Total pages in book: 22
Estimated words: 20725 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 104(@200wpm)___ 83(@250wpm)___ 69(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 20725 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 104(@200wpm)___ 83(@250wpm)___ 69(@300wpm)
“Don’t worry, I won’t let your friend tease you too much,” I promised.
“Thanks, baby.” He wrapped my hair around his fist and pulled me down for a passionate kiss that left me breathless.
Things were starting to heat up between us when my landline rang in the kitchen. “No,” I cried, dropping my forehead against his.
“You better get that, little one.” He released my hair and gripped my hips to lift me off his lap. “It might be an emergency.”
It amazed me that I’d found a man who wasn’t intimidated by my position of power and didn’t give me any crap about it interrupting our time together. In fact, I was pretty sure I was more annoyed than him.
“Stupid job,” I grumbled as I stomped into the kitchen to yank the phone receiver off the wall. “Hello.”
“Hey, Bethenny,” Hayden greeted. “Since it looks like the snow is going to let up overnight, I thought I’d check if you’ve already confirmed with Mike that he’s going to send the plows out in the morning.”
Mike was the head of the streets and sewers department, and they were responsible for snow removal. “Not yet.”
“Are you coming down with something?” His tone was filled with concern.
“No, I’m perfectly healthy. Why do you ask?”
“You just don’t seem like yourself. I expected you to call me a few times a day to ask for status updates, but you didn’t reach out a single time since the storm hit,” he explained. “At first, I thought you were feeling blue because your family had to cancel their trip and you were alone for the holiday, but you’re not the kind of person who would let you get that down for this long.”
“Um, yeah. Sorry.” Lincoln had followed me into the kitchen and leaned his hip against the counter. I met his gaze as I conceded, “I guess I’ve been a little off my game the past few days. You’re probably right, and it’s just because I’m missing my family.”
“Do you want me to call Gavin, too? See if they need any help on the mountain?” he asked.
Gavin headed up the ski patrol for Winter Falls Resort and was a good friend of my brother Benjamin’s since they were the same age and had gone to school together. Because of our connection, it would’ve made more sense for me to be the one to reach out to him, but judging by the determined expression on Lincoln’s face, I wasn’t going to be available for a little while.
7
Lincoln
I narrowed my eyes, a frown creasing my face when Bethenny told her deputy she’d been out of communication due to missing her family. Without mentioning me. I had no intention of hiding or even being discreet about our relationship. And, from the guilty look in her eyes, she knew exactly where my mind had gone.
When she hung up, I prowled over to her and took her chin in a firm grip. “Care to explain?”
She licked her lips, and my cock hardened at the image of those sexy lips wrapped around me. But we needed to deal with this first, so I pushed those thoughts away.
“I wasn’t sure if we were ready to share our relationship. And we haven’t really talked about what happens next.” I raised an eyebrow, and she shrugged. “Not with any real detail or plans.”
“Okay, you have a point,” I conceded, releasing her chin to pull her into my arms. “However, I thought I’d made it very clear that whatever the future holds, it includes us being together. There is no if in that sentence, Bethenny.”
“The thing is, I don’t want to be without you,” she said softly, and her solemn tone confused me.
“That’s good, little one. Because I don’t intend to let you go.”
“But being mayor means being here nearly all the time—I’m basically on call twenty-four seven. I only take one week of vacation each year.”
I nodded and dropped one of my arms around her so I could walk us into the living room and over to sit on the couch. “I’m aware of that, and I have no problem with your job. Although, I might insist on a few extra-long weekends just for our little family a few times a year. Especially after we have kids.”
Her eyes lit up for a second before turning sad again. “I can’t travel with you, Lincoln, and you’re on the road most of the year. I don’t think I could handle being separated so often. When I have children, I want their dad to be present, not dropping in whenever he has a few days off here and there.”
It had taken me a minute, but I finally caught on to what had her so worried. “Bethenny, I can’t live without you by my side. I’m retiring. That means making Winter Falls my home, and I won’t be missing any of our life together. Although, I may have to pop out of town for promotional events every once in a while.”