

Sebastian rolled his eyes. “He’d finished, so

knocking Poppy up doesn’t count.”

“They loved that talk,” Lucien commented,

dryly.

“What about the girls?” Derek asked.
Ruben groaned and dropped his face into his

hands.  Lucien  chuckled.  Ramon  snorted  while
taking  a  drink.  Noah  hit  him  on  the  back.  And
Sebastian  was  bursting  to  tell  Garrett  about  his
wife, but he glanced at Michael first. That did it. It
took a lot to embarrass his brother but remembering
giving  Sirena  the  birds  and  the  bees  talk,  did  it

every damn time.

“The girls got the talk”—Sebastian smirked

—“however,  Sirena,  so  we  discovered,  had  done
her  own  research.”  He  shook  his  head  and  met
Garrett’s  frown.  “Before  you  get  the  wrong  idea,”
he  added.  “She’d  known  the  talk  was  coming,  so
had  used  her  father’s  computer  to  find  everything
out for herself, her aim, to embarrass us.”

“Don’t remind me,” Michael moaned. “Her

search history can never be unseen.”

Garrett laughed, relaxing. “Do I want to

know?”

“I’m never repeating it.” Michael lowered his

voice. “Lily thought it was hilarious, as did my
brothers.”

“Sirena asked questions,” Lucien told Garrett.

“Lots of questions about, um, certain parts of the
male anatomy.”

Ramon grinned. “As Michael is her father, we

did the right thing and sat back and watched him
squirm while he tried to come up with answers.”

“I did offer to answer her questions, being an

expert on the male anatomy, but I got scowled at by
her father,” Noah added with a wink at Ramon.

Sebastian bust a nut laughing. “Michael

sweated and finally told her to ask her mother…I
still think we should have recorded it.”

“Bastards! The lot of you,” Michael grumbled.
Derek cleared his throat, “Do I want to know

how Madison reacted to such a talk?”

Ramon grinned at Sebastian before he said,

“Madison and Olivia had the talk together. Olivia
sat there, looking bored while staring at her father,
who squirmed. Right, Lucien?”

“I remember,” Lucien drawled. “Madison went

bright red the moment her father said penis.” He
smirked at Sebastian, who shook his head in
remembered horror.

“The moment we finished talking, they quickly

got up and left the room.” Michael laughed. “All
we heard the moment the door closed was the two
of them screaming laughing. They’d planned the
whole damn thing.”

“Hell”—Garrett winced—“I can’t imagine

giving one of those talks to my son or daughter. I
shudder at the thought.”

“Their grandpa sounds like an expert, send

them to him,” Derek laughed.

Michael winced. “I can do without that.”
Sebastian stood and cast his eyes over the

younger generation before he turned to his brother,
Ruben. “I’m sure you have some bananas around
here, right?”

Ruben’s eyes popped. “Sit down, Sebastian.”
“Please,” Lucien begged. “Sit down and have a

drink.”

Rob, the assistant manager of Kenza, placed

Sebastian’s drink on the table in front of him.

“If you insist.” Sebastian took a long sip of the

caramel-colored liquid he’d always favored—the
finest single malt Bowmore.

Ruben looked at Sebastian warily and rightly so

because  anything  involving  his  younger  brother
could  get  their  wives  hot  and  bothered,  and  not
necessarily  in  a  good  way.  “Are  we  safe  from  the
sex talk now?”

Sitting back in the booth, Sebastian grinned.

“You are.”

A roar of laughter drew their attention toward

the  younger  generation,  where  they  stood  around
catching  up.  It  was  good  for  them  to  be  able  to
hang  out  together  now  that  they  were  older  with
wives—and  some  of  them  with  families—of  their
own.  Sebastian  thought  it  was  especially  nice  to
have Levi in the thick of things with the others.

“Is it a good idea to let Sebastian sit quietly?”

Lucien, commented.

Sebastian cast his eyes over his brother. “How

much of that Irish whiskey have you been
drinking?”

“Enough to know you’re thinking about

something, and that has me worried. Tonight, of all
nights, I do not want to be in trouble with my wife.”

“I didn’t come up with anything other than the

condom talk, but as that was voted against, I’m
sitting here being thankful for everything I have.
Everything we have.” He sighed. “When I was their

age, I never thought I’d have what I do today.” He
looked around the room before meeting the gaze of
each one of his brothers. “We need a toast.”

Standing, Sebastian put two fingers into his

mouth and whistled to get the attention of the men
in the room.

“I’ve been told I have to behave myself tonight

because my brothers all want sex with their wives,”
he grinned, and added, “me included.”

“Dad, I feel sick,” Dylan moaned.
“Me too,” Ryan added.
“Grow up boys!” Sebastian winked at Dylan. “I

just wanted to say how proud we are of our sons
and the men you’ve become. A special mention to
the men who have taken on our daughters, we
thank you.”

As he expected, laughter erupted throughout

the  room,  and  once  it  had  quieted,  Ruben  stood.
“Let’s  raise  our  glasses.”  Ruben  held  his  glass  up.
“To  my  youngest  son,  Jaxon,  on  the  eve  of  your
wedding.”

“Jaxon!”

R Y A N

HEN

DELIVERS

ROUND

DRINKS

, I

GRIN

“Go and pour yourself a drink of my uncle’s
Bowmore and join us.”

His eyes widen. “Really?”
“Go, before I change my mind.”
He’s back within minutes. “Thanks, boss.”
“You’re welcome. You’re off the clock now.

They want anything else to drink, they know where
it is.” I clunk my glass with his and Levi joins in.

“You do realize that we are the only three

bachelors in the room,” Levi observes.

“Dylan,” I mumble. “Dylan and Jenna are

engaged, not married.”

Levi rolls his eyes. “You know what I mean.”
I do know what he means except, I have

Gretchen now, and the funny thing is, only Levi
and Rob know about her. “Can you two not

mention Gretchen to my family,” I ask quietly. “I’m
taking her to the wedding tomorrow so that will be
soon enough.”

“Sure,” Levi agrees. “I’ll keep her company

tomorrow while you do your best man duty.”

Frowning, I turn to him. “Why are you offering

to look after my girl?”

“Stop being a jealous asshole. She’s going to be

out of her depth with all the McKenzies around,
plus it’s been a while since I was around everyone.”

Gretchen is going to be nervous in the family

gathering and I’m surprised to hear that Levi will
be too. Instead of teasing him about it, I’m grateful.
“Thank you. I’m sure she’ll be happy for the
company.”

Rob snorts. “Since when did you get all

proper.”

“I’m turning over a new leaf,” I say as Rob

disappears behind the bar.

He sits back down a minute later and takes the

bottle of Bowmore from behind his back. “Refill,
anyone?”

“Uncle Seb is not going to be happy,” Levi

mumbles, having another glass of the amber liquid.

“He’s driving so will only have the one glass.” I

sit back and just enjoy watching my family
together.

There are a lot us, so when we are together it

gets noisy and we have been known to get

competitive—the  girls  being  more  so  on  occasion.
It  actually  feels  strange  them  not  being  around
tonight. I thought with Poppy not being able to stay
awake  in  the  evening  that  something  would  have
been  arranged  for  us  all  during  the  day.  However,
from  what  I  heard  Poppy  was  insistent  that  Jaxon
had  his  bachelor  party,  so  of  course,  I  offered
Kenza.  It’s  working  out  well,  because  everyone  is
having fun just being together.

Time passes quickly while I’m drinking the

single malt with Levi and Rob, and it isn’t until I try
and get to my feet that I realize I may have had a
bit too much whisky.

“Fuck!” I slam into Rob who laughs. “When

did everyone leave?”

Levi speaks. “Do you have him, Rob?”
“Yes. I’ll get him upstairs and lock up.”
Rob, I think it is, wraps an arm around my

waist. “You’re drunk, boss. I’m going to help you
upstairs to your girl.”

“She’s hot.” I sigh. “Sweet. Sexy. Pierced.” I

grin.

“She’s pierced? Where?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?”
Fucking hell! How much whisky did I drink?
“Forget I mentioned anything.”
“You got it, Ryan.” The asshole laughs.
“You’re not going to forget it?”
“No. But I’m hoping you’ll forget you told me.”

“Fucker!”
“He’s drunk? How did that happen?” Gretchen

asks and for some reason I find her questions funny.

“Shut up, Ryan,” Rob chuckles. “Shove him in

the shower and he’ll sober up.”

I swing the door shut in his face and hear him

shout. “Thank you, Rob. How’d you like a pay
rise? Thanks boss, I accept.”

“I’m not that drunk,” I shout back, and turn to

a giggling Gretchen.

“Bathroom.” She takes my hand and leads the

way.

“I need your help in the shower,” I suggest

while kicking my shoes off. I struggle with
coordination, so Gretchen knocks my hands away
from my zipper.

“If you’re meaning what I think you are, then

I’ll be very surprised if you get hard with how
much alcohol you’ve consumed.”

Naked as the day I was born, I allow Gretchen

to shove me into the shower. I cup my balls and
dick, and smirk as she watches me stroking myself.
“If I prove you wrong and get hard, you have to get
on your knees and suck me off.”

She narrows her gaze. “Okay.” Tossing her

clothing off, she stands and watches my flaccid
cock swell with arousal while I jerk off watching
her play with the pierced nipple. I wince, knowing
there is no way in hell I’m going to admit I’ve told

Rob about it. What the fuck possessed me to blurt
that out?

All thoughts fly out of mind when Gretchen

knocks my hand away. “I can take it from here,”
she mumbles, pressing her lips to the head of my
erection. Her hands slide over my thighs to land on
my ass, which she caresses before holding me still.

My eyes roll and I hiss as she takes every

fucking  inch  of  me  into  her  mouth  and  down  the
back  of  her  throat.  The  sight  of  her  on  her  knees
with  my  flesh  disappearing  into  the  heat  of  her
mouth  is  fucking  hot.  I  cup  her  face  in  my  hands
and  hold  her  gaze  when  she  locks  eyes  with  me.
“I’m going to come, Gretchen.”

She slowly releases me. “That’s the intention,

Ryan.” Her mouth encloses me again, only this
time, she swallows.

Oh! Fucking hell!
My vision blurs as my release is sucked out of

my  body.  It’s  fast  and  dirty  and  the  more  I  watch
Gretchen’s  mouth  work,  the  more  I  squirt  inside
her. She doesn’t give a shit either because once I’ve
stopped  coming,  she  very  slowly  licks  me,  and
pulling back, lets me slip from between her swollen
lips.  She  pinches  my  ass,  moving  away,  but  as  I
start to slide down the wall, she grabs me. “Oh, no
you don’t. I need you to help me get you to bed. I
can’t do it if you pass out on the shower floor.”

“I want you to sit on my face.”

Her eyes heat. “I’m not taking advantage of

you while you’re drunk.” She hiccups a laugh.
“Actually, I think I just did take advantage of you.”

“Honey, you can take advantage of me any

time you want.” I smirk. “Besides, I’m fairly sure I
only managed to get hard while laced with liquor
because you said my junk wasn’t working. I had to
prove you wrong.” I grin like the sated fool I am. “I
also think having you standing naked in front of me
helped.”

“Duh, of course, it did.” Wrapping us both in

towels, she says, “I hope you remember this in the
morning, otherwise, I’ll have to do a repeat so you
can remember it.” She smacks me on the ass as I
follow her toward the bed.

She gets under the covers and before I fall

asleep with her wrapped in my arms, I whisper, “I
think I have amnesia.”

GR E T C H E N

YAN

’

BROTHER

, J

AXON

GETTING

MARRIED

hour, that is if he doesn’t pass out. Jaxon has been
trying to hold it together. However, having his
brother and male cousins ribbing him about being
tied down isn’t helping the poor guy.

“It’s a family tradition to get to the groom,”

Sofia, Ryan’s sister says. “They’ll have a bet going
as to who will make him crack first.” She rolls her
eyes. “I dread to think what would happen if the
teasing worked on getting the groom to
run…Idiots!”

“I’m not from a large family, so I like watching

how close everyone is.”

“We are close. Would you believe everyone

here is immediate family? Poppy only has a brother
present and he is walking her down the aisle. So,
this is all the McKenzie’s.” She grins. “Well,

technically, I’m a Fletcher now, but you get what I
mean, right?”

“I do.”
Nerves flutter in my belly as I look around at

the gathering at the home of Ryan’s aunt and uncle,
Lily and Michael. They have a horse training center
on  their  property,  which  is  managed  by  someone
else  now  that  Lily  and  Michael  are  enjoying  their
retirement.  From  what  Ryan  told  me  though,  it
sounds  like  his  uncle  Michael  is  still  heavily
involved.

“I’ve hidden for long enough.” Sofia winces.

“Elias, the son of my cousin, Sirena, is the page boy
and he is the devil.” She picks up her dress, which
looks  fantastic  on  her.  “Excuse  me,  Gretchen.
We’ll talk later because I want all the details about
you  and  my  brother.”  She  pauses.  “You  can  leave
the naked bits out.” Laughing at herself, she moves
through  her  family  on  the  large  patio  and
disappears from view.

Overwhelmed being the odd one out in such a

large family gathering, I let out a massive sigh of
relief when Levi joins me.

“How’s Ryan this morning?”
I feel a blush rush into my cheeks and Levi

chuckles. “I take it he’s fine?”

“Very.”
“That’s enough of that.” He shudders. “I

promised Ryan I’d keep you company, so no need

to look like a scared kitten.”

“I’m so out of my depth here.”
“Me too.”
Startled, my eyes jump to his. “How? I thought

they’re your family.”

“My mum and dad are cousins to Ruben and his

brothers, right?”

I nod.
“We haven’t hung out for maybe ten years. The

only person I have spent time with over the years is
Ryan.  I’m  still  family  and  in  town,  so  I  got  an
invite.” He shrugs. “It’s nice seeing everyone, but it
makes  me  anxious  to  be  around  them.”  He  drains
the glass of champagne, helping himself to another
as  the  waiter  passes.  “As  we’re  the  two  strangers
here,  how  about  we  sit  together  as  Ryan  has  other
things to do?”

“I’d love that.”
He busts out laughing. “Don’t let Ryan know

you’re relieved to have me for company.” Holding
his arm out, I slide mine through and let him lead us
to seats on the back row. “Oh,” he mumbles as I sit,
“I should have asked if you wanted to sit back here
or up there.”

“I’m fine here.” I pat the seat beside me. “You

can tell me who everyone is as they take their seats,
and, maybe, I’ll remember.”

“Yeah, good luck with that.”
I nudge into his shoulder. “You have nothing

better to do, so humor me, please.”

“I love a girl who begs.” He wiggles his brows

suggestively.

Rolling my eyes, I remind, “Who’s who?”
“If you’re not willing to play, then I guess I can

do that.” He glances around. “So, who do you
know?”

“Lily and Michael. Alexander, of course, and

his wife, Rachel. Her sister, Paige, and her husband,
Seth.  Jaxon  and  Poppy.  I  was  doing  my  masters
while  they  were  at  college  together.  I’ve  met
Ryan’s  mom  and  dad  today,  along  with  Sofia  and
her  husband,  Shane.  Some  of  the  others  I  do
recognize, but it’s been a long time.”

“Okay, then! At your two o’clock is Ramon and

his  husband,  Noah;  adoptive  fathers  to  Paige  and
Rachel.  Then  we  have  near  the  oak  tree,  Lily  and
Michael’s offspring. Michael Jnr, his wife, Brooke.
Michael’s twin, Charlotte and her husband, Tanner.
Their  sister,  Sirena,  who  is  married  to  Garrett…I
hope you’re following?”

“I think so.”
“Talking to Lily is the youngest, Joshua and his

wife,  Mallory.  Just  arrived  is  Lucian  and  his  wife,
Sabrina. Of course, you know their son, Alexander
—” Levi waves his hand in the air. “And then their
daughter,  Olivia,  and  her  husband,  Geary.”  He
pauses.  “I’m  going  to  need  a  refill  when  I’ve
finished.”

“I’ll get you one.”
“Last of all, we have Sebastian and his wife,

Carla.  Their  son,  Dylan,  who  went  to  Ireland  for
Christmas  and  came  back  with  a  girlfriend,  Jenna.
Madison  is  a  few  years  older  and  is  married  to
Derek, father of Tanner and best friend of Garrett.
Confusing as fuck, but they’re family.”

I laugh, wanting to know their story because

both Garrett and Derek are much older than their
wives. There are probably a lot of stories to be told
and I can’t wait for Ryan to tell me. I’m not going
to remember their names either—too many of them
for that.

“Levi,” a male voice rumbles behind him, “nice

seeing you here.”

“Uncle Eric.” Levi jumps up and hugs the man.

“I’m coming around for you, Aunt Sylvia.” He slips
in front of me and takes his aunt off her feet.

“Put my wife down,” Eric says.
Laughing, Levi stares at the man behind the

couple. “Well, fuck! Ryker, what the hell are you
doing on this side of the Atlantic?”

“On my way home for Valentina’s graduation. I

can’t believe my little sister is old enough to be
going to college.”

“Hell, I forgot about that. Don’t tell her I said

so. I’ll be there.”

Ryker’s eyes drift over me, which Levi notices.

He takes me by the hand and tugs me into his side.

“My  uncle  Eric  and  aunt  Sylvia.”  He  points  to
Ryker,  “My  cousin,  Ryker,  son  of  Eric’s  brother,
Aiden  and  his  wife,  Sarah.  This  is  Ryan’s  girl,
Gretchen.”

“Hmm.” His uncle Eric gives him a look before

shaking my hand.

“Trust me, Ryan is my boyfriend. Levi had his

tongue down a girls’ mouth last night.” I cringe as
the stupid words tumble from my mouth.

Ryker bursts out laughing as his eyes fill with

amusement.

Levi slams a hand over my mouth. “My

sensitive Aunt doesn’t need to hear that.”

“Your sensitive Aunt has heard a lot worse than

that,” Sylvia says with a teasing smirk on her face
as she eyes her husband.

“I bet,” Levi hisses under his breath. “Join us.”
They take their seats beside us, and Levi asks,

not so politely, “I know why Ryker is here, but why
are you?”

I choke on a sip of champagne and laugh.

“Sorry,” I chuckle.

“We’re used to him,” Eric says. “Sylvia held

McKenzie Holdings together once upon a time.”

“A long time ago,” Sylvia sighs, whimsically.

“That’s how I met Eric.”

“The best thing that ever happened to me,” Eric

adds.

“You didn’t think so at the time,” Sylvia

counters.

“I didn’t know what the hell to do with you.”
“You sure figured that out quickly.”
“Oh, God! Please stop.” Levi shudders.
“I forgot how good it is to be around family.”

Ryker grins.

Eric gives him a long look. “You need to come

home more often.”

“You sound like my mom, although Valentina is

the  worse.  I  can’t  talk  to  her  without  her  asking
when  I’m  coming  home.”  Ryker  looks  pained  as
though  he  wants  to  be  home  but  can’t  for  some
reason.

Sylvia changes the subject. “So, Levi, you’re

opening a business with Ryan, huh?”

“We used to talk about it as kids.” Levi shrugs.

“And now it’s going to become a reality. I can’t
wait.”

“From what we’ve heard, Emma is excited to

be involved and can’t wait for a trip to Lexington.”

Sylvia is quite lovely and delicate. However, I

have a feeling nothing gets past her. Her husband
positively adores her as he keeps his arm around
her shoulders with her pressed into his side.

“I’ve sent her a ton of photographs, but

somehow  I  get  the  feeling  I  haven’t  sent  enough.”
Levi  shakes  his  head.  “She’s  not  going  to  settle
until  I  get  back  to  Essex  so  she  can  come  up  here
and see for herself.”

Distracted, Levi stares off over my left

shoulder. “Ryan’s grandma and grandpa have just
arrived.” He drops his mouth to my ear. “Pippa and
Elias are in their nineties and live in an assisted
living facility a few miles from here.”

I watch as Lucien and Sebastian, push their

parents’  wheelchairs  to  the  front,  so  they  get  the
best  view.  Watching  them,  and  how  their  family
greets  them  with  so  much  love  on  their  faces,  is
beautiful, making my eyes water.

“Married seventy-three years,” Sylvia whispers.
Levi adds. “Ryan will introduce you later. He’ll

kill me if I do it.”

“That’s fine.” I sniffle and offer Sylvia a watery

smile when she passes me a tissue.

“I never attend weddings or family events

without  tissues.”  Sylvia  dabs  at  her  eyes.  “I’ve
discovered  from  day  one  that  brothers  never  grow
up.”  She  chuckles.  “They’re  fine  apart,  but
together, well, they get downright entertaining.”

“That’s true,” Levi says. “My mom is worse.

When she’s with her twin brother, Diego, they’re so
funny. Mom tends to get embarrassing because she
knows Diego will cringe. It’s gotten worse as we’ve
gotten older and understand more about what she’s
actually talking about.” He shudders, straightening
in his seat. “She’s my mother, so it’s not right.”

I bust out laughing. “You mean she talks about

sex?”

I catch Ryker cringe as Levi shudders and says,

“The wedding is about to start.” He nods toward
the front.

I’ve been distracted and find Ryan standing at

the front beside his brother, glaring at Levi. I
chance a glance at Levi and he’s grinning like an
idiot.

Rolling my eyes, I wait until I have Ryan’s gaze

and blow him a kiss, following it with a very slow
lick of my lips. His eyes don’t move from my
tongue until I watch him straighten his jacket.

I hear Levi chuckling beside me, but I ignore

him because if I don’t, I’ll be blushing like crazy. At
least I got Ryan’s mind off of his cousin, though.

However, I’m then distracted as Poppy slowly

makes her way up the flower-lined aisle,
accompanied by who I presume is her brother. She
is glowing as her eyes stay on the groom, anxiously
waiting for her.

Poppy’s dress of white silk shimmers over her

pregnant belly. She looks stunning and so happy.
Jaxon takes one of her hands into his, and the other
he places on her stomach. Even from where I’m
sitting, I can feel the heat between the two of them.

The rest of the wedding ceremony is a blur and

seems to go fast, and before too long, they are
pronounced, man and wife. Cheers go up as we all
get to our feet. Ryan sneaks a kiss as he walks past,
holding the page boy’s hand—must be his nephew,

Elias. He must have been bribed with something
because he appears to be on his best behavior.
Nothing like the little devil, Sofia had mentioned.

Not long after, I find myself hiding inside the

balcony doorway because I don’t want to be in the
way of the family photographs, but I want to watch.
It’s also nice being out of the sun, which I find
uncomfortable for any length of time.

“Who’s the chick?” I overhear in a male voice.

“She looks familiar.”

“Gretchen, she’s friends with Alexander,”

replies Ryan.

I hear the confusion in the other man’s voice, as

he asks, “Why would Alex bring someone else to
the wedding?”

“You’re an idiot, Dylan. She’s with me.”
Dylan laughs. “You brought a date to your

brother’s wedding? I mean, she is a date, right? Not
just a fuck buddy?”

A frown appears across my brow as the tone of

the conversation changes and I’m not sure I like the
way it’s going nor do I think I want to hear
whatever else is said.

“Get off my back,” Ryan hisses.
“You really like her, huh? That’s new.”
“Yes.”
“She knows you don’t want kids or to get

married, right? Have you told her that? Or, have
you changed your mind?” Why is Dylan saying

these things?

“I haven’t changed my mind,” Ryan replies.

“It’s nothing serious. We’re just having some
mutually satisfying fun. So, shut the fuck up.”

I don’t hear what follows because blood is

rushing through my ears at the overwhelming
sadness, I feel at hearing those words leave Ryan’s
mouth. Nothing serious. Mutual satisfying fun.

After everything we have done and said, I

expected  so  much  more  from  Ryan.  I  never
expected  to  hear  him  refer  to  me  in  those  words.
Never.  I’ve  given  him  my  heart  while  he  was
having fun.

Wanting to run away and hide, I turn quickly

and smack into a hard, male body. I look up
through watery eyes and find Ryker. He glances
behind me to the goings on outside before he turns
his gaze on me.

“I heard them too, Gretchen,” he says softly.
My heart sinks at the humiliation running

through me.

“I’ve seen the way Ryan looks at you. He was

probably being defensive at the questions from his
cousin.”

“Maybe.” I swallow around the lump in my

throat. “If you’ll excuse me.” I dash out of the
room.

R Y A N

HERE

SOMETHING

WRONG

WITH

RETCHEN

. S

says  she  is  fine  when  I  know  she  isn’t.  A  woman
answering  ‘fine’  means  there  is  something  wrong
and she’s either upset or pissed. I’m not sure which.
With  it  being  my  brother  getting  married,  I  have
things to do, which has meant me leaving her alone
or with Levi. I’ve wanted her by my side, but that
hasn’t worked out too well.

She has said all the right things, but her eyes

look dull. I’m used to seeing them alight with
happiness and pleasure.

I watch her now across the room. She’s sitting

next  to  Levi  and  my  cousin’s.  Dylan  and  his
girlfriend, Jenna. Alexander and Rachel. Paige and
Seth. They take up the eight seats around the table.
The  conversation  includes  Gretchen  and  she
appears  to  be  actively  involved,  but  something

about her has my belly in knots. Once or twice, I
catch Levi giving her an odd look, as though he too
realizes something is wrong.

Being the best man means I have to sit with the

wedding party, and as much as I want to go over
and check on Gretchen, I do nothing. Today is
about my brother and Poppy. It’s annoying that I’m
now distracted with her instead of concentrating on
the family.

Lost in thought, my sister, Sofia, leans her head

on my shoulder. “I never thought I’d see the day
when you lost it over a girl.”

I snort. “Who says I’ve lost it?”
“You haven’t taken your eyes from her since

we sat down.” She takes a sip of her lemon water.
“She looks just as miserable as you do.”

I perk up in my seat. I wonder if that’s why she

looks upset. “You really think so?”

Turning to look at Sofia, she frowns on meeting

my gaze. “Okay, tell me you haven’t blown it? That
girl is in love with you. What did you do?”

“I. What? I haven’t done anything. You know

I’ve been busy with Jaxon before the wedding, and
I only had five minutes with Gretchen before the
photographs. There hasn’t been time for me to
screw up.”

“Hmm, well, she was fine before the wedding

because I kept her company for a short time and
then Levi took over.” She looks across the room

and my eyes follow.

Levi notices us looking before he turns and

looks at Gretchen, who keeps her head down. He
whispers to her and she shakes her head before
getting up from the table. She continues to the side
of the marquee before disappearing from view.

“Sofia, I need to find out what is going on.”
“Of course, you do. Don’t worry. I’ll be

delighted to give the speech in your absence.”

“Jeez.” I lean around Sofia and say to Shane

with amusement, “Do not let your wife make the
speech. I beg you.”

“Man-to-man,” he grins, “you have my word,

my beautiful wife will keep her sexy butt in the
chair.”

I cringe. “Please don’t talk about my sister like

that. It makes me want to puke.”

Sofia pokes me in the side as I get to my feet.
My mom frowns as she sees me leaving the

marquee, but I can’t talk to her until I know what is
going on with Gretchen.

Outside the sun is nearly set and I make

Gretchen  out  on  the  family  gazebo  that  overlooks
the  small  man-made  pond.  Fairy  lights  twinkle,
capturing  the  girl  I’ve  fallen  in  love  with,  in  soft
light.  She  is  beautiful.  I  knew  this  already.  Seeing
her now, my heart clenches in my chest.

Moving toward her, I whisper, “Gretchen,” so

as not to frighten her. Her shoulders tense before

they droop, and she drops her head.

What the heck is going on?
I’m desperate to bring her into my arms, but

something tells me she won’t welcome that right
now.

“Are you okay?” I wince at the lame question.

“Please talk to me. You seemed to be enjoying
yourself and then you got sad all of a sudden.”

Very slowly, she turns her face toward me, and I

see the tears on her cheeks. I cup her face and hold
her still. “Tell me.”

“I gave you my everything, Ryan,” she hiccups,

“and all I am to you is nothing serious and
satisfying fun.”

Oh shit!
“Fuck! I’m sorry.” I quickly kiss her lips and

hold  her  close.  “I  was  talking  to  my  cousin.  I
wanted  him  off  my  back.  I  promise  you.  I  didn’t
mean  those  words.  Dylan  knows  I  didn’t  mean
those  words.”  I  start  panicking  at  the  disbelieving
look on her face. “Gretchen, please.”

I rest my forehead lightly against hers and

continue, “You have to know you mean more to me
than  satisfying  fun.  God,  you’ve  been  in  my  head
for  four  years.  I’m  crazy  about  you.  You  are  the
only  girl  that  I’ve  ever  called  my  girlfriend.  It’s
you,  Gretchen.  There  was  no  way  in  hell  I  was
admitting  how  much  I  fucking  love  you  to  him
when I haven’t even told you.”

Her eyes widen in surprise, as do mine. Seconds

later, she bursts out laughing through her tears and I
grin. The surge of relief I feel is overwhelming. I
can’t believe I was such a fucking asshole to mouth
off to my cousin when what came out of my mouth
was bullshit.

I lean in to kiss her, but she pulls out of my

reach, shaking her head. “I’m a mess. Let me wash
my face,” she gives me a teasing look, “then you
can kiss me.”

“I’ll help you clean up.” I do have an ulterior

motive, which she is well aware of as amusement
enters her gaze before she becomes nervous.
“What you said to Dylan—”

“What I said to my cousin shouldn’t have left

my mouth, especially as I didn’t mean it. Dylan
knew that too. There is also no way my family
would allow me to lead you on—they like you.”

“You really love me?”
Tangling my fingers up with Gretchen’s, I

admit,  “I  really  do  love  you.  Those  words  have
never  left  my  lips  before.”  I  pause.  “Unless  I  was
referring  to  someone  in  my  family,  that  is.  Even
then, I don’t say them often. I mean—”

Her hand covers my mouth. “I get it.” She

sighs. “Will you show me how much you love me?”

The pulse in my groin is onboard with that.

However, I have a speech to give. The blood
rushing south thickens my dick and her breath

against my ear as she whispers, “I’m sure we can
be quick,” has precum soaking into my boxer
briefs.

Glancing around for somewhere we can go, I

notice the barn. It’s cliché in my family, but who
the fuck cares? I sure as hell don’t.

“Over here,” I pull her with me, my legs eating

up the distance until I realize Gretchen is wearing
high heels.

Once hidden, I move away from her. “Give me

a  minute,  so  I  don’t  blow  the  minute  I’m  inside
you.”  I  rest  my  hands  on  my  hips  and  concentrate
on  breathing,  which  has  no  effect  when  Gretchen
pulls her dress off over her head and my eyes land
on her naked body.

She hangs the dress on a nail in the wall and

prowls toward me. I don’t stand a chance.
Reaching out, she cups my cock before she presses
the palm of her hand around me. My eyes cross
while my whole fucking body tingles from head to
toe.

Taking the zipper down, she reaches inside my

pants and her eyes glitter when she wraps her hand
around my erection. “All for me.”

“Every fucking inch.” I whimper when she

pulls me free of my pants and her eyes focus on the
dripping head.

Before I realize what she’s doing, Gretchen is

on her knees, holding me to the tip of her tongue

and wiggling her tongue into the slit. I can’t breathe
with the heat of her mouth pleasuring me. It’s so
fucking hot watching her—watching me—while
she’s sucking on my dick.

The need to come is tingling in my lower belly

and rapidly dropping to my balls, and as desperate
as I am to come while she sucks me, I want to be
inside her wet pussy. She knows it too as she gives
me a long slow suck before letting me plop out of
her mouth.

Like a spider monkey, she quickly climbs up me

when I finally get with it and grab her ass. Her legs
wrap around my waist, her arms around my neck as
she tries to lower herself. I grab my cock and press
the head into her and see fucking stars as she drops
down. My legs won’t even move to get us against
the wall. It turns out they don’t need to, as
Gretchen holds my gaze and starts bouncing up and
down. “Touch me, Ryan. Play with the silver.”

Her legs tighten around me and I move my

hands to her amazing tits. I only have to tug on the
hoop through her nipples that drives me insane for
my cock to thicken and lengthen.

“Yes,” she throws her head back and comes.

Her  body  twitches  and  her  chest  heaves  as  her
orgasm  rips  through  her,  taking  me  over.  I  quickly
grab  her  hips  and  press  her  down  while  my  cock
squirts  with  pleasure  inside  her  sexy  body.  I  grind
deep and hiss through my teeth when her legs drop

from around my waist, creating tight friction as
she’s held up with my dick and an arm around her
waist.

“I think I’m about to drop to my ass.”
She giggles, which turns into a moan as I pull

her off me. “I want to continue playing with you.”

I give her a sideways look while hunting for

something to clean us up with. There is nothing but
rags.

“Let me help you with that,” Gretchen smirks

and bending over, starts licking my cock.

“That isn’t such a good idea.” I moan, her lips

arousing.

“Umm,” she pulls free, tugs up my shorts and

pants and shoves me away. “You better, um, work
the zipper. I don’t want to get your penis trapped in
it.”

“Jeez!” I cover my dick and wangle the zipper

up and hope for control as I take her dress out of
her hands. “You are beautiful.” I kiss each nipple
and can’t resist tonguing the silver.

“You’re getting me worked up again.”
“Serves you right for licking my dick.”
“I was cleaning you up.”
I trail my fingers over her bottom and up over

her shoulder, delighted when her nipples tighten
into hard buds.

Slipping the dress over her head, I help smooth

it down over her glorious curves before I fasten the

halter at the back of her neck. “I didn’t clean you
up. You want to know why?”

“Hmm,” she mumbles as I wrap my arms

around her from behind.

“Because it drives me crazy knowing you have

my semen running down your legs. It means you’re
mine.” I turn her in my arms. “I’m sorry I said what
I did, and I promise, Gretchen, that I won’t ever
give you a reason to doubt my love again.” I kiss
her lips. “I love you. Please forgive me.”

“I think I’ve just shown you that I forgive you.”

She rests her face in the crook of my neck. “I love
you too, Ryan.” On a heavy sigh, she asks, “Don’t
you have a speech to give?”

Oh, fuck!

E P I L O GU E - T E N Y E A R S L A T E R

HAOS

SURROUNDS

THE

LARGE

ENCLOSED

patio at Uncle Michael and Aunt Lily’s house. For
as  long  as  I  can  remember,  we  have  always
congregated here for events and just to get together
as a family. I think it started when our grandparents
became  too  frail  for  traveling.  The  assisted  living
facility  where  they’d  chosen  to  live  during  their
frailer years was five minutes away, so it had been
the  obvious  choice  for  the  family  to  gather—my
grandparents  hadn’t  missed  anything  while  they’d
been alive.

My chest ached to baptize our fourth child,

Haven Ruby McKenzie, and not having them here
with us. They’d passed away five years ago within
two months of each other. Their presence was still
missed and had been for the arrival of more great-
grandchildren, including our third daughter, Mila

Elizabeth. At least they’d been able to watch the
last of their grandchildren get married, which had
been Dylan and Jenna.

I grin, watching my cousin wrestle with his two-

year-old daughter, Hanna Margaret, on his lap. His
wife, Jenna, cradles Vivien Lauren to her breast
beneath a thin white muslin cloth, the same as my
wife uses when she’s in public and feeding Haven.

Mila, our one-year-old is the best-behaved baby

I’ve  ever  seen.  She’s  always  smiling  and  happy  to
be  held  by  anyone.  She  bounces  on  her  grandpa’s
knee  while  trying  to  bash  her  five-year-old  sister,
Greta  Ray,  on  the  head  with  her  pacifier.  Luckily
my  father  is  quick  and  diverts  her  attention.  Six-
year-old Raelyn is currently reading a story about a
tiger who came for tea to her grandma.

My brother and sister and cousins think it’s

hilarious that I’m outnumbered at home with five
females under the roof. I don’t care. My sexy wife
and four children are the best part of me—the best
thing I’ve ever done in my life.

I’m still the boss at Kenza even though I

promoted Rob to manager seven years ago. I spend
three days there, although behind the scenes and
two at Emelia’s in Blossom Creek. Both businesses
are thriving.

To my surprise, Charlotte sits next to me,

looking exhausted and lets out a loud sigh as though
she’s relieved to get off her feet. “Tanner knocked

me up again.”

I blink in surprise and burst out laughing. “I’m

sure he didn’t do it alone.”

Giving me the evil eye, she moans, “This is not

what I expected at this age.”

“Jeez, Charlotte! You’re not exactly old.

Landon’s ten, and Ezra’s nine, so, at least you don’t
have four under six.”

She chuckles. “There is that.”
“Your husband either just got laid, or he’s

delighted you’re knocked up.” I nod in Tanner’s
direction when I notice him grinning like a fool.

“Both.” She grins.
“Gross, Charlotte! Having sex in your old

bedroom again, huh?”

“I can’t get enough when I’m pregnant.” She

gazes at her husband. “Then again, I can’t get
enough when I’m not because my husband is hot.”

I roll my eyes and kiss her on the cheek.

“Congratulations. Now go and distract Tanner
before your mom and dad notice the sated look on
his face.” Giggling, Charlotte disappears from view.

Gretchen takes her place with an unsettled

Haven in her arms. “She needs feeding.”

Wrapping my arm around her shoulders, I say,

“Rest on me and get comfortable.”

I take the muslin cloth from her hand and shove

it into her bra strap, so she stays covered. With
some fidgeting, Gretchen gets Haven attached.

“Hmm,” she mumbles as Haven suckles. “What

was going on with Charlotte?”

“She’s pregnant.”
My wife lifts her eyes to mine. “For real?”
I nod.
Gretchen chuckles. “That serves her right for

teasing me when I got pregnant soon after Mila was
born. I told her all the teasing would come back to
bite her on the ass.”

“I doubt she’ll ever admit it, but I think she’s

delighted.”

“I agree.” Sighing, Gretchen nuzzles closer. “I

love this place”—she kisses my neck—“right
here.”

I press my lips to the top of her head and enjoy

the subtle scent of cherries that lingers from the
shampoo she uses. “Are we done having kids?”

She chuckles. “As much as I love being

pregnant, I think so.” Her gaze lifts to mine. “Is that
okay?”

“Honey, we have four perfect girls. I’m good.

In fact, I’m better than good.” I grin. “However, if
we accidentally get pregnant again, I’m not going
to complain because I love you.”

Gretchen turns her face up to mine and

whispers, “I love you more.”

THE END

T H E MC K E N Z I E F A MI L Y T R E E

Lucien and Sabrina (Entice)

Alexander and Rachel McKenzie (Kissing Cousins)

Arya Louise

Matilda Maureen

Olivia and Geary Tyler (A Cowboy for Christmas)

Isabella Greer

Bowie Lucien

Fox Alexander

Michael and Lily (Seduce, The Wedding)

Sirena and Garrett Hudson (Baby Makes Three)

Elias Michael James

McKenna Lily

Pippa Ella

Charlotte and Tanner Jackson (Secret Kisses)

Landon Elias

Ezra Matthew

Isaac Derek

Joshua and Mallory McKenzie (A Secret Affair)

Sterling Elias

Silas Joshua

Sebastian and Carla McKenzie (Rapture)

Madison and Derek Jackson (If Only)

Nora Claire

Georgina Sarah

Dylan and Jenna McKenzie (One Christmas)

Hanna Margaret

Vivien Lauran

Ruben and Rosie McKenzie (Delight)

Ryan and Gretchen McKenzie (It Started with a

Kiss)

Raelyn Ava

Greta Ray

Mila Elizabeth

Haven Ruby

Sofia and Shane Fletcher (A Baker’s Delight)

Florence Rose

Ford Liam

Scott Ruben

Jaxon and Poppy McKenzie (The Pregnant

Professor)

Lilian Rose

Yvonne Marie

Ramon McKenzie and Noah McKenzie

(Cherished)

Paige and Seth Reynolds (Princess and the Puck)

Bode Oliver (twin)

Eason James (twin)

Rachel and Alexander McKenzie (Kissing Cousins)

Arya Louise

Matilda Maureen

McKenzie Brother’s Reading Order

Book 1: Seduce (Michael & Lily)

Book 1.5: The Wedding (Novella)

Book 2: Rapture (Sebastian & Carla)

Book 3: Delight (Ruben & Rosie)

Book 4: Entice (Lucien & Sabrina)

Book 5: Cherished (Ramon & Noah)

McKenzie Cousin’s Reading Order

Book 1: Baby Makes Three (Sirena & Garrett)

Book 2: A Business Decision (Michael & Brooke)

Book 3: Secret Kisses (Charlotte & Tanner)

Book 4: Kissing Cousins (Rachel & Alexander)

Book 5: If Only (Madison & Derek)

Book 6: Princess & the Puck (Paige & Seth)

Book 7: A Bakers Delight (Sofia & Shane)

Book 8: A Cowboy for Christmas (Olivia & Geary)

Book 9: A Secret Affair (Joshua & Mallory)

Book 10: One Christmas (Dylan & Jenna)

Book 11: The Pregnant Professor (Jaxon & Poppy)

D E A R R E A D E R

Thank you for reading It Started with a Kiss, and thank you for

your reviews! It’s really appreciated.

Subscribe with your email to be alerted about new releases,

sales, and events.

http://ronajameson.com/suscribe

W R I T T E N A S R O NA J A M E S O N

Rafael is all about vengeance . . .

After witnessing the brutal murder of his

mother and younger brother, Rafael DeLacroix
lives in a world of darkness. With vengeance eating
his soul, he moves to Sweet Meadow with his
father. There, Rafael discovers a unique connection
to the girl next door.

Wren is all about butterflies . . .
Trapped in a world of her own, under the

watchful eye of her father, the Reverend—leader
of their small town—Wren is filled with dreams of
flying free like a butterfly. Her life takes an
unexpected turn when the boy next door befriends
her.

Not everyone is happy with their growing

friendship, and just when Rafael and Wren discover
what is really going on in Sweet Meadow, darkness
settles over the town.

A standalone, romantic suspense/coming of age,
novel.

O T H E R B O O K S B Y L E X I B U C H A NA N

Bad Boy Rockers

Book 1: Sizzle (Jack ‘Phoenix’ & Thalia)

Book 2: Spicy (Reece & Callie)

Book 3: Sultry (Donovan & Mara)

Book 4: Savor (Ryder & Dahlia)

Book 5: Sinful (Jace & Savannah)

Book 6: Silent Night (Novella)

Kincaid Sisters

Book 1: Meant to be Mine

Book 2: You Were Always Mine (coming soon)

Book 3: Will You be Mine (coming soon)

McKenzie Brothers

Book 1: Seduce (Michael & Lily)

Book 1.5: The Wedding (Novella)

Book 2: Rapture (Sebastian & Carla)

Book 3: Delight (Ruben & Rosie)

Book 4: Entice (Lucien & Sabrina)

Book 5: Cherished (Ramon & Noah)

Book 5.5: A McKenzie Christmas (Novella)

De La Fuente Family (McKenzie Spinoff)

Book 1: Love in Montana (Sylvia & Eric)

Book 2: Love in Purgatory (Dante & Emelia)

Book 3: Love in Bloom (Mateo & Erin)

Book 4: Love in Country (Aiden & Sarah)

Book 5: Love in Flame (Diego & Rae)

Book 6: Love in Game (Kasey & Felicity)

Book 7: Love in Education (Andie & Seth)

McKenzie Cousins

(McKenzie Spinoff)

Book 1: Baby Makes Three (Sirena & Garrett)

Book 2: A Business Decision (Michael & Brooke)

Book 3: Secret Kisses (Charlotte & Tanner)

Book 4: Kissing Cousins (Rachel & Alexander)

Book 5: If Only (Madison & Derek)

Book 6: Princess & the Puck (Paige & Seth)

Book 7: A Bakers Delight (Sofia & Shane)

Book 8: A Cowboy for Christmas (Olivia & Geary)

Book 9: A Secret Affair (Joshua & Mallory)

Book 10: One Christmas (Dylan & Jenna)

Book 11: The Pregnant Professor (Jaxon & Poppy)

Book 12: It Started with a Kiss (Ryan & Gretchen)

Jackson Hole

Book 1: From This Moment

Book 1.5: When we Meet (Novella, in the back of From This

Moment)

Book 2: New Beginning (coming soon)

Romantic Suspense

Lawful

Stryker

Standalone Novella’s

One Dance

Educate Me

Pure

Holiday Season

Kissing Under the Mistletoe

A Soldier’s Christmas

The Sheriff and the Cougar

Written as Rona Jameson

Butterfly Girl

Come Back to Me

Summer at Rose Cottage

Tears in the Rain

Twenty Eight Days

A BO UT T H E A UT H O R

English  born  Rona  Jameson  is  an  author  of  romance  who
currently  resides  in  Ireland  with  her  husband,  four  children,
one dog and three cats. She’s been writing since 2013 as Lexi
Buchanan,  which  is  where  you  can  find  her  more  explicit
writing.

Follow on social media:

Website:

http://ronajameson.com

Email:

authorlexibuchanan@gmail.com

Document Outline