“I guess I can understand that,” he said, “and I’ve been making things worse.”
Jordan looked at him sympathetically. “One of the hardest things about being a parent is learning to be patient.”
Drew snorted. “I still have a lot of learning to do,” he said. “I’ve only been a father for two days, and I’ve made a mess of it.”
She studied him for a minute, then said, “So you’ve only known about Alex for two days?”
He nodded. “His mother showed up with him the night before last, told me he was mine, then left for Denver,” he said, wincing at how pathetic he sounded.
“Was she an old girlfriend?” she asked, and he was almost sure he heard a hint of jealousy in her voice.
“It was the summer before I left for the army,” he said. “I didn’t think it was anything permanent, and then she started talking about marriage. I freaked out and broke up with her on the day I left; she said she never wanted to speak to me again, and I never heard from her, so I assumed she’d kept her promise.”
“But Alex said she wrote you letters; he said he saw them,” she said, needing to be sure he wasn’t lying.
Drew shook his head. “I never saw those letters,” he said. “I’ve been thinking it about it ever since he said that, and I think I figured it out. Almost as soon as I got to boot camp, they separated me from the rest of the recruits and sent me to a special unit, a secret unit of shifters.”
“And they sent all your mail back to where it came from,” Jordan said.
Drew nodded. “I didn’t have any family left by then, so there was no one except my friends here in Leadville, so I never questioned it when they told me that was going to happen. How could I have known?”
“You’ve been out of the army for a while; didn’t she look for you ever again?” Jordan asked, and his heart lifted a little that she was taking his side, something not even Nick had done.
“It all happened so fast, I didn’t get to ask her very many questions,” he said. “I’m not sure I could even get a hold of her now if I needed to.”
Jordan frowned. “That doesn’t sound like most mothers I know,” she said, again taking his side.
“She’s raised him alone all these years. I guess she needed a break, but she said she’d be back in the fall,” he said, wondering why he was defending Sharon.
“Well, then you have all summer to get to know your son,” she said, getting to her feet and dusting off her butt.
For the first time since Alex had shown up on his doorstep, he felt a glimmer of hope. But the feeling was quickly replaced by desire when Jordan stretched her arms up over her head, making the fabric of her shirt stretch even tighter across her chest. When she brought her arms down, leaned over, and arched her back like a cat, then thrust her butt up in the air, he gasped and stumbled back a few steps.
Jordan, surprised by his abrupt movement, stood up too fast, and if he hadn’t already been reaching for her, she would have tumbled into the stream when her foot slipped on the rock. He pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly until they’d regained their balance, then continued to hold her. When she looked up at him, he couldn’t stop himself from lowering his head and kissing her.
She resisted at first, her hands pushing weakly against his chest, then opened her mouth with a sigh and wrapped her arms around his neck. Fireworks exploded around him as he kissed her, tasted her as a starving man would his first meal. He kissed her like he’d never kissed another woman, each thrust of his tongue making her moan as the passion between them flared to life.
He felt himself sinking deeper into something that might be impossible to control, but ignored the feeling, unable to stop kissing Jordan. But then she came to her senses and pushed him away, breaking the kiss as abruptly as it had started. She stood staring at him, her chest rising and falling, her eyes full of passion, and he was tempted to pull her into his arms again.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” she said, turning away from him and starting for her horse.
He followed her, still trying to get his body under control. “Why not? You liked it just as much as I did.”
She turned on him then, and he knew that he’d made a mistake. “I’m not the kind of woman you’re used to, Drew; I don’t want the same things you do.”
He’d been expecting anger, but what he saw instead was disappointment. Her words still stung. “And exactly what kind of woman do you think I’m used to?” he asked, anger beginning to build.
Jordan sighed. “I’ve heard the stories, Drew, everyone has. I’m not the kind of woman who will be happy with a few weeks, or if I’m lucky, a few months of your time. You’re just not the kind of man who’ll ever be happy with one woman and I don’t want to be one of the ones you leave behind.”
Drew was so shocked by her words and the truth in them that he didn’t even argue with her. “I guess we should be getting home,” he said, leading the way to their horses.
***Jordan***
Jordan wasn’t sure who she was more disappointed in: Drew for making her start to believe that he wasn’t just a playboy, or herself for letting him kiss her like that. For a few minutes, she’d actually felt terrible for Drew, felt a connection that had nothing to do with her physical attraction to him. But then he’d kissed her, and the passion between them had erupted so quickly that it had taken her by surprise, creating a need so primal, it was impossible to pull away from him.
She shivered when she thought about where that kiss could have led if she hadn’t suddenly remembered who she was kissing and pulled away. Now, Drew was hurt and mad, riding as far in front of her as he could, silently fuming. His anger told her one thing for certain: Drew was a man used to getting what he wanted, and she couldn’t help but smile when she realized that she was the first woman who hadn’t fallen victim to his charms.
That thought got her through the ride home, and the long, uncomfortable silence while they unsaddled and cared for the horses. But by the time she walked into her cabin, she was more than ready for some time alone, a quiet dinner, and a long soak in the tub. When she finally sank into bed that night and closed her eyes, she was asleep almost instantly, but Drew soon found his way into her dreams.
That night, she relived the kiss in a series of dreams that left her slightly aroused and embarrassed when she woke the next morning. Knowing that she was going to have to face the star of those dreams in only a few hours, she made breakfast, cleaned her cabin, then took a shower. All the while telling herself that she didn’t want anything to do with a man like Drew, especially with all the problems he had.
She’d seen a softer side of Drew, and hopefully, that side would find a way to connect with Alex, but it wasn’t her job to make that happen. Feeling a weight lifted off her shoulders, she headed for the barn, determined to concentrate on her job, and keep both Drew and Alex at arm’s length. If she were lucky, Drew would already be gone on a ride, and she wouldn’t have to see him for a few more hours.
It was clear that she wasn’t lucky long before she got to the barn; she couldn’t even see the barn when she heard Alex shout, “I’m not going riding with you. I already told you that.”
“You can’t just sit here every day doing nothing,” Drew shouted back at him.
“I haven’t been doing nothing. I’ve been helping Jordan,” Alex shot back at him, his face full of adolescent rage.
Sighing because she could see that there was no way she couldn’t get involved, she walked a little faster, listening to the argument escalate. Just as she stepped between them, Drew shouted, “You’re going on the ride even if you have to walk.”
“What’s going on here?” she asked just as Alex opened his mouth, cutting off whatever he planned to say.
“He’s trying to make me ride a horse,” Alex said, pointing at Drew. “I keep telling him I don’t want to, but he just won’t listen.”
“He can’t spend the summer here and not ride,” Drew said, crossing his arms over his ches
t. “I have to be gone for days at a time, and he can’t stay home alone.”
Alex’s face turned cloudy. “I’m twelve years old, I can take care of myself,” he said, copying his father’s stance.
“You’re not staying here alone,” Drew said, his voice dead calm. “We’re going on this trail ride; it’s up to you whether you go on horseback or by foot, but you’re going.”
Alex stared at Drew for a second, then said, “You can’t make me.”
The look on Drew’s face told her all she needed to know: a war was coming, and there wouldn’t be any winners. “I’ll go with you,” she said, wondering where the words had come from but knowing it was the only option she had. “Would that help?”
Alex looked relieved. “I guess maybe that would be okay,” he said. “But I’m still not riding.”
Drew didn’t look happy but forced a tight smile. “The more, the merrier,” he said, then turned and stalked off into the barn.
Jordan watched him walk away, wondering what had caused this latest eruption between father and son. Alex had already slunk over to his tree, video game in hand, but she knew from his hunched shoulders that he was trying not to cry. Not sure which one to start with, she stood in the middle of the barnyard, then finally headed into the barn.
When she found Drew in the tack room, she asked, “What happened this morning?”
Drew shrugged. “I lost my patience, but it’s not my fault. Alex just kept pushing and pushing. He’s going to have to learn to trust me, and fast, because I’m getting tired of fighting with him.”
“So, you’re making him go on a trail ride?” she asked, trying to find the logic in what he was doing. “You’re hoping that he’d be forced to trust you out there.”
“I know it probably sounds like a stupid idea to you, but it’s all I’ve got,” Drew said, showing that side of himself that scared her the most.
“Just be careful forcing him to do things he doesn’t want to do,” she said, thinking of her father. “I know how that feels, and it never builds trust; in fact, it sometimes leads to a kind of hatred.”
Drew looked over at her, a curious look on his face, and she knew that she’d said too much. “So, when do we leave?” she asked, trying to change the subject.
He looked like he wasn’t going to let it go for a second, but then said, “Tomorrow morning, first thing. I want to go farther up the trail we were on yesterday; it’ll take us three or four days.”
Jordan looked at him in shock. “Are you really going to make Alex hike for three days?”
“If that’s what it takes, but we’ll bring a horse for him just in case,” he said. “Are you sure you want to go?”
Chapter Ten
***Drew***
Drew wasn’t sure what he wanted the answer to be when he issued the question and didn’t realize that he’d been holding his breath until Jordan said, “I’m afraid if you two go alone, you’ll kill each other, so I guess I’m in.”
He let his breath out in a whoosh as a thrill rushed through him and memories of the kiss from the day before bombarded him. The tightening in his groin told him that this was a mistake, but the truth was, he was afraid to be alone with his son, afraid that he’d do more damage than he’d already done.
No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn’t seem to make Alex understand that he was doing his best, that it wasn’t his fault that he’d been gone for so long. He hoped that out on the trail, they’d find some common ground, that they’d find something to bond them together; if they couldn’t, it was going to be a long summer.
It hadn’t occurred to him to bring Jordan with them; in fact, he’d been looking forward to some time away from her to cool his desire for her. But now that she was going, he felt a huge sense of relief to have her there as a buffer between them, and it would give him a chance to see just how capable she was in the wilderness. He still had his doubts about her survival skills, but she was good with kids. Nick had been right about that.
Knowing that he’d have to fight his desire, something he wasn’t very good at, he took a deep breath and let it out slowly, wondering how his life had become so complicated. “We’ve got a lot of work to do before we leave tomorrow. I have no idea what’s in the equipment barn, but if it’s anything like what was in the tack room, it won’t be good,” he said, heading around the barn.
“Equipment?” Jordan asked, following along behind him.
“You know, the tents and sleeping bags, lanterns and cookstoves, that kind of stuff,” Drew said, shooting her a curious look again. “You have been camping before, haven’t you?”
Jordan had only been camping once, and it had been more like glamping; they’d slept in beds and eaten meals prepared by a chef. “Of course I have,” she said, thinking it was only half a lie.
When he opened the door to the equipment barn, they were greeted by a cloud of dust and the smell of the creatures that had found a home there. Jordan stepped back, fanning her hand in front of her face. “Something smells terrible,” she said.
“Smells like something found its way in and has been making this home for a little while,” he said, stepping into the darkness.
“Yeah, and I’m not evicting it,” Jordan said, stepping away from the door.
Drew looked over at her and grinned. “Chicken?”
“Nope,” she said, “just smart.”
Drew took a few more steps into the barn, then poked his head back out the door and took a deep breath of fresh air. “You might be right about that,” he said, then stepped back inside.
It was dark inside the barn, and the equipment had been piled up so haphazardly that it was impossible to tell what was really inside. But from the smell, he knew that he’d find a raccoon somewhere in all the mess and wasn’t looking forward to getting rid of it. Raccoons were fierce little creatures with sharp teeth capable of doing some nasty damage, especially if it was a female with kits, but he was pretty sure this was a male.
He could have shifted and ejected the animal easily, but that seemed like a colossal waste of energy, so instead, he carefully began sifting through the sleeping bags piled on the floor until he found what he was looking for. The little animal had made a nest in the very bottom of the pile, and as soon as it was uncovered, it stood up on its hind legs and began hissing at him.
Grabbing a tent pole, he called out, “Watch out,” then began poking at the raccoon.
It bit at the pole, then realized Drew had the upper hand and began scrambling behind the shelves, knocking them over and blocking his path. He made it to the door just in time to see the raccoon stop running, rise up on its hind legs, and hiss at Jordan, making her scream, then it disappeared into the forest.
He couldn’t help but laugh as Jordan stood staring at where the raccoon had disappeared, her hand on her chest. She turned and glared at him. “You could have at least told me what to expect,” she said.
“Sorry,” he said, trying to stop laughing. “It all just happened so fast.”
“Is there anything else in there?” she asked, peering past the door.
Drew shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t think so, but we’ll still have to be careful. Snakes like places like this too.”
Jordan’s eyes got big. “Snakes?”
He burst out laughing again. “No, I was just kidding.”
She slapped him on the arm, then said, “I’m not going in there until it’s all cleaned out. I’ll just stay out here while you bring everything out.”
Drew shrugged his shoulders. “It was worth it,” he said, grinned at her, and went back into the little barn.
He was almost disappointed not to find anything else living in the barn, but all he found were some ancient and worn equipment, sleeping bags with holes, and tents with broken poles and mildew damage. Standing in front of the barn looking at the pile of garbage that was much larger than the salvageable items, he felt a little discouraged.
“We’re going to need a bunch of new equipment, and fast
; most of this is garbage,” he said. “I’ll call Nick right after lunch and let him know; he’s not going to be very happy.”
***Jordan***
Jordan wasn’t sure how she’d gotten suckered into washing the sleeping bags, but she was sitting in the laundry room watching the washer spin and wondering how she was going to pull off three days in the mountains without giving away the fact that she had no idea what she was doing. She’d been searching the internet looking for anything that might help her, and after watching three videos on how to start a fire, she knew that she was in trouble.
When Drew and Alex had been getting ready to head back to the barn after lunch, Drew said, “We’ll need some food and cooking utensils; you should be able to get everything you need from the kitchen. I’ll leave the menu up to you, but we should be able to catch some fish along the way, so I wouldn’t worry too much about bringing a lot of food.”
She’d stood staring at him, her mind blank. “Oh, umm, okay. I guess I can take care of that too.”
He’d looked at her suspiciously, then left the laundry room. Now she had no idea what she needed, and nowhere to turn, so she started another search hoping the internet would come to her rescue. When she heard the laundry room door open, she slammed the borrowed laptop shut and set it on the table, afraid that Drew had come back. But it wasn’t Drew; it was a woman she recognized from the barbecue.
“Oh, hi,” the woman said, a bit surprised to see her. “Jordan, right?”
She nodded. “Yes, but I’m sorry, I can’t remember your name,” she said, embarrassed.
The woman waved her hand in the air. “That’s okay, you probably met a lot of people that night. I’m Molly; I run the cleaning crew up here.”
“I hope you don’t mind, but I borrowed the washers to clean some sleeping bags,” Jordan said.
Mountain Wolf Playboy (Daddy Wolves 0f The Wild Series Book 3) Page 6
