by Box Set
Seemed he’d underestimated Savannah’s level of fury. Granted he hadn’t thought through the living together part, but he’d figured it would get Larry to back off.
“No, Savvy, listen. What—” She cut him off with a wave of her hand.
“No, you listen and don’t call me Savvy.” A tic vibrated under her left eye. “Every man in my life has tried to control me. Daddy never listened to me saying I wouldn’t study law or finance or something useful. Instead he’s always been baffled that I wanted to stay here and use my marketing degree to put this town that I love on the map.” She sucked in air through her teeth. “Every teacher, every boss, every boyfriend has tried to control me and I am so freaking tired of it.”
She hadn’t said his name in the mix of people who’d controlled her and he was glad because he’d have argued the point. They’d always been equal.
“For the first time I’m on my own and doing it my way.” She looked disappointed, kind of sad that he’d joined the club. “Congratulations, you are now in the club with Lawrence and Daddy.”
Her words delivered an iron-fisted punch to his stomach. “Hear me out.”
She studied him for a beat. “Why you’d do it?” She held up her hand indicating the diner. “Do you feel sorry for me?”
Another sucker punch to the gut.
He had to get her to understand. “No, Sav, I was helping out an old friend.”
A frown creased her forehead. “But we’re not friends, Walker. I haven’t seen you in eight years. I was a crazy twenty-two-year-old and we were sneaking around so my father wouldn’t know I was running around with the hired help deemed ‘extremely unsuitable.’” The frown deepened. “You don’t know me.” She cocked her head to one side, assessing. “Besides, friendship isn’t where one person owes another.”
“You don’t owe me.” Exasperation coated his voice.
The lines on her forehead deepened and her shoulders hugged her ears. “What I now have to do is work out a way to pay you back.”
Her teeth worried her bottom lip alarmingly.
Shit.
He’d screwed this up and he needed to fix it.
But how?
Walker had everything he needed. He’d hit the jackpot when he’d opened a spare auto parts company, hitting a niche market of vintage spare parts that were handmade by his team. His house in Malibu was mortgage free. His sister’s future was sewn up financially; her kids had college funds. He even covered his dad’s rehab—each time hoping it would be the last. He had a lifestyle with no personal attachments. His number one rule of waking up in his own bed was batting a one hundred percent success rate. The only time he’d woken up with a woman had been Savannah.
Hadn’t that turned out well.
There was one thing in his life he’d never change; he’d never be tied down.
His daddy’s words arrived in his brain on a smack.
Wake up alone, son. Men like me and you, we’re not stayers. We don’t stick with one woman. Don’t end up like me and get trapped with kids you didn’t want and the mother of your children gone. You’ll be stuck with a lifetime of pain.
The words had struck a chord. Even from a young age he’d never wanted to date a girl twice. Never understood their dreamy look. Never wanted more.
How can I persuade her to let me help? Where she can offer something in return. A trade.
A little light flicked on.
What if he could convince her that he wanted to become domesticated?
Domesticated.
The word sat in his brain like a disease.
This he could do without any hurt feelings. He’d let her think she’d be helping him out and at the end of the two weeks he’d walk away, her debt to him wiped.
He ran on gut instinct, something he’d always relied on.
He rested a hip on the counter. “I’ve never been in a serious relationship, but there might be a time when I want to settle, maybe do the whole kid thing…be domesticated. But first, I want to see if I could survive sharing my life with a woman. So I want to test it out. Live at your place for while I’m in town. See if I can last.”
Besides living at her place would send a clear message to Larry.
She frowned up at him, disbelieving.
“I’m here for two weeks. I’ll pay you to teach me how to be domesticated.” Her eyes flared, but he continued. “I don’t want to control you and I never meant to offend you. I wanted that prick off your back and to help you out, but I have offended you so let me make this right.”
Otherwise, I’ll have to take Larry and go a couple of rounds outside the ring.
“Wait.”
Her voice pulled him back into the diner and away from images of him pounding Larry at a fight club.
She studied him until the skin on the back of his neck started to burn.
“I assumed you wanted to always live the single life.” She looked skeptical.
Her truthfully spoken words scored a direct hit.
He held her gaze. “You assumed wrong.”
He was a better liar than he thought.
She tilted her head, eyes narrowed.
Jesus, he’d have to be convincing, very convincing.
“There may be a girl down the line and I’d want to go into a relationship with a basic understanding of what it’s like to live with someone.”
Bottom line he wasn’t a liar. He hated the crap spilling out of his mouth, but if this was the only way he could help her out then he’d lie like a rug
“Two weeks only? Staying on my couch?”
He nodded. “Two weeks. I’m here to see John; then I’m gone.”
His throat tightened saying his old mentor’s name—the only man who’d ever given a shit about him. It hurt to think of a world without John in it. The man had turned Walker’s life around with patience, and an unbreakable work ethic he’d instilled in all the boys who arrived full of attitude—Walker included—at his ranch. For Walker, it was what saved him. This same John who would call him on lying to Savannah.
Silence stretched between them.
She glanced out the door then at him and nodded. “Since there will never be anything between us and this is a business transaction, then yes, you can stay on my couch.” She cocked an eyebrow. “Because we both know the rule—no touching the help.”
Walker groaned inside. That would be a whole lot simpler if he couldn’t see that mixture of vulnerability and pride that was the only thing keeping her on her feet. Suddenly, all he wanted was to pull her into his arms and let her rest against him and shield her.
“Deal,” he said, without daring to shake hands. One touch of her velvety skin would only have him wanting more. And that wasn’t allowed.
Chapter 3
Savannah stretched and wriggled, sunlight hit her face in a flood of warmth. She glanced out her bedroom window. The sky had painted itself a perfect shade of blue with a puff of cloud to break up the party. Birds were up and singing about their happy day.
She leaned over and grabbed her phone. Billy-Bob must have made it in.
Thank you, Jesus.
A day Billy-Bob made it home to his bed was a good one.
Lawrence’s look at Walker when he’d said “You’re him” had rattled around her brain like a never-ending roller coaster, keeping her awake most of the night. Apparently, once when she was falling asleep she’d said “only call me Savvy if you love me.”. Lawrence never called her anything but Savannah.
She slid her finger across her phone and froze.
Shit.
She threw back the covers and vaulted from the bed. She’d either forgotten to set the alarm on her phone, or she’d slept through it.
Impossible.
She raced into the living room, her feet skidding on the ancient carpet.
Silence.
Her gaze caught a note hanging on the door. She raced to the Post-it, her heart hammering.
Savvy,
Your cook was a no show when I w
ent past earlier, so I’m there. Don’t hurry. All good.
Walker.
All good?
All freaking good?
Hell no.
She noted the stack of blankets and a pillow on the couch where Walker had spent the night, pausing briefly to wonder if the blanket had soaked up his amazing scent.
Can’t deny the man smells delicious.
She pulled off the fastest shower in history, yanked on jeans and a T-shirt, pushed her feet into shoes. She brushed her teeth, pulled her hair into a high ponytail, grabbed her car keys, and headed toward the diner in record-breaking time.
Walker must have come into her room and turned off her alarm.
I’d worn a ratty old T-shirt, and he probably caught me drooling like a hag.
She parked, spraying gravel, then flew through the diner’s back door before coming to a screeching halt.
Even furious, she acknowledged that the gods who put hot men together had made their quota and then some when they’d turned out Walker. He filled his faded denim jeans and pale blue T-shirt magnificently. Tight muscles bent and flexed under smooth, dark forearms. A grin highlighted the sparkle in his caramel eyes.
And what delicious eyes they were, framed by thick, dark, curling lashes Revlon would envy.
A girl could get lost in those eyes.
Not this girl.
This man didn’t stay and she wanted a man who’d stand by her side no matter what.
That man was definitely not Walker.
“Savvy, by the look on your face, I get you’re not happy, but I’ve got a room full of diners, can you do your magic shit on the coffees?”
Her hands went to her hips. “We will be having words.”
Savannah stalked to the coffee machine where a row of orders sat on the counter. After making the orders and serving them, she slipped outside and breathed in the fresh Montana air.
She pulled her phone from her jeans pocket when it vibrated. She smiled at the text from her friend Melissa. Did Savannah want to hit a bar tonight for a cocktail and have some fun? Roughly translated it meant did she want to get dressed up and go man-hunting.
Getting dressed up for a night on the town with her bestie sounded awesome; unfortunately, she had a man to train in the fine art of living with a person of the opposite sex.
She tapped out a reply that she couldn’t tonight, but would take a raincheck. She had to domesticate Walker in two weeks and she’d better start tonight with laying some ground rules. She pushed the phone into her pocket then walked back into the kitchen
With no more coffee orders, she leaned against the counter and took a glance at his broad back. Surely cotton shouldn’t be able to stretch that much.
The embarrassing heat pouring off her could set off the fire alarm.
“Sav, I know you’re checking me out.”
She started fiddling with the coffee knobs. “You’ll need a couple of Sherpas to climb your Mount Everest ego because I was not checking you out.”
He turned and grinned.
“I don’t have an issue with you checking me out. I just wondered if you liked the view?”
Well, only a blind nun wouldn’t mind taking in that view.
Embarrassed, her hands went to her hips. She tilted her head and stared into amused eyes that, if she let them, had the ability to turn her thoughts from pristine to…dirty.
Not anymore.
“We need to discuss your coming into my bedroom, hacking my phone, turning off my alarm, not waking me up when Billy-Bob didn’t turn up, and opening the diner with a key you stole from my keyring.”
He advanced with an infuriating grin on his face.
Every muscle in her body tightened
“I’m serious. This is my livelihood.”
He stared at her, the grin on his face replaced by concern that for a strange reason made her emotional.
“Sav, you’re exhausted. I came into your bedroom this morning because your phone was blaring, and you were out. Your passcode is your birthday, so I didn’t exactly hack into the CIA to get it. You needed to rest so I turned the alarm off. I’m always up early. Your keys were on the counter—I took the one with a ‘D’ so you could sleep.”
His words landed on her skin like soft, gentle snowflakes. She pressed her lips together allowing herself an inward smile that he’d remembered her birthday.
“Thank you for your concern, but I’ve been doing this a while.” She cast a quick glance around the tidy diner then to Walker to find him studying her intently. “Please don’t assume you know what’s right for me when you haven’t seen me in years,” she said in a quiet but strong voice.
“I know you.” Lines deepened on his forehead.
The wistfulness of thinking she thought she could fix the emptiness and edginess that glued him together, bruised her heart.
“No, you don’t,” she said with a soft sigh. “You remember a sweet kid who believed in unicorns and fairies.” She tilted her head. “That girl’s long gone and as it stands this friendship is one-sided and if you want to one day share your life with a woman you’ll have to be in a partnership.”
He reached out to touch the corner of her mouth and showed her a dab of toothpaste.
She ignored the warmth of his fingers and the rush of need that curled her nipples into hard points. Long-denied arousal stirred, making her squirm, and surprised her. It had been a long time since she’d even wanted to power up Sergio and have some playtime.
She stepped away.
His gaze roamed over her. A little shiver started at her hairline, throwing goosebumps over her body like confetti, which made her even more flustered.
“When you smile, your whole body smiles. Your laughter lights up a room. You’re beautiful,” he said, his voice like warm velvet.
She froze.
“I know when you love, you love with your whole heart. I know you believe in happy ever after. I know that Larry didn’t treat you right.” He paused for a heartbeat. “I’m sorry about this morning. I didn’t know it would upset you so much; it’s just I’m so used to being in control.” He held up his hands. “I thought I was helping an old friend out. Guess I have got a lot to learn about living with someone which is why I’m here.”
His words melted a corner of her heart.
She nodded after a beat. “I know you didn’t mean to upset me, and I went a bit off the deep end and I apologize. It’s been me for so long, and if I’m not in control of the situation then no one is.” She shoulder bumped him. “And there’s no such thing as happily ever after.”
“You don’t believe in your own happy ending?” He looked thoughtful.
“Not anymore.”
Admitting her marriage was nothing more than two years of living an empty, meaningless existence sat in her gut like a snake, striking at unexpected moments. She’d stayed too long and poured everything she had into trying to fix something that was broken.
She’d couch-surfed with friends, stayed with Miss Hattie and invited herself to way too many pity parties, until she pulled herself up, dusted herself off, then had taken stock of her life.
She’d only stayed around for Miss Hattie, but now there was no reason to stay.
Maybe in Hawaii there would be a tall, well-built African-American who wasn’t Walker but maybe resembled him, or maybe a battery powered look-alike was in her future.
“Kind of done with men, but don’t worry, I have Sergio to keep me company.”
His eyes narrowed. “Sergio?”
Mortified at her slip, she pressed her hands to cup her cheeks, hoping to contain the red creeping up her face.
May as well own it.
“Yeah, Sergio. He doesn’t talk back, he’s always available, and only requires batteries.”
Walker stared at her in surprise, then his face changed, which left her in no doubt that he’d imagined her with Sergio.
She squirmed at the white-hot need exploding throughout her body.
Definitely d
idn’t think that through.
She let her gaze drift over him and stopped.
Oh, my.
She tried to swallow but the task was impossible.
The thick denim was unable to hide the evidence.
She licked her lips.
Definitely time to upgrade Sergio.
She wondered if Walker could still do things that would make her purr.
Damn.
She didn’t have to look down to know her nipples were paying attention, her underwear damp, and her eyes hazy.
Seems like he could mind-read too.
His gaze dragged across her body and his mouth parted slightly.
She tried to swallow but couldn’t.
“Sergio ever breaks down while I’m here and you want the real thing, give me a shout,” Walker said, his voice dark, raw and unmistakably aroused.
As much as her body wanted to reminisce about how unbelievably delicious he used to feel moving inside her, her brain flickered from a Walker lust-induced coma, and threw water on her body’s parade.
Wait.
“You want me to be your booty call while you’re here?” The blood that had been shooting south changed direction, headed north, and started to boil.
He shrugged an impressive shoulder she wanted to bite.
“Just saying we were good back when we were practically kids, but we’re adults now. Two weeks of fun without any emotions coming into play. Yeah, I want that.”
She moved away from his scent, the one that was making her think of a rainy night, an open fire and his lips on her.
There was no way she could stand here and not be tempted. Physically, yes, she’d love to swap him out for Sergio. But if she fell for him again, even a little bit, even knowing he was leaving, the fallout would be too much for her.
She moved to the counter, picked up a cloth, and started wiping a perfectly clean countertop.
“I need to go. I’ve got to find Billy-Bob and have a word.”
“Yeah, about that.”
Chapter 4
Walker closed his eyes briefly, opened them, and braced for a repeat performance. One that could get him ejected from her life, though while he was here, he had no intention of being ejected.