But any woman who looked as good as she did couldn’t be anything but a complication in his life. He wasn’t looking for complications. His family provided enough of those.
She laughed at something Nicky said and he wondered if it was time to forget about keeping things simple, forget about his family problems and embrace chaos head on.
Erin’s gaze locked with his and everything around him stilled. A soft blush warmed her cheeks and his heart thudded in his chest.
“Why did you get chosen as a spokesperson?” she asked.
Jake held his breath. He hadn’t expected her question to leave him feeling so off center. He’d answered the same question so many times it shouldn’t have surprised him, but the whole evening had turned into one surprise after another. “My brother has Down syndrome. When he was younger, there wasn’t much support for kids like Scott. I wanted to do something to help other families dealing with the same issues.” He straightened his knife and fork, nudging them across the table.
“It must have been hard on your family.”
He looked up and nodded. “Since dad died it’s been even harder on mom.” And on everyone else. Understanding that his brother needed some space of his own wasn’t the easiest thing for his mom to come to terms with. Scott wanted his own life. And that included moving out of her home and living in his own apartment.
Erin sat back, looking like something had upset her. “Hey, what’s put that sad look in your eyes?”
She took a deep breath. “Family. My parents died in an accident last year. When you lose someone you love, it makes you appreciate everything they’ve done for you. Probably more than when they were alive.”
Jake put his hand on top of hers, gently squeezing her fingers. Erin lifted her gaze. He could see the same grief he’d felt after his father’s death reflected in her eyes. The same sense of loss that made him catch his breath and wish for one more day with his dad.
Jake gave her hand another squeeze. “When I told Sam about Camp Discovery he came up with ten reasons why the committee asked me to be their spokesperson. And none of them involved Scott.”
“Knowing Sam, I’d say he put your involvement down to good looks and not being able to say no.” Erin’s hand flew to her mouth. “Not that there’s anything wrong with helping other people. And you are good looking.” She sank lower in her chair, blushing until her face matched the color of her dress. “I think hiding under the table might be my best option tonight. Or I could try a mouth gag.”
Jake threw back his head and laughed. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“Me too, if you don’t take my runaway mouth too seriously.”
“It depends on where it’s running to,” he whispered.
Erin sent a haughty glare toward him, but ruined the whole effect by fanning her hot face with the menu card. “Jake Williams, I don’t know what to do with you.”
“Don’t worry,” he said. “I’m sure you’ll think of something.”
***
Over the next few hours, Erin decided there were lots of little somethings she could think of doing with Jake. But none of them involved sitting in a ballroom surrounded by people she knew.
He leaned forward, listening to something Sam said, and his arm slid along the back of her chair. She took a deep appreciative breath. He even smelled good. Pine, woodsmoke, and man all rolled into one delicious parcel. She glanced sideways, trying to work out why every hormone in her body went on high alert around him.
He had a great sense of humor and cared about other people. But kindness didn’t account for the tingles crashing through her body every time their eyes met, or they way her body melted with one touch from his hand. Maybe she just needed to relax and enjoy his company. Tonight wasn’t about happy-ever-after. It was about fun, wrapped up in a delicious six-foot-plus package.
Her gaze slid over his face, following the line of his jaw to gently pouting lips tilted into a smile. He turned his head, catching her gaze with blue eyes that were far too knowing. She wiggled back in her chair.
Living dangerously was harder than she thought. It took a lot of dedication and commitment to let a man know she wanted his body wrapped around hers. After years of being safe and sensible, she didn’t know if she was up to the challenge.
She turned toward him. “Jake…”
The heat in his smile would have melted an iceberg. “My answer’s yes.”
Erin frowned. “To what?”
He leaned forward, rubbing the side of his face against hers. His lips moved against her ear sending goose bumps streaking along her skin. “To what you’re thinking,” he whispered.
Oh, Lord. Erin leaned into the soft kiss brushing against her cheek. She didn’t know whether to grab him by the collar and haul him home now, or grin like an idiot in Nicky’s direction. She’d done it. Erin Reynolds, library manager, renovation guru, and the person most unlikely to jump a man’s bones after one date had an offer she wasn’t going to turn down.
He sat back in his chair, his hand gently resting above hers on the table.
And then the sensible, common sense part of her brain kicked in. The part she thought she’d left at home. “What if I don’t want to do something about your answer?”
His thumb started to gently rub her fingers. “We enjoy each other’s company and see what happens next.”
Erin let go of the breath she’d been holding. She might be feeling reckless, but she wasn’t stupid. “You’ve got a deal.”
“I’ll look forward to your decision.” He lifted her hand to his lips and lightly kissed the top of her knuckles.
Heat rushed to Erin’s face as she looked into his laughing blue eyes. Eyes that could tease and tempt a woman until she turned to putty in his hands. “I’m beginning to think you’re a menace to the female population.”
“Only the one that counts.”
A waiter cleared his throat and she nearly leaped out of her chair. Grabbing the dessert menu she closed her eyes, and randomly stabbed at the card. “Blueberry pie, please.” The waiter moved around the table and she breathed a sigh of relief.
Jake laughed. “Quite a scientific approach you have there.”
Science didn’t account for the hormones zinging around her body and neither did logic. It was chemistry. Good old-fashioned lust mixed with a mega dose of biological necessity. “Sometimes the best outcomes come out of totally unexpected choices.”
The grin that lit his face sent her pulse skittering.
In a gentle voice he said, “I couldn’t agree more.”
***
Jake wasn’t impressed when a buzz of excitement swept through the ballroom. Heavy black curtains opened on the stage to reveal a huge variety of goods waiting to go under the hammer. The charity auction was about to start.
Raising his champagne flute in Jake’s direction, Sam said, “This should be interesting. Let’s hope you’re treated with kindness and compassion by the mob of hot women in the audience.”
Jake choked on his wine, sending an evil glare across the table.
Erin frowned. “What’s going on?”
“I’m about to be mobbed by a group of women hoping for an up close and personal encounter with a lawyer.” For the last three years, his sister had put his name forward for the fundraising auction, in some sick, perverse joke that only she found funny. No matter what he offered in his place, the fundraising committee wouldn’t budge. It was his body or nothing. He damn well wondered why he hadn’t called it quits and added a hefty donation to their bank account instead of agreeing to his sister’s crazy plan.
“What are you talking about?” Erin looked between the two men.
Leaning across the table, Sam said, “Charity auction time. Jake’s on the list of merchandise about to be sold to the highest bidder.”
Jake sat forward. “Don’t scoff too soon. Nicky just offered your services as a substitute for me.”
The smirk on Sam’s face disappeared. His gaze streaked to Nicky. “You d
idn’t speak to the auctioneer did you?” Panic laced with a good dose of dread turned the pitch on Sam’s voice up a couple of octaves, “Tell me you didn’t?”
She patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry big boy. I want you all to myself. Besides, I thought you might like to bid on the little gold bracelet that’s being auctioned.” An oh-so-charming smile hovered on her lips.
Erin grinned at the relieved expression on Sam’s face, then smiled even more when she saw a woman sitting at the next table. Jake looked twice at the woman’s cleavage, exploding in a puff of surgically enhanced skin from the top of a sparkly dress. And the look she sent him made Erin burst into a fit of giggles.
Blondie pursed her lips, sending Erin a superior stare from behind three-inch eyelashes and enough lipstick to paint her spare bedroom.
“You’re not supposed to laugh,” Jake muttered. “Just be thankful it’s not you up there.” His mouth tightened as he scanned the room. “The women in this audience may look harmless, but they’re out for blood. And it’s mine.”
Nodding across to the blonde woman at the next table, Erin said, “You’ve got a fan club of one all ready. Watch out, she wants you for nibbles.”
Jake shot a quick glance in Blondie’s direction, then buried his head in his hands.
Erin wiped a tear from her eye. “Who do I have to thank for nominating you?”
With absolutely no enthusiasm he muttered, “My sister, Lucy.”
He looked across at Erin. Desperate times called for desperate measures. He’d thought of a way to keep the horde of eager bidders away.
Grabbing her hand, he hoisted her out of her chair. “I need to talk to you fast.” He maneuvered both of them through a side door and out into a service corridor. “You’ve got to help me and I don’t have much time.”
Jake expected her to look bewildered, even surprised at their hasty escape. But she didn’t look either of those things. A huge smile slipped across her face.
“You want me to bid on a date with you, don’t you?”
“Am I that obvious?”
“Only sometimes,” she laughed.
“Will you do it?”
“What?”
“Bid on a date with me. I’ll pay for the auction. It won’t cost you a cent.”
“What do dates with you normally go for?”
Jake ran his hands through his hair. He needed to get back inside the ballroom. Otherwise someone would figure out what they were doing. And he needed to get Erin to agree with his plan so that he didn’t end up with someone else. “The highest bid a couple of years ago hit the two thousand dollar mark. I usually end up with a woman who wants to eat me for breakfast, or a mother who sees me as the perfect catch for her single daughter. After the week I’ve had, I can’t face being haggled over. What do you say?” He held his breath, waiting for her reply.
“I don’t know, it sounds a bit dodgy. Doesn’t it take the fun out of the auction if you’ve stacked the bidding in your favor?”
Erin’s eyes were alive with laughter, but her lips weren’t smiling. He hoped she was joking. Really hoped. “You’ve got to help me.” He hadn’t groveled for anything in years and she wasn’t making it easy for him.
“So this is all about saving your manly virtue and raising money for Camp Discovery?”
He nodded, hoping like crazy no one bowled through the door before she agreed to spend a hefty chunk of his money.
“I’ll help you on one condition. You have to do anything I want as payback.”
Relief swept through him. “In that case, I’m all yours.” Jake stared at the laughing face in front of him. A few interesting thoughts sprung to mind as payback, but right now he didn’t care where Erin’s imagination might take him.
He nudged her toward the door. “Let’s get back to the masses before we’re missed. And by the way, Miss Reynolds…” He leaned down and placed a soft kiss on her lips. “Thanks for the save.”
As he moved back, he looked down at her stunned expression. A blush stained her cheeks and her lips parted in surprise. His gaze locked with hers, then zeroed in on her mouth. Her tongue peeked out, licking her bottom lip. Everything around him swung into oblivion until all he wanted to do was follow her tongue into her beautiful mouth.
He took a step forward.
The door thudded open and Sam’s head appeared around the frame. “The auction’s about to start and they’re waiting for you.” Sam looked between the two of them, frowned, then disappeared back into the ballroom.
Erin grabbed his hand. “Come on, Casanova. Your ladies are waiting.”
***
Stan Lewis, the Director of Bozeman Deaconess Hospital, had been roped in as auctioneer for the night. He swiftly moved through a huge range of donated goods. Erin grinned when Sam managed to win the gold bracelet for five hundred dollars. Nicky thought it was a bargain and Sam told everyone he thought it was money well spent considering he wasn’t standing on the stage.
And then it was Jake’s turn. After a bit of coercion from Stan, he strolled around, looking as though he didn’t have a care in the world. No one watching him would have guessed he’d stooped to bribery and corruption to fix the outcome of the auction.
Moving in front of the stage, he waved to the audience. The room erupted in good natured wolf whistles and cheers as every eye in the room followed his progress. He didn’t let his gaze rest on anyone in the audience for too long. Erin smiled to herself. He probably didn’t want any eager females thinking he was open for business.
As Stan called for an opening bid, Jake sent a pointed look Erin’s way. Turning in her seat, she watched the first bid came in on her left. Hands rose in all directions around the ballroom. One thing was obvious; the women of Bozeman had discerning taste.
The blonde bombshell at the next table lifted her arm, yet again, to try and knock the competition out of the game.
Erin’s head swam as she tried to keep up with the bidding war. Jake kept glancing down, waiting for her counter-bid. Buying a thirty dollar mystery box from the second-hand dealers’ sale last summer was the only auction experience she had. But she’d learned one thing from that night. Never show your hand too soon. Letting the competition know that you were dead keen for what was on offer, wasn’t a good idea.
And she was more than dead keen. Erin planned to win. If there was ever a mission worthy of the underhand tactics they’d agreed on, this was it.
Jake sent another glance her way as she considered different auction strategies. It was just as well he didn’t know about her limited experience, otherwise he might not be looking quite so confident. As the first bidders ran out of steam, she did a quick scan of the crowd. Blondie kept raising her hand, countering all bids. Erin rolled her shoulders, flexing her fingers under the table.
It was now or never. Erin stuck her hand in the air. Notching up her first bid was nerve-racking. As her hand dropped back to the table, Blondie turned and gave her the meanest glare she’d seen in a long time.
Countering the woman’s next bid with a cheeky grin, she stuck her hand in the air for the third time as Blondie upped the stakes even higher.
Jake looked profoundly grateful as she energetically kept on top of the bidding war. She was so absorbed in making sure Blondie didn’t win, that she didn’t pay attention to the amount of money flying off the auctioneer’s tongue.
She was stunned when she realized the date with Jake had reached astronomical proportions. At three thousand dollars, even she was a little concerned that this would have to be the Rolls Royce of all dates. Crossing her fingers, she paused in mid-bidding stream.
Drawing in a gulp of air, she looked Jake straight in the eye. She sat back, arms folded across her chest, with a look of what she hoped was resignation plastered across her face.
His expression faltered as she pretended not to be interested in placing more bids. A smug look of satisfaction curdled Blondie’s face, and she gave a triumphant whoop of delight at the prospect of getting her ma
nicured nails into Jake’s anatomy.
“Think again,” Erin muttered. If Jake wanted to make a donation to Camp Discovery, then she’d make sure it was something everyone would remember. Throwing her arm in the air, she yelled, “Four thousand dollars.”
Nicky gasped, Sam’s jaw dropped open, and Jake looked so relieved that she felt guilty about calling Blondie’s bluff. Poor man. He’d really thought she was leaving him for the she-wolf to devour.
Blondie turned her back on Erin as Stan declared her the winner.
Jake vaulted off the stage, heading straight toward her. His grin was infectious as the audience clapped and cheered at the generous donation. Reaching down, he drew her into his arms. “Thanks,” he whispered. “I owe you big time.” Cradling the back of her head, he gently brushed his lips against hers.
To a woman who wanted to live dangerously, his mouth felt soft and sexy, and oh so kissable. So she did. Kiss him.
She kissed him for so long that a deafening roar of applause and whistling erupted around the room. Erin froze. She didn’t know where to look, but the floor held distinct advantages. Jake curled his hand around hers, pulling her down into her chair.
Stan banged his gavel, working hard to get everyone’s attention away from the hormonal couple and back to the auction.
Jake still had his hand wrapped around hers. “I like the way you kiss.”
Erin felt her face get a whole lot hotter. “I like the way you kiss, too,” she mumbled, “but if a hole opened up in the ground right at this moment, I’d jump in feet first.”
“Wrong fairy tale, Princess.” His brushed his fingers along her hot cheek, curling a strand of hair over her ear. “I see myself more in line with Prince Charming than a rabbit.”
Erin couldn’t help wanting to tease the most gorgeous man she’d ever locked lips with. “More like the Beast. And for the record, I don’t normally go around kissing complete strangers.”
“I should hope not. Otherwise, I’d have to lock you in my castle and keep you all to myself.”
With heat still radiating between their bodies, Erin thought that possibility had a lot going for it.
Forever Wishes (Montana Brides, Book 4) Page 2