She swallowed once, her eyes rounding.
He sauntered across the room to toss his can in the trash. “Well, I guess I’ll see you tonight then.” He turned from the trashcan and sauntered over to stand in front of her.
The heat in his eyes charred whatever thoughts Julia may have managed to form, turning them to sparkling shards that fell around her, melting her feet to the raw wood floor. She swallowed past the lump in her throat, forcing her feet to move. Staggering back a step, she grinned crookedly. “I appreciate your help—”
“Not a problem,” he assured, his voice low and smooth.
No words came to Julia as her pulse pounded behind her ears and her palms began to sweat. She should never have invited him inside, she realized too late. She might be more confident now, but his persona was just too big. She couldn’t withstand the draw he had over her in such close quarters. “I know—know that you don’t do this kind of thing for everybody,” she stuttered, determined to show that she really did appreciate his help but accidentally heading the conversation into dangerous territory.
One of his brows shot up. “You’re right, I don’t.”
Julia grimaced, berating herself for being such a clod. “I meant—I—”
He stepped closer and she couldn’t move, her back now against the wall. Heat welled up in her stomach and puddled there briefly before spilling over into her pelvis. She bit her bottom lip, willing herself to either run or jump on him -- just make a move and end the standoff.
His gaze roamed the length of her body, sliding over her shoulders, her belly, then down her legs. Her resolve withered and pure longing swelled in her chest – longing to be held, to be caressed, to be kissed.
Her eyes grew even wider, her gaze falling to his lips then back to his eyes.
His hand came to her cheek, his fingers gently caressing the sensitive skin below her ear.
She didn’t move, couldn’t move. Apprehension and longing melted together to flood her heart and mind with sensation, suffocating any anger still harbored there. Confusion rained down, pelting her like hail stones, drawing her thoughts back and forth, like people running for cover in a summer storm.
Where was the wit and pre-physical banter that came before a kiss, she wondered, the confrontation and conflict she’d instigated with men? All she felt here was pure desire.
Slowly, Chad leaned down and then paused, his lips a faction of an inch from hers, expecting her to bolt; instead, her eyes fluttered closed and she rose on tiptoe to touch her lips to his. Immediately his fingers cupped the back of her head, and his other hand slid around her back and drew her to him.
The first kiss was nothing more than a tentative touch, and the second was only a sweet press of lips, yet Julia trembled.
Chad’s tongue stroked her upper lip, and she gasped, her mouth falling open.
As if he sensed that she was pressed to her limit, his kisses remained tentative tastes, his tongue touching hers, then withdrawing, only to search again.
Her trembling grew to quaking and with questions in his eyes, he set her back on her feet, his hand still on her cheek.
She wobbled, her eyes filled with tears, and her lips trembled.
“What’s wrong?” he whispered.
She shook her head and pulled away. Her glistening eyes were enormous, and she pressed her fingers to her lips. A moment stretched between them in silence.
Soft and feminine sensations flowed through Julia’s body as she gasped for a breath. Inundated with a million tender feelings, Julia was immediately reminded of why she had vowed to never feel again. It was too sweet, too poignant, and too wonderful. She clamped her eyes closed. A woman could dive into feelings like this and swim for a week, never coming up for air. But she knew beyond doubt that when the bubble burst and the sweetness drained away, the void would be too harsh, too glaring, too horrific to face. And the wonder of it would go away.
Her heart pounded, scolding her over and over, reminding her where she’d been, what she’d been through. Damn! Damn! Damn! rang her thoughts. How could she have been so stupid and careless? Had she forgotten everything? She pushed away and when she spoke, her hands lashed out with her words. “I’m not—that wasn’t what you think.”
He scowled. “Oh? What do I think?”
She staggered to the window. Her back was to him, expanding and contracting, as she took deep breaths. Finally, she turned. “I’m sorry, Chad, I— I shouldn’t have kissed you.”
“—Why?” His expression was deadpan.
She shook her head. “I can’t get involved with you or anyone. I didn’t come here for that. It’s not what I want.”
He rubbed his jaw, his eyes still hot. “That’s not how it felt.”
Her shoulders slumped and her expression softened. “I was wrong to kiss you, I’m sorry. Please— just respect me enough to believe that I’m not looking for anything like that.”
Shifting his weight from one foot to the other, he frowned. “I want you, Julia, why should I turn away? You want me and you’re single – that much is obvious.” Then his brow rose. “You are single and alone, aren’t you?”
Her shoulders straightened and she grasped at the sink for support. “Well I—I have Ringo and George.”
His eyes sliced into hers and one fist clenched in frustration. “That’s not what I meant. Is there someone else?” As he held his breath, she paused, her expression impossible to read.
She shook her head no.
He turned and stalked across the room. “I’m not one to stand by and watch when there’s something I want,” he said to the doorway. Then he turned back to her. “Can you at least tell me why?”
Her eyes closed and her lips pursed. She leaned against the windowsill, deep in thought. Finally, she opened her eyes and straightened. “You know that old saying, ‘you won’t be tested past what you can bear’?”
He nodded slowly.
“...Well, I’m proof that you can.”
He squinted. “What do you mean?”
She sighed, her hands falling to her sides in frustration as the shuttered expression returned to her face. “Never mind. I’m broken – let’s leave it at that.”
Chad didn’t speak, he just regarded her solemnly, hoping for inspiration of some kind to right the situation. Then he turned and headed for the front door.
Julia followed him, her mind spinning around the upcoming evening spent with Chad in her kitchen, staining the floor. She’d botched everything now. Hell, she’d barely managed to keep her hands to herself for five minutes, how would she manage an entire evening? And now she’d pissed him off.
“Bring Bobby tonight,” she blurted, surprising both of them.
Chad halted, then slowly turned to her, the open screen door in his hand. He didn’t say anything, but his expression said, “Seriously?”
She clenched her teeth and nodded once, relieved that she’d pulled the idea out of her hat.
He sized her up, his countenance changing from surprise to resignation. Finally, he turned and stomped through the door, the screen banging behind him as he headed across the porch and down to the sidewalk. He stopped half way to his truck and looked back, resigned. “Around seven then?”
She nodded, saddened by his expression, and then folded her arms across her chest as if to block her heart. Chad was a good man, she resolved. One who would willingly help a person just because they needed a hand, not because there was something in it for himself.
She frowned, determined there would not be anything in it for Chad. But the memory of the kiss burned through her resolve, causing possibilities to dance through the back of her mind.
Chad lifted a hand in either dismissal or farewell, she wasn’t sure which, as he turned away, and she watched him stalk to his truck, knowing she’d disappointed him. Again.
* * *
Julia wiped her forehead on her shoulder as she struggled to close the garage door. Cut grass clung to her bare shins and clumped on her sneakers. The eve
nings were getting warmer and summer felt imminent. Inhaling the sweet scent of fresh mowed grass, Julia turned from the garage and ran directly into Bobby. Staggering back to catch her balance, with her hand on her chest, she blinked at Bobby, who resembled a marionette puppet dangling from strings as he recovered from the shock.
“Sorry, Miss Julia. I called to you, but the garage door was creaking something fearful. I guess you didn’t hear me.” He adjusted his glasses on his nose.
“It’s okay, come on inside,” she said, once she’d recovered her voice, leading the way to the back door where Ringo’s muffled barks greeted them.
Julia opened the door and the little dog burst out, unsure whether to bound into Julia’s arms, or circle around Bobby’s feet. The thin man jumped and scurried to sidestep the enthusiastic dog, obviously uncomfortable with Ringo’s excitement.
Julia scooped up the dog and tucked him under her arm, shushing him.
In the small mudroom, Julia leaned against the wall, pushed off one grassy sneaker and then the other, then motioned for Bobby to follow her into the kitchen. When he didn’t immediately follow, she turned back to find him staring at her, his eyes wide behind his lenses, a grin lifting one corner of his mouth and his Adam’s apple bobbing.
“Oh no...” she murmured, recognizing his adoring expression. When had this happened? Had she done something to encourage him?
Before she could collect her thoughts, Chad knocked on the front door. Ringo leapt from her arms to race toward the living room, barking excitedly.
Eager to escape the kitchen, Julia followed the dog. As she tugged open the screen, her concern spilled out onto Chad. “I’m so glad you’re here,” she whispered hoarsely. “Bobby is in the kitchen and I think he likes me. What should I do?”
His expression a mix of humor and surprise, Chad stepped in with his hands behind him to keep the screen from slamming. “Hi Julia,” he said in normal voice, watching over her shoulder as Bobby walked toward them. Then he bent to pat Ringo and whispered gruffly. “You don’t know the half of it.”
Fighting panic, Julia gaped from one man to the other. One man she wanted to tackle and drag into her bedroom, the other she wanted to pat on the head and wipe his nose. Worst of all, they were best friends and coworkers. She had never been part of a love triangle in her life, and it happened now? Here? When she didn’t want anything to do with men?
Chad grinned and patted her shoulder. “Come on, let’s look at that floor.” Then he headed toward the kitchen.
Bobby didn’t hear, just stared at Julia, smiling lopsidedly.
“Come on, Bobby,” she muttered, turning toward the kitchen. When she entered, Chad stood with one hip cocked against the sink, watching as they came through the door.
Bobby slid around Julia to stand next to Chad, crossing his arms across his chest to mimic the larger man.
Perplexed and disconcerted, Julia stuffed her hands in her pockets to avoid wringing them.
Finally, Chad spoke, breaking the tension, of which Bobby appeared to be oblivious. “Did you bring over that stain I had you pick up yesterday?”
Bobby nodded, his gaze never leaving Julia. Chad nudged him with his elbow. “Well, go get it.”
Scrambling in place, Bobby regained conscious thought and headed for the back door. As soon as the door closed, Julia sprang to stand in front of Chad. “What do you mean, ‘the half of it’?” she whispered sharply, her hands gesturing.
“Oh, he’s convinced you have a thing for him,” Chad replied, concerned but with amusement hiding just behind his words.
“What?!” she gasped, rearing back a step.
“Yeah, you’ve got it bad for him too,” he added, to watch her squirm.
Her hands flew in the air. “What on earth? Who—?”
Chad shrugged. “That night you nursed his cheek…”
Julia froze. “Oh no. No! It wasn’t like that!”
He pushed away from the sink and she backed away. “Hey, I know that, but he’s—he’s—Bobby.”
The resignation at the end of Chad’s sentence rang true to Julia. “What am I supposed to do now?” she asked.
Chad shrugged. “Damned if I know, this is a first.”
“His first—?” Julia’s voice faded into the room as Bobby returned, carrying a well-worn, five-gallon bucket with black and brown stains smeared on the side. He sat the bucket in front of Chad and glanced up expectantly, waiting for instruction.
Julia’s eyes were still glued to Chad, who simply nodded once, then bent to pry the lid off the bucket with a screwdriver tool from his pocket. “Did you bring in the rags, Bobby?” he asked, his eyes never leaving the bucket.
“Ah shoot,” the little man replied, his head hanging. He headed back toward the door.
Chad stood and Julia jumped in front of him once again, desperation in her eyes. “I don’t want to hurt him! He’s so sweet, please, tell me what I should do,” she demanded.
With his eyes searching hers, he pocketed the screwdriver, his expression grim. Then, in slow motion, his hands rose as if to encircle her waist, but he paused, his hands hovering awkwardly. “I told you how I feel.”
For a moment she was lost, her head spun as her body traitorously raged to life, wanting his arms around her. But allowing herself only a brief moment to wallow in the sensation, she lurched back a step and turned to face the sink, the porcelain cold and hard under her hands.
Concerned, Chad moved to her side, bending his head in an attempt to see her face. “It’s gonna be okay, Bobby will adjust.”
Her eyes flashing, she met his gaze. “Adjust to what?”
Shocked at her vehemence, he stepped back, the length of the sink between them.
With his arms full of frayed red rags, Bobby clomped into the room and accidentally kicked the bucket of stain. The dark fluid splashed across the white floor, flooding directly toward Julia and Chad.
Quicker than she ever dreamed she could move, Julia leapt up onto Chad, her stocking feet seeking footing on his legs, his waist, her hands gasping at his shirt, shoulders, and hair.
Trying to escape the deluge of stain, Chad scrambled from one foot to the other, dancing clumsily across the room with Julia on him, struggling to get a grip on her as she climbed up his chest and then around to his back.
Ringo’s barks brought Julia’s clamber to a halt. She was on Chad’s back with one knee over his shoulder and the other in his armpit. Her chest was pressed onto the back of his head, and she had one arm around his neck, the other locked across his forehead. “Ringo, no!” she shouted.
Resembling the multiple-armed goddess Kali, Chad reached everywhere at once, one knee in the air, trying to regain his balance and get a grip on Julia.
Bobby dropped the rags and bent to scoop up the dog, then immediately looked as if he wished he hadn’t, holding the squirming dog at arm’s length.
Ringo stilled in Bobby’s hands, his little paws dangling, apparently shocked to see Julia perched on top of Chad, his little dog eyes round with wonder.
“Toss him out and close the door,” Julia demanded as she squirmed and grappled on Chad, desperate to find a way down.
Hunching in an attempt to lower her toward the floor, Chad’s hands groped for an appropriate hold as his face narrowly escaped her cleavage.
“Grab some rags,” he instructed, aggravation ripe in his voice, as Julia groped his face, her hand over his right eye. One of her feet, toes pointed, tapped blindly looking for the floor, then finally made contact. “And start wiping with the grain,” he grumbled as he peeled Julia’s fingers off his cheek, holding her wrist to steady her. “I hope you like this color,” he added as they made eye contact, nose to nose.
Still in her stocking feet, Julia blushed bright red, then turned and inched toward the growing puddle of stain to grab a rag from the pile on the floor.
“Keep it off your hands if you can. I meant for us to use gloves,” Chad commanded as he waded into the worst of the stain and began s
preading it across the floor, pushing puddles toward Julia and Bobby.
The three of them worked quickly to even the stain across the wood, adjusting and turning rags in an attempt to keep it off their hands, knees and feet. Julia’s white socks turned shades of black as they worked, but within twenty minutes the entire kitchen floor was an even deep brown.
Bobby stood in the hall doorway, a limp, filthy rag in each hand. Chad glared critically at the floor from the door into the mudroom, and Julia stood breathless in the dining room door, unsure what to think.
“That doesn’t look half bad,” Chad commented, sounding shocked and his demeanor lightening.
Bobby pushed up his glasses with his knuckle. His arms, hands, and shirt were stained multiple shades of brown, and his head cocked from side to side, surveying their work.
Chad instructed the little man to take off his boots and go through the living room. Julia peeled off her socks, using them to wipe up her feet as best she could, then followed to tiptoe through the dining room to the porch.
Ringo trailed after them out the door and George jumped down from a wicker chair to greet them. Chad went directly to his truck and came back with hand cleaning goop, and they all gathered around the tap in front of the porch, to lather their hands and arms in the waning sunlight.
Watching Julia as she wiped her wet hands on her shirt, Chad stepped back to fling water off his hands. “You’ll still need a shower,” he said apologetically, “but at least now you can go back in without ruining the rest of the house.”
She nodded, twisting her arms in front of her. “I’ll be darker in spots for a while, but the floor looks great.”
Bobby stood watching, his jaw slack and his hands and face dripping. His glasses nearly slid off his nose before he shoved them back up. “Sorry about that, Miss Julia.”
Smiling warmly, Julia hugged him. Just like that – full-on hugged him, without thinking. Pulling herself back, she kept one damp hand on his arm. “It all turned out good so don’t worry about it. For all I know, that’s how it’s done.”
The little man didn’t look too sure.
Hometown Series Box Set Page 37
