Tim, whynt you go check the tire pressure on the trailer tires? Scooter suggested. Itd be bad to have a blowout on the way home.
Yes, sir. He ambled off to the rear of the trailer.
Scooter lowered his voice. You cant pay Tim no never mind. His daddy went to county jail last year and since then Beaus really taken him under his wing. Tim sorta idolizes him.
She refused to feel all warm and gooey inside because Beau had mentored a kid. She absolutely was not going to add a gold star to the top of the heap of attraction that was simmering inside her. Sitting next to him at dinnerThats sad.
Which part? Darnell asked. As far as she could tell, Darnell didnt miss much.
Both.
Beau, the man of many faces, crossed the parking lot, his long legs eating up the distance. Her pulse began to race as he closed the gap. Im ready if you are. Were burning daylight.
He made it sound as if hed been standing around waiting on her. She ground her teeth and resisted the urge to thwack him upside his too-handsome head with her purse. Ive been ready. Generally speaking, for the last two weeks. Specific to today, since four oclock.
She bid the other guys goodbye and this time headed toward Beaus truck. Funny, but she thought hed hesitated for a second before walking around to his side, as if he was going to open her door for her and reconsidered at the last minute. She was finding herself more and more intrigued with exactly who and what Beau Stillwell was.
She climbed into the truck, settled against the tweed upholstered seat and buckled up. The floorboard was a utilitarian, uncarpeted vinyl. A worn aluminum clipboard sat in the center of the bench seat along with an orange measuring tape. While it was neat and clean, the truck obviously had both miles and years on it. Id have put you in a Corvette, Camaro or Mustang, she said.
Have you ever tried hauling two-by-fours in one of those? He turned the key and started the truck.
Guess that wouldnt work out too well, she said. Why does your engine sound funny?
He hung a left out of the parking lot onto the highway. Its a diesel. He patted the dashboard, Shes a workhorse.
They rolled along and silence filled the space between them. She noted his hands on the steering wheel. He had broad, square hands with a smattering of dark hair on them. His nails were short and clean. They were the capable, masculine hands of a working man and they suited the hard-muscled rest of him that shed seen. A warm flush spread through her. She could almost guarantee theyd be callused and rasp against a womans skinmore specifically, her skin.
Natalie was abruptly achingly aware that only about a foot separated them. How was it that he always seemed to invade her space when she was around him?
And what in the heck was wrong with her? Shed spent two weeks tracking him down to sit idly by and contemplate his hands? Not hardly.
She opened her day planner and flipped to her notes detailing the particulars of the Stillwell-Vickers wedding. Caitlyns discussed with you what she wants done at Belle Terre?
As my granddaddy used to say, is the backside of a pig pork? He slanted a sideways glance her direction. If you know my baby sister at all, youll know she has no problem telling someone what she wants and when she wants it. Evident affection underscored his wry exasperation.
Natalie chuckled. The few times Natalie had been around the pretty little blonde, when her sister, Shelby, had roomed with her at the Watkins College of Art and Design, Caitlyn had always been forthcoming and occasionally demanding. However, she didnt strike Natalie as spoiled so much as indulgeda subtle, yet important difference. Yeah. I guess thats true.
Right. Youve worked with her on the wedding.
And I met her a couple of times when she and Shelby were roomies. Have you ever met Shelby? Her baby sister had mentioned Caitlyns older brother occasionally. She mostly just groused that he was more of a father than a brother and complained about him being overprotective.
No. Ive heard plenty about her from Caitlyn but Ive never met her. I keep a busy schedule. A flick of his blue eyes in her direction set her heart beating a little faster. Is she as pretty as you are?
All her breath lodged in her chest. He thought she was pretty? Shed always been the practical one, the smart one, the organized one, but out of a long-running list of foster sisters, shed never been described as the pretty one. She curled her fingers into her palm.
And this wasnt about her. Hed asked about Shelby, even if it had been in context with Natalie. Shelby and Beau Stillwell? Over her dead body. Beau Stillwell had heartbreaker written all over him. Shes too young for you.
How old do you think I am?
Shed guess early thirties. Chronologically he wasnt so far out of bounds. Experiencewise, howeverAnd it wasnt simply because Natalie felt as if shed been caught in a deep current of desire and was being swept along that every part of her rebelled at the thought of her foster sister dating him.
She was her parents only biological child, but she maintained the role of oldest child rather than only child because her parents had started fostering children when Natalie was five. Even as a child shed been the one to try to bring some semblance of organization to their household. Her hippies-at-heart parents had never figured out that having structure was liberating rather than confining.
All her big sister instincts rose to the surface. She didnt think Beau was actually interested in Shelby but just in caseToo old for my little sister.
He offered a challenging smile that sizzled through her nonetheless. You dont like me, do you, Natalie?
No. Like wasnt a word she associated with him. It was as if he bypassed every reasonable, rational, functional aspect of her and tapped into her elemental core. When she was around him, she felt everything with a new intensity. It was as if she were supercharged. Shed never been so aware of herself as a woman and him as a man. But did she like him? Did she particularly like feeling this way? No. But then again, it was a rhetorical question. Thats really immaterial, isnt it?
I dont see it that way. Were going to be working closely together on the remodel.
Working closely with him on anything struck her as a lousy idea. He turned everything in her world topsy-turvy and Natalie didnt like topsy-turvy. Once we get the dates down, it really doesnt have anything to do with me.
Thats not the way Caitlyn sees it. He looked altogether too smug. She said thats what she was paying you for. His voice dropped and slid over her like the play of velvet against naked flesh. She assured me youd be at my beck and call.
Her. Him.
Naked. Needy.
Wet. Hot.
Beck and call.
The very idea sent a shiver down her spine and a rush of slick heat between her thighs.
Within reason, she managed to say.
Reasons not part of the deal.
WHAT THE HELL? He liked women. He liked spending time with women, but he never got caught up in them. But thats exactly how he felt about Natalie Bridges. Caught up. Tangled. Intrigued.
Interestedaroused, evenwas fine, but that wasnt what all of this was about, he reminded himself. Caitlyn was going to make a big mistake and it was up to him to make sure she didnt, by whatever means possible.
Interestedaroused, evenwas fine, but that wasnt what all of this was about, he reminded himself. Caitlyn was going to make a big mistake and it was up to him to make sure she didnt, by whatever means possible.
Beau rounded the last curve beneath the arch of overhanging oaks and Belle Terre spread before him. Son of a bitch. Cash Vickers would have to show up with a harem and light a crack pipe to get his baby sister to walk away from this.
Set on prime rolling Tennessee hills, even with its vague air of neglect reflected in sagging and missing shutters, Belle Terre was spectacular. The house itself boasted an imposing front of soaring columns and two stories of floor-to-ceiling windows with a second-story balcony overlooking the front door.
Thats a helluva tax write-off, wouldnt you say? he said.
Natalie pushed her hair back over her shoulder. Thick and shiny, it was the kind of hair that left a man itching to run his fingers through itor hungry to feel it teasing against his bare chest, his belly and finally his thighs as it followed the trail blazed by her lush mouth over his body. She quirked an eyebrow in inquiry. You havent seen Belle Terre before? Not even the video?
He pushed aside a ripple of guilt. Videographer was Caitylns professional calling, but it wasnt his deal. Nope. I dont spend a lot of time watching music videos. Apparently the videoCaitlyns project and her intro to Cash Vickersthat went with his hit song Homesick had been shot at Belle Terre. According to Caitlyn, Vickers had bought the place because shed fallen in love with it. First I heard of it was when he gave her Belle Terre and a ring. Ive been meaning to get out here but Ive been busy.
He glanced over at her. The dying sunlight slanting in through her window picked out red threads in her hair.
You know, Caitlyn has her heart set on having the wedding here, she said.
He had the oddest feeling that they could have been discussing their own child, years from now. It was the first time hed ever felt someone really understood the level of responsibility he felt for Caitlyn. I caught that.
Then its a good thing were sequencing out the remodel today. Its a bit of a tight timeline.
Yeah, if they were actually looking at an August wedding. And he caught on right away that she was taking him to task. He was quick that way.
He parked in the circular driveway that fronted the stately columned home. My sister is obsessed with Gone with the Wind. He didnt need a psychology degree to figure out that shed identified with Scarlett OHara losing everything. Hed figured her latching on to an iconoclastic heroine was better than developing a drug addiction or identifying with some goth singer who looked like the Grim Reaper and wore makeup. His sister, however, was amazingly well-adjusted considering her childhood. Its a wonder she hasnt tried to change the name of the place to Tara.
A spontaneous smileas opposed to her usual I-have-to-be-nice-to-this-asshole smilecurved her lips and lit her eyes. She did. It left Beau with the oddest feeling that he and Natalie shared a bond. Cash put his foot down on that. He said they had to respect the history of the place.
He nodded. Much as he didnt want to, he felt a measure of grudging respect for Vickers on that. Beau knew from experience that telling Caitlyn no wasnt easy. He also gave Vickers points on standing behind Belle Terres history.
Beautiful Land is certainly a fitting name. The house sat on a knoll with gently rolling green hills beyond it. The Miscanauga Creek lay at the foot of the slope to the right rear of the house.
It is, isnt it? She pressed the button to release her seat belt. Shall we start with the outside since we seem to be losing daylight?
Sure, sugar pie. That ought to grit her teeth and kill the camaraderie he felt squeezing in with the sexual tension that was thick enough to cut. Sexual tension he could deal withrevel in, in fact. Camaraderie was outside his realm of experience. Youve got something to take notes on?
Her smile tightened around the edges but she kept it in place. She held up a notebook. Right here, sugar pie. Touché. Just let me know when youre ready. She tugged at her seat belt, a frown blooming between her delicately arched brows. Its stuck.
He very seldom had passengers but he recalled that belt had wanted to stick the last time Scooter rode with him to the parts store. Come to think of it, its been kind of temperamental lately.
Temperamental?
Yeah. You know, a little stubborn. Difficult. Let me see what I can do. He grinned. It just needs the right touch.
Oh, and you have it? Something hot and sexual and exciting danced between them.
Its worth a try since youre not doing such a hot job releasing yourself. His voice came out all warm and gravelly because hed just painted a picture in his mind of her stretched out on his bed, her head thrown back, that mane of thick hair hanging over the side of his mattress as her fingers delved between her spread thighs, stroking, her brown eyes hot and sultry, her breath coming in short, quick pants as she sought gratification.
He reached across the expanse separating them and his fingers encountered hers. She jerked her hand away, as if she felt the same rush he did. Theres a button he said, the backs of his fingers pressing against the curve of her hip. You have to touch it just rightnot too hard. She turned her head and her delectable mouth was right there. His jeans seemed to shrink, growing tighter across his crotch.
He pressed the button. Nothing happened. He pressed again. He shifted. Got to find the sweet spot. The tip of her tongue peeked between her lips and left a moist glistening trail between the plump pinkness of her lips. Did she know she was slowly killing him? He was pretty sure she didnt. Still stuck. Cmon, baby, let go, he coaxed.
The seat belt, if anything, pulled tighter against her chest, throwing her breasts into distracting relief.
Can you, uh, see what youre doing? She sounded breathless.
He was damn glad to hear it. Breathing was an increasing challenge on his end.
I dont have to see. Its all in the touch.
Well, obviously you dont have it any more than I do.
Let me try from another angle. He got out and walked around to the passenger side. He opened the door and leaned in, across her. Her breath gusted warm against his neck even as her scent slipped around him. His arm brushed against her right breast as he leaned in. Totally an accident, but the result was the same. Her indrawn breath seemed to echo the tightening and clenching low in his belly.
He pressed the button and tugged, but it didnt budge. I cant get it out.
A breeze blew through the open truck doors and a few strands of her hair danced along his jaw.
Maybe you should try lubricating it.
Ive got just the thing. He stepped to the toolbox in the back and quickly returned. She was still sitting there strapped in. There was no way he couldve deliberately jammed the seat belt but this was perfect. Well, kind of perfect because she didnt look nearly as pissed off as some women wouldve been. Actually, she didnt look pissed off at all as she tried to release the jammed mechanism.
Why hadnt he ever noticed before how sexy a woman could look with a seat belt bisecting her chest? Hed have to be a dead man to not see the way it showcased her breasts, tugging her shirt tight over them, her nipples outlined in taut ball-tightening relief. He wasnt anywhere close to dead.