And that kiss. All week he’d tried to forget it, tried to erase it from his mind. But he knew he’d never be able to.
As she drew near, the morning breeze brought the scent of her to him. Her hair drifted toward him, and if he wasn’t already as hard as a rock, the smell of her would have shot him from soft to stiff in five seconds flat.
“Have you ever heard of sleeping in?”
Jared set the Weed Eater on the ground and braced his right arm on the handle. God, she was magnificent when she was angry. “Nine isn’t sleeping in. That’s comatose.”
Her hair was a mass of long, wild curls, and her blue eyes blazed. “Only in your mixed-up world.”
“You’ve obviously forgotten the conversation we had about work hours.”
She planted her hands on her waist, drawing his eyes to her hips. “And you’ve forgotten that it’s Sunday. Sunday. Even God rested on the seventh day.”
“God doesn’t pay the bills.”
“And neither does mowing the lawn.”
She had him there. But working himself to the point of exhaustion helped with all his pent-up sexual frustration.
Her brow wrinkled as she stared at the Weed Eater. “If you’re not—” Then she saw Cody. “You’re making my nephew mow the lawn?”
“I’m not making anyone do anything.”
“He’s thirteen.”
“Exactly.”
“Thirteen,” she said again, a little bit louder. No, a lot louder. “Plus, he’s wearing tennis shoes. And where are his eye protectors and earplugs?”
“It’s a lawn mower not a machine gun.” By the time Jared was thirteen, he’d been doing a heck of a lot more than just mowing lawns. If memory served him correctly, one foster family had him splitting wood with an axe before he was ten.
“He could get hurt.”
He was about to tell her he could just as easily get hurt crossing the street or riding his bike, but then he thought better of it. He was definitely no expert on the subject of kids. Hadn’t he made a mess of things with Cody the first time they’d met?
“Fine. I’ll tell him to stop.”
Just then the lawn mower shut off, and Cody yelled out to her. “Hey, Aunt Jen.” His smile was as big as the lake out in front of them. “Guess what?”
She smiled back at him. “What?”
“Jared let me mow the lawn.” His enthusiasm was hard to miss. “And guess what else?”
“What?”
“He’s gonna come to my game.”
Her gaze snapped back around, and her smile thinned. “Don’t even think about it,” she hissed under her breath, making sure Cody couldn’t hear.
SIXTEEN
“Aunt Jenny,” Cody yelled through the front door. “We gotta leave now.”
“Hold your horses. I’m coming.” Grabbing the two bags of snacks off the kitchen counter, Jenny made her way outside. She started toward the Corvette only to stop short when she saw Cody climbing into the passenger side of Zeke’s pickup. “Wait,” she yelled, but he didn’t hear her. The door slammed shut. She headed for the truck, ready to tell him to hop out, he was in the wrong car, only to draw up short.
The driver’s door opened, and Jared stepped out. He wore a pair of soft, faded Levi’s, a V-necked cotton shirt with the sleeves pushed halfway up his forearms, and a pair of Aviator sunglasses. His hair was still wet from the shower he’d taken after mowing the lawn.
No way.
She reached the side of the truck in record time. “I thought we agreed you weren’t coming.”
He rested his arm on the bottom of the door’s open window. “I never agreed to anything. You just assumed.”
“The answer is no.”
He dropped his arm from the door and stepped toward her. She backed up, then realized what she was doing and stopped. He wasn’t going to intimidate her. Or, at least, he wasn’t going to see how much he unnerved her.
“Then you tell your nephew. For some reason, the kid wants me there.”
Jenny paused, weighing the truth of his statement. All week he’d been doing everything he could to get under her skin; she was certain this was just another one of his antics. Avoiding Jared, she peeked her head into the cab of the truck. Cody was grinning from ear to ear.
“When I told Zeke we couldn’t all fit in your car or on Jared’s motorcycle, he said we could use his truck. Cool, huh?”
“You asked Zeke?” Her stomach sank.
“We needed a way for all three of us to get to the game. Jared said he’d help me warm up. And Zeke said he didn’t mind.”
Jenny drew in a breath. She knew when she was licked. Turning, she faced Jared again.
He stood closer than before. She tried to back away from him but ran into the hard side of the truck. “You win. But you’d better be on your best behavior.”
He leaned forward, took the grocery sacks from her and placed them in the front of the pickup’s bed. “I’m always at my best, Cotton Tail.”
“Stop calling me that.”
He grinned but didn’t say anything, only motioned for her to get in. As she climbed into the old truck, it dawned on her she would be sitting on the middle of the bench seat, right next to Jared.
The next twenty minutes were pure torture. Each time Jared shifted, his hand bumped against her, touching her thigh.
“Behave,” she hissed under her breath, shooting him glares from beneath her lashes.
“What?” His innocent tone didn’t fool her for a second.
By the time they pulled into the Whitman ball fields, it was 2:05. Five minutes late. She hustled Cody out and grabbed the snacks while Jared got Cody’s baseball bag. They rushed to Field A, only to find it empty.
Jenny looked around. “Don’t tell me we’re at the wrong place.”
“No, this is it,” Cody said as he took his bag from Jared and set it on the ground.
“But it’s after two. Where is everyone?”
Crouching, Cody unzipped his bag. “The game doesn’t start till three.”
“Three? But your mom said two.”
“Coach likes us here a half hour early.”
But they weren’t a half hour early. They were an hour early. Jenny gritted her teeth. It was just like her sister to give her an earlier time to make sure Jenny wasn’t late. And it was just like her sister to think nothing of using up more of Jenny’s day. She readjusted the sacks in her arms. “So,” she said to Cody, masking her annoyance. “Looks like we have a half hour to kill.”
Cody paused and shot Jared a hesitant glance. “You still want to catch some pitches? I mean, if you don’t want to, it’s okay.”
Jenny looked at Jared, afraid he would refuse.
“Sure, kid.”
Cody pulled two gloves and a baseball from his bag. “Here.” He handed Jared the larger of the gloves. “This one is my dad’s, but you can use it if you want.”
Jared took the glove and turned it over several times in his hands. “Thanks.” His voice was low as he stared at the glove. “I’ll make sure to take good care of it.”
Cody grinned, and the two of them headed out to the field. Jared’s long, confident strides had Cody doing a half jog, half run to keep up.
Setting the snacks next to her, Jenny took a seat in the bleachers. She tried to keep her eyes off of Jared and on Cody but found it nearly impossible to do.
“Why don’t we just toss a few easy ones first, to get you warmed up?”
“Yeah,” Cody agreed, jogging a distance away from Jared. “That’s what Coach always says.”
Worn Levi’s hugged Jared’s long legs, and muscles flexed beneath his shirt as he tossed pitches back and forth with Cody on the green field. Cody laughed as Jared threw a miss and as her nephew ran to get the ball, she thought about their trip to the grocery store earlier today. He’d still thought they should go with pure junk food. She thought bottled water and a piece of fruit. They’d settled on Gatorade and chocolate chip granola bars.
�
�Looking good,” Jared said. “How do you feel?”
“Great,” Cody answered.
“Ready to take it up a notch?”
“Yeah.”
Jared positioned himself behind home plate and smacked the inside of his glove with his bare hand. “Okay. Let’s see what you got.”
Cody jogged out to the pitcher’s mound. He dug into the dirt, making a grove for his foot, and then with a windup move that reminded Jenny of a major league player, he nailed one right across the plate and directly into Jared’s glove. It landed with a satisfying thump.
“Nice one,” Jared said, standing and tossing the ball back.
Cody threw about a dozen more pitches that sailed straight down the middle. Several times after a pitch, Jared would shake his gloved hand.
“Whew. That’s some heat.”
“You wanna see my curve ball?” Cody hollered to Jared.
“Bring it on.”
Lifting his right leg high in the air, Cody brought his arm back and let the ball fly for all it was worth. It sailed a good six feet above Jared’s head.
Cody’s shoulders slumped, and he kicked at the mound of dirt. “Sorry,” he said as Jared retrieved the ball. “Guess I don’t have a curve ball.”
“Don’t give up, kid. You’ll get it.”
“You think so?” Cody asked.
“I know so.” With an easy toss, the ball sailed back into Cody’s mitt.
As Jenny watched Jared with Cody, something warm and unexpected nestled next to her heart.
Soon, Cody’s team and their opponents started showing up. People began to fill the seats around Jenny. She smiled and said hi, even though she didn’t know anyone. And just like when she’d had Maddy and the rest of the gang over, it felt good to be with a group of people.
As Jared jogged off the field, Jenny couldn’t help but notice how several of the women eyed him. A stab of jealousy took her by surprise. What did she have to be jealous about? He wasn’t hers. And she didn’t want him to be. Right?
Oblivious to the stares he was receiving, Jared climbed the bleachers two at a time and joined her. He smelled like the fresh outdoors and everything she knew she shouldn’t want. “That was really nice of you,” she said after a slight pause, trying to even her breathing.
He used the sleeve of his T-shirt to wipe his forehead. He shrugged off her words. “It was nothing. I promised him earlier I’d help him warm up.”
It wasn’t nothing. It was a major something that wrapped around her bruised soul and settled right next to her heart. She swallowed and looked away, only to come eye to eye with a gorgeous brunette staring hard at Jared. Jenny found a different spot to focus on, regained her equilibrium, then looked back to the emerald green field. “Sounded like you knew what you were talking about out there. You must have played baseball.”
“No.”
Cody’s team ran out onto the field. Nine kids in blue and white uniforms fanned out across the field as they took their various positions. Cody settled in on the pitcher’s mound.
“Football?”
Even though she was still looking straight ahead, she could feel his gaze on her.
“No,” he said again.
“What sports did you play?”
“None.”
She turned and looked at him, while her mind remembered every painful detail he’d told her about his childhood. She knew he didn’t want her pity—but would he accept her comfort? She wished she was brave enough to find out. Instead, she tried to joke her way past the emotions eating her up inside. “And here I thought all little boys couldn’t wait to get their hands on a ball.”
“Some of us preferred to get our hands on more important things.” His gaze went directly to her cleavage.
“Behave,” she reminded him under her breath while her heart did somersaults. “That was the deal, remember?”
“Your deal.” His grin was as wicked as it was inviting.
She quickly steered the conversation in a different direction. “I want to apologize.”
“For?”
“Getting so upset when I saw Cody helping you this morning. It’s just that he seems too young to do that kind of stuff. But then I saw how happy he was helping you. Besides, I should have realized you’d make sure he was safe.”
Jared pulled at the leather strings on the baseball glove he’d been using. “No, you’re right. He is too young.”
“Did you do that kind of stuff when you were his age?”
“Yeah.”
“Like?”
He twirled the glove in his hand. “Like a hell of a lot harder things than mowing a damn lawn.” He motioned to the field, ending the discussion. “They’re done with warm-up. I’m gonna go grab a Coke before the game starts. What would you like?”
She wanted to ask him more, but one look at the hard set to his jaw, and she knew he wouldn’t answer. “A Diet Coke would be great.”
Even behind his dark glasses, she could feel the heat of his gaze. “Diet is the last thing you need. You’re getting a regular one.”
She watched his broad shoulders disappear into the throng of people standing in front of the concession stand. From all outward appearances, Jared appeared to have everything. But more and more, Jenny kept glimpsing a different side of him. A boy who grew up without a home. A teenager who did jobs more suited for an adult than a kid. A man alone who seemed to isolate himself from almost everyone and everything. Even as she tried to stop it, her heart reached out to him. He was making her life a living hell, but it didn’t seem to matter. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t stop herself from wanting to fill the emptiness she glimpsed in him.
Jared returned with their drinks, and for the next two hours Jenny forgot her worries as she watched the kids play their hearts out. Cody pitched through five innings and reached base safely three out of his four trips up to bat. In the end, his team won by a score of eleven to three.
“Great game,” she said as they made their way back to the truck after handing out snacks. Jenny didn’t hear a complaint from the parents about her food choice, so she took that to be a good sign. “You looked like a real pro out there.”
“Thanks,” Cody said, quickly turning to Jared. “Didja see that double play Parker made in the second inning?”
“Just like a major leaguer.”
“Yeah.” Cody twisted off the top of his Gatorade and took a long swallow. “We creamed ’em.” He took another drink. “Thanks for the warm-up. It really helped.”
“Glad I could do it. Thanks for inviting me. I had a fun time.” There was nothing but truth in Jared’s voice.
When they reached the truck, Cody put his bag in the bed of the truck and hopped in the passenger side, leaving Jenny stuck in the middle again.
Seeing her hesitation, Jared just grinned.
“Behave,” she warned him for the third time, unable to forget the look of joy on Cody’s face when he talked to Jared.
“Always.”
“Never.” She climbed in. Jared slid in next to her and started up the truck. “How about we celebrate with some pizza?” she said.
“As long as you aren’t cooking,” they said in unison.
She bit back a smile. “And here I was even going to suggest we go out for ice cream, too.” Then she laughed, because she knew they’d end up having both.
It was nearly dark by the time they arrived back home. As they pulled into the driveway, Jenny saw her mom emerge from her beige Mercedes.
“It’s Grandma,” Cody said.
“Yes, it is,” Jenny said, trying to keep the worry out of her voice. She wondered what had brought her mom over so late.
“Hi, Mom,” she said as they piled out of the truck. “Is everything okay?”
“Fine. Except I’ve been trying to reach you for over an hour.”
“Sorry. I left the house without my cell. You’re sure everything is fine?”
“Yes, sweetheart. I’m just here to pick up Cody. Anna has to w
ork later than planned, and she’d like me to take Cody home so he can get to bed at a decent time for school tomorrow.”
“Oh.” Jenny let out a relieved breath. Ever since losing Steven, she tended to assume the worst. Whether it was a middle-of-the-night call, the sound of a siren, or someone—even her mother—showing up at odd hours. “I’m sorry we’re home later than expected. We went out for pizza and ice cream to celebrate Cody’s big win.”
Catherine walked over and gave Cody a hug. “Congratulations. I’m sorry I couldn’t be there.”
“That’s okay, Grandma. Mom told me you’re working on some party.”
Jenny’s mom smiled. “That’s right. But the party is almost here, and then I won’t be so busy. You and I will have to plan some fun stuff for the summer. But it’s getting late, and we really should get on the road.”
Cody nodded and turned to Jared. “Thanks again for all your help.”
Jared tugged on the bill of Cody’s cap. “Anytime, slugger.
“Just give us a sec,” Jenny said, steering Cody to the house. “We’ll have his things rounded up in no time.”
Jared knew Jenny’s second could be anywhere from ten minutes to an hour. Right now all he wanted was a beer and to be alone. But he could tell Jenny’s mother had something on her mind. He leaned his back against the front fender and braced his boot on the inner rim of the tire.
“You went to Cody’s game?” she asked.
“He invited me.” Jared knew he shouldn’t have gone. But hearing so much raw desperation in Cody’s voice brought back too many childhood memories. There had been no way he could say no.
The porch light came on, but the single sixty-watt bulb didn’t extend to the driveway. Even so, in the waning evening light he could see the resemblance between mother and daughter. During their first meeting in the restaurant, Jared had barely given Jenny’s mom a second glance. As he waited for her to tell him what was on her mind, he noted she was still a striking woman for her age. But where Jenny was soft and too bighearted for her own good, her mother seemed tougher and less forgiving.
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