His Old-Fashioned Love (Old-Fashioned Series) (5 page)

“
Feels better,” she said, her eyes closing. Her color had improved and her breathing had slowed.

“
Does this happen often?” he asked, not quite ready to stop touching her.

She shook her head.
“It’s been bad lately. Too much sitting. That’s why I went for a walk tonight.”

Brax scowled.
“That wasn’t a wise choice. What if I hadn’t been driving along?”

Holly opened her eyes, staring up at him inquisitively.
“Why were you driving past?”

“
I went to visit a friend but they weren’t home.” Kind of the truth.

She stared at him a little suspiciously
, then closed her eyes again with a grimace.

“
If I hadn’t been driving past you’d still be sitting out there, helpless and in pain.”

The thought made him furious.

Holly sighed.
“I know. But I needed a walk. I needed to stretch my muscles. I would have called Derrick.”

Derrick. Derrick. Jealously raged throug
h him. What was wrong with him?

“You need to think things through better,” he scolded.

“Sleepy now.” She yawned, looking so sweet and young that he wanted to wrap her up in his arms and protect her from the world. Damn, those possessive instincts of his were in full force.

“
Okay. Let me help you get comfortable, then I’ll go.” He lifted her up and set her on a chair before pulling back the covers on the bed. Holly watched him through heavy-lidded eyes. Then he kneeled before her and unzipped her black boots.

“
Do you want me to help you take anything else off?”

“
Sweater,” she muttered.

“
Arms up.” He pulled the sweater off, accidentally tugging her t-shirt up with it, giving him a tantalizing glimpse of lace-covered breasts. His cock pressed against his jeans, demanding release. He quickly pulled her t-shirt down, then scooped her up, placing her in the bed.

He brushed the hair off her face.

“Heating pad?” she asked.

“
You sleep with it on?” He had completely forgotten about the pad.

“I’ll turn it off later,” she told him. H
e pulled back the covers and tugged the pad around her leg. With a sigh, Holly closed her eyes and snuggled down.

“
Thank you,” she murmured.

Brax ran a finger down her cheek.
“I don’t feel right leaving you like this.”

“
I’m fine now. Night, Brax.”

Well, that was his cue to leave. But he couldn’t force himself to go
straight away. Instead he sat on the chair by the bed and stared at her for a long moment. He really was becoming a stalker.

A knock on the door had him quickly
moving over to open it before the person on the other side could knock again and wake her.

A startled Derrick gap
ed at Brax as he held a finger to his lips and stepped out of the room, pulling the door closed without shutting it entirely.

“
What are you doing here?” Derrick asked with a scowl, trying to see past him.

“
Keep your voice down,” Brax whispered. “She just went off to sleep.”

“
Sleep? It’s only nine-thirty. Exactly what tired her out?”

Brax shook his head.
“Not me. I know what you’re thinking but she’s exhausted from another leg cramp. I was driving past when I saw her collapse on the street. I brought her back here, got her some pills and the heating pad. Nothing else.”

Derrick’s shoulders relaxed slightly.
“Thank you. What was she doing out walking around?”

“
She said she wanted to stretch her muscles, but she needs to take more care. If I hadn’t come along…”

Derrick nodded.
“Thank you for helping her.”

For the second time that night he’d been dismissed. As
much as he wanted to protest, he had no right.

“
Okay, have a good night then.” He turned and walked away without a backward glance, telling himself it was for the best.

“Your tickets are all booked for London,” Holly said as she walked into Derrick’s office. “And I’ve booked your accommodation in that hotel you like by Hyde Park.”

Holly loved London
, but Derrick didn’t need her for this trip and she was feeling pretty exhausted lately so she was happy to stay behind.

“
Derrick?” she questioned as he remained silent, thinking.

“
Sorry. I’ve just been on the phone to Max,” he told her. “His wife has been diagnosed with breast cancer.”

“
Oh my God.” She sat on the chair in front of Derrick’s wide, oak desk. “Is it bad?”

“
Well, it’s not good. They are taking her into surgery at the end of the week. Understandably, Max is taking some time off.”

“
He’s working on the resort outside of Lilyvale at the moment, isn’t he?”

It ha
d been three months since they visited Lilyvale and she was still embarrassed over the way she had collapsed on the pavement, forcing Brax to carry her to her room and put her to bed. Mortifying.

“
Yes, Jamieson has things on track, but you know how I like to have my own project manager on jobs this big. Especially since I haven’t worked with Jamieson before. We need another project manager there, fast.”

Brax had won the bid by a very close margin, and she knew Derrick
was a bit nervous about using a relatively new company. But Brax was proving that he was good at his job if the reports from Max were anything to go by.

“
Brett will be finished in Chicago soon. We could send him.”

Derrick tapped his pen against his desk.
“That’s three weeks away.”

“Josh
ua is very capable—I’m sure he can hold things together.” Joshua was Max’s assistant, and, although young, he was very good at his job.

“Yes,
I know. But he’s inexperienced and I’d just feel better if I had someone I trusted there, checking up on things.”

He stared at her.

“Me? No way.”
Uh-uh, not happening.

“I trust you.
Let Joshua do his job; just keep an eye on him and Brax.”

“
You want me to go spy on them?”

“
Not spy,” he soothed. “Just look out for the company’s best interests. There’s been a bit of grumbling from the citizens of Lilyvale over the resort. Just go there, keep an eye on things and let me know if I need to step in and do any troubleshooting.”

She sighed. “I was really looking forward to staying at home for a while.”

“I know, love. I’m sorry. I’ll send Brett to you as soon as he’s free. You might get there and find out that everything is fine. Just humor me.”

Like she’d refuse him
. “Okay, okay. I’ll fly out there tomorrow. But you owe me.”

“How does two weeks off sound? Anywhere you like.”

“Overly generous.” She’d never take him up on it, though. For one thing she already owed him so much, plus, there was nothing sadder than going on holiday alone.

“Thanks, love.”

*****

Derrick definitely owed her b
ig time. Holly pulled into the building site early on Wednesday morning. She had flown in late last night then collapsed in her hotel room without bothering with dinner. This morning her rumbling stomach had woken her early. Grabbing some breakfast and coffee from the local bakery, she had decided to drive straight out here.

No one was onsite yet, which suited her fine. She wasn’t looking forward to seeing Brax and yet at the same time, she was filled with nervous anticipation.

Why were things never simple?

As she
climbed out of her hired car, she immediately saw the bright green and yellow graffiti covering the trailers and storage units.

“
Oh no.”

Fuck off. Go home.

The threats weren’t exactly articulate, but they were effective. She wandered over to one of the trailers that looked as though it were being used as an office.
The door had been smashed in. Within the trailer, furniture had been turned over and smashed, papers spread everywhere, tread on by muddy footprints.

“
What the fuck!”

Holly jumped at the loud voice and turned too quickly, her weak leg nearly crumpling.
She was wearing her brace today which helped support her leg. She should have been wearing it that night Brax had rescued her off the pavement, but she’d foolishly thought she’d be fine for a short walk.

She stepped out of the trailer, gasping as Brax turned on her, his gaze fierce. Immediately, he softened.

“
Holly?” he asked, stepping forward. His gaze ran over her, as though checking to make sure she was all right. “What are you doing here? Did you see who did this?”

She shook her head. “
No, I’ve no clue. It’s terrible.” Holly bit her lower lip. “They smashed up the office.” She stepped aside to let Brax in. He brushed past her, leaving her skin tingling.

“
Shit. I’m going to kill him.” His voice was filled with cold fury.

“
Who?”

“
Mason Philips. This is too far. He can attack me—that’s personal, but not where I’m working.”

That seemed weird logic to her. Men.

“Are you sure this was him? Derrick said you’ve been having problems with some of the locals opposing the resort.”

Brax turned back to her, his gaze hard and cold.
“How long have you been here?”

Holly let out a bark of surprised laughter.
“Surely you don’t think I did this?”

Brax waved his hand dismissingly. “Of course I don’t. But you were out here alone; you could have interrupted
him.”

“I think
whoever did this was long gone by the time I got here, Brax.”

“Don’t come out here alone again,” he ordered, seeming to forget that he wasn’t the boss of her. “In fact, I don’t like you going anywhere alone. What was Derrick thinking, sending you here?”

Holly drew herself up to her full five-foot-three stature, and threw her shoulders back. She was used to dealing with dominant males who thought they knew best, but there was something about Brax that made her melt around him. She shook the feeling away—she was here to do a job.

“
He was thinking that I could take care of myself.” Although if Derrick knew that things had escalated to this he’d never have allowed her to step on that plane.

“
I want you to stay in Hamilton,” Brax told her, arms crossing over his chest. “You’ll be safer there.”

“
No.”

“While you’
re here, I am in charge of your safety,” he told her.

She gaped at him incredulously. “How do you figure that?” She placed her hands on her hips. Da
mn he was infuriating, arrogant and so gorgeous. Sugar, she was in trouble.

“Derrick sent you here to me. He expects me to watch out for you.”

“We’re not living in the seventeenth century, Brax. I’m a grown woman. I can take care of myself.”

Brax stepped closer to her, staring down at her. She forced herself to meet his gaze.

“I’m the male
; therefore, I’m the protector.”

Holly’s jaw dropped. “That is so old-fashioned.”

“That’s me, baby.”

She should be furious, yet
a warm feeling had invaded her stomach. She wasn’t used to anyone but Derrick watching out for her. But she wasn’t going to fall at Brax’s feet in total obedience.

“That may be. But I am here to do a job and I’m not in any danger. This
has nothing to do with me. You’re overreacting,” she told him gently. “Besides, I’m not without my own means of protecting myself.”

Brax glared and she met his stare with a firm one of her own.
“I’m here to check how things are going. It’s another twenty minute drive to Hamilton. I will be fine in Lilyvale.”

“
Don’t be naïve.”

“
Don’t be a jerk.”

Brax ran his hand over his short, dark hair, his eyes filled with worry. “Fine, fine. But please don’t come
out here when no one else is around. And be careful for God’s sake. If this isn’t Philips, then whoever did this might decide to take things further when this doesn’t scare us off.”

She nodded. That sounded sensible.

“Don’t worry about me. Derrick made sure I brought protection.”

Brax’s eyebrows rose and the chill in his eye
s dissipated. She blushed, realizing the way that sounded.

“
I meant that I have my Taser and pepper spray with me.”

Brax placed his hands on his trim, jean-clad hips. He was dressed in a white t-shirt, ripped dark jeans, and a
cowboy hat on his head—and she thought she’d never seen someone so sexy in her life. She wondered what it would be like to have those large, tanned hands touch her, cup her breasts, part her legs.

Mouth watering, she raised her gaze as he cleared his throa
t. Her blush deepened as he grinned, realizing she’d been caught staring at him.

“
You lucked out using that Taser against Philips. Don’t let it make you cocky. I want you to stay away from him, understand me?”

“
I’m going to forgive you for insulting my intelligence because you’re obviously overwrought; however I have no intention of going anywhere near Mason Philips or his brothers.”

“
Overwrought?” he said incredulously. “I’m not overwrought. I’m furious.”

She nodded.
“I can understand that; just remember that you’re not in charge of me.” Glancing over, she saw some other vehicles arriving. “I have to meet with Joshua. I’d like you to be there.”

“
You can bet on it.”
 

*****

Brax couldn’t believe she was back. On the one hand he was thrilled
— he’d been obsessing over her the last few months. Even in the midst of his anger over the senseless vandalism, he’d taken a moment to drink her in.

But
he was worried. Holly didn’t need to be in the middle of this and he intended to let Derrick know his thoughts on the matter as soon as he got a hold of him.

Irritation had him grinding his teeth.
Derrick had insisted on putting his own project manager on the job and Brax could understand why, but Joshua could manage just fine without Max here. There was no reason for Derrick to send Holly.

Brax wiped his sweaty brow as he realized everyone was pack
ing up. Saying goodbye to the guys, he headed towards the trailer office. He stopped in the doorway, surprised to see that it had been tidied up. His desk was upright, with neat stacks of paper sitting on top. Unfortunately his chair was missing a couple of legs.

“Hope you don’t mind,” a quiet voice said behind him. “I didn’t read your papers—just put them into piles.”

“
Mind? No, I don’t mind.” She’d saved him quite a bit of time and effort. “But you didn’t need to do this.”

She shrugged, her full lips tilting up into a smile.
“I know. Are you finished for the night or do you still have some work to do?”

“
Well, I guess I’m finished now. I just need to call Derrick. I tried him earlier but couldn’t get through.”

Holly nodded, her dark, silken tresses gleaming in the soft late-afternoon night. Brax was tired, sweaty and worried, yet he felt unbelievably content just watching her.

“I got a hold of him. He’s concerned, of course, and wanted me to warn you to be careful.”

“
He didn’t order you home?” Brax asked.

“
Derrick doesn’t order me around. Well, he tries to, but it doesn’t always work.” A small smirk crossed her lips and his cock hardened. He shifted, trying to ease his discomfit.

“He’s your boss. I didn’t think you
would have a choice.”

“
He was my brother-in-law before he became my boss, so I get away with more than most. He’s not going to fire me. That would make things a bit awkward when we got home.” She sent him a cheeky smile.

“So Derrick was married to…” He knew he was fishing, but didn’t care.

“Actually, I was married to Derrick’s brother. We divorced a few years ago.”

“
And you live with Derrick?”

“
Yes.” A sad look crossed her face and he felt the urge to hold her, demand to know who had put that look on her face. “I actually live in his guest house. Guess that’s pretty pathetic, right?”

“
No,” Brax said, more sharply than he meant to. “Not pathetic,” he reassured her. She had a defeated look on her face that he instantly wanted to erase. “I’m just surprised you guys get on so well. Not everyone could live and work together.”