Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 116455 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 466(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116455 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 466(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
Yet every time I tried to dream up a casual way to convince JT to extend our time together—“You see, Frog, when I said a summer fling, I meant astronomical summer, which doesn’t end until late September”—I ran up against a brick wall.
A couple of extra weeks wouldn’t be enough. I was pretty sure no amount of time would be.
“Think about it,” Dan said. “And in the meantime, you need to stop doing… whatever it is the two of you stay up all night doing and get some sleep instead.” He raised a knowing eyebrow at me that made me blush beet red. “You leave for Brew Fest in a few days to start setting up, and then it’s off to the races. You need to be in fighting shape for the media events Wednesday and Thursday.” He ended his lecture with a smile that reminded me he truly was speaking out of his concern for me. Regardless of his romantic feelings, Dan knew me better than most people outside of my family and cared about my well-being.
“Thanks,” I said. “You’re a good friend.”
I stopped what I was doing long enough to step over and give him a hug. He’d gone above and beyond to help me get things ready for the festival, and I didn’t know what I would have done without his help.
Dan wrapped his arms around me and hugged me tighter—too tight. “Anytime, Flynn,” he whispered.
Of course, that’s when JT walked in.
“Oh, uh… want me to come back later?” he asked awkwardly. I saw right through that bullshit, though, since he had to have seen us hugging through the glass wall separating the tavern from the meadery.
I shot him a knowing look and stepped away from Dan. “No. I want you to come here and finish capping these bottles so I can finish payroll. As soon as I get it done, I’m free for the rest of the night. Cas is staying to cover for me.”
I didn’t miss Dan’s disappointed sigh.
I didn’t miss JT’s resigned one either, but this was stuff that needed to get done before I could take off for the day. I batted my lashes at him and said in a low voice, “I’ll make it worth your while.”
“Yeah, you will,” he growled just as softly. He walked over to the work sink in the back of the room to wash his hands and called over his shoulder, “I’m anticipating the best annual review ever.”
I snorted.
When Dan finished building the last of the carrier boxes and made his way out to the Tavern to finish up the dinner rush, I walked over to JT at the sink and wrapped my arms around him from behind, burying my face into his collar to inhale his scent. At some point, his expensive cologne had stopped smelling so exotic and other. Now it just smelled like comfort. Like rest. “Hi.”
He turned around and grabbed my face with his wet hands before kissing me hard and fast. “Fuck, I missed your face,” he growled against my lips before kissing me some more.
We low-key made out in the corner of the Meadery until I remembered people could see us if they looked closely enough. I pulled back and adjusted myself as discreetly as possible. “That’s enough of that,” I croaked before blowing out a breath and shaking my head. “God, you’re dangerous to my equilibrium.”
He grinned before turning back to the sink and washing his hands again. “Go finish your payroll, Firecracker. It’s going to take me three minutes to finish capping these bad boys, and then your ass is mine. Literally.”
“Mpfh,” I grumbled, walking out of the Meadery toward my office without looking back. JT Wellbridge was dangerously good-looking, and I knew if I caught another peek of him, I’d pop wood right there in the bar.
I didn’t know how, after a lifetime of knowing the man, I could still be surprised by the overpowering want I felt whenever he was near me, but there I was. He made me stupidly horny just by existing.
When I sat at my desk, I had a hard time concentrating on the payroll for reasons that had nothing to do with the sexy frog in my meadery. Two servers came in to ask various questions about the schedule or notify me of swapping shifts, and Kendall needed to make a last-minute change to the weekend menu due to some supplier shortages. By the time I actually submitted my files for processing, it was after six, and JT had brought two plates of burgers and fries into the office.
As we ate, JT told me about the highs of his week—signing a new craft brew label out of Rhode Island and pitching a new winery in Oregon—and the lows—helping the marketing team prepare for Brew Fest.