Chapter Twenty-One—Shelby

The top half of the building was under construction, but the bottom was nothing but pure white marble and flawless edges. It looked like something out of a magazine.

A wide, white wall stood behind the front receptionist desk, which I imagined would be my canvas. It almost felt wrong to put any color on anything, a piece of dirt would have looked like a pink elephant in the room.

“Do you like it?” Cash asked.

I nodded slowly. “How often will you be here when it opens?”

“I’ll probably do most of the traveling; I can’t trust Asher to do anything, especially if a woman is in a five-mile radius.”

That sounded about right. I ran my fingers against the cool, white marble, imagining how modern and perfect everything would look when it was finished. The thought of him being hours away settled uneasily in my stomach. I didn’t like it. I’d never been that girl, the girl that couldn’t live without a guy, or the girl who cried when I was away from someone. Granted, I’d never had a relationship before.

Cash gripped my shoulders from behind, his mouth close to my ear. “What’s wrong?”

I closed my eyes, not wanting to admit anything. I knew enough about boys to know they didn’t like clingy, and I wasn’t going to be that person. “Nothing. Just imagining what I’d paint here.”

He made a soft sound, his large hands turning me to face him. Those crystal green eyes were softer than before, a look of concern coated his face. “You’re not a good liar, Peach.”

I raised a brow, trying to hide the truth that I didn’t realize my face showed. “I’m not—”

Cash hissed out a sigh, dragging me closer. “Let’s cut the crap. What were you thinkin’ about?”

Sighing, I dropped my eyes to the floor, admiring the perfect white tile beneath us. “I was thinking about you bein’ gone to Dallas and me being in Savannah.”

I didn’t lift my eyes to see the look on his face, but after a few seconds, he lifted my chin with his fingers. “You think I would leave for weeks at a time without you?”

My heart thumped rapidly in my chest. “What would I do about work—”

“We’ll figure it out, Peach,” he said calmly. I felt my body soaking in his words, believing everything those perfect lips told me. I’d never believed anything a male had told me. It didn’t take long to realize they’d say whatever to get in your pants, but he’d already been there, a few times, and he hadn’t left.

“Okay,” I whispered.

Cash’s hand slid down my arm to interlace with my own fingers. “Now, it looks like we have to go get ready for dinner with your … friend.”

I tried to hide my smile but failed miserably. “He is my friend, Cash.” I reached up on my toes to kiss his cheek. “Just my friend.”

He searched my face, for what I didn’t know, and tugged me toward the door.

****

The BBQ from Woodshed Smokehouse wasn’t all Cash had swallowed; his pride went along with it. I’d felt the hostility as soon as we walked into the room. When Jacob had wrapped me in a tight hug, his cheek pressed against my own, I’d felt the tightness in Cash’s fists.

“How did you start working for Mr. Jenkins?” Jacob leaned back against his seat; a beer rested in his hand.

I took a sip of my sweet tea, clearing the sweet honey BBQ on my tongue. “He was at a dinner with my parents. I met him there.”

Jacob glanced over at Cash. “You’ve been to one of their Friday night dinners? Fun, huh?”

Cash hadn’t loosened his fingers around his beer, but his shoulders relaxed some. “So much. I loved how they complain about Shelby the entire time.”

Jacob’s dark eyes met mine. “Things have gotten worse for you?”

I shrugged. “Mom’s always been a bitch; you know that.”

He leaned forward, his palm reaching out to hold mine. “But she’s worse now because of Ryder.”

I nodded, holding back the flood of tears that threatened the gates. “She’s been horrible toward me since then. You know they blame me.”

Jacob swallowed. “They’re idiots. It wasn’t your fault, you know that. You didn’t make him get in that tree, Shelbs.”

I didn’t want to talk about it anymore. Crying in front of a restaurant full of people didn’t sound appealing. I shrugged my shoulders and wiped at a stray tear. “I know, I’m fine. They just need time to heal.”

They’d had three years to forgive me, but I knew that they’d never be completely over it. Not really. I’d just always told myself that they’d stop treating me so different after a while. “So, how is the logo business going? I saw your website. Fancy stuff.”

Jacob smiled. “Yeah. It’s been going great. I just finished a job for the new coffee chain that opened down the street from your job.”

“Someone’s moving up in the world. I saw that logo. It’s awesome.”

He rolled his eyes, before looking over at Cash, who hadn’t said more than two words since we’d walked in. “I have nothing compared to the guy over here. I remember when you opened and how my professors were so proud. They all thought they’d gotten you there.”

A small smile formed on Cash’s lips. “They helped me a lot,” he said. “But having my brother’s support was what kept me going. Going solo, I probably wouldn’t have made it so easily.”

Jacob nodded, smiling at the waitress as she cleared out plates. “You ever think about updating your logo? You’ve had the same one since when? Five years?”

Cash leaned forward. “What did you have in mind?”

An hour later, Cash and Jacob were laughing. Laughing, I kid you not. I’d sat back in my chair, amazed at how the night had changed. The tight fists and cold looks had turned into shoulder slaps and wide grins.

After Jacob had pulled out his sketch book and shown Cash some of his designs, and his ideas for The Jenkins’ Brother, Cash had immediately turned the page.

“You’re brilliant,” Cash said, chugging his third beer. “I’ll definitely run these by my brother, and we’ll pick one we like the most.” He turned to look at me, those green eyes full of excitement. “Which one do you like the most, Peach?”

Jacob smiled at me. “Peach? I guess that does kind of fit her, huh? A Georgia Peach?”

Heat tingled my cheeks as I pointed toward the third drawing. “That one.”

Cash wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pressed a kiss to my temple. “That’s my favorite, too.”

I felt Jacob’s eyes on me, but I didn’t meet them. I’d never been serious about anything, and I was sure that Jacob knew that. There was no way he hadn’t seen the papers over the last few years, showing all my mistakes in print for everyone in Savannah to see.

Once the check had been paid, and we’d made it outside, I could still feel Jacob looking at me. I wasn’t sure what to think about it either. The air was chillier than it had been, and I loved the feel of Cash tucking me into his side.

When our cab pulled up in front of the restaurant, I’d felt a sigh of relief. “It’s been great to meet you,” Cash said, offering Jacob his hand.

Jacob took it, his eyes falling on me again. “You’ll have to excuse me for being rude, but are you two dating?”

“Yes,” Cash answered quickly.

Jacob shoved his hands into his pocket, rocking back on his heels, a bright smile spread across his face. “I’m glad she’s found someone that deserves her.”

Jacob leaned forward and hugged me. “It was good to see you, Shelby. I really wish you the best of luck.” He turned to Cash. “Treat her good, she’s worth it.”

****

I bit into the plush white comforter my face was pressed into. It felt like fire had consumed my insides. The feel of him had my entire world on its axis.

He’d put the ‘do not disturb’ sign on our hotel door as soon as he’d stepped past the threshold. I’d felt the change in the air when I dropped my purse on the couch and felt his eyes on me from behind. Cash had been quiet in the car ride back, although the warm pressure of his palm against my thigh had me on edge.

It didn’t take long before he’d scooped me up into his arms and carried me to the bedroom. And with such care, he’d stripped me out of all of my clothing and buried his mouth between my shaking thighs.

“You feel so good,” he whispered against the back of my neck. His strong palms held me against the bed, the only movement, beside the work his mouth was doing to my shoulder, was the thrusts of him against me.

My fingers clutched the covers tighter with every movement. The demanding feel of him felt like a slice of Heaven, but there was something so soft about him tonight. .

It was a little bit of everything, and the tenderness was a new ballgame for me. I’d never had sex that’d been so hard and so soft at the same time. Truthfully, I’d never been touched that tenderly—ever.

“Sweet Mary,” he whispered in my ear, bringing me back against him harder. “I could live in here. Every night, for the rest of my life.”

I shivered against him, my second orgasm built in my lower stomach, and all it took was the feel of the softest kiss between my shoulder blades to send me over the edge.

His voice was deep and rough in my ear, but sounded like the sweetest of songs, him repeating my name over and over in a rhythm that matched the beat of his heart that I felt against my back.

It didn’t take more than a second to know that I’d fallen in love with him. I’d fallen in love with a man that I knew could crush my bruised heart in one second.

I’d fallen for a man who could be the meanest beast I’d seen or the rough angel who haunted my mindless dreams.