Fall For Me (Light My Fire Series Book 4) Page 4

  “I’m shutting it down,” I said flatly.

  My mother let out a laugh. “I think that's great. I do wonder what Clint is going to think about that,” she said, referring to my great-uncle who’d been managing this part of the business for years.

  “I don't really give a shit what he thinks.”

  “Do you think he’ll doubt the marriage?” she asked.

  “No. The marriage is real. I’ve known Phoebe longer than just about anyone other than family. The business part is secondary.”

  The odd thing was when I hatched my plan, the reverse was true. I’d seen an opportunity and angled for it. Now, I was already falling for Phoebe. It wouldn’t be fake to show how much she meant to me.

  Our old friendship was a foundation. I knew her and trusted her in a way I didn't trust anyone, except for maybe my parents. When I'd seen her pictures on social media over the past few years, of course, I'd noticed she was beautiful. But that was more of an objective perspective. Nothing could have predicted the fiery chemistry that sizzled between us. And that kiss? Fuck me.

  I was losing control of the narrative much faster than I could ever have anticipated. I heard the sound of tires on gravel and glanced over my shoulder to see a vehicle with Kick*** Construction emblazoned on the side of it.

  “Hey, Mom, the construction crew I'm talking to about updates just got here. I'm going to let you go. Tell me when you'll be up here, and I'll make sure the house is ready in time.”

  “We’ll be there probably a few days before the wedding if that’s okay.”

  “Of course, it’s okay. I love you.”

  “Love you too, Archer. Give Phoebe my best and tell her we can't wait to see her. We're thrilled she's going to be part of the family.”

  “You got it.”

  I hung up the phone and stepped out of the SUV. Amelia Masters was approaching from the truck. Tall and leggy, she flashed a smile. “Hey there, Archer. I hear you go by Archer now.”

  “I do.” I gave her a quick hug before stepping back. “Long time no see.”

  “Definitely. Congratulations on your engagement to Phoebe. I think it's awesome,” Amelia replied.

  She seemed sincere and not even the least bit doubtful.

  “I think it’s awesome too.”

  She nodded firmly. “Absolutely. You two were besties growing up. It fits.”

  “And you're married with a kid?”

  Amelia’s cheeks flushed slightly as she shrugged. “I know. It’s crazy how much life changes. Cade and I started dating in high school, then we broke up. It was kind of dramatic.”

  “You seem to be all settled now,” I replied.

  She grinned. “We are. Life is good.”

  Another truck came down the drive, and a moment later, a petite woman with blond hair who resembled a fairy climbed out. She barely reached Amelia’s shoulder. Amelia was on the tall side, almost as tall as me.

  “This is Lucy. She's my best friend, and we run the construction company together,” Amelia explained. “Now, let's get down to business. What do you need?”

  “Rumor has it you're the best place in town, and you're busy. I'm willing to pay extra if you can do some updates on a tight deadline.”

  Lucy eyed me skeptically. “You're rich. How quick and how much do you want done?” she asked bluntly.

  I chuckled. “Mostly, I want the master bedroom and bath updated quickly. For the rest, you can take your time.”

  Amelia rested a hand on her hip. “We’re a small crew. That's how we keep quality up. So, you're either going to be patient or find another company. I can make some recommendations from Anchorage if you’d like.”

  I shook my head. “Nope, I’ll be patient.”

  Lucy wrinkled her nose as she looked up at me. “We can probably squeeze in the two rooms early. Let's take a look.”

  “The bones are good, I promise,” I said as I led them into the house.

  A short while later, they left with a plan, and I set up a deposit to be wired over to their account. To get started, they thought they could have the updates done on the bedroom and bathroom within a few weeks. They gave me the name of a furnishing place in Anchorage. The one thing my parents had wisely done was take everything out of the house. They told me they'd left some boxes in storage in the garage attached to the guest house. I headed over there to take a look around. Aside from finding some old kitchen items and papers from the business, I found an old photo box that was left behind by accident.

  I ended up sitting on the floor with my back against the wall as I flipped through a photo album from my elementary school years. There were plenty of photographs of Phoebe and me. We'd spent so much time together then. My heart gave a peculiar twist as I laughed softly, looking down at a picture of us digging for clams on the Turnagain Arm flats. Both of us were smeared in the mud. Phoebe’s blond hair was pulled up in a ponytail, hanging lopsided on her head with a wide smile wreathing her face. Another picture was of us holding hands as we jumped up and down in a puddle. The water splashed around us, glittering in the sunlight and leaving splotches on the photos from the lens.

  I closed the photo album, thinking of her now. My mind flashed to the feel of her lips underneath mine. Heat sizzled through me, and I stood abruptly. I'd meant to just go through the motions of the marriage yet somehow not make it official. But my mother’s comment about Clint reminded me I'd better make it official or my great-uncle would cause trouble. He was a fucking asshole.

  Chapter Eight

  PHOEBE

  A few weeks later

  “You mean move in here?” I asked, my voice rising to a squeak with the last word.

  Archer's eyes never left my face, and his lips twitched at the corners with a smile. My belly spun in dizzying flips. Butterflies took flight, sending tingles through my body.

  “Yes,” he said simply.

  It made sense logically, and I knew that. We were going to get married.

  “Um, okay. How far away is Valentine's Day?” I asked.

  “Two weeks. How's the wedding planning going?”

  I took a quick breath of air, gulping it in almost too fast. I felt a little light-headed from the rush of oxygen. “It's going. We'll be at the church. When is your family coming to town?”

  “My parents will be here a few days beforehand, and hopefully a cousin or two. I’m not sure yet.”

  I nodded, feeling a little crazy inside. “It'll be nice to see them.”

  “They're excited to see you. I was just talking to my mom this morning. She said to give you her best. I think we should go out for dinner in town soon.”

  “Dinner?” I prompted slowly.

  “Yeah, you know, that meal people have. We could call it supper. Dinner is technically lunch, or it used to be in England.”

  “Yes, we should, we should.” Why was I repeating myself? Gah!

  “We need to be seen in public. Rumor has it Tasha’s fiancé has arrived in town.”

  “You heard that?”

  Archer nodded, and I stood there, feeling ridiculous.

  He reached out and put his hands on my shoulders. “Phoebe, it's fine. I know you're over him.”

  “Yeah, I just feel stupid, you know?”

  “Well, yeah. I'd feel stupid if my ex was with my best friend. My point being, I think I get that you're more upset about your friend. You’re a really good friend, and it’s her loss. After meeting Tasha, my sense is she wishes she could fix it. I’m guessing you want to fix it for her, but you can’t.”

  I took a breath, trying to steady myself inside. “I know she does, but she can’t undo it.”

  Archer cocked his head to the side, studying me quietly, and I suddenly realized he knew me better than anybody. “You could let it go. She’s not worth it.”

  “Maybe after my pride feels a little better.” I lifted my chin slightly.

  His lips kicked up at one corner in a half-smile, sending my belly into a tizzy. “Well, you have better things to do.”

  “Like marry you and save the planet, or at least a river and the salmon run,” I teased.

  He laughed, the sound deep and gravelly. It rumbled through me, and I loved the way it sent a little shiver over my skin. His hands were still on my shoulders, and we stared at each other. We were alone in this house that, apparently, I needed to move into. Our wedding night was only two weeks away.

  “Where are we going to sleep?” I blurted out. We were standing in the empty bedroom, which Amelia and Lucy had finished updating already.

  Archer’s eyes never left mine. “I hired a place in Anchorage to furnish it. I was actually hoping you'd join me when I talked with them, so we could pick things out together. Does this afternoon work?”

  “I guess.”

  “They're coming here, so we don't have to drive anywhere. Are you okay?”

  His hands fell away from my shoulders as he stepped a little closer. His palms slid down my arms, gripping my hands lightly.

  My heart felt like a rabbit racing madly in my chest. I stared up into his gray eyes, trying to remind myself he was my old friend, Archie. Just my absolute favorite childhood friend. We did the goofiest stuff together. I never, absolutely never ever, thought I might think he was sexy.

  Trying to reconcile this Archer with the Archie I knew when we were little was challenging. Yet the comfort and familiarity I felt with him were still there. It came so easily. I didn't even have to think. We slipped into our old friendship, except there was this wildly inconvenient chemistry, and then he’d gone and kissed me. I couldn't forget it and had probably replayed that kiss hundreds of times in the hours afterward.

  Now, he wanted me to pick out furniture with him and stay with him. Oh. My. God. I didn't know what I'd been thinking when I said I would do this. I really didn't even care about my ex. What an asshole. And my shitty friend, Tasha.

  I couldn’t break away from Archer’s gaze. Heat bloomed under my skin, and my cheeks got hot as I stared up at him. I cleared my throat and licked my lips, trying to remind myself he was a billionaire with lots of money. All he had to do was get married, and then he could shut down that mine project. It was good for the environment.

  “Phoebe?” he prompted.

  Oh, right. He’d asked me if I was okay.

  “Yeah,” I finally managed.

  “What's going on in your brain? You're thinking really hard.”

  I knew I could come up with something flippant and dismissive. Surely, I could. Instead, like a complete idiot, I blurted out the worst question ever. “Why did you kiss me?”

  His silver-smoke eyes searched my face, and I felt as if he could see right into my heart, opening the doors and peering inside. I shifted on my feet, and butterflies twirled in my belly, tickling and sending sparks in a fiery scatter through me.

  “I could lie and tell you it was because I wanted to make Tasha know we were for real, which is true. That isn't a complete lie, but I also wanted to kiss you. Is that a problem?”

  I took a breath, trying to kick my brain into gear. Then he added, “I really wanted to kiss you.”

  Oh, my god. My heart went crazy, racing at the pace of a cheetah. My chest felt like it was going to crack open from the thundering beat. I could hardly get a breath, and my belly was spinning as heat slid through me in a fiery shimmer.

  “You wanted to kiss me?” I rasped.

  His eyes darkened as he nodded slowly. I knew this guy had way more experience than me with dating. His family had money, serious money. He’d probably dated models, and I was his old friend who was a firefighter and favored jeans and boots over dresses.

  “Did you want to kiss me?” he asked, each word deliberate and slow in that husky, purposeful voice of his.

  I seriously thought I might melt to the floor. I wanted to somehow be someone I wasn't—cool and calm like I could handle this smoothly. It was a lost cause, just like my panties. Staring up at him, I felt my head nodding as I whispered, “Yes.”

  I had no idea how long we stood there, but it felt as if we were caught in some kind of strange hot shimmering space. My heart kept on racing, and air was hard to come by.

  Archer’s eyes were dark. I didn't even think of him as Archie anymore. He was a man, he was Archer, and he felt like mine.

  “Well, then,” he finally said. “I think we should try again. Practice makes perfect, right?”

  My heart turned over. He released one of my hands, his fingertips dusting across my forehead as he brushed my hair back. His hand slid through the locks, and I could feel every touch. My senses were attuned to him and only him. The pads of his fingertips were warm and dry as they brushed along the base of my skull. The subtle sensation of his breath as he dipped his head and dusted a kiss on the side of my neck caused me to tremble, shivering all over.

  I heard myself whimper and was instantly shocked. I was not that girl. I didn't get all breathy and whimper about anyone. In fact, that was one of my ex's complaints. I was too tough. He wanted someone more feminine, or that was what he'd said in one of our arguments. Thank God I'd been the one to dump him first.

  None of those thoughts tumbled through my mind at this moment, though. None at all. With Archer, I felt entirely feminine.

  He lifted his head, his eyes catching mine like a beam. I couldn't look away. I trembled again, sucking in a quick shuddery breath. I thought he was going to bring his lips to mine. I craved it. I was impatient for it. All of me was leaning up toward him.

  He had so much more control than me at this moment, so much. He dipped his head again, dusting a kiss on the other side of my neck, and I let out another whimper. He released my other hand, his palm sliding around my waist. His fingers angled down over my bottom but not far enough. His hand slid through my hair again, and he palmed my cheek. Then he dragged his thumb across my bottom lip, and I thought I might burst into flames from the heat searing me inside. My mouth parted, and I swallowed as I frantically tried to think. My brain cells had immolated. All I could do was stare at him as my heart beat out his name against my ribs.

  “You are so gorgeous, Phoebe,” he murmured.

  That snapped through my awareness, sending a jolt of insecurity through me. I was shaking my head before I could even think. His eyes narrowed. “What? You don't get to disagree with me.”

  I pressed my lips together. His thumb was still there, resting just below the center of my bottom lip. “I’m not gorgeous. I'm a tomboy. I'm a firefighter.”

  “So, what if you're a tomboy and a firefighter? You're beautiful, and you're my best friend. I’m so glad I found you again.”

  I was trying to absorb all of that when he added, “I want to kiss you now, so shut up.”

  I was stunned at his words, so stunned that I did, in fact, shut up.

  His hand fell away, and he made some kind of sound, almost a growl, as he dipped his head. His lips brushed over mine once and then again before he angled my head to the side and fit his mouth over mine, claiming our kiss.

  I gasped into his mouth when his hand slid down over the curve of my bottom. He just barely nudged his hips into mine. I was almost shocked at the feel of his arousal, hot and thick against me.

  Archer kissed like a master. He alternated with commanding sweeps of his tongue before gentling and drawing back into a lingering kiss. He nipped, he dropped hot kisses at the corners of my mouth, he pressed open kisses on my jawline, and all the while, I melted. It felt like a dance, a push and a pull, and I just kept falling deeper and deeper. By the time he gentled our kiss and broke away, I was clinging to him with one arm banded around his waist and the other clutching his shoulder. His muscled shoulder, of course. I was plastered against him. My nipples were tight and achy, and I could feel the wet silk between my thighs.

  I blinked up at him. “Oh.”

  The only relief for me was Archer looked as stunned as I felt. The sound of the doorbell echoed from the front to the upper floor. With the house empty, the sound carried easily.

  He didn't move for several long moments as he stared at me. His palm moved in a smooth caress from my bottom and up my spine. He pressed his lips to mine once more in a lingering kiss just as the doorbell rang again.

  “That'll be the furnishing team,” he murmured.

  Chapter Nine

  ARCHER

  I tried, I really tried to stay focused. I prided myself on having an impenetrable professional demeanor. Phoebe had shaken me. Well, not Phoebe. Kissing Phoebe and kissing Phoebe again had shaken me to my core.

  Phoebe was my old friend, but she was so much more. I wanted her, and I didn't want this marriage just to be fake. Meanwhile, the interior decorator was rambling on about something. Phoebe looked a little dazed, and I smiled to myself at that. I was dazed. At least it wasn't just a me thing.

  “What do you think?” the woman said. I couldn't even remember her name at the moment.

  “I think unless Phoebe has a preference, I'm willing to let you make the call.”

  The woman shifted her attention to Phoebe, and Phoebe looked at me. We looked together at the woman, and I almost burst out laughing.

  “I don't like bright colors in the house,” Phoebe finally said. “Maybe something subtle with, I don't know, neutral shades.”

  “Neutral is the way to go for background, and if you want to add touches of color, you can do that with artwork. I’d recommend a comfortable, modern vibe. This house calls for that,” the woman explained.

  “It’s my parents’ old home, so I want it to be something they would like. Neutral colors will work for that,” I heard myself saying.

  “Will you be living here full time?” the woman asked.

  I reached for Phoebe's hand, lacing my fingers in hers and giving it a little squeeze. “We haven't made all those decisions yet. We will definitely be here part time,” I explained, hoping Phoebe wouldn’t start to get antsy.

  Phoebe aside, I’d already considered staying here. Willow Brook felt like home to me because it was where I’d grown up.