Burning Barriers (Barriers Series Book 3) (7 page)

Lucy’s eyes catch my movement in the windowpane, but she doesn’t move to face me. She continues with the flowers and filling the vase with water. As soon as she’s done, she turns and wipes her wet hands on a dishtowel before coming back to stand in front of me.

“Everything is fine.” She shakes her head as if she’s trying to rid whatever was just encompassing her thoughts. She quickly places her small purse under her arm and turns to head back to the patio door, telling her family that she’s heading out and not to wait up. Her boots stomp against the wooden floor as she walks toward me. My eyes trail from her boots and follow her toned legs up to her swaying hips before she stops directly in front of me. I focus on her subtle cleavage that sneaks out of the low-cut sundress she’s wearing. The light casts a slight reflection off her silver chain dangling around her neck as I try to make out what’s engraved on the hand-punched sterling silver pendants.

I see a silver roller skate charm as well as the words on the round, flat, silver charm that read “Derby Sister 4 Life”. My hand unexpectedly reaches out to pull the necklace closer for me to see if there is anything else typed on the other side of the round pendant. Lucy catches my hand moving toward her and backs away abruptly. Her eyes are closed, and her lips are straight without emotion, but I can sense her pain when her hand rises to cover the scar on her neck. Just before her hand touches her skin, she opens her eyes and moves for the front door.

“We better get going if we’re going to make it to wherever we’re going. Where are we going? Should I have worn different shoes? Ellen didn’t like my first outfit, and this was the only other option,” she rattles off without taking a breath in-between. I quickly walk over to stand beside her and place my hand at the small of her back as I push open the front door for her to exit.

“You’re dressed fine, Luce. In fact, you look sexy as all hell in what you’re wearing. Remind me to thank Ellen later for the wardrobe.” I wink at her as a soft smile begins to grace her lips before she makes her way out to the front walkway.

Lucy stares at the huge beastly truck that’s parked in front of the house as I walk behind her down the brick paver walkway toward the street.

“I’m going to guess this monstrosity of a truck is yours?” she suggests as she stops at the end of the walkway, pointing to my truck with her thumb.

“What? You remember how bad winters are around here. It snows nonstop from October through April, and I need a reliable vehicle to handle pulling the horses and to get to the firehouse,” I justify as I start walking down the street away from the truck.

“Why are you heading that direction? Aren’t we driving?”

“It’s a nice night. I figured we’d walk to the restaurant. Is that okay?” Lucy stands there with her head down, staring at her boots. With her shoulders slumped, I hear her mutter something that sounds like ‘fuckin’ Ellen and her cowgirl boots’.

Before I have a chance to ask her what she said, she raises her head and begins walking in my direction. “All right, if we’re walking, let’s go. But, let me tell you something.” She points her finger at me. “These boots are not the easiest things to walk in,” she spouts as she storms past me.

I shake my head and laugh softly at her continued complaining. Nothing has changed about her whiny mouth in all these years. I hastily catch up to her and watch as her head turns up to face me. Her blonde curls bounce with each step she takes.

“Stop your whining, Luce, and ride me,” I say with an edge. It was always the line I used back in the day that drove her wild in the bedroom. Her questioning eyes stay fixed on me as my lips curl into a sinful smile. I chuckle to myself before pointing my thumb over my shoulder. “You know, hop on. I’ll give you a piggyback ride down the street.”

Her arms cross over her chest as her eyes climb in disgust. “Jake Galloway, I am not going to hop on your back and let you parade me through this town like a child. Besides, I’m wearing a dress, and I’m not going to show off my panties to everyone.”

I move closer toward her and watch as her eyes begin to question my actions. “Luce, if you don’t hop on my back right now, I’m carrying your ass downtown for dinner, and I’ll make sure everyone we pass knows exactly what kind of panties you’re wearing at the moment.”

“You wouldn’t dare. Anyway, how would you know what kind of panties I’m ‘wearing at the moment’?”

Walking over to her, I grab her waist and pull her close to me, so my mouth lingers above her head. “I know some things never change, and I’m pretty sure you have on a hot pink lace thong right now.”

“How…”

“Because, babe, your underwear always matched what you were wearing, and I’m certain that hasn’t changed about you.”

Before she has a chance to give me some feisty remark, I slightly lower myself and wrap my arms just below her ass. I effortlessly lift her up over my shoulder. Her fists flail against my back as though she believes she could physically hurt me.

We pass at least twenty people giving us strange looks before we even reach the next block. Lucy continues to softly yell and try to kick herself loose. She won’t have any luck against my strength. I laugh as I continue to carry her until we reach downtown. As I gently lower her to the ground, my hand accidently glides under the hem of her dress and brushes against the lace that is barely covering her ass cheeks.

Lucy’s head tilts back, and her eyes transfix on mine. My fingers move lower and graze against the back of her thighs. She doesn’t move or flinch. I begin to lower my lips to hers, but it’s then and only then that she backs away, letting her hand faintly push herself out of my grasp.

She clears her throat, and her apologetic eyes flutter to watch the people that walk around us. “Jake, we probably ought to get moving if we’re going to make it to dinner.”

With those words, she turns and starts walking away from me. A burn within my chest tells me my love for her still hides deep within my soul. If it takes me the entire time she’s back home in Breckenridge to prove to her that she belongs here, then that’s what I’m going to do.

While sitting here on Jake’s soft dark brown leather sofa, I’m trying to figure out how he convinced me to come back to his house with him after dinner. The cathedral ceiling seems larger than I remember as my eyes soak in the vast stone fireplace. Even with its incredible size, it doesn’t make the room feel any smaller. The light gray stones appear to continue forever through the ceiling. A massive flat screen television is mounted above a copper mantle on the fireplace, and the large picture windows behind me allow the last of the evening light to glow upon the rocks.

As I wait for Jake to grab beers from the basement bar, I stand and wiggle my bare feet on the soft fur of the bearskin rug beneath me. Blisters threatened to ruin my night with those cowgirl boots a couple of hours ago. Once Jake and I left the restaurant, I tossed the boots back at my house and changed into my flip-flops before Jake brought me back here. Somehow, he used the excuse that it was still early, and he wanted to catch up in a more relaxed setting.

To say dinner wasn’t fun would be a lie. Jake took me out to our favorite place when we were teenagers. The Downstairs Pub was always the place to go on the weekends because they served the best pizza and had a ton of arcade games. It also helped that it was within walking distance of my house. During a typical Colorado winter, the snow accumulates quickly. Having grown up in a skiers’ town, nothing closed, but that didn’t mean we didn’t get cabin fever. The Downstairs Pub stayed open regardless of the conditions.

Those were the good times.

A smile creeps along my face as my feet move over toward the fireplace to see the framed pictures lined along the mantle. I tilt my head to catch a better angle away from the glare of the lights, and my heart stops at the image.

I must have been no more than thirteen, but it was the first time Jake ever took me horseback riding. I remember the day as if it were yesterday. In the picture, Jake is adjusting the stirrups on my saddle as we stare at each other just smiling while I’m sitting on the horse and holding the reigns in my hands.

“Jellie Bellie was always your favorite horse.” Jake’s deep voice breaks my mind from recalling the memory.

I didn’t hear him come up from the lower level. I turn to see him walking toward me from the kitchen, hitting a button on a remote that sits on the counter on his way. Suddenly, music filters through the surround sound speakers, and the soft voice of Ed Sheeran’s “I See Fire”
stirs something inside me. Jake pops the caps off the beer bottles, tossing them into the trash on his way. Within seconds, he is standing before me with his eyes never leaving me.

I nervously push my hair behind my ear before he reaches out to hand me a local brewer’s pale ale. My eyes shift from Jake back to the pictures as I tilt my head back, taking a long pull from the bottle. I can feel his eyes still on me, and I know I need to keep him at a safe distance. After our little affair in the backyard the other day, I know if I let myself go like that again, I won’t stop.

Especially with Jake.
Something tells me he knows I’d never say no.

Not that I ever had any problem saying no before. Just look at where that got me. I ended up sleeping with my best friend’s convict ex-boyfriend who turned out to be even more dangerous than she imagined. It’s been two months since I’ve slept with anyone, and the scar on my neck is the daily reminder why I need to try to change my ways. Jake has been the one I’ve longed for in my heart and my bed since the day I left. If I let him in now, I know there will be more shit that I can’t fathom trying to handle.

Attempting to change the direction of where I think Jake’s mind is headed tonight, I return my focus to the pictures on the mantle. “Jellie Bellie always was a big ham. He flirted with me more than you did that day. Always sticking his nose up my ass and pulling my shirt because he knew the carrots were in my pockets. I loved that horse.”

“Yeah, he had moves I still hadn’t mastered yet with you back then.” Jake sets his beer onto the mantle before placing his hands around my waist, twisting me so I face him. “I’m still trying to figure out those moves now.”

Closing my eyes before I tilt my head down, I let out a long breath. “Jake… please don’t,” I whisper.

“Don’t fight it, Luce. There’s a reason why you came back here now,” Jake hints in a soft tone as his fingers trace over the scar on my neck.

My eyes shoot open as I raise my head, taking a step back from his embrace. I look into his eyes, and I see the bewildered look behind them.
What did I do wrong?
It’s etched all over his face, and he has no idea what my life has been like the past couple of months.

“You don’t get to assume
why
I came back here! You lost that right years ago when you wanted out.” I move back a few steps once I notice him trying to get closer to me. I hold up my hand between us, telling him to stop. “You stared at my face the last few hours, and yet not once did you ask how I got this scar on my neck. Not
once
, Jake!” I shout as anger starts to fuel inside me. Anger that I haven’t been able to release in months and it feels good.

Jake takes a step back, rubbing his hands over his face and clearly unsure of how to handle my outburst.

“What do you want me to say, Luce? You want me to say I’m sorry for being a fuckin’ idiot back then? Well, I’m sorry. I made the biggest mistake of my life when I let you go. There, are you happy now? I said it! I fuckin’ loved you then, and I have loved you every day since you left.”

No. He can’t possibly still love me. I can’t begin to process any of this right now. I turn around and wrap my arms around myself. Suddenly, I don’t want to be around him anymore. I feel as though I’m suffocating and need air.

My eyes scan the room, and I see the French doors that open to the back deck. I feel Jake’s hands on my shoulders, and I push forward to the doors out of his grasp.

“Lucy.” Jake’s pleading voice sounds behind me.

My hands find the brass handles, and I push down, opening the heavy doors. The cool night air hits my face, and I can breathe again. I quickly step outside and search the clear night sky for some guidance. I take a deep, calming breath before I shut my eyes to feel the gentle summer breeze against my face as I get all my thoughts in order.