by Candis Terry
He scoffed. “Haven’t you ever heard not to judge a book by its cover?”
“Yes. And it’s a good thing I don’t because you would not fare well, my friend.”
Brows slammed together, he turned his head and speared her with a glare. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Uh-oh. She hadn’t meant to rattle the tiger’s cage. Time to change tactics. “Why do you think we argue all the time?” she asked, truly unsure why it always seemed like he was a walking firebomb, and she was a match.
“I wouldn’t exactly call it arguing.” He pulled the truck into the lot of the Sweet Reprieve Animal Rescue Center and parked near the door.
“Seriously?” She unbuckled her seat belt while he did the same. “Because from where I’m sitting, it seems we can never agree on anything.”
She let go a surprised squeak as his big hand reached out, clasped her by the waist, and dragged her across the bench seat until their thighs were pressed together.
“Then how’s the view look from over here?” A hard-to-resist smile lit up his blue eyes.
“I’m not sure.” She tried to keep a giggle from escaping, but was unsuccessful.
“Ah. Now I see the real problem.”
“Which is?”
“It’s not the view,” he said, as his eyes fell to her lips, then climbed slowly back up to her eyes. “It’s that mouth. It has far too much time to wreak havoc.”
“Jake, I—”
Annie wasn’t a woman who liked to have what she was about to say interrupted. But when he leaned in, curled his long fingers at the nape of her neck, and pressed his lips against hers? Well, she wouldn’t mind being sidetracked like that every day of the week.
He kept the kiss sweet—for about a split second. Then he traced the seam of her lips with his tongue, and she opened to let him in. His tongue slicked against hers, enticing her to join in and play. Jake had been a bit of a hell-raiser most of his life, and when he kissed, it came with a Molotov-cocktail blast of heat and passion.
Had they not been in a truck in a public parking lot in broad daylight with her one-year-old in the backseat, she might very well have torn off Jake’s faded gray Marine Corps T-shirt and let her hands have a field day over all that tight skin and hard muscle.
“Geeeeee!” Max let out a gleeful shout that reminded them they weren’t alone.
Jake didn’t jump. Didn’t back away quickly as though he’d been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Nope. That wouldn’t be his style. What he did do was barely lean his head back and look her in the eye as he swept his thumb across her moist bottom lip.
“Don’t count that as being saved by the bell,” he said. “Or in this case, a squealing baby.”
“Then what do I count it as?”
His gaze searched her face. “A promise.”
“Of?”
He gave her a sly look, opened the truck door, and held out his hand. When she slid across the seat he was right there, with his big body blocking the way from her actually getting out.
“Let’s go find that dog you’re so hell-bent on me getting,” he said.
“Me?” She pointed to herself and received a nod for her efforts.
The only thing she was currently hell-bent on was bringing his lips back down to hers to finish where they’d left off. What she got instead was a gentle push toward the backseat of the truck to retrieve her squirming little boy.
“Maybe I’m not interested in what you’re promising,” she said.
“You’re interested.” His chuckle of male confidence sent a skitter of lusty anticipation through her chest.
Yeah. She was totally interested.
“You should probably have had your head checked while you were in that hospital.” She reached for the door, but his big hand covered hers, and he used it to reel her in.
“My head—in that direction—is just fine.” He moved in close. His broad, muscular chest pressed against her breasts, and her heart reacted with a hearty kick. “And you’ve got too much fire stored up for me to just walk away and let it go.”
Annie took a breath. A long, stuttering breath. He smelled so damn good, like a woodsy forest, clean cotton, and warm, virile male.
He dipped his nose to the side of her throat, and his warm breath tickled her skin, her senses. All those long-ignored womanly parts deep down low were perking up. Raising their attention toward the first sign of possible activity in almost two years.
“So . . .” He lifted his head and tucked his fingers beneath her chin. “What do you say we just light the fuse and blow all this sexual tension to hell?”
There were moments in her life she wasn’t proud of. Moments where she’d like a “do-over” to erase her bad decisions or embarrassing displays of jumping off a cliff without looking where she’d land. But the moment she realized Jake was engaged in whatever this was between them made her want to jump up and do the “Tequila” dance.
“Hmmm.” She slipped out from his arms, opened the truck door, and hurriedly took wiggling Max from his car seat. Then she gave Jake’s chest a little pat. “I’ve blown many things in my life, Jake. This won’t be one of them.”
The grin dropped from Jake’s face.
Damn.
He’d done it again. Kissed her like there was no tomorrow and still wanted more. He had to get a handle on this Annie thing. Find something about her that turned him off so he wouldn’t be so tempted to press his lips against hers over and over.
He watched her walk toward the entrance of the rescue center in her short light blue dress and boots. Nope. That wasn’t going to turn him off anytime soon. And she smelled so damned good, he wasn’t going to get any help in that department either. Plus, she tasted as sweet as a ripe strawberry. And everyone knew strawberries were his favorite.
Damn.
He was officially screwed.
And what the hell had she meant anyway?
He knew she was interested. That hadn’t been his first kiss. Wouldn’t be his last. He had enough experience to know when a woman liked what he was giving her.
Annie liked.
Despite what she said.
She fucking liked.
As she neared the door, Jake kicked it in gear and somehow, even with a bum leg and no cane for support, still made it there in time to open it for her. When she flashed him a polite thank-you, he was tempted to draw her back into his arms again. Just to make sure he hadn’t been hallucinating as he had when he’d been on the heavy doses of pain medication. Instead, he safely backed off.
Max held out his chubby little arms, and while Jake wanted to pick up the little guy and accommodate the request, he just couldn’t. Instead, he smiled, hoping a one-year-old wouldn’t understand the depth of his fuckedupness. Max was a cute baby, with chubby cheeks and Annie’s big blue eyes. And he had an unending wealth of energy Jake was sure helped Annie sleep well at night.
He could think of better ways to help her sleep.
As he followed her inside the building, he realized that he either had to stop thinking about stuff like that or invest in a nice white jacket with heavy-duty buckles.
A bell over the door chimed, and Abby waddled in from the back wearing one of Jackson’s old SAFD T-shirts. Even as pregnant as she was, the shirt fit like a flour sack over her protruding belly.
“What a surprise.” Abby clapped her hands together. “I never thought you’d actually get him to consider it.”
Jake hadn’t called Abby ahead of time to let her know he was coming in. Or that he’d be bringing Annie and Max. Or that he’d most likely be taking a dog home even if he wasn’t sure he agreed a dog would help him through his troubles. But at this point he was open to just about anything. Even if he believed a long night of great sex with a warm woman might be the only cure he needed.
“I can’t take the credi
t.” Annie shrugged. “He actually called me.”
“He did?” Abby’s eyes widened. “Well, something must have changed his mind. What do you think that was?”
“Hard to tell with all those frowns going on. Could have been anything.” A smirk touched Annie’s luscious lips. “Maybe he’s just tired of sleeping alone.”
“Hel-lo?” Jake waved his hand to break them from talking about him like he wasn’t there. “I’m standing right here.”
“And so you are.” Abby gave his arm a pat. “Good for you.”
He turned his gaze toward Annie to make a point. “And who says I’m sleeping alone.”
“Oh. That’s right.” Annie gave him the full smirk this time. “You have Jessica Holt on speed-booty dial.”
“So.” Abby clapped her hands again, and Max jumped. Then he burst out in a full giggle when Abby held out her arms. “How about I take this little guy, and you both go on back to the playroom to see if there’s anyone there you might be interested in.”
Jake was interested in why Annie had brought up Jessica. Again. Jealousy? He doubted it. Still, there was always a chance. And to be honest, he wasn’t sure how he felt about that.
“Sounds great.” Annie tweaked Max’s plump little cheeks, engaged in some baby talk, then led the way through the door.
“Jessica Holt?” he asked, following her down a hallway with plumbing drains set in the concrete floor about every twenty feet. “Why does everyone keep bringing her up?”
“Maybe because you keep calling her up.” She stopped to look at the directional sign on the wall. “I know you’ve been to some of the biggest parts of the world, but don’t forget that you still live in Sweet, where gossip flies faster than Angus Pepper’s homing pigeons.”
“It’s not like I’ve been announcing to the world when I see her.”
“Ha!” She squinted up at the top of the sign, then pointed down the hall. “Little dudes are this way.”
“Who says I want a little dude? The word little doesn’t fit me. At all.”
“Gosh, Jake. I wish I had half your ego. I’m sure I could really go places.”
“Tsk tsk, Annabelle. It’s not ego. Just the confidence the Marines instilled in me.”
“More than likely it’s the same bullshit you and your brothers have fed each other all these years.”
She was right, but he figured he’d refrain from giving her a leg up on him. Unless it was in a more interesting fashion. Like, without clothes.
“Big dudes are this way.” He pointed in the opposite direction.
Her sleek brows pulled together. “You’d think at some point, we could at least go in the same direction.”
“Opposition opens more doors, don’t you think?”
“I think it leads to more arguments.”
Mischief brushed his lips. “Which always makes makeup sex more fun.”
“Maybe,” she said, heading down the hall toward the big dog door. “But we’re not having sex.”
“Yet.”
She stopped abruptly, and he had to shift his gaze up from where it had been watching the way she made the back side of that dress swing and sway.
“What did you say?”
He kept walking until he invaded her personal space. “I said . . . yet.”
“I’m not Jessica Holt, Jake. I’ve had my spin with the love ’em and leave ’em kind. I didn’t think it was a very fun ride.”
“Who says I’m that way?”
Her pretty blond head shook side to side. “How about close to every girl in town our age?”
“That’s a lot of women.”
“From what I hear, you got around pretty good. And I also hear you never send flowers.”
Okay. That stung. He’d sent flowers before. Maybe once. But he couldn’t remember to whom. Shit. It had probably been his mom for her birthday or something. Man, he hated when Annie pinned him to the wall like a dried-out bug.
“Did Doug ever send you flowers?”
“Nope. All I got was the bill for the sixty-inch TV and the surround-sound system he charged in my name.”
“Jackass.”
“Pretty much.” She slid one hand to her hip. “So . . . are we going to look at dogs or stand here nipping at each other all day?”
“Dogs.” But as she walked ahead of him again, he saw plenty of places on Annie’s sweet body where he wouldn’t mind taking a bite.
As soon as they opened the door and walked inside the big-dog playroom, they were surrounded by wagging tails. All except one black Lab who remained on a piece of carpet across the room and studied the newcomers with watchful eyes. There was a bit of silver on the old boy’s face, and Jake wondered how a dog who’d obviously lived a while could end up here. Not that Abby’s place wasn’t great. She’d done an amazing job of providing an environment where the animals wouldn’t feel like they were imprisoned, or being punished simply for being alive. There were dog toys everywhere and a door they could also use to run outside and play.
“This is heartbreaking,” Annie said, dropping to her knees and stroking the necks and heads of the pooches that surrounded her, trying to steal a slurp up the side of her face. “These are all adult dogs. How can people just let them go?”
“Believe me . . .” As much as his leg would allow, he crouched down beside her and petted several dogs that came his way. “There are assholes of every kind in this world. I’ve seen my share.”
“I’m sure you have.”
Again, Jake looked across the room to where the older black dog remained. Watching. And if Jake wasn’t mistaken, waiting.
“I don’t know how you’re going to choose just one.”
“I know this sounds crazy, but I think I’ve made up my mind.”
“What?” She looked up and got a sneaky slurp attack from a border collie. “Already?”
“Yep.” He eased up to his feet, took a breath to still the pain that shot up his thigh, and slowly crossed the room. The big black dog watched him carefully. Never took those dark brown eyes off Jake for one second. When he came to where the dog’s front paws were extended, he eased himself down to sit in front of him. The dog watched every painfully slow movement.
“Hey, boy. How you doin’?” He extended his hand slowly so the dog could smell him. The dog didn’t. And that made Jake wonder. He turned his hand palm up to see if that would interest the dog any further. The dog still didn’t react, and his eyes remained on Jake’s face.
Intuition told him this dog didn’t have a sensory problem; he had a trust issue. He’d had a life that had somehow gone horribly awry, and he’d ended up here.
“Life can sure take a shitty turn, can’t it?” Jake said to the dog. Not that he expected an answer, but the dog’s ears perked up at the sound of his voice. “I think you might be a little bit like me, old boy. You did your best and have seen some hard times. Now you’re just wondering where this path will take you.”
Jake extended his hand again.
This time, the dog’s long pink tongue slipped out and took a taste of Jake’s fingers. Jake gently stroked the top of the dog’s head. The show of affection was rewarded when the dog belly crawled the few remaining inches to Jake’s lap.
Something inside Jake broke, like a dam that had been holding back a river of emotion. For the first time since he’d carried his friend’s lifeless body to the medevac, Jake had no fear of letting go. Instead, he felt like he might have just found the first piece of solace in his screwed-up life.
He wrapped his arms around the dog and, ignoring the pain in his thigh, coerced the animal onto his lap. For a moment, Jake looked up at Annie, who stood across the room with her fingertips pressed to her mouth and tears in her eyes.
How did she always seem to know what he needed?
Especially when he had no clue?
When he looked back down to the dog’s face, he could swear the dog was smiling. The poor guy had probably been passed over so many times in favor of a younger dog that he’d grown doubtful of ever finding a home. Or maybe he’d just been waiting for Jake to come along.
Jake looked back up at Annie and gave her a nod. He had a feeling they were a match made in somebody’s crazy idea of heaven.
Sure, he’d probably cry a river a few years down the road when the dog passed on. In the meantime, they were going to have one hell of a good time.
Chapter 7
“Well, this should be interesting.”
Jake closed the door to the truck after the dog jumped down from the backseat. During the ride home, Max had gleefully pulled his ears, poked his face, and stuck his hands in the dog’s mouth. The dog hadn’t so much as blinked. In fact, every time Max stopped, the dog licked his fingers or cheek and sent the baby into a fit of giggles.
Before they’d gotten in the truck to go home, they’d spent some time in the get-to-know-each-other room in Abby’s facility. After just a few minutes, there had been no doubt the dog wasn’t just used to babies, he adored them. He’d put his stamp of approval all over Max’s face in the form of slobbery kisses.
Now that the dog had all four feet on Wilder Ranch, he was being greeted by Miss Giddy, who seemed as though she had even more girth than when Jake had left this morning. Her blue satin ribbon drooped—a clear sign his mother was busy inside the house going through more of her stuff in preparation for the move.
“Yep. He’s proven he’s baby-proof.” Annie grinned as she took Max from his car seat. “Let’s see if he’s goat-proof.”
Dog and goat ended up making a large circle as they sniffed each other.
“Is that goat getting fat, or is it just my imagination?” Jake asked.
“Your mom says it’s because Miss Giddy’s getting older and doesn’t have to watch her waistline anymore.”
“Please tell me that’s not true.”
“Sorry. It is. I asked your mom that same question last week. I don’t know who was more insulted, your mom or the goat.”
