The Farmer & The Belle (Baymoor Book 1) Read online

  “Do you need any help?” she asked. Max turned to look at her and felt like he couldn’t breathe. She’d straightened her hair and it fell across her forehead in sexy, casual disarray. Minimum makeup touched her face and she had exchanged her skimpy clothing for a wraparound dress in a vibrant pink, coral, green, and black floral pattern, with black stilettos. She looked gorgeous, sleek, and unobtainable. Translation: she’d put her wall firmly back in place.

  “Cappuccinos are just about done.” Max felt his face heat up to be caught gawking like a schoolboy. Damn, she was seriously under his skin. He’d been around the world and lived the fast life, with tons of money and beautiful women, but this one tiny woman had him tied in knots. Max surveyed the lemon meringue waffles with strawberry syrup and spinach, bacon, and artichoke quiches he’d paid Mario, Raymond’s sous chef, three hundred dollars to make this morning and felt even more foolish. He really hoped that she didn’t think that he expected her to put out. Silently he filled her cup and then pulled her chair out, waiting for her to sit before seating himself. She made their plates and they said grace before eating. At first, they didn’t speak and just enjoyed the food. Finally, Georgina broke the silence.

  “Everything is delicious, Max. Thank you,” she said sincerely, feeling immensely flattered and thankful that he’d gone to all of this trouble just for her. When she lived with her mother, she had been constantly put on the backburner as Ingrid gave her all to whatever man she was with, never investing in her children with the same unbridled interest. Graham and Eliza, who were eight and ten years older respectively, had done their best to be parents to her, but they worked constantly to support the family. Graham, enraged at the abuse his mother endured in her relationships, turned to boxing at the local YMCA as an outlet for his anger, and then became a janitor of sorts for them. Eliza, who despite the odds stacked against her earned a 4.0 GPA, should have been in school but dropped out to take care of Georgina. One of her friends was able to get her a fake ID, and she worked as a cocktail waitress while fending off advances at the club and from her mother’s boyfriends at home. Ingrid was jealous and insecure of Eliza’s beauty and often accused her daughter of trying to seduce her men. Eliza endured it all with quiet dignity.

  When Eliza and Graham worked, they had Mrs. Archer, their downstairs neighbor, babysit Georgie, and then Graham would pick her up on his way home from work. Graham and Eliza knew their childhoods were long gone but tried their best to give Georgina one. It was Eliza who attended all her school meetings and events. Graham taught her sports. They thought they had everything covered up, until the night it exploded in their faces. Shaking away those memories, she looked at Max and found him observing her again.

  “No problem. It’s the least I could do after you got the suspicious end of the welcoming committee. I asked the ladies to please keep this incident to themselves, seeing as how they are, as you put it ‘fine, upstanding, citizens’,” he said with a wink, watching as she cut into her waffles. “The kids promised Mrs. Laurent they wouldn’t talk about it at school.”

  “These are delicious; I should smack you for coming over here and tempting me like this,” Georgina said with a happy sigh as the creamy, tart citrus and sweet berry flavors danced along her tongue. She then narrowed her eyes at Max’s look of interest. “Never mind; judging from your expression, you’d probably like it.”

  Max gave her a roguish wink. “I might have put being spanked by a beautiful woman somewhere on my bucket list; but just so we’re clear, I’m not going to call you mama while you’re doing it.”

  “You’re like the perfect curly fry— visually pleasing, but severely twisted,” she murmured before changing the subject. “Now why would she care that they do or don’t bring it up at school?” Georgina asked curiously. She watched as he took a sip of his cappuccino. The delicate cup should have looked out of place in his large hand, but instead, he molded his fingers around it and became its protector.

  “She’s their principal. Now don’t look like that. Mrs. Laurent isn’t that bad…once you get to know her,” he said chuckling at her horrified expression.

  “What you’re really saying is she’s a complete and utter bitch, but I’ll get used to it,” she corrected him. “So you’re telling me that dragon in pink velvet is in charge of shaping the young minds of this town?!” Georgina couldn’t believe it. The old harpy had threatened to tase her while innocent children looked on. Not that those rug rats had seemed that innocent, which proved her point about Mrs. Laurent.

  “Yep, and Ms. Ida is the librarian, Mrs. Taylor is the school nurse, and Mrs. Downing is the leader of D.A.R.E.”

  “If Las Vegas had them instead of Metro police the crime rate would be nonexistent,” Georgina said, still in disbelief. “I don’t remember any of those ladies except I thought Mrs. Taylor looked familiar….”

  “Mrs. Taylor was married to Mark Higgins the butcher. Remember him? Well, he passed away, and Widow Higgins was suddenly a hot commodity on the senior circuit. Deputy Jonas Taylor was the lucky winner,” Max stated in a gossipy tone, wiggling his eyebrows.

  She laughed and the warm sensuous sound wrapped itself around Max’s dick and stroked it hard as granite. “That’s what I mean about small towns. You can’t go anywhere with anyone without someone speculating about your business. Is small-town-living everything you thought it would be? Aunt Valerie told me about your career in international law, and I still can’t believe you left it for Baymoor.”

  “I left it for my family’s legacy,” Max amended. “I loved practicing law, but I love what I do now a million times more. My mother and Uncle Walt were twins but as different as night and day. Mom couldn’t wait to leave this town and never looked back. As a matter of fact, she didn’t start visiting the farm until I made it my home. She was on a plane back to California two hours after her brother’s funeral where she and my father own a successful law firm.”

  His statement held a tinge of bitterness and hit a little too close to home for Georgina who shifted uneasily in her chair. “Well is that really a bad thing? Not everyone is cut out for small town life. Seems like it worked out just fine for them. Walter got a successful farmstead, and your parents have the firm.”

  “If you want to look at it that way. My grandparents died in a car crash when mom and Uncle Walter were nineteen. They left the farm to them. Mom wanted to sell the farm and let it pay for school for the both of them. She had dreams to be a lawyer and my uncle wanted to be a pediatrician,” Max paused, looking a little sad. Georgina had to fight the urge not to reach out and touch him. “To make a long story short, the farm has been in the family for a hundred years. There aren’t that many black-owned farms in Maryland. Uncle Walt just couldn’t sell it. So he stayed and sent Mom a check each month. When I moved here, Uncle Walt was grooming me to take over the business. He’d started taking online classes for college when he got sick. And then he was gone.”

  She couldn’t help herself; Georgina reached out and clasped his hand in hers. “Your uncle was a really good man, Max. He had a way of making everyone around him feel good…like they mattered. I’ll never forget how he used to make his employees buy my fresh lemonade, drink it in front of me, and tell me how good it was.” She grimaced. “Did I mention that I didn’t know you had to add sugar to sweeten until I was eleven?”

  Max’s laughter was contagious and she joined in. It was a nice moment for two people who’d gotten to know each other by first taking off their clothes. He was as kind as he was attractive, Georgina mused, loving the way his dark denim shirt complimented his rich sienna skin and the starkness of his white teeth against his black beard. Those humor-filled, slumberous bedroom eyes weren’t even trying to seduce, but they were certainly doing a number on her. She glanced down at their hands still intertwined. His much larger one had calluses, but the long fingers had clean, trimmed fingernails. His thumb brushed against the inside of her wrist, making her pulse skitter.

  “Tell me about yourself, G
eorgina.” Max’s voice was husky, and she pulled her hand back reluctantly, immediately feeling the loss of his touch.

  Clearing her throat, she asked, “What do you want to know? You already know that I own Feminine Intuition. Ummm, let’s see…for the last ten years, I was part of an acrobatic dance troupe called El Sol & Le Moon, and I graduated from UNLV.

  I’m thirty years old, own my own house, have no kids, and my main focus is making my company number one in its market. I don’t like animals, cheaters, or people who don’t stay in their own lane. I’m a Capricorn that doesn’t like to cook or be told no. Does that satisfy your curiosity?”

  She was a dancer. So that’s why she was so damn flexible. No, that information didn’t satisfy his curiosity by a long shot. Max wanted to know things like how she got that small scar on her inner right thigh. Or had the tiny tattoo on her left shoulder that he’d licked, hurt when she got it done? “For now.”

  “So which female in town are you currently seeing? I’m sure word will get back to her that your truck was seen outside of this house at an ungodly hour in the morning. Way too early for a polite social call, right?” she said half-teasingly. Only half because she really hoped he said no one. He smiled at her and dropped his gaze to his coffee cup, tracing circles around the rim with a long, elegant finger. Georgina watched and remembered him drawing lazy circles around her belly button before his hand slid lower and lower between her legs to touch-

  “I don’t date the women in town. Not because I don’t find them attractive, but because like you, I come from a big city and value my privacy. If I was interested in a woman, I would be very discreet about it. Not wanting her to be hurt by small town speculation or malicious gossip. I would just want to enjoy what we have with no interference from the outside world. You know…let things take their natural course,” Max stated, raising his eyes to stare at her intently.

  Georgina got the feeling he was telling her that she had nothing to worry about if she just gave in to temptation. Temptation. Damn, she hated that word! It implied that you were weak and lacking in self-control if you succumbed. She quickly got to her feet and started clearing the table, and Max’s deep voice followed her. “What about you, Georgina? Are you seeing anyone?” Suddenly he was behind her, enveloping her in his body heat and that mouthwatering fragrance that had her wanting to devour him. Now she understood and vowed never to mock that Twilight vampire again.

  She had just finished washing dishes and turned to get a washcloth when he went to place a bowl in the sink. Their bodies brushed and she froze at the contact. He was all muscle to her curves. Slowly he placed the bowl in the sink behind her but didn’t move away. The heat rising between their bodies was nuclear hot. What was the saying? If you can’t stand the heat?

  “No, I’m not seeing anyone. I don’t have time for a relationship. They’re too time- consuming and I don’t have any free time to spare,” she declared firmly. Avoiding his gaze, she put the dishes in the large farmhouse-style sink as he started putting food away. The sexual tension was thick enough that Georgina felt like she was suffocating.

  “I’ve never met a woman who said they had no time for a relationship,” Max remarked in a mocking tone. “How’s that working out for you?”

  “Actually, it works out very well. I find most men want someone to baby and care for them, and since I’m not the least bit interested in having children, it’s a no-brainer for me,” Georgina responded smartly.

  Max felt like a stalker as he stared down at her pretty face. Those big, expressive brown eyes that flickered with awareness, let him know that bullshit she was talking was just that. Bull. Shit. But he also saw her strength and determination and knew that he could bend her body into a thousand positions, but if she made up her mind on something, her will would not bend. He heard the words her full pink lips were saying, but he wasn’t listening. Eleven. That was the number of freckles scattered across her nose and cheeks. Georgina’s brown skin was clear and glowing, and the cap of tousled hair suited her gamine features perfectly. Her fresh-faced natural beauty wasn’t his normal type. Usually, the woman he went for were ultra-glam and never left the house without a full face of makeup and hair so perfectly styled it could withstand a hurricane. After spending time with Georgina, he wondered why he ever bothered with the others.

  “Max? Are you listening?”

  He wasn’t. He was too busy reading her body language and what it revealed. Her throat convulsing as she swallowed several times, teeth worrying her bottom lip, and those nipples… even the busy pattern of her dress couldn’t hide the rigid peaks that were begging for his attention as her body slightly swayed toward his before she held herself still. She wanted him but didn’t want to want him. Well, that was okay with Max for the time being because he wanted this enough for the both of them. He lowered his head, giving her time to change her mind.

  Georgina saw the dark, stormy desire escalating in Max’s eyes, and for all her talk, was helpless to resist as she closed her eyes and rose on tiptoe to reach his mouth. Her arms circled his neck and his arms came around her and crushed her to him. And when their lips met, it was game over as they drank thirstily from each other.

  His tongue traced her lips and she quivered, goose bumps spreading all over her body as she opened her mouth to invite him in. He accepted and explored the silky cavern of her mouth, stroking her tongue and gently sucking on it. He tasted like heaven and she couldn’t get enough of him. He sucked on her bottom lip, gently biting it and Georgina returned the favor as moisture pooled between her legs.

  Her hands lowered to slide underneath his shirt to feel his rock-hard body and she broke the kiss to yank his shirt off, exposing his sculpted chest. Max groaned as she bit his nipple and lazily encircled it with her tongue. Then she kissed his chest before bringing her lips back up to meet his. “You want me to fuck you as bad as I want to. Don’t you, Georgina?”

  The words raggedly whispered against her lips caused a deep throbbing to slowly spread through her as she bit his lips and clasped him tightly to her. He lifted her by the waist and she wrapped her legs around him. Frantically she ground her center against his. His tongue plundered her mouth, and she drew on it hungrily, mumbling feverishly “I do…God…yes, I do!”

  Every step he took caused her pussy and breasts to rub against him erotically, and Georgina felt like she was so far gone that she would cum before they reached their destination. They reached the end of the dining room table, and Max shoved the end chair out of the way to bend her over it. She lay panting heavily as he followed, pinning her gently to the table. He turned her head and fed her deep kisses as his other hand lifted her dress and slid past her underwear into the slick folds of her pussy. Max rubbed his hard on against her ass and plunged two fingers into her while his thumb caressed her swollen clit. The room was filled with their harsh breathing and the sound of his fingers swimming in her embarrassing wetness.

  Tick. Tick. Tick. Georgina thought she’d gotten rid of the aching pressure building and building inside of her other night. But one night didn’t make up for years of self-imposed sexual exile. She couldn’t draw the breath to scream as she exploded under Max’s skilled onslaught, and her release ran down her shaking legs in rivulets. Max was kissing her so deeply, and his fingers were fucking magic as they stroked and teased her beyond her control. She was a quivering hot ass mess, but still she needed more. Oh so much more from him.

  “You know we’re just getting started, don’t you, baby?” Max murmured as he withdrew his fingers and lifted her. He gently turned her over and placed her on the table before divesting himself of the rest of his clothing. A primal surge of satisfaction coursed through him as he took in the beauty lying before him, flushed from his loving. Her eyes glittered feverishly as she admired his body. Georgina’s gaze lingered on his dick and she licked her lips before raising her gaze back up to his. Max smirked knowingly, “Don’t worry, love, we’ll get to that. But for now, undo your dress and spread your
legs.”

  Georgina grinned wickedly and braced herself on her elbows and untied her dress to reveal a persimmon and black striped satin bra with black polka dot lace trim that cupped her breasts beautifully. Nestled in the center was a black satin bow. She spread her legs wider and the rest of her dress opened, revealing matching boy-cut panties. The fabric covering her pelvic bones were cut out and replaced with the same lace as the bra. The lingerie clung to her magnificent curves, and it was almost too much for Max as he stroked himself. “Oh fuuuuck, baby. You’re trying to give me a heart attack.”

  Max got between her legs and cupped the back of her neck to tilt her head and claim her mouth once more. Georgina drew on his tongue, savoring the taste of him. He lowered his mouth and his teeth gently scraped the column of her throat as he kissed and licked her weak spots while his beard rubbed deliciously against her over-sensitized skin. His hands palmed her aching breasts and teased her swollen nipples through the fabric of her bra.

  Max shifted and bent his head to capture a nipple in his mouth through the fabric, suckling hard. His warm breath and wet tongue through the silk drove her crazy. Georgina’s head fell back against the table with a bang and she grasped his head closer urging him to take more of her into his mouth. He bit the brown nub and she groaned long and loud. The feeling was exquisite, bordering between pleasure and pain. One hand reached up between her breasts to unhook the bra clasp hidden underneath the black bow in the center and the cups fell away. Max feasted his eyes on her lush, perfectly formed breasts topped with swollen chocolate nipples. He cupped the firm globes in his hands and alternated between rolling and squeezing her nipples.