Perplexed, Jake thrust aside the swirling desire. “What the hell is going on in here?” He looked at a grimacing Callie for an answer.
In the last few weeks, she’d made an indelible impression on the boys, he admitted. His cousins appeared to have taken to her like a newborn calf to its mother.
A warm, family-like atmosphere prevailed, creating an unusual longing in Jake and a happy home life for the boys. So wasn’t part of her job to keep the boys out of trouble?
Callie shrugged. A sheepish grin inched up the corners of her mouth, showing off her sexy little dimple and causing his middle to clutch in want. “I’m afraid I tried to cook breakfast. As you can tell, I’m not too good at it.”
“Yet,” Marvin chimed in. “Lance is giving her lessons.”
“Isn’t that great?” Callie patted Lance on the cheek, causing a dull red flush to steal along the boy’s neck and into his face.
A knife-blade sharp stab shafted through Jake’s chest. What was happening here? His cousins clung to Callie, growing closer. They may be learning the ways of the ranch, but they also lapped up her cheery, steady big sister presence.
A family.
And he had not been a part of any of it. That stung.
But that’s not what he wanted for himself. So why did it hurt? He didn’t know the why of it. He just felt it.
“Come on, hurry up, Jake. Don’t forget you’re coming with us today,” Stan said.
Swallowing hard, Jake brushed the hurt away, not understanding it nor wanting to dissect it. He just knew he was not going to get tricked into caring any more than he already did. It would just cause more pain for all of them when he left. “On second thought, maybe you should go without me. I’ve got some more practice to get in—”
“Oh, no you don’t, Jake Lassiter,” Callie said.
“You can handle it. I know you can.” He backed out of the kitchen. “Don’t let me keep you.”
“Jake? You can’t ditch us.”
Leaving, he turned and took the stairs two at a time, putting as much distance between them as he could.
It didn’t work.
Callie was right behind him five seconds after he entered his room. She moved fast. “I’ll just be in the way,” he said, trying to dodge her. But she planted herself in front of him.
“Not true. The boys need you there.”
“It’s clothes shopping.”
“They just want to spend time with you. You’ve avoided them.” He read between the lines. And her.
It was the truth. “You’re right.” Guilt nudged him.
“I know I am.” She smiled. It kicked him in the gut.
Jake gave in; he knew she’d never give up. How long could it take, anyway? “All right. The sooner we get this over with the better, as far as I’m concerned,” he said, trying to look anywhere but her mouth. He wanted to kiss her again. He stopped himself.
Somehow Callie’s presence weaved a magic spell around all of them, including Jake. With her skillful persistence, she’d taught the boys lessons on ranch life, cowboy lingo, and many of the things Jake had tried and failed with them.
Last night she’d talked the boys into trying a few new things: shopping for cowboy gear; short, neat haircuts; and a social life.
Today marked the first day on the road to their outward transformation. And she’d roped Jake into accepting the challenge himself. After all, she reminded him, the boys idolized him and he had to set a good example.
With a great deal of difficulty, he stomped down on his need to touch her and seized the opportunity to lay down the law as far as this transformation involved him.
“We should get some things straight. We can talk after I take a shower.” A very cold one. “Is that all right with you?”
“Sure, why not?” Her voice croaked on the last word.
With every bit of control Jake possessed, he turned his back on her and walked away. Entering the bathroom, he left the door slightly ajar.
Callie tried to quell the rapid rise of warmth in her body, but nothing worked. He had the most disturbing effect on her.
The sound of running water brought her back to the moment. She should go and wait for him downstairs.
Her feet refused to go in that direction. Instead, she moved closer to the door and nudged it open as he stepped behind the clear shower curtain. A fleeting glimpse of his sexy derriere made her face hot. She swallowed hard. The spray of water clouded the tantalizing image of him soaping his chest.
“Beautiful,” she whispered. “Right now I’d pay anything to be that bar of soap.” Her knees grew weak.
“Callie? Is that you? I thought you left already. Did you say something?”
“Me?” she squeaked, flattening her back against the wall. Slowly, she slid down the length until she sat on the hardwood floor. “Not a peep.” Looking over her shoulder, she peeked into the bathroom, gasping when his hand made soapy, tantalizing circles lower and lower on his abdomen.
Swinging her head back around to avoid that heart-stopping picture, Callie frowned deeply. For the first time, she surveyed his bedroom. Other than his jeans crumpled on the floor beside his bed, she discovered nothing to mark the room as his. The stark white sheets contrasted sharply with the dark, heavy furniture, drab brown drapes and matching bedspread.
“You still there? We might as well talk then. Listen, about the boys,” he said. “I need them ranch ready in two weeks. You stick to outfitting them in cowboy gear and I’ll teach them how to round up and brand the newborn calves. As far as this project, I’ll go along with the haircut and a new Stetson, but that’s all. It’s the boys who need the transformation, not me.”
She turned to look at him. His tall, broad-shouldered body, outlined against the see-through fabric, ignited heat in the deepest part of her. Sucking in her breath, Callie pressed her forehead against her raised knees.
“Did you hear me?”
“Oh, yeah,” she said, pulling herself together. “I think it’s best if you let them do the things they’re good at, too. Stan’s done such a great job with compiling the rodeo bull statistics that he wants to set up the ranch records on his computer. It will make your life simpler and it’s a great way for him to learn about the running of the place, don’t you think?”
Suddenly, the water stopped. Thick, blanket-like silence hung in the air. Did I hit a sore spot with him? she wondered, remembering how quiet and sullen he’d been when Stan mentioned the computer.
“Psst!”
Callie shifted quickly, facing the bedroom door. Stan, Marvin, and Lance stuck just their heads in the room. She stomped down on a bubble of laughter when she spied the three of them. Talking heads.
Lance crawled over to her. “Gotta smell pretty for Jake.” He held out her perfume bottle, squirting liberally.
“Cut that out.” She slapped his hand away. She heard Jake move around in the bathroom, the squeaky faucet being turned on, and then shut off.
“Callie?” Jake asked. His muffled voice held a hint of puzzlement.
“It was nothing,” she called out, nearly choking on the powerful blast of fragrance suspended in a thick cloud all around her. Then, in a hushed tone, she said to Lance, “Scoot! And take your interfering brothers with you.”
“No way. We want to see what’s going on. We can help.” The happy, expectant look on his boyish face caused her heart to sink. She had a feeling they wouldn’t stop meddling until she and Jake were an item.
Stan and Marvin tiptoed across the bedroom, and then squatted down beside Lance.
Callie groaned inwardly. “Out!” she mouthed, pointing to the exit.
The guys slowly shook their heads in unison.
“Callie, what’s going on out there?” Jake’s voice grew closer.
Marvin whipped out a comb and began to run it through Callie’s tangled hair.
“Stop that,” she hissed.
“Gotta make you pretty for Jake,” Stan said, pulling out a tube of lipstick from his
top pocket. He uncapped it, and then brought the bright red stick close to her mouth.
She panicked. Shoving the guys aside, she crawled into the bathroom, and then slammed the door shut.
Their chuckles were muffled and then she heard their footsteps recede. They’d gone.
Resting against the solid wood, Callie glanced upward. She stilled. Jake stood two feet in front of her, with a towel wrapped low over his hips. White foamy shaving cream covered the lower half of his face and he held the razor in his right hand. He grabbed a hand towel and swiped away most of the foam as he turned fully to face her.
“You shouldn’t be in here,” he warned.
Her heart hammered in her chest. Her breathing became ragged and perspiration dotted her forehead. Nervously, she darted out her tongue and licked her lower lip.
He moaned, low and deep. Hunching down, he locked gazes with her. “Do you do that on purpose?”
Confused, she asked, “Do what?”
“Your lip trick.”
For a moment she had no idea what he referred to; then, out of long habit, she started to lick her bottom lip. Dawning flooded her mind.
“That,” he whispered hoarsely, inching closer, “turns me on more than I can say.”
Alarm rang in her belly. “About the boys. Like I said before, Stan would learn so much if he put the records on his computer. And Marvin is great at fixing things. He could tinker with some of the ranch equipment. Lance is a fabulous cook. He could help on the chuck wagon. You’ve got to admit they’ve done a wonderful job at helping you get ready for the rodeo.” Suddenly, just as quickly as she began, Callie stopped babbling.
“Is that right?” Jake leaned near, so near she could detect the little flecks of gold in his intent, questioning eyes.
“Jake,” she said in a breathy voice she barely recognized. Tentatively, she reached out. Her fingers brushed the dark springy curls covering his wide, muscular chest. A wave of heat pooled in her.
He hissed as if he burnt from her touch. “You need to go. Now.” But his actions defied his words. Slanting his lips over hers, he captured them in a searing kiss.
Lava-like desire trailed a fiery path from her mouth to her toes, singeing everything in between. Callie deepened the kiss, lashing her tongue out and slicing apart his firm, yet gentle lips. She gasped the moment she felt his long, hot tongue mating with hers.
The sensation of floating through the air gripped her as he moved backward, holding onto her. In the back of her mind, she heard something metallic hit the floor. The razor, she supposed.
His back hitting the floor jarred her. Jake let out a harsh puff of air at the impact. The hot, blasting breath stole her senses away.
A deep-seated, primitive longing seized Callie. When his large, warm hands caressed her back, he stroked a storm in her center. She kissed Jake with a needy desperation that stemmed from years of denial, years of pining for him.
He held her close, wrapping her in a cocoon, and appeasing the yearning in her heart.
Slicing her fingers into his thick, wet hair, Callie held his head for another long embrace. His answering groan vibrated from his chest and into his throat. She swallowed the sound like a starving woman. Framing his face between her hands, her palms slid in the leftover shaving cream.
Jake inched her shirt from her waistband, and then touched her bare skin. The pads of his fingers brought the most exquisite ache to her core. His kisses made her dizzy with want. His heart beat a wild tempo, bringing her sweet, blinding pleasure.
On the edge of something scary, yet wondrous, Callie wavered precariously.
A sharp rap on the door jerked Callie from her passionate trance. Pulling away, she twisted to the opening bathroom door. Jake held her to him, clearly refusing to surrender.
A short, round woman filled the doorway. Her bib apron covered her from neck to hem. Her pewter gray hair, in a tidy bun atop her head, matched her eyes. “My, my, Jake,” she admonished. A smile hovered on her twitching lips. “Is your lady friend helping you shave this morning?”
Callie rose quickly and wiped the remnants of the shaving cream from her face. Hot stinging color shot across her cheekbones.
“Damn,” he snapped, getting to his feet in one lithe motion. He grabbed at the sagging towel around his hips. “Mrs. Hudson—”
“Aren’t you going to introduce me to your lady friend?” The older woman winked saucily at Callie, and then scanned a disheveled Jake. “It looks like she’s got you in quite a state.”
Callie closed her eyes as a fresh wave of embarrassment rolled over her. In order to save the last vestiges of her tattered pride, Callie raced past Mrs. Hudson. “Excuse me,” she mumbled, mortified.
How in the world can I hide my increasing feelings for Jake now? Callie wondered. And how in the world can I save my job after what just happened?
Grim determination stole over Callie. She slowed her descent down the staircase. Whatever it took, she’d buy some time. Time to plan and sock away some money so she could buy back Gramps’ ranch, she figured.
If she had to beg, cajole, and promise her soul to the devil, she’d do it. And Callie suspected Jake Lassiter could very well be the devil himself, stealing her sanity, tempting her beyond reason, and breaking her heart.
Chapter 10
Twenty minutes later, Jake heard Ada Hudson’s voice before he walked into the kitchen. He caught Callie’s name, and then his. Fire burned in his chest.
With his hands on his hips, he halted a foot away from his housekeeper. Her back faced him while she clutched the phone to her ear.
“I tell you, Flossie, you should have seen it. But, my, you can feel the sexual tension in the air—”
Jake snatched up the receiver, causing Mrs. Hudson to gasp and spin around. Her jaw dropped, her mouth rounding in surprise.
Jake spoke into the phone. “Why don’t you mind your own business, Flossie?”
Her distinctive cackle reached him over the wire. “Can’t do that, sugar. I promised Duke I’d keep an eye on you.”
He cursed under his breath. The colorful expletive only made her laugh harder. “Don’t you have more important things to do than to interfere in my life?”
“None that I know of.”
“Damn it, Flossie, if you opened your eyes, you’d see there’s a guy eating his heart out over you.”
“Me?” A wealth of shock laced the one word.
“Yes, you!”
“Who?”
“Gus.”
“Gus!”
Jake slammed down the phone. There, he fixed her wagon. Let her stew on that for a while, he thought.
He glanced at his longtime, meddling housekeeper. She wasn’t due back until next month, or so she’d said weeks ago. “You’re back early.”
“Can’t stand my daughter-in-law. I went for my son, so he wouldn’t worry. She wouldn’t let me anywhere near the baby. He’s fussy, just like her. Takes after her side. Looks funny, too. Looks just like her.”
“Just my luck.” He grunted.
Her broad smile and twinkling eyes only added to his bad humor. “And what are you looking at?”
She pointed her finger at him and chuckled.
“Mrs. Hudson, you’re fired!”
She burst into laughter. “You take after your daddy, Jake. No two ways about it. He’d do the same thing. Fire me one day, then when I showed up for work the next time, he’d ask, ‘I thought I fired you?’ I’d say, ‘You did.’ I’d go on with my work and he’d yell, ‘Ah hell, woman!’, then stomp out of the house.”
Women, he thought. Interfering, snooping, busybodies who have nothing better to do than poke fun at me.
“Ah…” He stopped short, swallowing the same words his father would have used. Growling, Jake stomped out of the house, slamming the back door. The vibrating sound grated along his nerves, setting them on edge even more.
How the hell would he survive when even his friends were ganging up on him? Did they have a conspiracy aga
inst him?
He felt everyone pulled him in different directions. Gus and Les teased him mercilessly. His cousins, infused with some cheer, chattered endlessly. And Callie proved the worst culprit of all.
She whipped his senses to a fever pitch. Awareness crackled in the air, heat simmered in his blood, and the coil of desire residing in his middle tightened a little bit more every day, entangling him in knots.
All his wanderlust soul ever wanted was his freedom. He’d show them all: Flossie, Gus, Mrs. Hudson, Les, his cousins, and even Callie. But first, he’d take Callie Andrews to bed. After what happened in his bathroom, there could be no more room for denial. With every fiber of his being, he craved the woman. No other woman made him feel that way and consumed his every thought.
Jake ground to a halt when he noted his cousins in the back of his pickup and Callie the lone occupant in the cab.
“Oh, swell,” he muttered, pulling the brim of an old tattered Stetson lower over his brow. “How in the hell am I going to stay sane during the fifty-mile ride to town with her sitting less than two feet away?”
He mustered up his courage and walked purposefully the rest of the way to his truck. Yanking open the door, he ignored Callie. Once seated, he slammed the door with enough force to shake the vehicle. Jake leaned forward, twisting the key already in the ignition. He revved the engine.
“Truce.” The sound of her low voice had him jerking to meet her unwavering gaze. Callie held out her hand.
“I didn’t know we’d been fighting.” Reluctantly, he clasped her outstretched hand. He felt her quiver and an electric bolt shot up his arm. With his thumb, he stroked the soft, delicate flesh. Pin prickles of awareness zapped his nerves. The banked embers inside him flared to life.
“A truce to put our attraction aside for the sake of your cousins. After all, you did hire me to play fairy godmother, didn’t you?”
He snatched his hand back as if burnt. Had he misread her degree of arousal, the intensity of the passion? “Of course I did. And you’re doing a good job so far, although they still haven’t completely taken to ranch life.”
Wanted: Fairy Godmother (Romantic comedy) Page 7
