“Nice.” Landon held up his fist, and Paige bumped it with her own. “You take lessons?”
Paige brushed wet hair off her cheek. “My parents have a pond and we all had to certify as lifeguards. Plus, I have a couple of competitive older brothers, so we raced a lot.”
“Sweet.” Landon bobbed his head. “So, I wanted to start you in the pool because it’s low impact, and over the summer it will be cooler than running on blacktop. Plus, Trish said you were outdoorsy.” He quirked up one side of his mouth.
“What?” Paige asked.
“You aren’t what I had in mind.” His eyes skimmed over her massive amount of hair.
“I’m never what someone has in mind.” Paige shook her head. Just ask Cody.
***
Cody lifted the blinds so he could see the pool. That guy was still there. He’d woken up to the sound of Paige’s laughter. It was warm and inviting and had pulled Cody out of bed and to his window, where he saw Trish watching that guy strip off his shirt and dive into the pool. Trish left soon thereafter, and it was just Paige and that guy, which didn’t sit well at all with Cody. He’d assumed her trainer would be female and hadn’t worried about it.
He should have worried about it.
Cody checked his watch. 7:54 a.m. Shouldn’t they be almost done?
They didn’t look almost done. Not with the way the guy was standing much too close and holding Paige’s arm. Holding was a strong word; it appeared he was working on her backstroke technique.
Cody narrowed his eyes. Leaving Addison to sleep for a few more minutes, he jerked open his door and was poolside before he’d come up with a reasonable excuse for showing up. With Paige splashing across the pool, they didn’t notice his appearance.
Cody ran his hands through his hair. Why am I here? An irrational urge to protect what was his had overcome his brain and propelled him out the door. Cool it. Paige isn’t yours.
She’s my wife, and I promised Noah I would look out for her. Yeah—that sounded as good a reason as any other. And if he used that excuse, he wouldn’t have to dig for the real reason.
“Sorry,” Paige called from the other end of the pool. “Did we wake you?”
Cody looked down at his pajama bottoms and T-shirt. “No. I was up.”
“You woke me up.” Addison came out, rubbing her eyes.
Paige’s laugh bounced off the water.
“Sorry. We’ll be quieter next time,” said the guy.
Addison leaned into Cody’s leg.
“Cody, this is my trainer, Landon. Landon, this is Cody.” Paige pulled herself out of the pool, and Cody’s mind blanked out at the sight of her in a swimsuit. He should look away. He really should.
“Ah, the husband. Nice to meet you.” Landon held a dripping hand up for Cody to shake, drawing his attention away from Paige.
Cody shook Landon’s hand. “You too.”
Landon climbed the steps. “Don’t forget to do those stretches tonight, or you’ll be super sore in the morning.”
“I won’t. Thanks.” Paige wrapped up in a towel.
Cody watched for any sign that Paige was interested in Landon. She caught him staring, and he froze like a deer. This whole situation had him feeling like a doofus. He should have stayed inside, but he wanted to make sure Landon left.
“Here’s a basic outline for your workouts this week.” Landon handed Paige two laminated sheets of paper.
“Thanks.”
“I’ll see you later.”
“Sounds good.”
The gate automatically locked behind Paige’s trainer, and Cody felt the air whoosh out of his body. “What did he mean, he’ll see you later?”
Paige wrung out her hair. “I think he meant he’ll see me later.” She went to the back door, and Addison skipped to her side.
Suddenly, giving Paige the morning off seemed like a horrible idea. “Are you guys meeting up today?”
“No. Why?”
“He said later, so I thought …”
Paige looked at him and then looked a little deeper. She pressed her lips together, the corners of her mouth twitching like she wanted to smile. “I don’t expect to see him until next Thursday. We could meet at a gym if the noise is a problem.” A small smirk appeared for just a moment, and then it was gone again.
Cody rolled his shoulders. She could laugh all she wanted. There was no way he was going to let Landon out of his sights. “Here’s fine. If you need equipment, treadmills, weights, whatever, let me know and I’ll order it for the house.”
Paige quickly pressed her pointer finger to her lips. “Thanks,” she squeaked. “I’m going to get dressed.” She cleared her throat, twice, before she made it upstairs.
It’s not funny. Cody wanted to yell after her.
Addison went to the kitchen and pulled out a box of cereal. Cody watched her for a minute, feeling overwhelmed. Mean girls in dance class. Stories that drained him every night. And now he had to worry about his wife frolicking in the pool with a twenty-something personal trainer. He threw his arms in the air. My family is out of control.
His arms dropped, slapping against his sides. My family… Since when did we become a family?
Cody shook his head. They weren’t a family. Not a real one. Real families don’t plan to break up in a year. Yet he couldn’t deny the sense of belonging, home, and family that had followed Paige through the door. It was like she carried that stuff around in her pockets and sprinkled it like fairy dust.
A family. The feeling wasn’t new, but the label was. It would take a while for Cody to get used to it.
Chapter 25
Paige exited her shower and sighed at the disorderly state of her bedroom. The walls, now a beautiful Blue Lagoon green, looked darn good, even if she did say so herself. She’d moved the antiqued armoire right next to the bed so Addison could fit behind it to paint, and the dresser was smushed against the bottom of the bed. The garbage can, lamp, throw pillows, and dirty clothes basket were piled on the bed itself and covered with a thin plastic sheet. Blue tape outlined the ceiling, doors, and windows, and the place still smelled like paint. While she appreciated having primer and paint in one application, the fumes were a bit much. Once she got it put back together, it would be the room she always wanted.
It may have turned into the space TV shows were made of, but Paige couldn’t forget that it wasn’t hers. The dresser, the bed ... heck, even the paint would stay here when she left. An overwhelming need to be surrounded by familiar people and things rushed through Paige. Instead of sticking around Cody’s house and putting her room back together, she was going home.
Running product through her hair and throwing on an old pair of jeans and a T-shirt took no time at all. Paige stopped at the table on her way out to kiss Addison goodbye.
“You look happy. Headed to the barn?” asked Cody. He still hadn’t changed out of his pajamas.
Paige forced her eyes up from the flat stomach and muscular chest visible through his white T-shirt. “I’m going to camp.”
Addison perked up. “Camp?”
“Yep.” Paige found her purse by the fridge and slung it over her shoulder.
“Tell Noah I said hi.” Cody smiled.
“Me too!” chirped Addison.
“Will do.” Paige wiggled her fingers in a wave as she shut the glass doors.
Her truck rumbled to a start, bringing a smile to her face. The drive didn’t take nearly as long as Paige remembered, and pretty soon she pulled into her regular spot and set the brake. David lifted a hand in greeting, his other firmly holding a lead rope. The mare wasn’t familiar, and Paige jumped out to meet the new addition.
“Howdy, stranger,” said Matthew as he came out of the barn with a bucket of oats.
“Hi.”
The new horse heard the oats shift in the bucket and turned toward Matthew, her ears forward.
Paige slugged David in the shoulder and rubbed Matthew’s head by way of a proper greeting, making his hair stand up
.
“I’d return the favor, but then the neighbors would send the fire department over to put out your hair,” teased Matthew.
Paige laughed. “How are things going?”
“Not bad. This is Angel.”
“Hello, Angel.” Paige rubbed her neck, and Angel sidestepped, nervous about meeting someone new. “Where’d you get her?”
“Recycler.com,” said David.
Paige nodded, acknowledging the online classifieds for four-legged friends.
Matthew held the bucket under Angel’s nose. She dug in. “What are you doin’ here?” he asked.
“I had the morning off and thought I’d drop by. Where’s Mom and Dad?”
“They’re runnin’ errands.”
“You guys ready for camp to open next week?”
The boys shrugged.
Paige waited for an awkward minute. “It’s been good talkin’ with ya,” she said sarcastically.
Noah pulled in and laid on his horn, which didn’t have the same effect as if he had a real horn. The ahooga was cute, not demanding.
Paige waved.
“Get that sorry excuse for a truck out of my parking spot!” he yelled across the cab and through the open passenger seat.
“At least my truck has air conditioning,” Paige shot back.
Noah got out and slammed his door. “That’s about all she’s got, cuz we both know there’s no horsepower under that hood.”
Paige grinned and threw her arms around Noah’s neck. Arguing with Noah was as “at home” as she could get.
“If she’s huggin’ people, I’m outta here.” David took the bucket away from Angel, and she strained to follow him. Matthew let her have her way, and they headed out to the arena.
Noah let go, and Paige stepped back as he scrutinized her. “I’d like to say marriage agrees with you, but after that welcome I’m a little worried.”
Paige hugged herself. “Things are fine.”
“Fine? Just fine?”
Paige rolled her eyes. “Fine.”
“Come on. You can tell me all about it while I inventory tack.”
They made their way to the barn, and Noah took a clipboard off the nail by the door where they kept track of all the gear and recorded repairs.
Paige lifted herself to sit the counter and watched as Noah counted halters. Her feelings were all jumbled. “I don’t know where to start,” she admitted.
“Start with Addison.”
“She’s fantastic. I think she’s spent a lot of time with adults. She’s in this dance class and kind of keeps to herself, but when it’s just me and her, she’s so cute.”
“She’ll come around. You’ve seen that here plenty of times.”
“True. I wish I could bring her to camp for a week. She’d love it. You should see her with Buttons.”
Noah wrote something down and then smiled. “Remember that time you put a skirt on him?”
Paige chuckled. “That poor pony.”
“Kitty?” prompted Noah.
“Good. She’s healthy and happy.” Paige jolted. “Christopher agreed to help me train Annie May.”
“Christopher?”
Paige waved her hands. “I should start over. Do you remember Kylee Roberts?”
“She was Jacob’s age, wasn’t she?”
Paige nodded. “I think so. Anyway, that’s Addison’s mom!”
“No way!”
“Yes. So Christopher helped her get May June ready for the NFR.”
“Wait.” Noah held up his palm. “So you bought Cody’s horse before you married him?”
“I know. Crazy, right?”
“Yeah ... it kind of is.”
“Well, the reason he freaked out about the horses was because after Kylee died he couldn’t stand to have them around, because they reminded him of her.”
Noah grunted. “Where are they now?”
“They’re still at his place.” She waved her hands again. “But that’s not the point. So the other day I was brushing Buttons with Addison and she said something about her mom, and the next thing I know she tells me Cody doesn’t talk about Kylee—ever. And then suddenly Cody was there, and now they talk about her all the time.”
“Has he loosened up?”
Paige scowled.
Noah laughed. “That bad, huh?”
“No,” Paige denied. “Well, sort of.” She huffed. “He’s not bad. I think a lot of his stress that day was due to unresolved feelings about his wife’s death. He’s still got things to work through. I think he’s lonely.”
Noah’s eyes narrowed. “Why would you say that? Has he said so? Is he pushing himself on you?”
“Of course not!” Paige kicked her legs, all the looks, heated moments, and desires keeping her from holding still. “He just seems sad.”
“And you want to fix that?” Noah folded his arms.
“No! Yes. I mean. It’s not up to me to fix it. It’s up to Cody. But I’d be willing to help.” Paige’s face burned. “I mean, I feel like in just a few short days so much has happened. He’s not the same guy we thought he was.”
“How’s that, now?”
Paige ducked her head. “He’s protective. You should have seen him this morning when my trainer showed up. It was like having a bulldog standing over me.”
“You get a trainer?” Noah stroked his cheek.
“Yeah. BMB issued and approved. But that’s not the point.”
“Right. The point is, Cody was jealous.”
“Was not!” Paige tried to kick him.
But Noah danced out of the way. “Was too.”
Paige stuck out her tongue. Noah shook his head and went back to sorting tie-downs.
Could Cody be jealous? He certainly gave Landon the cold shoulder. And Paige had felt almost giddy after seeing him run Landon off. She’d certainly felt like she’d been accepted into Cody’s circle. Before then, Addison was the only one in there, but after this morning Paige had felt like she was part of the crew.
Paige chewed her bottom lip. Was Cody accepting her into his life as a friend, or did he have something else in mind?
Her phone chirped, and she dug it out of her pocket to check the text.
Coming home early, said Cody.
Paige hopped off the counter. “I’ve got to get back.”
“Anything wrong?”
“I don’t think so.” I really hope not. Paige stopped at the door. “For the record, my truck could out-pull yours any day.” She squealed and ducked as Noah threw a handful of rags at her. Smiling, she scrambled into her truck.
***
Cody turned onto his drive with a heavy heart. His attendance to dance class was a disaster, and now Addison sat in the back seat as quiet as a stone and about as lively. As soon as he shut off the engine, Addison bolted from the car and into the barn.
Wanting to make the situation better, to just fix his little girl’s heart, he went after her. He was halfway to the barn when Paige pulled up. Cody waited for her to join him. She was going to find out everything eventually, so she might as well find out from him instead of Addison.
“Hey, how was dance?”
Cody groaned. “Awful.”
“Oh no. What happened?”
Cody glanced at the barn. He longed to hold Addison close and figure out what had hurt her; however, Paige was much better at this sort of thing, and he needed her help. He needed her. When things had gone south, his only thought had been to get to Paige so she could make everything better. “I should never have gone down there.”
“Why?”
“It was like—” Cody stopped himself from saying “throwing a steak to a pack of hyenas,” because even though it was true, it sounded conceited. He settled for “There are just places men should not tread.”
Paige giggled. “I can only imagine.”
Cody failed to see how this was funny. “I felt like a creeper lurking in the hall outside a girls’ dance class. Half the moms glared me down and the other half sized
me up.”
Paige’s giggle changed into a snicker.
It was bad. Worse than Cody could explain. “Some woman named Faith propositioned me right there in front of Addison.”
“At least you got her name.” Paige laughed again.
Cody covered his eyes. “I know I said I was going to take Addison to lunch, but all I wanted to do was get home and hide out.”
Paige patted his arm comfortingly, although it did anything but calm Cody down. “Don’t worry, you’re safe now,” she cooed.
“I’m glad you find this funny.”
“I do. I really do.” Paige grinned. “That’s what you get for going all Neanderthal on us.”
Cody liked the way she used the word us, like she and Addison were a team and maybe he could be on that team too. Her laughter was lifting the dark clouds that had followed him home. Cody bumped her shoulder, a smile tugging at his mouth. “Neanderthal?”
She shoved him back. “Me Cody. Me protect girl. Ug.”
“I was not like that,” he protested with a grin.
Paige poked his arm. “You were. You were practically oozing testosterone when I left. Those women didn’t stand a chance.”
Cody cocked his head to the side. “I have to be extra manly; I’m outnumbered here—two to one.”
“Poor thing.” Paige patted his cheek.
Perhaps it was the Neanderthal within that caused Cody to grab her hand and press it against his skin. The laughter in Paige’s eyes changed to something mysterious and mischievous. Her fingers rubbed his skin once before spreading apart and sliding into his hair. Cody’s eyes fell shut as he soaked in the pleasure of a gentle caress.
After Faith had shimmied up to him and brushed her chest against his arm, Cody felt dirty and used. Nothing in what had transpired between him and Paige brought about those feelings. In fact, she rejuvenated him. Dang it all if being near her didn’t feel … right … proper … decent … desirable ...
Paige’s hand brushed his neck before coming to rest on his chest. Cody opened his eyes and found that his arms had encircled her waist. Her body fit naturally against his—so naturally that he hadn’t consciously noticed that he’d pulled her in, and he was having a hard time remembering how they’d gotten in this situation.
The Country Bride: Billionaire Marriage Brokers Book 4 Page 17
