Lucas: #3 (Luna Lodge: Hunters of Atlas) Read Free Page B

red.
    “I think your approach might be a little too direct,” Lucas said quietly. “And I doubt she even believes in the ancient gods.”
    Marcus frowned deeply. “Women seem like more trouble than they’re worth,” he huffed and tried to ignore Nyx as her giggles subsided.
    They drove just a bit longer before entering the small town. When they stopped outside the hardware store, Lucas immediately zeroed in on Taylor walking to the coffee shop.
    He hopped out of the car and gave a wave when she looked over to them.
    Red spots bloomed on her cheeks, and he took it as a good sign that he could get a reaction out of her. Destiny or gods, he still had to work the charm.
    Lucas breathed in deeply. The soft, sweet smell of her drifted over to him. Cherries. Maybe her soft reddish hair made him think of it first, but it was always what came to mind when he was near her. It made him want to bury his head into the crook of her neck and kiss the tender spots behind her ears and along her neck.
    His lower half twitched at the idea of doing much more than that to her.
    He followed her with his gaze as she brought several brown packages into the coffee shop, likely making a delivery to Courtney, the owner and her friend.
    “You two grab the supplies Rem ordered and get them loaded up. I’m going to confirm plans for tonight.”
    He stared wistfully at the shop. He wanted more than anything to follow her inside.
    “Relax, lover boy. You’ll see her tonight,” Nyx said. She rolled her eyes and made her way across the street.
    She was right. The girls’ night was a much better time to make his move.
     
    * * *
     
    Taylor held a hand to her cheeks to stop them from flaming further. Just one look and she had been falling all over herself once again.
    She did try to cut herself a little break. She had to admit just the sight of him would likely cause that reaction for most women. Even compared to his family or whatever the group of huge studs actually was, he was damned handsome.
    “He sure is something to look at,” Courtney said as she came to stare out the window next to her.
    Taylor frowned a little. She might not want to be Lucas, but the thought of her friend lusting after him didn’t really sit right with her either.
    “He always looks like he has the weight of the world on his shoulders,” she said and twisted a lock of her dark curly brown hair. A small blush spread across her cheeks. “They really are a nice pair of shoulders.”
    Taylor let out a little laugh as she stared at the men. Weight of the world? That didn’t sound like Lucas at all. The man probably could run through a burning building saving puppies and still have a smile on his face.
    “Do you mean Marcus?” she asked. He had only come out to the ranch once, and the whole time he acted like it was the greatest challenge in the world to have to come there. Half the time, he acted like just looking at other people disgusted him.
    “Of course,” Courtney said and turned to her. After a moment, a giant smile spread across her face. “And who exactly did you think I was talking about?”
    Taylor had to question her friend’s taste a bit.
    The bell to the front door chimed as Nyx stepped in.
    “Girls’ night!” Courtney shouted.
    Their conversation was pushed to the back burner for the moment, but knowing her friend, it hadn’t been dropped.
    Nyx offered them both a wide smile. “I’m so looking forward to it.”
    “Same here,” Courtney said as she made her way back behind the counter to start pouring coffee.
    Taylor felt a twinge of guilt. She wanted to be excited about their long overdue night out, but it was hard to be excited when things were teetering right on the edge. It didn’t seem right to be out having fun when her father was worrying about losing the ranch.
    They chatted for a bit about what they would wear and where they would meet. Eventually the conversation drifted back to men.
    “Lucas will be our driver for the night,” Nyx