Last Chance (Chances Novel Book 1) Read online

  Climbing off the bike, he held his hand out to her and Honey licked her lips tentatively before taking it. That small gesture was enough to knot his stomach as he watched the peek of pink emerge, wetting her already full lips before retreating. He wanted to follow it, but such an action might cost him to backtrack all his good efforts tonight.

  Walking her up to the door, the porch light flicked on as soon as the creak of wood alerted her parents of their return. So much for a good night kiss, Shep realized with abject disappointment. Honey, on the other hand, didn’t seem to worry so much about that as she reached out and took his second hand in her own.

  As she stared up at him with this look in her eye that made him question everything, Honey finally smiled.

  “I’d like to see you again.”

  “I would like that too.” He agreed.

  “Can I make you dinner one night?”

  He looked surprised but smiled as he nodded, “sure, though you know I don’t live alone… And neither do you.”

  “My parents will be gone Friday night, they’re visiting my aunt in the next county over. You can come here.”

  A house alone to themselves for the evening? The opportunities were endless in Shep’s mind, but he knew better than to let himself get too caught up in them.

  “Sounds perfect, should I bring anything?”

  “Besides yourself? No, that should be good enough for me.” She smiled in what Shep could only describe as a devilish fashion, that made his stomach knot in all the right places. Before he had the chance to give her his trademark smartass retorts she did the unthinkable and leaned up to kiss him.

  Her lips on his melted the iron Shep had taken so much time carefully forging around his heart. For the first time in his entire life, he could imagine himself being with one woman and never wanting for someone else ever again.

  Chapter 10

  2019

  “Honey had this way of making me think of nothing but her. Everything in my life began to suffer, mostly in a good way. I was up at night thinking about her, about that kiss and wanting to do it again. For the first time in my life, I was nervous about a date. I was looking forward to Friday and dreading it at the same time.”

  “Dates don’t sound like they’re your thing. At least she wanted to go out with you again.”

  “They weren’t,” Shep agreed morosely before chuckling despite himself, “yes, well, thank God for that.”

  “I’m worried about this date you have tonight.”

  “I am too,” he agreed with a laugh. He looked over at the clock and made a soft snort of annoyance. “I need to get ready.”

  “I can wait.” Shep looked over at Adam in surprise, he was that invested in the story?

  "Alright, well, come upstairs then." He grabbed the coffee cup he had managed to refill and carried it toward the stairs. Adam cleared up in the kitchen and caught up to him as he was pulling a dress shirt and a pair of slacks out of the closet.

  “Alright, so what happened on the second date?”

  “Well, I’m pleased to say it went a lot better than the first and second combined.”

  1989

  Friday came and, nerves or not, Shep was ready to spend more time alone with Honey. Dressed in his Sunday best he brought along another bundle of flowers, this time for the lady in question herself, and a bottle of the same wine they had enjoyed the week before.

  It wasn't the first time he was seeing her since their date - of course, he had seen her every day at work. That was possibly why his work had been suffering as of late. Shep found himself preoccupied with the blonde every minute of every day. But it was different being with her in front of other people than it was alone. Perhaps this was because they had yet to define their relationship and he had no idea if it was as all-consuming for her as it was for him.

  Tonight’s plan, above anything else, was to find out how she felt about him and if this was going somewhere other than on dinner dates.

  Straightening the wisps of hair he had glued back with gel one last time, Shep finally knocked on Honey's front door and was greeted almost immediately by a girl who looked a lot different from the one he had taken out twice already.

  She had curled her hair, which in itself wasn't such a drastic change, but she was wearing a form-hugging dress of red silk that seemed out of place under her floral apron in a farmhouse kitchen. Not that he was complaining, the view when she turned around to lead him back to the dining room was terrific, but he couldn't help but questioning the change.

  “Last time I felt underdressed for our date,” she explained as she directed him to his seat, adding a vase with her flowers to the table.

  "And now I'm the one suffering in that respect." He mused, wishing he had at least worn a tie as he took his seat. He might've put on a nice dress shirt and slacks for the night, but next to her he was positively slovenly.

  A show not unlike one his mother would put on for guests, Honey played hostess as she opened the wine and poured him a glassful before retreating into the kitchen to get their food. When she returned the apron was gone and, in her hands, she had two platefuls of roast dinner, the smell making his stomach growl loudly.

  “Looks great,” he smiled at her as she set it down in front of him. There was a small chicken on his plate, what looked like thick green beans and Parisienne potatoes. She seemed to have gone out of her way to make a rather fancy dinner, and it wasn't quite what he was expecting. "Thank you."

  Honey smiled at the compliment before sitting down next to him and digging into her food. Shep started with the green beans, but the moment he took a bite, he realized what they were. Asparagus cut without the head and cooked.

  He didn’t know much about cooking himself, but he knew one thing, asparagus without the head, for whatever reason, ruined the vegetable making it bitter and tough. Try as he might to look like he was enjoying it, Honey’s face reflected his as she bit into her own piece. She appeared to be trying not to gag as she chewed and swallowed the veggie with quite a bit of effort.

  It was only after a few minutes of trying to work around the plate to avoid it that both of them had to acknowledge the obvious.

  “It’s not good,” Honey said reluctantly, blushing and looking disappointed with herself. “To be honest, I’ve never had it before… But my mother said it was a fancy vegetable.”

  “Fancy vegetable?” Shep couldn’t help but laugh at the idea, he had never known a vegetable to be fancy.

  “Well, yes,” she said, wiping her mouth with her napkin before setting it down on the table. “You took me to that nice French restaurant last week, so I thought maybe this is the kind of thing you like, so I made it for you.”

  “You thought I liked fancy vegetables?” Shep laughed, not sure what else he was supposed to do in response to her. When had he said that? “Um, well,” he continued to laugh, nothing coming to mind. Honey looked confused more than ever as he smiled and laughed.

  “You don’t?”

  “Well,” he began, clearing his throat, “I like asparagus if that’s what you consider fancy vegetables, which I don’t - not really. But darling, you cooked it wrong.”

  “I did?”

  “Yeah,” he picked up a stalk and held it up for her, “the head you cut off should have been left on. It keeps the flavor, for whatever reason.”

  “Oh.” Honey frowned at the collection of stalks on her plate before rubbing her lips together nervously. She looked back up at him, “sorry.”

  “Nothing to be sorry about, you didn’t know. Anyways, it’s cute.”

  Honey wasn’t sure exactly what about her blunder was cute, but if he didn’t think she had ruined their dinner that was good enough for her.

  “Next time, though, don’t worry about fancy veggies. I’ll take whatever you want to serve me. And, for the record, I prefer instant mashed potatoes.” He forked the Parisienne potatoes before stuffing it in his mouth. “Ate so much of it in the army, I got a liking for it.”

&n
bsp; He spoke with his mouth full, not exactly a posh habit if that’s what she’d made him out to be. He hoped that his city boy demeanor didn’t make her as uncomfortable as she seemed. That was the last thing he wanted.

  “Are you ready for dessert?” Honey picked up the plates and walked them into the kitchen. He rose slowly, following after her catching her glance in the reflection of the sink window. He shook his head as he stepped up behind her, setting his hands on her hips gently.

  “We can have it later, right?”

  “Sure,” her voice was shakier than she would have liked, nerves creeping in as he leaned down and kissed her neck. The tender expression caused a knot to explode in her stomach, twisting and turning her insides with delicious sensations.

  “Got a radio?” She nodded to the corner of the counter where the old radio sat. She was disappointed when Shep pulled away from her to tune the box to the first clear station. A jazzy rendition of Moon River played out over the airwaves as Shep walked back to her, returning his hands to her waist. She didn’t move, hands emerged in a soapy tub of dishwater keeping her occupied with cleaning.

  He was so close she could feel his chest press into her back with every breath. His hands encircled her slight waist and guided her hips into motion, matching his slow sway. Honey couldn’t help the little smile that appeared, biting down on her lip as she tucked her chin in and continued to wash their plates.

  His breath was hot against her neck, teasing the small hairs there as they danced against her skin. Knots formed in the pit of her belly, fluttering around and when his lips collided with her neck again, she swore the floor gave out from under her. They moved along her skin, savoring her salty musk and the little shivers emanating from her spine. When they finally made their way to her earlobe, Honey was grateful he was holding onto her. Otherwise, she might be in a pool on the floor.

  She smelt of lilacs and sage, and he could only imagine that she would taste better. His hips continued to sway and kept hers in time as he reached out, guiding her hands out of the water. He tugged them slowly overhead, holding her two wrists within the grip of his one hand and twisted her around until she was facing him.

  Her eyes were wide like two saucers as she stared at him, watching as he came toward her and slowly their lips became one.

  He felt her inhale slightly, although he wasn't sure why. Maybe she hadn't been kissed this way before, or perhaps she hadn’t been kissed by someone who liked her as much as he did.

  Tentatively Honey reached out, her fingers curling around his shoulder as she leaned in closer. Her body pressed against his, trying to close all the space between them. But unlike all the other girls whose bodies he had held close, Honey wasn't a square peg in a round hole. Instead, she was the puzzle piece that fits snugly to finish the picture.

  His tongue slid along hers, retreating with a slow stroke across the roof of her mouth. She shuddered in his arms, making them tighten around her as he pulled back and kissed the corner of her mouth with a smile.

  There were so many things he wanted to do to her, all of them inappropriate with a girl as sweet and naive as she was. But when Shep looked down at Honey, she didn't seem afraid or nervous. In fact, she looked up at him with longing in her eyes like she wanted him to continue no matter what his head said.

  Chapter 11

  1989

  Shep licked his lips, feeling a sense of uncertainty crawl through his chest. He wanted this, god he wanted this so bad. He tried to ignore that small voice in the back of his head telling him to slow down and wait to do all those bad things to her.

  What was that voice anyways?

  Oh right, a conscience.

  “Damn,” he chuckled as he ran a hand through his hair. Honey blinked in surprise, the expletive was not what she was expecting. But he spoke again, “you’re addictive.”

  "How's that?" She ran her teeth along the swell of her bottom lip, already plump and bright red from their kissing. Her pearly whites only drew his attention to this further, surging his own blood flow to a concentrated area.

  Honey stepped back and leaned into the counter behind her, pressing her palms against the frame and angled her body toward him. Body language told him everything Shep needed to know. She wanted him. As bad as he wanted her.

  Everything inside of him wanted her, but his damned conscience screamed not to take her like a rabid animal.

  “Your smile, your taste, your body… All of it. It’s addictive and yet, I want to be a gentleman.”

  “But,” she anticipated his next word.

  “Yeah, but,” he said as he ran his hand through his hair once more. She smiled coyly, her hips now swaying slowly to the soft music permeating the airwaves. She was seducing him.

  And it was working.

  “But, dammit all to hell, I’m not a gentleman.”

  Shep moved, closing the distance in a single step as he wrapped his arm around her waist. The arch in her back made it easy for him to get a good grip, lifting her up with the one arm and setting her against the edge of the counter as he leaned in and kissed her again. Her legs folded around his waist and she laughed in delight at his decision to act.

  In her attempt to brace herself on something Honey reached out, catching her hand on the slippery edge of the sink and with nothing to hold her weight, she fell right in. Water splashed up against her backside, soaking the dress she was wearing and sloshing out of the sink onto the floor. It ruined the kiss, but it didn’t ruin the mood.

  They laughed, lips moving together to create a melody as Shep picked her up again in a sweeping motion. Instinctively she wrapped her legs around his waist to keep from falling, the red silk going tight as it slid up her thighs. He turned to carry her out of the room, pausing in his step when he realized he didn’t know where to go next.

  “Where?” His mouth was breathless and hot against her neck as he resumed walking blindly toward the threshold leading out of the kitchen.

  "Right," she said, wrapping her wet arm around his neck and holding on. "Another right," she said as she guided him. Her drenched dress soaked through his shirt and pants, wetting his skin underneath. His nerve endings were already heightened, and the sensation only further eroticized the moment.

  He took the stairs two at a time, reaching the landing in record time.

  “The door on the left.” He walked straight into her bedroom, managing to have enough presence of mind to kick the door shut behind him before he marched her to her bed, setting her down.

  He seemed to be breathing hard as he stared down at her. Given his athletic body though, it wasn’t because he had charged the stairs like it was the Battle of Waterloo. The fire in his eyes gave him away. As did the obvious arousal in front of her. Never taking her eyes off him, Honey reached out, blindly finding the zipper of her dress and guided it along the teeth until the dress gaped at her side. When she rose off the mattress and pushed the soggy dress onto the floor, leaving nothing but her and her unmentionables before his eyes, Shep swore the breath from his lungs caught in his throat.

  “You really sure about this?”

  “My mother always said you wouldn’t buy a car without test driving it first.”

  He arched an eyebrow, taking in what she was saying before carefully replying: “you’re buying this car?”

  She grinned at him, that devilish little grin she always seemed fit to use on him. “I’m shopping around.” She remarked as she reached out and tugged at the waistband of his pants.

  He was intrigued now, unsure if she was virginal like he'd supposed or if her mother's advice had led her to ‘shop for other cars' before him. He didn't get the chance to ask, and frankly, he didn't think talking about it would help the mood, as she tugged his body toward hers by his pants.

  He let her move him around with her confident command, pushing him back onto her bed as she stood over him and undid her bra slowly to the tune of her own music.

  She was trying to play the seductress, and it was adorable, althoug
h Shep suspected this was not the reaction she was expecting he would have. Still, he didn't interrupt her show as she managed to get her brasserie off and onto the floor with her dress. Next came her stockings, she used his leg as a stool and peeled them down her creamy thighs slowly, never taking her eyes off him.

  He expected her panties to come next. Instead, she moved onto the bed and reached for his belt touching the worn leather gently as she guided it through the loop. She pushed the metal bar through the hole and looked up at him as her fingers reached for his button. Shep took her hand in his at that point, holding her in place as their eyes locked.

  He was prepared to ask her again if she was sure about this, but she leaned down and kissed him once more to silence him. It was her way of answering him, and the gesture worked. He let go of her hand, pressing it gently out of his way as he undid his own pants and lifted himself off the bed long enough to push them down along with his boxers.

  Honey pulled her lips away from his again to look down at his manhood, taking it in and he had his answer now. She was a virgin. Someone who had seen balls before wouldn’t look at them the way she was.

  To distract her, he leaned in once more, kissing her again as he swept her up onto the bed and rolled onto her. He braced his weight around her on his elbows, using one hand to run his knuckles down her curves before pressing his fingers under the elastic waist of her panties and tugging them down.

  Her breathing grew shallower as he left her there under him, watching his every move as he undressed her fully. She knew what to expect, her friends spoke about their boyfriends and experiences endlessly, but that didn’t stop the flurry of nerves in her stomach. Or were they butterflies? Either way, Honey felt apprehension and excitement all at the same time. She was sure that Shep was the one, that choosing him was the best choice she could ever make.