Forever Valentine

FOREVER VALENTINE

This is for the Valentine's Day Story Contest 2023.

It's also a bit of slow burn, but they get there eventually. I hope you enjoy it, and also hope that you have a wonderful Valentine's Day!

©2023 Smuttyandfun All Rights Reserved.

OLIVIA

I was having such a good time laughing my ass off at our local dive bar. Nothing I liked better than enjoying a night out kicking back with my friends. Especially as Randi regaled us with another one of her wild stories about her kooky family. Which always had me counting my lucky stars about my own fairly normal clan.

Just imagining her grandma chasing a bill collector up the street with a broom, shouting obscenities after him so loud that the neighbors all came out to watch, had the four of us bursting into hysterics. Picturing the poor guy running as fast as he could from a tiny, old woman threatening him with a whooping, had me laughing so hard, I think I might have snorted some beer out of my nose.

Especially once Randi went on to tell us that her grandmother actually didn't owe anyone any money. But when he came banging on her door and she told him that he had the wrong house and to go away, and then he had the nerve to go around to the back door and start banging again, he pushed her too far and she reached for her broom. Which turned out to be a pretty bad move, considering the way she chased him.

Wondering if anyone else had noticed how crazy we were behaving, I took a look around as I reached for a napkin to wipe my face.

And that was when our eyes met.

Holy Hannah, talk about a dream man. He had my imagination running wild, already picturing what the two of us could get up to.

The way he was eyeing me with that naughty smirk, I just couldn't look away.

The guy looked like he could be a cover model for some kind of outdoorsy magazine. He really had that sexy 'Jack of the Woods' thing going on.

Those silvery-blue eyes teasingly smiling into mine, put me in mind of a wolf on the prowl, sending shivers straight up my back. Such crazy thick dark hair too, that I could already imagine sliding my fingers through as he kissed me senseless with those luscious lips.

Ooh, now he had me wondering if he was furry all over. I've got to confess, I've got a thing for men with body hair, the bushier the better. And this guy sure looked like he'd fit the bill, tall, dark and ruggedly handsome with a perfect hint of dark, sexy beard scruff lining his jaw.

Not that I was looking for anyone, mind you. After that last fiasco, I decided I was done with dating, and swore I'd never step back into the dating pool till I was at least fifty. After learning that the man I thought I loved, and was seriously considering spending my life with, had been secretly hooking up with not just one, but two of my former best friends, my self-esteem just couldn't take anymore blows.

I had to give 'Hot Stuff' credit though, he didn't relent, and kept his teasing bedroom eyes trained on mine, along with a very suggestive hint of a smile tugging at his lips.

'Nope,' I said to myself, 'never gonna happen.' Hottie could look somewhere else for a hookup. Giving my head a shake, I reached for my beer, and turned my attention back to my friends. No way was I going to succumb and fall for that sultry look in his eyes. I wasn't even a teensy bit interested. Even if he did look hot enough to melt my panties from clear across the bar.

Slyly grinning, my friend Julie, picked up on the looks passing between us, and gave me an elbow. "Hey, I think you've got an admirer, Livy. Tall, dark and gorgeous over there, hasn't taken his eyes off you since we first sat down."

"Well, he can look all he wants, but I'm not interested."

She turned and looked at me like I was crazy. "Are you kidding me? You don't even know him. How do you know he's not Mr. Right, just waiting to sweep you off your feet?"

"Yeah, remember I thought Chad was the one, too. And we all know how that turned out."

"Well, if I were you, before you leave, I'd slip him my number."

"Never gonna happen," I said, refusing to even look his way. Though I had to admit I was kind of curious to see if he was still looking.

The four of us talked and laughed together for another hour. Till I finally looked at my watch and realized it was time to head home. Otherwise, I'd never get up on time to get everything ready for the morning coffee rush, and the lunch crowd after that.

Though I enjoyed running my own business, I often wished I could have even just a week to myself to go off somewhere and relax.

Maybe, one day, I thought with a sigh, but obviously not today.

**

It was a little after noon, and I'd just thanked Jimmy the delivery guy for dropping off a fresh bag of rolls from the bakery, and waved him off at the back door. After I'd put them in the basket on the counter, I thought I'd better do a quick inventory of my sandwich fixings to see what I needed to order, before things started getting busy.

I was poking my head in the fridge, taking notes of whatever was running low, when I heard the bell ring over the door.

I turned around, and I think my eyes popped at the same moment my mouth fell open.

"Hey," he said, with that same teasing glint in his silver-blue eyes. Though he didn't mention that we'd seen each other before, at least from a distance, I could tell he recognized me from the little glimmer of amusement sparkling in his eyes.

"Oh, hi," I responded, wondering how he could look even hotter than I remembered.

Flashing a hint of a smile, he pulled a list out of the pocket of his leather jacket. "I'm picking up some lunch for my crew," he informed me.

Not quite sure if I was ready to form words, since my mouth had gone bone dry, I mutely pointed up at the blackboard on the side wall over one of the tables. Once I'd managed to clear my throat, and swallow, I told him, "We've got three kinds of soups today, and homemade pizza and lasagna. Or I could make any kind of sandwich you'd like, hot or cold."

Looking down at his list, I could see he looked a little confused. "The thing is, I've got one lady that wants, I think she said something vegetarian, or maybe vegan, I'm not even sure which. Do you if they're the same thing?" Then he lifted his gaze, pinning me with those wolfish eyes.

"No, not quite," I said, with a little smile, while resisting the urge to fan myself, he was getting me so overheated, it was silly. "We do offer options for both, though."

"Do you have any kind of vegetarian pizza?"

I pointed at the two big party-sized pizzas in the showcase. "The one on the right is fully loaded with pepperoni, ham, sausage, onion, olives and roasted red peppers. The other one is just fresh tomato, onion, olives and cheese."

"Is the cheese on the veggie one, like cheese from a cow?" he asked, I guess wondering if it was vegan.

Since no one had ever asked me that before, I kind of laughed as I explained, "It's actually buffalo mozzarella. So, it wouldn't qualify as vegan. But I could make a sandwich on a fresh crusty bun, with some veggies I grilled this morning. And I've got a pot of vegetable and wild rice soup simmering, that's also vegetarian."

"Hang on, just a sec, let me check." He pulled out his phone, keeping his eyes on mine. "Hey Kate, I'm at that little cafe you guys suggested. They've got a really nice-looking homemade pizza, but it's got buffalo cheese." He laughed. "No, not cheese from Buffalo, New York," he said, grinning at me. "Its cheese made from buffalo milk."

Finally, with a frustrated shake of his head, he handed me his phone, and I reached for a note pad and told his friend what we had, that I thought she might like.

"Okay, I've got your lady friend's order. Now what else can I get you?" I asked, handing him back his cell phone, after she'd thanked me.

He flashed a little smile. "Actually, Kate's not my lady friend. She's the designer that I've got working on my house with me."

When I just nodded, not sure what difference it made who she was, he shrugged and pointed at the showcase. "I think I'll take that whole pizza with meat, if that's okay. And maybe a couple of salads and a few different kinds of sandwiches, and some veggie soup. That'll probably be enough. Oh, and maybe throw in a couple of squares of lasagna. There's only four of us, aside from Kate. But I've got a feeling that we might be working through dinner, so they'll probably be hungry later."

I could feel him watching me as I put everything together.

When I looked up, I found myself staring straight into those bedroom eyes. I had to swallow pretty hard before I could point at the stand-up cooler against the wall and tell him, "You can help yourself to some drinks, while I finish these."

After he'd put a few drinks on the counter, his eyes lit up when glancing around, he noticed the sweets I had in the far end of the other showcase. "I guess I should grab a few cookies, too," he said with a pretty adorable boyish grin, giving me a show of his dimples.

Like he wasn't hot enough, he had to have dimples, too? Sheesh.

"I've also got some brownies in the oven that are ready to come out, if you'd like some of those."

"Sounds good," he said, still smiling into my eyes, before he dropped his gaze to my lips. "Because I do have a bit of a sweet tooth."

When I was cutting up the sandwiches, I had to watch myself with the knife, he had me so rattled.

After he'd paid me, and I went to hand him the change, he surprised me when he put it all in the tip jar.

He also reached for one of our cards and slipped it into his pocket, letting me know that he'd be back.

He'd ordered so much, I had to come around the counter to hand him everything. When we were practically standing toe to toe, I realized just how tall and broad shouldered he actually was; built just like a lumber jack. And the guy rocked a leather jacket, fitted jeans, and construction boots like no one I'd ever seen. No surprise, I could see a little tuft of dark curly hair peeking out at the neckline of his blue plaid shirt. So, I imagined he'd also be kind of furry, just the way I liked 'em.

"Here you go," I said with a little tremor in my voice, handing him the bags as my mind went off into a flight of fancy, imagining him whipping off his shirt for me - and maybe even his jeans.

"Thanks, uh..." He said, waiting with an expectant smile.

I couldn't help but smile back, till I realized what he was waiting for. "Oh, It's Olivia," I finally said, while trying to push aside all the naughty thoughts I was having.

"That's a pretty name."

I shrugged. "My friends all call me Livy."

"Livy's cute too," he said, as he took the two bags. "And I'm Tanner."

"Enjoy your lunch, Tanner." I said, waving as he turned to leave, giving me a peek at his nice tight buns.

"I've got a feeling I'll be back tomorrow," he said flashing a devilish grin, as he gave me one last slow lookover in my little denim skirt and t-shirt, thigh-length white apron, and kitten-heeled ankle boots, before he walked out, letting the door close behind him.

Yeah, and hopefully by then, with any luck, my poor heart would be back to normal, and wouldn't be hammering away in my chest like it was trying to escape.

Thanks to my visit from 'Hot Stuff,' for the rest of the day, no matter what I was doing, I just could get those sexy eyes out of my head, or that teasing grin.

I was still in the zone, dreaming up the naughtiest scenarios in my head, when my helper Martha came rushing in breathlessly at a little after two. "I'm sorry I'm so late, Livy. I had to wait forever to see the dentist."

"No worries. Lunch wasn't too busy today," I said, trying to avoid her gaze after another little memory of 'Mr. Sexy' slyly grinning at me, filtered through my head.

Martha leaned in and took a closer look at me. "Livy, you look a little flushed, are you okay?"

I was probably blushing all the way to my hairline, just thinking about the hottest customer who'd probably ever wandered in here.

"Yep," I lied, grabbing a cloth to wipe down the counter. "Just dandy." At least I would be, if I could actually get back to work and push him out of my head.

TANNER

As I got in my truck, I wondered what the hell had just happened. I offered to get lunch, and I wound up meeting that cutie that I'd noticed in the bar last night, who'd been laughing so hard, she got me laughing, too.

Well, I knew one thing, tomorrow someone else could come by and pick up lunch, because I sure as hell didn't need any distractions. Already, I had a pretty strong feeling that sweet little Olivia was someone I should avoid. At least if I wanted to keep my head on straight and get the place fixed up, so I could turn my back on this one-horse town and go.

Though, as I drove back to the house, I couldn't get the smile off my face, remembering that teasing sparkle in those striking blue-green eyes.

Amazingly, she looked even hotter than I remembered in her little denim skirt and body-hugging t-shirt, with all that long golden-blonde hair trailing down her back in a flirty pony-tail. That I could just imagine, clutching in my fist when I took her from behind...

I rolled my eyes. Oh yeah, I was going to forget all about her, except for one little problem -- I couldn't get her out of my head.

I laughed when I walked in with lunch, and my crew almost attacked me, like a pack of hungry wolves.

"Oh, you went to Livy's?" Mika remarked, snatching up a sub sandwich from the bag of food I put on the work table. "She's hot, huh?" he said with a wink.

Not sure how to answer, I just shrugged.

"I've had my eye on her for a while," Mika confessed between bites. "And I think I'm finally wearing her down," he said, flashing a lecherous grin, along with a suggestive wiggle of his eyebrows.

I don't know why, but the thought of a big, bald, burly brute of a guy like Mika getting busy with a sweet young think like Olivia, just didn't sit right. I'd heard him joke about liking it rough. And even in the short time I'd known her, I couldn't imagine she'd be into anything like that.

Though I had to admit, I wasn't much better. As I bit into the delicious grilled veggie and melted cheese sandwich she'd put together; my mind's eye was conjuring up an image of her looking up at me, smiling that sweet little smile, of course on her back in my bed.

Kate wandered over just then, grinning. "I can see from the look on your face that you're really enjoying that sandwich. Everything she makes is fantastic, isn't it?"

"Yeah, this sandwich is uh, something else."

Mika popped the last bite of his sub in his mouth, swallowed, and pointed a thumb at himself. "Thanks for the sandwich boss, but I'll be picking up lunch tomorrow."

"No, it's okay," I heard myself saying. "I don't mind getting lunch." Well, there went the idea of never seeing her again. But at least she wouldn't have to deal with Mika putting the moves on her.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Kate, who seemed to be enjoying her bowl of soup, sidling up close beside me. When I turned my head and looked at her, the twinkle in her eye as she smiled up at me, made me want to groan.

She was cute enough; tiny, with a heart-shaped face, framed in short dark curls. And I also noticed from this angle that I could see a colorful little butterfly tattoo sitting over her right breast, since she was wearing a fairly low-cut tank top with a red plaid shirt tied around her waist. Which had me wondering if she might have undone an extra button or two, hoping that I'd notice.

Cute or not, I wasn't interested. And since I'd hired her to work on the house, no way was anything going to happen between us.

I threw my sandwich wrapper in the garbage, gave her a quick nod and thought I'd better get back to work, or I'd never get the place finished. And all I wanted was to get it sold, so I could put it behind me and forget all about it.

**

Next day, I pulled up in front of Olivia's Cafe. And before I even got out my truck, I told myself that I was just going to order some lunch and get the hell out. No small talk, and no messin' around today.

I guess because I hesitated, when I carefully opened the door, I noticed that the bell barely made a sound. Which was probably why Olivia was in her element shaking her tight little booty as she tidied around the place, with Michael Jackson's Pretty Young Thing, filtering through the wall-mounted speakers.

Smiling to myself, I knew I probably should have cleared my throat to let her know that she had an audience, but I was enjoying the show a little too much to want it to end.

No surprise, the way her short denim skirt clung to her tight little backside as she moved to the beat, had things stirring in my jeans. And now that I could see her shapely legs, all kinds of ideas started filtering through my head. Like wondering what those long, smooth legs would feel like wrapped around my waist...

Just then she turned and saw me, and bit into her lip, embarrassed at having been caught.

I chuckled. "Hey, don't stop on my account."

She just laughed and set aside her broom. "I find cleaning's a lot more fun, with some music on."

Just then, right on cue, Michael belted out, "I want to love you, Pretty young thing." Which got me wondering not only how he could know what I was thinking, but also just how young she actually was. Considering I had just turned forty, and she looked to be somewhere in her early twenties, I knew damn well that I had no business going anywhere near her, since I had to be nearly twice her age.

Though, that didn't stop me from teasing her. "You really got some moves, Livy," I said, making her roll her eyes.

I guess hoping to let it drop, she got back behind the counter, put her work face on and asked, "What can get you, Tanner?"

Right now, I wanted to ask for a dance, since the next song on her playlist, Pharrell William's Happy was getting my toes tapping. But I knew she'd think I was crazy if I took her by the hand and started dancing her around. So, I looked into the showcase, wondering what I should get.

"While you're deciding, how about a coffee?" she suggested, slipping a cup under the coffee maker. "I usually have a quick one, whenever I get a chance."

"Sure." I had time for a coffee, especially with her.

Once she had it brewed, she put a plate of cookies and our coffees on a table, and we both sat down.

"You've got a nice place here," I remarked, glancing around.

"It's small, but it does okay, probably because there's not much else around, considering I'm basically in the middle of nowhere." She pointed across the way. "Except for the new gas station that just went in across the road, that's been eating into my coffee business."

"Well, luckily there's no other restaurants around, and it's still a few miles into town."

"Yeah, I know some people are happy just to head to the golden arches on Main Street, but thankfully there's still enough that enjoy homemade food to keep me in business."

She held out the plate of cookies, and they all looked so good, I couldn't decide which one to try.

As soon as I took a bite, I was glad I picked the oatmeal raisin that were nice and chewy, with a perfect hint of spice. Actually, they were so good I might have even moaned a little, when I popped in the last bite and finished it off. "Do you make everything in house, Olivia?"

"I don't bake the breads or buns, but I make pretty much everything else." She pointed out a little triangle shaped one. "You have to try one of those. It's my grandmother's shortbread recipe that she brought with her from Scotland."