by Kadie Scott
Having come to the same conclusion about Eric, her mother’s words didn’t sting so much as reinforce her reasons for breaking things off. What did sting was yet another piece of proof that she should’ve figured everything out for herself a long time ago. Obviously, her instincts about love were warped and couldn’t be trusted.
“Why are you telling me this now?” she asked her mother.
“Like I said… Your life. Your decisions. Besides, Eric wasn’t bad for you. However, now I suspect you’re doubting yourself. I know you and Jennings had a falling out in high school.”
Understatement.
“But he’s a good man. He’s strong and tough, but also loyal and kind.”
“Kind? He ended our friendship because he thought I spent too much time with Eric.”
Her mom tucked a strand of hair behind Ashley’s ear. “Did you?”
Honesty meant she didn’t answer that, lips clamped shut, and guilt scissoring through her. “Jennings has criticized every decision I’ve ever made.”
Her mother squeezed her hand. “Jennings reminds me of your father. Caring, for that man, comes out in the form of what he thinks are direct discussions and what I used to take as criticism or commands. Really, his heart is in the right place.” She rolled her eyes. “His communication skills just need work.”
Fondly familiar with how her Dad’s gruff ways were his version of love, Ashley got what her mom was trying to say. But Jennings? No. Their history, her lack of confidence, and doubt in herself meant she couldn’t go down that road.
However, she needed people to believe she and Jennings were dating now. She might not be able to lie to her mom, but she could be vague. “Maybe. It would be…nice to know he’d actually cared all these years and didn’t just hate me.”
The second the words were out of her mouth, she realized she meant them.
“But today, he only needs my accounting skills,” she continued.
An odd ache of yearning banded her heart. Did she want him to care? If she were brutally honest, she often missed her old friend. Missed his teasing and the way he’d listen to her. Hindsight and regret and all that.
“Okay. But think about this: why did he rescue you from Mason’s bidding last night?” her mom asked. “And take care of you the night before? Christmas charity?”
“He’s been in direct competition with Mason since grade school. That was more about them than me.” The excuse felt as flimsy as a used tissue, even to her.
“You would know better than I would, but at least give Jennings the benefit of the doubt.”
You’re supposed to be dating him, dummy. “Maybe you’re right, Mom.”
“That’s my girl.” Her mother seemed disturbingly satisfied about their discussion, a knowing smile gracing her mouth.
Time to make her escape.
Walking out to her car, Ashley nibbled at her lower lip. Asking Jennings to pretend to be her boyfriend might have been her most idiotic idea ever. She’d been thinking of Taylor and Eric—easing their guilt, making herself appear a little less pathetic. This was supposed to make things easier, not more complicated. She’d asked Jennings because his actions at the bar and the auction had already set the stage. Now that she’d sort of gotten things rolling, however, getting her mother’s hopes up didn’t seem right either. Nor did dragging Jennings into her mess.
She sighed. Maybe she should call it all off now, before it got out of hand.
Chapter Eight
Jennings did another pass through his house as he waited for Ashley to arrive. Naturally tidy, the place didn’t need much straightening, but he wanted her to be impressed. He’d made a good life running a successful family ranch with his brothers, working hard and saving, and his new home was a point of pride.
More than that, he’d reached a decision last night.
Ashley had opened the door with the whole fake boyfriend thing, but damned if he was going to leave it there. Even he could recognize a chance—maybe his last chance—when he saw it.
He would use this time as Ashley’s fake boyfriend to mount a full-on assault on the woman’s heart. The plan was to show her what things could be like if they were truly together and pray she recognized the potential for them that he’d seen years ago when he’d been too young to act on it appropriately. He had to convince her.
Starting now.
The doorbell chimed, and he waited a beat before moving to open it, reluctant to appear too eager. He pulled back the rustic wood door to find her standing on his front porch. Aw, hell. Gorgeous didn’t even begin to describe Ashley Hughes. And off limits, as her stiff shoulders and stiffer smile screamed. Frustration tugged at his gut, but he had a plan.
Start with the distant and polite she’d asked for, just to show her what it was like, and let the fake relationship be the counterbalance.
They’d have to parade their togetherness in front of people, eventually. She’d have to loosen up around him. A lot. He knew why she’d asked—to save face—but he’d bet she hadn’t considered all the ramifications. And he planned to take full advantage, showing her how good they could be.
“Come on in.” He opened the door wider, closing it quickly after her to shut out the cold and blustery winter wind.
She glanced around as she shrugged out of her jacket, revealing a white sweater that highlighted her assets, which was really not fair. After all, he’d just vowed to keep things distant and polite to start. Already her sweet allure ignited a burn he was determined to ignore.
“Your house is terrific,” she said, still looking around. “And I’m impressed you put up Christmas lights outside. I bet it looks lovely at night with that large porch and two stories, and icicle lights are my favorite.”
“Thanks.” The burn morphed into a heat around the region of his heart. She liked his home.
“So, is this property still part of High Hill ranch?”
“Yeah.”
She turned away. “I didn’t remember there being two houses on your ranch.”
“There weren’t.” When he eventually got married and had kids of his own, he wanted his family to have their own space rather than live with his parents and siblings in the sprawling main house. “I built it.”
She turned wide eyes his way, surprise lifting her eyebrows. “Wow! Did you buy plans for a layout or something?” She ran her hand over the banister.
“No. I designed it.”
“Again, wow!”
Warmth spread from his heart through the rest of him.
“It suits you,” she commented.
“Yeah?” He glanced around, trying to see it through her eyes.
“Yeah. Kind of rough-around-the-edges rustic, but smoothed over with clean lines and an open feel to it. And you always loved two-story houses.”
Jennings hid his amazement that she remembered, let alone recognized all the things he loved most about his home in one quick glance. The open and airy layout—with a kitchen, dining room, and family room on the first floor and all the bedrooms upstairs—sported large windows, which seemed to bring the outdoors inside. The family room and foyer rose all the way to the second story, giving his home a more spacious impression.
“It’s not your typical bachelor pad,” she added.
Jennings affected a casual shrug. “No. I built it with a family in mind.”
“Oh?” She flicked him a glance he couldn’t interpret. Then her hands flew to her mouth. “Oh! Are you interested in someone? I didn’t know. I mean, I know you can’t be seeing someone, or you wouldn’t have kissed me, but… Oh, gosh. I shouldn’t have even asked—”
Jennings put his finger over her mouth like he had the day before, and her eyes went wide. “I’m not interested in anyone. No need to worry about my heart.”
He’d promised to be all business today, so he stopped there, though he was tempted to mess with her about it, and removed his hand. “The office is this way.”
He held in a grin as she blinked owlishly at the change of topic and led her
down a small hallway off the family room.
After a short hesitation, she followed. At the office door, she paused, taking in the space. “I love the built-ins!”
Jennings watched with interest as she crossed the room to admire the floor-to-ceiling bookshelves stained in a dark wood. He’d even installed a ladder rail. She turned to him, face glowing with pleasure. “I’ve always wanted a library with a ladder that slides along a rail. I’m so jealous.”
“Thanks.” He squashed another swell of satisfaction at her admiration and waved toward his laptop on the desk. “All my financial records are on the computer.”
The delight on her face faded, but she’d set the rules, so he wasn’t backing down. This was about showing her how boring they’d be doing it her way.
“Right.” She moved around him to sit down at the desk, placing her purse on the floor beside her chair.
He spent twenty minutes explaining the general setup and his concerns. Her brows drew down in a cute frown—the same one from childhood—that showed she was concentrating hard, mind already fast at work. “Got it. Give me an hour to look things over.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He walked to the door, but paused. “Can I get you anything? Water? Coffee?”
She leaned back in her chair. “That’s kind of you.”
His raised an eyebrow. He couldn’t help it. He just couldn’t let another comment like that pass. “I can be kind sometimes, Hughes.”
Her eyes went wide, then shadowed. “I didn’t mean it that way,” she said softly. Then she bit her lip and focused on the computer.
“Something to drink?” he asked again.
She didn’t look up, though her cheeks turned a pretty shade of pink. “No, thanks.”
“Okay. I’ll be out in the barn.” She nodded, though he could tell her concentration had already moved to the numbers on the screen.
Four hours later, he was still working. The house was finished, but the barn he was still working on. Given the rougher weather today, at least he wasn’t out with Autry and Will repairing more fences. He’d popped in to check on Ashley a couple times, but she’d waved him away. The tension of what she must be discovering grew with each passing minute. This shouldn’t be taking her so long if nothing was wrong.
“Jennings?” Ashley’s voice floated across the yard into the barn where he was wrapping up his work. A few seconds later, she appeared in the doorway, a shadow against the dull, cloud-covered afternoon sun.
He waved to catch her attention. “Almost done.”
“Okay.”
She waited while he hammered in the last nail and climbed down the ladder. Quickly, he put away the rest of the tools and joined her in the doorway. “Did you find anything?”
Ashley was wrapped in one of his jackets, her smaller form swamped by it. He liked it on her, finding it intimate in a goofy kind of way. With her cheeks rosy from the chilly winds, she’d obvious covered up to ward off the cold, and for no other reason. Certainly not to be close with him.
She glanced up at the rafters, then quickly dropped her gaze back to Jennings. “Yes. I’d like to show you.”
She made to move away, but he stopped her with a hand on her arm. “Bad?”
Another quick peek upwards. What was she looking at?
“I’m so sorry, Jay. You’re right about the fraud,” she said.
Her comment distracted him from whatever she was looking at. A cold rock dropped in his stomach followed by a few boulders. Fraud. He’d put his trust in someone, and they had stolen from him and his entire family. He clenched his fists. Violated didn’t begin to cover it. “Can we prove it?”
“It’ll take more digging to be definitive.”
He ran his hands through his hair. “Damn.”
He caught yet another upward glance, and curiosity overruled his anger. “What are you looking at?” He followed her gaze and burst out laughing.
Mistletoe hung, nailed in the doorway, and he knew he had Carter to thank. She’d put the stuff all over his house last week when she’d been in town for a visit. At the time, he’d thought the act futile, as he wasn’t dating anyone or even looking to. Now…
Jennings dropped his gaze to Ashley, who shifted her weight, then tipped her chin up in a show of bravado. He found himself captivated. Such a little gesture. Why would it trigger an instant slash of desire?
“Do you want to see the books now?” Ashley asked a little too eagerly.
Jennings crossed his arms to keep from touching her. “What I want is to back you against the barn door and kiss you silly.”
Rather than shoot him down, as he expected, Ashley’s mouth dropped open and a squeak escaped her.
His lips hitched. “But I won’t. You’re here to help, and I promised I’d be a gentleman.”
Was that disappointment in her eyes? Damn, he hoped so.
He leaned down and tapped his cheek. “A quick peck to satisfy tradition, then let’s go look at those books.”
“Fine.” She went up on tiptoe, bracing herself with her hands on his shoulders. Her lips were warm and soft against his cold skin, and he caught the gardenia scent of her shampoo before her hands dropped away and she stepped back, his own disappointment going with her, leaving him restless.
“Let’s go.” She marched back to the house.
Jennings followed at a slower pace, unable to keep his eyes off the view, even hidden under his oversized jacket. Too bad, because the girl owned a first-rate backside. Besides, her innocent touch had ignited a craving inside him, leaving him aching, and he needed a second to calm down.
How was he supposed to keep it boring, inside his house alone with her, the rest of the day now?
*
Ashley couldn’t believe how tempted she’d been to lay a kiss on Jennings’s oh-so-kissable lips, rather than his cheek. He smelled fantastic—his spicy aftershave combined with the scent of newly cut pine and just being outside. Not to mention the way he’d gazed at her as if she were the only other person in the universe, his entire focus solely for her. The intensity of that look about took her knees out from underneath her. His stare held no teasing, only want. In response, her body had slammed her with a full-frontal needy assault as heat swept through her and pooled low.
A response Ashley couldn’t wrap her head around entirely. Was this boyfriend story getting to her already? Or was her interest genuine? She would’ve said the latter if she wasn’t already doubting every instinct she had when it came to men.
Maybe it had to do with how, the last few days, he’d shown a different side. Still fun-loving and teasing, but gentler. As he used to be…before Eric. She found herself genuinely liking Jennings, remembering why they’d been friends in the first place, and the realization scared her more than the bungee jump Taylor had purchased for their birthday two years ago.
The cold wasn’t what had her hustling inside. The man behind her, combined with her rampant desire, were motivation enough. She couldn’t trust it.
She made it safely behind the computer long before he arrived. The back door slammed, followed by two thuds—Jennings taking off his work boots in the mudroom. A few seconds later, he appeared in the doorway. Sure enough, he wore only socks on his feet. A sudden image of how it might be to live here with him infiltrated her mind. The cozy picture was insidiously enticing—he’d be out doing the hard work of ranching, with her help some of the time, while the rest of the time she’d be home keeping the books for both their families’ ranches, waiting to hear those thuds announcing he was finally home for the day.
Ashley shut the image down and did her damndest to focus.
Ignoring the knowing smirk on his face—did he guess why she’d hurried inside or what she’d just been thinking—she jumped straight to business. Business equaled safe.
“So, here’s what I found…”
She trailed off as he came around the desk and leaned over her, one hand on the back of her chair, one by the keyboard, surrounding her with his size. His heat. There
went his addictive scent swirling around her again. Maybe she could set a new record for breath-holding?
Oh, holy hell. This was going to be a long day.
Over the next thirty minutes, Ashley walked him through the discrepancies his accountant had hidden. Many could be written off as mistakes, but Ashley’s gut and experience, especially from the last ten months in Dallas, told her these were deliberate.
“How do we prove it?” Jennings asked when she finished.
“A good accountant is going to need several more hours, maybe even a day, to comb through things.” She grimaced. “Hopefully not longer.”
Jennings scrubbed a weary hand over his face, a heaviness settling over his shoulders, which had hunched forward as she’d spoken. Suddenly, the man before her was not the strong, confident face he showed the world, but a worried rancher whose family relied on him.
It took everything she had not to wrap him up in a hug. Jennings might be arrogant and bossy, but his heart was in the right place. Usually. Her mother had been right about that—just like Dad. More importantly, no one deserved to be taken advantage of like this.
I have to help him.
She placed her hand on his forearm, trying to ignore the impact of his lean muscles and warm skin under her palm. “I’m doing wedding stuff the rest of the week, but tonight I don’t have any plans.”
He dropped to a crouch in front of her and pinned her with a searching gaze, which had her heart jumping around like a hop toad on steroids.
“You’d do that? I mean, I’d be happy to pay you.”
Determined to play it casual, Ashley leaned back in the chair and shook her head. “No need to pay me. I’ve already come this far; it’ll be faster for me to finish from here than bring in another set of eyes.”
Before she had any inkling of what he planned to do, Jennings took her face in his hands and laid a hard, pulse-pounding kiss on her lips. Every nerve in her body jumped to thrilled, tingling life, even as he pulled away, leaving her a frozen statue of need.
“You’re an angel,” he said.
She blinked at him, trying to gather her wits, which had been swept up in a Texas twister of sensation and scattered to the winds. “I get that a lot.” Did her voice sound choked? She hoped he didn’t notice.