Baking Me Crazy (Donner Bakery, #1)(67)

My heart stopped. My feet froze on the concrete. If I tried hard enough, I could still see the red glow of taillights.

"You still there?" he asked.

"Sorry, yes, I'm just … wow." I laid a hand on my forehead and tried to settle my suddenly racing brain. "I can't believe it. I figured you'd want someone with more experience," I admitted. "Which is probably really stupid to admit out loud, now that I'm saying it."

He laughed. "I like you, Levi. And you had a good rapport with the players you met. That's important in this job. To like you is to respect you, to respect you has them taking better care of their bodies."

"Right."

"Should we talk some specifics?" he asked, and I could still hear a smile in his voice.

I closed my eyes and shot up a desperate prayer. "Yeah, let's."





Chapter 24





Levi





My phone rang as I drove to Donner Bakery to pick up Joss from work. She didn't know I was coming, which was probably why she called me. I pulled my truck into a secluded turnoff so I could answer safely and swiped my thumb along the screen.

"Hey."

"I got out early," she said in a happy voice. "Where are you?"

"Driving to you, actually." I tipped my head back and let it rest on the seat. "Thought I'd pick you up."

"Oh. Well, where are you now?"

Lifting my head, I looked around. "Uhh, I'm at the turnoff just past Bandit Lake. The one with the big pine that fell over."

"Don't move. I'll be there in ten." And she hung up.

Great. Ten more minutes to sit and obsess about what I was going to say to her.

Oh hey, I forgot to tell you this little thing that happened, and now I'd really like you to relocate across the country with me because I love you and can't imagine not being with you, but if you said no, I just might turn down the dream job of all dream jobs in order to stay with you. How was your day?

The conversation played out a few ways, all but one scenario ending with celebratory sex that I'd been offered a job as an assistant trainer with a professional sports team. Her reaction ranged from screaming fury that I hadn't told her right away, excitement about the opportunity itself, sadness about a life away from Green Valley, to her shutting me out completely and dumping my ass because of it.

I covered my face with my hands and groaned, dropping my head forward so I could rest it on the steering wheel of my truck. The salary Brian mentioned made my head spin, and the benefits were incredible. It would be hard work, and the season would be insane, but I knew, without a shadow of a doubt, I'd love every second of it. I'd love living there too. And I could see her there, surrounded by all the exciting things we'd be able to explore together.

She could finish her degree, and still be able to pursue anything she wanted to with more opportunities than Green Valley would ever be able to offer her.

I'd worked out all these things in my head for when she inevitably started listing off why it wouldn't work or why she couldn't do it.

"So this crazy thing happened," I practiced quietly. That was always how I started it. That was how I'd start it as soon as she got here.

The sound of her car pulling up next to my truck had me lifting my head. She motioned that she was going to come to me, and I nodded, unlocking the passenger door. I leaned over to open the door as she stood out of her car. Through the open door, I gaped at the bright blue summer dress she was wearing as it floated around her knees when she took her first step to my truck.

Because she was concentrating on her foot placement, reaching her hand out to grab the door, she didn't notice the dumbfounded expression on my face.

"Hi," she said breathlessly, smiling over at me as she pulled herself up using the handle on the ceiling of the truck. She positioned one leg up on the bench and faced me after yanking the door shut.

"You're wearing a dress."

"And you are quite observant," she said seriously. "Come here."

Sliding toward her on the seat bench, I greedily took her mouth as soon as she slipped her hands into my hair.

"I missed you," she said, brushing her lips against mine. She grabbed one of my hands and pushed it up on her thigh. My fingers dug into her flesh as she kissed me again, tilting her head to the side.

Her hair smelled like oranges and vanilla and cinnamon, and she tasted like sugar.

My need ignited instantly.

In the back of my head, I wondered if this would ever cool or dampen between us if left unattended. If we followed where it led, would we ever burn out?

I wrapped my hands around her ass and lifted her into my lap, her knees settling on either side of my hips.

"You read my mind." She gasped when she felt me hard underneath her.

"Yeah?" My hands ran up and down her thighs, coming around to dip beneath her underwear and the firm flesh underneath.

"Last night, when I was home and in bed, all I could think about was how I missed feeling you," she whispered against my ear. "Feeling you over me, your hands on me."

"Joss," I groaned. "It's broad daylight outside."

But even as I said it, my hands ran up her back underneath her dress, came over her bra and dipped my thumbs inside so I could feel the warm skin underneath. Her hands tugged at my belt buckle, her lips never left mine, my argument ignored. Then she leaned back and produced a condom from her purse.