Page 62 of On the Rocks

My hands slipped around his waist again, shaking a little as they settled over the ribs and valleys of his abdomen. I licked my lips, eyes falling to his before I caught his steel gaze once more.

There were so many words I wanted to say in that moment, so many words that would have completely annihilated ourfriends onlyagreement.

Kiss me.

Touch me.

I don’t feel this way with anyone else.

Each new thought shocked me more than the last, and my lips parted, the effort to catch my breath lost somewhere in the wind that swept over us. I should have been thinking about Anthony, about our wedding, about everything I needed to get done for it, about everything we would do as a married couple in our life together.

I should have been thinking aboutanythingother than how much I wished Noah would cross the line we drew between us and capture my lips with his.

He wanted me. I knew he wanted me. And I knew if I leaned in even another inch, he’d take me.

So, with every ounce of willpower I had, I backed away, eyes floating down to the seat between us before I looked at him again, wearing a fake,everything’s okaysmile.

And instead of saying all the words whirring through my mind, I settled on three safe ones, instead.

“Can I drive?”

Noah

The sun was a lazy ball of fire riding on the evening clouds later that day when Ruby Grace and I spread out a large blanket on the beach. She was lying on her stomach, her legs slowly kicking in the air as she popped another strawberry between her lips. Her focus was on the lake, on the jet skis and boats and fishermen and tubers and swimmers.

Mine was on her.

The back of her swim suit top had shifted, showing me the lines the sun had already made on her skin that day. Her hips were narrow, her small ass curved and toned, her legs still the epitome of every man’s fantasy as she swung them gently in the air — back and forth, back and forth, ten manicured toes skating the sky.

I would have been perfectly content to stare at her, just like that, for as long as I lived.

Even if I couldn’t have her, if I couldn’t kiss her or touch her or pull her into me and shield her from every unwanted harm — justlookingat her was a blessing. I felt her presence swell into my chest, filling me up in some way that I never would have realized before.

Because I didn’t know I was empty.

Not until she poured into my life.

Ruby Grace’s content sigh brought me back to the moment as she shifted, rolling onto her side and propping her chin up with one hand. “So, what made you think of Stratford Lake for our friend date?”

I took another bite of the sandwiches we’d bought from the lake’s convenient store, speaking around the mass of meat and bread in my mouth. “My dad used to bring all of us out here. It’s one of my favorite places.”

Her face sobered. “And you brought me?”

I shrugged. “I thought maybe it could become one of your favorite places, too.”

A soft breeze rolled over us, brushing Ruby Grace’s wild hair back over her shoulders as a soft smile found her face. I marveled at the deep blue water of the lake behind her, the beige sand, the warm glow of the sun drifting in and out of the clouds. It was the kind of view an artist would stop time for, pulling out their easel or camera or pen and paper to capture the moment in whatever way they could.

“What was he like?” Ruby Grace asked. “Your dad?”

I smiled, stealing a strawberry from her plate and popping it in my mouth. “He was the original trouble maker. I remember Mom always yelling at him for something. But, not in a way that they wereactuallyfighting. It was more like this adorable,you annoy me but I love you anywaykind of yelling.”

Ruby Grace smiled, running her fingers over the sand at the edge of the blanket. “So, I guess we have him to thank for the notorious Becker brothers running amok, huh?”

“Oh, definitely. But, it’s not like we golookingfor trouble,” I pointed out. “We were just taught from a young age not to put up with anything that’s wrong. So, whether that means sticking up for ourselves or for our brothers or a friend or even a complete stranger, that’s what we did. It’s what wedo.” I shrugged. “Dad never raised hell unless there was something to raise hell about.”

“Like the way Patrick Scooter was running the distillery?”

I blanched, heart stopping in my chest as I watched Ruby Grace in a new way. She was the mayor’s daughter — young, affluent,farremoved from the distillery. I knew everyone in the town had some sort of tie to Scooter Whiskey, but it surprised me that she knew anything about the inner workings of the place.