Fall Into Temptation (Blue Moon #2) (4 page)

B
eckett stayed behind
at the barn to talk timelines and materials with the crew. At sixty-eight, Calvin Finestra considered himself to be in the prime of his life and had no intention of retiring. He climbed around on scaffolding like a man twenty years his junior and liked to take his wife of forty-four years line dancing every Friday night.

“It’s good to see your brother so happy,” Calvin told him.

“Carter? Yeah, Summer seems like she was just what he was missing.”

“When are you getting yourself a woman?” Calvin asked, a twinkle in his brown eyes.

“When I find one that puts the stupid smile on my face like Summer does to Carter,” Beckett told him.

Did he want to settle down someday? Of course. Eventually. He was a family man at heart. He’d bought a five-bedroom house for God’s sake. But none of the women he’d ever dated had felt like Pierce family material. Well, of course, there was Joey.

One very brief make-out session eight years ago after Jax disappeared to the West Coast had left them both confused and guilty. They had vowed to pretend it never happened. Joey Greer, with her long chestnut hair and long, strong legs and wild stubborn streak was as close to a Pierce as you can get without the DNA. But she would always belong to Jax, whether she wanted to or not.

Beckett was impressed with Jax’s commitment. He had fully expected his younger brother to head back to L.A. long before now. Joey’s frosty feelings hadn’t thawed an inch toward him, but Jax was still sticking.

A glance at his watch told him he should get moving if he wanted to avoid seeing his mother and Franklin. He said his good-byes to Calvin and the crew and headed back toward the house.

Standing between the construction on the barn behind him and the renovated farmhouse, Beckett was struck by the changes to the land he had known his entire life. Memories of growing up and running wild with his brothers lived side-by-side with the progress of today.

His brother would be married and a new generation would grow up on Pierce Acres. A smile pulled at Beckett’s lips. The change in Carter from when he first came home from Afghanistan wounded and scarred to now was nothing short of a miracle. The impossible healing came first from the land and the people of Blue Moon, and then from the nosey blonde who loved the shadows right out of his brother.

But not all change was good.

He wouldn’t think of a world without John Pierce as better than before. His father had showed him how to be a man. Everything Beckett learned in his life from farming, to women, to how to lead, all came from his father. A legend in Blue Moon, his death had created a vacuum. One that Beckett had to step up and fill before he was ready.

Still mourning his loss, Beckett had worked side-by-side with his mother to keep the farm going. And when their neighbors showed up day after day to lend a hand, drop off a casserole, or just sit quietly with his grieving mother, he had learned the meaning of community.

His love for Blue Moon was as wide and deep as his love for his family. And so, instead of moving away and joining a successful law firm like most of his classmates, he had come home and planted his roots. And had never once regretted it. He owed this town a debt of gratitude and hoped that one day his feet would fill his father’s shoes.

A giggle and flash of red caught his attention. A little girl with bouncing red curls dashed around the side of the little barn, looking over her shoulder.

She turned her head just in time to avoid a collision with Beckett’s legs.

“Hi!” she said cheerfully.

“Uh, hi. Who are you?” Beckett asked, scanning the yard for an adult.

“I’m Rora,” she announced proudly.

“Roara?” There was something unsettlingly familiar about her.

“Uh-huh. What’s your name?”

“I’m Beckett.”

She brought a finger to her lips and shushed him. “Hi, Bucket! I’m hiding. Do you wanna play? You can hide, too.”

Beckett crouched down next to her as she peered around the side of the barn.

“Here he comes,” Rora whispered with excitement.

“Aurora, come on. I don’t feel like chasing you,” Beckett heard resignation in the voice of a young boy. “Let’s go back to Grampa, okay?”

Beckett frowned. Had the farm been invaded by a family of strangers?

The little girl chose that moment to jump around the corner. “Boo!” she shouted.

Her roar turned to a squeal as her victim gave chase. She dashed back to Beckett, her tiny legs a blur. “Bucket,” she shrieked. She raised her arms high and without thinking, Beckett swung her up.

The boy half-heartedly jogged around the side of the barn and stopped short when he recognized Beckett.

“You again?” Beckett said. It was the boy from his guesthouse. Which meant …

“Van, this is Bucket,” Aurora said, patting his shoulder. “He was hidin’ with me.”

“Your name is Bucket?” the kid asked.

“It’s Beckett. And you can stop judging,
Van
.”

“It’s Evan,” the boy told him.

Aurora rolled her eyes. “Dats what I said. Bucket ‘n Van.”

“So let me guess. Your mom,” Beckett said, tickling Aurora’s belly and making her giggle, “and your captor are the same person.”

“Gia,” Evan confirmed.

“And your grandfather —”

“He’s not my real —”

“Yeah, kid. I got it. Who is he?” A feeling of dread was beginning to claw at his gut.

“Franklin Merrill,” Evan answered.

“Shit.”

The little girl in his arms gaped at Beckett. “You said ‘shit,’” she said.

“I’m not taking the blame for that one,” Evan said. He shoved his hands in his pockets and headed for the house.

“Bucket, shit is a bad word. You shouldn’t say it,” Rora admonished him.

“Sorry, shortcake. I meant to say sugar. Hey, kid, wait up,” Beckett called after Evan.

Evan paused and scuffed the toe of his sneaker in the dirt. “Hurry up, Bucket,” he said with a deadpan face.

“Are you guys here for dinner?” Beckett asked, still carrying the little girl.

“Yeah. I guess Grampa wanted to introduce us to his new girlfriend or something. He was acting really weird.”

The kid was smart and observant.

“Girls’ll do that to a guy,” Beckett warned him. “How do you think your … Gia will take the news?”

Evan shrugged. “She’s always worried about him being lonely and Phoebe doesn’t seem like a crazy person or anything. She’ll probably think it’s great.”

Beckett steered him to the side door and they entered the kitchen that was already full of people.

His mother and Summer were layering noodles, cheese, and sauce in two casserole dishes. Carter and Jax were passing out beers and wine glasses, while Franklin and Gia trayed up antipasto.

“Mama!” Rora chirped. “’Dis my friend, Bucket!”

Gia’s green eyes widened in surprise when she saw him holding her daughter. “Oh my God. Pierce Acres,” she said, smacking a hand to her forehead. “I should have known.”

She was wearing jeans today and an off-the-shoulder striped sweater that highlighted her curves without being showy. Her feet were bare and her hair was pulled back from her face in a wild ponytail.

He couldn’t stop staring at the line of her shoulder and neck.

“I take it you two know each other?” his mother, in a knit cardigan the color of blue bells, said coming around the island to give Beckett a kiss on the cheek.

Gia approached and plucked her daughter out of his arms. “Beckett is our landlord and he did the ribbon-cutting at my studio yesterday,” she told Phoebe.

Summer laughed from the other side of the island. “Small towns.”

“Miss Phoebe, do you know Bucket?” the little girl asked his mother.

“I do, sweetie. He’s my son.”

“Mama, Bucket said shit.”

The kitchen noise silenced except for Carter who choked on his beer.

“Did he?” Gia asked, looking at Beckett.

Rora nodded earnestly. “But it’s okay, cause he meant to say sugar.”

Phoebe burst out laughing.

“I have no idea what she’s talking about,” Beckett said innocently, snagging a beer. “Do you, Evan?”

He earned a smirk from the boy. “No idea,” he agreed.

“Five seconds with my kids and you’ve got them swearing and lying,” Gianna said accusingly. “I’m putting you in time out.”

Evan looked like he was going to argue the “my kids” statement, but held his tongue.

“Mama, Bucket’s too big for time out,” Rora argued.

“You’re never too big for time out,” Gianna said, grabbing Beckett’s arm and pulling him down the hall toward the farmhouse’s front door.

She waited until they were out of earshot of everyone else. “I’m really sorry about this. I had no idea my dad was bringing us here or that you’d be here. He just said he had a surprise.”

“Surprise, I’m moving in with someone.” Beckett snorted.

“They’re moving in together?” Gianna’s eyebrows shot up.

“I guess he didn’t get to that part of the surprise yet.” He took a long pull on the bottle.

“That seems kind of fast,” she frowned.

“They’ve been dating for six months,” Beckett grumbled. “We’ve only known for three. And that’s only because we caught him trying to sneak out of her bedroom one morning.”

Gianna bit her lip. “I’m trying not to laugh because I can see you’re upset by it. But …”

Beckett pictured Franklin’s pajama-covered legs flailing off of the porch roof. “It was a tiny bit funny,” he conceded.

“If I’m getting my signals correctly, you’re not happy about their relationship.”

He wasn’t happy with the way Gianna was looking up at him. She was standing too close to him. Those warm sea green eyes looked into him, her full lips parted just the slightest bit. A fiery tendril had escaped her hair tie to hang down her throat. He didn’t realize until it was too late that his fingers were tucking the wayward curl behind her ear and then brushing down the graceful line of her neck.

He felt her pulse rate ratchet up under the pads of his fingers. Her skin was warm, smooth under his touch. Her lips, the color of the pinkest rose parted even further. Under her spell, Beckett leaned down, leaned in until he could feel her breath on him. He brushed a thumb over her lower lip as he skimmed his hand over her jaw and neck. Soft, smooth, so alive.

Those stunning green eyes were heavy, her breath shallow.

An inch apart, swamped in her scent of soap and lavender, Beckett was lost.

A shout of laughter from the kitchen tore them apart.

Gianna sagged down on the bottom step. “I feel like I’m hyperventilating,” she gasped.

Beckett bent at the waist and braced his hands on his knees. “There’s not a milliliter of blood in my head right now.”

“Forbidden fruit,” Gianna said, fanning her flushed cheeks.

“Huh?”

“I want you because I can’t have you, leading me to almost devour your face with our families fifteen feet away.”

“Pretty sure I would have done the devouring,” Beckett countered.

“Not helping.” Gianna rose and straightened her clothing that didn’t need straightening. “We can totally fight this, right?”

“Totally,” Beckett shook his head.

“You’re shaking your head.”

“What?”

Gianna pointed at him. “You’re not nodding ‘yes.’ You’re shaking your head ‘no.’”

Beckett frowned. “Sorry. I’m just …”

“Yeah, me too,” she said, agreeing with his unspoken words.

Beckett leaned back against the front door, willing his erection to go away and his heart rate to return to normal. “Your kids are great,” he said, changing the subject.

“Don’t be sweet. I can’t resist sweet,” Gianna warned him.

“Your kids are monsters and I hate your face.”

Gianna laughed. “I hate your face, too. Your gorgeous, sexy face.”

“Gianna,” he warned her.

“I’m going to go make my monsters wash their hands. Are you staying for dinner?” She looked … hopeful.

“Yeah,” he nodded.

“Good.”

T
he Pierces assembled
in the dining room, absorbing Gia and her family into their ranks. The dining table held all of them, including the late arrival of willowy Joey, who seemed to be the focus of the youngest Pierce’s attention.

Gia devoured her helping of lasagna, admiring her father’s vegetarian spin on one of her favorite family recipes. She had few childhood memories that weren’t steeped in fresh basil and simmering tomato sauce.

While she and her sisters were growing up, Franklin Merrill was running two families: his daughters and his restaurants. Gia and her sisters had spent their formative years in restaurant kitchens. Gia had been waitressing herself through a bachelor’s degree in plant sciences when she met Paul Decker, the sexy, charming, free-spirited musician.

It had been her twenty-first birthday. Paul was playing in the band at the bar where she and her girlfriends were ordering girlie drinks. She noticed him noticing her and when the band took five, he took her number.

Six years, one unplanned pregnancy, and an unfinished college degree later, Gia was older and wiser. Or at least wise enough to know that the handsome mayor seated across from her was off limits.

She had fallen for looks and lust before. She wouldn’t do it again. She just wished Beckett would stop looking at her so she could stop her face from flushing.

Franklin paused his noodle cutting for Aurora to lean over and whisper something in Phoebe’s ear. Phoebe giggled and nudged him in the ribs with her elbow. Franklin grinned back at her and brushed a kiss across her cheek as he reached past her for the salad.

Gia smiled.

It was good to see her father happy again. As far as she was concerned, he deserved all the happiness in the world. Raising three girls on his own had to have been a long, lonely period in his life. Seeing him smitten with Phoebe, a sharp, smart woman who raised three good men? Well, that was enough to send her heart soaring.

She was just starting to wonder if she could sneak a picture of the happy couple to text to her sisters when she spotted Beckett’s frown. A frown directed at Franklin and Phoebe.

Disapproval pumped off of him in waves so strong that Gia was surprised that no one else seemed to notice.

“So, Gia,” Summer said from the other end of the table. “How’s the studio going so far?”

Beckett’s attention redirected to her.

“It’s going well,” Gia cleared her throat. “The student retention from Maris’s classes to mine has been great and I picked up a few new ones.”

“I heard Fitz takes class there,” Carter said, reaching for the salad.

An image of the skinny Bill Fitzsimmons in his yoga briefs popped into Gia’s head and she bobbled her water glass. “Fitz is a regular,” she said diplomatically.

“A regular naked weirdo,” Beckett offered.

Gia laughed. “Beckett knows first-hand. He took a class last week.”

“
You
took a yoga class?” Joey asked in disbelief, her brown eyes dancing.

“What’s so unbelievable about that?” Beckett asked indignantly.

“Wait, wait, wait. Let me get a mental picture of Beckett om-ing,” Jax snickered.

“I’d like to see you take that class,” Beckett said mildly. “You, too,” he said to Carter who was chuckling.

“I wouldn’t want to humiliate you in front of your constituents,” Carter teased.

“I think you’re both scared,” Beckett announced.

“Pfft, it’s yoga. You lay on the floor and stretch. No offense, Gia,” Jax said, shooting an apologetic glance her way.

“None taken,” she said sweetly. “Yoga’s definitely not for everyone. There are a lot of people who can’t handle it.”

Beckett kicked back, clearly enjoying not being the intended target of her manipulation this time. “Yeah, Jax, you and Carter don’t have the upper body strength that Fitz does. You’d just embarrass yourselves.”

“It can be pretty difficult,” Gia agreed in feigned earnestness. “I’d really hate to see one of you get hurt.”

Carter and Jax exchanged a look.

“You know, you guys have been trying to figure out how to decide who gets to brew the first beer in the brewery,” Summer began.

Joey caught on quickly. “Yeah. Why don’t you have a yoga-off and Gia here will decide the winner?”

“A yoga-off?” Carter sounded skeptical.

“Sure!” Joey said, grinning now. “Winner brews first.”

“When’s a good night for them to come in?” Summer asked.

Gia pretended to ponder. “How about Tuesday at seven?” The seven o’clock class was hot power flow.

Beckett winked at her. “I’m in.”

“Me, too, Mama!” Aurora piped up. “I wanna yoga with Bucket.”

Beckett reached over and ruffled her red hair.

“What do we do about Bucket’s unfair advantage?” Jax asked.

“Yeah, Bucket already took the class,” Carter argued.

“Gia can come up with a new routine for the class,” Franklin offered. “That way no one has an advantage.”

“That sounds fair to me,” Summer chimed in.

“How do we decide the winner?” Carter questioned.

“Gia can judge,” Joey decided. “She’s the unbiased expert.”

“I guess it’s settled then,” Gia said, pretending not to feel the weight of three Pierce brothers’ gazes on her.

* * *

A
fter dinner Phoebe
and Franklin volunteered to take the kids for a walk over to see the horses, and the Pierce brothers disappeared together to check out the construction progress on the second floor of the little barn.

The exodus left Gia, Joey, and Summer to handle the clean up.

“I still say they did it on purpose,” Joey grumbled, towel drying the pot that Gia handed her.

“All three of them have to go check out
my
new office as soon as the dish soap comes out? Suspicious.” Summer agreed, tucking the salad bowl away in a cabinet.

“I wouldn’t mind seeing your office,” Gia said, dunking one of the lasagna dishes in the sink.

Summer wrinkled her nose at the remaining dirty dishes cluttering the counter. “We did fifty percent of the dishes. I think we can leave the rest for the boys,” she decided. “We’ll just go over there and kick them out.”

“Let’s refill and head over,” Joey said, pulling the stopper out of the wine bottle.

Gia and Joey topped off their glasses while Summer debated on a second glass of wine or another chocolate chip cookie. The cookie won.

“These are sinful,” she told Joey as they trooped out the door. “Do not leave them in my house. I swear I’m the only person in the world who goes vegetarian and gains weight.”

“I’m not taking them home with me,” Joey argued. “You live with two grown men who still eat like they’re fifteen. I live alone.”

“Fine. But I’m only allowed to have one more ... tonight,” Summer clarified.

They found the men checking out the fresh drywall on the second floor of the bright red barn next to the house.

“Gentlemen, we left fifty percent of the dishes for you to do. We didn’t want you to miss out on your fair share of the cleanup,” Summer said sweetly.

Jax looked like he wanted to argue, but Carter walked over to Summer and wrapped his arms around her waist. He lifted her off the ground and spun her in a little circle.

Gia felt her heart give a little thump when she saw the happiness in Summer’s eyes.

What would it feel like to be loved like that?
she wondered.

“Gentlemen, we’re being kicked out and sent back to the kitchen,” Carter announced, putting Summer back on her feet.

Grumbling, Beckett and Jax allowed themselves to be herded toward the door. Again, Gia felt the weight of Beckett’s gaze on her, but he passed her without a word.

“Has anyone told you that you look like an angel?” Jax asked Gia with a sexy grin.

Gia blinked.

“She’s not falling for that crap, Jackson,” Joey warned him sharply.

“Guess I’ll have to win the old-fashioned way,” Jax said, stepping in on Joey. “With my physical prowess.”

He smoldered and Gia was surprised that instead of singeing, Joey fixed him with an icy glare.
A woman immune to the Pierce brother charm? Was that physically possible,
she wondered.

“Good luck with that. You’re looking a little rusty,” Joey told Jax coolly.

“Maybe you could help warm me up?” Jax ventured another half step closer before Joey slapped a hand to his chest.

“You’re not getting out of the dishes. Go!”

Jax ambled out of the room, but not before sending Joey a look that telegraphed exactly what he was thinking.

“That’s better,” Summer said once the men left. She twirled around the empty space. “I’m so excited about everything! It feels like all my dreams are coming true.”

Gia couldn’t help but smile at Summer’s enthusiasm.

She gave them the quick tour pointing out the highlights of where her desk would be and the conference area as well as a small kitchen.

“Jax is Mr. Tech Geek and he’s hooking me up with video conferencing stuff so I’ll be able to video chat with contributors and advertisers and interviewees all over the country.” She hugged herself. “What do you guys think?”

Joey paced the length of the huge room. “I think it’s awesome. How far along are you with the launch?”

“I’m launching my own digital magazine,” Summer explained to Gia.

“I follow your blog,” Gia admitted with a grin. “It took me a minute to realize you were
that
Summer Lentz. This is really exciting to see everything happening from this side.”

“I’m over the moon,” Summer said with a laugh. “I’m planning to launch in January. You know, the whole new year, new you thing. I’ve got advertisers lined up, and a couple of the features already in the works. I’m trying to focus on topics like wellness, food for your body and your soul, travel, community, and gardening.”

“I think it’s wonderful. It’s just what the world needs, a magazine that helps you build a better life,” Gia nodded.

Summer grinned at her. “Exactly. I’m amazed at how it’s all coming together. Just a few months ago I was determined to slave away in my cubicle for another two or three years before making the leap. And now here I am.”

“Things sure have moved fast,” Joey commented.

“You’re not kidding,” Summer agreed. “That’s why I’m trying to slow things down and take my time. I fell for Carter so hard and so fast I sometimes worry that our foundation of hot sex and overwhelming events might be a little shaky. I want us to proceed down the right path at the right pace. We’re in it for the long haul. We’ve got time to do things right.”

Gia hid her grimace. It was the exact opposite approach she had taken and her foundation had indeed proved to be too shaky.

“That’s a wise life philosophy,” she told Summer.

“Or she’s just feeding her control freak tendencies,” Joey said, smiling into her wine glass.

“I could say something about the pot and the kettle,” Summer said, lifting her chin.

“You’re calling
me
a control freak?” Joey’s eyebrows rose.

“Everyone knows that you and Jax are meant to be together, but you’re determined to keep pushing him away until he meets your exacting standards.” Summer crossed her arms.

“My ‘exacting standards’ require an apology for leaving town without a word to me eight years ago,” Joey shot back.

“He never apologized?” Summer gasped.

Joey shook her head and took another sip of wine. “Nope.”

“Team Joey,” Gia announced.

Summer nodded. “Totally Team Joey.”

“Can we please talk about something else?” Joey grumbled.

“How about what’s up with Beckett and my father?” Gia offered.

Joey and Summer exchanged a long look.

“What’s that mean? Gia demanded. “I’m new here. I don’t know what long, meaningful looks mean.”

“It means that we’re not sure what’s going on there,” Summer explained. “Beckett seems to have a problem with Phoebe and Franklin dating —”

“And moving in together,” Joey added.

“And moving in together,” Summer agreed. “But he’s not talking about it to anyone. Carter and I ganged up on him about it this afternoon, but he wouldn’t crack. He also refused to stay for dinner … until he realized you were here.” She grinned innocently.

Gia couldn’t hide the blush that tinged her cheeks. Nor could she dull the quick rush of pleasure she felt.

“Any comment on that?” Joey prompted.

“None at this time,” Gia decided.

“Interesting,” Summer mused out loud.

“So back to Beckett’s potential issues with my father,” Gia said, trying to redirect the conversation.

“I’ll say this,” Joey said. “It’s out of character for Beckett to have an issue like this. He generally likes everyone and Franklin fell into that category before Beckett knew he was dating his mother.”

“I can’t imagine my father would have done something to upset him,” Gia said, tapping her fingers on her wineglass.

“Who knows what goes on in the minds of men,” Joey grumbled.