I was losing my mind. This was the only explanation I could find. I couldn’t take my eyes off her. I barely kept my hands to myself.
“How are your parents?” I asked as I led her to the back of the house.
“Better. Super happy with the gift box. Thanks again. That was beyond kind.”
She was fucking amazing. Not many people would take a second job to help out their family. For me, family was what mattered most in this life, so knowing that about her made her all that much more appealing to me. She stirred something inside me, and no woman had ever managed to stir anything in me since the divorce. It was like I’d shut myself off from everything. It had been as much a conscious decision as an instinct. I’d put up a wall between myself and everyone else. But I was drawn to Lexi.
‘You’re a great person.’
“Thank you,” she said softly. “I’m so happy I got the job.”
I turned, watching her. “I’m glad you said that. You and Paisley are a good fit. She likes you.’ I tipped my head to her. ‘I like you, Lexi. More than I should.’
She pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. I barely kept from reaching out and doing it for her.
Fuck. Me.
‘Come on, let’s go. We’re going to have to spend some time downstairs before we pick your wine.’
‘How many bottles do you have?’ she asked.
‘About a thousand.’
Her eyes bulged. ‘Can I move in here? I can live in the cellar, honestly.’
I let out loud, unrestrained guffaws. She was grinning.
‘I made you burst out laughing. You only do that when Paisley’s around.’
‘Or you.’
She licked her lower lip. I couldn’t look away from her mouth.
‘The wine cellar?’ she murmured, bringing me back to reality.
I straightened up, gesturing for her to walk in front of me as I opened the door to the cellar. ‘After you, Ms. Langley.’
What was it about this woman that made me laugh so often? The things she said were always so unexpected that I couldn’t help myself. She was right. I needed to laugh more. And when I was with her, I felt happy.
The lighting was dim in the staircase, but then it abruptly turned dark. I tried a nearby switch, but the light didn’t turn back on.
“Something’s wrong with the electric circuit down here.”
‘Should we go back upstairs and grab a flashlight?’ Lexi asked.
I took out my smartphone from my pocket, turning on the little flashlight button. ‘It’s okay. We have enough light with this.’
‘That’s true. I left my phone upstairs, but this will work. I’m going to focus on the fact that there is wine; otherwise, I’d feel a bit like we were in a horror movie.’
‘Are you afraid of the dark, Lexi?’
She shivered. Fuck, I was close enough to feel the goose bumps on her arm.
‘Not tonight,’ she whispered as we stopped in front of the shelves. ‘Wow. This is amazing. You know how most people would love to see a real-life version of the bookcases in Beauty and the Beast?’
‘I have no idea what you’re talking about.’
She turned her head sideways at me. I tipped my head and was so close that my lips almost brushed hers. ‘You have a young daughter.’
‘I know, but my brain always blocks out whatever she wants us to watch.’
‘Understandable. Well, anyway, there’s a scene in which there’s a huge library, and people are always like, ‘Oh, I want this to happen in real life.” She pointed at the wine bottles. ‘But this is what I’ve always wanted to see.’
I chuckled. ‘You’re always welcome here, Lexi. Tell me, what kind of wine do you like? Describe it as best as you can.’
‘I love white wine. I want it to be fruity but not sweet. Light, with a hint of smokiness.’
‘I have what you need. Come on. Let’s pick it out together from the shelf.’ Instinct overpowered rational thought again. I put a hand on her waist. She moved, knocking my phone out of my hand, disengaging the light when it fell so it was completely dark.
‘Oh, shit. I’m sorry,’ she said.
‘No problem. I’ll get it.’ Bending down, I brushed my hand around the floor and picked it up. Pressing the bottom of the screen, I managed to turn the light on again.
“Can you find the bottle?” Lexi asked.
I had to laugh at the apprehension in her voice. She was legitimately worried about not getting wine. I liked this woman more and more.
“It was the fifth bottle from the floor.” Taking it out, I held it to her, jokingly asking, “Want to keep it to make sure I don’t drop it or anything?”
“Oh, no. I trust you with wine more than I trust myself. Although… you did drop the phone, so give it here. I’ll keep it safe.”
She clasped the bottle, laughing.
I put a hand on her arm, resting my fingers on her bare skin. She squirmed against me. I heard her suck in a breath. She was so sensitive to me that it drove me insane.
‘So, you like wine? Tell me more. What else do you like?’
‘Your delicious cooking,’ she said.
‘I meant in general, not about me, but since we’re on that slippery slope, please do say what else you like about me.’
We reached the staircase and stopped.
‘Tate,’ she whispered. Her breath landed on my neck, and it was all I could do not to pin her against the wall. I wouldn’t stop just at kissing her. I knew that. If my lips ever touched hers, it wouldn’t end with a kiss. It would end with me sinking inside her and making her mine. And I couldn’t risk that.
‘I’m not sure why I’m always on a slippery slope around you,” she murmured.
I laughed, skimming my hand up from her waist to her shoulder and then her neck, feathering my thumb on her jaw. ‘I like you, Lexi, far too much, and I don’t know what to do about it.’
The next moment, I heard Paisley calling my name from upstairs. The spell broke and I groaned, taking a step back.
‘Is that Paisley?’ she asked.
‘Yes.’
“Does she have nightmares?’ She was back in her professional mode. Good, because someone had to keep us in check, and it wasn’t going to be me.
When we reached the stairs, I realized it wasn’t just the cellar light that was out. The whole place seemed to be in the dark.
‘It’s a blackout,’ she said.
“Probably from the storm. Now I know what woke Paisley. She has a night-light, and it probably went off. I’m going to go upstairs and talk to her, okay?’ I wondered why the backup generator hadn’t kicked in.
‘Okay, sure. Should I go home?’ she whispered in the dark.
“The storm’s still strong, Lexi.”
“I see. So, you’re still not letting me out?”
“Exactly.”
“I’m your prisoner?” Her tone was playful.
I stepped closer. ‘Wait for me here.’
‘Okay. I left my phone on the kitchen counter. I’ll feel my way there, grab it, and pour us wine.”
“Thanks.”
I headed upstairs, knocking on Paisley’s open door to announce myself before entering.
‘Daddy, is that you?’ she asked, her breath frantic as I sat down at the edge of her mattress.
‘Yes, baby.’ I caressed her hand, and she instantly calmed down, scooting closer to me.
‘What happened to the light?’ she asked.
‘The electricity is out, but I’m going to fix it, okay? I’m going to turn on the generator.’
‘I can’t sleep in the dark,’ she said.
‘That’s okay. We’ll turn on the light on your phone, and then when the electricity is back, your night-light will automatically turn on, okay?’
Some people—including Paisley’s teachers—raised their eyebrows that I’d bought her a phone when she was only nine years old, but I liked knowing that I could get in touch with her anytime.
She nodded, leaning against me. She didn’t do this often anymore. When she was little, she used to want me to rock her to sleep, but then she said she’d outgrown it. I turned on the phone’s flashlight, placing it on the nightstand so the light reflected on the ceiling. About two minutes later, I realized she’d fallen back asleep.
I kissed her head, but I didn’t leave her room right away, waiting just in case she woke up so she wouldn’t be scared. I messaged my brothers in the meantime, asking if one of them could check on Gran. Tyler answered me that her generator had started automatically, but he was already on his way to her house to check on her anyway.
When I was confident that Paisley wouldn’t wake up again, I tiptoed out of her room before closing the door and heading downstairs.
‘Lexi?’ I asked.
‘I’m on the couch,’ she said. I could see the light from her phone. ‘It’s not the house. A huge chunk of the city is out of electricity. They’re working on repairing it, but it might take a while,” she said.
“Yeah, I figured that might be the case.”
“Is Paisley okay?’
‘Yeah, she’s fine. She fell asleep.’
‘You’re a great dad,’ she whispered.
‘I’m glad you think so.’
‘So listen, I didn’t uncork the bottle. We can drink it another time. With the storm and everything, maybe it’s better that I get home.’
‘Is your building okay? Do you have electricity there?’ I asked, standing in the doorway.
“No, but that’s fine. We have emergency generators, so those probably kicked in.”
‘What floor is your apartment on?”
‘Twenty,’ she said on a groan, coming to the same conclusion I did.
‘Think it’s smart to go there? What if the generator hasn’t started yet and you have to climb twenty flights of stairs?’
‘Yeah, you’re right,’ she said. ‘I should wait some more.’
‘I have another proposition,’ I said.
‘Oh?’
‘Spend the night here. We have enough bedrooms. Power outages can be a hassle even with generators.’
“Hmmm… I sense some alpha vibes going on. Can’t say no to that, can I?”
“What?”
“Never mind. I was talking to myself. Umm…” Damn, she was cute all worked up like this. “Is Paisley going to be okay with that tomorrow morning?’
‘You’re going to sleep in the guest room, Lexi, not my bedroom.’ I groaned at the thought. ‘I’ll explain to her tomorrow morning that you couldn’t go home while the electricity was off. Come on, let’s have that wine before we go to bed.’
‘I never say no to wine,’ she said in a chirpy tone.
“I’ll go turn on the generator manually since it didn’t kick on. You can pour the wine.”
“Okay.”
***
Ten minutes later, the generator was up and running. I found Lexi at the kitchen island. She’d taken out two glasses and uncorked the bottle.
I poured us each half a glass and took the bottle with us back to the couch. Sitting down, we clinked glasses.
“I want your honest opinion on the wine,” I said.
“Okay.” She swirled it once, sniffing the glass before taking a sip, then another one. ‘Mmm.”
The sound went straight through me, and I couldn’t hold back a groan. She inhaled sharply, licking her lower lip. Our gazes crossed, and something snapped inside me. The next second, I leaned in closer, cupping the side of her head, tilting it, brushing my mouth over hers. She tasted delicious, I was right, but not because of the wine. It was just her—sweet and so damn perfect. I kissed her hungrily, exploring her mouth, coaxing her tongue with mine until I felt her shudder. The reverberations went through my body. I couldn’t stop kissing her, wanting to claim more sounds of pleasure. But Lexi pulled back, groaning.
“Tate…,” she murmured.
‘I can’t think straight,’ I warned her.
‘Mmm,’ she whispered. ‘I can’t either. But I think it’s safe to say we’re on a dangerous path, mister. No more wine for us.’
‘It’s not the wine. It’s just you, Lexi.’
She sighed, and I barely resisted the urge to kiss her again.
‘I should go home,’ she said.
‘No,’ I said determinedly. ‘You’re not going to climb twenty flights of stairs in the dark. I’m not gonna let that happen.”
“Oh, sweet heavens. You’re already going alpha on me.”
“Lexi! It’s not safe.”
‘And you think I’d be safe here, Mr. Maxwell, after you kissed me like that?’
I made a sound at the back of my throat instead of answering. Jesus, I was turning into a Neanderthal.
‘I think that proved my point. Let me check with a neighbor if the power is back on.” A few seconds later, she shook her head. “It’s not.”
‘I’ll show you to the guest bedroom, and we’ll call it a night, okay? And we can talk about this tomorrow.’
She swallowed hard. ‘Okay. Okay, that sounds smart. Let’s do that. Where is the guest bedroom?’
‘On the third floor.’
‘And where is your bedroom?’
‘On the second one.’
‘Oh, good. We have a floor between us. That should be enough.’
‘Don’t be so sure, Lexi. Come on, let’s go upstairs before I do something crazy.’
Her breath caught. ‘I was about to ask what, but maybe it’s better if I don’t,’ she whispered.
‘Yeah, it is. Trust me.’
I ushered her to go first on the steps, staying behind her. When we reached the second floor, I said, ‘Wait here.’ I headed to my bedroom, grabbed a clean white T-shirt that I usually have under my shirt, and walked back to her.
‘What did you bring?’ she asked as we moved up to the third floor.
‘A shirt for you so you have something to sleep in,’ I said.
“So gallant,” she murmured. “Tate, should we talk about this right now?”
I shook my head. “I need to clear my head first, Lexi. I’m too wrapped up in you.”
She groaned. “Oh God. You sure know how to say all the right things.”
The bedroom was at the top of the stairs, and she stepped inside.
“Good night, Lexi.”
I headed back downstairs, needing a glass of wine to cool off.
A few minutes later, I realized there was no cooling off as long as she was under my roof.
And she was going to be here the whole summer.
