Love At First Fight E-Book

Mary E. Thompson

• Herausgeber: BluEyed Press
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Beschreibung

She has a secret…

Andie Young has always been good at hiding who she really is. Her emotions and truths have stayed buried beneath the sexy clothes, makeup, and endless amber waves that are her signature look. She had to do something to get attention. Between her three brothers and five cousins, she grew up feeling like the invisible one. So she changed that.

He’s loved her forever…

Cody Powell has been attracted to Andie since the summer she turned seventeen. Off limits back then, and involved with one guy or another since, Cody has kept his adoration secret from her. He spent fifteen years avoiding Andie, and stammering like a fool when he was face to face with her.

Cody spends weeks fixing up her house and falling harder for her with each passing day. He knows she’d never be interested in a country boy like him, but seeing her dating other guys has finally taken its toll. Cody doesn’t think he can handle it any longer.

They both want someone to share their lives with…

Is she strong enough to take a chance with Cody? Or will he finish her house and leave before she gets the chance to tell him how she feels?

Leseprobe

LOVE AT FIRST FIGHT

RAISE A GLASS, BOOK THREE

MARY E THOMPSON

Love At First Fight

Raise A Glass, book three

Copyright © 2017 Mary E Thompson

Cover Copyright © 2022 Mary E Thompson

Cover photo (vineyard) from Pixabay and used under Creative Commons CC0

Cover photo (couple) from depositphotos © kiuikson

Published by BluEyed Press, All Rights Reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This is a work of fiction. All characters, businesses, locations, and events are either products of the author’s creative imagination or are used in a fictitious sense. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-944090-39-5

Print ISBN: 978-1-944090-39-5

Created with Vellum

CONTENTS

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

About the Author

1

Cody Powell knocked on his best friend, Dillon Young’s, front door once before opening it and letting himself in. He and Dillon had been friends since sixth grade when Dillon told Cody all about his big family. Cody was mesmerized. He didn’t know families like Dillon’s existed outside of TV. From that day on, Cody made it his mission to entangle himself in the family. He loved his parents, but being an only child was lonely at times. His house never had the subtle excitement that was always present at Dillon’s. Over the years, Cody felt like he actually was a part of the family he grew up with, especially on Sundays when the extended Richliano family got together.

“Hey Code,” Dillon said from the kitchen. Cody waved and headed straight for the fridge. He knew Dillon would have a Mountain Dew, and Cody ran out that morning. Like most Saturday nights, Cody had trouble getting enough sleep knowing he’d see Dillon’s sister, Andie, the next day. A little extra kick would get him going.

“Do you want some coffee?” Dillon asked.

Cody shook his head. “You know I hate that shit. What’s going on? It looks like you had a frat party last night.” Cody looked around the room at the beer and wine bottles on every flat surface in the kitchen and plates of food all over the living room, as though someone broke in and trashed the place.

Dillon shook his head. “Nah. Andie, Sean, and Leo were here last night after the wedding. We drank way too much and raided the fridge. Andie was a little weird, and Leo and Sean walked back with us. Between all the work we’ve all put in the last few months and Emily, it was nice to just hang out again.”

Cody nodded, although he couldn’t relate. He knew Dillon was close to his siblings growing up, but when Sean got married then quickly became a single dad, he wasn’t around much. And the hours they’d all put in since the aunts announced they were retiring left even less time. Cody himself hadn’t seen much of Dillon lately. He thought he would’ve had a chance to at Jake and Alyssa’s wedding, but Cody left early. As much as he loved the Richliano family, he also struggled to be around them.

Well, one of them.

“Is Andie okay?” Cody asked, hoping he masked his concern.

Uh, nope. Dillon shot him a look that said he knew exactly what Cody was thinking. “Honestly, dude, I have no idea. She didn’t say much last night. Just drank. And instead of getting more talkative and crazy, she got quieter. It was almost a little scary.”

Cody nodded but worry filled his gut. Andie had always been a fireball, even when they were kids. It was one of the things Cody liked the most about her. She was confident and wild and fun. All the things Cody wished he was but never felt like he could be. He was thirty-seven years old, ran his father’s business, and had plenty of women who wanted him, but he still felt like he’d never be enough for Andie.

The one woman he couldn’t have.

“Anyway,” Dillon continued, “the guys went home about two this morning, and Andie crashed in the other room. She’s still passed out.”

“How much did she drink?”

Dillon shrugged and gestured around. “We were all drinking. And we drank at the wedding. There’s no telling.”

“Have you talked to Jake?” Cody asked, desperate to change the subject from Andie. He tried not to talk about her with Dillon. Dillon knew Cody was in love with his sister, but they agreed years ago to not talk about it.

Dillon shook his head. “I thought for sure I’d have a text this morning saying they weren’t leaving the bed. He’s a better man than I am wanting to have a brunch today.”

“At least it isn’t the whole town though.”

Dillon nodded. “True. I think everyone had enough of the crowd and work yesterday. Of course, Zach is cooking, but he said he didn’t mind.”

“I get that.”

Dillon grinned. “It’s why you keep doing work around here. You love what you do.”

Cody shook his head. “You know I enjoy being here, too.”

Dillon nodded, understanding in his eyes. He glanced at the door Andie was behind then headed toward his room. “I gotta jump in the shower. Wake up Andie, will ya? She’s a heavy sleeper so turn on the light, open the curtains, and yank the covers off her.”

He was gone before Cody could respond. Wake up Andie? That was not a simple request.

Cody nodded in the empty room, unable to speak at the moment. He heard the click of Dillon’s door closing then the sound of the shower turning on. He’d never turned Dillon down when he asked for something, but Cody wasn’t sure he could deliver on this one.

Andie. Sleeping. In bed. Rumpled. Sexy.

Fuck. Cody knew he was screwed. He was already getting hard at the thought of what he might see when he walked into the room. Andie had been starring in his fantasies for years, but he simply stayed away from her. He couldn’t afford to get close to her.

He took a deep breath and decided he would go in, do as Dillon asked, and get out, leaving Andie to get herself out of bed. He wouldn’t look at her, or her rumpled sexiness. He would just wake her up and get out.

And pray he had enough time to calm down before Dillon came back.

Cody turned the knob on the door and pushed it open. It squeaked ever so slightly, but she didn’t stir. Cody flipped the light switch next to the door and saw Andie’s endless amber hair running across the bed like a river. He could smell her in the room, the soft and sweet scent of peaches mixed with something that seemed to be unique to her. Even though she’d only been there one night she’d permeated the entire room. It was intoxicating and made Cody that much harder.

He quickly crossed the room and grabbed the string to pull open the room darkening shades. With a tug, the room flooded with light and Andie groaned. Cody turned toward her and grabbed the edge of the blankets tucked around her shoulders. He yanked the covers off her and froze.

Andie was completely naked.

She was on her side, facing the opposite direction, but there wasn’t much he couldn’t see. Her toes were painted a bright coral color that looked like they were glowing. Her shapely legs were smooth and seemed to go on forever without anything to stop his view. Her hip, curved up off the bed and adorned with a colorful sunflower tattoo, highlighted the sexiest ass he’d ever seen.

Her body narrowed at her waist, but not too much. Her soft, slightly rounded belly was evidence of how much she enjoyed food and wine and life. Her arm was tucked under the pillow her head was resting on leaving the edge of one succulent breast exposed for him to enjoy.

The amber curtain of her hair covered her neck and left him feeling crazed and drunk. He wanted to see more of her, see all of her, but the glimpse he’d gotten cemented his feet to the floor. Cody knew he’d never see a more beautiful woman than his best friend’s little sister.

“Holy fuck,” Cody mumbled, unable to turn away from her perfection. Andie jumped up when she heard Cody’s voice, trying to find something to cover up with but not finding anything since the edge of the covers was still grasped in Cody’s hand. He watched her as if in a trance, aware of what she was doing but unable to stop himself from just watching. When she jumped up she flashed her stunning breasts at him, full and heavy with perfect pink nipples standing alert as if they could help find covers.

Andie clamped her hands over her breasts and crossed her legs to hide the sweetest parts of her and glared at Cody. “What are you doing in here?” she screeched.

Her voice snapped something in his mind. His eyes made a slow scan down to his hand where the covers were clasped. He immediately dropped them, practically throwing them in her face, then bolted for the door, slamming it behind himself, with her safely on the other side.

“Fuck,” he whispered to himself as he headed for the door. He had to get out of there.

* * *

Andie Young sat there, stunned, as Cody fled the room. She knew she wasn’t perfect, but she didn’t expect him to run the way he did. Especially after the way he was ogling her, blatantly, as she cowered on the bed naked. Andie was well versed in the way a man looked when he wanted her. And there was no mistaking the desire in Cody’s eyes.

She shook off the shock of Cody finding her naked and pushed out of bed. Sunlight streamed through the open curtains, showcasing the vineyard outside her brother’s windows. Andie was safe there. It was her home. She’d never ventured far from Amavita Estates, and she never wanted to. She barely left the state, happy to be close to home.

Andie saw Cody walk away from Dillon’s house, moving toward the path that led into the vines. She hid behind the curtain, not wanting him to see her watching him. His mouth moved like he was talking to himself. She wished she could hear what he was saying, but Cody never spoke to her.

Andie remembered when Cody first started coming to their house with Dillon. The boys were only eleven, but Cody looked much older. Andie gazed up at the boy who stood even taller than her big brother and was mesmerized. Not that she was attracted to him, no, she was only six at the time, but it was the first time Dillon had brought a friend home. Andie was fascinated.

But the man who just ran from her was different. Over the years Cody had spent less and less time around her. The last time she’d had a conversation with him was the summer before her senior year of high school. She remembered it only because Alyssa had just left for college and Andie was feeling particularly alone. Cody sat down with her and talked to her. She’d thought at the time that maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to get to know Cody, but he barely spoke to her after that day.

Andie brushed it off, even the night before when her cousin, Alyssa, said Cody liked her. But now?

No one had ever looked at her the way Cody did.

Cody came back into view, heading toward Dillon’s house again. He glanced toward where Andie hid behind the curtains, and she darted away before he saw her watching him. She hoped. With a deep breath, Andie stalked across the room, straight for the bathroom. A shower would clear the fog in her head and give her a chance to think more clearly. She scowled at the dresser pushed against the wall opposite the bed. She had some old clothes in there, but nothing nice. Her lounge clothes. The clothes she wore around her family and no one else. Her only other option was the dress she’d worn the night before to Alyssa and Jake’s wedding, and that wasn’t much better.

Andie sighed and headed for the shower, knowing she would have to run home before she went to the wedding brunch. She refused to be seen without her costume on.

After a way too short shower, Andie wrapped herself in one of the fluffy, nearly new towels Dillon kept in the spare room for her. She towel dried her hair then pulled back on her clothes from the night before. She peered into the mirror and sighed. Her eyes were dull and lifeless without her normal eyeliner and mascara that made them pop. Her lips blended into her olive skin without lipstick, or even gloss. She caught sight of her purse in the corner and grinned.

“Supplies,” she whispered as she snatched the bag and dumped it onto the bed. Mascara. Lipgloss. Ha! Even eyeliner and shadow. Five minutes later she looked like herself. Of course, she also looked like she was doing the walk of shame, a thought that made her grin.

Andie walked into the living room tying her hair into a loose ponytail on top of her head. She enjoyed the cooler fall weather they were having, but having a mountain of hair made her hot year round. Every time she went to the hairdresser she threatened to cut it off but never had the guts.

Cody was in the kitchen with Dillon when she saw him. She studied him before he looked at her. He was attractive, incredibly so if she were honest. Dark hair, just enough stubble on his jaw to give him a casual look, tall and broad and built. She didn’t know why she never really gave him a second thought before, but she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t thinking about him a lot at the moment.

He finally turned her way and gave her a pleading look. She nodded once so he knew she wouldn’t say anything to Dillon about what happened. His shoulders visibly relaxed and Andie shook her head. It was a mistake. He didn’t want her. He wasn’t mesmerized by her. He just liked seeing a naked woman.

“What can I do?” she asked Dillon, keeping her distance from Cody. She didn’t trust herself not to use her infamous temper on him, especially after he looked ready to jump her a few minutes ago then flipped the switch back to being mute around her.

“I think we’re good. Cody loaded everything into the Explorer while you showered. Mom already called and asked where we were.”

“Shit. I need to run home and change.”

Dillon’s eyes scanned her before he snorted. “Yeah, the walk of shame isn’t hot when you’re coming from here.” He paused and shook his head. “Scratch that. You’re my little sister. It’s never hot.”

Andie rolled her eyes. “Shut up, Dillon. Stall Mom for me. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes. Well, maybe thirty in these shoes.” Andie glanced down at her high heels and knew she’d have a hell of a time crossing to her house. The ground had started to soften, and she would be lucky to go faster than an old man with a walker dressed like she was.

“Cody’ll take you home,” Dillon said as though it solved everything.

Andie risked a glance at Cody and saw him frozen in place. “Uh, no. I’ll be fine.”

“Come on Andie, Mom’s having a fit already. She wants us all there early, and she’ll have my ass if she knows you spent the night here and I didn’t get you up in time to be there. She said Aunt Marie is trying to help since no one else is there.”

Andie thought about it for about ten seconds, glaring at Cody the whole time. He avoided her gaze, making her even more certain that he had no interest in her. She didn’t want to be alone with him, in his truck, in her home, anywhere. The longer she was near him, the more her body said she wanted him. Having him so close to her while she was naked… She’d felt his gaze on her like a caress, but it was clear standing there that he didn’t want her. Try telling her body that. She was on high alert, ready for the slightest touch from him, any indication that he wanted her half as much as she wanted him in that moment.

I’m an idiot.

Finally Andie agreed and growled, “Fine. Let’s go,” as she passed Cody on her way out the door. He followed behind her, climbed into the driver’s seat of his well-worn pickup truck, and waited for Dillon to leave before turning the opposite direction toward Andie’s house.

It didn’t take long to get to her house, but she was on edge the whole time. She didn’t know if she should say something and if so, what? He saw her naked, but she felt like she was supposed to apologize to him, especially after the way he ran from her.

“I’m sorry about earlier. I didn’t know you’d be… you know,” Cody gritted out.

“Naked?” Andie supplied with an irritated tone she didn’t bother trying to mask. “Yeah, I didn’t think anyone would see me. I guess I was more drunk than I thought last night when I went to bed and forgot I wasn’t home.”

Cody swallowed hard, his knuckles turning white with his tightening grip on the steering wheel. “You always sleep naked?” he asked.

“No,” she blurted. Andie sucked in a breath then tried again. “I didn’t expect anyone to see me. And this dress isn’t exactly comfortable to sleep in. Neither is all the stuff I’m wearing under it.”

“Stuff?” Cody groaned.

Andie shrugged. He was like one of her brothers. Always had been. She could tell him. “Bra and Spanx. It’s hot and Dillon refused to put on the air conditioning. I got creative.”

She could practically hear his teeth grinding together as he drove the rest of the way in silence. When he pulled up in front of her house, he put the truck in park but kept staring straight ahead.

“I’ll wait here,” he growled.

Andie rolled her eyes and slammed the door, storming inside. She wanted to take her time and find an outfit that would drive Cody crazy, but she had neither the time nor the desire. She toyed with men for sport, but Cody was her brother’s best friend. Plus, he was going to be redoing her house starting the following day. She didn’t need to make things awkward.

Andie slid on her favorite pair of jeans, ones that hugged her curves and made her feel attractive. A mossy green sweater draped her breasts elegantly and hung off one shoulder, showing the thin strap of her white tank top beneath. She threaded her fingers through her damp hair so loose curls fell softly around her shoulders. She double checked her make-up then ran back downstairs. Andie pulled on a pair of brown high-heeled boots that hugged her calves almost up to her knees and was ready to go.

Cody was still sitting in the truck, looking like he was about to be sick, when Andie climbed back in. Without a word he pulled away from her house and went toward the inn.

Andie adored growing up on Amavita. It was home and she couldn’t ever imagine living anywhere else. When her mom and aunts dropped the news on her, her siblings, and her cousins a few months earlier that they were retiring and leaving the vineyards to the nine of them, they had a few problems. Andie was certain at the time everything would fall apart, especially since one of the conditions was that all nine of them had to live on the property for a full year.

At the time, Alyssa was the only one not a permanent resident of Amavita. Andie knew her Aunt Marie had worked the deal to bring Alyssa, Aunt Marie’s only child, back home. None of them thought she would stay, but she married the vineyard’s handyman and her first love, Jake, and they weren’t going anywhere.

Cody drove while Andie thought about Alyssa and Jake. The vineyards were where Alyssa and Jake fell in love, working their magic as they had for generations, according to Nonna. Nonna told Andie the vineyards held a special kind of magic. Andie’s parents met there and fell in love, not that she wanted a relationship like theirs, and she grew up thinking the same would be true for her.

But magic was the furthest thing from reality in Andie’s life. All the men she’d dated had left more than a little something to be desired. She knew the man of her dreams was out there. Somewhere.

The lines of grapes slowly passed by Andie’s window as Cody drove. She could see Cayuga Lake at the edge of the property with some of the other cottages dotting the landscape. The vineyard was big enough that she could feel alone when she wanted but always knew someone was close by. Alyssa loved the big tree near the lake, but Andie had always been partial to the house she was lucky enough to call home. When she needed to think, she always ended up on the porch of the house on the hill.

The need to run back home clung to her as she sat in Cody’s vehicle trying not to think about what happened between them earlier.

“I’m sorry about earlier. Dillon asked me to wake you up and I just froze when I saw you. I should have left.”

“It’s fine, Cody. You already apologized to me.”

Cody took a breath. “Yeah, but I’m still sorry.”

“I get it, okay. It’s like seeing your sister naked. If you had one. I should be grateful you didn’t run out screaming, you just ran.” Andie’s joke fell flat. She glanced at Cody and saw his jaw clenching and unclenching.

“It’s not like that, Andie.”

She rolled her eyes. “You don’t talk to me, Cody. You’ve avoided me for years. I have no idea what happened, but this is the longest conversation we’ve had in fifteen years. And it’s only because my brother forced you to drive me.” They pulled up to the inn, and Andie reached for the door handle. “Your obligation is fulfilled. Thank you, and I’ll make sure we don’t have the same issue while you’re working on my house.”

Andie jumped out before he turned the truck off. She blew her hair out of her face and ran toward the inn, knowing it was going to be a long afternoon.

2

Cody followed Andie into the inn wishing he were just about anywhere but there. Everything about Andie made him crazy. He wanted to kick his best friend’s ass for pushing them together. Hell, he should have just kept going when he left the bedroom she was sleeping in. Then Dillon wouldn’t have insisted her drive her around.

Cody heard voices coming from the dining room at the back of the inn. He hadn’t been inside in years. When Andie took over running the inn, Cody couldn’t go inside. Being close to her, acting like everything was okay, was too hard.

He shook his head at himself. Andie wanted nothing to do with him. His anxiety over being around her was all in his head. She didn’t give him a second thought.

Except maybe to be annoyed that he saw her naked.

His cock started to rise as the flashes of her body on display played through his mind. He shifted and recited multiplication tables, hoping it did the trick.

When Cody hit the dining room, he was mostly back under control. He scanned the room, catching a glimpse of Andie, and headed the opposite direction to where Sean and Zach were setting trays of food onto the buffet table.

“Need some help?” Cody offered, knowing Zach would rather be in the kitchen instead of carting food around.

“Yeah,” Zach said immediately. He inclined his head toward the kitchen for Cody to follow while Sean lit the burners under each pan.

“How many people are coming?” Cody asked when he saw the spread of food Zach made.

Zach shrugged. “Just us is twenty-two. And you know how we eat.”

Cody nodded in agreement. There had never been a shortage of food at Amavita. With a big Italian family, they welcomed in anyone and everyone and made sure there was always enough to go around.

“Are any of the guests eating?”

Zach nodded. “Almost all the rooms were booked last night. I’ve already seen three couples, but the other three might head down while we’re eating.”

Cody grabbed the first pan, full of scrambled eggs tossed with peppers, onions, and cheddar cheese, and carried it out to the dining room. He went back for another pan, carrying out the bacon and sausage, then the pancakes. He shook his head, wondering how early Zach was up making all the food.

“Oh, Cody, good. Help me out,” Dillon’s mom, Pauline, said. Cody loved Pauline like a second mother. She’d always insisted he call her by her first name, even when they were younger. He felt strange doing so, but it also made him feel welcome.

“What do you need, Pauline?” Cody said automatically.

She beckoned him out of the room to the front desk. She gripped the side and pulled, shifting the entire structure. “Andie said someone must have run into it, but we have no idea what happened. I doubt it’s been getting worse over time or I hope she would have noticed it. With Jake leaving for his honeymoon later today, do you think you’d be able to take care of it for us?”

Cody choked back a retort about Andie and nodded. Pauline always thought Andie was a little flighty. Unreliable was how she put it. Cody had leapt to Andie’s defense more times than he could count. He was certain Andie wanted everyone to think she was as useless as plastic screws, but he knew there was more to it. There was more to Andie.

She just never let anyone see it.

“I’ll take a look at it later, Pauline. It shouldn’t be more than a few new screws.” Cody bent down behind the built-in desk that Andie stood behind daily. Her scent enveloped him as he crouched in a space that reflected her attention to detail. He could see her touch in the perfectly aligned supplies on the shelves beneath the surface. Cody forced himself to look for structural damage as he pushed lightly on the edge, moving the piece just enough to confirm what he guessed. He pushed to his feet and grinned at Pauline.

“There doesn’t appear to be any damage to the piece. It won’t take me long to secure it for you guys.”

Pauline smiled up at him, cupping his cheeks with outstretched hands. Next to his 6’5” everyone was short, but Pauline could barely reach his chin. Cody ducked out of habit, putting himself within her reach.

“You’re always so good to us. Thank you.”

Cody nodded and grinned when Pauline slipped her arm through his to guide him back to the dining room.

“Are you ready to work on the girls’ house this week?”

“Definitely. All the materials are in and we’re ready to go. I want to make sure the exterior work is complete before the weather turns so I have my entire crew here for the first couple weeks.”

Pauline nodded. “Thank you. I know you don’t have to take on all the work you do for us, but we appreciate it.”

“I enjoy working here,” Cody answered truthfully. Remodeling the house Andie and Kristen shared was going to be a whole new challenge, but Cody wouldn’t pass up a chance to see her naked again.

Dammit.

He adjusted himself as Pauline released his arm. The idea of Andie naked had him rising to the occasion. Not a good idea in a room full of her family.

Cody helped where he could, keeping too busy to think about Andie, and before long, Alyssa and Jake walked into the room holding hands. Everyone cheered and congratulated them again. Cody hung back, letting the family celebrate. He realized he was the only person there who wasn’t a relative and a pang for what they had hit him straight in the chest. He loved his parents, but he’d always wished for a sibling. Or even a cousin. His parents were both only children like he was, making him the only one.

Dillon complained constantly about not having any quiet and that their house growing up was too busy, but Cody thought it would have been great. He was never bored when he was at the Young house.

Jake approached him when the crowd started to take their seats. They embraced with a handshake and a slap on each other’s back. “Congratulations, man,” Cody said, grinning widely. He, Jake, and Dillon had been close for years. Cody knew how miserable Jake was when Alyssa was gone. Seeing his friend smile again made Cody think anything was possible.

“Thanks, Code. Been a long time coming, but I told her she’s worn her last wedding dress.”

Cody laughed with Jake. Alyssa had three failed marriages before she returned to Amavita and to Jake. Cody hoped his friend was right. He didn’t think Jake would survive if Alyssa left again. Cody’s eyes landed on Alyssa, talking to Andie near the front of the room. Alyssa looked happy. Stable. Not ready to run.

And Cody knew the ready to run look.

“You got anything for me to do while you’re gone?”

Jake ran a hand over his jaw and shook his head. “I think everything’ll be okay for a couple weeks. Henry and Ryan are going to take care of any equipment issues. Sean should be okay with his side of things. The inn might have little things here and there, but you know Tina will call if she needs you.”

Cody nodded. Tina, the Richliano matriarch, was a fireball if there ever was one. Andie definitely got her spunk from her grandmother. She wasn’t afraid to speak her mind, and was definitely not afraid to ask for what she wanted.

“She always does. Pauline already grabbed me about the front desk. I’ll take care of it before I leave today.”

“Desk?” Jake asked as Alyssa slid an arm around his waist.

“Hey Cody,” Alyssa said.

“Hey Alyssa. Congratulations,” Cody said, leaning down to kiss her cheek. Alyssa was a beautiful woman, but he never looked twice at her. He didn’t know her as well as he knew the others since she’d been away for so many years, but he liked Alyssa. Especially for Jake.

“Thanks,” she said, then looked up at Jake. “Are you ready to eat?”

Jake leaned down and whispered something in her ear that Cody couldn’t hear. Judging by the blush that stained Alyssa’s cheeks, he was happy to be clueless.

“I’ll catch up with you before you go,” Cody said, patting Jake on the shoulder and leaving him to his new bride. Jake barely even glanced at him as Alyssa pulled him toward a table at the front of the room.

Cody grabbed a plate and felt a little better when he realized Jake’s friend, Lana, was there with her son and fiancé, Nate. That good feeling drifted away when he turned and saw Dillon waving him toward a table, and a seat wedged between Dillon and Andie.

* * *

Andie wanted to kick her brother under the table, but Dillon had no idea what he was doing. He didn’t know things were weird with her and Cody. She didn’t want him to know why either, so Andie kept her mouth shut.

Cody looked as comfortable as Andie did when he sat down next to her. His knee brushed hers, sending a jolt of awareness through Andie. She shifted away from his touch and focused on her breakfast, hoping she could eat fast enough to get out of there before she said or did something she shouldn’t do.

Like kiss Cody.

She blamed Alyssa. Weddings were always the stuff romance was made of. Flowers, music, love. It worked into a girl’s head and made her a little crazy. Add in a meddling cousin who tried to convince her that Cody had a thing for her, and Andie had no idea what was going on.

She tried to ignore Alyssa’s words from the night before, but the more she thought about it, the more she wondered if her cousin could be right. Maybe Cody did like her. Maybe that explained why he rarely talked to her and always stammered when he did. She made him nervous because he wanted her.

Andie studied his profile out of the corner of her eye. She didn’t want anyone to catch her staring at Cody, especially the man himself, but she found herself unable to stop watching him.

Andie always found herself attracted to clean-cut, suit wearing types of men, but there was something about the ruggedness of Cody that had her wondering if that had always been her problem. She never felt like she could let her guard down around the men she dated. She had to play her role as the dressed up tart that laughed at all the jokes and helped make him look good. The worst was when the guy wasn’t much taller than her and she couldn’t even wear heels.

She glanced at Cody again. He was definitely a guy who wouldn’t think twice about her wearing heels. He easily had eight inches on her, maybe a few more. She really liked tall men.

Why hadn’t she ever thought about Cody as a man instead of her brother’s friend?

And why was it so hard to stop thinking about the way his eyes had scanned her body when he exposed her in bed that morning.

“You gonna help me clean up my place after this?” Dillon asked, bringing Andie’s thoughts back to the table around her.

Andie shrugged. “Sure. I’m used to cleaning up.”

“Did you stay there last night?” Kristen asked from Andie’s right.

Andie nodded. “Sean and Leo and I went over after the wedding. You were already gone. Did you stay at Phillip’s?”

Kristen shook her head. “No. We broke up.”

“Again?” Andie said with a grin.

Kristen shrugged, not smiling. “He said the wedding made him think about what he really wants and that he’s ready to settle down. Blah blah. I’m too wild, and all the shit he says every time we break up.”

“You’re not worried?”

Her head bobbed side to side in a half shrug. “I’m sure he’ll come crawling back before too long. He always does. When you didn’t come home I figured you hooked up with someone. I was jealous that I got dumped and you got fucked.”

Cody choked on his water.

Dillon pounded him on the back until Cody waved him off. He wiped his lips on a napkin, then focused on his plate again.

“I didn’t meet anyone. Most of the people there were relatives or employees.”

“And guys like Cody that you’ve known forever.”

Before Andie could answer, a telltale creak resonated above them. Andie looked up at the ceiling, her gaze followed by Dillon, Kristen, and Cody. The dining room slowly stilled as the rhythmic pounding of the bed in the room above became louder. The creak turned to a slam as the headboard beat into the wall. Then the screaming started.

“Oh, Cody, yes! Harder! Don’t stop!”

Andie’s eyes snapped to Cody’s. There was no mistaking the look he gave her. Desire. Need. Lust. He wanted her. He wanted her calling his name. Her bed slamming against the wall. Her body coiled tight and ready to burst because of him.

And damn if her body didn’t throb, wishing for the same thing.

* * *

Cody wasn’t sure he’d be able to walk again after hearing that woman calling his name. No, that wasn’t it. He couldn’t care less about the woman upstairs getting screwed well from the sound of it. No, Cody wouldn’t walk again because of the look Andie gave him.

Like she saw him, and wanted him.

He almost fell out of his chair.

The couple upstairs continued for a few more minutes before the woman screamed and the man grunted loudly. Silence fell in the room for about thirty seconds before Sean’s eleven year old daughter, Emily, asked, “What were they doing?”

Cody glanced at Andie again. Her cheeks were pink and her breathing was a little shallow. If he was a betting man, he’d guess she was turned on.

Even better, she was watching him.

Cody had to get the hell out of there.

“I’m gonna go take a look at the check-in desk. I’ll see you guys later,” Cody blurted. He rushed from the room, depositing his plate and glass on the tray near the kitchen. He kept going past the desk and outside to get his tools.

And some fresh air.

Cody went around to the side of his truck, thankful he’d walked to Dillon’s that morning instead of parking there, and lifted the hatch on the toolbox in the bed of his truck. He sucked in a breath, the scent of fresh fall air and sawdust that seemed to cling to his tools calming him. He grabbed what he thought he would need to fix the desk and went back inside.

Cody felt most comfortable with tools in his hands. As a kid, his dad would let him play with some of his old tools. He built his first birdhouse before he started kindergarten, with his father’s help, and moved on to bookshelves and simple furniture by middle school. By the time he graduated from high school, Cody was helping out on his dad’s construction sites.

He went behind the desk and strapped his knee pads on. He knelt on the floor, invisible to anyone passing by, and held his breath when he heard the clack of heels on the wood floor.

Cody didn’t want to talk to anyone. He needed to focus on his work, and get the hell out of there. He couldn’t go back to Dillon’s house if Andie was going to be there. He had to leave. Go home or go out somewhere. The weather was nice but not warm enough to take a boat on the lake. Maybe he could head into town.

But first, he had to avoid whoever was on the other side of the desk.

She it was sucked in a breath then blew it out. “Dammit,” Andie whispered.

Cody wanted to know what she was upset about, but he was still sporting a hell of a hard-on from the look she’d given him when that woman screamed his name. He couldn’t have her see what she did to him, even if she suspected it.

Cody waited a few more minutes until her boots echoed back toward the dining room, then got to work on fixing the desk.

Twenty minutes later, the desk was secure with new screws that locked it in place. Cody tested the strength of it, knowing it wasn’t going anywhere. Carmelo built that desk when they took over the vineyard. Most people wouldn’t appreciate the craftsmanship that went into a piece like that, but Cody did. He knew what it took to create something that would last not just a few years, but a few generations. He took pride in the work he did. Even if it wasn’t always what he wanted to be doing.

Cody stood and looked around the inn. He hadn’t told any of them yet, but after he finished Andie and Kristen’s house, he was leaving. His parents had been going to Florida during the winter for years. His dad was starting to build up a clientele there and wanted Cody to help him out. Cody always said no in the past, but it was getting harder and harder to be so close to Andie and know she’d never want him.

A few seconds of misdirected lust didn’t change anything. Andie needed more than him. She was fun and outgoing and exciting. She was adventurous and sexy and could have any man she wanted. Cody knew the men she dated. The men with the suits and the perfect hair and teeth. He wasn’t one of those men. And no matter how much he loved Andie, he never would be. It wasn’t him.

So he decided to leave.

As soon as he made sure her house was exactly what she wanted it to be. It was the one thing he could give her. A home as perfect as she was.

3

Andie couldn’t stop thinking about Cody all night. She even had a dream about him. And not a friendly one.

She was pretty sure she called out his name. Just like the woman in the bedroom at breakfast.

After she showered and dressed, Andie went downstairs to get some coffee before she and Kristen headed to the inn for the business meeting. Thankfully, Kristen was already down there with a full pot ready.

“Hey,” Andie said.

Kristen nodded at her but didn’t say anything. Kristen had never been a morning person. She enjoyed being out late and sleeping in. Monday was the only day of the week she had to be up before nine, and she was rarely pleasant.

“Are you doing okay? With Phillip, I mean?”

Kristen shrugged. “I guess. I know he always comes back, but it kind of sucks, you know?”

Andie nodded as though she had any sense of what Kristen was going through. Kristen had been with Phillip off and on for more than ten years. Andie’s longest relationship was a month, unless she counted the one she had with her showerhead.

“It felt different this time. Like he was serious. He even said he knows I don’t want to get married.”

“You don’t,” Andie argued.

Kristen huffed. “Not now, but maybe one day. I mean, it’s not like I’m against marriage, I just feel too young.”

“You’re twenty-seven.”

“That doesn’t mean I have to get married.”

Andie shook her head. “No. It doesn’t. I guess I just mean our moms were married long before then. So was Aunt Jo.”

Kristen rolled her eyes. “Please. They’re all so old-fashioned. I bet none of them had sex before they got married either.”

“There’s nothing wrong with that,” Andie argued.

Kristen sighed. “No, there’s not. But it’s not me. Or you. Our generation is different. That’s all I’m saying.”

Andie kept her mouth shut, knowing better than to argue with Kristen when she was in one of her moods.

“Anyway, I’m sure Phillip will come back. I’ll give him a few weeks to cool off and go talk to him.”

Andie nodded. “It’ll work out.”

Twenty minutes later, Kristen parked in front of the inn. They went inside together to the meeting. Andie was nervous. She asked Dillon Saturday night, when she was drunk, for a chance to speak to everyone. She wasn’t sure if he remembered her request, but knowing her brother, he put a note in his phone so he didn’t forget.

Andie had been working on an idea for months. Years, really. She knew the aunts wouldn’t go for it, but the aunts weren’t in charge anymore. She hoped her cousins would be on board with her idea.

And that she didn’t throw up before she got a chance to speak.

Dillon started the meeting with a brief rundown of where things were with the harvest and their plans to move forward with production. Andie sat patiently, waiting to see if Dillon would say something to her, then almost swallowed her tongue when he did.

“Andie, you have the floor. You said you had an idea to talk to us about.”

Dillon stepped to the side and gestured for Andie to stand. She ran sweaty palms down her dark pants and plastered a grin on her face. It might have only been her family in the room, but she still had a reputation, and a persona, to uphold.

Her heart pounded beneath her coral button down, but she ignored it and pressed on.

“Thanks Dillon. I’ve been working on some ideas for updating the rooms. Before everyone argues, I’ve looked into what some of the other inns are doing. I know we have a lot going for us here, but numbers have been slipping just slightly. Our customer base is aging with the vineyard, and we’re losing out on the younger generation. Our generation,” she said pointedly, meeting the eyes of her cousins and brothers. A few heads nodded encouraging Andie to continue.

“I’m not saying redo every room in the next month, or even the next year. I’d like to try one room out, either the Blush or the Syrah since they’re our smallest. I’m not even saying remodel or anything like that. Just update the decor and some of the furnishings.”

“What’s wrong with the furnishings?” Andie’s mom, Pauline jumped in.

Andie shook her head knowing she had to be careful. “There’s nothing wrong with them. They’re nice. Traditional. I’d like to make them more contemporary. Fresh paint. New pictures. Mostly cosmetic updates.”

“Again, what’s wrong with the rooms?” Pauline demanded.

Nonna shuffled to Andie’s side and patted her arm. “I like it. Everything gets a little stuffy after a while. We all decided we were going to hand over control to the kids,” she said with a stern look to the aunts. “If they are all on board with this, we have no right to stop them.”

“What if the guests hate it?” Pauline argued.

Nonna shook her head. “It doesn’t matter. Amavita is theirs now.”

“Not until next summer, Ma,” Aunt Marie said. “The agreement is they will all get it if they are here for a year.”

Nonna glared at her oldest daughter. “We all know they will be here until then. Alyssa isn’t going anywhere. The contract might stipulate July, but the place is as good as theirs. Let her have a chance.”

Andie appreciated her grandmother’s support. Her mother was always quick to tell her she was wrong, but Nonna was usually on Andie’s side. She encouraged her to be who she really was. Not that Andie had the guts to go quite that far.

Pauline huffed but sat down. Andie knew her mother designed most of the guest rooms when they started up the inn. Even though Aunt Marie ran the inn, Pauline was the one with the eye for design. Andie wanting to make changes was a direct insult to her mother, at least as far as Pauline was concerned.

“Do you have a budget in mind?” Dillon asked, taking control of the meeting again.

Andie nodded and told him what she’d hoped to spend on each room. She thought it was reasonable.

“I think we can handle that. Would you change the price of the rooms?”

Andie shrugged. “That’s something that we can discuss. I was leaning toward no only because the updates aren’t extensive. If this goes well, some of the bigger rooms might warrant an increased price, but for now, I’d say let’s keep the prices the same.”

Dillon nodded. “I agree.” He glanced at the cousins and Andie followed his gaze. The others were all nodding. Andie couldn’t stop her wide grin. She’d gotten buy-in. She knew once she had the first room finished everyone would be on board with doing more. And the fall and winter was the best time to do it. The inn would be quieter, and she could block one room every few weeks to work on without either killing the budget or wearing herself out.

Her plan was working. She was going to be able to put her mark on the inn.

She just hoped everyone liked what she had in mind.

* * *

“Hey boss,” Brian Scarpela, Cody’s foreman, said with an obvious note of disdain. “How long do we have to be here?”

Cody sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He knew Brian had legitimate concerns about the business, but there was no way Cody was going to turn his back on the family that was as close to him as his own. He always said yes to jobs at Amavita. And Brian didn’t get a say.

“We’ve got five weeks of work here. That is, if we can get moving,” Cody added with his own hint of frustration.

Brian tossed a glare Cody’s way then spun on his heel. Cody sighed as Brian directed the crew to their tasks. He wanted the entire roof stripped by the end of the day. The next day they’d put it back together then move on to the siding. Andie and Kristen selected reclaimed wood siding for the exterior of their house. The clay tile roof they were replacing the old gray shingles with offset the rich brown colors of the siding and gave the house an old feel.

Cody loved it. It was exactly what he would have done to the house if it were his. It still looked like it was built a hundred years ago, which it was, but it would be almost brand new.

Cody stood back as ladders were stretched to the roof and roof jacks were nailed three feet from the roof edge. The guys who weren’t on the roof covered windows and shrubs on the ground to minimize damage. They laid tarps out to catch any debris that fell from the roof and didn’t land in the dumpster parked at the end of the dirt driveway, next to the house. Cody double checked everything once they were set up, then gave the go-ahead for the guys to start tearing off the old shingles.

The routine of scraping the shingles, tearing away the old and making way for the new, lulled Cody into a sense of calm. The issues he had with his foreman fell away. The stress he felt over working on Andie’s house went with it. It was just him and his fork, prying shingles free one small section at a time. When he cleared a section from the peak down to the roof jacks, he started over again at the peak. Two guys worked to his right and three more worked the opposite side of the peak. Two others stripped the roof of the sunroom, an addition to the house that was only a single story. With the sun beating down on him, even the chill in the air didn’t help him from getting overheated. Cody stripped his t-shirt off and tucked it into his tool belt. He rolled his shoulders and kept working.

“Hey!” reached Cody’s ears when they were a little over half done with the main part of the roof.

Cody worked his way toward the edge and peered over. Andie stood with her hands on her hips, looking up at the house. Cody waved.

Andie shielded her eyes. Cody waited for her to say something, but she just stood there.

“You okay?” he asked.

“What? Oh, yeah. Can I go inside? I need to get lunch.”

Another slap of shingles hit the dumpster on the other side of the house. “Hey! Stop! Take a break!” Cody yelled, catching the attention of the crew.

They left their work where it was and headed toward the ladders on either side of the house. Cody turned his attention back to Andie. “When you’re done and out we’ll start up again.”

Andie nodded and disappeared under the edge of the roof. Cody sucked in a breath and headed for the ladder. With his feet back on solid ground, he felt less steady than when he was on the roof. Andie was inside the house.

Cody headed for his truck and grabbed the cooler with his lunch. He dropped his tailgate and sat on the edge, downing a bottle of water before he even bothered to open his cooler.

“Was that the owner of the house?” one of his newer guys, Kent, asked.

Cody nodded. “That’s Andie. The other one is Kristen.”

“Sisters?”

Cody shook his head. “Cousins.”

“That’s hot. Is she single?”

Cody sucked in a breath. He hated answering questions about Andie’s love life. He always knew the answer, and usually he could tell other men that no, she wasn’t single, but at that moment, she was.

Cody nodded. “Yeah, she’s single.”

“Think she’d go out with me?”

Cody looked at the guy. He couldn’t tell if a guy was good-looking or not, but he knew the men Andie dated. And he didn’t look like any of them. He was like Cody. Unshaven. Manual laborer. Rough around the edges. Andie liked polished men.

Kent didn’t stand a chance.

Cody shrugged. “I have no idea.”

Kent nodded. “I’m gonna ask her out. I think she’d go for me.”

Cody heard the front door shut and nodded Andie’s way. “Here’s your chance.”