Her Backup Boyfriend (Entangled Bliss) (Sorensen Family) (3 page)

She could do this. How difficult could it be? She bent down and scooped up an armful of leaves and with the other hand clapped the teeth of the rake over the leaves and started the slow process of getting them into the canister. Kate was at the bottom of the first pile when a strange tickling sensation on her right wrist caught her attention.

She glanced down in time to see a brown-legged spider crawl up her sleeve.

A high-pierced screech of terror ripped from her throat. She tore the jacket from her body and threw it to the ground, trying to find the spindly-legged arachnid. She didn’t hear the approaching footsteps until Glenda’s voice reached her.

“Kate, dear, what on earth is the matter?”

A choked-off laugh told Kate that her neighbor hadn’t arrived alone. She ran her fingers through her hair, frantically searching for the beast, but tried to keep her voice level and even despite the frantic beating of her heart. “Oh. Just a large spider. It—it kind of surprised me.”

No use. Where the hell was it? Wait. Was that another tickling at her neck?
Shiiiit!

Her composure abandoned, Kate danced in a circle, her fingers scraping against the skin of her neck to try and get rid of any creepy crawly things. She still couldn’t feel anything, though.

Okay. Take deep breaths.

The fog of fear began to lift and Kate looked more carefully down her body—and became aware of the silence from her two visitors. At another attempt for calm, she smoothed her hair and paused when her gaze met Glenda’s wide, questioning eyes. Kate tried to give the woman a reassuring smile. She darted a quick glance at the taller figure standing beside her neighbor. Although his mouth was set in a straight line, his blue eyes looked suspiciously bright.

Humiliation flooded through her and she was at a loss of how to explain her behavior. “A—a spider. I saw a spider crawling up my arm and I—” A shudder racked her body. Oh, God. She really, really hated spiders. Worse than anything. And the size of that one? Uneasy, she glanced back at the piles of leaves waiting to be loaded into the garbage.

“I don’t see anything, dear. There now. You don’t even have any gloves for your poor hands. Dom, why don’t you grab your work gloves and take care of these for Kate.”

“No, really, I wouldn’t want—” she attempted.

“Not a problem,” Dominic said smoothly, and without waiting for any further objections, headed over to his truck and grabbed some gloves from the seat.

Kate really wanted to object. She wanted to be able to refuse his help, only—another glance at the leaves assured her there was no way on God’s green earth she was going near those piles again. Instead, she watched Dominic bend down and grab an armload of leaves, his back to them.

“Why don’t you come inside for a few minutes while Dom finishes up? I have some water on for tea and a plate of fresh butter cookies I made this afternoon.”

Kate’s gaze, however, was on the figure before her, whose jeans had crept dangerously low to reveal a small expanse of tanned skin under his plaid flannel shirt. Hunched over, with his weight supported by his quads, Kate couldn’t help but notice the tautness of his jeans as they stretched over his upper thighs and backside. He stood easily and dumped half the pile of leaves into the canister and turned to meet her eyes.

That’s right. Glenda had asked her a question. Something about tea…

“Thanks for the offer, but I’m fine. Nothing a long, hot bath couldn’t cure.”

At that statement, Dominic broke into a wide, easy smile, and an impish gleam entered his eyes as he watched her. Oh, great. Now he was probably picturing her naked.

Glenda waved her hand. “You can take a bath later. You’re coming with me right now and we’re having some tea. I won’t take any arguments. We’ve had so few opportunities to visit, now seems as good a time as any.”

She grabbed Kate firmly by the shoulders and led her up the driveway, and Kate, realizing the decision was already made for her, quietly followed. Maybe if she hurried she could get in and out before Dominic finished.

Chapter Three

When Dominic opened the door, the scent of cookies assailed him, and the warm air bit at his cheeks. It was colder outside than he’d thought. The two women seated at the kitchen table paused in their conversation when he stepped in.

“There’s a mug of tea on the counter for you. Earl Grey,” Glenda offered. “I was just giving Kate the name of a couple neighborhood kids who could help her with the yard work in exchange for a few bucks.”

He nodded and headed to the kitchen sink to wash up. “I pulled the garbage can up the driveway and left it next to the recycling bin. Your rake is in the shed out back. It’s definitely seen better days.” He reached for a paper towel and glanced over at Kate.

“Came with the house. I’ve been meaning to get to Home Depot—”

“Well, look no farther in the meantime, honey,” Glenda said and scooped two teaspoons of sugar into her tea. “Feel free to use whatever I might have in the garage. My Danny always loved tinkering around in our garden, which for Danny meant we had to have state-of-the-art everything. Half the stuff I don’t even know what to do with,” she said and laughed merrily at the memory of her husband.

A loud buzzing sound from the basement brought Glenda to her feet. “That’s my whites. I’ll be a minute. If I don’t hang up a few of those shirts they’ll be a mess when I try to iron them later.”

Dominic tossed the paper towel in the garbage and picked up the mug Glenda had left for him. He preferred coffee but this would do. He brought it to his lips, using the opportunity to watch Kate, who squirmed in the quiet of the kitchen. He would bet she was wishing she’d finished her tea before he’d arrived.

Which was why he’d made sure to work fast.

Almost absentmindedly, she tried to run her fingers through her windblown hair but grimaced and gave up halfway through when it looked like a certain knot wouldn’t budge.

She looked up at him, her expression serious and intense. “Thanks for the help outside,” she said with absolute sincerity, distracting him enough so he took a large swig of scalding tea. “I was—what you might say—acting like a freak out there. I hate spiders. And when I saw one crawl up my sleeve…” She stopped, her cheeks getting rosier by the second. But she didn’t look away, still meeting his gaze. “Well…thanks.”

“Like I said, no worries. We all have something we’re afraid of. If there had been a snake out there, you probably would have heard a few girlish shrieks followed by some choice words from me.”

Her mouth cracked into a very slight smile. Progress.

“You and Glenda must be close. Two visits in the same week.” She raised her mug to her lips and sipped.

“She’s a sweet lady. Since my uncle died, my brother and I try to get over here as often as we can. Lend a hand. These old houses always seem to have something or another going on, as I imagine you’ll figure out soon enough.” From the way she flinched, he had a feeling she probably already was. “Did you find someone yet?”

She looked at him, perplexed initially, and then he saw understanding dawn. “I’ve talked to a few people,” she said vaguely. He translated that into a no.

“I told you,” wheezed Glenda as she reached the top of the stairs, a laundry basket with clothes in her arms. He hustled over and relieved her of her burden, and she took another breath and continued, “Dominic is the only person you want. At the least, let him in to have a look. Glance through the estimates the other clowns gave you. He’ll tell you what’s what.”

“I couldn’t impose—” Kate started.

Did she ever let anyone help her out? “I could take a look,” he said easily and cut off the rest of her objection. “At least give you an idea of what needs to be done, and you can compare it to the bids you’ve received. Besides, I’m curious to see the inside the old place. Turn of the century, right? What have you got to lose?”

She raised those gray-blue eyes to his, and he could see her trying to assess the situation as her brow furrowed.

“Okay,” she said slowly. “I guess it wouldn’t hurt to get another bid.”

He smiled. “I can swing by Monday evening.”

“Wednesday will work better for me.”

Was she trying to be difficult? “Wednesday it is.”

Glenda smacked her hands on the table. “Darn. I completely forgot to take the cookies out.”

“Actually”—Kate glanced down at her cell phone resting on the table—“I really should be going.”

“It’s only seven thirty, dear. Oh. Are you going out?” His aunt’s surprise couldn’t have been more evident and he worked to keep a straight face.

“Not tonight.” If she had been pink before, her face turned a deep purple now as she looked everywhere but at him. “It’s been a long week. All I want is to relax in a nice hot bath.”

“I understand, dear. But don’t think I haven’t noticed, other than working upward of fifteen hours a day, you never get out and do anything fun. You’re only young once. Lord knows the trouble Danny and I used to get into when we were your age. We never could have kids of our own, you see, so we were determined to be kids ourselves, living every moment to the fullest.” Glenda looked off with a fond smile on her lips and a bit of mist in her eyes.

“Save for those weekends when my parents lassoed you into watching the four of us, if you remember,” Dominic teased. “By Sunday night, I think you were both counting your blessings you
didn’t
have kids.”

Glenda chuckled. “As exhausting as you four were, I loved every minute of our time with you all. We both did.”

Kate stood abruptly. “Thanks again, for your help. But I really do need to be going.”

“Let me grab you some cookies at least.” Ignoring Kate’s objections, Glenda stuffed a sandwich bag with as many cookies she could cram in. Kate accepted them reluctantly and sailed out the side door before Glenda could delay her further.

“You enjoy your bath, dear!” Glenda called out from behind her.

Kate blanched and gave them a halfhearted wave.

He joined Glenda at the table and nodded while she continued to make conversation long after Kate left. About what he didn’t know. His mind was still on the redhead.

And that damned bath.

…

Dominic stepped out of his truck the next evening, pretending not to notice the faces that peered at him from the windows. The front door swung open, and before he could reach for the handle a small figure threw himself at his legs.

“Uncle Dominic!”

“Oomph! Take it easy, Paul. You almost took me out.”

Even though his presence in his six-year-old nephew’s life has been sporadic at best thanks to Paul’s nomadic father, the kid was eager to give his affection without restraint. Paul’s two older sisters, Jenna and Natalie, wise already at nine and seven years of age, watched him warily from around the corner. Their affection wasn’t as quickly given. He’d win them over with time.

“Hello, girls. What’s your grandma been brewing over her pot for dinner?”

“I heard that,” was the quick response from the kitchen. With Paul holding on to his legs, Dominic strode down the hallway to the large room at the back of the house.

“You’ll eat what I make and won’t complain,” scolded the dark-haired, petite woman washing her hands at the kitchen sink. But the wide smile belied the true affection she had for him. She briefly wiped her hands on a towel and opened her arms for a hug.

“Hey, Mama,” he said and folded her in tightly and lifted her off the floor.

“
Dios mío
.
You’ll drop me,” she squealed and he set her down. “It’s not like you didn’t just see me last Sunday.”

Her accent was faint, something more than forty years in the United States had softened over the years but couldn’t quite erase. Elena Marguerite Eschaban Sorensen was as beautiful and youthful at fifty-seven years as she appeared in her wedding photos. Dominic could see how someone like stoic, fair-skinned Petter Sorensen had fallen for such a warm, lively woman with mischievous dark eyes. Four kids later, they were still very much in love, something all their children looked on with pride and possibly a little envy.

It was exactly the kind of love he was looking for.

He wanted Sunday dinners with his own large brood. Dinners where he and his wife shared warm looks of love that made everyone around them roll their eyes or grimace in disgust knowing what they’d be doing later.

He sneaked a carrot from the saucepan and took a bite. “How’s Dad doing?”

She shook her head. “Stubborn. He’s in bed and refuses to come out for dinner. He’s been hiding out there all afternoon. I think he’s afraid the slightest stress will set him back for his surgery. Why don’t you go see him? Maybe you can get him to at least come to the sofa. I’ll fix him a tray.”

“A lot of good I’ll do, but I’ll try my best.”

Although his dad had recovered from the heart attack that nearly took him from his family three years earlier, the heart condition that caused the attack—dilated cardiomyopathy—still plagued him. His doctors hoped the pacemaker he was scheduled to receive in a few more weeks would improve his health.

Ten minutes later, Dominic appeared for dinner—without his dad. He shook his head at his mother’s expectant face. She tried to smile, but he could tell she was concerned.

Dominic and his family had done their best over the years to ease the stress on the old man. He’d even pulled out of the U, where he had been working toward his architecture degree, to help cover for his dad at the family construction business. It had been the right things to do at the time—even if his then girlfriend, Melinda, hadn’t agreed—and he had no regrets. If it helped his dad’s stress level and the toll on his heart, it was worth it. Family came first.

He only hoped that his dad would understand that now that things were taking a positive turn, Dominic was ready to get back to his own life. Realize his own dreams. And he hoped his dad wouldn’t be too hurt.

“Hey, I want to sit with everyone else,” Paul whined when he saw the adults take their places around the table and realized he and his sisters were to sit up at the bar.

“There’s only one spot left, little man, at the head of the table,” Cruz said, referring to their father’s empty spot. Cruz took his usual seat at the foot of the table. The eldest, he liked to remind his siblings of his place as leader. They let him think so. “Are you ready to assume the responsibility of sitting as the head of the family?”

Paul nodded. “Mama already tells me I have to be brave because I’m now the man of the house. Right, Mama?”

“That’s right, buddy.” Daisy attempted a smile, but her heart was clearly not in it. Her wide, dark brown eyes looked drawn and tired. Not at all like the bossy older sister he knew. When he got a hold of Leo, her two-timing shit of a husband, he was going to give him something to remember. “I suppose you can sit here. Let your aunt Benny help you cut your food.”

Paul picked up his plate and strutted to the table, almost preening. Dominic’s mom smoothed his dark hair when he took the seat next to her, pride shining in her eyes.

“Make sure you eat every bite, kiddo,” Benny said and leaned over to cut his pork chop for him. “You don’t want to end up weak and frail like your uncles.”

“Listen to your auntie. She’ll show you how to grow hair on your chest,” Dominic quipped, earning an elbow in the belly even as Benny’s blue eyes sparkled.

“Can I see? Really?” Paul chirped, his gaze already steady on his aunt’s chest, which in her overlarge tee looked as shapeless as a potato sack.

“You won’t find anything there,” Cruz chimed in and Dominic chuckled while Paul looked up at the adults, truly perplexed.

“I could take you both anytime,” Benny bit back. Beautiful in a more understated way than Daisy, Benny was the youngest, and had never been apologetic for her tomboyish ways. “You’ve both gotten soft in your old age. What are you guys pushing, like forty? I’d bet Paul could put you down in under a minute.”

“Thirty-five, brat,” Cruz said. “And I can whoop pretty boy’s ass here”—he pointed to Dominic—“as well as yours. Anytime.”

“
Language,
” their mother reminded them, and Cruz grinned.

“Should we have a little game after dinner?” Benny just didn’t give up. “Two on two. Let’s put your false bravado to the test. Dominic and I could totally take you and Daisy, as always. I’ll even let you have Paul.”

Paul whooped and immediately started begging to be included. Daisy, however, didn’t bite and barely realized what was going on around her.

Dom exchanged looks with his siblings. He knew that aside from his sister’s heartache, she was trying her damnedest to keep her family afloat, struggling with all the debt her ex had taken on but was now nowhere to help pay it off. She needed help—legal help—and that was going to cost her. For a minute, he considered the possibility of talking to his aunt’s feisty new neighbor, even if to get a referral for a reliable divorce attorney, but dismissed the thought right away. Because as proud as Daisy was, she wouldn’t take any financial assistance from them. She wanted to figure it out herself.

Even if it killed her.

He shook his head. There was more than one heart that needed fixing in this family.