Valentines Say I Love You Read online

  “You got it, sexy.”

  With a quick pat to my butt, he was gone again. How exciting! I’d ordered all new art work for the bedroom walls. No more landscapes and abstract watercolors. The walls would be painted a warm cream color, but the décor would change from room to room. They’ll range from pale yellow to a rich, deep ruby red, which is my favorite.

  The rooms would be vacant the week before Valentine’s Day for the paint to dry and the carpet to be installed. That gave me exactly two weeks to put the finishing touches on everything. The parlor remodel wasn’t as extensive. I’d have it done while I’m open.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Chris called to let me know Robert had a lump sum payment he wanted to deliver in person. He needed me to sign the final papers giving him back full ownership of his real estate business. As I drove to Chris’s law office I wondered if Sylvia, the home wrecker, would accompany Robert. I didn’t dress up, but I didn’t wear my favorite jeans either.

  I was escorted into a conference room by Chris’s assistant, Lynn. Chris stood, Robert glared and Sylvia flipped her hair over her shoulder. Chris hugged me and we sat down.

  “Chris, how’s Peter handling retirement?” That should raise Robert’s eyebrows. He didn’t know Peter retired.

  “Oh, he’s loving it. I’m hanging up my hat at the end of the year too. We’re going on a Caribbean cruise for Christmas.”

  “That’s wonderful. I love living at the cottage, it’s so peaceful.” Robert sat forward and was listening intently. I could tell he was getting curious as to what we were talking about.

  “Peter told me you’re making real progress on the remodel. We can’t wait to see it. Now back to business. Robert, do you have the cashier’s check for Vickie?”

  He slid it across the table and it landed on the floor. What a loser. I leaned over to pick it up and flashed a little cleavage.

  “Chris, do you have the papers for Vickie to sign?” Sylvia finally spoke.

  Robert was still staring at my boobs. Sylvia slapped his arm. Chris had me sign on two lines and the document was handed back to Robert for his signature. Chris, being a divorce attorney hated cheating spouses, and it showed. His warm disposition slipped.

  “Vickie, is your new boyfriend going to be at the re-opening? I really want to meet him.”

  “Oh, yes. He wouldn’t miss it for the world. He’s been helping me. He’s very good with his hands.”

  “What does your boyfriend do for a living, Vickie?” For the second time, Sylvia spoke up.

  “He delivers for FedEx. He’s been making a lot of special deliveries to me at Valentine’s Bed & Breakfast.” The sexual innuendo was delivered and received. Robert choked on the water he was drinking.

  “When did you open a Bed & Breakfast? I don’t understand what’s going on here.”

  “Robert, clearly Vickie has a boyfriend and a business. Be happy for her and let’s go home.”

  Sylvia stood, put her coat on and walked out. It looks like she wore the pants in the relationship.

  ***0*

  I called Kimmy on the way home and told her the good news about the money.

  “That’s great. I’m happy you got all your money back. He was a pig. Now, give me an update on Jake. How’s his big dick performing?”

  “Oh, perfect. It fits nicely in my hand.” I heard her sputter and then crack up. I’ve never spoken like that before.

  “You go, girl. Why don’t you bring Jake over for dinner tonight? Joe can meet him. Say 6:00 p. m.? Bring lots of wine.”

  Kimmy’s husband, Joe is the most patient and understanding man I’ve ever met. He adores her and loves her crazy personality.

  “I’ll call you right back and let you know.”

  Caller ID is wonderful; Jake picked up on the first ring. He must be at a delivery.

  “Hey there, sweetie. What’s up?”

  “Sorry to bother you at work, but Kimmy wants us to come over to dinner tonight. Is that okay with you?”

  “Of course, she’s nuts. It’ll be fun. What’s her husband like?”

  “Her husband is nothing like her, but loves everything about her.”

  “What time and do I need to pick anything up?”

  “Can you pick me up at 5:30 p. m.? I’m bringing a couple of bottles of wine.”

  “Oh. It’s going to one of those kinds of nights: lots of drinking and lots of questions.”

  “Are you up for it?”

  “You should know by now. I don’t have a problem getting it up.”

  “You’re going to fit right in tonight. See you later.” He was right. All I had to do was run my hand over myself and he stood to attention. I called her back.

  “Kimmy, we’ll be there with bells on.”

  “Woo Hoo!”

  ****

  Kimmy and Joe lived in a sprawling, ranch style home in Kent. We drove up and their front door was flung open and Kimmy blurted, “Hey Jake, she helped you with your package after all.”

  Her husband Joe stood behind her. He slapped his knee and said, “That’s my girl. She’s a hoot!”

  Jake shot back, “Yeah, and I helped her with her package too.”

  There was laughter and more hand slapping from Joe. Kimmy hugged Jake and said, “You’ll fit right in. Let’s drink.”

  ****

  After several glasses of wine, we brainstormed marketing ideas for my opening day. We all had different ideas, but agreed on Kimmy’s.

  “How about advertising a Valentine’s package? One night stay, a bottle of champagne, rose petals on the carpet and a box of Godiva chocolates. I can print up glossy flyers. Jake, do you think you could, discretely, hand them out while making your deliveries?”

  “Of course. I’ll do whatever I can to help.”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  It did help. Valentine’s Day and my grand re-opening was two days away and every room was booked through December.

  I walked through every inch of my B&B. It looked incredible. Not a spot of dust anywhere, fresh flowers in each corner of the lobby and every beautifully decorated bedroom.

  In my favorite room, I laid down on the luxurious, brand spanking new bed and ran my hands over the satiny smooth finish of the burgundy colored, Damask duvet cover. I imagined what my future guests would be doing in this very room. Would they slide under the thousand thread count Egyptian cotton sheets to make slow, passionate love? Or tear each other’s clothes off as they entered their room?

  The décor should inspire even the most romantically-stunted guests. Most importantly, I wanted them to come back.

  ****

  Valentine’s Day, check-in time was 11:00 a.m. As I anticipated, all sixteen guests arrived at once. My sweet, yet nutty friend, Kimmy volunteer to helped. The guests ranged in age from early twenties to an older couple, celebrating their fiftieth wedding anniversary.

  I greeted all the guests the same, “Good morning and welcome to Valentine’s Bed & Breakfast. I’m Vickie the owner. If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask. I’ll be serving light appetizers and champagne at 3:00 p. m., if you’d like to come down and celebrate with us.”

  They all answered the same as they looked around. “We’d love too. This is such a lovely home. We can’t wait to see our room.”

  I arranged a beautiful spread of food and drinks. Everyone seemed to be enjoying the fresh dungeons crab cakes, cold salmon sliders, olive tapenade and goat cheese on toasted crostini. I was ecstatic when all of my guests booked rooms for next Valentine’s Day. Only one thing could make this night better—Jake.

  At 6:00 p. m. I saw Jake’s car park next to the cottage and he let himself in. But, he didn’t come over. What was he up to? By 8:00 p.m. everyone was tucked in their rooms, having the time of their lives. I he
aded over to the cottage. Jake must’ve seen me coming because the lights dimmed and candles lit up the front window. He opened the door when I got close.

  “Come here, sexy.”

  He wrapped me in his strong arms. A rich, tomato scent of spaghetti sauce filled the air Yum! I hadn’t eaten all day.

  “Happy Valentine’s Day. I made dinner and I have a surprise for you.”

  Jake was all I needed. Butter Cup was sitting in front of my fireplace with a red bow on her head. She looked darling. “Is my surprise, Butter Cup?”

  “No, but close. Do you want to eat first or open your present?”

  “Whimper, whimper… “

  He smiled. Butter Cup got up and nudged the small box with her nose. It also had a red ribbon on it.

  “Well, I guess she made the decision for you. Sit down over there next to the box and I’ll get you a glass of wine.”

  I went to touch the box and Jake said, “Don’t open it yet. Wait until I get back.”

  I heard more scratching and Butter Cup said, “Woof.”

  “Jake, you better get in here quick, or your dog is going to open my present for me.” He handed me a glass of chardonnay and we raised our glasses.

  “Here you go. Toast to a crazy couple of months and more to come.”

  We drank. I was so happy. He carefully scooted the small box closer to me. Butter Cup supervised the whole time.

  “Open it, Vickie.”

  I carefully slid the ribbon off, the top wasn’t secured. I heard scratching and the lid popped open—nothing came out. Jake was cracking up. Butter Cup couldn’t wait any longer and reach in and pulled out my gift.

  “Oh, Jake. I thought you said all the puppies were taken.” I took my bundle of love gently out of Butter Cup’s mouth and held the small, wiggling body against my chest. I’m in love… and not just with the puppy.

  “I named her Skittles, because of the little spots on her head. You can change it if you want. Vickie, she was always yours. I wanted it to be surprise.”

  “Skittle, ha? It fits.”

  “Butter Cup, still thinks she belongs to her. Why don’t we leave them alone for a while? You’ve been busy and I’ve missed you.”

  I gave Skittles back to her mom and whispered in Jake’s ear, “Will you give me a couple of minutes to get your present ready?”

  “Absolutely. Take your time.”

  The black silk nightgown Kimmy bought me slid over my head and down my body like water. I dimmed the lights and lit the candles. I felt confident and sexy as I stepped out into the living room. “Jake. Come get your Valentine present.”

  He almost knocked over my wine glass getting up. I turned and headed back into the bedroom. We’d touched each other in the most intimate ways, but hadn’t made love yet. This was going to be a special night.

  He took in the surroundings and stripped off his sweater, tossing it in the corner. He had a patch of curly, dark hair in the center of his chest. I bent over and rubbed my check back and forth—soft. He took my shoulders and moved me away then, slowly lifted off my nightgown.

  “Oh, you are so pretty.”

  Off came his jeans. Next came his boxers. There was the prize: hard and soft, all at the same time. I reached for him, but he was faster. He’d picked me up, gently dropped me and landed beside me on the bed. That’s when the fun started…

  We explored with our eyes all the places we’d touched with our hands. We didn’t miss an inch. When he finally slid inside me, I couldn’t think of a better place for him to be. His thrusts were slow and deep at first. When he heard me chant, ‘Oh yeah! Oh yeah! he increased his speed with shorter thrusts and I knew he wouldn’t last much longer. I couldn’t believe how good he felt inside me. We both came at the same time, punctuated by blissful moans—heaven.

  Jake kissed me one last time before we fell asleep—he smelled like me.

  ****

  After a short catnap, Jake woke me with kisses to the underside of my breast. I wanted more, but he had other ideas.

  “I’m starved. I’m going to go put the water on to boil for the pasta. I should check on our dogs too.”

  “Yum! I love spaghetti.”

  He smiled, sat down next to me on the bed, touched my hair, kisses my lips and whispered, “I love you, Vickie.”

  That wasn’t what I expected, but what I deserved. “I love you too, Jake.”

  A little chocked up, we both blurted, “Let’s go eat.”

  Remembering dessert I happily said, “Oh, I have one more surprise for you, whipping cream and strawberries. Wait until you taste dessert on me.”

  “I can’t wait, my love.”

  Robert said I didn’t have a romantic bone in my body. Well, I do. It was buried deep, waiting for the right man to awaken it. He did!

  Vintage Valentine

  Mindy Hardwick

  Vintage Valentine

  A Books to Go Now Publication

  Copyright © Mindy Hardwick 2013

  Books to Go Now

  For information on the cover illustration and design, contact [email protected]

  First eBook Edition –January 2013

  Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages for review purposes.

  This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to any person, living or dead, any place, events or occurrences, is purely coincidental. The characters and story lines are created from the author’s imagination and are used fictitiously.

  If you are interested in purchasing more works of this nature, please stop by

  www.bookstogonow.com

  Look for Other Stories by Mindy Hardwick

  Love’s Bid

  Love’s Storm

  Love’s Christmas Gift

  Dedication:

  For my mom

  Vintage Valentine

  “Why is this the first time we’ve visited Grandma and Grandpa?” Ten-year-old Kaitlin carefully cut out a red construction paper heart. She added it to the pile of pink and red hearts on the card table. “They always visit us.”

  “Grandma and Grandpa like to visit us,” Hailey said. She swallowed hard and twirled the pearl ring she wore on her right ring finger. “It isn’t easy for me to get time off from work.” Hailey prayed her daughter couldn’t tell she was lying. The truth was Hailey’s boss begged her to take time off for years. It wasn’t until the non-profit failed to receive an important grant, and Hailey lost her job, that she was able to think about time off.

  “I like it here,” Kaitlin said. “It’s interesting.”

  Hailey chuckled. The Elmheart Hotel her grandparents owned and operated was interesting. The hotel had been built in the late 1800’s. It was the last standing hotel on the shores of Lake Ontario—a remnant from a bygone era.

  As a child, Hailey loved listening to her grandmother talk about the glory days of the hotel. The Elmheart had been at the end of the Manitou trolley line. People took the trolley from Rochester to the beach to play baseball, swim, drink beer, and spend the night at the hotel. The hotel had large arches, stained glass windows, pine paneling on the walls of the seventeen bedrooms, and a hard maple floor in the dance hall. Grandfather inherited the hotel from his father. He married Grandma and the two settled down to raise their growing family along with their hotel business. As a child, Hailey could remember more than one Christmas unwrapping presents in the hotel’s glorious living room under a large t
ree decorated with festive ornaments, ribbons, lights and tinsel. The Elmheart Hotel had been her grandparents’ place of enchantment and celebrating their fiftieth wedding anniversary at the hotel would be perfect.

  “Maybe we can live here!” Kaitlin looked up. Her bright blue eyes locked with Hailey’s. Hailey inhaled sharply. Kaitlin had her father’s eyes, and no matter how many times she looked at her daughter, Hailey never stopped feeling a small tightening in her stomach.

  “I don’t know,” she said, and pressed her lips together. “I’m not sure where we will live.” At least that was the truth. After her aunt died, Hailey tried to hang on to her aunt’s home in Kansas City. But it’d become impossible and the house eventually fell into foreclosure. Things had gone from bad to worse since her aunt passed away. Kaitlin’s grades had slipped as she began having problems with some other girls in her class, and Hailey’s job as office manager had unexpectedly terminated. When Hailey received the white and gold envelope announcing her Grandparents’ fiftieth wedding anniversary, Hailey knew they should attend. Her grandparents were not getting any younger. It was time she went home to the small western, town in New York. It was time to face up to the lingering ghosts of her past.

  Hailey looked up at the tall, arched ceiling and the pine paneling of the Elmheart Hotel’s living room. The last time she’d been inside her grandparents’ hotel was ten years ago. She was eighteen and three months pregnant. On a bright, August morning, Hailey stood in the large, sunlit, hallway. A small, denim duffel bag rested at her feet. She hugged her grandparents good-bye and walked out to a taxi which would take her to the train station. The train would take her to Kansas City where she would start a new life with her baby and aunt. Hailey’s parents were devastated to find her pregnant. Hailey’s dad declared all of his hopes and dreams were dashed, and refused to speak to her. Occasionally, she received a phone call from Mom, but if Dad walked into the room, Mom quickly hung up while promising to call again soon. Soon after Hailey moved to Kansas City, her parents took jobs working as research assistants in Singapore. She barely heard from them anymore.