He kissed her forehead and said, “See you later.” He leaned back to call out, “I should have kissed you good night too, honey.”
“I’ll pass,” Tanner snapped in return.
A few minutes later, Jordan stepped onto the deck to pick up the empty bottles so the housekeeper didn’t have to clean them up. Tanner was leaning against the deck railing, bracing himself as he stared out over the water. Twilight was minutes away as the first stars twinkled above.
“What are you doing?” Tanner said.
“Picking up the empties.”
“Leave them.” He rubbed one hand over his face. “We should go to bed.” Seconds later, he slapped one palm on the railing. “No. You should go to bed. I’ll go to bed later.” He looked up at the sky, glanced at the water, looked at anywhere else but at her. “Jesus. What the fuck is wrong with me?” he muttered.
An invisible string seemed to pull her over to the deck railing too. “It’s been a long day,” she said.
She looked up at him. He wasn’t looking at her as the intruding darkness curled around them. The sound of waves lapping against his dock was soothing. Maybe she’d cool off a little if she jumped into the lake for a swim. “Are you mad at Harrison?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Do you always answer a question with a question?” she said.
“No. Fuck. I don’t know.” He sent one hand through his already tousled hair. “He asked you out again?”
“Why do you care?” came out before she could stop it.
“Look who’s answering a question with a question now.” His voice was mocking. He turned toward her and scooted forward a bit on his crutches; he was inches away and pointing one finger at her. His voice dropped. “This is working out pretty well for you. You’re spending the summer here, you’ve already found a guy—perfect,” he said.
“I haven’t ‘found a guy.’ We’re friends,” she said.
“Sure. ‘Friends.’ That’s so special.” He grabbed both crutches and leaned them against the deck chair closest to him. He moved closer. He stared into her eyes. She couldn’t look away. He loomed over her, but she wasn’t scared.
She was single. He had no right to dictate to her about where she went, whom she saw, or what she did while she was seeing others. She drew herself up to her full height and pointed a finger back at him as she found her voice.
“Again, why do you care? We don’t like each other. Why do you—”
The words she longed to hurl at him died in her throat as he reached out with one quick motion to pull her into his arms. The stubble on his cheek scraped across hers as he muttered, “What the hell is wrong with me? I see you, and all I can think about is kissing you.” He let out a long breath. “I don’t like you.”
“There’s a news flash.”
“You drive me nuts. You—you smile at everyone else all the time. You look like you walked out of a fairy tale.” He let out another gust of warm air against her ear. “You really piss me off.”
“You’ve mentioned that too.”
He pulled back enough to stare into her eyes while he reached to cup her cheek. His thumb slipped over her skin. “God, I hate you.”
“I hate you too,” she whispered.
His mouth touched hers. His lips were soft, warm, and he tasted like the beer he’d been drinking. She grabbed two handfuls of his T-shirt and hung on. She realized that the better reaction would have been to push him away and barricade herself in her room, but she might get over her weird thing for him if she kissed him. His mouth moved slowly. She heard him mutter something as he tipped her chin up a bit for better access.
“What?” she said.
“Don’t say anything,” he said, and he sealed his mouth over hers.
Tanner might have been a great football player, but he was a better kisser. One had to wonder where a guy who was so unbelievably cranky learned to kiss. It was definitely a puzzle for later. Right now, she wanted to enjoy every second. He slid his tongue into her mouth as her knees started doing this weird melty thing.
“Don’t drop me,” she whispered a few minutes later.
“Oh, I won’t, DP,” he said. “Pretend you like me.”
“Can’t stand you,” she whispered before she reached up to wrap her arms around his neck and kiss him back.
“Stop talking and kiss me again.”
Her fingers strayed into his hair. Maybe she should spend more time kissing guys she couldn’t stand, or maybe it was just him.
“Demanding, aren’t you?”
He rested his forehead against hers. They were both breathing hard. She was still stroking his hair, pulling gently on the curls that formed at the back of his neck.
“I should go to bed,” she whispered.
“Yeah,” he said. He didn’t let go of her. She didn’t let go of him, either. A few minutes passed, or an eternity. The warmth of the summer night surrounded them with soft breezes and new romance. She closed her eyes to breathe in his scent, the freshly showered combo she’d always associate with him.
“Does your knee hurt?” she said.
“What knee?” he said. Tanner’s doorbell rang. “I’m still hungry. I ordered another pizza. Want some?”
She wanted to stay, but she knew she was already in trouble. She tore herself out of his arms, hurried into the house, and ran down the stairs to her room.
Chapter Five
TANNER AWOKE THE next morning to a ringing doorbell. Incessantly was a word he would use to describe the racket. He rubbed the sleep by-product out of his eyes and grabbed his phone off the bedside table. “What do you want?”
“Rise and shine, champ. It’s time to get your exercise on. Plus, your new nurse is here. Don’t you need a shower?”
He wondered if there was some type of limit on the number of times he could use the word fuck in one twenty-four-hour period. Last night’s incident with Jordan came to mind. She was most likely long gone to work this morning, and they needed to have a convo. Maybe it could happen via text message. He didn’t want to get in a room again with DP for a few days. He wasn’t afraid of a little fighting. That he could deal with. His biggest problem: he couldn’t keep his hands off of her. He’d kiss her again, and there would be no talking at all. He was already thinking of how they could have sweaty, athletic sex that tested all endurance with his bum knee.
Maybe DP would be cold and repressed between the sheets. It was possible she hated sex. She could mess up her hair or break a nail. She’d never showed concern about her hair or nails before, though. She could be cutesy, yes. Too good to be true, maybe. Frigid? He’d bet the deed to his house on no. They could have sex and not talk to each other before, during, or after. That might work. He gave himself a mental shake and responded to Harrison.
“Wouldn’t it save time if you moved in here?”
“I have my own house.”
“You’re never there!”
“What’s your point?”
A guy Tanner had never seen before appeared on the screen.
“Mr. Cole, I’m Kyan. The agency sent me.”
Tanner had needed some time alone this morning to lick his wounds and consider how he was going to handle what happened last night. It wasn’t going to happen. He’d tossed and turned most of the night too. Combined with his unbelievably stupid decision to see if he could get by without painkillers for a day, he wanted to hide somewhere.
Harrison pounded on his door with a closed fist. He should be grateful anyone cared enough about him to be such a pain in the ass. Right now, he wished Harrison would find a hobby. One that wasn’t named Jordan would work just fine.
Tanner let out a string of obscenities and hit the button to open the electronic locks on his front door. He also noted a text from Jordan and another from Star. He deleted the one from Star. Jordan’s said, Sorry, I had to get to Clinic. Gym time later?
A minute or so later, he heard Harrison’s voice in the hallway.
“Are you out o
f bed yet?”
“No.”
“You’d better not be naked.”
“Like you haven’t seen it before,” Tanner muttered.
Harrison pushed his bedroom door open. He walked in with the tall, athletically built guy Tanner had seen on the camera.
“Mr. Cole—”
“Call me Tanner,” he said. He reached out to shake the guy’s hand.
“Great. Tanner, I’m Kyan. Would you like some assistance getting into the bathroom?” He folded the blankets down so Tanner could swing his legs free and reached out for Tanner’s hand again. “We’ll take this slowly. I know you’re probably hurting.”
“I thought I’d see if I really needed the painkillers yesterday, or if I could keep things under control with ibuprofen.” Tanner stifled a sigh. “It turns out I made a bad decision.”
“We’ll get your pain meds on board. I’ll also check your wound this morning when I change the dressing. Are you having drainage or redness at the site?” The nurse managed to assist Tanner with standing and handed him the crutches. “Okay. Let’s take it easy. Your friend mentioned you might want a shower.”
“That’s a good idea.”
Kyan gave him a grin. “You’re fine with another guy assisting you in the shower?”
“I’ve been showering with guys in the locker room since I was twelve.”
“I wanted to make sure.”
“Don’t snap me on the ass with the towel,” Tanner said.
Kyan let out a laugh. “There will be no towel snapping.” They moved into the bathroom as Tanner headed to the toilet. “In the interest of full disclosure, there’s something you should know about me.”
“What’s that?”
Kyan locked eyes with him. “I’m gay. Is it going to be an issue for you?”
The three men came to a halt and stared at each other for a few seconds. Tanner nodded at Kyan, who nodded back.
“Nope,” Tanner said.
“Good. Let’s take care of things in here, we’ll get you dressed for your day, and go from there.”
***
TWO HOURS LATER, Tanner was sitting on his deck with a book, his cell phone, and a glass of iced tea. He needed some rest. Jordan had left for the office without supervising his workout, which was mostly his fault. He knew what time she was around, and he’d slept through his alarm. She’d suggested some time in the gym later.
Maybe another buddy wanted to stop by and they could grill up some steaks or something later today. He needed to see someone besides doctors, Harrison, and Jordan. Then again, he didn’t need a buddy. Maybe he should call one of the women he’d seen a few times before his surgeries. They’d skip the steak and go right to dessert, in his room and behind a locked door. The longer he considered this option, the more he liked it. It would solve his most immediate problem. He wouldn’t think about Jordan so much if he was actually seeing someone else. She could continue working with him. Everything would be great.
He scrolled through his contact list like a three-year-old who’d chugged Mountain Dew while he muttered to himself. “No. No. No. Shit, no. Why do I still have her number?” He clicked Delete next to the name and contact info for a woman who’d made it clear she was in the market for a baby daddy (and a nice monthly check for the next eighteen years) the last time he saw her. He hadn’t even taken his pants off. To say that he hit her front door at a full run would be an understatement.
He scrolled through a few more names. “No. No. No.” He stopped on a woman who’d sent him a get-well card a month or so ago that his former team sent on to him. She was a possibility. He knew she lived in Seattle, she was a former Seattle Sharks cheerleader, and she was single. It was time to give her a call.
The woman who answered was breathing hard. “This is Tabitha,” she said.
“Hey. It’s Tanner Cole. Is it a bad time? Would you like me to call you later?”
“No, no,” she gasped. “I just finished my spin class. How are you doing?”
“I’m fine, but I haven’t had a date in a while,” he said. She let out a wheezing laugh.
“What did you have in mind?” she said.
“I know it’s short notice, but are you busy tonight?”
“I don’t have plans yet. What are you up to?”
Six foot four and hard as a rock, he thought. “Would you like to come over and have some dinner with me? I’m still recovering, but I’d enjoy a visit.” He’d enjoy a lot more than that. He had no interest in ending up on that cheesy show depicting people who’d ended up in the ER due to their sexual misadventures, for instance. Maybe he should take it easy.
“I’d love to,” she said.
“That’s great. I’ll text you my address. How about seven?”
“Perfect,” she said.
“I’ll see you then,” he said.
He wasn’t going to think about Jordan all night.
***
JORDAN PULLED TO a stop in front of Tanner’s garage shortly before seven PM that night. She could see his car through the windows in the garage door. It wasn’t like he was going for a spin on Lake Washington Boulevard with his knee. He was here. Dammit. All she had to do was get through the house without being seen. She could hide out in her room for the night. She knew she was a chicken for not talking to him about that kiss, but she needed a change of clothes and some wine before tackling that.
She reached out to grab her purse and threw herself out of the car, only to see a late-model Kia pulling into the driveway. Maybe Tanner ordered another pizza or something. The driver parked behind her and got out of the car, and Jordan tried not to stare.
The woman wasn’t a pizza delivery driver unless one of the local pizza places was hiring supermodels. Delivery drivers didn’t usually wear skin-tight shorts and cleavage, either. High-heeled leather booties and aggressively teased long blonde hair completed her ensemble. Jordan had never actually seen a woman look like she’d walked off the front cover of Vogue in nothing but tinted moisturizer and mascara before.
Maybe she was Tanner’s new chef.
She gave Jordan a confident smile. “Hey. This is Tanner’s place, right?”
“It is,” Jordan said. She probably wasn’t visiting to do the lawn, either. He’d kissed her, but he’d invited another woman over tonight? Why?
Jordan turned to walk to the front door, listening to the clicking sound of the woman’s heels on the pavement. She knew it was ridiculous, but she felt less than glamorous in her work clothes and rubber-soled shoes.
The front door opened before Jordan’s foot hit the doorstep. Tanner’s hair was damp but styled. He looked like a walking ad for a high-end men’s store. She hadn’t seen him dressed in street clothes since she met him. She took a breath so she could say something snarky to him, and her mouth went dry. He smelled like woods—the fresh scent of evergreens after rain. His eyes were silver gray and inscrutable as one side of his mouth quirked into a smile.
“Jordan. Nice to see you could find your way home.”
“Home?” the woman next to her squeaked.
“Not really,” Jordan managed to say. “I’m just staying here.”
“You tell yourself that,” he said, but his eyes sparkled with knowing laughter. “Tabitha, c’mon in.”
He stepped back slightly and gestured for the two women to enter the house. Jordan made rapid progress to the staircase that led downstairs, but not fast enough to miss Tabitha’s question.
“Who’s she?”
“I left the front door unlocked one night, and she wandered in.”
“Do you have a habit of allowing strangers to move into your house?”
“I’m a risk-taker,” he assured Tabitha.
Jordan managed to not barf all over the staircase as she took the stairs at a rapid rate. She needed to change and get herself a glass of wine. Maybe she should bring the bottle.
He was such a—she didn’t know what he was, but she’d come up with something. She should have stuck around
, introduced herself, and tried to figure out what the hell he was up to. If she wasn’t so chicken, she would have marched upstairs this morning to figure out what he was up to last night. Who knew? It wouldn’t be the first time in her life that she was mystified by male behavior. Truthfully, she shouldn’t get her panties in a wad over Tanner in the first place. She could worry about finding a guy when things were a bit more settled for her. She had a good job, she had interests beyond watching bad reality TV, and she could manage her own life.
She pulled on an oversize T-shirt and a pair of yoga pants. Maybe she should go for a run. She could sweat the memory of how he smelled out of her system, and the coast would be clear for Tanner and Tabitha’s date, if that’s what he was doing.
Sadie stuck her nose inside Jordan’s palm and snuffled a bit as she dropped her leash on the floor by Jordan’s feet.
“Should we go for a walk, Sadie? How about a glass of wine first?” Sadie gave a short hop on her front paws. “I know I should walk you first and skip the glass of wine, but it’s been a bad day.” Jordan reached into the fridge for the wine she’d opened last night and grabbed a glass from the open shelves over the bar. “Want some water?”
Sadie gave her a soft woof and settled down next to the chaise lounge on the porch outside the downstairs media room. Jordan filled a bowl with water and put it down next to the dog, who lapped from it as she settled herself into the lounger.
She had intended to spend the evening looking for available apartment rentals online, but right now, all she wanted to do was brood. The day wasn’t awesome to begin with, but it had taken a real nosedive in the past fifteen minutes or so. She took a sip of wine as she stared out onto blue water and bluer skies. Sadie nudged her trailing hand. She felt stress draining away as she looked at the view. Everything was great until she heard a high-pitched giggle from upstairs and the woman she now knew as Tabitha said, “I can’t believe how big your biceps are.”
Jordan wasn’t sure she’d ever giggled over a guy’s biceps before. She had to deal with people’s bodies as part of her job, but damn. Sadie glanced up at the upstairs deck like she was in pain.
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