Instead, she gave them a very long reading assignment and then sank into the chair behind her desk. She was so grateful for the blessed silence that followed that she let the students keep on reading until the final bell rang. Eager faces turned to her expectantly. She grinned. At least she’d accomplished one thing this year. They no longer bolted for the door at the first sound of the bell. It gave her the illusion of control. It was a reassuring way to end the day.
“You may be excused,” she said, trying not to cover her ears to block out the ensuing sounds of chaos.
Everyone was gone in a matter of minutes. Except Petey, she realized, who was still lurking in the doorway.
“You’d better hurry, Petey. You’ll miss your bus.”
“Dad said you’d give me a ride.”
Jenny stared. “He what?”
“If you don’t want to or something, it’s okay,” he said a little too eagerly. “Like you said, I can still catch the bus.”
What on earth was Chance up to now? Jenny wondered. He must have a reason for manipulating the two of them together like this. Maybe he wanted to ensure that Petey made it home and didn’t trust him to take the bus. Or maybe he was simply hoping they’d find some way to get along. That did make sense, though she couldn’t help resenting him for making the decision without consulting her. What if she’d had other plans this afternoon? What if, for instance, she’d been in a rush to get home and get ready for the most important date of her life?
“I can take you,” she said, as much to prove she wasn’t anxious to get dressed for the evening as anything else. “I’ll just be a minute.”
She gathered up the papers she intended to grade later that night after her command dinner date, along with her purse and coat, and headed for the door. Petey trailed behind her until they were well out of sight of the kids still lingering in front of the building.
“How did you enjoy visiting White Pines Saturday?” she asked when they were settled in her car.
“It’s cool,” Petey said, then immediately looked guilty as if he shouldn’t admit he’d enjoyed himself.
“I think my dad really liked showing you around,” Jenny said. “He thinks you’re a pretty terrific kid.”
Petey looked at her with surprise. “He said that?”
“Sure. He told me so first thing on Sunday. Besides, why wouldn’t he like you?”
“I dunno. I just thought, you know, because of my granddad and everything, that he’d be mad I came over.”
“Did he seem mad?”
Petey paused, his expression thoughtful. “No, not really.”
“There, you see?”
“Could I ask you something?”
“Of course.”
He regarded her worriedly. “Do you think my granddad would be mad that I, you know, ate ice cream there and kinda hung out with your dad?”
Jenny hesitated. “Well, I never knew your granddad, but it seems to me it’s always best if people get to know each other and try to understand each other. I think he’d be proud you did that.”
The concept seemed to startle Petey. “Really?”
“Absolutely. I think it was good that you came, although it might have been better if you’d had your dad’s permission.”
“Yeah, no kidding,” Petey said. “He was really mad at me.”
“Because you scared Leesa and him and all the rest of us.”
He glanced at her in astonishment. “You, too?”
“Of course, me, too.”
“Why?”
The question stymied Jenny. Obviously Petey was smart enough to realize he’d caused her nothing but trouble. He also knew it wasn’t likely to endear him to her. “Because you are a terrific kid,” she said eventually. “Even if you’ve done everything in your power to hide that fact from me.”
“I don’t get it,” he said, clearly confused by her reaction. “I figured you must hate me.”
“No way. I may not like some of the things you’ve done, but I’ve tried to understand why you’ve done them. I’m still working on that part. Maybe you could explain it to me.”
“You mean like why I cut off Mary’s hair?”
“Uh-huh. We could start with that.”
“It was a dare, kinda.” He slanted a look at her. “Pretty dumb, huh?”
“Pretty dumb,” Jenny agreed.
“That’s what Dad said. I did apologize, though.” He made a face. “Now Mary has a crush on me.”
Jenny grinned. “I noticed.”
“She’s been following me around and stuff and she’s always asking me to do things with her, like come over to her house or go out for pizza with her mom and dad.”
“Would that be so terrible? Mary seems like a nice girl.”
Petey looked horrified. “But that’s just it. She’s a girl.”
“Someday you’ll be grateful for that,” Jenny promised as they turned into the driveway at Wilkie’s. She saw Chance come out of the barn and start toward them. Petey bounded out of the car and headed for the house with no more than a wave the instant the car rolled to a stop.
“He must be anxious to get to his homework,” Chance said dryly.
“Or away from me,” Jenny countered. “How come you didn’t let him ride the bus? Were you hoping we’d get to know each other better?”
“That’s one possible outcome,” he agreed. “But I was also hoping it would give me a chance to catch a glimpse of you before tonight.”
His heated gaze seemed to burn straight through her. “Really?” she asked, sounding disgustingly breathless.
“In fact, forget about later,” he said, moving closer to the car and reaching through the window to cup her face between his hands. “I think maybe I’ll just steal a kiss right now—you know, to tide me over.”
Jenny decided it was way past time to show a little of her old familiar spunk. As he ducked his head in the window, she twisted just beyond his reach. His kiss landed in the air near her ear. His expression of astonishment was worth every bit of awkward maneuvering.
“You’re getting just a little too full of yourself,” she told him, extraordinarily pleased with herself for the first time in weeks. She’d always had gumption to spare. It was about time she demonstrated it.
Chance’s gaze narrowed. “Meaning?”
“You’re a bright man. Figure it out.” She put the car into gear and inched it away from him. He stared after her in openmouthed astonishment.
“I’ll pick you up at six,” he called after her.
Feeling downright giddy from her first tiny victory, Jenny shook her head. “I’ll meet you at seven.”
“Do I at least get to pick the place?” he asked, visibly irritated.
Given the amazingly limited number of choices, Jenny figured she could allow him that much. “Sure. Why not?”
“Chandler’s Steak ‘n’ Ribs?”
That was perfect, she thought. No one in the family ever went there. They preferred their steaks from their own cattle and cooked on a backyard grill. Chandler’s was forty miles away, but it boasted the only fancy meals to be had without going all the way to Fort Worth. For just an instant Jenny regretted that they wouldn’t be making the trip in one car.
“Want to change your mind about going with me?” he asked as if he’d read her mind.
“I don’t think so. In this part of the country, that’s just around the corner,” she said.
He grinned. “Suit yourself.”
Jenny gave a little nod. “From now on that’s exactly what I intend to do.”
Chance tilted his head and regarded her quizzically. “Darlin’, that almost sounds like a warning.”
She grinned. “Good ear.”
“You’re playing with fire. You know that, don’t you?”
“Of course,” she said airily
. “What fun is life if you’re not living on the edge?”
Chance chuckled. “Don’t look now, but you’re about to topple over.”
“Is that supposed to scare me?”
“It should.”
“It doesn’t. How about you?”
“Darlin’, I’ve been flat out terrified from the minute we met.”
The heartfelt admission had Jenny humming all the way to White Pines. This evening might just turn out a whole lot better than she’d anticipated.
11
Something about Jenny had changed, Chance thought. It wasn’t just that she’d deliberately avoided his kiss, although that had been disconcerting enough. It was her whole attitude. It had undergone a radical shift. It was as if she’d discovered she held some sort of power over him.
Had he been that transparent? Had she guessed that his feelings for her weren’t based entirely on his obsession with the family ranch? Or had the implications of the obsession itself finally registered? Had she concluded that she had something he wanted and that she might as well make that work to her advantage? Maybe she knew more about power and control than he’d realized.
Whichever it was, dinner promised to be darned interesting. He was looking forward to it.
Ironically, after this afternoon he wasn’t nearly as certain that the outcome would be what he’d imagined. While that would be disappointing in the short term, it presented him with an absolutely fascinating long-term challenge.
If Jenny turned him down, he’d just have to figure out another way to get what he wanted. What confused him was that he was no longer quite as sure whether that was Jenny or White Pines.
He was still trying to figure out what to make of the change in Jenny as he followed the directions Wilkie had given him to the steakhouse. After thirty minutes or so, he spotted the neon sign and turned into the huge parking lot that was already crowded with cars and a few tractor trailers, hinting that not only was the food superb, but that the atmosphere wasn’t pretentious. To his way of thinking that was an ideal combination.
He glanced around the parking lot but didn’t immediately spot Jenny’s impractical little sports car. Disappointed, he headed toward the door to wait for her inside. Before he could get it open, though, he heard the familiar roar of her engine and the squeal of her tires as she braked none too gently less than a half-dozen spaces away from the entrance. There was absolutely nothing prim and prissy about the way the woman drove, he thought, smiling. Just more evidence of the passion churning inside her, waiting to be unleashed by the right man.
A moment later the sight of her wiped the smile off his face. In fact, it was all he could do to breathe.
When she exited the car, her legs bared by an astonishingly short skirt and emphasized by very slinky high heels, Chance’s mouth gaped and his heart thundered in his chest. As desperately as he wanted to survey those long shapely legs, he also wanted to get her inside where they would be safely tucked under a table and out of view of every other male.
With her high cheekbones touched by blush and framed by wisps of black hair, and her lipstick a brighter shade than she usually wore, she was devastatingly beautiful and stunningly sexy, the kind of sexy that no twenty-year-old understood. It came with maturity and experience and confidence.
How had he ever thought of her as prim and prissy? he wondered. If someone had slapped a picture of her on a calendar, men around the world would have been panting over her.
As she walked up beside him, she patted his cheek gently. “Don’t look now, but you’re practically drooling,” she said, then sashayed straight on past with a provocative sway of her hips.
Obviously she was aware of the effect she’d created, he thought. It appeared, in fact, that she’d worked on this new image just to unnerve him.
“What have you done to yourself?” he asked, his tone grim as he followed her, his gaze locked on her backside. He was tempted to strip off his jacket and drape it around her waist to prevent others from seeing that tempting little behind.
She glanced over her shoulder. Eyes wide, she stared at him innocently. “It’s an important night, isn’t it? And this is a nice restaurant. I thought I’d dress up for the occasion.”
“You barely dressed at all,” he muttered, suddenly aware that the dazzling hot pink top she’d chosen to wear with that thigh-skimming skirt barely reached her waist. With every move she made an inch or more of flesh was displayed. Forget the jacket. He was sorely tempted to throw his arms around her to cover her up. Unfortunately, he wasn’t at all certain his motives were entirely pure. He wanted to touch that silken skin very very badly.
He was so busy fighting his own base desire that the hostess had to ask twice if they had a reservation before her question registered. He nodded mutely.
“Adams,” Jenny supplied, looking highly amused.
“Oh, of course. Right this way,” the woman said, looking Chance over approvingly.
He hardly noticed. Mouth dry and heart hammering, his gaze was glued to the sensual sway of Jenny’s backside as she walked to the table. Women should be banned from wearing heels that high, he concluded, at least out in public. It did something to them, to the way they moved, that was downright indecent. His blood was humming so fast and furiously and he was so close to being fully aroused it was embarrassing.
“You did this on purpose, didn’t you?” he demanded when the hostess had gone.
“Did what?”
“Wore that outfit.”
She regarded him innocently. “I bought this outfit on my last trip to New York. I found it in a perfectly respectable department store. I’ve worn it before and no one’s complained. What’s wrong with it?”
“There’s not enough of it.”
Her laugh was low and throaty and sexy. Was that new, too? Had she set out to torment him tonight? If so, she was doing a fine job of it. He fingered the ring he’d tucked in his pocket and wondered if he truly had lost his mind to even consider marrying this woman. She was entirely too disconcerting. She’d keep him tied in knots.
“You look uneasy,” she observed, that amused glint flashing in her eyes again.
“Do I?” He barely resisted the need to lick his suddenly parched lips.
“Is there some problem I don’t know about?”
“Problem?” he echoed. “No, there’s no problem.” He sucked in a deep breath and deliberately opened the menu. Maybe if he focused his attention on T-bones and porterhouses, he’d regain his equilibrium.
Suddenly he felt the skim of a stocking-clad foot up his calf and almost bolted from his chair. A light sweat broke out on his brow as he tried to pretend he’d noticed nothing. The amused smirk on Jenny’s face suggested that she knew exactly how she was affecting him and that she was enjoying the heck out of it.
Of all the times for the woman to discover the power of her own sensuality, he thought despondently. As he knew all too well, power was a heady thing.
All he’d ever wanted was a simple little marriage of convenience, maybe a little revenge. There was no longer anything remotely simple about this. As for revenge, at the moment Jenny was having the last laugh.
Okay, he thought, trying to adjust to her unexpected new tactics. Two could play at this game. He was willing to bet he’d had a whole lot more experience.
He slid one hand beneath the table and reached for her thigh. He brushed a light caress from her kneecap to the hem of her skirt, all the while keeping his gaze fixed on the menu selections. Her sharp gasp and sudden shift indicated he’d made his point. Retaliation could be rather sweet, he concluded, repeating the caress just for the sheer fun of it.
“Have you found anything that appeals to you?” he inquired lightly.
She swallowed hard and avoided his gaze. Chance grinned and deliberately gave her knee a last little squeeze. Check and checkmate.
A s
mall country band started to play just then, a provocative slow song about lost love and second chances. Chance figured the opportunity was too good to pass up. He’d managed to turn the tables and disconcert her a little. Maybe he could actually manage to recapture the edge he’d lost.
“Care to dance?”
Her gaze flew to his. Her panicky expression suggested she’d rather be buried in mud and left to swelter in the noonday sun.
“We haven’t even ordered,” she protested.
“There’s no rush. I hate to waste a song as pretty as this one. Makes me think of slow lovin’ and long nights,” he whispered, his gaze locked with hers. He stood up and held out a hand. “Come on, darlin’. Let’s see how you move on a dance floor.”
Apparently he put a little too much challenge into his tone, because her eyes suddenly flashed fire. She slapped her hand in his and rose gracefully, slipping her foot back into her shoe before following him into the middle of the handful of couples already dancing.
With those heels on, she was only an inch or two shorter than he was. Chance slid his arms around her waist. Jenny hesitated a beat, then tucked her head into his shoulder. She looped her hands behind his neck. Her warm breath feathered against the V of bare skin where his shirt collar was open. That whisper of air stirred him as effectively as a caress.
In no time he was surrounded by the daring come-hither scent of her perfume. No rose garden had ever smelled so inviting. Her body heat beckoned to him. In a matter of seconds she was fitted to him as intimately as if they’d been carved from a single piece of wood and were destined to link up curve to curve like an interlocking puzzle.
He was no longer sure which of them had started the game or whether it even mattered. All he knew was the desperate hunger to finish it, in bed, her arms and legs wrapped tightly around him. If he’d been convinced she would agree to it, he would have made a dash for the nearest motel room and to hell with dinner. But he wasn’t feeling quite that confident.
White Pines Summer Page 14
