Close Contact

by Lori Foster

  “Well, I’m going to cut the grass soon. With all this rain, it’s really greened up.”

  “Yeah, it’s real pretty, ain’t it?”

  “But I was thinking about another way to keep it trimmed. First, though, I thought I’d add an extension to the barn.”

  That was news to Miles. “An extension?”

  She nodded. “For goats.”

  Together, Woody and Miles repeated, “Goats?”

  “I’ve been researching it, and goats could keep that property cleared for me. They’re friendly and smart and, from what I’ve read, they eat a lot.”

  What the hell? Miles stared at her, but she didn’t meet his gaze.

  Woody looked as startled as Miles felt. “Well, now, goats ain’t a bad idea. It’s a good idea, actually. But you don’t need to add on to the barn. Why, I could build you another shelter farther out—”

  “No, I want all the animals right here, closer to the house. In fact, I’m considering a chicken coop on the other side. So what do you think? How hard would it be to add on to the side of the barn over there?” She pointed to where she, apparently, wanted the first addition.

  Woody scratched his chin again, then looked at Miles. “It’d really be easier to build a different shelter.”

  Miles agreed, but it wasn’t his decision. He shrugged. “She’s the boss.”

  Woody gave him an assessing look. “I figured maybe you two were sweethearts.”

  He didn’t deny or confirm that when he said, “Wouldn’t matter. It’s still Maxi’s property to do with as she pleases.”

  Maxi beamed at him for that reply. “Here’s what I’m thinking.” Assuming both men would follow, she headed for the far side of the barn. “The rotted wood is up there, and I understand that part of the roof will have to be torn out to repair it with fresh lumber. Well, why not extend the roofline down a little farther? We could cut a door into this wall, to connect it to the main body of the barn. I could close it when I want to keep the goats outside, but open it when I wanted to let them in. I figured a smaller enclosure could be built out here.” She swept her hand to show what she wanted.

  Miles could see it. “You’d need to fence in the property, too.”

  “Luckily the rain has softened the ground.” She wrinkled her nose. “Lots of postholes to dig.”

  Startled by that, Woody rubbed the back of his neck. “Goats, huh?”

  She nodded. “Goats.”

  “And chickens, too?”

  “That’ll be the project after the goats.”

  He nodded in distraction, then jumped subjects. “You know how I met your grandma? I wanted to buy this property from her. She wouldn’t sell, though.”

  Guessing where that was headed, Maxi said gently, “I won’t sell either.”

  “Oh, I know that. Knew it soon as I met ya.” Then his eyes twinkled. “But if you ever change your mind...”

  She smiled with him. “You’re the first person I’ll call.”

  “Then if you’re sure I can’t cut the grass for you—”

  “I’m sure.”

  “—I’ll be on my way.”

  As he headed back to his ATV, Miles followed. “I like your ride.”

  “This old thing? She gets me around to the neighbors. On these old gravel roads, damn near everyone drives their four-wheelers—even though we’re not supposed to. Gotta take the truck when I go into town, though.”

  “You know any hunters who use them?”

  “Yeah, ’course I do. Bastards, er, excuse me, Maxi.”

  “That’s all right.”

  “Anyway, damned hunters drove through my property and tore up my garden. If I’d seen them, they’d have felt the sting of buckshot. But it was early morning, and by the time I got outside, they were gone.” His gaze sharpened on Maxi. “You had trouble?”

  She glanced at Miles, clearly remembering his warning. He smiled to let her know he appreciated it.

  Answering for her, he said, “Someone took a wide shot or something. Rifle slug hit the barn, passed through and got embedded in the rafter.”

  Eyes wide, Woody whistled. “Someone could have been hurt!”

  “That’s how I saw it. Anyway, if you hear of anyone hunting around here, let me know, okay? I’d like to have a word or two.”

  Woody grinned again. “I bet you would, a big guy like yourself.”

  “You’re not exactly small,” he pointed out. Woody Barstow was probably five-ten at least, and while he looked thin, he didn’t appear frail. He stood straight, shoulders relaxed but back.

  “Aw,” he groused. “These old bones damn near rattle when I walk. But I can’t complain. No, I can’t.” He climbed onto his seat with as much care as he’d used getting off the ATV. “Maxi, you have my number. You need anything, especially with that barn addition, you just let me know, okay?”

  “Thank you, Woody. And the same to you.”

  He smiled. “Yes, ma’am. You’re a good neighbor. Appreciate that.” He started the engine, did a slow, wide turn and puttered cautiously down the long driveway to the gravel road.

  Miles turned to her, his brows up and his curiosity ripe. “Goats?”

  The surprise in his voice made her laugh, and damn, he liked that, seeing her so relaxed and excited about a project.

  “I’ve been thinking about it, mostly because my grandma thought about it before me. I saw her a few weeks before she passed and she was talking about it.”

  “Just hadn’t gotten around to it?”

  “I think it was more that she read up on them.” Mischief twinkled in her dark eyes. “She told me the term horny goat suddenly made sense, and that goat sex definitely didn’t sound sexy.”

  Miles grinned. “No?”

  “Actually, it’s pretty gross.”

  Ready to tease her back, he asked in feigned innocence, “How so?”

  In a scandalized whisper, she confided, “Apparently male goats stay ready, if you get my drift. And it’s...visible. Plus, they pee on everything, including themselves.”

  “Glad I’m not a goat.”

  Her mouth twitched. “I’m glad you’re not, too.”

  This was the first time he’d seen her so animated, and like every other facet of her personality, it turned him on. “So you really do want to extend the barn?”

  “Even though it’s what my grandma had wanted, I’d been putting it off, since I had so many other repairs already on my plate. But since we have to redo part of the roof anyway, now seems like a good time.”

  “That’s a lot more involved than just a roof repair.”

  She stepped up to him, her small, soft hands pressing on his bare chest, her head tipped back so she could smile up at him. “I know.” She took a breath. “Don’t blow a gasket, but I’m going to hire someone.”

  Blow a gasket? Yeah, he just might. Irritation gathered, making him frown, but he attempted to keep his voice even. “Are you forgetting that you hired me to protect you?”

  “Not for a minute.” She stepped closer still, until her plump breasts pressed to his ribs. “But I can’t stop living my life, right? And what better way to move on than to stay busy.”

  Was that what she was doing, making her life so busy that she couldn’t think about the existing danger?

  Was he part of that plan, a means to keep the bad things at bay...but nothing more? “No one is asking you to stop living, but you do need to run things by me, at least until we’ve solved the mystery of who’s bothering you.” Such a mild way to remind her she could have been killed, yet even in his annoyance he was reluctant to disturb her current upbeat attitude.

  “You said it yourself, having more activity here will get rid of the illusion that I’m all alone.”

  If Miles could help it, sh
e’d never be alone again. And just where the hell had that idea come from? Sidestepping his appalling inclination to make more out of what they currently had, he said, “I suppose I could get the guys out here to help—”

  “No.”

  That adamant denial gave him pause and ratcheted up his annoyance. “No?”

  Uncertainty shifted her gaze away from his. “I don’t want you doing more than what you were hired for.”

  There it was, her insistence that he sit around twiddling his thumbs—a stark reminder that while she might have employed him, and she sure as hell enjoyed the physical part of their relationship, she still hadn’t let him in. He was no closer to her now than he’d been before her visit to the Body Armor agency and, damn it, it infuriated him.

  Because she didn’t want him close.

  Stung by that truth, Miles considered how to react. Yeah, he wanted to tell her what he really thought, that he didn’t appreciate being used, but would that get him the desired effect? Probably not. After weighing his words for a few seconds—while trying to ignore the touch of her fingers against his bare skin—he finally said, “Maybe now’s a good time for you to tell me the exact parameters of my job.”

  Those teasing fingers curled against his skin. “You already know.”

  “No, I don’t think I do.” He caught both wrists and, to help him focus on his grievance, gently moved her hands away. “Enlighten me.”

  Going stiff, she stepped back. “You’re supposed to protect me.”

  “Yeah.” So far, so good. “And?”

  Her frown deepened. “Setting up the surveillance stuff was good. You did such a great job with it, Woody didn’t even notice. Everything blends in.”

  He nodded, accepting the accolade. “Thanks. And?”

  Taking a stand, she said, “That’s it. Protection. Not roof repair or grass cutting or—”

  Her repeated efforts to cut him out irked enough that he asked, “Sex?”

  She sucked in a breath, her expression suddenly hurt. “I figured that was freely given.”

  “Oh, hell yeah, it is.”

  She relaxed the tiniest bit.

  Until he added, “Just as my help with other things is freely given.”

  She went right back to bristling...times ten. “That’s different and you know it.”

  “Yeah. At least you don’t mind using me in bed.”

  Heat rushed to her face. For a second, she looked like she might cry, and it devastated him. Then she fisted her hands and snarled, “We use each other.”

  He wanted so much more than that. Laughing at his own stupidity, he bit out, “Jesus, I’d almost forgotten. Sex doesn’t mean much to you, does it? It’s less personal than me hammering in a nail on the roof.”

  The embarrassed color washed from her face. “I’m not paying you to hammer nails.”

  “Not paying me to fuck either.”

  As if he’d slapped her, she dropped back a step. Before Miles could apologize, she stiffened her shoulders. “I misunderstood your interest.”

  He did his own stiffening. “That’s not what I said, so don’t do that whole female BS of twisting my words around.”

  “Female BS?” Charging forward two steps, she poked a finger at him. “Listen up, Legend.”

  Shit. He was back to his fight name again?

  She breathed hard but said nothing else. Finally, she twisted around, her back to him, arms crossed tightly and one hip cocked out.

  Miles waited. He knew a pissed-off woman when he saw one, not that her anger wasn’t deserved. Yeah, his comment about paid fucking was over the line.

  Hell, he didn’t want to fight with her. He wanted her to open up, accept him.

  He wanted her to want him, in all ways, as much as he did her. He just didn’t know how to make it happen. But insulting her sure as hell wouldn’t do it. “Maxi—”

  “I was unfair.”

  Miles wasn’t entirely sure what she meant by that, so he didn’t yet say anything. Sometimes silence was a safer bet than another verbal fumble.

  Her proud shoulders slumped. In a small voice, she whispered, “You made it clear you didn’t want to get sexually involved again.” With a humorless laugh, she added, “Obviously I did. But knowing how you felt, I shouldn’t have...insisted.”

  Wondering where she was going with this, wishing he could better understand, Miles said, “Pretty sure I was willing.”

  She shook her head. “No, you weren’t, but I teased you and even got annoyed when that didn’t work. You finally gave in, but it wasn’t your idea.” She used the toe of her shoe to nudge at a weed in the yard. “I didn’t take ‘no’ for an answer. I forced the issue and that was wrong of me.”

  He would have laughed if he didn’t know for certain how she’d react to that. Force? Not even close. Yes, she’d worked against his plan, but so what? The end result had sure been memorable.

  He couldn’t bear seeing her look so guilty and dejected. “Truth is, Maxi, that’s one of the things I enjoy most about you.”

  She went still, then peeked back at him. “What do you mean?”

  “How up-front and honest you are about sex. How much you enjoy it.” With me. He stared into her startled eyes. “You don’t play games about what you want, and that’s a huge turn-on.”

  Biting her bottom lip, she faced forward again. After a second, she gave a shrug. “I want you. Did from the moment I first saw you. And you were even better than I’d anticipated.” Again scuffing the toe of her shoe in the dirt, she complained, “It’s so blasted complicated. It’s like I know what I need to do, but you’re here now and I can’t be expected to resist that.” Another glance. “Unless you don’t want the same. And if you don’t, I swear I won’t pressure you again.”

  He couldn’t help smiling. “You know better.”

  “Do I?”

  Slowly Miles closed the space between them, then cautiously rested his hands on her rigid shoulders. She didn’t jerk away, so he considered that a good sign. “I was trying to make a point.”

  That had her turning away again with bitterness. “Yeah, that I’m needy enough to take sex even though it’s not in the job description?”

  “No.” Well...yeah. Sort of. “You’re not needy, so forget that. After everything you’ve been through, I do think you enjoy the closeness, though. And so do I.”

  She said nothing.

  “The point is more that this situation isn’t the usual job. We’re both adapting, right?” He rushed to clarify, “I don’t mean the sex. If you’ll recall, I wasn’t the one who called quits on that the first time around.”

  Her head dropped forward and she heaved another breath. “I know.”

  Rubbing his thumbs into her shoulders in a brief massage, he reiterated, “I want you, Maxi, no matter what else is going on. Remember that, okay?”

  Beneath his hands, the tensed muscles in her shoulders loosened. This time her head tipped back. “I can’t help but feel the same.”

  So she might fight herself, but the chemistry was too strong for her to resist? Relief hit him like a wave of...lust?

  He gave it quick analysis and concluded, definitely lust.

  Any acceptance from her fired his blood, and damn it, that wouldn’t do. He’d been ridiculously obvious in wanting her, and yet she still held him at an emotional distance.

  She’d said it plain out, that she didn’t want to want him, and that made all the difference to things. It was the reason he’d been reluctant to get involved again in the first place.

  He’d completely lost sight of his plan, but it was past time he got back to it. If sex was the big draw, then by God, he’d use it to his advantage—and hopefully make other, more concrete and lasting, progress along the way.

  “Usually a bodyguard is ther
e to ensure things go smoothly in a designated time frame, rather than an open-ended deal.”

  Showing some interest, she asked, “What kind of time frame?”

  It didn’t take him long to come up with an example. “Like an MMA fighter who doesn’t want to get mobbed by fans. The bodyguard can run interference on that during a promo stint for one evening.”

  Interest growing, she looked back at him again. “Did that ever happen to you?”

  “Few times.”

  She twisted to face him fully, her umbrage possibly forgotten. “Really?”

  As she’d turned, he’d adjusted his hands so that they now framed her neck, his thumbs caressing her jawline. It’d be so easy to slide them under her chin and tilt her face up for a kiss that led to a whole lot more.

  Uncommitted sex, that was what she wanted.

  He wanted the sex, too. Well, that and more.

  But they needed this talk.

  “I was doing a promotion gig once and there were some fans that’d had too much to drink. Even though I was behind a table, one of them kept trying to crawl over to get into my lap.”

  Her expression of fascination flashed to irritation. “You’re talking about women?”

  Miles hid his grin. “The sport does have its fair share of female fans.”

  “I didn’t realize.”

  He noted her acerbic tone. Jealousy? He’d like to think so. “There were four of them being outrageous, three of them egging on the fourth to steal a kiss.”

  Her lip curled. “Oh, and I just bet you were all kinds of unwilling.”

  “Actually, I was. They were completely smashed, and I was working. Hell, the line of fans was long, and people were taking pics left and right. I knew then that I needed a bodyguard, someone other than me who could play the heavy and tell them to get lost. Luckily Cannon and Armie were there, and they lent a hand.”

  She blinked. “Cannon and Armie?”

  “Friends of mine. Both champion fighters.”

  “What did they do? Drag the women away?”

  Miles couldn’t help but laugh at that image. “Hardly. If either of them had been noticed, they’d have been mobbed more than I was. No, they sent over a guard from the event and that guy corralled them. It wasn’t a dangerous situation, but it was awkward as hell.”