FRACTURED HONOR
Page 25
Poppy did a double take and whirled to face him, pressure washer wand still in hand, her chocolate-brown eyes widening in surprise. Her creamy skin glistened with drops of water, and her nipples stood out beneath the triangles of her bikini top.
And suddenly Noah was grateful for the fence blocking his lower body, since half of his blood supply was currently rushing to his groin. A reaction he’d never had while waiting to talk with the elderly woman who had owned the cottage until a couple of months ago.
Quickly shutting off the generator, Poppy yanked the earbuds out of her ears and crossed her arms over her chest, slightly turning her body away as though she was self-conscious.
Now that was a damn shame. The woman had absolutely nothing to be self-conscious about.
“Hi,” she blurted, looking both embarrassed and alarmed. “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t see your patrol car in the driveway when I checked a little while ago, so I assumed you weren’t home yet. I was hoping to be done by the time you got home.” She angled more away from him, until she faced her back porch.
Ah, well, now he couldn’t be mad. “Yeah, my cruiser’s getting serviced, so one of my deputies drove me home at the end of my shift.”
“Oh.” She winced. “Did I wake you up?”
Yes, but now he wasn’t sorry. “It’s okay.”
“I’ll put this away until this afternoon,” she went on, turning to pull the washer into a corner, and giving him a spectacular view of her legs and backside. He’d only seen her a few times since the night he’d first met her in town, and she’d always been in jeans and a T-shirt that hid all the glorious curves on display right now. “I’m really sorry.”
“Really, it’s okay.”
She glanced back at him. “Hang on a sec, I’ll be right out,” she said, and hurried to her back porch. The screen door to the house banged shut, then she reappeared thirty seconds later holding a plate and wearing a plaid flannel shirt that hid her breasts from view.
Noah was sorry she’d covered up, but sorrier still that she’d done it because he’d made her uncomfortable. He was used to women trying to get and hold his attention, not hide their bodies.
“Peace offering,” she said with a little smile as she crossed to the fence, holding up a plate she must have grabbed inside, loaded with pastries. Up close he noticed the light smattering of freckles across her cheeks and the bridge of her nose. And her dark-chocolate eyes had the tiniest amount of gold around the pupils.
“What are these?” he asked, perusing his options. They smelled fantastic.
“They’re freshly made, from my shop. Grand opening was last weekend.”
“I know.” He knew everything that happened in his town. And he still considered her to be an outsider, someone to be wary of. Even though she had a sexy body and smile and brought him freshly baked pastries.
Selecting what appeared to be a bit of chocolate croissant, he focused back on her.
Poppy Larsen was a mystery to him. She’d up and moved here from South Dakota, fallen in love with Crimson Point and bought her shop, then this cottage, all within a matter of weeks. There was no ring on her finger, no tan lines to suggest she’d worn one recently, and the way she’d covered up so quickly just now told him she might even be a little on the shy side.
She had a wholesomeness about her—literally the girl next door—except for that killer body he now couldn’t get out of his head. And for damn sure he’d never lived next door to anyone he’d had such a visceral reaction to before. He wasn’t sure he liked it.
“How’s business going so far?” he asked, going for polite and professional even though the front of his jeans were still tight. He was the town sheriff, and they lived next door to one another. He wanted them to have a friendly neighbor relationship.
She made a face, the bridge of her nose wrinkling adorably. “Honestly? It could be better. I’m going to try some different events to see if I can pull in more customers.”
“It’ll get a lot busier in town starting in the next few weeks. Tourist season hits full force around the Fourth of July and holds until Labor Day. I bet business will pick up for you in no time.”
“Sure hope so. I’ve leveraged everything I have into the shop, and this place.” She nodded at the whitewashed, shingled cottage behind her.
Whatever else Poppy Larsen was, she was a damn hard worker. She’d done most of the renos on the shop herself, due to budget constraints, and apparently was committed to rolling up her sleeves at home as well. “Are you planning to paint the fence once you’re done washing it?” It was yellowed and peeling in places.
“Yeah, it needs a new coat of paint, and so does the cottage. Everything’s peeling. I’ll get to the landscaping later.”
She intended to do all of that in addition to running her own business that had just opened? “You can borrow my sprayer again. And the lady you bought this place from had a landscaper come take care of the yard once a week during spring and summer, then do a cleanup a few times over the fall and winter. We get big windstorms here in the winter, so you’ll have a lot of downed branches from the trees.”
He nodded at the tall cedars and firs bordering the east side of her property. “I can get you the guy’s name and number if you’re interested. He’s pretty reasonable, and he has a lot of clients here in the area, including Beckett.” Noah’s best friend, and future brother-in-law. Damn, that sounded weird.
“Have you used him?”
“No, but my yard’s way smaller than yours, and I don’t have many trees.”
“Okay, that would be great if you could give me his number. Thank you.” Poppy considered him for a moment. “I was thinking of hosting a poker night this coming Thursday down at the shop. I’m getting a liquor license for special events like that. Do you or anyone you know like to play?”
Noah blocked a frown from forming. Poker at a bookshop-slash-tearoom? “I know some guys.”
She beamed at him, her sunny smile transforming her entire face. And it had already been pretty before. “Great. I’ll be doing board game nights there as well. Dungeons and Dragons, things like that. And by the way, I haven’t forgotten that I promised you a cherry pie for helping me paint the shop. I just haven’t had the chance to make it yet.”
His lips quirked. “I wouldn’t say no to a cherry pie, but I don’t want you to go to any trouble. You’re really busy.”
She shrugged. “I’ll fit it in. I always keep my promises.”
“Well that’s nice to hear. Since we’re neighbors, and all.”
Her eyes sparkled at him. Not flirtatious, however. Warm. Sincere. “Exactly.”
No flirting and she’d been in a rush to cover up. He was getting more curious about her by the minute. She also made it hard to stay suspicious of her and her background. “Tell you what. I’ll make some calls and see if I can get a couple of my buddies to come out on Thursday.”
“That’d be great, thank you.”
“No problem. And don’t hold off on the power washing on my account. I’m up now.”
“You sure?”
“Positive.”
“All right.” She held up the plate, raised her tawny eyebrows. “Want anything else?”
Oh, he did. But it wasn’t on the menu, and wasn’t going to be. “I’m good. Gimme a couple minutes to make some calls and I’ll let you know about Thursday.”
The first person he called was Beckett.
“It’s not even seven-thirty in the morning,” his best friend grumbled. Noah’s sister, Sierra, had moved in with him just over a month ago. “Better be important.”
“I thought anything after oh-four-hundred was considered sleeping in for a Green Beret.”
“Former Green Beret. Now that I’m a civilian again, I remembered how much I love sleeping. So, what’s up?”
“You, me and Weaver, poker game this Thursday night.”
“Poker? Man, we haven’t done that in years. At your place?” Beckett asked.
“Seven at the new bookshop in town. Whale’s Tale.”
“Whale’s Tale? What?”
“Just be there. We still on for tonight?” They were having a barbecue at Beckett and Sierra’s.
Beckett grunted. “If you hang up right now and let your sister and me get back to sleep, then yeah.”
Now that was a mental image Noah didn’t need. He loved them both, but even after a few weeks to adjust, it was still weird to think of them getting married and having a family together someday. “Fine. But next time you see your yard guy, can you have him call me? My neighbor might be interested in hiring him.”
“I’ll text him. If you hang up right now.”
“Fine. See you later.” He hung up and called Weaver, a former teammate of Beckett’s, who was much perkier than Beckett had been.
Noah ended the call and walked back to the fence. Poppy had hauled the power washer over to the far corner, still wearing her shirt over her bikini top. Noah flagged her down before she could fire it up. “The three of us are in for Thursday night.”
Her face lit up. “That’s fantastic, thank you. If you think of anyone else, please let them know.”
“Will do.” He turned and headed back toward his house, in a far better mood than he’d been ten minutes ago. And maybe, if he was lucky, Poppy would decide to take that flannel shirt off once he went back inside. Then he could enjoy his morning coffee while standing in front of the kitchen window and admire the view.
Yep, no doubt about it. Lingering cynicism aside, his neighborhood had gotten a major upgrade the day she’d moved in next door.
*coming November 2018*
About the Author
NY Times and USA Today Bestselling author Kaylea Cross writes edge-of-your-seat military romantic suspense. Her work has won many awards, including the Daphne du Maurier Award of Excellence, and has been nominated multiple times for the National Readers’ Choice Awards. A Registered Massage Therapist by trade, Kaylea is also an avid gardener, artist, Civil War buff, Special Ops aficionado, belly dance enthusiast and former nationally-carded softball pitcher. She lives in Vancouver, BC with her husband and family.
You can visit Kaylea at www.kayleacross.com. If you would like to be notified of future releases, please join her newsletter. Direct link: http://kayleacross.com/v2/newsletter/
Complete Booklist
ROMANTIC SUSPENSE
Crimson Point Series
Fractured Honor
DEA FAST Series
Falling Fast
Fast Kill
Stand Fast
Strike Fast
Fast Fury
Fast Justice
Fast Vengeance
Colebrook Siblings Trilogy
Brody’s Vow
Wyatt’s Stand
Easton’s Claim
Hostage Rescue Team Series
Marked
Targeted
Hunted
Disavowed
Avenged
Exposed
Seized
Wanted
Betrayed
Reclaimed
Shattered
Guarded
Titanium Security Series
Ignited
Singed
Burned
Extinguished
Rekindled
Blindsided: A Titanium Christmas novella
Bagram Special Ops Series
Deadly Descent
Tactical Strike
Lethal Pursuit
Danger Close
Collateral Damage
Never Surrender (a MacKenzie Family novella)
Suspense Series
Out of Her League
Cover of Darkness
No Turning Back
Relentless
Absolution
PARANORMAL ROMANCE
Empowered Series
Darkest Caress
HISTORICAL ROMANCE
The Vacant Chair
EROTIC ROMANCE (writing as Callie Croix)
Deacon’s Touch
Dillon’s Claim
No Holds Barred
Touch Me
Let Me In
Covert Seduction