A Kiss to Build a Dream On (18 page)

“Pastor Sondheim, probably.” Burk stepped closer, his lips turning into a small smile. He blocked out what little light was left between their bodies.

She was close enough to feel the heat from his massive torso. “He'll feed me donuts and we'll watch wholesome television,” she murmured.

Burk placed a warm hand on her neck, letting his palm slide across her skin, down to her clavicle. “It will be very chaste, I'm sure,” he said, his hand slipping lower, lower. Willa sucked in a breath when he found her breast, his broad thumb tracing the outline of her nipple through her shirt.

“You want me to go then?” he asked wickedly.

“I would hate to keep you,” Willa gasped. Her head tilted back. Burk brought his mouth to her exposed skin, his teeth nipping gently at her throat, up to her jaw, and then to the edge of her earlobe. Her knees weakened; her breath came in rasps. She wrapped her arms around his neck for support, fearing she'd crumple to the floor if she didn't simply hang on. She sank her hands into his thick hair, pulling her body more tightly against his.

Burk uttered a noise that seemed more animal than man. In one swift movement, he picked her up, carrying her like a bride across a threshold.

“This isn't the way to the pastor's house,” she teased, her heart hammering with excitement.

Burk's mouth hardened. Emotion stormed behind his eyes. “You're goddamn right it's not,” he said.

She could feel every muscle in his body tighten as he carried her up the stairs to her bedroom. The second time in a week she'd been spirited away to her bedroom by her teenage lover.

“We're riding out the storm here,” he growled, shoving her door open with his foot. Outside her curtained window, the world was quiet and white. Heavy flakes fell in infinite number, blanketing everything.

Willa's whole body trembled. “Then I hope it's an avalanche,” she whispered thickly as Burk placed her on the bed.

I
t took every ounce of willpower Burk had not to rush things with Willa. Suddenly, he was seventeen again, and it was his first time and they were both trembling, their hearts hammering amid their breathless whispers. She'd cried out that night they'd first lost themselves to each other—part pain at the sudden expanse of him inside her, and part pleasure at the overwhelming joining of their bodies.

Burk closed his eyes against the aching tenderness of the memory. You never forget your first time, it was true. And if he was honest, he'd never forgotten
anything
about Willa Masterson. Buried it, yes, under piles of detachment as deep as the snow outside. But her warm body underneath him now was melting all that away, sending rivulets of tender affection into every part of him.

As he pressed his lips against her temple, murmuring her name as he inhaled the scent of her skin and hair, part of him wondered if his heart hadn't been in hibernation all this time. He'd been a player, bringing women near, but never letting them get
close
. Maybe he'd just been asleep, he reasoned, waiting for Willa to come back so he could feel alive again.
So he could love again.

Burk squeezed his eyes shut, tamping down the tide of emotion rushing through him.
Easy
, he warned himself. Love was a dangerous thought. Love had gotten him into trouble years before, crushing him when the woman he'd wanted to marry had gone east without a good-bye.

Love didn't mean cracking the door open to his heart and letting a little trickle of feeling in, as he'd planned. No, love was an earthquake of emotion, generating a tsunami of affection that threatened to wash him away entirely.

Underneath him, Willa slid her fingers along his arms. Her hands cupped his shoulders and trailed down his back. He answered her touch with a kiss so deep her whole body trembled.

Desperate to have her naked form spread before him, Burk lifted her shirt and unclasped her bra. Beneath him, she twisted and pulled off her pants. He raised himself to a sitting position to take her in, and his heart constricted.

The only sound in the room was his raspy breathing. He tried in vain to control the air in and out of his chest at the sight of her smooth, perfect skin; her breasts, round and tipped; and the sweet, wet space between her thighs. The length of him hardened to a tortured fullness.

“Willa,” he said, unable to keep her name off his lips. She responded by sitting up and lifting off his shirt, pressing her soft, delectable chest into his flat, muscled one. The skin-on-skin contact had him hissing with pleasure. He crushed her to him, needing her as close as possible. His lips found hers once again, and he claimed them, worried for a moment she'd pull away from the force of his kiss. Instead, she gave in to his hunger again and again, matching it with a need of her own that had his muscles burning.

“My king,” she murmured, her hands flattening along his abdomen, then unbuttoning his pants. Burk's throat tightened at the name she used to call him, after they were crowned king and queen at prom senior year.

The memory had his brain buzzing, his heart hammering, his manhood aching.

Only a little feeling
, he reminded himself, cupping her rounded breasts in his workman's hands. He lowered himself to a nipple, sucking gently on the blushing tip. Willa writhed underneath him. Her thighs clung to his naked legs; her hands plundered his hair as he let his tongue wander languidly from one breast to the other. She mewled with pleasure, and he smiled at the sound.

She caught the movement of his mouth. “You're grinning,” she said, and he noted the worried tone of her words.

She still thought he was laughing at her.

“You are beautiful,” he growled. He ran his hands along the outside of her shapely thighs, up to her soft belly, and finally to her face, which he cupped gently. “Never doubt that. Ever. Please. You're too stunning to even put into words. I hate the idea that you would think—”

Burk stopped, suddenly embarrassed at how verbose he was being. He shook his head. “You're beautiful. That's all.”

Willa's green eyes glittered. “Thank you,” she whispered, her fingers brushing the hair of his chest, lowering to the downy trail on his abdomen and to—

He tensed as she grasped his penis in her soft hands. His whole body shuddered as she began stroking him gently.

Good God, he was going to spill himself all over her bedspread if she didn't stop.

And that wouldn't do at all, because he wasn't even close to being done with Willa Masterson.

He grasped her hand and pulled it away, then pressed himself along the naked length of her. She moaned as skin met skin. Her damp, aching center pressed against his hot, pulsing need.

He lowered a hand to the inside of a thigh, and moved slowly upward.

“Your body is beautiful,” he murmured, surprising himself with still more words. His lips hovered above hers, their breath mingling, as his hand inched upward. “Your shape belongs in a museum. Sculpted into marbled perfection alongside Venus.”

She arched against him, aching with need, but he forced his hand to stay the course. Steady, steady.

“You would be chiseled enchantment,” he whispered, his fingers gently rising until finally he could trace the outline of her sex.

She sighed at his touch. “Chiseled enchantment?” she murmured from inside her fog of pleasure. “Where is Burk Olmstead, and what have you done with him?”

Burk smiled, and placed a kiss on the hollow of her throat. “I'm right here,” he replied, loving the way she tilted her head back to give him more access. So eager, so willing. “And I won't have you doubting for a minute what your body can do.”

His hand was at the hot center of her, and the sweetness was too beguiling to resist. He parted her folds and slid a finger inside her, losing himself in the delicious softness of her core.

She strained against him, pressing him deeper. How had he been so foolish to sprint away from this the other day? He wanted to smack himself in the head with a two-by-four for squandering the chance to savor every inch of her.

Leaving her elongated throat, Burk let his lips wander down, down her flesh—all while his fingers churned waves of pleasure inside her body. Finally, his lips were just above where his fingers were working, and his tongue found the center of her, swollen with desire. He placed his lips on the soft bud, kissing gently as she cried out.

Her fingers tangled in his hair; her pelvis arched to meet his mouth. He grasped her rounded buttocks in his free hand and squeezed, letting his mouth possess her sex fully. In deep, wet kisses he tasted her, savoring the center of her, while his hand gave her pleasure within.

“Burk!” she cried, and his body tensed with a sharp thrill at the sound of his name on her lips.

“Say it again,” he demanded, sliding another finger inside her.

“Burk,” she gasped, her green eyes opening to find his own. “
My king.
”

The words fueled him like adrenaline. His body was charged, sparking the room with sexual energy. Willa arched her back as he pressed himself deeper into her, as his mouth hungered to taste every inch of her. He was overwhelmed by her softness. She never pulled back, never hampered his efforts. Her beautiful vulnerability had his heart racing.

He would give her everything he had, dammit. He would spend himself to make her happy. He would be Sisyphus, rolling the rock up the hill every day if he knew she'd be there at the top, and he could glimpse her emerald eyes lighting with happiness at the sight of him.

All at once, her pleasure broke like a dam, spilling over them both. She cried out, pulsing against him, her hands clutching him in desperate need. The whole house rang with her cries of ecstasy—free and pure in the quiet afternoon.

She rocked against him, shattering in his arms. The ribbon of her orgasm wound through her body and then his own, binding them both. Burk could feel the sensation of it in his bones. He clenched his jaw and fought not to spill himself.

Finally, after the long waves subsided, Willa's body relaxed against his. When her breathing had steadied, he withdrew his hand from her still-pulsing core. He lifted his head and kissed her flesh from navel to neck. Finally, he found her contented lips with his own. “Mmm,” she murmured against him, her breath warm and tickling. He pressed his thick hardness against her and she smiled lazily.

“I should let you deal with that on your own for the way you raced out of my bed last week,” she said.

Burk grinned, pushing a lock of her dark blond hair away from her forehead. “And I wouldn't blame you,” he said, kissing her clavicle, her neck, her forehead. She sighed.

“But that's not how this is going to end,” he said, and placed himself between her warm thighs. She tensed and he could feel the hunger building in her again.

He took her mouth in his and kissed her until they were both breathless. Placing the tip of his penis against her slick entrance, he paused to study Willa's face. She was glowing with both pleasure and desire. Her emerald eyes were bright and alive, her mouth quirked with a kind of playfulness.

Gently this time, he eased himself inside. Her fingers clutched the muscles of his back, but not painfully so. He closed his eyes as he lost himself in her soft flesh.

Words collected in his throat—so many at once he didn't know what to do with them.

This feels so right.

I won't leave this time.

He moved against her, burying his face in the place where her shoulder met her neck. He busied his lips against her flesh so they wouldn't form words that scared and thrilled him at once.

Eagerly, she rocked with him, grasping him so he filled her up completely. Her lashes quivered as her eyes squeezed close. A groan escaped him, deep and unbridled. Affection surged—a sudden desire to always be with her, to keep her safe, to let her know how beautiful she was and how hard he would work to cherish her always.

Pulling her body closer, Burk thrust himself inside, demanding every inch of her and getting it all—and more—in return. She opened herself up, stretched herself to fit all of him, panted and writhed for everything he had.

Dear God.
Her hands worked up his sides, to the flat planes of his back as he plunged deeper and deeper. He was losing himself, getting swept away with Willa and this moment and the impossible rightness of it all.

Her head tilted back and another cry escaped her long, lovely throat. She called his name as her core contracted around his shaft, sending him into a spiral of his own. Dark waves pulled him down, down into a rabbit hole of enraptured ecstasy from which he wasn't sure he could ever escape. He clutched her harder, deep animalistic noises emitting from within him: primordial sounds that proclaimed a need for her so deep, words could never translate them.

They tumbled over the edge of pleasure together, falling into each other's arms when they were spent, gasping like they'd just run a marathon.

When he could move again, he eased off her relaxed body, pulling her spent frame closer to his. As she sighed against him, the words collected again—a jumble of emotions and phrases mashing in his brain and in his throat.

I need you.

I think I've always needed you.

All he could do was pull her closer, whispering her name over and over in her hair, along her skin.

“Willa.”

Just before they drifted off together in a spent slumber, she smiled at him, as if somewhere, somehow, part of her understood what he was trying to say.

W
illa awoke and stretched like a contented cat. Next to her, Burk's body radiated enough warmth to melt the piles of snow that had fallen outside. She stared at his still-sleeping form and wondered at what had occurred between them. Not only had the sex been mind-blowing—again—but Burk had stuck around this time. Plus he'd shown enough affection and tenderness to make her contemplate whether what they'd just done had crossed from casual sex into…something more.

Willa smoothed back her tousled hair and took a steadying breath. This didn't have to get complicated if neither of them wanted it to. She stole another glance at the rise and fall of Burk's strong chest, at the peaceful line of his mouth, and told herself this was enough. If it never went beyond having this much, right here, she'd be happy.

Burk stirred and opened his dark blue eyes. Willa smiled at him, brushing back a mass of his thick, dark hair. “Hey, sleepy,” she murmured, kissing his lips gently.

He sat up. “What time is it?”

“Not late. Just after three. We napped a little, I think.”

Burk grinned and flopped back on the pillows. “We wore ourselves out.” Willa snuggled into the cavern between his chest and bicep.

“I think we did,” she agreed.

Outside, the snow had stopped, but the blanketed world was still. No cars puttered down Oak Street; no kids shouted to each other from front lawns. Everyone was holed up, and Willa was delighted that the world had seemed to pause so that she and Burk could enjoy each other. She felt a thrill upon realizing that it wasn't really even dark yet. She and Burk had
hours
left in the day. If they wanted them.

Burk pulled her closer, letting his hand slide down her bare chest to her nipple, which he traced in lazy circles. It hardened at his touch, and Willa shifted as desire stirred inside her all over again.

“You know,” he said lazily, moving his hand to the other breast. “The work my crew and I have left to do here is pretty invasive. Floors, walls, installations. You might want to consider leaving the house for a few days while it all gets done.”

Willa's flesh trembled as his hands continued their march on her breasts. “Where would I go?” she asked breathlessly, heat stirring in her innermost parts.

Burk grinned. “I suppose I could make room for you at my place. It would be a shame to see you off in a motel somewhere.”

“The Great Lakes Inn gets such good reviews, though.”

“I can think of a few things the Great Lakes Inn can't provide,” he said, placing his mouth on her taut nipple and running his tongue over it in slow circles. Willa gasped and pulled his head tighter against her chest. He paused only to move his mouth to the other nipple, to give it equal attention.

Willa's brain was unfocused and pleasure-heavy, but in one corner of it was the nagging reality that she wasn't going to be able to pay Burk for any of this work. Or if she did, then she wouldn't have anything to live on. She was going to have to talk with him about it. Maybe now that they'd been able to finally…
connect
, he'd understand her situation a little better.

She struggled to gather her thoughts. “Burk, I need to tell you something.”

Burk nuzzled her neck with his lips. “What's that?”

“The house repairs. I'm not sure I can
oh
—”

Burk had slid a finger inside her. Willa's muscles liquefied at the unexpected jolt of pleasure.

“The costs may be too high,” she gasped as he began to stroke her.

“We'll work something out,” Burk murmured, nibbling her earlobe. “We can talk about it later.”

Willa wanted to relax, to give in to the ways he was bringing her closer and closer to an edge she so desperately wanted to experience again, but she couldn't let herself. She needed to tell Burk the truth.

“Wait,” she insisted, stilling his hand. His eyes darkened with confusion.

“What?”

“I need to tell you about the house. About the repairs, I mean. I'm not sure I can let you continue with everything.”

Willa shifted and he withdrew his hand. She tried to ignore the cold ache left in his absence. “I'm running out of money. I went to the White Pine Bank and Trust for a loan,” she continued, “but they weren't so keen on my B and B idea. At least, not as it stands. Betty's going to help with a business plan, and I think I can get there. But I don't think I can—I don't think I should let you continue if I can't afford it.”

Burk eyes darkened. “I don't understand. You're stopping this project? Now?”

Willa nodded. “I'm sorry. I'm sure the bank loan will come through eventually. But I can't let you continue if I can't pay you.”

Burk sat up. Willa followed suit. “I would have been looking for other work if I'd known this was going to end so suddenly. The crew—they'll need another project.” His brow was suddenly lined, and Willa hated the stress she saw on his face.

“I'll pay you every cent I owe you for what you've done,” she said. “I'm good for what's been completed so far. I just—I can't guarantee anything more.”

Burk pulled away from her, and the motion had Willa's chest feeling hollow. For a long moment he didn't say anything.

“I could still buy it,” he offered finally. “To help you, I mean. I could even finish the remodel, and you could subtract it from the final price of the house.”

Willa started. She thought they'd be able to talk about this as…friends. That she'd be able to trust him with the reality of the situation. She never expected he'd try to negotiate in the midst of her confession.

“So I pay you to finish a house I won't live in?” she asked.

“Please. Listen to reason. You won't sell it any other way. A half-remodeled home will sit on the market for months. What I'm offering—it makes sense for
both
of us.”

She shook her head. “But my B and B—”

“If you can get the loan, you can set up shop anywhere. The idea's not dead, but if you can't finish what you started in this house, then let me help.” Burk's voice was warm, and yet there was something about his words that still seemed too…insistent.

“Look,” he said, reaching out and placing his hand over hers, “maybe it's best this way. We could even work out a deal where I could pay you to help with the interior decorating. It'll still have your stamp on it. And it's not like you won't ever see the place again. But if you let me, I can finish this. I can give this house what it deserves.”

Willa's blood heated, in spite of what sounded like Burk's good intentions. “What this house deserves?” she asked pointedly. “What is that, exactly?”

Burk didn't flinch. “Someone who can take care of it. Someone who knows what's best for the structure.”

“And that would be you, obviously.”

Burk nodded. “I want the house, Willa. I won't deny it. I've wanted this place since it was abandoned. I've been taking care of it for years, and I even started purchase negotiations with your mom about it before she died. When the title passed to you, I thought for sure you'd just put it on the market. When you didn't and you came back to White Pine, I thought…”

He trailed off.

“You thought what, exactly?”

“I thought you would just leave again. Like last time.”

The words stung. “But I haven't left. I'm not
going
to. And I'm not sure how you can sit there and talk about taking the house back like you don't care what I'm trying to do here.”

Burk scowled. “Because I
don't
care. Not about the B and B anyway. It's your dream, not mine. And as for you, I had no idea we could be close again. When you first turned up, I thought you were the same person who left and broke my heart. I didn't want you to take my house, too.”

“Your house?” Willa stood and snatched her clothes from the bedroom floor. “This is my house, Burk Olmstead. Let's both be goddamned clear about
that
.”

Burk exhaled slowly. “That came out wrong. I'm not trying to—”

“Was this part of it?” Willa asked, yanking on her jeans and shirt. “Was getting me into bed part of a plan to get the house back? Because who's going to be easier to fuck over than someone you've
literally
fucked, right?”

“Willa, no. This was your idea—”

“Oh, sure. My idea, which you conveniently agreed to because maybe it will get you the house faster.”

Mortified that tears were suddenly coursing down her face, Willa turned away. Her chest stung with the same hurt she'd felt when she'd discovered Lance had been stealing from her.

“Get out,” she said, marching to the doorway. “Get out of my house.”

“Willa, please, I can't leave like this. It's a misundersta—”

“You can and you will,” she said, her whole body shaking. “And you'll take your stupid crew and never come back. Do you understand me?”

Burk's brows drew together. His jaw hardened. “Twelve years I've been looking after this place while you've been living in New York. I've cut weeds and mowed the lawn and replaced boards on just about every surface. This place meant something to me before it
ever
meant something to you. So don't sit here and lecture me like you have loved this house the same as I have.”

“Loved it enough to hurt someone over it, apparently,” Willa retorted, walking back into the room so she could scoop up his pants and shirt from the ground.

“Hey, give me those.”

Willa turned her back to him and stomped down the hallway. She heard him grumbling and swearing behind her.

She dashed down the stairs and headed for the front door. “You will never come back here,” she cried, opening the front door. “You will never touch me again!” She flung his clothes into the piles of snow outside.

“Jesus!” he cried, pushing past her and wading into the mounds of powder wearing just his boxer shorts. “You are crazy, you know that?”

“I'd rather be crazy than care about a bunch of wood and nails more than a person!” she yelled as he worked to retrieve his jeans and shirt.

Willa was ready to slam the door—never mind Burk's coat and car keys and boots—when both of them realized there was a figure at the end of the walkway. He was hunched and shaking, silently watching the fight.

“You got a problem, nosy neighbor?” Willa shouted into the deepening twilight. Her voice echoed along the quiet street.

The stranger raised a single hand. “Hello, W-Willa.”

Her stomach churned. She wondered if she might be sick.

Lance had decided to pay her a visit after all.

Burk pulled on his clothes right there on the front porch, his eyes darting from Willa back to Lance. His feet were bare, and he must have been freezing, but he never let on that he was cold.

“Can I help you?” he asked Lance. Willa elbowed him out of the way.

“Oh, for crying out loud. Don't try and play hero now.” She motioned for Lance to come up to the house.

“You picked a hell of an afternoon for a visit,” she told him as he waded through calf-high snow to get to her.

When Lance reached the porch, she realized he was dangerously pale. His lips sported a bluish tint, and his brown hair, normally curled and styled to perfection, was hanging limply around his face.

“My c-car stalled out about a m-mile away,” he said, his perfect teeth chattering. “I c-couldn't get any r-r-reception on my phone a-and I had to w-walk.”

Willa glanced at his feet and grimaced when she saw he was wearing loafers.

“Cripes,” she swore. “Get inside.”

She didn't even argue when Burk followed them both in. “Take off your shoes and socks,” she told Lance. “Go upstairs and get in the shower right now. Bathroom's the second door on the right. The shower only gets lukewarm, but it's probably going to feel scalding to you. I'll get you a towel and something else to wear.”

Lance nodded and headed up the stairs—too tired and dazed even to question her logic. Burk turned to Willa the moment he was out of sight.

“Who is that?”

“None of your business. Now
go
.”

Burk straightened, towering above her. “I will not leave you here with a strange man.”

Willa folded her arms. “He's not a stranger. He's my ex. Now will you please
get out
?”

For a brief moment, Willa almost regretted the ferocity in her tone. Burk's eyes flashed hurt and something else. Regret perhaps. He shook his head.

“I was trying to help,” he said. “I can't apologize for trying to save a place I've already saved for years.” He looked like he was going to say something more, but stopped in mid-thought. Instead, he grabbed his coat and boots and truck keys, and walked silently away. Willa bolted the door shut behind him and tried to ignore the dull ache in her heart.

Willa scrounged around while Lance was in the shower, and managed to find two mugs. The microwave had been tossed into the basement, so she could at least plug it in and heat some water. Never mind that she couldn't find the tea. Hot water was better than nothing at all.

She busied herself around the house so she didn't have to answer the nagging voices at the back of her head.

Were she and Burk over?

Were they ever
not
over?

What was Lance doing here?

Did he expect to spend the night?

When she finally heard the water in the bathroom stop, she grabbed the biggest pair of sweatpants she had and a sweatshirt, and left them just outside the door, along with a fresh towel.

“Everything you need is outside the door,” she called to Lance. “I'll be downstairs when you're ready.”