Heirly Ever After by Vernon, Magan (best classic novels .TXT) 📕

opened her mouth then closed it again before letting out a breath. “I really need to get this stuff off my face.”

“Yes. Probably a good idea.” I dropped my hands, moving to the side as she hurried to the sink.

Pulling down on the large nozzle, she furrowed her brow at the handle then jerked it forward as she pressed it. Instead of a slow trickle, the water came in full blast, the hose moving like a wild snake in her hands as an explosion of water splattered the walls.

She yelled, and I rushed to her side, trying to grab the offending hose.

Fighting through the dredge of water, my clothes stuck to my skin, fully soaked through. By the time I got the faucet closed, the powder and most of the butter was gone from Madison’s face, and she was fully drenched. Her mop of red hair stuck to her face and neck, dripping down her shoulders.

“Are you all right?” I asked, trying to hold back a laugh.

She pushed back her hair, picking at a few stubborn strands stuck to her cheeks. “I think so.”

“Are you going to apologize for getting me all wet?”

She raised an eyebrow. “I thought you said not to apologize.”

“Ah, yer learning. I guess then I shouldn’t apologize for this, either,” I said, slowly creeping my hands along the faucet.

“For what?”

I grabbed the hose again, turning on the faucet and lightly spraying her.

Which might have been either my best or worst idea.

Her eyes widened, and now the apron was sticking to her like a second skin.

“Oh, it’s on!” She squealed, jumping forward and grabbing the hose for herself.

Our fingers interlocked around the hose’s neck, fighting for the trickle of water as it bounced off the sink, splashing both of us. She giggled as our bodies tangled together, pushing to grab the flimsy metal between us.

I couldn’t remember the last time I’d laughed so much with anyone. And with every slip of her body falling into mine, I found myself craving the closeness, craving her.

Forgetting where we were, I dropped my hands from the hose and grabbed her slippery waist, pulling her body flush with mine before I did what I should have done long ago and crashed my lips to hers.

I wasn’t sure how she’d respond. But then she wrapped her arms around my neck, and her tongue met mine in a delicious dance. The kiss turned frantic. I needed to taste her. To feel her. To forget everything else and just get lost in her.

My hands moved from her waist up her sides, my hands dragging over the wet material of her dress and behind the soaked apron. I circled her breasts with my fingertips. Her nipples pebbled through the thin fabric of her top, and she gasped into my mouth, nipping at my bottom lip.

This was wrong.

I knew we shouldn’t be doing this.

Here and now. Or ever.

But with Madison, everything somehow seemed right.

Her kisses turned desperate, her mouth continuing to search mine as she threaded her fingers through my hair, pulling us as close as we could be with our clothes still on.

I hesitated with my hand splayed on her thigh, wondering if I should keep going. If it was better to stop this all together.

Shite.

I brushed my lips to her neck. She smelled like goddarn sunshine and frosting sugar, and I could have gotten lost in her forever.

Forever?

I needed to douse some water on this situation.

“Coming through,” a voice yelled.

I dropped my hands quickly as Madison jerked away.

A man carrying a large stack of dishes so tall there was no way he could possibly see over barged in. He made no comment as to the excess of water on the floor. And the walls. And on us.

Madison blushed as red as her hair while she watched the man drop the stack in the sink. She looked utterly beautiful. “I should, um, clean up before dinner,” she said, looking everywhere but at me or the man now washing dishes behind us.

“You sure ye don’t want to stay?” I asked, wishing I hadn’t. Knew I shouldn’t. But my aching cock seemed to be doing the talking.

“You probably need to finish the dessert you’re working on, right?”

Oh, there was much more I wanted to finish than dessert.

As if the universe was against us, the pastry chef pushed the door open. “Are you two done in here? If you’re really going to help, we need the sponge finished now.”

I sighed, my shoulders falling. I needed to finish what I’d started in the kitchen, but I also knew that I wasn’t done with Madison, either.

This started out as a trip to help my family, and now…well, now there was so much more at stake. So much more that wasn’t going to be finished with just a few dishes.

Chapter Nine

Madison

Dammit.

Why did I let Jacob kiss me?

My brain, heart, and—well, let’s be honest—lady parts fought each other as I made my way up the stairs and down the hall toward my room. At least I hoped it was the right direction. Damn this castle or manor or whatever for being so big and my brain for being in a Jacob-induced fog.

“Pardon, but if you’re looking for the kitchen, it’s in the other direction,” a posh English accent called.

Whirling around, I came face to face with what could have been a princess.

Everything about her screamed money and good taste from the subtle liner around her bright blue eyes, the perfectly puckered lips, and the black jumpsuit that fit her like a glove. Her blonde hair twisted into a fancy updo that looked like something I would have paid a lot of money for on prom night. If I went to prom in high school, that was.

While I was pretty sure that I had to look like hell with my wet clothes, hair, and no doubt traces of the frosting mix left on my face, the girl across from me confirmed it with a slight raise of her eyebrow.

“Yeah,