Lone Star Burn_Undercover Heart

by Judy Kentrus

  He also surprised himself when he invited them to share his chili. That was something he never did: let someone else enjoy his cooking. It’s too late now and you’ve made a commitment. Changes, changes.

  Chapter 4

  Erin helped herself to a piece of the warm corn bread he’d taken out of the oven a few minutes ago. She’d been further impressed when he hadn’t used a mix. The batter had been in the pan, settling at room temperature. He’d acclimated himself to the rental kitchen with ease and she wondered if he’d brought his own cookware. She’d offered to set the table, but he refused and said she and Danni were his guests. His chili was the best she’d ever eaten, a little on the spicy side, and she wondered if it would be appropriate to ask for his recipe.

  “Do you always cook like this?”

  “When I’m home. Cooking is kind of a hobby for me.” He smiled at Danni sitting across the table. “Can I get you another bowl? Another glass of milk?”

  “No, thanks. This is really good and your corn bread is good, too, but you better hurry up and talk to my mom about the Super Flyers club because we have to leave. This is Friday night and my mom lets me stay up longer to watch television. Captain America, the Winter Soldier is on cable.”

  “Danielle MacKenna, that is just plain rude! Mr. Thompson was kind enough to invite us to dinner because mine looks like, and I quote, ‘puke.’ You owe him an apology.”

  “Sorry, Mr. Thompson,” Danni said, lowering her eyes to her empty bowl. “I just don’t want my mom to forget to talk to you about the club. It’s going to be really cool. She puts everything on her schedule and if it isn’t there, sometimes she forgets.”

  “Why don’t you dig the hole a little deeper,” Erin said, glowering at her daughter.

  “Apology accepted and I promise to tell your mom about our plans. I have a suggestion. You can go in my living room and watch the movie. I also want to discuss the program she’s helping me with for my company.”

  Danni’s eyes darted to her mother. “Can I?”

  The smart thing she should have done was agree with her daughter and leave. Sitting at the table and enjoying her food with the PR man was making her feel much too content. She recalled what he’d said about working at a shelter. People would eat, relax, and then talk. He’d listen. That said a lot about a person.

  “Okay, for a little while.”

  When he got up from the chair at the table and walked Danni into the other room, she called herself a pervert when her eyes settled on his tight ass. The sleeves of his white shirt banded about the unyielding muscles of his upper arms. Just before they sat down he’d removed his apron, and the smooth stretch of shirt confirmed he didn’t neglect his body and was athletically toned.

  “Can I get you something to drink?” he asked when he returned to the kitchen. “Coffee, tea, a glass of wine?”

  “Coffee would be fine with just milk or cream. I like tea, but only in the afternoon when we get home from school, usually with a cookie. Maybe wine every now and then, but only one glass. I’m not very good with alcohol.” Jeez, Louise, he’s got you rambling like a schoolgirl! All he asked was if you wanted something to drink.

  “Coffee, it is.”

  Erin folded her hands in her lap and watched him prepare the two cups of coffee using Keurig pods, but couldn’t help eyeing the pile of pots, pans, and dishes on the counter and the sink. She hated messy clutter with a passion.

  Caleb poured a small amount of half and half in both of the mugs and set them on the table. “Sorry, I don’t have any dessert. I’m not a baker.”

  “This is fine.” He’d added just the right amount of cream. Erin stiffened her back and brought herself closer to the table. “Since we’re on a time constraint, tell me about this club.”

  “None of this was my intention. Danni, Jayden, and Louis took it upon themselves to form this clique and I literally got sucked in. They came upon me flying my plane at the deserted parking lot at the end of the street. When they expressed their interest, I offered to buy the kits and help them assemble the planes in my garage. Building model airplanes is another hobby. I find it relaxing since I have a stressful job. If I get permission from all the parents, I’ll order portable work tables for the kids to use and each one will have their own tool kit.”

  “That’s also very generous of you.”

  “I don’t think they realize building the planes from start to finish isn’t going to happen in one session. The work is detailed and they will have to follow instructions.”

  “Hearing it from your side puts an entirely different light on the subject. I thought it was your idea to push your hobby onto the kids.” As soon as the words left her mouth, she realized she’d just insulted the man who was kind enough to invite them to dinner.

  “Wow! I wasn’t expecting that. It’s not as if I’m some kind of pervert trying to lure kids into my garage with a bowl of candy. I told them they had to speak to their parents first and you all know where I live.”

  He hesitated before asking, “Why do I get the impression you don’t like me? Yesterday, I was impressed when you took charge of the meeting and presented the teachers’ side like a contract lawyer. Now we’re sitting in my kitchen, drinking coffee, and there’s still a formal coolness in your voice. You’re anything but relaxed sitting in that chair. Do you ever let yourself go, laugh, smile?”

  A psychologist couldn’t have analyzed her better. She’d been maintaining a stiff formality and had purposely gone on the defensive because he was too good to be true. From the first time he looked at her, she’d sensed Daniel Thompson detected the part of her that very few people saw. The fun-loving, carefree side she enjoyed a long time ago. She wished she could tell him the truth. She liked him, too much, and that was the problem.

  “I came on strong yesterday because I don’t have a problem expressing my opinion, and unfortunately my daughter has inherited the trait to speak her mind.” Erin took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “There is a trust issue and, frankly, I don’t know how to take you.” She waited for the expected backlash from insulting their host, but it never happened. He just smiled.

  “Nothing like being honest.” He drank some coffee. “What have I done to give you that impression?”

  Erin threw her arms wide, not realizing that the material had tightened around her breasts and nipples. “It’s like you’re Super Santa Claus! You show up out the blue to save a holiday program that will benefit children. You don’t blink an eye at the cost of tablets for our primary school. If you go along with my suggestions for your Santa Traditions program, you’d better be prepared to write out a large check. You befriend three kids you’ve never met and offer to teach them how to build and fly model airplanes. Lastly, when you look at me, I get all twitchy and feel like you’re enjoying a private joke. And you’re a damned good cook.”

  When she stepped down from her invisible soapbox, he was still grinning and his eyes sparkled from the inner amusement she just described. She suffered an aftershock, about a five on the Richter scale.

  “No, I’m not Santa Claus, although my grandfather and father were toymakers. I’m a businessman doing my job.”

  “I can’t believe that,” Erin said, shaking her head. “When you told us about helping out at shelters, you sounded very sincere. That’s why I agreed to help you. Was Santa Traditions your marketing idea?”

  “Mine and my twin brother’s. We didn’t look alike and were as different as night and day. He was an outgoing free spirit who would give a person the shirt off his back. I got caught up in the rat race of the business world.”

  The sadness in his voice was obvious and his eyes shimmered from unshed tears. Erin’s heart went out to him. “You used the word ‘was.’ I take it something happened to him.”

  “He was killed in a mountain climbing accident two months ago.”

  “I’m so sorry,” she said, and reached across the table and squeezed his hand. His skin was soft and the same tingling sensation was
there, but she held tight. “I never had a sibling, but losing a twin must be that much harder.”

  Caleb nodded. “He embraced life and all of its challenges, and lived each day as if it were his last. He drove a race car, loved hang gliding, diving in underwater caves, and spelunking in remote caverns. There wasn’t anything he wouldn’t try.

  “I never considered he might die someday from one of his adventures. He’d be gone for months at a time in some unknown part of the world, but he always managed to send me a message to let me know he was alive and having fun.

  “The closest I’ve ever gotten to flying is a seat in first class and maneuvering the controls on my model airplane. He was the one who took all the risks and I chose to sit behind a desk.”

  The wistful tone in his voice was obvious and her heart melted a little more. “You claim you were as different as night and day, but I think you were very much alike.”

  Caleb shook his head in confusion. “Explain.”

  “He took risks with his body, but you swim with sharks in the business world. It also takes a brave man to take on three kids, teach them how to read instructions, and give them tool boxes.”

  Caleb did something he hadn’t done since his brother died. He burst out laughing, so much so that tears ran down his cheeks.

  “Oh my God! I didn’t say that to make you cry!” Erin pushed up from the table and moved to stand beside him. Without thinking, she grabbed the edge of her camisole top, cupped his chin with her hand, and dabbed at the wetness on his cheeks. Standing this close, she breathed in a raw, earthy scent and lost herself in his ocean of aqua eyes before pushing back in embarrassment at her much too familiar care.

  “Thanks, but they were tears of relief, not sadness. He was a wonderful humanitarian and left a generous endowment to make sure the shelters he started would continue to serve those in need. That’s why I want to do right by him and make sure this program succeeds.”

  “Like my daughter, I owe you a very big apology.” Erin softened her voice and let herself relax against the back of the chair. Her back hurt from sitting up straight. “First impressions are not always correct. I think it’s wonderful that you want to continue your brother’s legacy. I should have a preliminary plan within the next couple of days. I also need to see the room to make sure you have all the right equipment.”

  “I was just handed this mess and haven’t seen the room either. Since we only have two weeks, are you free tomorrow?”

  “Danni has gymnastics and swimming in the morning and then has a play date with Louis in the afternoon. How about I meet you at the toy department at Hughes around two?”

  “Perfect. Make sure you bring your trusty yellow pad,” he teased.

  Erin couldn’t take it any longer. “I’ve got to clean up that mess.”

  She approached the kitchen sink and opened the door to the dishwasher. Inwardly she issued an annoying groan. It was totally empty. What’s so hard about putting something in the dishwasher rather than fill up the sink!

  “Let me help,” Caleb offered.

  “No, thanks. You cooked and I offered to clean up the mess. My kitchen has the same layout and there isn’t much room for two people to maneuver.”

  “But you’re a guest,” he protested.

  “I was when I walked in the door.” Her cool demeanor melted and she let down her guard. Erin turned away from the sink, smiled, and winked. “Now we’re friends. Before I get started, let me check on Danielle.”

  It was her endearing smile and sexy wink that made him want to wave a flag in surrender. There was the real Erin MacKenna. He’d been overwhelmed when she’d unselfishly wiped his tears with her shirt. The last time he’d gotten so much motherly attention he was six years old, and Rosita, their cook, had wiped his tears with her apron. He inhaled deeply and savored the clean fresh scent on her skin, glad she wasn’t wearing a perfumed fragrance that would make his eyes water. She was totally unaware that the side of her soft breast had pressed against his chest and his fingers tightened in a fierce grip not to touch.

  Spending time with a guest in his rental kitchen had been a first, since he’d never asked anyone to enjoy his cooking. But his guests hadn’t been just anyone. His red-haired maverick was on the other side of the kitchen, loading his dishwasher, something he never had to do at home because his housekeeper cleaned up the mess he made when cooking. Every time she bent over to put the dishes in the lower rack, he secretly enjoyed the way the bottom of her shorts rode high on her cheeks and stirred the lingering tightness in his groin. The women he went out with were allergic to any form of domesticity. Many of his female friends were executives in the corporate world, and having a family was last thing on their minds.

  Erin MacKenna was opinionated, efficient, and down-to-earth, but she was also beautiful, funny, and kind. She offered something else he wasn’t accustomed from a woman: honesty. He considered himself a straight-forward tell-it-like-it-is kind of person, but he hadn’t been completely honest with her. His grandfather and father had been toymakers, in a sense. They owned a multi-million dollar corporation; the toy division of Hughes. He always flew first-class since he owned the damned plane.

  He’d surprised himself by talking so openly about Daniel to a perfect stranger. Reminiscing about his brother had helped him more than he realized. The news of Dan’s death had been all-consuming and he hadn’t shared with anyone the intensity of his inner loss. Friends had offered their customary condolences, but none of their words of comfort could ease the pain in his heart. Erin had helped just by listening.

  Once more the image of waving a white flag took center stage in his mind. Should he find out if Erin MacKenna was part of the changes he needed to make in his life: experiencing a deep and enduring love? He didn’t mind in the least that she’d be coming with a ready-made family. After he got to know her better, he’d tell Erin about his brother’s supposed child and maybe she could help him locate the little girl. He glanced up, expecting some sort of lightning bolt, but all was quiet. Did that mean he was heading in the right direction? No time like to present to find out.

  He reached for a dish towel from the rack next to the stove and dried off the stainless steel pot draining in the sink. The compact area worked in his favor when she shifted around him to pick up the black frying pan. The top of her head edged his shoulder. “You work fast.”

  “When you get to know me better, you’ll find out I’m annoyingly organized and hate clutter.” Her words came out in a breathless rush because his large presence dominated the small space.

  “I like the sound of that, because I’d like to explore the next phase of our friendship.”

  She’d backed herself up against the stove. “Ah, what did I say?”

  “When you get to know me better.”

  “I didn’t mean it that way,” she quickly blurted.

  “Oh, no, you can’t take it back. I look forward getting to know you, Erin MacKenna, not the teacher who fights for the rights of others or super mom, but a lovely woman with gorgeous hair that reminds me of an autumn sunset.” When she sucked in a breath and her eyes widened at his very frank compliment, he took a step closer. “If you aren’t interested in a more personal friendship, tell me now.”

  Erin couldn’t move except for her hands that continued to nervously wipe the already-dry heavy skillet. Her voice wasn’t quite steady and she blurted, “You’ve been playing in shark waters too long. In other words, you don’t play fair and know just how to bite.”

  “I haven’t bitten you, yet,” he grinned, and tapped one of the freckles on her nose. “I didn’t mean to put you in an uncomfortable position. I’d really like to get to know you. Before you give me your decision, there’s something I need to know. Are you really waiting to marry a cowboy?”

  The shock of his blunt question made her loosen her grip on the frying pan. The iron rim collided with his moccasin-clad foot before it landed on the floor. “Who told you that?”

  “Well, shit!�
� He turned about and limped over to a kitchen chair. “Goddamn it! It had to be my left foot.” He took off his cowhide moccasin and gingerly removed his white sock to reveal an already-swelling red abrasion on the top of his foot, along with an assortment of large Band-Aids.

  “Oh, my God, I’m so sorry!” Erin ran to the freezer and grabbed a package of frozen corn. “What happened?” She knelt down in front of him and carefully positioned his foot between her legs, placing the frozen bag on the swelling redness.

  “Corn?” Caleb choked out the words. His nurse gave little thought to where she administered first aid. The bottom of his foot was nestled between her bare thighs, and flesh meeting flesh was extremely warm and getting warmer. It took all his self-control not to dip his toe and explore the forbidden zone between the V in her shorts. He needed a second bag of vegetables to cool down the major hard-on that sprang to life. He reached for the dishtowel he threw on the table and placed it across his lap.

  “Don’t complain. It works in a pinch. Your foot looks like you tried to wallpaper your toes and heels with Band-Aids.”

  “They’re covering large blisters. Two years ago my brother gave me a pair of custom cowboy boots and I left them in my closet. I’ve worn them for three days, in his honor, and supposedly my feet will adjust.”

  “Were they the ones you had on the other day?”

  “Yes. Why?”

  “Because I had already decided you dressed like a city slicker.”

  “Blame my brother. I can’t wear boots with a business suit.”

  “And why not? You’re in Texas. Boots are the norm. Even I have a couple pair and I don’t ride horses.”

  “I never thought of it that way.”

  Erin removed the bag and set it on the table. “The swelling doesn’t look too bad. You’ll live.” She retrieved his sock and carefully slipped it over all the bandages. “I’d leave the moccasin off for a little while.”