by Dani Wade
The ring of the door chime saved her from answering. “Gotta go,” she mumbled as she moved, only to stumble over her own feet.
Luke was quick to catch her arm, helping her upright again. “Why don’t we talk about it over dinner?” he asked, too soft for anyone else to hear.
Or maybe not. Cindy’s happy dance in the background had Avery’s face burning once more.
“Nope,” she said. “I’m good.”
Again his husky voice played along her nerves. “I’m sure you are, but with me it would be better.”
Oh, Lordy. Avery almost choked. She wanted nothing more than to get out of here. Forget whoever had come through the door.
Twisting out of Luke’s grasp, she chose the other direction and the safety of the therapy room. She threw an “I’m sure you have better things to do,” over her shoulder as she escaped, praying she didn’t damage her dignity by falling flat on her face.
Heaven help her, Luke Blackstone was gonna be a handful.
* * *
“Has she made you cry like a girl yet?”
Luke quelled his sudden urge to smack his twin. After all, they weren’t twelve anymore. “No. There’s been no crying.” Though his control had been shaky sometimes, he’d held it together. Jacob was teasing, but thankfully he didn’t know how close to home his statement hit.
As the oldest brother, Aiden obviously thought he had a say, too. “I thought for sure she’d pulverize you after what you said at the country club.”
Of course, someone had to bring that up. “I’m too cute for her not to forgive me.”
Aiden smirked, then made a quick retreat behind his desk before Luke’s swing could connect. So his restraint hadn’t lasted long. He’d always been a big kid.
Unlike Aiden, who looked perfectly at home behind the heavy desk in the study at Blackstone Manor—though the studious furniture and shelves full of books were slightly deceiving. Aiden had been born too big for his britches. Luke’s earliest memories were of Aiden being punished in this very room by their grandfather for some teenage rebellion or another. The adult Aiden refused to back down, either. It was there in the artistic tumble of his dark hair and lack of a tie.
His brothers shared a grin that awoke suspicions in Luke’s mind. “Spill it.”
“Just be careful, that’s all,” Aiden said.
Luke looked from one to the other, settling on the familiar face of his twin. “What’s he mean? What could little ol’ Avery do to me?”
“Oh, it’s not Avery you need to watch out for,” Jacob said. “It’s the town.”
Huh?
Jacob went on. “Avery is notorious in Black Hills. This entire town has tried to marry her off ever since her mother died. They’re relentless.”
“Why?”
Aiden smirked. “You’ve been away from a small town for too long if you have to ask. She’s young, pretty and single. Every matron in the county sees her as a princess in need of someone to take care of her.”
They both eyed Luke, who quickly held up his hands in surrender. “The last thing I need is a princess.” He moved over to one of the long windows, hiding his reaction from the others, because deep inside he couldn’t deny his attraction. He could ignore it as long as he wanted, but it was there all the same.
“Just be careful,” Jacob said. “They’ll marry you off before a first date.”
“Not. Me.”
His twin just laughed, making him look more like Luke despite his close-cropped hair. “Yeah, right. The princess and the local celebrity—they’d eat that up.”
Definitely time to change the subject. “Didn’t we meet here to talk about something more important than local gossip? Like this spying job you have for me?”
Aiden choked, so Jacob answered, “Well, I wouldn’t call it that.”
“Why not? Don’t think I can pull off the James Bond bit?” He mimed straightening a suit jacket and tie, just for kicks.
“I don’t think he went in for corporate sabotage. A little too tame for him.”
Luke shrugged. “Hey, I’ve got to start somewhere.”
Jacob threw up his hands and dropped into one of the chairs, obviously knowing when he’d been verbally outmaneuvered. But Aiden didn’t give up. “I’m hoping, if you come in with the stated purpose of inspecting the mill to bring you up to snuff as a full partner, then maybe you’ll see something Jacob and I have missed.”
The brothers, along with their new head of security, Zachary Gatlin, had been secretly investigating a saboteur who seemed intent on ruining Blackstone Mills. The brothers had eliminated several suspects, but still had no clue who the actual culprit was. Or if they were even still out there. Whoever it was intent on destroying Black Mills would end up destroying the whole town in the process, since they were the biggest supplier of both jobs and housing in the area—heck, the whole county. Without the mill, Black Hills would cease to exist.
It had been a grueling year for his brothers, dealing with all of that on top of Luke’s car accident. “Anything new?” Luke asked.
“Nothing I can prove, yet,” Jacob said, his amber eyes darkening.
“That sounds promising.”
His twin nodded. “Zach has one of his men following the trail, but it looks like we also have some embezzling going on.”
“That’s bold,” Luke said. “The orders, company equipment, our cotton supply and the Manor itself…now money. Is there anything this guy isn’t afraid to put his hands on?”
“Not that we can tell,” Aiden said with a slow shake of his head. He pressed his palms against the desktop. “As soon as we cut off one avenue, he finds another. All too easily.”
Luke paced across the room despite some lingering muscle pain from his therapy session. His rising anxiety made the walls close in, leaving him eager to move, to escape. An all-too-familiar feeling. “That’s disheartening.”
“Well,” Aiden said, “I hope I can cheer you up with my news.”
“Yeah?” the twins said in chorus.
“The legalities of Grandfather’s will are all finished. The mill is now mine,” Aiden said.
“Wow. That was quicker than you thought,” Luke said. “Congratulations.”
“It was quicker than I thought,” Aiden conceded. “But I’m glad, because now I can move on to plan B.”
A short glance at Jake didn’t provide any clues as to what that might be. He looked as expectant as Luke felt. Aiden pulled a thick envelope out of his inner jacket pocket.
“I’ve had my personal lawyer pull up this paperwork,” he said. “I’m changing the ownership of the mill to all three of us, instead of just me.”
Luke simply stared, not fully comprehending.
Jacob spoke for both of them. “But Aiden, this is your inheritance.”
“It shouldn’t be. It should be ours. Not just mine. Not a weapon to turn us against each other, as Grandfather intended.” He took a solid breath. “A family investment. We’re all putting our lives into the mill, the town. We’re sharing the responsibility. We should share the benefits.”
“Whoa. Wait a minute.”
Jacob’s smile faded as he looked over at Luke, but Luke couldn’t give in just to make his twin happy.
“I’m not staying here,” he reminded them. “The only thing I plan on investing my life in is my racing career—the minute I’m cleared to get behind the wheel. I’m here only because I have to be.”
Luke could almost feel Jacob’s emotions fall along with his expression. Aiden remained more stoic as he said, “You never know what might happen in the future, Luke.”
“Is this why you insisted I come home?” Luke asked, panic rising in his chest. “Did you think you could force me home, force me to find something of value here, and then I’d never want to leave? L
ike you two have?”
He didn’t even realize his voice had risen until he stopped talking. The three of them stared at each other in silence. Embarrassment swept over Luke like a heated blanket. Where had that come from? “Look, I’m sorry. I know y’all would never do that to me.”
“No, I wouldn’t,” Aiden agreed quietly. “I would never trick you into coming here. After all, I know very well how that feels.”
Their grandfather had faked his own death, bringing Aiden home to care for their sick mother, but it was only a trick to force Aiden and Christina into marrying. Even though the man really was dead now, Aiden faced what James Blackstone had done to him every day. Luckily, he’d been given a happy ending.
Luke didn’t want one. Not here.
Aiden wasn’t finished. “I’d never force you to sign this paperwork,” he said, giving the envelope a little shake. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t wish you would. Regardless of what your immediate future holds, you’re still a part of this family. I hope one day you can willingly put your name on the mill, and reap the benefits along with the rest of your family.”
All the work would be done by Aiden and Jacob. They should have the rewards—they would have the rewards. And Luke would have his freedom. He loved his brothers, loved the new family they’d built. But how could he stay here and still feed his love for the road?
Unbidden, an image of Avery’s face as she flushed with embarrassment came to him. He shook the enticing image away. He had never let anything in Black Hills hold him back. He certainly wasn’t going to start now.
He and Avery would have a little fun, something to liven up his time here, but he could still walk away on his own terms. When he was good and ready.
THREE
All work and no play made Avery a dull girl—and apparently made Luke a frisky boy. Just the look on his face as he settled into one of the treatment rooms warned her he would be trouble.
Avery experienced a lot of feelings during her therapy sessions with clients: pride, sympathy, joy…but never this mixture of irritation and interest. How did he get under her skin with such little effort? A few words and she was tripping over her own feet.
His very presence seemed to inject her with pheromones that clouded her mind and drew her thoughts where they shouldn’t go in a professional setting. Especially when her work required her to have her hands all over him.
Then there was the return of the awkwardness. She’d stopped dating because of it. Better to avoid it than to wonder if she had a medical condition—one that caused shaking, clumsiness and unintelligent muttering—all with a single look from any eligible, attractive man. The sight of a handsome man shot her adrenaline up, and if he spoke to her, she immediately became all thumbs. Her considerable intelligence didn’t help at all. And her fellow citizens’ determination to marry her off meant she’d had a wealth of humiliating experiences.
Dropping things, stumbling into door frames, bumping into all manner of furniture, and—her favorite—jerking her fork so that food ended up in all kinds of crazy places. One time, she’d actually flicked pasta onto her date’s eyebrow. She couldn’t remember that incident without cringing. So Mark escorted her to many functions, which gave her a reprieve from the matchmaking mamas.
The only time it didn’t happen was when she put on her scrubs and became her professional self—comfortable in her knowledge and authority.
Until Luke. And he knew it, too.
Luke—with his sexy stare and flirty ways—jump-started the phenomenon quicker than any guy ever had. Which was why she approached him for this second session with her professional facade firmly in place. And it would stay that way. “I’ve worked up a comprehensive plan for you,” she said, “now that I’ve had a chance to evaluate you firsthand—”
“Firsthand evaluation?” he asked, bending to catch her gaze. “How did I miss that? Can I have a do-over?” His wiggling brows didn’t help her nerves. She gripped his chart hard before it could get loose.
“Behave,” she said in her sternest voice.
“Oh, honey, I don’t know how,” he said with a wicked grin that sent shivers racing over her.
How could he derail her so easily, so completely? She dared not speak for a moment, afraid she’d get out no more than a croak as her throat tried to close. That would be humiliating.
Finally, she cleared the constriction. “Look, in this clinic, I’m the boss. This is my career.” She adopted a stern look, despite the amusement on his face. “Here, I’m not your friend, family, or—” She almost said girlfriend. Where the heck had that come from? “So stop playing and get busy.”
He didn’t respond right away, which surprised her. Luke always seemed quick on the draw. But she could feel him watching her. Probably preparing for battle.
Lord, have mercy. His teasing made her want to combust from the inside out. Her cheeks burned in a flash fire she couldn’t control. She hadn’t felt like this since, well, since Luke had jokingly teased her in high school. Good or bad, she wasn’t sure. The mixture of irritation and utter fascination with someone who could dive right into the good parts of life while she was left hugging the walls in fear confused her.
“You know what I mean,” she finally said, swallowing her emotions down. “We can be friends elsewhere—”
“We can?”
“—but here, business only.” Maybe the less she spoke the better. He seemed intent on twisting her words for his own amusement.
“So out there you’re fair game?” he asked with a quirk of his brow. Smart-ass.
“Down to work. Now,” she said, holding out the folder, open to the plan she’d worked up for him.
“Can I just say one thing before the friendship blackout starts?” he asked.
Knowing anything she said would just encourage him, she simply watched him without responding.
“Look, I wasn’t kidding about dinner,” he said, bending a little to look her in the eyes.
Startled, she met his gaze without hesitation, getting a spark of deep connection before turning away. “Don’t worry about it,” she said, hoping to shoo the subject away like an unwelcome bug.
“Look, you said you wanted to have some fun, an adventure—”
“Actually, Cindy said that.”
“And I can help.”
She remembered his whispered words from the other day. There was no doubt in her mind that any adventure would be incredible with Luke along for the ride. “What are you talking about?”
“Hey, every day is an adventure for me. And I don’t need to climb the side of a mountain for a thrill. I’d go so far as to bet that there are some pretty interesting adventures right here close to home that you haven’t even thought about.”
“And you plan to show them to me?”
He straightened a little. “Why not?”
She couldn’t raise her voice above a whisper. “Why are you doing this?”
“In my book, I owe you. I acted like a jerk…before…but I’ve always seen you as a friend. Besides, this sounds a whole lot more interesting than what I had planned—jaunts over here for my therapist to torture me, and… Nope, that’s about it for the next few months.” His smile was hopeful. “Let me do this for you.”
“I don’t know…”
“Scared?”
Heck, yes. “Maybe.”
His teasing smirk said he knew he would win. “That’s okay. It’s all part of the fun.”
Suddenly it was all too much—the teasing, the attraction, the nerves. She desperately needed to shift gears. Holding up her hands, she said, “Look, today, we’re talking about you. Not me.”
“Um, not so far.”
“Stop playing and pay attention.” Her schoolmarm demands only made him smile wider, but this time he actually cooperated. Miracle of miracles
.
That grin said he wasn’t finished with her yet, sparking anticipation low in her core, but he finally reached his hand out for the chart.
With relief, she let him read because she didn’t have any starch left for her voice.
“This plan is mapped out for ten months.”
His unexpected dark tone warned her she might need starch for her backbone, too. “Yes. This is a reasonable prognosis to have you completely healed, strengthened and back on the racing circuit for the season after next.”
“That’s too long.”
She frowned. “But your other therapist projected that from the time of his initial evaluation it could be a year or more before your body is strong enough to return without a risk of further injury. I have to agree.”
Luke was shaking his head before she was even half-finished. “Not an option.”
She could totally sympathize as the last of the teasing disappeared from his eyes, replaced by frustration. “Our bodies don’t always agree to the timelines we want,” she reminded him, her voice going soft with sympathy.
“This one damn well better.” There was no room for anything but determination in Luke’s voice. “I will be back on the racing circuit this next season. No later.”
Avery knew when pushing would gain her ground, and this definitely wasn’t the time. So she let his remark go. She’d found when men got something in their heads, especially something they were passionate about, there wasn’t any argument that would do much good.
And she was frankly relieved that his determination got his focus off her. By the time they moved into the workout room, her control was firmly back in place. A return to the comfortable fit of her therapist persona.
Luke’s rippling upper body muscles distracted her at times—clearly he worked out regularly. His body was slim but strong, deceptively so when hidden beneath his clothes. But it met every challenge she gave him and more. His lower body performed, though it was obviously not to his satisfaction.
He gave it his all—she couldn’t fault him for not trying. About halfway through the circuit, she started thinking of him as Tough Guy. No matter the demand, he did it without question. He never asked to stop, never cried—almost 90 percent of her patients did in the early days. He just kept pushing forward.