He tilted his head to one side, watching her, gauging her reaction. “We grow about fifteen varieties, including your more popular Macintosh, Ida Red, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious and Courtland.” Sensing her genuine interest, he kept going. “We’re all organic. That’s the first thing I changed after I took over the farm sixteen years ago. Took a while and a lot of hard work, but we’re now certified organic.”
That was smart of him, but then, she’d never doubted Jackson’s intelligence. “Erin mentioned something about alfalfa and blueberries.”
He nodded. “We own the orchards and a few more acres of land, but we also lease Abel’s land from him. Have for years. Erin cultivated blueberry fields on her own and has a U-pick operation that’s been doing real well the past few years. She convinced me to take a few acres of the orchards close to her crop and designate them as U-pick as well. That way folks can come and pick apples and berries. She takes care of that end of the operation. The rest of the orchards are harvested and bagged or pressed to make cider. We sell a lot of them at the small stand that Erin set up to sell berries and apples to those who don’t want to be bothered with picking them themselves. The rest are sold to local stores. I also grow fields of alfalfa and hay and sell it to local farmers as feed and bedding for the animals.”
Emerald was fascinated. “It really is a family operation.”
“Sure is. We all work hard, especially from late August to late October. Erin convinced me to put in a pumpkin patch a few years back, so now we have a U-pick pumpkin patch that’s busy in October.”
“How do you handle it all yourselves?” The sheer amount of physical work was daunting.
“We do the bulk of the work ourselves, but we hire local kids, mostly students looking for extra money, in the late summer and fall. For a few weeks, it gets real busy around here.”
So far, she hadn’t seen anyone but Jackson and his family. She couldn’t imagine that much activity around the place. “Wow.”
Jackson chuckled. “Yeah. It can get pretty crazy around here. But don’t worry, most of the activity takes place away from here. We put in another road a few years back and that’s where we built the fruit stand. That way, we get a lot of drive-by traffic, especially on the weekends. Although, by the end of September, the barns will be filled while we’re waiting for buyers to come and pick them up.”
Now she knew where Jackson got all those hard muscles. His work was incredibly physical. “What are you doing now while you’re waiting for the harvest?”
“Watching for pests and disease, mowing the orchards, checking on the other crops.” He shrugged. “There are always a million things to do.”
“You love it, don’t you?”
A slow smile slid across his face. For the first time since she’d met him, Jackson appeared relaxed and happy. “Yeah, I do. There’s no other life for me.”
She nodded. She’d already known that, sensed it, but now he’d confirmed it. If she got involved with Jackson it would be a short-term affair. His life was here and hers was back in New York with her sisters. But it would be an affair to remember for a lifetime.
“What about you?”
She shook off her thoughts. “What about me?”
He chuckled and the sound made her stomach clench. “Tell me about your work. About Sisters’ Jewels.”
She picked up her glass and took a sip of iced tea, wondering where to begin. Laying her glass on the table, she made a decision. “Maybe I can show you instead.” She pushed away from the table and disappeared into her room for a moment. When she returned, she had a box in her hands. “This came day before yesterday. I didn’t go outside,” she hurried to reassure him when he frowned. “The mailman left it on the back step and I got it after he left.”
“Good,” he nodded. “We can’t take any chances.”
Her heart stuttered when he said we. “Well, in any case, my sister sent along a few things.” She opened the box and pulled out some of the items inside. There were journals covered in ornate designs, including their signature jewel ones. Each journal cover was designed around the birthstone of that month. The color of the ink and the design itself were all focused on the birthstone and the corresponding flower. There was even a semiprecious birthstone set into each journal cover. These were one of their most popular sellers.
Emerald pulled out greeting cards with figures of ancient goddesses and some with Middle Eastern designs. There was stationery in various colors, including a perfume collection they’d done. The scented paper filled the air with the smells of rose, vanilla, jasmine and lavender.
There were also a few pieces of jewelry that Sapphire had designed. Emerald planned on giving one of the necklaces to Erin.
Jackson was just staring at the mound of merchandise she’d piled on the table. “Well, what do you think?” She hadn’t been this nervous since the first day they’d opened the doors on Sisters’ Jewels. For some reason, Jackson’s opinion was very important to her.
He pushed his chair back and stood. Coming around the end of the table, he reached out and touched one journal, then another. His long fingers gently traced the designs on all the items. Emerald almost groaned. She wanted his fingers on her, touching her skin. Her nipples tightened almost painfully as she watched him flick one of the stones set into the cover of a journal. Between her thighs, her sex clenched and her panties dampened.
“I think,” he began huskily, “that you’re an incredibly talented lady.” He picked up one of the journals and turned it over. His eyes widened at the discreet price tag on the back. “People must really like this stuff.”
The butterflies in her stomach settled a bit and she laughed. Only a man would call these amazing items stuff. “We do okay.”
He laid the journal back on the table and rubbed his hand over the back of his neck. He seemed tenser than he had been. She could almost feel him pulling away from her even though he was standing right next to her.
“I had no idea you were so talented.” He cupped the side of her face in his hand and she swayed forward, wanting to be closer to him.
“Thank you,” she whispered as his mouth moved closer to hers. She went up on her toes, unable to wait. She moaned when his lips touched hers. It had been too long and she’d missed this, wanted this with all her being.
Jackson forgot all about the worry gnawing at the pit of his gut as his mouth brushed against Emerald’s. He’d been dreaming of kissing her again, ever since that first explosive night. Truthfully, he’d been doing more than just thinking about kissing her. His imagination had run the whole gamut from slow to fast, from gentle to rough and everywhere in between.
He wanted to peel off her clothes piece by piece and savor every inch of her sweet flesh. He wanted to tear her clothes from her body and fuck her until they were both screaming with release. She had him so wrapped up in knots he didn’t know what he wanted. The one thing he did know was that he wanted Emerald and he’d take her any way he could get her.
His tongue stroked across her upper lip and then he nibbled on her plump bottom one. She whimpered and he wrapped his free arm around her back, urging her closer. His cock was thick and full as he pressed it against the soft swell of her belly. He groaned as she pressed against him. He’d hardly slept this past week, his nights spent lying awake, thinking about having Emerald beside him, on top of him and under him. His testicles ached they were so full and tight.
She’d pulled back and he’d respected her wishes, even though it had almost killed him. But now she was here and she wasn’t trying to get away from him. If anything, she was trying to get closer. Her hands fisted in his hair, tugging his mouth closer. He slid his tongue past her lips and barely stifled a moan when she sucked on it.