Northern Exposure: Compass Brothers, Book 1 by Mari Carr and Jayne Rylon Read Free Book Online Page B

wedding present, gathering Lucy to his chest. The pounding of his heart drummed in her ear.
    “You truly believe I don’t want you anymore, Colby?”
    “For tonight, sure. Once Silas is home…” Her cheek rose and fell when he shrugged. “You’ve always loved him. Shit, you only agreed to date me in the first place to make him jealous.”
    “You knew that?”
    “I’m not stupid, Lu. It pissed me off when he shunned your affection.” He drew a deep breath. “Like he’d always done to me. Acting like we were nothing but friends. I understood how bad that would sting you.”
    “Colby, we were young.” Her sigh buffeted his nipple, hardening the dime-sized point, stealing her attention for a moment.
    “Especially you. I wondered if Silas kept his hands off because you hadn’t even turned seventeen yet. But I couldn’t resist. I never was as honorable as him.”
    “Don’t say things like that.” She lifted her head to meet her husband’s troubled stare. Her fingers stroked damp hair off his brow. “What I meant is that I was too inexperienced to comprehend all you had to offer. You’re subtle where he’s flash. You’re steady where he’s hot then cold. You’re reliable, trustworthy and sexier than any man has a right to be.”
    “You’re good for my ego, Lu.”
    “You’re good for my soul.”
    When he dragged her close for a drugging kiss, she tasted the cherry candy he popped like mints when he worried. Didn’t he understand?
    “You were always spectacular and you’ve done a hell of a lot of growing since those days, Colby. No potential went to waste with you.” She forced herself to put some distance between their torsos or she’d forget what she intended to say. Still, she couldn’t stop herself from walking her fingertips up his chest, over the contours of his neck, to his lips. “I admire how you forged yourself into the man you are today. You didn’t have all of Silas’s advantages and yet you’ve become one of the most respectable leaders on the ranch and in Compton Pass. Hell, I heard rumors in town they’re going to write you in on the ballet for trustee this year.”
    “Funny.” He nipped her finger then sucked until the sting disappeared. “Victoria said something similar earlier. You didn’t need any polish, Lu. You’ve always been perfect to me. Even when you schemed to use your pal Colby to make Si suffer.”
    “It didn’t take long for me to realize I already had what I wanted.” She leaned forward to taste his lips once more. No use in resisting. His palm landed on her ass, cupping her as they shared a deep, lingering kiss. She chuckled around his fluttering tongue then dislodged her mouth to whisper, “I think we dated all of one day before I begged you to take my virginity.”
    He’d refused.
    She still couldn’t say if it had been some misplaced sense of propriety or the fact that he’d lusted for someone else more than her. The sliver of doubt had niggled the far recesses of her mind for too long. Soon, she’d find out. Suddenly, she wasn’t as eager for the answer. Her life here was perfect. She had everything important. Almost.
    Colby bundled her into his arms then rolled onto his back, pillowing her on his gorgeous body. She rested their foreheads together until the creases that appeared on his brow when he discussed something serious crinkled against her skin.
    “When we hooked up, you had s ome of what you wanted. Let’s be honest, Lucy. You’ve always craved Silas. We both have.”
    The truth they’d tried to deny for so long reared between them. A tear leaked from her watering eyes without warning, dropping onto Colby’s cheek.
    “That doesn’t mean I love you any less,” she promised.
    “Then you understand it’s the same for me?”
    She nodded. Ten years of Colby’s easy companionship and generous passion didn’t lie. Too bad Silas hadn’t shown a glimmer of interest in her. When the object of her girlhood crush had clutched Colby to