Luck of the Draw (A Betting on Romance Novel Book 1) (22 page)

Kate smiled more easily and stepped forward to take the bottle. “It’s perfect.”
He
was perfect. Standing there in his bare feet wearing that soft, lopsided smile, he was just what she would have asked for if she were at the man-bar ordering up something delicious and refreshing.

He followed her into the kitchen. She knew this because every sense was acutely aware of him behind her. The soft shuffle of his feet on the bare wood floor. The fresh scent of his soap. She reached up for glasses and nearly dropped the bottle on the floor when he pressed his body against hers and began to nuzzle the back of her neck.

“Kate...” he murmured into her hair, his lips doing dizzying things to her already jumbled brain. Thankfully, he grabbed the bottle and set it on the counter, as Kate could do little more than hold herself upright, her knees threatening to buckle.

She couldn’t say how long they stood like that, him driving her dizzy with tantalizing kisses, before he finally pulled away. “Turn around,” he ordered thickly.

Slowly, she turned, her pulse thundering in her ears.

“Kate,”
he said again.

Oh
Lord
, she thought unsteadily as she stared back at him. His hair was still damp from his shower, his jaw shadowed with the day’s stubble. He wore a plain tee and an old pair of jeans, and she was quite sure that if he said ‘Kate’ in that low, sexy voice again, she’d dissolve into liquid heat right before his eyes.

“I’ve been thinking about you all night,” he said as he dipped his lips to her nape again. How did he know that was the one place that drove her crazy?

“You have?” she squeaked.

“
Mmm
,” he murmured against her cheek, her closed eyelid. “I’ve been thinking about taking it slow this time.”

“I thought you wanted to come for a... a nightcap?” She gripped the edge of the counter as she felt herself slumping toward the floor.

“Is that what you want?”

“What I want?” Thank heaven he’d slid an arm around her, because this verticality issue she had when he was near was definitely becoming a problem.

“
Mmm
,” he murmured.

His mouth was now so close to her own, she felt her lips plumping up on their own accord just to make contact with his.
Just a little closer. A little more
, they seemed to say. “I want... I want...,” she stuttered.

And then his lips were on hers, saving her the effort of finishing her sentence, because he was giving her exactly what she wanted.

A long sigh escaped her lips as he traced his tongue down her nape, then up to nip lightly on her earlobe. “I’m glad you’re still up,” he said.

“Me... too,” she breathed as his hands moved slowly on her back, stroking rhythmically down to her hips. Then he pulled her against him and held her hips against his so she could feel his response to her.

He kissed her again, softly, slowly, then more firmly. Teasing. Tempting. “I don’t normally do this,” he said, pulling back just enough to separate their lips. “I want you to know. I’m not that kind of guy—this kind of guy—normally.”

At least, that’s what she thought he said. She was having trouble listening to him, what with her blood pounding in her ears.

“Me either,” she said as his mouth went south again at the same time his hands went north—under her shirt, that is. “But, I, ah... didn’t see that it did any harm earlier to...
indulge
.” This last word came out in a burst as his fingers undid the front clasp of her bra, setting her breasts free a scant moment before he cupped them in his palms.

“I like you,” he sucked in a breath as she fumbled with the zipper to his jeans. “It’s not just about the sex.”

“I like you, too,” she replied as his jeans slid down his thighs, exposing the strong, sexy contents therein. She looked up. “And it’s totally about the sex.”

He nodded, his eyes rolling back under his closing lids as she began to stroke him through his boxers. “Maybe... now... it... is...” He grabbed her hand and opened his eyes. “But, it doesn’t have to stop there. Just so you know.”

“I know,” she said as she wet her lips and slid to her knees, watching as his eyes grew wide. “But it’s okay if it does.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
____________________

“I
DON’T UNDERSTAND,” Carter said later that Friday morning. He uncoiled the hose and began to spray down Sugar Falls’ Engine No. 2, just one task in a host of preparations for the town’s Fourth of July Parade the next day. “How could we possibly be related—even remotely—if you aren’t totally psyched about this?”

“First of all, I’ve always had my doubts about our being related. And second of all, I was talking to Doug.” Jim followed Carter around the engine with a long scrub brush and a bucket of detergent.

“Sorry, I just came by to see how things went after you left last night. Didn’t mean to start anything.” Doug leaned against the wall of the fire station. He didn’t look particularly sorry to Jim, not after hearing a highly-edited synopsis of the previous evening’s events.

“So just to review what we know so far: You’re saying you actually slept with the hot widow next door and she says that’s all she wants from you?” Carter said.

Jim put all his concentration on eradicating a particularly sticky bug smear. “Basically.”

He scowled at the bug guts, trying to sort through his emotions. He was relieved, certainly, that Kate wasn’t looking for a serious relationship. Hadn’t he just gotten out of one?

“You have so got it made,” Carter laughed. “Where is
my
hot young widow who wants to get laid?”

“Would you keep your voice down? I don’t want the other guys to hear.”

Carter stopped, water spraying all over. “Why the hell not?”

“Because,” Doug said, “if things do happen to work out with her, he doesn’t want the whole town thinking she’s a... well,
easy
.”

“
Exactly
,” Jim agreed. Wait a minute.
Was
that why he didn’t want the other guys to hear? Sure, it sounded better than Carter’s take on it, but maybe Carter’s attitude just hit too close to home. Maybe he just didn’t want the other guys to know
another
woman had already deemed him unsuitable for anything serious. Kate hadn’t even asked if
he
wanted a relationship!

Which he didn’t. Most certainly not. He was done saving women. Especially widows and orphans for Christ’s sake.

“But she already told you she just wanted sex and wasn’t looking for anything long term,” Carter said.

“That’s what she
said
, yes,” Doug agreed. “That’s what Rachel said at one point, too.”

“
What?
” Carter and Jim turned as one.

Doug took a step back. “But it all turned out for the best in the end, right? I’m just saying, maybe Kate’s afraid of getting too attached in case you don’t turn out to be the kind of guy that wants to hook up with a woman who has a kid.”

“You know I’m not like that,” Jim said.

“But
she
doesn’t. Maybe she thinks if she convinces you both there’s nothing expected, then if something’s meant to happen it will happen.”

Carter turned to Jim with baleful eyes. “Oh. My. God. Rachel’s turned him into a girl.”

Doug frowned. “Maybe she doesn’t want him to feel trapped. She’s giving him an out. It doesn’t mean she wants him to take it.”

Carter shook his head and went back to spraying. “I will never understand women.”

“Just be careful,” Doug said to Jim, ignoring Carter completely now. “It might be more complicated with Kate than it seems.”

Jim dumped the brush into the bucket of detergent. “I think it already is.”

A
FTER SETTLING
L
IAM DOWN for his nap, Kate took a quick shower to wash away the heat and sweat of the day then logged onto the Internet. Once she’d called Jim’s grandmother and agreed to help organize the Sweets of Sugar Falls calendar, she’d gotten in contact with the Gifts for Greater Good web manager and given him her new e-mail address. Now it was on the web site inviting men to submit their photos and bios to Kate, er, Liz Bennet, for review. Eek!

She felt a little foolish for picking such a well-known romantic heroine as her alter-ego, but Ruth Pearson had assured her it was perfect… a classic character would make it harder for someone to guess Kate’s true identity, she’d said. Which suited Kate just fine. Certainly there were enough complications in her life without littering it with a bunch of men.

Kate signed into her e-mail account.

There were a handful of new messages. She popped them open to read. Most included small candid shots to download.

Okay. She could admit it. There were worse jobs than having to sort through the pictures of a bunch of eligible men. Troy looked kind of cute in an academic way. And Brent was definitely in the running. If only she were ten years younger. Or even five.

Ten minutes later, her chat window popped up asking if she would accept messages from Jim Pearson. She clicked yes and a moment later had an instant message.

Jim:
  Hi. Is anybody there? I have a question.

Kate stared at the screen, biting her lip.
He doesn’t know it’s me.

She watched the blinking cursor in the chat message awaiting her reply. She couldn’t ignore him, could she? Couldn’t he
see
she was logged on?

She hesitated only a moment before her fingers tapped on the keys then hit
send
and watched her message appear on the screen.

Liz:
  I’m here.

His reply came quickly.

Jim:
Nice to meet you.

Liz:
  You, too.

Jim:
  I’ve got some photos but not sure which I should upload for the calendar. Can you help with that—or is asking advice against the rules?

Liz:
  I can help with that.

Jim:
  Should I e-mail them to you? They’re pretty big files...

Liz:
  You can, or if there are a lot, you can just tell me what you’ve got. Describe them for me. Like, what are you wearing, that sort of thing.

Jim:
  Okaaaaay.

Liz:
  Sorry! That wasn’t meant to sound... untoward. :)

Jim:
   LOL Untoward? Isn’t that Old English? Is this the REAL Liz Bennet from Pride & Prejudice I’m chatting with?

Kate smiled as her fingers tapped a reply.
Send.

Liz:
  Ah, I see you’ve heard of me.

Jim:
  Heard of you? We KNOW each other!

Kate swallowed, her heart slamming in her chest as she typed.

Liz:
  We do?

Jim:
  Sure. Don’t you remember? You and me? AP English? Senior year? I’m shocked you don’t remember. You were a part of my formative years, Liz. I could never forget you.

Liz:
  Formative years, huh? In what way?

Jim:
  Okay, let’s not get untoward or anything. For all I know I’m talking to my grandmother.

Liz:
  LOL. I’m definitely not your grandmother.

Jim:
  ...or one of her friends she plays cards with.

Liz:
  Or one of her friends she plays cards with.

Jim:
 
Is this Estelle from the Senior Center?

Liz:
 
No, it’s not. Now, Jim, if I didn’t know better, I’d think you were fishing for my identity, which we both know is against the rules.

J
IM SMILED AT HIS MONITOR and typed a reply.

Jim:
 
That’s me. A rule breaker.

Liz:
 
You are, are you?

Jim:
 
Oh, yeah. Me and rules... we don’t get along. Quick— what’s your name?

Liz:
 
Liz. Nice try, Mr. Rule Breaker.

Jim:
 
Fine. We’ll play it your way. I’m just saying it might be more fun if we didn’t...

Liz:
 
Don’t be naughty or I’ll have to put you in a time-out.

Jim blinked as her words appeared on the screen.
Time-out?
He chuckled out loud. Flirting with Kate was more fun than he’d imagined. At least, he was pretty sure it was Kate. Who else would Grams have roped into doing this? It made perfect sense… only the mother of a three year-old would use words like ‘naughty’ and ‘time-out’ in the same sentence.