Bake This! (A 300 Moons Novella) (5 page)

How long could the magic possibly last?

Surely it would wear off before he could actually torture her to death trying to make her climax. Wouldn’t it?

Will’s tongue parted her sex and the feeling was like lightning striking a meadow.

“Oooh,” she moaned helplessly as he slowly licked his way up toward her clit.

Once there he paid it no mind, instead working his way down again, slowly.

Will was in no rush, he seemed to be enjoying himself.

Tess, on the other hand, needed all of her strength not to flop like a fish on the table. The desire was like a weight, pulling down on her.

She opened her eyes and saw his dark head between her thighs. The sight was so sexy she thought she might actually go over the edge right then.

But Tess never went over the edge, she held herself together too well for that.

Will licked and lapped, stroking her with his warm tongue.

It wasn’t until she lifted her hips to meet his mouth that he finally slid a finger against her opening.

“Ohh,” he sighed against her. “So wet, so sweet.”

Tess felt her whole body clench down on his long finger, but she knew she wouldn’t come. She never had at any man’s hands.

He was moving so slowly, licking tenderly like he would never stop.

The only other boy who had done this to her had gone so fast, she had been afraid he might hurt her.

Will was so deliberate, so patient.

Tess cried out and wiggled.

Will kept up his measured strokes.

The more she whimpered and lifted her hips, the more determined he seemed to take his time.

The pleasure built, first warming her insides, then bubbling over like a pot of apples, until her very skin seemed to be burning for more.

When she threw caution to the wind and tangled her fingers in his dark hair to pull him closer he groaned against her, maddening her with the vibration of his voice, and slid a second finger inside her to massage a place that made her want to scream.

“Please,” she begged.

Instantly his tongue was working her, rising to flicker over her clitoris.

“Ohh,” Tess moaned as her world spun on its axis and she came apart on Will Harkness’s hand and mouth, in a storm of helpless pleasure.

“
W
as that one real
?” Will asked, as soon as her tremors had ceased.

Tess gazed at him, reeling. “Yes.”

He studied her suspiciously.

“Who’s your favorite Beatle?” he asked.

“Ringo,” she said, biting her lip in embarrassment.

Will laughed.

“Wow, it
was
real. Better get our money’s worth out of your last few minutes.
Empire
or
Return of the Jedi
?”

“
Empire
,” she said quickly, glad that her tastes in entertainment weren’t completely laughable.

“Good,” he replied.

But instead of asking another question he just smiled and crawled onto the table beside her.

She smiled back.

He wrapped his warm arms around her and cradled her to his chest.

It felt so good to be held, her skin still tingling from her climax.

Tess nuzzled Will’s neck. She could feel the hard ridge of his desire pressed to her belly through the fabric of his jeans.

He stroked her back with his rough fingertips.

“Don’t you want—?” she began.

“—Shh,” he whispered, holding her close.

Tess decided to close her eyes, just for a minute.

T
ess awoke
to the sound of a tinny radio.

“…
r
ecord snowfall for Philadelphia
: thirty inches at Independence Mall, thirty-two at the airport. An emergency warning is in effect…”

S
he opened her eyes
, but it took her a moment to place where she was. Wood rafters above her gave her scant clue.

Then the scent of cinnamon registered and it all came back.

Tess sat up.

Will must have moved her to the lumpy sofa while she slept. She was relieved to see that she was covered with a blanket at least.

No. A tablecloth. Still better than nothing.

She wrapped it around herself with as much dignity as she could muster and found a note on the table.

H
ey
, baby,

Hope you slept well! The powder room is right behind you. There’s a hose and a floor drain behind the blue door. It’s for rinsing produce, but more timid people, with way less pie in their hair than you, have showered in it before.

These clothes will be big but they’re all I’ve got! Come have pie for breakfast when you’re ready!

Love,

Will

T
ess smiled so hard
she was embarrassed, even though no one was there to see it.

On the table next to the note sat a pair of denim overalls and a red flannel shirt. Not bad.

She used the powder room in the break room and then opened the blue door.

It really was just a hose and a floor drain.

Well, it was better than being covered in dried apple pie.

She grabbed the hand soap from the powder room and came back to tackle getting clean.

Fifteen horrible minutes later she emerged, chilled to the bone, but completely un-sticky.

It was weird to put on a flannel and overalls with no underwear, but beggars couldn’t be choosers.

She wandered out of the break area and into the kitchen again.

The fragrance of baking pies was heavenly. Someone was singing.

Will
was singing.

A Jocelyn Wilde song.

Tess smiled to herself and stayed quiet as she padded far enough into the room to see that he was actually dancing a little, too, as he tossed the par-cooked apples in cinnamon and sugar. His big body weaved and swayed, looking pretty good in his tight jeans.

“Glad to see I’m not the only one who likes Jocelyn Wilde,” she said at last.

Will jumped a little, but didn’t spill his bowl. He turned to her, grinning as if he knew he should be embarrassed, but also knew how hot he was when he was dancing.

“You got me,” he admitted.

“Did you make pies all night?” Tess asked, noticing the big stack of boxes against the back wall.

“Pretty much. I don’t need much sleep. Plus
someone
doesn’t share the blankets,” he teased.

“For your information it was a tablecloth,” she corrected him, with great dignity.

“My apologies,” he said, winking.

Suddenly she remembered what they had done, specifically what he had done to her, and she blushed furiously.

“Come on, you need to do a taste test for me,” Will said quickly.

For one, beautiful moment, she thought he meant she should return the favor.

Then he gestured to a spot on the counter where he had laid out two plates and forks.

“Okay,” she agreed.

Will pulled up two stools to the counter and cut them each a slab of pie.

Tess took a bite. It was still warm, and so good.

“Good, right?” he asked.

“Yesshhh,” she replied through the bite.

“It’s Mom’s recipe, but I’m glad I can still do it. Usually Ethan comes by to help with the pies. He and Derek used to help all the time, before Derek moved out to Glacier City. Ethan still stops by when he can.”

Tess nodded, wondering if Will knew that Hedda wanted to set her up with Ethan.

“I guess your sister will be sort of disappointed in us, huh?” he asked.

He knew.

“She’ll be okay,” Tess said carefully, unsure whether they were going to pretend this never happened or… date. A guy like Will probably had plenty of casual encounters. Tess wasn’t exactly a casual encounter type of person.

“Good, because I’ll fight Ethan for you if I have to. But he’s pretty tough, so if it’s my beautiful face you fell for, you might want to take some pictures now,” Will said.

Tess was stunned.

He winked again and she realized he was kidding. Of course he was kidding. He wouldn’t get into a physical fight with his brother’s best friend any more than she would with Hedda.

“So, we seem to be having a little weather incident,” he said as she finished her breakfast.

She remembered the voice on the radio.

“Snow, huh?” she asked.

“Come with me,” he said, taking her hand.

They ascended the stairs into the store.

It was dark.

“What do you notice?” he asked.

“Um, nothing, maybe if we turn the lights on?” she suggested.

“Look at the windows,” he said.

Then it hit her. There was no light coming through the windows. It was dark outside, though she could swear she’d slept all night.

“Come on,” he said, grabbing her hand again.

They went back to the stair case and up to the second floor.

Here there was plenty of light. This was the Christmas-All-Year-Long Shoppe. Dozens of Christmas trees spread out along the open floor, each decorated with its own theme. One was filled with feathered bird decorations. Another was a German Christmas tree with all white balls and garlands. One was covered in gingerbread cookies.

Before Tess could take in the magic, Will was tugging her hand to the far wall. Between the built-in shelves of children’s books and hooks with hand-embroidered stockings stood a large window.

Tess looked out.

At first she didn’t recognize what she was seeing.

The window should have shown her the gravel lot between the barn and the house, the Christmas tree field to one side, the apple orchard to the other, the big old farmhouse and the tall sycamores lining the drive.

If she squinted against the swirling flakes, she could barely make out what looked like a small house in a flat white field with a few snowy trees.

“That’s the second and third floors of the farmhouse,” Will told her. “The snow is covering the orchard, the Christmas trees - everything but the sycamores.”

“Are- are they okay over there?” she asked.

“I think so, but the cell tower must be down,” Will said. “It’s worse than when I woke up.”

She could hear the worry in his voice.

“What can we do?” she asked.

“Bake pies,” Will said simply. “When it stops snowing, we’ll start digging.”

And bake they did - all morning and into the afternoon. Every time they took pies out of the oven and set them on the counter to cool, Will would go upstairs and look out the window.

Each time he came down, he looked more concerned.

“What should we do?” Tess asked, curiosity giving way to genuine concern.

“There’s nothing we can do until it stops,” he said. “There’s no trace of the road, and I can’t see more than ten feet. If we go out now, we could actually get lost trying to get there. They’ll be alright.”

But she could tell he didn’t feel good about it.

“Is it because tomorrow’s Christmas?” she asked suddenly.

Will nodded.

“Mom keeps the presents over here so the little guys can’t find them. She does the best she can all year round, but you can only stretch a dollar so far. There’s not much in the budget for toys. Christmas is a pretty special day at the farm.”

“But what about your brothers?”

Johnny was a legit rock star. Chance was a successful fighter. And according to Hedda, Derek had more money than both of them put together.

“Mom would never take money from them.”

Tess’s heart sank. Of course she understood. Both the part he was saying out loud - about the kids not getting presents all the time - and the part he wasn’t saying, which had to be the worst of it.

Her sister had told her all about the special home for wayward shifters that Kate Harkness ran. Tess understood that these kids had been left behind by birth families that couldn’t deal with their animal natures. They needed reminders that they were cherished.

She wished like anything that she could do something, but…

“Will, can’t you turn into a wolf?” she asked.

“Yeah, but I can’t carry a truckload of toys,” he said sadly. “At least Derek got Mom a new gas furnace last year. Otherwise I’d be afraid they’d run out of oil.”

Oh, no.

“Will, is it a high efficiency furnace?” she asked, her imagination already concocting worst-case scenarios.

“What?” he asked.

“This is important,” she said. “If it’s a high efficiency model, then it doesn’t vent out the chimney, it vents out a pipe on the side of the house.”

“I have no idea,” Will said. “Efficiency sounds like something Derek would like.”

“If the heater is venting out the side of the house, then it’s covered in snow right now,” she explained. “And if it’s covered in snow, then carbon monoxide can be going back into the house.”

Will’s face went pale.

“You’re the most mechanically inclined person I’ve ever met,” he told her solemnly. “Do you think it’s likely to be that type of system?”

“Based on what I know about your brother - yes. He can afford the best and he knows your mom can’t afford high heating bills.”

“Then we need to get over there,” he said.

“How?” she asked.

“I would have said I could shift and carry you on my back. But we have to get the family back here too,” he said thoughtfully.

“So we need a way to get them back here,” Tess mused.

“I’m strong as a wolf, but I don’t know how many times I can make it over there and back,” Will admitted.

“Could you pull a sleigh?” Tess asked.

“Sure, but we don’t have one,” he replied.

“Is there a tool box here someplace?” Tess asked.

“Yeah, back in the basement,” Will said, already heading for the stairs.

H
alf an hour later
, Tess stepped back to admire her work.

One of the plank tables in the break room had been the perfect beginning to a sleigh. All she’d needed to do was seal the openings between the planks and add rails. Admittedly, they had scavenged materials from all over the barn, but she figured Kate Harkness would forgive her. And she could always take the sleigh apart and put almost everything back once everything was over.

“You don’t have to go with me,” Will said, looking at the sleigh and then out the window at the ten foot drop into the snow.

“If anything goes wrong with this sleigh, you’re going to need me,” Tess replied.

“You are one brave lady,” he told her.

“Let’s do this,” she said.

He began to remove his clothes.

For an instant she forgot and stared openly at him.

Then she remembered, he had to turn into his wolf.

“There’s a spell on me,” he muttered. “Makes it hard for me to shift.”

“Oh, that’s right! Hedda told me all about it. I can’t wait to meet Mrs. Cortez - how powerful she must be,” Tess said, before noticing how embarrassed he was.

Her sister had explained how all of the shifters at Harkness farms received help controlling their animals from a special enchantment when they were first brought in. Tess was looking forward to meeting a witch who could craft a spell like that.

“Well, here goes nothing,” he said.

Tess had never actually seen anyone shift. Hedda had described Derek’s change as falling into his bear, effortlessly.

Right now, Will was squeezing his eyes shut as the air around him seemed to blur.

He clenched his fists at his sides.

The wavy halo around him undulated.

Will blew out a measured breath.

Suddenly he was gone.

In his place a massive brown wolf stood before her. His intelligent eyes were hazel, just like in her dreams.

Tess stepped back, instinctively.

The great wolf lowered his massive head and folded his ears back, letting his mouth hang open in a sort of smile.

Tess smiled back and extended her hand.

He crept up to her slowly and pressed the top of his huge head into her palm.

His fur was warm and impossibly soft.

He lowered his head further to butt against her hip. Then he mortified her by snuffling at her thighs.

“Stop that, you,” she scolded, pressing her legs together.

He leapt back, rear end in the air, front paws splayed, tongue hanging out of his mouth in a pirate’s grin, like a puppy asking to play.

“It’s time to go,” she told him.

He stood and held himself tall while Tess fitted him with the harness she’d fashioned out of rope and an enormous pair of canvas overalls.

She opened the large windows and pushed the sleigh outside. She held her breath, but it rested on the surface of the snow as she had hoped it would.

She turned back to see Will standing behind her, panting in the cool snowy gusts entering the window.

“Hang on,” she told him. “One more thing.”

She showed him the garland of Christmas bells she’d found on one of the Christmas trees upstairs.

“In case the harness breaks and you get lost, or I do. These will help us,” she explained.

He lowered his shaggy head and she hung the bells around his scruff, then wound a second garland of bells around her own neck.

“Okay, time to go,” she said.

He leapt over her head and out the window, landing on the sleigh.

It still didn’t sink. A good sign.

Tess climbed gingerly out the window and added her own weight to the conveyance.

The wind cut through her clothing instantly, chilling her to the bone and drowning out all sound. Will was right - she could hardly see ten feet ahead of them.

The massive wolf belly-crawled into the snow, sinking down a bit as she attached the sleigh to the harness.

“Whenever you’re ready,” she shouted, hoping he could hear her over the onslaught of wind and snow.