One Night with the Best Man

“I know,” he said before claiming her mouth.

* * *

The creak of the bed woke Luke from a deep sleep. He automatically reached for his phone on the nightstand but hit only air where his nightstand should be. He blinked into the darkness and squinted at the dim light coming through the window. Instead of city lights, he saw the moon lighting up the fields rolling into the distance. The crops swayed slightly in the breeze.

The night came rushing back to him. The wedding. Sam’s collapse. Inviting Penny into his bed. A shadow moved in front of the window.

“What are you doing?” Luke sat up and rubbed his face.

She flinched and turned around to face him. He couldn’t see her features, but his eyes were quickly adjusting to the darkness. Her light skin glowed in the moonlight that managed to sneak through the curtains. Standing only in her underwear, she held the rest of her dress at her waist like a shield in front of her. “I was...going to get a drink of water. Do you want some?”

“No, I don’t want some water.”

“More for me, then.” She started to move away.

“Enough bull. What is really going on, Penny?”

She glanced at the door to the hallway and then back to the side of the bed that was still warm from her body. “I just thought...” She shrugged.

“That there isn’t enough room? I snore too loudly?” He shifted off the bed and flicked on the lamp, casting the room in soft light.

She blinked but didn’t move to cover herself. “What does it matter?”

“Just get back into bed, Penny. I swear we’ll only sleep.”

“Isn’t it the woman’s job to be needy and clingy?”

“Far be it from me to stop you.” He stepped away from the bed and held his hand out. “I just thought you might want to be comfortable for the night. The last thing I’d want to do is make you feel needed.”

Penny’s shoulders pushed back and her chin tipped up. “Contrary to popular belief, a woman does not need a man to need her to feel complete.”

Though her words and actions were angry, saying them nearly naked was having the opposite effect on his body. “I made you feel complete at least three times if my count is correct.”

She threw her dress at him. He caught it and dropped it to the floor.

He strode across the room and grabbed her elbows, pulling her flush against his chest. “Unless you plan to traipse around the farmhouse in your underwear.” At the devilish glint in her eyes, he added, “Remembering that my niece could wake up at any moment, I suggest you come back to bed.”

Her body was tense against his and fire crackled in her eyes. “Maybe I don’t want to sleep with you.”

His hands rubbed her back. “If you don’t want to sleep with me, I’m sure I could be convinced to stay awake.”

Apparently he was starting to speak her language because she softened. Her curves molded into his and the heat that had pooled in his stomach flooded his system. “I’ve never been good at sleepovers.”

“I doubt there are many people who would accuse you of being good at all.” He lifted her into his arms. Penny was a puzzle. One he would be better off not trying to solve. One he should be pushing away instead of carrying back to his bed.

He lowered her onto the mattress, never releasing his hold on her body.

“Good is overrated.” Penny pulled him down to her. “When has being good ever gotten you what you wanted?”

At one point, the thing he’d wanted most had been her. He’d been willing to do anything to keep her, except share her with anyone else. He lowered his head to hers. “Being good has gotten me nothing.”

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