Just One Promise Read online

  Just One Promise

  Tory Baker

  Contents

  Title

  Dedication

  1. Heath

  2. Audrey

  3. Heath

  4. Audrey

  5. Heath

  6. Audrey

  7. Heath

  8. Audrey

  9. Heath

  10. Audrey

  11. Heath

  12. Audrey

  13. Heath

  14. Audrey

  15. Heath

  16. Audrey

  17. Heath

  18. Audrey

  19. Heath

  20. Audrey

  21. Heath

  22. Audrey

  23. Heath

  24. Audrey

  25. Heath

  26. Audrey

  27. Heath

  28. Audrey

  29. Heath

  30. Audrey

  31. Heath

  32. Audrey

  33. Heath

  34. Audrey

  Epilogue One

  Epilogue Two

  Author Links

  Also by Tory Baker

  Dedication

  This is for you, Elizabeth, your smile is contagious and your laugh lights up a room

  <3

  1

  Heath

  I was going to be the last one to fall, I knew, my brothers knew it, hell even our mom knew it. Being single never bothered me. My family, the ocean, and work were always my main concerns.

  Getting married, having a family of my own, I doubt I’ll ever see that, so for now I have everything I could possibly need.

  Even with Rome and Mason creating their own families, they still make sure I’m a part of their lives in every way possible, we’re still as thick as thieves. Their wives even carry on with our antics. Summer and Quinn being the perfect fit to them, we’re family in every sense of the way, but sometimes a man needs to get out of his own head.

  I’m walking downtown when the sounds of the local bar and tavern lure me in, maybe I’ll have a drink or two, walk home, and finally be able to shut my eyes and sleep.

  The music is so loud you can hear it on the streets, locals and tourists are surrounding the area. Making my way in and towards the bar I shout to the bartender, “Bud Lite, bottle, please.”

  He nods his head in acknowledgement. I throw a ten-dollar bill on the bar when he slides the bottle my way. I take it and make my way further inside, not really looking to sit or dance, but just to see what all is going on.

  Bodies are jam packed on the dance floor. There’s hardly any room, yet my eyes spot a girl with her hands up above her head, hair flowing down, body shaking, and she’s like a beacon of sunshine in a dark storm. When she turns around and her eyes meet mine with a smile on her face. I know it, this is the shit that made my brothers fall like a sinking anchor in the ocean.

  “Damn,” I grunt out, as I make my way to her. Our eyes never leave one another’s. It takes some maneuvering, but I get to the woman I know will drop me to my fucking knees.

  The beer still in my hand, my other snakes around her hip, grasping it, making her completely aware of my presence.

  “I’m Audrey,” she’s on her toes as she stops dancing to tell me her name.

  “Heath, pleasure to meet you,” I smile back at her. Audrey goes back to dancing, pulling me into her body. Our hips dancing to the rhythm she’s set, and I find myself following her lead.

  I’m sunk, just like my brothers. I’m finding I may like this feeling after all.

  2

  Audrey

  Heath and I locked eyes as soon as we saw one another. I’ve never been this forward before, but something about his soulful grey eyes, the way his smile tilted up, how the dimple popped out on one side of his cheek, the golden bronze hair he has cut close on the side, yet messy on top. And he was looking directly at me.

  When he got closer, feeling him against my body, so close you couldn’t fit a sheet of paper between us, his whole body surrounding my smaller frame. I felt every nuance, from his broad shoulders, down towards his tapered waist, and the not so unnoticeable bulge that had my fantasizing just how big he was everywhere else. Not to mention legs that seem to be just as muscular as the rest of him. Heath’s whole presence was surrounding me.

  Our bodies together move seamlessly and effortlessly, as if we were meant to be on this dance floor.

  I lick my lips, parched from dancing. Sweat glistening on both of our bodies, using my hand as a fan to cool myself off.

  “You want a drink?” Heath questions.

  “Yeah,” my voice is raspy, barely above a whisper.

  “Let’s go then,” we move through the throng of people, his hand never leaves mine. It’s not a loose hand hold either, my hand is firmly ensconced in his, even squeezing my own every now and then when people try to break us apart. Heath never lets me go.

  We stop abruptly at the bar, he dips down, leaning into me. Tingles shoot through my body when I think he’s going to kiss me. When he moves closer to my ear and asks, “What do you want to drink?”

  “Sprite, please,” I huskily whisper into his ear. I thought maybe for a split second he didn’t feel the chemistry between us, but I know it’s a lie. From the way his body locked up when I was the one responding to his question. I know Heath feels the exact same way.

  It makes me resent that I’m only here for another week, though who knows maybe he’s not from around here either.

  “You got it, darlin’,” his hand slides out of mine and I instantly feel its loss.

  I watch him bring his bottle of beer up to his lips as he takes a sip, the way his throat works, it shouldn’t look that sexy, but it all works for him. His hand moves to the small of my back, bringing me to stand in front of him.

  While we wait for the bartender to acknowledge Heath and to take our order, he asks, “Where are you from?”

  “Whiskey Creek, how about yourself?”

  “There’s no place like home, I was raised here. Never really left, and now it’s the place I call my own,” he winks, and then the bartender comes up to Heath, so he can place our order.

  It only takes a few minutes, I go to pull some cash out of the pocket of my sundress, but before I can offer to pay Heath takes care of it.

  “Can I at least leave a tip?” I offer, my head tipped up and way back to look at him.

  “Already taken care of, want to drink these outside?” he replies.

  “That might be a good idea,” he leads the way to the outdoor sitting area. All I can think of with his hand back in my own is if I’m dreaming, please don’t wake me up.

  3

  Heath

  We make our way outside, both of us instantly cooling down with the soft ocean breeze. I don’t let her go, not for one damn second. Hair the color of wheat fields, hanging down straight, no wave, no curl, just naturally hers.

  She’s biting her bottom lip, it makes me want to know what she tastes like, is she sweet like chocolate when it melts on your tongue or savory like the perfect flavor of sweetness with a slight saltiness? My mouth waters thinking about the how she will taste when I get my mouth on her. Her eyes darken when she notices my eyes are roving over not only her face but her whole body.

  She’s wearing a flimsy sundress, showing the outlines of her curves, the fullness in her breasts, the way her waist tapers down into lush hips.

  Hips I want in my hands, right here and now. I take the opportunity to get close to her again, her sharp intake of breath tells me Audrey likes my hard body against the softness her curves provide.

  “I’m going to kiss you now,” my voice doesn’t even sound like my own, it’s deeper, huskier than ever.

  “Okay,” Audrey breathes o
ut.

  My hand that’s not occupied by my drink grasps her hip, pulling her in even closer, my lips find the side of her mouth, not wanting to go at her the way I feel right now. It would be rough, and from the look she has, she’d take whatever I had to give. I’m holding back though, barely.

  Moving slowly, my lips find hers. That lip she was biting down on is mine, now mine to bite and lap at.

  I place my beer down on a random table, my hand on her hip moves to her lush ass, kneading it, my fingers grasp her. Feeling just how great it is. Finding her hair, I clutch it. My mouth takes possession of hers, I tried to hold back but once she allowed me entrance and her tongue tangled with mine, nothing could stop me.

  Her hands skate beneath my shirt, her nails digging into my flesh, we’re both yearning for more, too fucking bad we’re outside where I can’t take her up against the wall like I so badly want to.

  Fighting against my own body, I slowly pull away from her. Audrey does the unexpected though, she leans up into me, and finds my mouth again.

  Letting Audrey have her way, I let her take over. But, only for a moment, when our kiss ends, her body sways, and I have to help steady her.

  “Holy shit,” Audrey blurts out, a redness taking over her face as she realizes what she said out loud.

  “Yeah, baby. Holy shit is right,” I respond with a smile on my face.

  “Can we dance some more?” Audrey asks.

  “We can do whatever you want,” I mumble.

  This time she takes my hand and leads me back inside to the dance floor. The view I get has me trying to calm my dick down. Legs that are shapely, her dress swishing as her hips move, and an ass that makes me want to get on my knees and praise it.

  “Fuck,” I groan, her head whips back to me and there’s a sparkle in her eyes. This night, it’s going to be the best one ever.

  4

  Audrey

  Heath’s lips on mine, pillowy soft and dominant all at the same time, I loved every single moment. Breaking apart from him sucked, but getting him on the dance floor, having him near me again, it’s my only goal right now.

  We walk back into the bar and a new song that I’m in love with starts playing. My back is to Heath’s front, my hands above my head, I wrap them around the nape of his neck. Our hips rock back and forth together.

  I’m surrounded by him, his energy, his scent, his body. He smells crisp, and clean, he feels like home, a home I haven’t had in many years.

  I feel one of his hands on my hip, the other on my bare thigh. My head tilts back on his shoulder. The feel of his calloused fingers slowly gliding up the inside of my leg has me burning up from the inside out.

  “Heath,” I moan out, knowing he can’t possibly hear me, but needing him to know I’m moaning just for him.

  When he finds the lace edge of my panties, I rock my hips to get him right where I need his fingers the most. Heath’s mouth is on my neck, licking a path until he gets to the shell of my ear.

  Heath’s fingers gathers the wetness that is dripping out of my center, his thumb travels to my clit.

  “All of this is for me, isn’t it?” he demands. He’s not wrong. Words aren’t coming to me, I nod my head vigorously, not wanting him to stop.

  “Fuck yeah, it is,” he makes slow circles on my clit, then I feel a finger work its way inside my channel. My hips have a mind of their own, they thrust up to meet his hand.

  Dancing with him, kissing him, Heath’s been lighting a fire deep inside me all night, and I’m about to explode.

  I tilt my head up, needing his lips to keep the scream that is longing to come out. Thank goodness he acknowledges what I need, his mouth meets mine, our tongues dueling in our own language.

  When he adds another finger, pushing in as I’m thrusting up, my orgasm overtakes me. My body is shivering from what he just gave me, yet it’s already yearning for more.

  Heath turns my body around, his hands cup my neck and he kisses me again, out here on a busy dance floor. Anybody could have watched what he just did to my body, but right now with the two of us kissing, the bar and its patrons melt away.

  “Come home with me,” Heath says when his lips leave mine.

  “Okay,” I respond. We make our way back through the front entrance, I’m taking a chance with Heath. I’ve never once thought I would meet someone and have this instant feeling that’s deep in my soul. It’s like the stars aligned and have led me right to him.

  “You okay?” he questions as we walk towards his place.

  “I’m perfect,” Heath has his arm around the nape of my neck, holding me tightly to him.

  “Good,” his smile brings out his dimple and I melt deeper into his body.

  5

  Heath

  Damn, this woman walking beside me. She fell apart in my arms, so beautifully and all consuming.

  It’s about a twenty-minute walk to my place, all of it being walked on the beach. Audrey’s shoes are off, dangling between her fingers. Every now and then she’ll walk towards the water, laughing as the ocean licks at her calves. I stand and wait for her, a smile on my own face.

  The shit part, she’s not from around here. Who’s to say how long she’s even here. It put a damper in my mind on if I should pursue her or not. That thought quickly disappeared though, I know she’s worth it.

  “Heath,” her voice is breathless when she comes out of the water, back towards me.

  “Yeah Audrey,” we’re only minutes away from my place now, thank god. I need to feel her wrapped around me, all her beauty and having it all for me.

  “Tonight…it’s incredibly perfect,” her teeth bite at her bottom lip. I want to take it again and again, if we start right now, we’ll never make it to my place. And I need to see her spread out on my bed, the thought of it alone isn’t enough.

  “You have no idea,” I murmur. She wraps her arm around my waist and we continue on.

  “You live on the beach?” she finally asks.

  “Just up ahead, the third one on the right. The one without a pool,” my house didn’t come with a pool like Rome and Mason’s. The deck is what made it worth it for me, plus the outside shower. There’s nothing better than coming off of the waves, grabbing a shower and not trekking sand inside your home.

  “It’s breathtaking,” I look at it from her point of view, to me it’s just a house. One I’m proud I could buy on my own, but still it’s just a house. Anyone could build or buy one, it doesn’t have the feel of a home. Something I knew it was lacking when I bought it. Being in the real estate industry I knew it was a good investment and locked in on it when the market was down.

  It’s a three-story home, the main living area is on the bottom floor, the master bedroom on the third story, and the second story holds the two spare bedrooms.

  You can see the lighted path that I installed on the wood deck that leads to the house. My surfboards are still sitting out from this morning. Yeah, it’s a house, but I’m suddenly feeling like I want to see it as a home.

  We make our way up the deck and into the house, as soon as we’re clear, both of our hands are all over each other. Stripping one another out of our clothes, nothing compares to feeling her bare breasts rub against my naked torso.

  Grabbing the back of Audrey’s thighs, I pick her up, taking the stairs two at a time. Our night is only getting started.

  6

  Audrey

  Slowly waking up, I know I’m not at the hotel I rented for the week. I’m in Heath’s bed, lying on my stomach and completely bare under the sheets. The tenderness between my legs solidifies that last night was one of those that go down in history as the best night ever.

  Moving to get out of bed, my eyes find not one, not two, but three condom wrappers littered on the floor by my feet. I’m not that girl, the one that randomly goes home with a guy she just met. This was the first time ever in fact, and I’m not sure what to do now. Do I get dressed and sneak out the door? Do I get dressed and see if he’s even home? I’m a
t a loss of what to do.

  I run my fingers through my hair, attempting to finger comb the knots out of it. When that doesn’t work, I wrap my hair around itself on top of my head, pulling it up and into to a makeshift bun.

  Not knowing what else to do, I find my dress on the floor, it’s wrinkled to no end. Dropping the sheet I have wrapped around my body, I pull it over my head and search for my panties.

  When I notice them hanging off of the chair he has beside his bed in tatters, it reminds me just what we did last night. I feel my skin heat with warmth. With one last glance around soaking in every memory that was made last night, how Heath took me up against the wall, on all fours with his body wrapped around mine, and the last time when I was on my back, his hips between mine, our eyes never leaving one another’s.

  I think that’s what is making this morning so difficult, we didn’t make any promises to one another, but Heath not being in bed when I woke up this morning speaks volumes. At least to me it does.

  Walking down the stairs, I take everything in. His home really is gorgeous, clean lines, with white wood shiplap. He has pictures hanging of different sunrises and sunsets, almost as if he’s traveled from one coast to the other to capture them.