Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9

C ady had opened the door to the café and paused as she heard the table of men talking about her. But then she heard the scrape of Colton's chair. With every word he said in her defense, she fell more and more for him.

She was near tears by the time the apology came. The tears weren't from what the men said. It was from the support she'd gotten from Colton, Poppy, and the entire town of Keeneston.

Then Cassidy had thrown out the bet and chaos ensued.

The men grumbled apologies as they walked by her, except for Bruce, Jordan, and Daniel. They stormed from the café not bothering to even look at her.

"Sorry, Cady. That was uncalled for," Isaac whispered, not wanting Jordan or Bruce to overhear him. "Um, I was wondering if we could meet sometime before the conference ends. Privately."

"Of course," she told him. He'd been her father's mentee and had always been kind to them both.

"Damn, that was hot," Willa whispered as she and Tilly rushed over to her.

"I've never seen Colton speak that way about a woman. Totally sexy how much he respects you," Tilly agreed. "So much so I put a hundred dollars on an engagement."

Cady laughed as they winked at her and headed back into the fray of the café.

Cassidy approached her with a smirk as Colton was talking to Poppy. Cady just wanted to get to him, but there was a whole café between them.

"Want me to slice those guys' tires? Hit them with the fart taser? Have Piper come up with some nanobots that make their dicks shrink?" Cassidy asked before she snapped her fingers. "Oh, I could turn them over to the IRS."

Cady laughed, but Cassidy was looking behind Cady, out into the darkness of the night. "Do you see that?" Cassidy asked.

Cady turned to look. "See what?"

"I think there's a man in the shadows there by the courthouse. Dressed in all black."

Cady looked everywhere. "I don't see anything."

Cassidy frowned. "Well, let me know if any of those options sound good. I'm always up for kicking a little ass. Also, if my cousin hurts you, know I got your back. You're too good for him anyway. Are you sure you want him?"

Cady looked to where Colton was getting a bag of food to go. He turned and smiled at her, with concern clear in his eyes. "I don't know why he wants me."

"Duh. It's because you're awesome. Still, that didn't answer my question. Do you want him or should I tell him to shove off?" Cassidy asked as Colton began to make his way toward them.

Cady knew the answer. "I want him. But I'm afraid I won't be enough."

Cassidy glanced at Colton. "By the way he's looking at you, I don't think that will be an issue." Cassidy's eyes narrowed as she looked outside again. "I have to go. Let me know if you need me to kick someone's ass."

"Hey," Colton said, joining her near the door. "I got us dinner to go. I figured you'd want some place a little quieter now that I've apparently become bet-worthy. But, if you want time alone or here with everyone, that's fine too."

"Dinner sounds great. Thanks, Colton. For more than dinner. What you said—" Cady took a breath to keep her emotions in check. She didn't want to cry and she didn't want to jump him and beg him to take her in front of everyone, either. "It was really nice."

"It was just the truth, angel." Colton put his arm around her waist and led her to the door. "Is it okay to go to my place?"

Cady nodded. She'd never been inside Colton's house before. She'd been to barbecues and such in the backyard but never really inside. Colton lived in a small cottage style house a few blocks off Main Street. It was small, but neatly kept. It was one story, painted navy blue with white shutters, a cute white porch with two chairs, and a white door.

Colton unlocked the door and held it open for her. Inside a single lamp was on, showing a short hall that led into an open floor plan. A comfortable living room expanded into a modern kitchen. She looked beyond the kitchen and saw a bathroom to the left, a bedroom that was converted into an office, and behind the kitchen she assumed was the primary bedroom.

Colton set the bag of food on the bar-like counter separating the living room from the kitchen and began to set out dishes. "Have a seat," Colton said, pulling out a chair. "I'll be right back."

Colton stepped from the kitchen and into his bedroom. He took a deep breath. What the hell was wrong with him? Having Cady in his house sent all kinds of emotions running through him. Kinds that felt permanent.

Colton ran a hand through his hair and took another deep breath. He had to be cool here. Cady had a horrible night what with getting locked in the closet, facing down that tool Jordan, and now the scene at the café and he wanted to make sure she was okay. Tonight wasn't about him. It was about her. And he needed to stop thinking about what it would be like to have Cady in his bed, on the counter, on the couch, in the shower... Colton exhaled slowly. He had to get it together. He felt as if his heart had been run through by a truck and all he wanted was Cady to fill it. It was shocking to feel so deeply after all these years. He didn't think he'd always be a bachelor. He was in his 30s after all, but now that he knew these feelings were real and this wasn't just for fun, he was suddenly nervous that he'd mess it up.

Colton walked out and found Cady in his kitchen after giving himself a pep talk. Her bottom was sticking out from the fridge as she pulled out drinks. She was trying to kill him. Her bottom begged for his touch, but Colton knew it wasn't the time. Yet.

"Do you want to talk about what you heard at the café?" Colton asked, taking the drink she handed him.

"It's nothing I haven't heard before. Well, except for you defending me. That's never happened before." Cady reached out and put her hand on his arm. "Thank you for all you said. It means a lot to me. Only Ollie has supported my dreams since my father passed."

"Ollie?" First Jordan and now Ollie. Was he her boyfriend? No, she wouldn't have kissed him if she had a boyfriend.

"My dad's best friend since college. He was Dad's best man and my godfather. He's always been like an uncle to me. He's an attorney in Louisville. He helped me keep the recipes my father and I developed and buy Barrel Creek. He was the only person at my graduation and he was even at the opening of Barrel Creek, but mostly stayed in the background. I see him every couple of months."

"He sounds like a great guy. I hope I can meet him," Colton said honestly. He'd known Cady had lost her father, but it really hit him now how alone she'd been before being forced into Keeneston society. She'd spent a lot of time at her distillery before she became a regular at the café and friends with Colton and the rest of his aunts, uncles, and cousins.

"He's coming to visit next week to hear how the conference went."

Colton set out the food and they sat down to eat. He liked how it felt to have her next to him. It felt intimate to share dinner together at his house. "What did Joey need to see you about? I hope it wasn't serious."

Colton felt Cady shiver. "Mice."

"Mice? What's the big deal about that? I would think any place out the country would have some mice here and there."

Cady shivered again. "Some, yes. But Joey had opened the grain barn and found hundreds of mice. They scattered when he opened the door. Luckily, our grain is double sealed. The mice had chewed on some of the outside layer of the burlap fabric. However, the fabric covered the metal grain storage containers. It makes it look pretty and old timey for the tour. So, nothing was destroyed, but now I have all these mice just running around. We set out cages and traps for now."

"I didn't know owning a distillery had so many things going on at once." Colton frowned, thinking about the last couple of days.

"Normally, it's not like this at all, but this past week has been one thing after another," Cady admitted. "I'm sure you have moments like that as a firefighter."

"Yes, usually it's around a full moon or during finals week at the high school. Lots of fire alarms then," Colton said with a laugh. "Too bad all it does is make them stay late to finish their tests."

They talked about their jobs, told funny stories about work and their co-workers, and Cady talked about her distillery. "Right now, bottling is slow going. But I have an old building that would be perfect to refurbish into my own bottling line. It would be more money upfront, but then I could employ more locals and get my bourbon from barrels into bottles and onto shelves faster." He saw Cady pause and then she set down her fork and pushed her plate away. She suddenly looked nervous and very serious. "Colton, can I ask you something?"

"You can ask me anything."

"What's going on here?" Cady asked him.

Colton could pretend he didn't know what she meant, but that wasn't him. He was straight to the point, even if he were a little mischievous at times. This wasn't one of those times. "You've always been a good friend, Cady. I don't want to ruin our friendship that has formed a great base for us, but I want more."

Cady was bouncing her knee, and he doubted she realized she was doing it, but she was bouncing it so hard her whole body was vibrating. "I don't do one-night stands, Colton. I don't care how hot you are or how crazy your kiss made me. It's not my style and I know it's been yours."

"One night could never be enough with you, angel." Colton tried to stay relaxed and calm, but this was scary. Talking about feelings, taking a chance that she might not feel the same, risking their friendship... he'd rather run into a burning building. "I wouldn't risk our friendship for a one-night stand. I have feelings for you and I want to see where they go. If you want the same, that is."

Colton didn't think he took a breath as he saw all the emotions play out over Cady's face. "What about Jasmine?"

"I don't feel that way about Jasmine. I won't lie and tell you we didn't have a very short thing a year or so ago, but I've never wanted a relationship with her. You're the only woman I want an actual serious relationship with."

"Could you see yourself marrying me and having children?" Cady asked.

Colton laughed. "You're trying to scare me with those words to test me, aren't you? Or are you asking? Because the answer is yes and yes. Should I call Father Ben?" Cady gasped in surprise and Colton laughed again. "Angel, love, marriage, and children don't scare me. You've seen my family, right? It was the timing that scared me. Two years ago, I would have run from those words. Not now. I think you'd be adorable walking around the distillery with our children following you as you show them what you do."

Cady inhaled sharply, and he could see her pulse fluttering along her delicate throat. He wanted to lean forward to place his lips there, but he needed Cady to see that he was serious. He wanted a real relationship.

"We are already friends, so we know we get along well," Cady finally said. "And I might have had a little crush on you, but I thought you never noticed me."

"I always thought of you as a good friend, so while I noticed you, it wasn't with romance in mind. I wasn't looking for serious and you have serious written all over you. That didn't mean I didn't think you were smart and beautiful. It was the timing though. I wasn't ready for serious then. However, now, that's all I want. I knew the second I saw you at the reception that you were all I wanted. You were dancing and it was like someone shocked my heart awake and showed me what we could have. Maybe it was the angels sharing the love? Whatever it was, it felt so right. It's hard going from friends to lovers. It places the friendship on the line. But when it works, there's no better foundation for love than friendship."

Cady cocked her head, and then a slow smile turned her lips up. "Friends to lovers, huh?"

Colton groaned because Cady placed her hands on his knees and slid them upward before giving his thighs a squeeze. "Tell me more about that."

"I think it would be better if I showed you."

Colton was done talking. The way Cady's eyes had darkened with desire, the way her breathing was shallow and quick, and the damn way she licked her bottom lip had him ready to explode. First though, he needed to show Cady he was much more than a friend. Friends didn't give other friends orgasms. Boyfriends did. And damned if that title didn't turn him on even more.