Chapter 7: CONNOR

We put aside all the bullshit as we got to work. The foundation had already been laid, and the outer walls built up with reinforced steel. Logan had made the call to go back to the old way of doing things. It cost a lot more, but once we explained things to the owners, they were more than willing to fork over the money.

This area was prone to hurricanes and a rogue tornado or two over the last decade. When other matchstick buildings would blow in the wind, we were building this one to last. We were building the first thing to be erected in Briarwood since the fifties or some shit, so there was a lot of interest from the town's folk.

There was a new business whose headquarters were in Atlanta, but it was cheaper for them to have offices here since Real Estate prices were insane these days.

The head guy is some type of oil tycoon or some shit with offices all over the south and Midwest. He's already making noises about hiring us to do some other jobs for him because he likes our shit. At this rate, we'll be in the black for a while yet, which for a new business is always a good thing. But for the shit we want to do, it's excellent.

***

I thought of her pretty much every other minute throughout the day. Which was fucked because I could seriously lose a limb if I weren't paying attention. I can't believe she's mine, fuck. It's like my birthday and Xmas rolled into one. I felt like smiling all the damn time for no fucking reason whatsoever. The fuck?

The first time I ever laid eyes on Dani, she was with our office manager, Candy. The two women were good friends though Candy was from the complete other end of the spectrum from my girl. Dani is old southern money.

Her family owns half of the fucking state, while Candy's ancestors were coal miners. That's another thing I like about my girl; she doesn't put on ears like some of the other fucks around here.

We'd thrown a little party for Candy's birthday, and Dani had been one of her guests. One look, and I'd felt my heart hurt. That alone had convinced me to stay the fuck out of her way.

I didn't like that feeling of lost control or the way my eyes couldn't seem to help-seeking her out throughout the night. Everything about this fucking woman had teased my senses. Her walk her laugh; every little thing she did. Even the way she flung her hair over her shoulders to get it out of the way.

I'd noticed her noticing me too, and that hadn't made shit any easier. My dick was hard for damn near three hours that first night. And when some guy at the bar had hit on her, I'd wanted to plant my fist in his face. I've never reacted that way to any woman before in my life.

Living the lifestyle I'd lived in the service; I never thought it was fair to subject a woman to that shit. Never know when you might be called up or some shit.

Plus, I'd heard horror stories of affairs and shit, and knowing me, I'd probably end up doing twenty-five to life, so I'd steered clear. I was lucky enough to keep myself protected. I fucked when I needed to, but I kept my heart out of the fucking equation.

But that night, she'd followed me with her eyes as much as I was trying to pretend that I wasn't doing the same. She stood out like a jewel in a tarnished crown in her designer blouse and her silk skirt with those heels that made her legs look like sin. It had been hard as fuck ignoring the invitation in her eyes. The hunger that I saw there, but I'd done it.

I'd done it every other time our paths had crossed, too, until yesterday when she'd walked by me on the sidewalk and acted like she didn't see me. I guess she'd grown tired of me ignoring her and decided to give me a taste of my own medicine. But that shit hadn't sat well with me at all. I guess you can say that was my wake-up call. She'd let it be known in little ways that she was interested, but I'd avoided her. Until last night!

Now she's mine, and there's no going back. That shit scares the fuck out of me. I'm not the settling down type, never wanted to be. I know what I come from, the legacy the two fucks that had spawned me had passed down, and I never wanted to continue that cycle.

But now, here she was and everything she is forced me to put aside my prejudices against anything domestic and just go full tilt.

My brothers always joked that it would take a very special kind of woman to bring me to my knees. I guess they were right after all. Everything about her just does it for me. From her sweet as honey voice that just makes me want to fuck her into the wall every time I hear it.

Her laugh that reminds me of tinkling bells and the sweetest smile. And I haven't even started on her kickass body; not too tall at about five foot four, she's a good foot shorter than my six-four frame, small and petite. She's the beauty to my beast. She has dark hair and green eyes to my blonde and blue, and everything about her just sings to the man in me.

There's still a lot I didn't know about her, though, things we'll have to talk about. I had no doubt that she will catch hell from family and friends for her choice in a mate, but that was too fucking bad. I'd made a promise when I was buried deep in her last night into the morning, a promise that I aim to keep.

I hope she was ready for what she'd unleashed. There were things I wanted from her that I'm not sure a girl like her would even know about. My body hardened just thinking about all the ways I wanted to love her and be loved by her. I know with a woman like that, I'll have to be on top of my game.

Thankfully I'm in a position to keep her in the style she was accustomed to. But even had I not been, she would've had to learn to deal. What I wanted from her was a forever kind of deal. One man, one woman for all time. She's the only one to ever bring that out of me, and I'm pretty sure lightning doesn't strike twice, so this was it. For both of us.