“Tom and Mina have deferred to us.” He nodded Don’s direction. “You mostly. They figure you know better than anyone what will fly and what won’t.”
Don cleared his throat, a little thrown off. Even now after all they’d done to show him otherwise, Don still struggled to believe Thomas and Mina could forgive him for the way he acted, let alone trust him with decisions like this one. “Uh. Okay, then let me go home and do some number crunching. See if it’s worth risking my neck up on that roof.”
Paul laughed and slapped him on the back. “Have I told you how much more I like you now that you do all that shit?”
“You have.” Don walked out the front door. “Every time I do that shit.” He gave the realtor who let them into the bank owned property a little wave. She hadn’t been too interested in risking her stilettos in the grubby foreclosure and was huddled in her running sports car, the blower on the heater making her blonde hair dance around her head.
“I can handle the snow but this cold is bullshit.” Paul tucked his face down into the high neck of his heavy work coat. “How many more of these are you wanting to look at?”
Don pulled the small stack of papers he’d printed off while his coffee brewed from his coat pocket and unfolded them. Flipping past the first two houses which they’d already looked at this morning, he handed the other three pages to Paul. “I thought these might be worth a look.”
Paul glanced at each sheet, folding the previous page down as he went. “Let’s get going then. I’m ready to be in the heat.”
“What did you think?” The realtor met them as they started down the driveway to Paul’s truck. If her attention was any indication, both her question and the unwavering smile on her face were directed solely at Don.
Don shoved his ungloved hands in his pockets along with the stack of papers. “We still have a few more to check out but if we’re interested in this one I’ll give you a call in the next few days.”
“You want to see more houses?” The realtor’s already wide smile grew to show each of her perfectly straight and almost blindingly white teeth. “I would be happy to take you around to look at them.” She stepped into Don’s side and slid her cell phone from the pocket of her fitted suede coat. “While you guys were inside I found a few more I thought you might be interested in.”
Don tried to step away from her uncomfortable closeness, but she simply stepped along with him, pressing the side of her body into his chest as she held up her phone for him to see as she scrolled through about ten houses. “They’re all vacant so we could go look at them right now.” She gave Paul a quick glance, then turned her face up to look at Don. “You could ride with me and I can tell you about them on the way.”
Don tried again to step away from her and once again she followed along. He looked at Paul, hoping for a little help dealing with the situation. Paul crossed his arms and grinned, obviously happy to watch the show.
Don looked down and gave her a quick smile that he hoped looked merely cordial. “We actually already have appointments scheduled with the realtors of these properties.” Don checked his watch. “And we need to get going so we don’t make the next one wait.” He stepped beside Paul hoping the big man might deter her advance and stuck out his hand. “I really appreciate you meeting us here on such a cold day.”
She looked at his hand, then back at him. “I would be happy to come with you as a buyer’s representative.”
For years Don chased any woman who gave him a second look. Unfortunately, sometimes to the point of being pushy. All he wanted was someone to be his. To be in his corner. But earning the same happiness everyone else seemed to just fall right into never happened, no matter how hard he fought for it.
And now look at him. Using Paul to block a perfectly attractive, obviously successful woman who for whatever reason desperately wanted him inside her car. And by the way her coat was unzipped exposing her ample cleavage in zero degree weather, she might be hoping to eventually have him inside other places.
Don shoved the hand she ignored back into his coat pocket. “That’s really nice of you, but I’m not interested.”
Her head snapped back as if he’d slapped her. She snorted, tossing her long blonde hair over one shoulder. “That’s fine. I just thought you might be able to use my help, considering.”
Paul’s eyes narrowed at the skinny woman’s heavily made-up face. “Considering what?”
She lifted her brows and looked at Don. “Considering the reputation Mr. Jenkins has around town I thought it would be best to have someone well looked upon on your team.”
Paul laughed. “And that’s supposed to be you?”
She straightened and her blue eyes widened. “Not anymore.” She spun on her four-inch heel and stormed back to her white Mercedes, slamming the door and all but peeling out as she zoomed away.
Don slapped Paul on the shoulder. “Thanks.”
Paul shrugged as they walked to his truck. “I tried to give you time to jump in her car if you wanted.”
“She’s not my type.” Don pulled open the passenger door and slid onto the bench seat of Paul’s work truck and cupped his hands over his mouth, breathing into them. “The only thing remotely appealing about her offer was that her car was warm.”
“She did have a certain sort of fanciness to her didn’t she?” Paul started the truck and revved the engine, holding his hand over the vent. “I’m not one for too much fanciness either.”
Don glanced at his friend. Paul was wearing the same jeans he’d probably been wearing for ten years. When a pair of his boots wore out, he went and bought the same exact pair. “That’s a shock.”
“Don’t give me shit or I’ll leave you on the roof when we come back.” Paul grinned at him as he put the truck in reverse. “You know, before I would’ve pegged you as the kind of guy who would like a woman like that.”
Don pulled out the paper for the next house to find the address. “Before, I would have taken any woman who would have me.” He tapped the address into his phone’s GPS and the digital voice filled the cab with directions.
“I don’t think I’d tell Mina that. She might take it wrong.” Paul turned left into the 1960’s subdivision where the next house was located.
“I did tell her. Right after Rich died.” Don held up the map on his phone so Paul had an idea where they were going. “She deserved an apology. I tried to explain to her.” Don shrugged, not finding it any easier to talk to Paul about this than it was with Thomas and Mina. “I just wanted her to know I wasn’t as bad as she thought. I’d fought for everything I’d ever had. I always assumed I’d have to fight for that too.”
Paul pulled up in front of the next house and shut off the truck, but didn’t get out. Instead he turned to Don and leaned his elbow on the back of the bench seat.
“I was just as stupid as you. I let my own problems get in the way of being there for someone who needed me.” Paul pursed his lips as his gaze drifted across the windshield. “Only I thought if you had to fight for it, it wasn’t meant to be yours.”
The cab was quiet for a minute as Paul continued to stare out the window. Don waited, letting Paul’s word’s sink in. Paul wasn’t much of a talker, but when he had something to say, it was always worth listening to, whether it was advice on construction or a joke. He imagined now was no exception.
Paul looked back at Don, his face serious.
“But sometimes son, there are things worth fighting for.”
****
The fast thumping of Beth’s heart in her chest began to slow as she made another turn. She looked out her windows as she drove deeper into the park. The mobile homes at the front didn’t look so bad, but the further she got, the more rundown they became.
When Nancy told her Don moved back into the place he grew up to take care of his ailing mother, this wasn’t what she imagined. The excitement carrying over from the afternoon meeting she just left was waning as the depressing state of the community around her sank in.
Beth jumped as a large white dog barked beside her, it’s growling yaps loud, even through the car door. She pushed on the gas, speeding up just a little, putting some distance between herself and the well-fed, but under socialized pup.
Beth turned onto the last street. The numbers on the mailboxes told her the second trailer in belonged to Don, but she wouldn’t have needed them to know. As her van came to a stop in the tiny driveway beside Don’s deep green sedan, her eyes bounced around a trailer that looked very different than its neighbors.
The driveway was perfectly cleared without so much as a speck of snow or ice, just like hers. An attached roofline that would be considered more than a porch, but less than a carport, extended from the driveway side of the deep green and aged white building. It was enclosed on the back and the side, with only the front left open. A pretty outdoor table and chairs sat in the space, its cushions missing, most likely packed away until the warm weather returned.
The blinds at the front of the trailer shifted slightly. Reaching across the console, Beth grabbed the handled, lidded plastic storage container from the passenger seat and yanked on the handle, bumping the door open. An icy breeze sliced through her as the freezing air outside stole the warmth inside, stinging her eyes and making her nose run.
Shutting the door quickly, Beth made a beeline for the heavy wood steps that led to the perfectly painted white door. Don pulled it open, not giving her the chance to knock. She smiled at him, the excitement from before returning, beginning to brew in her belly the second her eyes landed on his.
Don didn’t look as excited to see her. “What are you doing here?”
She held up the container clutched in her quickly numbing hand. “I brought you cake. As an I’m sorry and a thank you.” Her teeth started to chatter near the end of her explanation as the wind found its way under the roofline and up the back of her coat.
Don’s arm snaked around her back at waist level and tugged her inside. “Come in out of the cold.” He spun on one heel as he pulled her, tucking her into his body as he moved, just like when a prince spins his princess in a movie. It made her heart flutter and her head a little swimmy.
Then she realized it was his only option. Just that small bit of distance was enough to put her in the middle of the living room, looking around a very small living space while Don shut the door and then stood facing it.
Maybe she was wrong. Maybe he really was just a nice man wanting to help a person he thought was in need and now she’d put him in the uncomfortable position of explaining that he thought she was really nice, but…
“I just wanted to drop this off.” Beth took the few steps required to set the churro cake on the table. “I felt bad that you ate that burnt cookie and then you took care of my tire while the girls were annoying the heck out of you I’m sure.” She clamped her mouth shut to stop the rambling and took a breath while she focused her thoughts. He had enough on his plate. The last thing he needed was to try to figure out how to let his boss’s sister-in-law down easy. “I’ll let you get back to what you were doing.”
Don slowly turned and leaned his back against the door crossing his arms over his chest. “Did you make that cake?” His eyes barely sparkled in the dim lighting that made the set of his jaw even more pronounced than normal.
She licked her lips because… holy crap because the man made her need to lick her lips. “I did. All by myself.” Her voice was embarrassingly whispery when it came out. Almost as embarrassing as being proud of baking a cake by yourself at thirty-three-years-old.
“And you brought it to me.”
“Uh-huh.” She nodded. “I thought you might enjoy it.”
The corner of his mouth tugged into a smile as he pushed off the door and stepped to the table, flipping open the closures on the side of the cake box and lifting the lid. He bent at the waist, leaning closer. “Is that cinnamon?”
“Uh-huh.” Beth took a breath. She needed to calm down so she could come up with a better contribution to the conversation than uh-huh. At least it was a step up from ‘shit’. “It’s called a churro cake.”
He looked back her way. “Cinnamon is my favorite.”
She smiled. He didn’t have to know that she already knew that. “I’m glad. It’s a pretty good cake.”
“I wouldn’t doubt that for a second.” Don gently set the lid back in place then turned to face her. He stood silently, his arms hanging loosely at his sides, the only movement of his body was the fingers of his right hand softly opening and closing.
“How did you know where I lived?” His voice was soft. He didn’t sound upset that she was here. Well, not angry at least.
“Nancy told me.” She held her breath, waiting for his reaction. He already knew their secret, whatever it actually was, was out of the bag, but now he knew she was also privy to that information. “I guess Thomas saw you at my house Sunday?”
Don’s face tightened. “He did.” Both of his hands clenched at his sides now, tighter than before. “Don’t worry. I told him I was just helping you with your tire.”
“Oh.” She couldn’t help the feeling of disappointment twisting her stomach. It wasn’t that she thought he would confess his undying love for her. Just maybe that he wouldn’t be so quick to explain that he was there only to be nice. “Well, I should go. Nancy kept the girls for me and I don’t want to ruin her and Paul’s Friday night.”
Don side-stepped into her path as she turned to go to the door. “You could have brought them with you.” He smiled the sparkle back in his azure eyes. “They are funny as hell.”
Beth chewed on her bottom lip. This man was confusing. One minute he dismissed the time he spent with her as basically charity, the next he wanted her to bring her girls for a visit. “They are pretty funny. Sometimes. But I had a meeting at the county and I couldn’t take them with me.”
Don’s brows came together and tiny creases formed on his strong lined brow. “What kind of a meeting? Is everything okay?”
She shrugged. “I wouldn’t say everything’s okay, but everything’s okay with me.” She didn’t know how much of Levi’s story to disclose to Don. It was so sadly similar to his own and it might bring him pain to hear of another child living the same sort of life. “It was with Children’s Services about a student of mine.”
Don stayed silent, but his eyes were only on her and it was nerve wracking, or exciting, or both. Either way, any time Don was this close and this focused on her she came down with a terrible case of diarrhea of the mouth.
“His step-dad was abusive and I reported it.” She shut her mouth and bit her bottom lip, trying to keep the damage to a minimum.
Don stepped closer, his eyes so light they almost glowed. “I’m so sorry you had to do that.” He was close enough she could see the muscle in his tightly clenched jaw twitching.
So close that her mouth started going again.
“I’m fine. I just worry about Levi. His mom has some problems and he doesn’t have anyone else.” Her voice caught as the emotion of the little boy’s sad situation overtook the nerves from Don’s closeness. “If something happens to her he has to go to foster care.” She swallowed down the lump forming in her throat as she imagined what that could mean. “That just scares me.”
Don’s hands were on her arms, rubbing up and down, slowly and softly. “Foster care could be better.” His voice was as soft as his touch.
“But it could be worse and I can’t let that happen to him too.” She took a deep breath and looked up at Don, knowing her next words would be the final nail in her ‘not dateable’ coffin if it wasn’t already in the ground. “I applied to be a foster parent so he can be with me and be taken care of.”
Suddenly the little bit of space between her and Don was gone and his hands were no longer on her arms, but on her face, tipping her head back so she had nowhere else to look but his shadowed face. His eyes studied hers as his thumbs slowly stroked her cheeks.
&n
bsp; And then he kissed her.
On purpose. With purpose. His lips warm and firm as they pressed against hers. His hands still gently cupping her face as his lips nipped at hers.
She wanted more. And less.
More of him. More of the fresh smell of him around her. More of his taste. More of his breath on her skin.
Less of her coat in the way, keeping her from feeling his body against hers.
She pushed against him, wanting to feel his strength push back. The cut of her coat made it impossible to get her arms around his shoulders. Instead she spread her palms over his chest. The well-defined muscles of his torso were easy to trace with the tips of her fingers.
Don rasped out a quiet growl as he broke their kiss and took the tiniest of steps back, separating their bodies.
Beth tried to catch a breath while her head swam around the room making it difficult to find any words to break the sudden tension between them. Unfortunately, she found them.
“Thank you.”
Son of a bitch. She did it again.
TWELVE
“Is he your boyfriend?” Liza dropped a box of fruit flavored, sugar covered cereal in the shopping cart.
Beth fished it back out and placed it back in its home on the grocery store shelf. “He is my friend and he is a boy.”
Liza huffed and climbed on the end of the cart. “Does that mean he’s my boyfriend? Cause he’s my friend too.”
Kate stood, staring at the boxed pancake mixes. “Can we have pancakes for breakfast tomorrow?”
Beth hooked her arm around her older daughter’s shoulders, pulling Kate away from the mixes and along with her as she pushed the cart down the crowded aisle. “We can absolutely have pancakes tomorrow but Nana gave me her recipe for homemade and I think we should try it out.”
Kate skipped a little as she moved up to the side of the cart. “If you learn to cook like Nana I will be so happy.”
“Me too, but let’s not set the bar too high.” Beth pulled out a bag of flour and set it in the cart. She checked her list. It was much longer than usual since now she was buying ingredients instead of already done meals, but the extra time in the grocery and the kitchen was worth it. “Okay, the next row has noodles.”
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