Page 85 of Rocky Mountain Devil

“Wait.” Jeff stopped her before she could escape. “These are for you.”

He held out a bouquet of white and yellow blossoms.

Frustration roared back to high. What did he think he wasdoing? Only hours back in town, and already trying to get together with her?

Before she could blast him, her mother entered the room. “Jeff. So glad you could make it. Everything go okay with your move?”

“Yes, thanks.” He adjusted position to grab another set of flowers. “Happy Thanksgiving. These are for you,” he said, offering a batch to her mom.

“Why, isn’t that sweet? Thank you.” Corrine took the bouquet, glancing at the remaining sets in his hand and under his arm.

“Your other daughter is here, isn’t she? Leslie?” Jeff asked, pulling out the third bunch. “These are for her.”

Laurel sighed. He’d brought a bouquet for each of the Sitko women, which meant if she refused hers it would look bad. To everyone else he was being friendly, that’s all.

She didn’t believe it for one minute. He’d tied her hands.Assholeechoed in her head loud enough she was sure her parents would hear it as the rest of the family filed into the living room.

She escaped in the middle of the chaos after a simple thank-you to Jeff, racing out of town to where Rafe waited.

She pulled the notecard from the bouquet, tempted to trash it, unread. But maybe she’d misjudged him. Maybe he’d realized the error of his ways while he’d been gone…

And maybe pigs would fly.

See, this is me being optimistic,she pointed out to God,but if Jeff’s still being stupid, I’d appreciate a little more backup support.

She pulled the card from the teeny envelope, glancing around to be sure she wasn’t going to run anyone over if she took her eyes off the road for a second.

Giving thanks for the good memories we have, and the better ones we will make in the future. I’m glad God brought our paths together again.

And…no. So much for optimism.

It was wrong but had to be done. Laurel rolled down her window and dropped the flowers one by one, pulling them from the bouquet with sharp jerks before letting them fall to the asphalt.

Organic material wasn’t littering, was it?

She crumpled the note and the empty paper wrapper that had been around the stalks into a ball and tossed them on the backseat. Then she pursed her lips and whistled a happy tune in the hopes the music would be enough to change her mood before she arrived.

Rafe was sitting on the front steps waiting for her. He rose as she put her car in park, all long and lanky and sexy-to-the-max as he strode forward.

Maybe they should forget the bonfire. There were a few other ways they could heat up the night. A few key things on her agenda…

Only, Jesse might be out of the house now, but he’d be back soon enough, and while Laurel was getting used to the idea of the other man guessing she and Rafe were fooling around behind closed doors, the first time they had sex, she did not want an eavesdropper.

Rafe caught her in his arms, squeezing tightly. He buried his face against her neck and took a deep breath. “Hmm. You smell delicious.”

His lips skated over her skin making it tough to concentrate. “Eau de la turkey?”

“Sweeter.”

“Can’t be the pecan pie, I didn’t get any—”

He swallowed her teasing words, and kissing him back was far better than baiting him.

Distraction finally set aside, she shared their plans. Rafe looked so pleased her momentary thoughts about a private party were forgotten.

He took the back roads to the trailer where Joel and Vicki lived, pulling into the yard at the same time as Troy and Nicole. Noisy greetings and hugs followed—gentle ones for Troy who was recovering from his accident.

“You okay grabbing the drinks?” Joel asked Vicki. “We’re going to get the bonfire going.”