by Tina Leonard
She giggled. “I can’t. Eventually I have to feed the children.”
He looked at her in alarm. “Where are they?”
“Shh,” she said, kissing his mouth. “They’re at Olivia’s playing with Minnie and Kenny. You’re totally safe.”
Until she moved again, and then he felt in grave danger of climaxing before he pleased her. He buried his face in her breasts, feeling her all around him, the most wonderful sensation he could ever imagine. He let her move him the way she liked best, and when she climaxed, he rolled her over so that she lay beneath him.
“I love your eyes,” he said, watching her enjoy their lovemaking as he moved inside her more deeply. “They tell me everything you’re thinking.”
Right now she was thinking he was magic, so he showed her exactly what real magic was, bringing her to a second climax, this one loud enough to startle a pheasant from a nearby patch of grass.
“Wow,” he said, biting at her neck, “here I thought you were such a quiet girl.”
“Maybe.” She crossed her legs over his back, sinking him deep inside her. He gasped, then tensed, his whole body bucking beyond his control. When his climax hit, it took his breath so that he collapsed against Esme, his body shaking.
“Wow,” Esme said, her voice a giggle in his ear. “You made mine sound insignificant. Let’s do this every day.”
He groaned against her neck, wanting to be hard immediately. “I will if you will.”
“Picnic lunch?”
“Absolutely,” he said. “This is a big ranch, and we can picnic in every square inch of it.” Raising up on an arm, he looked down into her face. “Except we can’t once you start working.”
“Then you can bring lunch to me,” she said.
He was feeling himself get hard inside her again. “Tell me more about these working lunches,” he said. “Isn’t it too soon after moving here for you to go to work?”
“How else will I earn money? Besides, I’m excited about teaching.”
He looked at the wild gypsy beneath him, knowing he was never going to tame her. “Could you at least discuss your plans with me ahead of time?”
“No,” Esme said.
He put a palm around one of her breasts, squeezing the nipple lightly.
“Maybe,” she said. “If you try not to be so bossy.”
“But I am bossy.” He moved inside her, suddenly realizing she was an itch he might not ever fully scratch.
“Last,” Esme said. “I have to go.”
He didn’t want her to. “Why?”
“My kids. And this condom is pretty shot, I’m certain. As little as I know about condoms, I think they may only be good for one time.”
Reluctantly, he agreed. “Next picnic, bring two.”
She scrambled up from the ground, sweeping her hair away from her face. “I was only supposed to bring you a bandage. Don’t complain.”
“I intend to thank Calhoun for sending you.” Last watched her pack up her picnic basket with interest. “Hey, I didn’t get any of that.”
“Oh. This is for the children,” she said, picking up the umbrella as she rose to her feet. “You can bring the blanket back. Goodbye!”
She left, her white eyelet skirt billowing around her legs. Every part of his body was happy, except perhaps his heart.
She was definitely testing his vow to stay a single father forever. It was clear that she was a forgiving, understanding, hot-blooded creature…and yet he knew she’d been honest about there being no possible future between them.
He should be devoting most of his time and energies toward his relationship with his daughter anyway. He should just enjoy the sex—with proper precautions, he thought, looking at the clouds floating overhead like free spirits.
But for some reason, he had the nagging feeling that his best bet for happiness would be to earn a place in Esme’s heart.
“IT’S GOOD TO SEE YOU, Mr. Jefferson,” Principal Carrol said.
Last stopped himself from wringing the cowboy hat he held in his hands. Something about Principal Carrol had always made him nervous, from kindergarten through graduation. He wasn’t certain why. She had such kindly eyes and an even gentler demeanor.
“What can I do for you?” she asked. “Your daughter won’t be coming to school here for a few more years.”
He nodded. “Yes. That’s right. But I believe a friend of mine applied for a job here. Esmerelda Hastings.”
Mrs. Carrol smiled. “Quite fortunate we are to have her knowledge and experience in our country high school. She will be an asset.”
The urge to squirm was strong. He knew well his reputation and that of his brothers. Yet if anything, Esme had shown him that lives were not irreversible. “I wonder if my skills would be an asset as well.”
Mrs. Carrol looked over her glasses at him. “Yours?”
“As a teacher,” he said. “I realize that only two languages are taught here for the students of Union Junction, French and Spanish. Our father was very big on our education—”
“We are aware that you boys were in school for the social and entertainment value,” Mrs. Carrol said with a wink. “Though we take some credit for the fact that you eventually turned out to be contributing members of society.”
“Well, that’s just it,” Last said. “I haven’t really contributed.”
Mrs. Carrol nodded. “Of all the Jeffersons, you’d be the one I’d be most pleased to have here as a teacher.”
“Really?” Last was surprised. “I always felt I was in eleven shadows.”
“You were. But you were by far the best student. Much more intent. Weren’t you called the family philosopher?”
“Yes, but my brothers weren’t being complimentary,” Last said.
“You didn’t throw yourself into mischief with the same enthusiasm that they and Mimi did,” Mrs. Carrol said with a smile.
“But I was no saint.”
“No,” she said, “but you seemed to only half-heartedly try to keep up the family reputation. Frankly I estimated you to be the brother who went the farthest in life.”
His brows rose. “No one has ever said that to me before.”
She smiled. “Sometimes you have to ask a teacher to get a correct answer.”
He took a deep breath. “I really would like to teach here, if you could use me.”
“Last, you received an education most people will never receive outside of a private academy. I am certain the school would benefit from Latin courses—”
“College preparatory,” he inserted. “Serious, college-bound students.”
She nodded. “Understood. I will put the topic in front of the school board and let them vote.”
“I don’t need compensation,” Last said. “It’s time I gave something back, and this would be a labor of my heart.”
“You’ll have to get your certification. Other than that, I can’t see anything standing in your way.” She hesitated for a moment. “Latin teachers are not easy to find, particularly good ones. I presume you know you could most likely get a job at a university or a community college and do far better than here in Union Junction.”
“Maybe,” Last said, “but this is my town.”
“And Miss Hastings will be here.”
He shook his head. “She gave me the idea—and maybe the realization of what I needed in my life—but Miss Hastings and I are not destined for the altar.”
She shrugged. “I did wonder, as you brought her here. Confidentially, the math teacher was asking about her…marital status.”
Tickling started up the back of Last’s scalp. “Single. And likely to stay that way, from what I know.”
“I was curious as to what made you bring Miss Hastings with you. It’s far for her to travel, isn’t it?” She checked some paperwork in front of her. “All of her credentials are sterling. Recommendations from college professors mostly, from Harvard.”
He stared at his old principal. “Harvard?”
She nodded. “Y
es. Born in Britain, graduated from Harvard.”
“Not…ringmasters or lion tamers? Magician types?”
Mrs. Carrol laughed. “Not as far as any paperwork indicates—and we are quite thorough for the protection of our students. I can’t say any more about Miss Hastings than I have. I thought you knew her.”
He sat silently, his heart beating. “I thought I did,” he said, “but I believe it was a famous philosopher who once said that cow patties fall quickly when dropped on slow boots.”
“That was not a famous philosopher,” she said with a grin. “It was your father.”
“I’m going to spank Ms. Hastings,” Last said.
“Oh, my,” Mrs. Carrol said. She hid a smile behind her hand. “Do we have another Mimi Cannady living in Union Junction?”
Last got up to leave. “Expect my résumé soon and my certification as fast as I am eligible. I am quite serious about undertaking this venture.”
“Your father was one of the smartest men I ever met,” she said. “And you were one of my very best students, by far the best of the Jeffersons. You just needed some seasoning, which it appears you have received. I’ll be waiting for you to join the staff of Union Junction High School and I’ll consider a full-fledged Latin department a feather in our cap.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Carrol,” he said, clapping his hat firmly on his head.
“Light on the spanking,” she murmured. “That is our new English lit and grammar teacher.”
He shook his head, almost too irritated with Esme to cap his temper.
She had not been honest. And if she couldn’t be honest about who she was, then he didn’t intend to waste another second with her.
In fact, he considered himself much better off without her. Born in Britain? Educated at Harvard?
It explained a lot about her, most particularly the Mary Poppins behavior.
“Oh,” he said out loud. “Of course. Poppy. Mary Poppins. The prim, proper British governess who loved to fly and take care of children and consorted with chimney sweeps with gymnastic ability, but who never stayed in one place very long. Just great. Dummy,” he told himself.
Mason had been right. Esme—Miss Poppy—was not to be trusted. It had been much safer to live the cliché he’d been living before he’d met her.
Emotionally scarred and distrusting was so much safer than stupidly in lust.
He felt betrayed. Valentine had deceived him, too, but in a sort of after-the-fact manner, and he hadn’t been falling for her. He hadn’t even remembered her.
Perhaps that was why Esme hurt him so much more: she was deceiving him while stealing his heart.
Chapter Seven
Esme had known from the moment she’d driven into town, with its endless land and lush vitality, that she’d come to a wonderful place where time had slowed down. The children could be children here, and she could settle down. The land spoke to her in a way she’d never experienced before, and she was ready to listen.
Then there was Last, who was determined to talk her into giving over her heart.
She was almost ready to listen to him, too.
The children were sitting in chairs at the Union Junction salon, being attended by a covey of hair-dressers, while Esme looked on. It had been a long time since either child’s hair had seen a pair of scissors, and apparently it was rare that these ladies got to work with children. Everyone was enjoying the experience.
Esme decided small-town life was heaven for her and her small family.
“Beatrice, Daisy, Gretchen, Jessica, Mamie, Tisha, Velvet and Violet. That’s our gang,” Lily Johnston, née Bartholomew, said, sweeping her hand around the room.
“Last said there were a lot of you.” She accepted a lemonade from Lily and smiled.
Daisy came and sat next to her. “So what about Mr. Jefferson?”
“Meaning?” Esme hedged, realizing she was in for a bit of well-meaning gossip.
“Is he behaving?”
The girls giggled. Esme felt herself blush. “He’s very kind to the children and very nice to me. I can’t say that he’s been anything but a gentleman.”
The stylists nodded.
“Has he taken you to Lonely Hearts Station yet?” Gretchen asked.
“Or to Barmaid’s Creek?” Velvet asked.
“Shh,” Tisha said. “Velvet! Really!”
“Barmaid’s Creek?” Esme repeated uncomfortably.
“Don’t let them tease you,” Lily said. “It’s just a watering hole folks sometimes like to swim in.”
“Skinny dip,” Mamie said. “And romance beside.”
“No.” Esme shook her head. “He has not taken me to Barmaid’s Creek.”
“We all used to live in Lonely Hearts Station,” Lily explained. “With Delilah Honeycutt, who ran a salon there. She’s since moved out this way.”
“Two salons?” Esme asked.
“No, Delilah is doing something different now, after Valentine accidentally set Delilah’s kitchen on fire,” Lily said. “That was what made Delilah reevaluate what she wanted to do. Fortunately there are lots of places in Union Junction for her to choose from. They just need renovating and a bit of love and then they’d be quite homey.”
Esme sat up. “That is exactly what I’m looking for. I need to find a house that I can turn into a home.”
Every stylist’s ear seemed to prick up at that.
“Really?” Lily said. “Aren’t you happy at Malfunction Junction?”
Esme nodded. “It’s very nice. But I have parents I want to move down here, and my children need a place of their own. I do, too. We can’t live off the Jeffersons’ generosity forever.”
“Oh.” Lily nodded. “I guess I’d feel the same way.”
“If you and Last aren’t an item,” Beatrice said, “which we all assumed you were.”
The women turned to stare at Beatrice.
“What?” Beatrice said. “We do think that.”
“Not everything needs to be said,” Jessica told her, “especially with c-h-i-l-d-r-e-n in the room.”
Fully capable of deciphering that, Curtis and Amelia gazed in the mirror at their aunt. Esme wondered how to reply to such a sticky question. “Last is a nice man,” she said, “but the children and I are a family.”
Lily looked at her with sympathy. “Honey, I apologize. It’s really none of our business.”
“It’s all right,” Esme said, wanting to settle what appeared to be on everyone’s mind. “Actually the children and I still have issues that need to be resolved back in California before we can settle here. I’m certainly planning to return here, but we won’t know for sure for a couple more weeks.”
“Heard you’re going to be the new schoolteacher up at the high school,” Gretchen said. “The principal was fairly singing over having you on her staff.”
“I’m glad.” Esme smiled. “I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it all works out. The children are anxious to start school here in the fall.”
“No more prying, girls,” Lily said. “Can I do your hair for you, Esme? A little treat by way of welcome to Union Junction?”
“I don’t know,” Esme murmured, tempted and yet uncertain.
“You’ll be happy you let her,” Violet said. “Lily’s pretty good with a wig.”
“This is my hair,” Esme said.
The ladies laughed.
“They know.” Lily got up. “Come with me.”
It had been a long time since she’d had time to do her hair or nails. Esme looked with longing at the stylist’s chair in the warm and friendly salon, and her heart gave in to temptation. “Thank you. I’d like that.”
Once in Lily’s chair, Esme was surprised by how her cares seemed to wash away in the bowl as Lily sudsed her. It was such a luxurious feeling!
“Be careful of Last,” Lily said with a smile. “The gals have their eyes on the final Jefferson.”
“I guessed,” Esme said.
“Of course, if he’d been interested, he w
ould have been in here a long time ago,” Lily pointed out. “No Jefferson has been shy about going after what he wanted once he saw it.”
Esme was too relaxed to worry about jealousy. “I think Last has adventure on his mind more than women.” She couldn’t even explain how he felt about her. Sometimes she was certain he liked her; other times she felt herself aching as she wondered what was really between them.
The uncertainty wasn’t healthy for her or for the children. “I figure it’s best if I go my way and plan my family’s lives,” Esme said. “Truthfully I think Last still has a lot of adventuring left in him.”
Lily sat her up, putting a fluffy towel on Esme’s head. “It’s best not to wait on any man.”
“That’s what I believe, too. I had several offers for marriage before I came out here, but Last only offered me a home for my children.” The truth was a bit painful, but it hadn’t failed to escape Esme that since they’d made love in the field Last hadn’t come around to see her.
“I heard he applied at the high school, too,” Lily said.
“What?” Esme stared at Lily in the mirror.
Lily nodded. “Yes. Mrs. Carrol was in here yesterday crowing about landing Last for a Latin department.”
Esme’s eyes widened. “That’s wonderful!”
“Between the two of you, the high school is really going to be top-notch. We’re all very grateful.”
Esme didn’t want to reveal that everything hinged on whether the judge agreed that Union Junction was the best place for the children. Day and night, she worried about the problem, and her gut always seemed tight with anxiety.
It really wasn’t time for her to bring a man into the picture, she thought guiltily, unless she married him.
She and Last had only joked about marriage. It had never been a serious topic.
“So when a Jefferson male decides he wants a woman, does he romance her for a long time?” Esme asked curiously.
