Caught Between an Oops and a Hard Body (Caught Between series Book 2)

by Seabrook, Sheila

  Sandy smiled. “Remember the Eternally Yours episode on the top five ways to keep your husband’s attention at home? Well, every night since then, I’ve greeted Harry at the door with a drink in my hand…naked except for the apron I wear while I make his supper.”

  Leta’s eyebrows winged up.

  Nancy sighed. “So that must make your sex life pretty hot?”

  “Hot?” Sandy blinked and squinted up at the sky. “Yeah, sure.”

  But she didn’t sound convincing.

  Grace took hold of her hand. “I thought you and Harry…the apron and the nakedness.”

  “Sandy, is Harry not giving you any?” Nancy drawled.

  Sandy glanced toward the golf course, her shoulders slumped, and shook her head. “It worked for the first couple of years after the kids moved out, but now—at first the sex was naughty and explosive and so like when we were first dating. Now, Harry comes through the front door, takes the drink out of my hand, gives me a peck on the cheek, then turns on the satellite to watch Golf TV.”

  Three sets of accusing eyes turned toward Grace. She barely stopped herself from squirming. “Why are you looking at me?”

  “It’s that course Jim built,” Leta said.

  Sandy nodded. “It’s got all our men addicted to the great outdoors.”

  “We’ve let them take us for granted for far too long,” Nancy said as she pushed to her feet and started toward the house. “This calls for more than coffee. Where’s your wine, Grace?”

  She sighed and gave in to the inevitable. They were here to stay until they got their husbands back. Although there was no need to serve them the good stuff. “Fridge. Glasses are in the cupboard next to it.”

  While Nancy toddled off, Sandy leaned forward. “So girls, what’s the plan?”

  Silence fell over them again and the downcast looks on her guests’ faces squeezed Grace’s heart.

  What were they going to do? The golf course was like a beautiful woman to the men, teasing and taunting.

  Nancy returned, popped the cork, filled the glasses, handed one to each woman, then plunked back down on her chair. “So where were we?”

  Three expectant gazes fixed on Grace, and without a brilliant idea to wow them with, she went with her regular advice. “You should go home, talk to your husbands, tell them what’s wrong. Work on a solution to solve the problem together. Work as a couple.”

  “Already tried and failed.” Nancy made a pfttt noise, pulled out a cigarette and lit it, then drawled, “Honey, it’s clear you’re in the same boat as us. Why won’t you admit it?”

  The corners of Leta’s mouth turned down. “Worse.”

  Sandy leaned forward and patted Grace's hand. “We saw her, Grace. That child was all over Jim. It’s not right.”

  Embarrassment flooded Grace's cheeks.

  Maybe they were right. It was time to take action.

  Out the corner of her eye, she saw Jim on the putting green, sans his little golf slut. But she couldn’t rid herself of the image of that young woman climbing all over him while she pretended to teach him how to golf.

  Across from her, Leta fidgeted with the edge of her blouse.

  Nancy stubbed the cigarette out in the flower pot next to her chair and pulled out another.

  Sandy sighed, turned her attention to the squares, dragged the plate across the table to the spot in front of her, and dived in.

  Grace sipped at her wine and realized the women were waiting for her to come up with a plan. All she really wanted to do was climb back into bed, pull the covers up over her head, and hide there for the rest of her life. But she couldn’t disappoint these women any more than she could disappoint her viewers.

  She took a huge sip from the wine glass and took the plunge. “Would you like to help me hire a male assistant?”

  With a grin, Nancy grabbed the wine bottle and topped up the glasses. “Now you’re talking.”

  Grace thought of Jim, eaten alive with jealousy. She’d laugh in his face while she walked into the sunset with her terribly attractive, terribly sexy hired help. Two could play at this game.

  She tapped her fingers against the top of the table. “I’ll call the agency and ask them to send over some candidates. The sooner the better.”

  Sandy leaned forward, elbows on the table. “Criteria?”

  Grace frowned. She hadn’t given this any more thought than getting even with Jim.

  Leta jumped to her feet and paced. “He has to be young. Definitely under thirty.”

  Nancy’s eyes brightened. “I like that. Very naughty.”

  Grace refused to squirm. “Maybe an ex-lifeguard, so he can watch over the people in the pool.” She glanced at the empty pool, then looked back at her companions, refusing to roll her eyes. “He must agree to be on call twenty-four-seven. Since my computer whiz man can’t take the time to fix my computer, I’ll need someone else to do that job too.”

  The implication was there for everyone to read.

  Sex would be the assistant’s number one priority.

  “Handsome,” Leta suggested.

  “Someone to make Jim sit up and take notice,” Nancy said.

  “Someone who doesn’t mind an older woman,” Sandy added.

  “Someone who finds older women attractive,” Leta amended.

  “Someone who can satisfy an older woman’s sexual needs,” Nancy said wistfully.

  Sandy and Leta nodded and said in unison, “I’d like to find me one of those too.”

  Grace studied the three of them and realized that even though they’d all led different professional lives, their personal lives were scarily similar. They needed her as much as she needed them.

  She reached into her pocket, pulled out her cell phone, and made the call. When the receptionist picked up, she said, “Hello, I’d like to hire a man.”

  The three faces beaming back at her brought her more joy than she’d experienced in…forever.

  Two hours later, the first of the first of the first to interview walked onto the patio.

  Nancy sat up straight and purred, “Hunka hunka hunka love.”

  The potential candidate swaggered onto the cement, all two hundred pounds of tanned hard male muscles and brawn. Around her, Grace heard a collective sigh of satisfaction.

  Dressed in a pair of faded jeans that hugged lean hips and a t-shirt that showed off the breadth of his shoulders, the width of his chest, the tautness of his belly, Grace swallowed back her own sigh. Then she raised her gaze to look at his face.

  And in a heartbeat, every sexual fantasy she’d had vanished.

  He was nothing but a boy. Twenty-five at the most. Only a few years younger than Stone. Somehow the thought of doing him seemed a little bit…too naughty.

  He walked onto the deck, his mouth hitched into a reckless grin. “Morning, Ma’am. I’m here to interview for the assistant job.”

  If there was one thing Grace hated more than the loss of her own youth, it was the word Ma’am.

  Other than that, the boy was perfect for the job.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  Mid-morning, Stephanie answered the door and saw the father of her baby looming in the open doorway. He stood there handsome and hunky and hot…three of her top favorite things in a man.

  He shifted the weight of his body from one foot to the other, rubbed his palm against the back of his neck, and grimaced. “I’m not exactly sure what the morning after protocol is—”

  She gritted her teeth and hissed, “Go away.”

  The self-conscious appearance faded and one masculine eyebrow quirked. “Somebody got up on the wrong side of the bed.”

  She glanced over her shoulder and lowered her voice. “My mother is here and she’s driving me n—”

  A swish on the floor behind her made her snap her mouth shut.

  Stone's gaze went past her and he smiled that warm welcome smile that did funny things to her stomach. “Hello, Mrs. G.”

  “Stone? Come in, come in. You must have recei
ved my message,” her mom exclaimed.

  “Message?” Stephanie sent Stone a narrow-eyed look. “What message?”

  He grinned down at her. “You mom said she made a batch of my favorite peanut butter cookies for me.”

  “And you’re just in time,” Dora said. “I’m about to pull them out of the oven, so they’ll still be warm. I’ll make coffee, then you two can sit down and discuss the plans for the day.”

  The stove timer buzzed, and as her mom scurried away, Stephanie reluctantly pulled the door wide open. “How does she know what your favorite cookies are?”

  Stone stepped inside. “She doesn’t. I was being polite.”

  As he passed by her, she tried to ignore how good he smelled. Why was that, especially when everything else seemed to turn her stomach?

  She glared at him. “No still means no, you know. No trying to butter me up with hopes I’ll change my mind.”

  The corner of his mouth quirked up and he nudged her aside so he could close the door. “I’m just here to check on how you’re doing this morning.”

  “She woke me up to make my bed. How do you think I’m doing? And the scent of those cookies makes me want to throw up all over them.”

  He leaned forward and tweaked her nose, pity in his gaze. “Poor baby. What can I do to help?”

  Stephanie inhaled another breath of delicious male. She eyed his broad shoulders, then his neck. “Please don’t judge me for doing this.”

  Then she stepped forward, wrapped her arms around his waist, and pressed her nose against his neck.

  Against her chest, she felt the rumble of his laughter. “What are you doing, gorgeous lady?”

  She closed her eyes, breathed deeply, and as the twisted nauseous feeling in her stomach eased, sighed a happy sigh. “You smell so good. And it settles my stomach. I’m not exactly positive, but I think your aftershave or cologne or deodorant is what’s doing the trick.”

  Or maybe it’s just you, she nearly added.

  Another chuckle escaped him. He wrapped his arms around her and tucked her close to his body. “What about your mom?”

  Some of her grumpiness returned. “She can go stick her nose in my dad’s neck.”

  He tunneled his fingers into her hair. “So it looks like you might need me after all.”

  “Just till the gagging stage ends.”

  “I read it can last through the whole pregnancy.”

  “Is that supposed to cheer me up?”

  “I’m just saying, you might need me around for more than the sperm donor.”

  A scrape on the kitchen floor sounded. Stephanie popped her eyes open and pushed out of Stone's arms just as her mom came around the corner. The Cheshire grin on the older woman’s face warned her that she hadn’t moved fast enough.

  “Come,” Dora said. “The coffee is poured. Let’s sit down and get to know each other.”

  As Stephanie followed her mom into the kitchen, aware of Stone's large body bringing up the rear, she realized it seemed strange to talk about the pregnancy with him, almost like a real couple. It was…nice.

  He was nice.

  Maybe too nice.

  Her heart hiccuped.

  Dora passed by the table on the way to the stove. “Sit. I’ll have these cookies on the table in a jiff.”

  Stephanie sank onto a chair, and now that she didn’t have her nose buried against Stone's neck, her stomach began to flip-flop again.

  Stone leaned over her and whispered in her ear. “Where do you want me to sit? Far away or close?”

  In answer, she grabbed a chair, yanked it close, and pulled him down to sit next to her.

  His cell phone buzzed. She grabbed him by the shirt sleeve and hissed into his ear, “Please don’t leave me alone with those cookies.”

  He pulled the phone out of his pocket, glanced at the screen, and set the device on the table. “I won’t.”

  Her mom turned from the stove, her cheeks flushed, her eyes sparkling as she approached the table with a plate of cookies which still steamed with heat from the oven.

  Assured he wasn’t going anywhere, Stephanie released her grip on him, leaned slightly closer, and inhaled. He didn’t even so much as look at her, but she saw the crook at the corner of his mouth.

  Yeah, the fact that she needed him might improve his mood, but it didn’t do a darn thing for hers. She still felt like crap.

  Dora sat across from them, held out the plate to Stone, and he took a cookie, then set it on the plate in front of him.

  “These smell delicious, Mrs. G.”

  “They’re one of my family’s favorite.” She held the plate out to Stephanie, who shook her head and pushed it away. Her mom tsked. “I know you’ve gained a little weight, honey, but you’re not on a diet, are you?”

  “No, of course not, Mom. I’m just not hungry this morning.”

  Her mom turned to Stone. “Do you think she needs to diet?”

  His hooded gaze turned toward Stephanie, and he raked her body with a look that made her want to fan herself. “Nope, she’s perfect as she is.”

  “She has my legs, you know.”

  His smile deepened. “I believe you already mentioned that.”

  Stephanie grabbed his arm and glared across the table. “Run before she starts measuring you for a tux.”

  Her mom frowned, and then her face cleared and she beamed a smile in Stone's direction. “A lawyer is such a reputable profession. I’m surprised some lucky woman hasn’t snaffled you up already. You’re not divorced, are you?”

  She said divorced like it was a dirty word and Stephanie winced. Oh, if she only knew the truth…

  “No, Ma’am.” He picked up the cookie and took a bite.

  “Still married?”

  “Not that either.”

  “A man your age should think about settling down.” Her brows lowered into a frown. “Why aren’t you married yet? Is there something wrong with you?”

  The grin on Stone's face widened. “No, Mrs. G. I guess I haven’t found the right woman yet.”

  “Sometimes the perfect match is right under your nose.” Dora sent a non-too-subtle sideways glance toward Stephanie. Then she brushed her hands over her apron and pushed to her feet. “Will you look at the time? I promised the bride that I’d join her for tea so we could discuss some ideas I had for the zombie wedding theme. I better get ready to go.”

  As she scurried from the room, Stone laughed and snagged another cookie before he stood up, grabbed the plate, and took it to the far end of the kitchen. “Your mom doesn’t believe in being subtle, does she?”

  “Now that Mandy is engaged, I’m next on her hit list.” She tilted her head. “You realize, of course, that she has you at the top of the list.”

  He retraced his steps to the table, leaned down, and gave her a peck on the cheek. “Maybe I should show her the engagement ring you threw back in my face.”

  “Don’t you dare.” She gave him a sideways glance. “By the way, your mom mentioned a contract yesterday and I haven’t heard anything since. Has she said anything to you?”

  He straightened and studied the cookie. “No, nothing. Do you want me to ask her about it?”

  “If you wouldn’t mind. Working on the Eternally Yours show would be a once in a lifetime opportunity.” She inhaled the scent of him and sighed. “I wish I could tuck you into my bra and keep you there so I could smell you all of the time instead of all the other stuff that makes me sick.”

  His gaze dropped to her chest. “I’d accommodate you if I could, believe me, sweetheart.”

  And then he took all of that delicious scent with him and headed out of the house.

  Her mom walked back into the room, bringing with her the sickening scent of hairspray, looked around, and blinked. “Where’s your nice young man?”

  “He’s not my man, Mom.” Stephanie pushed to her feet, brushed her hands across the butt of her jeans, and tried to breathe through her mouth. She had a funny feeling it would be easy to keep S
tone at her side. She was beginning to realize that he was one of those guys who took his responsibilities seriously.

  But she didn’t want to be just another responsibility. She wanted to be…

  What did she want to be? She gave a shrug of her shoulders. “He had things to do.”

  Dora faced her square, her expression serious. “Honey, I can tell he likes you. A lot. If you’re smart you’ll snaffle him up. I mean, for goodness sakes, girl, he’s a lawyer. If you’re waiting for something better than that, you’ll go to your grave unmarried and unhappy.”

  Something in Stephanie snapped and she remembered Stone's words. She gazed back at her mom and bit back a grin. “Stone is a divorce lawyer, Mom.”

  Dora paled and backed up a step. “Excuse me?”

  She kept her expression neutral. “That’s right. A divorce lawyer. One of those. So now you know why I could never marry him.”

  Dora set her hands on her hips and glared at her oldest daughter. “You mean all this time I’ve been schmoozing up to him, baking him cookies, treating him as though he were already part of the family. For nothing?”

  She bit her cheek to keep from outright laughter. “It’s really low of him to have tried to fool you like that.”

  “Really low…unless…” Dora tapped her index finger against her chin. “But a lawyer is such a good catch. Maybe you could convince him to change his specialty.”

  She gritted her teeth, but kept her cool. “I’m in the business of getting couples married, while Stone is in the busy of tearing married couples apart. We’d make a horrible match. We’d disagree on all wedding related issues and eventually end up in divorce court and go our separate ways.”

  “Divorce?” Dora began to fan herself again. “No, no, you’re right. Once a divorce lawyer, always a divorce lawyer. If he so much as looks at you with that naughty gleam in his eyes again, I’ll sic your father after him.”

  The click of the front door alerted them to another’s presence and as Stone walked back into the kitchen, Dora’s shoulders and back stiffened.

  “Sorry to interrupt. I forgot my cell,” Stone said, and as he passed Dora, he gave her the once over. “You look really nice, Mrs. G.”