Page 29 of Tragic (Lark Cove 3)

What the hell was going on? It was like years of repressed sexual desire had finally caught up with me. Sex with Kaine had awoken this intoxicating need for more and more and more. Not even the glass of red wine I’d had while cooking had mellowed it out.

And it appeared I wasn’t the only one in this predicament.

Kaine’s beer bottle had long since been drained, and he’d almost polished off his second. His hand was gripping his steak knife so hard, I worried it would snap in his fierce grip.

“Enjoy.”

He nodded, cutting into his steak and forking a bite. I cut into my own but froze as he lifted the bite to his mouth and chewed. His jaw flexed. His lips moved, just slightly.

Chewing? Chewing was sexy now? I recrossed my legs, concerned I wouldn’t make it through this meal without a spontaneous orgasm.

I set down my fork and knife, closed my eyes and took in a long breath.

If we were going to survive this meal, I needed a distraction. We needed to move past the chemistry and into something more like friendship.

“So you design furniture,” I said.

He nodded, still chewing.

“Do you like it?”

He nodded again.

“Good. It’s important to love your job.” I picked up my utensils and went back to my steak. “I love my job. I work for Logan Kendrick. His wife Thea runs the bar in town. Do you know them?”

Kaine shook his head. “I don’t get into town much.”

Why did that statement not surprise me? “He moved here a few years ago from New York. That’s where I met him. But then he moved out here for Thea. This is actually their camper. They weren’t using it this summer and let me borrow it.”

Logan and Thea had tried to convince me to stay in their boathouse until the remodel was done. But once I’d bought my property, I hadn’t wanted to delay living here for a single minute. I’d planned to find my own camper to rent for a few months, but once Thea got wind of that idea, she’d insisted on me taking the Airstream. When I’d asked to pay them for using it, Logan had threatened to fire me if I brought it up again.

“Logan and Thea are two of my favorite people on the planet,” I told Kaine. “Logan’s family has a charitable organization called the Kendrick Foundation. I’ve been working as his assistant there for years.”

“What kinds of charities?” he asked before diving into the potatoes. A small hum of appreciation came from his throat.

“Their portfolio is varied, but since they were founded in New York, they dedicate a lot of resources to inner-city programs. Logan’s got a soft spot for children’s charities, so over the last few years, he’s really focused on pulling more of them under the Kendrick umbrella.”

And now that he was living in Montana, more of those charities were being added from the West Coast. For decades, the Kendrick Foundation had been city-centric, but Logan was expanding their reach. I was proud to say that my efforts were helping to make us known nationally.

“They own the children’s camp here in Lark Cove,” I said as Kaine continued to devour his meal. “Thea’s partner at the bar, Jackson Page, is married to the director. Do you know them? His wife’s name is Willa.”

Kaine shook his head again. “Never met them.”

And again, I wasn’t surprised. If I had to guess, I’d venture that Kaine’s social circle consisted of the small herd of deer I’d seen walking around our mountainside over the last week.

“They’re all wonderful people.”

Willa was sweet and shy and as genuine as they came. The way Jackson looked at her made me swoon every time. He’d get this dreamy look in his eyes whenever they settled on his wife. And when they made eye contact, the rest of us went out of focus.

It was the same with Logan and Thea.

I wanted to believe that Adam and I’d had that once. That we’d been so in love, the two of us would get lost in each other’s gaze for hours and hours on end. But the more time I spent around my friends in Lark Cove, the more I realized I’d been pretending for a long time. My marriage had always been missing that sense of completeness.

Or maybe we’d just lost it along the way.

We had started our relationship at such a young age. After college, we’d each concentrated on our careers. I’d gone to work for the Kendrick Foundation right after graduation, working as an assistant to one of the lower-level vice presidents. Then I’d worked my way up until I’d eventually become Logan’s assistant. He was chairman of the board and the most powerful man in the company.

And I was his right hand.