Not His Type

by Shanna Hatfield

  “Well, just tell him to go away. I won’t see him. I won’t!” Anna yelled, sitting on her bed with her feet propped up. The sores that were painful last night had become nearly excruciating today. Sue had given her pain reliever, cold compresses, more anti-bacterial cream and offered to drive her to the doctor.

  Being in a stubborn frame of mind, not to mention heartbroken over Jake, Anna had accepted the medicine and cold packs but refused to leave the house. Good thing it was a Saturday. At least she didn’t have to go back to work until Monday.

  Jake started calling at nine that morning. He seemed to know Anna wouldn’t answer her cell phone and tried the house number. Anna refused to speak with him. He proceeded to call every hour on the hour until noon, begging to talk to Anna. Sue was getting tired of telling him no. He sounded so hurt and dejected, it was about to break her heart.

  When the phone didn’t ring at one, Sue was hopeful Jake had given up. She’d just breathed a sigh of relief when a knock sounded at the back door. It didn’t surprise her at all to find Jake standing there, holding a bouquet of flowers and a bag of M&Ms. While Sue put the flowers in a vase, Jake gave her the details of what he thought happened the night before, leaving out the part about Anna’s reckless driving. He still had no idea what had set Anna off into her blind fury.

  Sue marched into Anna’s room with the flowers and insisted she at least listen to what Jake had to say. Her insistence resulted in Anna’s current tirade that could be heard not only in the kitchen, but quiet likely out in the barn.

  “I won’t see him, Mom. I just won’t,” Anna yelled even more loudly, her chin set stubbornly. “I want him to go away.”

  "No can do," Jake said, standing in the half-open doorway, surprising both Anna and her mother. "I won't go away until you tell me what made you mad."

  Sue turned around, grinned at Jake and mouthed “good luck” before she left the room.

  Anna sat on the bed, eyes shooting sparks, cheeks painted rosy with an angry blush. "I don't believe I have anything further to say to you Mr. Chandler. Please remove yourself from my presence post haste."

  "I don't think so, Sugar," Jake said, coming further into the room and noticing, for the first time, her feet propped up on pillows. He nearly choked at the sight of them. The huge, raw blisters covering both feet looked painful enough to topple a tough grown man, let alone this determined, stubborn, intractable female. What was she thinking? Jake shook his head. Obstinate, independent woman.

  Anna sat there like a princess holding court in her tank top and shorts, scowling at him imperiously in her decidedly feminine room. Violets danced in stripes down the wallpaper and deep shades of purple and green added pops of color to the otherwise white room. A laptop computer rested on a small desk and a huge bookcase took up all of one wall, filled with a variety of books, knick knacks and framed art. An overstuffed chair sat in a sunny corner and a queen sized bed was placed so it had a marvelous view out two huge windows that overlooked the backyard.

  Jake turned his attention from the room back to the enraged woman on the bed. If he hadn’t been so irritated with her, he may have been tempted to kiss her senseless. Instead of hollering at her about how frantic he'd been when he couldn't find her last night or how irresponsibly she'd been driving or how worked up she had him by not answering his calls all morning, he swallowed down his anger and turned on one of his most charming smiles.

  "I’m not leaving. Not until you tell me what's got you so worked up," Jake said as he towered above her standing next to the bed, smiling for all he was worth.

  "I don't have to tell you anything," Anna snapped, ignoring his charm and his smile. If she could have stomped out of the room and slammed the door in his face, he had no doubt she would have done it. Lucky for him, she was bedridden for the moment.

  Sighing, Anna decided that maybe if she told him the truth he'd feel the least bit chagrined and leave her alone. Instead of looking at Jake, though, she stared out the window. "I was reading your lips last night when I saw you tell your friends that I wasn't your type of girl. You made it perfectly clear you prefer the company of an entirely different type of girl than I am capable of being. Now that you clarified that, I will no longer squander your time with my unwelcome presence. There is nothing here to further detain you. Please go away and leave me alone. I don’t…. I don't want to see you ever again.”

  "Oh, you're going to see me, Anna, whether you like it or not. You've got me," Jake said loudly and clearly, finally deciding to surrender the freedom he’d guarded so carefully to this innocent yet wild girl with the soulful eyes, infuriating mulishness and kissable lips.

  "Got you? What are you talking about?" Anna asked, turning back from the window, looking confused.

  Bracing a hand on each side of her against the headboard of the bed, he leaned over until his forehead nearly touched hers. She could feel his breath, warm and minty, on her face, and smell his spicy aftershave.

  "It's too late, Anna. I can't go away and leave you alone. I just can't. Don’t ask me to. So help me, but you've got my heart and dang near all the rest of me wrapped around your finger. If you wanted me to be able to just walk away, then you never should have kissed me like you meant it, never should have held me like you cared, never should have made my dreams seem so real when we’re together. You never should have made me fall in love with you."

  Anna looked in Jake's eyes, which were bright with heat and love. Maybe she had overreacted. Maybe he did care about her.

  If she was honest with herself, there wasn’t any maybe about it.

  "Oh, Jake." Anna whispered, tears pooling in her eyes. "I don't know what to say. You... You love me?"

  "Yes, Anna. I love you. I’ve never told a girl that before and I don’t say it lightly now. I love you even though you are stubborn, crazy, exasperating and independent, not to mention beautiful, sweet and perfect for me," Jake said the last part with a smile that completely melted Anna's heart.

  "I love you, too, you insane, obnoxious, handsome, most wonderful man," Anna said, as a tear rolled down her cheek. "I've loved you for so long."

  Jake brushed away her tear and sat next to her on the bed, staring into her eyes, drowning in their depths.

  "Jake?" Anna asked, leaning closer to him.

  "What, Sugar?" Jake said, unable to pull himself from the violet pools of warmth into which he’d fallen.

  "Will you please kiss me?" Anna’s lips were temptingly close to Jake’s.

  "Yes, ma'am," Jake said, gently taking Anna in his arms, pressing his lips to hers in a kiss full of hope and promises.

  When their lips parted, Jake stroked her cheek with his thumb before he took that stubborn chin in between his thumb and forefinger, forcing Anna to look at him. “For the record, though, what I said last night was that I knew you weren’t my type from the start. That you were shy and timid and a librarian. What you didn’t stick around for was to watch me tell them despite all that, I knew right away you were the perfect girl for me.”

  “Really?” she quietly asked.

  “Really,” he stated flatly, still smarting that she hadn’t trusted him, believed in him. All she had to do was ask him at the party and all this could have been avoided. Then again, he himself admitted the party was a mistake and if he hadn’t been so focused on showing her off like a human trophy, he would have realized how miserable she had been.

  Tears gathered in her eyes and threatened to spill. “I’m sorry Jake. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions and run off. I should have waited and talked with you about it last night,” Anna said, wiping at the tears now trickling down her cheeks. “I should have known, after all this time, that you care about me. I just felt so out of place and uncomfortable there.”

  Not more tears. He didn’t think he could take them today. Jake took her hand again and held it warmly in his own. “I owe you an apology, too. I should never have taken you to that party. I knew as soon as we got there you wouldn’t enjoy it and truth be
told, I wasn’t either. I guess I just wanted to show you off to my old party crowd. You looked so beautiful last night, Anna. You were absolutely gorgeous. And I wanted to punch every guy that talked to you in the nose.”

  “Oh, Jake,” Anna said, feeling miserable and contrite. “I stuck out like a sore thumb. The girls were rude and I kept having the feeling someone was staring at me.”

  Jake knew exactly who had been staring at her. Nearly every single guy there and a few that were attached. How could Anna not know what a novelty she would be to a group of people who had enjoyed life so completely they had no innocence left? And that is exactly why she wouldn’t know, because she was so untouched and sweet.

  “Well, before you try something completely unreasonable like this again,” Jake said, waving at her feet for emphasis, “Maybe you can try talking to me first.”

  “Yes, sir,” Anna said, without any fight left in her. How could there be? Jake loved her!

  <><><>

  Sue decided it wouldn’t do at all for the two of them to spend the afternoon alone in Anna’s bedroom, so Jake carried Anna out to the family room where she propped her feet on an ottoman and they watched old movies, ate popcorn and M&Ms, laughing until their sides hurt.

  Jake stayed for dinner and spent the evening with the family. Ken brought in a card table and set it up in front of Anna and they played board games until it got late and Jake knew he needed to go home.

  Picking up Anna, he carried her back to her room and placed her gently on the bed, even adjusting her feet on the pillows.

  Leaning over and giving her a kiss, he smiled as he stood. “Remind me not to rile your temper very often or I’ll have to change your name to Spice instead of Sugar.”

  Anna blushed, but he bent back down for another kiss. While he was close she whispered in his ear. “I love you, Jake Chandler, so much.”

  “I love you, too.”

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Jake felt like he hadn’t seen Anna forever. The two times he went over to see her on his lunch break this week, Mrs. Baxter said she was at a dress fitting and then at a bridal luncheon. The only time they spent together had been running errands for the wedding or helping Sam and Lisa remodel the apartment. They were both busy at work and at home due to her need to be out at the farm, and his own duties helping his family with harvest. Talking on cell phones while they were both driving farm equipment wasn’t terribly conducive to a great conversation or staying focused on their work. He had to abandon doing that altogether when he nearly drove the combine through Uncle Steve’s fence.

  Raking his hand through his hair in frustration, he looked out his office window across the street.

  “Do you think if you stare long enough, she’ll magically appear?” Dave asked, giving Jake a teasing grin.

  “No,” Jake growled. “No, I don’t. But dang it all, I need to see her. Right now.”

  Jumping up from his desk, he headed out the door and ran across the street. Entering the library, he looked around and saw Anna sitting in the middle of the children’s section, surrounded by a group of youngsters. A large storybook has in her hand and the kids sat in a half-circle around her on beanbags and tiny chairs. Anna herself perched on one of the little chairs. Instead of looking silly, it just emphasized the length of her legs, the grace of her carriage. Jake had every intention of stomping through the kids, dragging Anna outside and stealing a kiss. But seeing her there, the little ones enraptured by the story, he couldn’t interrupt.

  Instead, he went and asked Mrs. Baxter if he could look at a book in the special collections room and waited impatiently, knowing Anna would find him. It wasn’t long before she slipped in the room and kissed him on the cheek. The room had a large glass window that was easy to see from the rest of the library. There would be no stolen kisses in here. That was for certain.

  Anna sat down across from him and touched his hand. “What are you doing here?”

  “I had to see you,” Jake said, looking pained. “I think it’s been years since I’ve smelled your perfume or seen your smile or got lost in your eyes.”

  “Oh, Jake,” Anna said, taking a deep breath, enjoying a few minutes alone with him. “Things have been a little busy, haven’t they?” Taking off one heel, Anna snaked her foot up Jake’s pant leg. Blast, did he always have to wear boots? Pushing a little farther, she touched skin and rubbed her toes up and down his leg.

  “Anna,” Jake rumbled intensely, the very sound of it making her stomach flutter. “You best not start something you can’t even hope to finish, Sugar.”

  Anna sighed and put her shoe back on. “I know, but I miss you. I miss your teasing, and your kisses and running my fingers through your hair.”

  Jake groaned and grabbed Anna’s hand. He locked the door behind them, slid the key onto the front desk and tugged Anna outside and around the building into the cool shadows. There he pulled her so close she could feel his heart pounding in double time against her own, and lost himself in a kiss that left them both off-kilter.

  “I’ve been wanting to do that for days,” Jake said, his lips nuzzling her neck.

  “I’ve been wishing you would,” Anna whispered in the throaty voice that made Jake’s insides turn to mush.

  Jake kissed her again then took a step back. He smoothed her mussed hair, tugged on her blouse to straighten it and aligned her crooked glassed back on her nose. Satisfied she looked, once again, like his sensible librarian, he gave her a smile and walked her back to the library door.

  <><><>

  Jake tried calling Anna multiple times Saturday morning and couldn’t get an answer on her cell phone. The home phone line was continually busy. Giving up, he finally jumped in his truck and drove out to the farm.

  Pulling in the driveway, he was surprised to see extra cars parked around. Walking to the back door, he rapped quietly then stuck his head inside. He could hear voices and girlish laughter. Stepping into the kitchen, Sue just happened to walk in from the living room.

  “Well, goodness, Jake, what are you doing here?” she asked, giving him a hug and a warm smile.

  “I couldn’t get anyone on the phone so I decided to drive over,” Jake said, an uneasy feeling settling in his stomach. He was starting to recall Anna saying something about plans today. Obviously, he should have paid more attention.

  “We’re having a bridal shower for Lisa this afternoon. Her mom and sisters came early to help get food ready and hang decorations,” Sue said, taking fruit out of the fridge and starting to cut it up for a salad. “Go on in Jake. Anna will be glad to see you.”

  Jake took off his hat and left it on a hook by the back door then walked into the living room where Anna, Lisa’s mother and Lisa’s two sisters all worked to hang streamers, bridal bells and frilly whatnots that Jake didn’t even want to know about.

  Sensing someone in the room, Anna looked up and beamed when she saw Jake.

  “Hey, there,” she said with a smile as she walked over and kissed his cheek. “What are you doing here today? I thought I told you about Lisa’s shower.”

  Feeling foolish, Jake forced himself to look her in the face. “You did and I forgot. So I’ll just head on out and see you later.”

  Anna looked at the other women in the room and started laughing. Before he could get away, she grabbed his hand and pulled him into the middle of the room. “As long as you are here anyway…”

  Jake should have turned and ran out the door before Anna could drag him into the midst of their party preparations. He felt thoroughly used for his height and strength. They had him tacking ribbons to the ceiling, scooting furniture, toting chairs and tables, lugging a punch bowl that weighed half a ton out from the storage shed and any number of things that he’d not minded doing nearly as much as he was carrying on.

  But when Lisa’s mother suggested he be the door greeter and possibly provide some entertainment, Jake hurriedly excused himself and grabbed his hat. He hollered “have fun” and headed out the door. Anna caught up
with him, laughing hysterically, before he got to his pickup.

  “Jake,” she gasped, trying to talk around her fit of giggles, as she grabbed his hand. “Don’t go. We’re just teasing.”

  He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her behind his open truck door, where they had a bit of privacy from the windows of the house.

  “I know, Sugar, but I’ve had about all the girly party bedecking I can handle. You go on back inside and enjoy yourself. I’ll catch up with you later.” He gave her a parting kiss that caused her to take a stumbling step back and blush prettily, before she turned toward the house. When she reached the door, she looked over her shoulder and blew him a kiss. He gave her a wink and waved.

  Jake was just climbing in the cab of his truck when he saw Sam coming toward him from his apartment above the barn. He was making some last minute renovations before Lisa moved in with him after the wedding. Jake hadn’t known Sam all that long, but he was certainly someone he admired. Especially the way Sam had done whatever he needed to do to recover from his accident. He was, in Jake’s opinion, a walking miracle.

  “Hey, Jake,” Sam said, shaking his hand. “Anna rope you into helping with the shower?”

  Jake grinned. “Something like that. I honestly forgot Lisa’s party was today and I didn’t make an escape from the house fast enough. I should have noticed you were staying hid and out of the line of fire.”

  Sam responded with a chuckle before looking serious. “I was wondering, if you don’t have anything better to do, if you’d mind helping me with something I’d like to take care of today.”

  “Sure,” Jake said. “What have you got in mind?”

  Jake couldn’t stop grinning as he followed Sam back to the farm that evening. What Sam had in mind was to take his hand-controlled car, his wheelchairs, and all the paraphernalia he’d used during his recovery to a young man he’d learned about from his physical therapist. The 22-year-old was competing in the bull-riding event of a regional rodeo when he was bucked off and thoroughly stomped by the bull. Although he suffered from temporary paralysis, the prognosis was good with continued therapy that he would be able to walk again.