Love Bites: Five original stories edited by Lori Foster Love UnleashedMane HavenMolly Wants a HeroDog TagsSmookie and the Bandit

by Lori Foster

  When she reached across the old, scarred table and set the mug down, Jake grabbed her wrist. “Sit with me.”

  His strong yet gentle touch sent tremors, one chasing after the other, up her arm and through her body, instantly warming her from the late-winter chill.

  She took a seat across from him and reached for a napkin from the holder, sliding it toward him.

  “I’ve been thinking,” she said, picking at the marred tabletop. “This is your house now, and you’re paying for a room at the B and B. If anything, I should be there and you should be here.”

  He swallowed a bite, took a sip of coffee and eased back in the creaky wooden chair. “Do you honestly think I’m going to ask you to leave?”

  “No, but I also don’t think it’s fair that you’re paying for a place. There’s a finished basement, with a bathroom, that you could stay in. There are also three other bedrooms upstairs. This house is huge, and it’s just me.”

  “Are you inviting me to stay here while I work?” he asked.

  When the words came from his mouth they sounded much sexier than when the initial thought had sprung into her head.

  “Yes.” She nodded. “It’s the right thing to do.”

  “You don’t know me.” He sipped his coffee again. “Do you normally invite strangers into your home?”

  “I moved in here when I was sixteen, and other than me and Charlie, no one has ever stayed here.”

  He studied her face, and suddenly Allison wished she could omit the last two minutes of conversation. To say the silence was uncomfortable and awkward was a vast understatement.

  “I’ll stay in the basement,” he told her. “That way we won’t bump into each other, except in the kitchen. Deal?”

  A bit of relief settled over her. “Deal.”

  “I’ll only go upstairs when I need to work, which won’t be for a while.” He came to his feet. “Which reminds me, I’m going to need to take a look around up there so I can get an idea of what needs done. I may see things that aren’t on your list.”

  She rose, too, taking his empty plate and putting it in the sink. “Come on up now. Other than the small leak in my closet, there’s not too much going on up there.”

  Once they were upstairs, she showed him to the bedrooms and stood in the doorway as he glanced over every nook and cranny. The windows, the ceilings, the spare bathroom.

  “And this is my room.” She gestured to the door at the end of the hall. “Don’t mind all the clothes. I had to take everything out of the closet.”

  He moved to her walk-in closet and pulled the string overhead to light up the small space.

  “Your ceiling is sagging in the corner,” he told her. “That will have to be replaced. And let’s hope there’s no mold in there, but I wouldn’t count on it.”

  Great. Just what she needed.

  She leaned against the tall post at the end of her king-size canopy bed. “Just do what you need to do. I can sleep in another room if I need to.”

  He moved from the closet, clicking the light off and closing the door. “I’ll let you know. Like I said, it won’t be for a while.”

  Allison wrapped her hand around the post, the reality settling deep that she may not be able to cover the cost of the house with her account and a loan. This home had been her sanctuary, her own haven when she’d needed it most. How would she honor Charlie’s memory if she couldn’t keep this farm going?

  “Hey.” Jake stepped in front of her, bending slightly to look her in the eye. “You okay?”

  “This is just a little overwhelming for me. I should warn you now, I’ll have some of these moments.” She rested her head against her hand on the pole. “I just miss Charlie. I miss knowing I have security and some stability in my life. He’s the only person who ever provided that.”

  Jake couldn’t stand the forlorn look on her face, the sadness lacing her voice. Without thinking, he cupped her cheek with his palm.

  “It’s normal to be upset, Allison. I don’t expect you to think this situation is okay. Did Charlie ever mention that he was leaving the house to someone other than you?”

  He didn’t think he was imagining her nestling her face against his palm; he actually liked knowing she felt comfortable with him.

  “He never discussed his will,” she told him. “I had no idea this would happen until the will was read.”

  Jake smoothed the hair off her forehead and stroked a finger down her cheek. He had no right to keep touching her, but he couldn’t force himself to move away.

  “I figure he wanted to leave this place to you because he was always so impressed by your work. He’d boast about you being his nephew to his friends whenever he saw you in a magazine or on a home-improvement show. And I hate to admit it, but I think he still worried about me running the farm alone.”

  “How did you come to work for him and live here?” Jake asked.

  Her eyes darted back up to his, a smile spreading across her delicate face. “He saved my life. The short story is my mother died suddenly when I was five, my father drank and used drugs like it was his job, and half the time he forgot he had a child to raise. He won a horse in a bet, and after we’d had it about a month, Charlie came around and offered to buy it from us.”

  Jake took Allison’s hands, urging her to sit on the edge of the bed, then took a seat beside her.

  “I was so upset the horse was leaving,” she went on, fidgeting with her short, unpainted nails. “I knew there was no way we could care for it when we barely had enough food for ourselves. But Charlie promised I could come see the horse every day. He said he’d even come get me and bring me home afterwards.”

  Jake’s heart warmed at this telling description of the man who was his uncle—a man obviously used to rescuing things.

  “I thought he was just saying that. I mean, I’d heard so many broken promises in my life.”

  “How old were you when all this happened?” Jake asked.

  “Twelve.”

  Again Jake took both her hands in his, squeezing for reassurance. “Go on.”

  “Basically, he made good on his promise and before I knew it, I was helping him on the farm every day after school. When I was sixteen, I ended up moving in with Charlie, because I was old enough to know my father was never going to do anything for me, and he didn’t care that I was leaving so long as he kept getting my mother’s social security check in my name. I never wanted the money, I wanted…”

  “Love,” Jake finished. “And Charlie provided that.”

  Allison smiled, looking him in the eye and nodding. As glad as he was that she’d trusted him with this much, he sensed there was more to her story, the longer version, and he intended to uncover it.

  “You’re a remarkable woman, Allison.”

  She laughed, looking down to their joined hands. “I don’t know about that, but I do what I need to in order to get by. I will say, I must’ve been a strong little girl to survive living with my father.”

  Jake loathed the man and he’d never even met him. How could anyone neglect a child, especially one’s own?

  “I’d love to learn about your horses,” he told her, surprised that he meant it. “I don’t know much, but I see they mean the world to you, and I’d like to know more.”

  She jerked her gaze back to his. “Really?”

  That glimpse of happiness he saw in her eyes had him acting before he could even process what he was about to do.

  He framed her face with his hands and tilted her head, just enough for his mouth to fit over hers. And when she melted against his chest, her fingers curled into his jacket, Jake knew he hadn’t made a mistake in acting on his feelings.

  Her soft sighs and gentle moan made him wish they could make use of this bed they were sitting on, but he had to be realistic. But Jake had a feeling she hadn’t had many relationships and he didn’t want to confuse her or let lust make a major decision that they may regret later. For her sake, and his, he needed to tread lightly so she wasn’t
hurt even more.

  Not to mention, she’d probably had very little tenderness thrown her way by men other than Charlie. Jake knew Allison was special, and he intended to treat her accordingly.

  Easing back, he smiled when it took her eyelids a moment to rise.

  “Well,” she said, leaning weakly against the post on her bed. “I would’ve shown you the horses without the kiss, but if you can kiss me that good, I’ll let you ride one.”

  Jake laughed even as his heart clenched. Great, she was as vulnerable as a newborn kitten, had a sense of humor he admired and had forged a core of steel despite what life had thrown at her. He was in so much trouble.

  Chapter Five

  Allison couldn’t believe the speed with which Jake worked. His two employees had come, replaced the roof and helped gut the kitchen. The subfloor was replaced, and Jake was currently working on the pipes. The two workers had already gone back to Florida—not that she could blame them—and she and Jake were alone once again.

  And not one word had been mentioned of the kiss they’d shared in her bedroom a week ago. Nor had another kiss been attempted.

  Even though he’d moved into her basement. She barely knew he was there. He’d remained true to his word of staying out of her way. But why? Most men would’ve so taken advantage of such an opportunity.

  Had she been a bad kisser? Too much tongue? Not enough? Halitosis? Granted, she wasn’t the most experienced woman, but she knew how to kiss. Or so she’d always thought.

  As Allison led Max, the Arabian horse that was getting adopted this week, around the oval ring, she tried to stay focused on his exercise, but her thoughts kept drifting back to the gentle way Jake had touched her. He’d touched her, kissed her as if he actually…cared. The kiss they’d shared hadn’t been just a stepping stone to sex, as most men might have assumed. He hadn’t pressured her or made her uncomfortable.

  As frustrated and irritated as she was, she couldn’t fault him for being a pure gentleman. Damn him.

  She led the gelding around for another loop, hating that she’d be saying goodbye, but thrilled that he was going to a good home. Adopting horses out was always bittersweet.

  “Allison.”

  At Jake’s voice, she turned. Unfortunately, just as she did so, Jake walked into the ring right behind Max and got a hoof straight to the abdomen.

  With a grunt of pain, Jake doubled over, wrapping his arms around his waist.

  “Jake!” Allison hooked Max’s lead rope around the post on the ring and went to Jake. “Are you all right?”

  He sucked in air and nodded. “Got…the…wind…knocked…out.”

  Allison wrapped an arm around his shoulders and guided him out of the ring and into the stables, where he could sit on an old wooden bench.

  “You never learned the rule not to walk behind a horse, did you?” she asked, once he was seated and breathing without struggling for gulps of air.

  “I’ve never been around horses in my life,” he told her, rubbing his stomach. “Mercy, that mare packs a punch.”

  “That’s not a mare,” she told him. “Mares are female horses. That was a gelding, a male horse that’s been neutered.”

  Jake smiled, looking her in the eye. “No wonder he’s pissed off, then. He’s horny.”

  When she laughed, he did too, only to stop short with a wince.

  “Let me look,” she offered, going toward the zipper on his jacket.

  “I’m fine.” He waved her hand away and took a deep breath. “See? I’ve got the air back in my lungs.”

  “That may be, but you probably have a hoof print on your abs, too. Can I check to see if you’re okay?”

  “I knew you wanted me out of my clothes,” he joked with a wink. “All you had to do was ask.”

  Heat consumed her even though the temp outside was in the low fifties. The fact that he was joking with a pained smile on his face didn’t lessen the fact that he was absolutely right. God help her, she did want him out of his clothes. Now what? It wasn’t as if she was some sexy siren. She played with horses all day, wore flannels, tattered jeans and worn boots. Her hair mainly stayed in a knot on top of her head and she wore no makeup. Oh, yeah. She was quite the catch.

  “Allison?”

  She jerked her attention back to him, only to find that he wasn’t smirking anymore and the heat that had spread through her now looked back at her from cobalt-blue eyes.

  “Don’t look at me like that,” she murmured, going for the zipper once again.

  His hands covered hers. “And how am I looking at you?”

  Allison closed her eyes, not sure what to say, how to act. It had been so long since she’d been intimate with a man or even on a date, she was definitely out of her league here.

  “Just let me look,” she whispered.

  “You can…just as soon as you look in my eyes.”

  She shifted her gaze to meet his and her breath caught. He’d inched his face closer, heavy-lidded eyes focused on her mouth.

  “I’m fine,” he told her. “Sore, but fine. I’ve been through worse.”

  Allison knew he’d have a huge mark and it would hurt for days, but a man like Jake would never complain, nor would he let it slow his pace in working on her house…his house.

  She cleared her throat and looked around the stables. “Maybe we should go over some basics, since you’re going to be here for a while, and if you need to talk to me during daylight hours, you’ll most likely find me in here.”

  He rubbed his hand over his abs and laughed with the slightest hitch in his breath. “That might be a good idea.”

  A bit of nostalgia spread through her as she remembered when Charlie had led her through the stables to give her the do’s and don’ts of horses, as well as to educate her on all the basics. The information had been so overwhelming at first, but now she didn’t even have to think about how to groom or walk the animals. Everything was second nature.

  She went over the boring basics of keeping the stalls clean, and how their environment needed to stay as sanitary as possible to keep the horses healthy.

  “What’s this big guy’s name?” Jake asked, reaching out to rub the nose of a very affectionate horse.

  Allison dipped into her pocket for a sugar cube and handed it to Jake. “Here, you’ll be his best friend.”

  When Jake stretched the cube toward the horse’s mouth, Allison was pleased. Most people were reluctant around horses at first. The size could be intimidating.

  “This is Sam,” she told him, rubbing Sam’s mane. “He’s a Tennessee walking horse. He actually came to us along with Clyde and Annabelle.” She turned to point to the two other Tennessee walking horses, in the next two stalls. “They were on a farm when the owner had to file bankruptcy. They weren’t neglected, but a bit malnourished simply because the owner kept trying to hang on to his land without selling, but it just got to be too much for him. We were lucky to get these three at a small price.”

  Jake moved to the other stalls, and Allison found his questions on the horses and their history very comforting. He wasn’t asking just to appease her. He genuinely wanted to know, and her heart swelled at the possibility that he might be growing to like this place more and more. Perhaps he wouldn’t sell it.

  One could always hope.

  “Hey, I didn’t think to ask.” She turned to look at him as he hooked his arms over the wood stall gate. Their faces were close—too close for her to concentrate on rational thoughts. “Why were you coming to find me in the first place?”

  He flashed those two dimples once again. And once again, there went her mind. Completely blank.

  “I wanted to take you out to dinner.”

  Allison jerked back. “Dinner? But…why?”

  Shaking his head, he laughed. “If you don’t know, then I’m really doing this wrong.”

  “Doing what?”

  “Asking you out. I was going to use the excuse that your kitchen is still torn up and you’re probably tired of sandwich
es and chips.” He smoothed a wayward curl from her forehead, tucking it behind her ear. “But I can’t lie to you. I’d like to take you out because you fascinate me and I want to get to know you.”

  Allison shot to her feet and went back outside to get Max. Once she’d led him back into his stall, she fed him a sugar cube and returned to the bench where Jake still waited for an answer. She didn’t sit, didn’t trust herself to.

  “We can’t go out,” she told him. “Why would we? I mean, you’re only here another month or two. It’s not like anything could come of a date.”

  In that slow, panther like way she’d come to appreciate from him, he got to his feet and closed the gap between them.

  “Tell me you haven’t thought about that kiss.” He ran his hands up over her fleece jacket and settled them on her shoulders as he stepped in closer. “Tell me when you think of it, you don’t start thinking beyond that kiss.”

  She looked him in the eye, knowing she could never lie to him. “I’ve thought of little else,” she conceded.

  “Good. I take comfort in knowing I wasn’t alone with the fantasy.”

  Her heart lurched, her belly tingled and every part of her wanted him to kiss her again. Oh, please, just one more time, to see if it was just as magical, just as toe curling.

  At the same time her heart soared with excitement, reality and common sense slapped her in the face.

  “I’m not naive enough to believe that you’re attracted to someone who smells like horses, someone whose dressiest outfit consists of jeans with no holes.”

  He ran a fingertip down her cheek. “Perhaps I’m attracted to the woman beneath all of that. And the fact that you aren’t all made up, you’re just…you, makes me even more attracted.”

  Jake stared into the eyes of the woman who’d seen more in her lifetime than she probably should’ve. And he had no doubt she was scarred so deep on the inside, she may never be able to let herself feel or love without hesitation and worry.