Baker’s Law

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Baker’s Law Page 15

by Denise McDonald


  She snuggled closer to him, let her eyelids droop. She could lay there forever.

  The swirling air from the ceiling fan cooled their sweaty bodies. Goose bumps broke out all over the parts of her that Jax didn’t cover. When she gave a shiver, he stirred from his postcoital snooze. “You cold?”

  “A little.”

  Very ungracefully, he got up from the sofa, then held out his hand for her. He pulled her to her feet and gave her a long, searing kiss.

  Marissa broke free and stepped back far enough so he couldn’t pull her in for another. “I need to, um, bathroom. Be right back.” She skirted the far end of the sofa to stay out of his reach. “If you need to…tidy up, the first door on the right is the guest bathroom.” She pointed down the short hallway.

  She didn’t give him time to comment, but hurried up the stairs to her bedroom. She rushed around the small bathroom and cleaned herself up. She had no regrets, but the self-consciousness she hadn’t had earlier crept in and bit her squarely on the ass. Not that Jax made her feel anything less than special. Hell, he’d given her the confidence to initiate everything that had happened.

  She grabbed another nightshirt from her dresser and slipped it on along with another pair of panties. And for good measure, she pulled on an old pair of yoga pants. As she reached for her door, the toilet downstairs flushed, and the sink came on. She stood at the top of the stairs for a moment and gave him time to finish up his…tidying.

  She reached the bottom of the stairs at the same instant Jax exited the bathroom. He frowned, then waved his cell. “Did you ever look to see who was calling you?”

  “No. Why?” She hurried past him to snatch up her cell from the coffee table.

  “I just got a message from the station that the fire department was called out to your shop.”

  A chill snaked down her spine. Her shop? Hill?

  Jax came up behind her and set his hand at the small of her back. The warmth was much appreciated. And needed.

  The euphoria from spectacular sex with Jax faded as a knot formed in her stomach. She thumbed open her phone. There were three missed calls from Hill and two from a number she didn’t recognize. Instead of listening to the messages, she immediately called Hill.

  Hill answered after the first ring. “I’ve been trying to reach you.”

  “Sorry, I didn’t hear my phone.” She steadied her breath. “Are you okay?”

  “There was a fire.”

  “In the shop?”

  “No, back behind. In the Dumpster.”

  “Are you okay?” she asked again. He hadn’t answered her the first time.

  “For the most part.”

  Her stomach bottomed out. “What does that mean?”

  “It’s no big deal.” His deep voice held no emotion, gave no clue as to what “no big deal” entailed.

  Marissa ran her shaking hand across her mouth. “Is the fire department still there?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’m on my way.” She ended the call and turned in a tight circle as she tried to focus her brain on what she needed to do. “Keys. Keys.” She patted her pockets, but she was wearing yoga pants, not the jeans she’d worn to work that day.

  Jax grabbed her shoulders and stopped her. “I’ll drive you. You’re in no shape to get behind the wheel.”

  She wanted to argue but he was right.

  “Why don’t you go grab a sweater? And some shoes.”

  She nodded like a five-year-old being told what to do. When she returned to the living room, Jax held her purse and her keys.

  “These were sitting on your kitchen table.”

  Marissa left out a slow breath. Right where she’d left them when she came in. “Thanks.”

  She didn’t remember the drive to the shop, but the next thing she knew Jax had parked his big truck next to a fire engine with its lights ablaze. Before they even got out, a man approached them. He shook hands with Jax the moment he stepped from the truck. She couldn’t hear what they were saying and frankly at the moment she didn’t care. She wanted to get a look at Hill and make sure he was okay and then assess any damage to the shop.

  She scanned the small crowd. There were more people out on the street than she might have expected for so late after all the stores were closed. Finally, at the corner of the building, at the back of an ambulance, she spotted Hill talking to two paramedics.

  When she got closer to the shop a man stepped forward. “Ma’am, you’re going to have to go back over there.”

  “This is mine.” She waved to the building. “I’m Marissa.” She pointed to the pink letters embossed on the black background. “He’s my…” She pointed at Hill. “He’s mine, too.”

  The man eyed her for a moment, then waved her past. She didn’t hesitate, just ran over to Hill and grabbed him up in her arms as if he’d been a part of her family from day one rather than only a couple of weeks. Once she’d all but squeezed the life out of him, she pushed him to arm’s length and looked him over. He was all in one piece with the exception of a bandage on his right forearm.

  “This doesn’t look like ‘no big deal.’” She motioned to the bandage. “Are you hurt bad?”

  “No ma’am,” one of the paramedics said from behind her.

  She turned toward him. His face looked familiar. She was pretty sure he’d been in the shop before. If her brain wasn’t so befuddled, she’d be able to recall his order and then maybe his name.

  “It’s a minor burn. He has the option of going on to the hospital if he wants to get it looked at further.”

  Marissa glanced up at Hill. His eyes had gone wide and he’d paled slightly. She held a finger up to the paramedic then pulled Hill aside. “If you feel like you need to go, I will pay for it. Don’t worry about the cost.” She stroked his other arm to soothe him.

  “It’s not that bad.”

  Marissa held his gaze for a long moment to gauge if he was just putting up his bravado or if he was okay. If he was hurt, she didn’t think he’d be able to hide it so well. “Tell you what, I can take you up to one of the urgent care clinics tomorrow if you think it needs some attention. How about that?”

  Hill nodded and if anything looked relieved.

  “I think we’re good,” she told Toby. She’d finally gotten a good look at his name tag.

  He asked her a few questions—she gave her address and phone number when they pressed for Hill’s—and typed them into his little computer. When Toby and his partner left she had a moment alone with Hill.

  “What happened?”

  “I was working on my calculus homework at your desk and I smelled something funky. At first I thought maybe we’d left an oven on so I checked them all.” He glanced over at Jax and the men from Station Four who were standing next to the fire engine. “I started to forget about it but the smell had gotten stronger. I thought maybe another business was on fire so I went out the back to check and I found the Dumpster on fire.”

  “And your arm?”

  He shrugged. “I tried to put it out.”

  A frown and a smile warred in her face. “All by yourself?” So typical of Hill. There’s a problem, he fixes it. Something needs to be taken care of, he does it. She shouldn’t have expected any less from him.

  Before she could say anything else to Hill, Jax and a fireman came over.

  “Marissa, I’m gonna need to interview Hill about the fire.”

  She frowned and stepped between Hill and Jax. “What?”

  “It’s standard procedure,” he said almost apologetically.

  He pulled Hill aside and the fireman steered her toward the back of the shop. “The damage was contained to the Dumpster. Your shop may have a little smoke, but no water damage.

  “Thank you. Can you tell what started it?”

  “Not at this moment, but an investigator will be out to look it over.”

  “Can you guess?”

  He eyed her for a long moment. “Typically fires like this are teenagers acting like…teenage
rs.” He glanced to the front of the building.

  “Hill didn’t do this.”

  His gaze cut back to hers. “I didn’t say—”

  “Is there anything else?” she crossed her arms over her chest.

  “No ma’am.”

  Marissa nodded and grabbed the handle of her back door. She left the fireman standing there and went into the back of her shop. A smoky odor hung in the air in the back, but it wasn’t, thankfully, horrible. She walked through the shop and sniffed her way up to the front. The smell was much fainter around the seating area. In the morning, she should be able to leave the front door open, bring in some fresh air and make it unnoticeable.

  From the front window she spotted Hill and Jax talking. Hill stood with his back and shoulders ramrod straight. Jax had a little notebook in hand and took notes as they spoke.

  Her mind was running in twenty different directions. Her chest tightened and her shoulders tensed. She pulled out a stool and sat down to take a few deep breaths. Nausea rolled her stomach. She crossed her arms in front of her on the table and laid her head down trying to control…anything. Even if that was only her breathing.

  She wasn’t sure how long she sat with her head down on her arms, but someone set a hand on her shoulder. “Marissa?”

  She picked up her head to find both Hill and Jax staring down at her. Both frowned. Jax pushed Hill to the side and moved in closer. “You okay?” Jax cupped her chin and tilted her face up to his. “You don’t look so good.”

  “You flatter me so.” She rolled her eyes but didn’t try to pull free. “I’m fine. I just got as little…overwhelmed for a moment.” She sat up and his hand fell away. “Is everything done?” She waved toward the window where a fire truck sat.

  “They’re done.”

  “And you?” She nodded to the notebook in his hand.

  “Paul—”

  “Hill,” Marissa and Hill said in unison.

  “Hill,” he corrected himself, “answered all my questions.”

  Marissa glanced up and Hill. He was paler than before, more so even than when he was talking to Jax. She jumped to her feet and hurried over to the teen. She pulled out a stool and ordered him to sit. “You’re going home with me tonight.”

  Hill’s gaze shot to hers. “You don’t have to…”

  “I don’t have to do anything. And you’re not going to argue with me.” She patted him on the shoulder. “Sit tight for a second.” She went back to the kitchen and got him a cup of soda. When she turned back Jax was standing, blocking her route back to the teen.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Getting him a drink. He looks like he might be in a shock.” She was deliberately being obtuse.

  “You can’t have that boy come home with you.”

  “That boy is hurt and needs rest.” And he wouldn’t be able to do that on a sofa in the back of a shop that smelled of smoke.

  “His parents—”

  “I’ve got this taken care of.” She shoved her hand through her hair, anything to keep Jax from seeing it shake.

  “He’s not your responsibility.”

  “And it’s none of your damned business.”

  “Marissa…”

  “Look, Jax, I don’t need your approval or, frankly, your input in this regard.”

  Jax stood staring at her with his mouth firmly set and his hands thrust on his hips.

  She was about to push past him, then remembered he’d driven her up to the shop. Her SUV was at her house and Hill didn’t have a car. “Will you please drive us back to my house?” She all but choked out the words.

  At first he didn’t look like he’d agree to it, but he gave her a quick curt nod.

  She softened her voice. “Thank you.” She took Hill the soda. He hadn’t moved, but at least didn’t look any paler. “Drink this and then grab your things.”

  Hill shot his gaze to the back of the shop—Jax was standing back there. “You don’t have to—”

  “We’ve covered this. You’re coming home with me. No arguments.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  “You can miss one day of school, Hill.” Marissa shook her head at the kid. Why wasn’t he jumping at the chance to skip school? “You need your rest.”

  Her doorbell rang, keeping him from any further argument. Marissa had called Lexi to tell her Hill wouldn’t be at school and the girl grilled her with question after question until she had the details of the previous night’s episode. Instead of pushing the girl away, Marissa decided to enlist her help. If anyone could convince Hill he needed to stay home and rest, it was Lexi.

  “He’s in the living room. See if you can convince him he needs to take a day off.”

  Lexi looked up at Marissa and gave her a smile so sweet Marissa wasn’t the least bit worried. She headed back up to her room to finish getting ready for work. She’d already run out to the grocery store earlier that morning to make sure she had enough food. She wasn’t used to having anyone else in her home so she didn’t keep her cupboards filled with anything more than soup and the ingredients she used in her baking.

  At the store she’d tried to remember what her two older brothers had eaten growing up. If memory served, it was anything and everything. She’d grabbed chips, crackers, bread and lunchmeat and then had stocked up on juice and milk. Then she’d gone a little overboard and grabbed several frozen pizzas, as well as cans of chili and tons of fresh fruit. All the while a little voice in the back of her head kept whispering that she’d only invited him over for one night. To rest. Due to his burns.

  But she couldn’t stop herself once she got started.

  And she also knew she wasn’t about to let him go back to sleeping in her shop. A growing boy needed a real bed in a real home. She’d just have to figure out a way to broach it and convince him it was a good idea.

  Jax would go ballistic.

  She paused as she lifted a mascara wand to her eyelashes. Jax. Jax shouldn’t have a say in whom she let into her home. At the same time, she didn’t want to see that harsh disapproval in his eyes when he found out. She just wished she could get him to see Hill in the same light she did. It wasn’t that she pitied Hill. Quite the opposite. She was so proud of all he’d accomplished and wanted to help him as much as she could to ensure he’d be able to go even further.

  Marissa shook off her thoughts and finished getting ready. When she returned to the living room she found Lexi, hands shoved on her hips, standing over Hill. Hill gave Marissa a pleading look. She shook her head in a “you’re on your own” gesture.

  “There’s plenty of food in the kitchen. Help yourself. And take it easy.” She shouldered her purse. “Lexi.” She called the girl over to the front door. “I don’t need to remind you, he’s hurt. No hanky-panky. And you shouldn’t miss school. I just want you to talk him into staying put.”

  Lexi rolled her eyes. “How old are you? Hanky-panky.” She waved away the comment. “I have first period off and second period I’m just an office attendant. I’ll go in for the rest of my classes. Don’t worry.”

  That was exactly what Marissa would do. Worry. But she couldn’t stay home and watch the two. And up to that point Hill hadn’t done anything that would make her think she couldn’t trust him. She wasn’t stupid, though. She locked away family heirlooms in her tiny safe.

  And still she worried all the way to the shop. What would Marlie think? She’d probably tell her she was crazy, as would her brothers. Her dad, she bet anything he’d agree with her and do everything in his power to help the boy. If he had all the details. Which she hadn’t given him. He couldn’t side with her—or tell her she was way off base. She pushed it aside, though, and made a mental note to call her dad as soon as she had ten minutes to talk to him. Tell him what was what and get his opinion.

  She parked her SUV at the back of the shop and was startled to see the charred Dumpster despite all the activity from the previous night. It had been pulled another hundred feet or so from her shop and had yellow pl
astic tape cordoning it off—not that she needed a reason not to go near it. She didn’t know, however, what she was supposed to do with her garbage in the meantime. Another note on her mental to-do checklist.

  Once inside, luckily, the smell was a minimal. She’d worried it would be far worse with the fire so close. Even though she didn’t open for a few more hours, she opened the front door to let in fresh air. She went ahead and started the coffee on the off chance that customers might wander in early. She wasn’t worried about stock; she had plenty in the freezers.

  With coffee brewing and a quick inventory of what she did have, Marissa went to work on a few batches of cupcakes. She squeezed out a lump of whipped cream frosting onto two of the last batch of Black Forest cupcakes when a throat cleared in the front and startled her. She hadn’t thought about the bell on the door not activating with it open already.

  “I’ll be right there.” She scraped off the messy clump of frosting and tossed it into the trash as she rounded the steel table. She grabbed a wet towel on her way to the front and dabbed at her hands.

  Marissa pulled up short when she found Jax leaning against the counter, his Stetson set down next to the register. He was dressed in his work clothes. Her heart beat an extra little thump. “Oh, hi.” She gave a quick shake of her head. “Good morning.” She frowned. “What are you…”

  He straightened. “I just wanted to check on you.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Wanted to make sure Hill didn’t kill me in my sleep? Shouldn’t you have stopped by my house, then? If he had I wouldn’t be here.”

  Jax sighed. “You think the worst of me.”

  She snorted. “If the shoe fits…” She waved off anything he might say. “Can I get you some coffee? I just started a pot.” She didn’t wait for him to answer, but walked into the back and grabbed a large disposable cup. She filled it to the top and snagged four packets of sugar. She turned and handed them to Jax, not surprised to see he was standing inside her kitchen—right where she expected him.

  “Four sugars?” His brows pulled down despite the slight curl of his lips.

 

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