The Fairies are sooooo excited about this new book by ERIN NOELLE!!!
Today we get to have a treat because they're letting us see the trailer!!!
I’m failing.
My younger brother is getting worse, and my job – my duty – is to help him at all costs. We’ve tried everything modern medicine has to offer and nothing works.
Nothing.
Deciding to turn to unconventional treatments, we end up at Fire-on-the-Mountain, a holistic resort deep in the Rockies.
In our search for medical marijuana, I find beautiful, free-spirited Hudson Shavell – a girl who may not only hold the key to heal my brother, but to fix me as well. Even though I can’t afford distractions right now, she’s all I can think about. All that I want.
It’s funny how everything can change with one little
SPARK.
SPARK.
Just as I’m wrapping up my morning duties, a light tapping
startles me. Whirling around, I see two silhouettes standing outside, with the
muted light from the dawn breaking behind them. I scurry across the cement
ground and open the tinted plexiglass door, shocked to see Crew and Caleb, both
bundled up like they’re prepared for a blizzard.
“Mornin’, hippie girl. Cool hair,” Caleb greets me cheerfully.
“Can we come inside? I’m freezing my balls off out here.”
“Of course, you little wussy. We wouldn’t want that to happen.”
I giggle, moving back out of the doorway to let them in.
Crew doesn’t say anything at first, but as he steps inside and
our eyes meet, his lips quirk up in an endearing, sleepy smile. Holy shit,
that’s sexy. I wonder if that’s what he looks like right when he wakes up in
the mornings. Does he sleep in pajama pants, or just his underwear? Boxers or
boxer-briefs?
“Hudson? Did you hear me?” Caleb’s voice rips me from my
daydream… …my daydream that was quickly leading into indecent territory.
I pivot around to face him, but not before catching the flicker
of acknowledgment in Crew’s smirking eyes, which is nearly as mortifying as my
parents talking about their sex life at dinner last night. “What’s up, buddy?”
Mentally berating myself, I shuffle over to the broccoli plants, where Caleb is
standing and shaking his head.
“Not you too?” he groans, pinching his brow at me. “You’ve
already got the look.”
Shifting my gaze back and forth between the two of them, I ask,
confused, “Me too? What look?”
He sighs dramatically and throws his hands up in the air. “The
same Crew-is-so-dreamy-I’ll-do-anything-for-him look that every girl between
the ages of fifteen and twenty-five gets when they’re around him.” My face
tenses as I try to not have that look. “Can’t you all see I’m his spitting
image? A slightly younger, untainted version, I might add.”
“Shut up, Caleb.” Crew playfully shoves him as he joins us,
allowing his arm to brush up against mine. “Don’t listen to this little punk. He’s
just messing with you.”
I laugh to cover up the twinge of disappointment I feel, though
I’m not sure why Caleb’s words sting like they do. Crew is the kind of gorgeous
that is usually reserved for boy band members—part messy, part dreamy, all
sexy. It’s not that I’m surprised girls fall all over him; I just don’t like
being lumped in the same category, like I’m just another brainless chick,
falling for his pretty face. I bite my lip, wanting to scream at him that I’m
different, but knowing I’m not.
“What are you guys doing up so early?” I question, swallowing
down my frustration and fighting to keep my face neutral. “Where’s your mom?”
“I woke up with a seizure and couldn’t fall back asleep. Plus, I
think my body’s still on Texas time,” Caleb replies while he continues to mosey
around, investigating everything. “Mom’s showering and getting dressed. She’s
supposed to meet us at breakfast.”
His mention of the seizure immediately brings things back into
perspective for me. I’ve got no right to be disheartened about anything; my
primary concern with the Elliott family is to do what I can to help Caleb heal.
The kiss needs to be pushed to the back of my mind.
“How often do you have them?”
“Every morning, when I wake up, and then a couple of other times
during the week—usually when I’m stressed or exhausted.” He sounds so
matter-of-fact, like seizures are an expected part of someone’s normal daily
routine. It breaks my heart. Bending down to sniff the rosemary and thyme, he
changes the subject. “This stuff smells good. You cook with it a lot?”
I nod once, not wanting to talk about herbs, but to find out
more on his condition. “Yeah, occasionally. What’s it like? The seizures, I
mean.”
“Honestly, I don’t remember them when they’re over. From the
looks on the faces of everyone around me, I guess it’s pretty fucking bad, but
I don’t know,” he replies with a shrug. “The headaches are what kill me. It
feels like my head is gonna explode from the pressure.”
“Did you try out any of the stuff I brought yesterday?”
“No, we didn’t,” Crew rumbles from behind me, sending a tingle
up my spine, but I refuse to turn around. I don’t want to get the look again.
“We thought it’d be best if you were with him the first time. None of us have
ever used one of those vaporizers before, and we didn’t want to fuck it up and
waste what you gave us.”
“It’s not rocket science,” I assert. “I’m sure you can figure it
out.”
He moves closer, his chest resting against my shoulder blade,
his warm breath drifting across the back of my neck. “I thought you were gonna
help us.”
Guilt slices thr.ough my gut as I recognize how selfish my last
comment was. This isn’t about you, Hudson, I remind myself. “I am and I will,”
I reassure them both, glancing down at my watch briefly. “I have to go set up
for breakfast now, but I don’t have classes today, so I’m free after that.
Whenever works best for you guys, I’ll be there.”
“Mom’s gotta run some errands after breakfast, so after you get
finished would be great. Caleb and I’ll just be chillin’ around here for a while.”
“’Kay, sounds good.” I smile over at the younger Elliott
brother, who’s now inspecting the poblano pepper plants. “You ever had Chiles
Relleno before?”
Twisting his mouth, he looks up into the sky, as if he’s trying
to remember if he has or not. “If you have to think that long about it, they
must not have been very good,” I joke. “Why don’t you pick a few and I’ll make
them for your breakfast? If you don’t like them, I’ll whip you up an omelet
instead.”
“Really?” His face illuminates with delight. “I’ve never picked
my breakfast before. This is kinda cool.”
“Yeah, and later today, I’ll show you around the other
greenhouse, where we grow the pot, so you can see it in all of the different
stages.” Peering over my shoulder at Crew, I lift my eyebrows in a questioning
manner. “If that’s okay?”
He flashes a captivating grin and nods. “Absolutely. As long as
I can come too.”
“I’ll think about it,” I flirt back, unable to resist his
enticing charm, but quickly turn away to help Caleb choose his peppers.
****
A little before eleven, I hang my apron up, flip the light off
in the kitchen, and close the door behind me, finally finished cleaning up
after the breakfast rush. I ended up preparing no less than ten dishes of
Chiles Rellenos, because as the other guests began to filter in and saw what
Caleb and Crew had on their plates, they wanted it too. It was so well received
from everyone Doug even suggested we make it a permanent item on the menu,
which thrilled me. I may have a bit of a pleaser mentality, but I like knowing
I pull my weight around here.
Also during breakfast, Mel confirmed with Mary that she knew
about me giving the boys a smoking lesson this afternoon—which she did—and then
invited them all over for dinner tonight so they can talk to her about moving
and the paperwork she needs to start on. So, basically, I’ll be spending most
of the day with Crew, and I can’t decide if that’s a good thing or not.
I don’t want to be one of those girls who goes all goo-goo
around him, but when he stares at me with those mesmerizing green eyes…when he
says things about me belonging to him…when he kisses me unexpectedly…shit, when
he just exists, I can’t help it. I am thoroughly intrigued by all things Crew
Elliott, no matter how hard I try not to be.
“What have I gotten myself into?” I mumble to myself as I run
into my house for a quick freshen-up.
After I wash my face to remove the greasy feeling, brush my
teeth, and apply a new coat of chapstick, I bound out of the house and across
the property to cabin number eight, pretending I’m not in the least bit
nervous. But before I make it up to the top step, the door flies opens and Crew
barrels out, directly toward me.
Like déjà vu from the night before, his lips crash down on mine
without any warning, capturing me in a staggering kiss that forces me to grab
hold of his arms to keep from losing my balance. My mouth opens for him
instinctively, our tongues stroking one another’s with wild abandon, his sure
and demanding, mine shy and welcoming, and I stop thinking about anything other
than how amazing this moment feels. I never want him to stop doing this.
His hands tangle in my hair and I slant my face, deepening the
kiss. Nudging me with his hips, he backs me against the porch frame, pinning
me, his thick thigh pushing my legs apart until he’s pressed up against my
throbbing core. I moan into his mouth as he drains me of my sanity, unable to
resist the urge to rock against him, feeling his length start to harden against
me. He draws my lower lip between his teeth, sucking and nibbling like it’s the
best thing he’s ever tasted, and I hold on tighter, my fingers flexing against
his muscled shoulders.
Caleb clears his throat loudly at the doorway, causing us to
swiftly break apart and whip around to face him, like kids caught with our
hands in the cookie jar. “Y’all can finish making out later. Right now, you’re
supposed to be getting me high,” he protests with his arms crossed over his
chest.
At first, I’m afraid he’s really annoyed with us, but when I
lift my mortified eyes to meet his, he winks playfully, somewhat relieving my
guilt-ridden conscience. I exhale my pent-up breath and glance at Crew, whose
gaze is still fixed on me. Unfazed by his brother’s interruption, he leans down
and skims his soft lips across my cheek, landing them next to my ear.
“Sorry, not sorry. I’ve been waiting all fucking morning to do
that,” he whispers, then grabs my hand to lead me inside, “and we’re definitely
finishing this later.”
Erin Noelle is a Texas native, where she lives with her husband
and two young daughters. While earning her degree in History at the University
of Houston, she rediscovered her love for reading that was first instilled by
her grandmother when she was a young child. A lover of happily-ever-afters,
both historical and current, Erin is an avid reader of all romance novels. In
2013, she published the Book Boyfriend Series, which included books
Metamorphosis, Ambrosia, Euphoria, and Timeless, and recently published When
the Sun Goes Down, a contemporary romance novel. Her books have been a part of
the USA Today Bestselling list and the Amazon and Barnes & Noble overall
Top 100.
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