by Tara Sheets
Juliette laid a hand on Kat’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. The house already knows you’re part of the family. We’ll figure this out.”
“We will,” Emma said gently. “Trust us. In the meantime”—she stood and stretched—“I think we all need food. The lasagna should be ready in about a half hour. Let’s go downstairs and discuss what we found over tea and cupcakes.”
“Dessert before dinner?” Kat asked with a lightness she didn’t feel. “That’s my kind of plan.”
As they headed downstairs, Kat considered the possibilities of what they’d discovered. Could Evangeline be her mother? There was so much uncertainty surrounding it, she had to shove down the feeling of desperate hope that kept bubbling up. The only thing she knew for sure was that she now felt more connected with Emma and Juliette than ever. And even if they could never prove they were related, Kat didn’t care. To her, Emma and Juliette already felt like family.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Kat scattered corn for the chickens the following afternoon, seeking comfort from the simple act of caring for the animals. A deep yearning to know about Evangeline had settled inside her—one that she couldn’t shake. Emma’s husband, Hunter, was going to reach out to his friend from the police department who specialized in cold cases. If they could just find out any information on Evangeline Bellamy, since she likely took her father’s last name, maybe they’d know where she went and what might’ve happened to her. Then maybe they could find out how Kat fit into the Holloway family tree. If she fit in. Until then, there was nothing Kat could do but wait. She hated limbo.
The chickens clucked around her, pecking corn from her hand.
Edgar swooped down from a tree and landed on the fence. He greeted her with a loud caw!
“Of course I have some for you,” Kat said, tossing a handful to the ground in front of him. “You’re like a bottomless pit, you know that?”
She gave the last of the food to the chickens, then turned to the mesh butterfly cage sitting beside her. “And as for you, Painted Ladies, today is the day. It’s time to spread your wings.”
Kat carried them to the other side of the yard where the wildflowers and lavender grew along the fence.
Jordan’s truck pulled into the driveway just as Kat was getting ready to release them.
She raised a hand to shield her eyes from the sun, a sweet rush of pleasure flowing through her at the sight of him getting out of his truck. He was deliciously rumpled in worn jeans and work boots, an old flannel shirt, and messy hair. Opal was right. Jordan did seem more carefree and content as the days passed.
He saw her, and his face lit up. “There you are.”
She grinned like a fool. “Here I am.”
He sauntered toward her, noticing the butterfly cage. “Setting them free?”
“I am. You’re just in time,” she said, unzipping the mesh cage.
The brilliant orange-and-black butterflies floated out into the breeze, spreading their wings to land on the flowering shrubs.
Kat watched them with a deep sense of contentment, knowing that this was where they belonged. She sighed. “Home sweet home.”
“It’s pretty amazing.”
“They are, aren’t they?”
“I meant you.” Jordan turned to face her. “You’re amazing. The way you help things find homes.”
A blissful warmth spread through her body. Jordan’s unexpected praise made her feel like she’d swallowed the sun. Kat knew she was blushing, but she couldn’t help it.
“I mean it,” he said. “Not a lot of people have the patience or the desire to care for others the way you do.” The way he looked at her—with so much warmth and admiration—was almost too much.
Kat had to look away before she did something foolish. Like jump his bones. He was standing so close, she wouldn’t even have to jump very far.
“Come to lunch with me,” he said suddenly.
She laughed. “I already ate lunch. It’s almost three o’clock.”
“Dinner, then. Afternoon tea. Hell, I don’t care.” He reached out and hooked a finger in the pocket of her jeans, gently pulling her closer. “Just come with me.”
Kat’s breath hitched. “Where?”
“Anywhere,” he murmured.
She felt a swooping sensation in the pit of her stomach, like she was falling and there was nothing to hold on to, and she didn’t even care. Jordan Prescott was too alluring for his own good, with his pirate smile and wild hair and intoxicating whiskey-colored eyes. Just one glance and she could go from stone-cold sober to drunk on him in three seconds flat. Did he have any idea how much his nearness affected her? Especially now that she knew how good it could be between them?
She bit her bottom lip and tried to sound casual. “I was just heading back to my apartment to change out of these clothes.”
“Good idea,” he said. “Let’s go.”
Yes, let’s! the Queen of Impulsive Decisions cried. Kat tried to remember all the reasons she shouldn’t get involved with him. She could have told him she’d meet him later. She could’ve reminded him that her apartment was her private space. It wasn’t too late to try to keep her distance. But after the night she’d had at the Holloway house, Kat wasn’t in the mood to be cautious anymore. Who knew what the future held? One day you could be all alone, and the next you could find out you’re related to a family of magical women. Life was unpredictable. Maybe she should just enjoy each moment while she could and quit worrying too much about what came next.
He watched her intently, with that same hungry-wolf look she remembered from back in the caravan, as if he was thinking of all the things they’d done together. All the things he still wanted to do. But he said nothing further to persuade her. Kat knew that if she wanted the wolf to pounce, it was entirely her choice.
She sucked in a breath and exhaled quickly. It wasn’t a hard choice. “Okay.”
He blinked. If he was surprised, he didn’t show it. Instead he dipped his head in acknowledgment. It was an oddly noble gesture, like a king who’d just been given a precious gift. “Lead the way.”
By the time they reached the door of her apartment, Kat knew one thing with perfect diamond clarity. She wanted Jordan Prescott, and he wanted her. There was no question. There was only the answering thrum of desire that seemed to ricochet between them.
They stepped inside, and Kat closed and locked the door. Then she turned to face him, leaning against it. “So.” A flutter of nervous anticipation.
“So.” He braced a hand on the door above her head with a hint of amusement. “You’ve invited me in.” His voice rolled softly over her skin. It was deep and low. Confident and unhurried. Like he was aware she’d just invited the wolf into her house, and there was no turning back for her. Did she care? Not even a teensy bit. “Now what should we do?”
She looked up at him from beneath dark lashes. “Any ideas?”
He chuckled, a low rumble in his chest that curled its way through her insides in a sweet, throbbing ache. “I’ve got all kinds of ideas.” Then he reached up to cradle her face with his large hand, running the pad of his thumb lightly over her bottom lip. “The question is, where to start?”
“How about here?” She pulled his head down and brushed her lips lightly over his. It was meant to be playful, but in less than a heartbeat, the game ended and something much better began.
Jordan gripped her waist, pulling her against the hard length of his body. He kissed her slowly. Thoroughly. Until the yearning inside her grew fierce and demanding, and she trembled with the desire for more of him. More of everything.
When he pulled away and rested his forehead against hers, they were both breathing hard. Kat’s hands were fisted tightly in his shirt, holding on as if she were in danger of falling. And maybe she was. But she couldn’t find it within herself to care. A tremor went through Jordan’s body like he was holding himself back. She didn’t want him to hold back. She wanted every wild part of him.
“More,
” she whispered, twining her fingers through his hair and rising up on her tiptoes to taste him again.
Jordan let out a harsh breath and lifted her up against him. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he carried her over to the bed. Then they were both falling onto the faded patchwork quilt. And all Kat’s previous thoughts of keeping him at arm’s length dissolved into the sweetest of surrenders.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Evening light pooled through Kat’s window, lending a dreamlike quality to her room. She snuggled farther under the quilt and rolled over to study the sleeping beast beside her.
Jordan lay on his back with one arm slung over his head. With his eyes closed, he looked much younger and more vulnerable. She loved how dark and thick his eyelashes were. She loved the curve of his lips and the hollows under his cheekbones. She wanted to rub her hand against the slight stubble on his jaw and trace the silvery, thin scar on the side of his face.
“If you’re going to stare, I think it’s only fair I get to do the same.” He opened his eyes and rolled to face her, propping his head on his hand.
Kat blushed, feeling like a kid caught stealing candy. “How did you know I was awake?”
He blinked like a sleepy owl. “I could hear you.”
Her voice filled with humor. “I didn’t say anything.”
“But you were thinking very loudly.” He reached out and pulled her closer so her head rested on his shoulder. “And your breathing changes when you’re not sleeping.”
“How very perceptive.” She snuggled against him.
He trailed the back of his fingers over her naked shoulder. “I notice a lot of things about you.”
“Like what?” Kat rubbed her feet together under the covers.
“Like, you rub your feet together when I say something that makes you nervous.”
“I’m not—” She immediately stopped moving her feet.
He chuckled. “It’s one of your tells.”
“Oh, yeah? What else you got?” Kat couldn’t decide if she was nervous at being so transparent, or pleased that he saw her so clearly.
He toyed with a lock of her hair. “You sing to the animals when you think no one’s listening.”
She gasped and buried her face in his chest. “You’ve been spying on me.”
Jordan smoothed the back of her head with his large hand. “Not ‘spying,’ but I can hear you sometimes when my bedroom window’s open. I especially like the lullaby you sang to Lucky when you first brought him home.”
Kat remembered the song, and how scared the poor dog had been. She pulled the quilt around her shoulders. “‘Baby Mine.’ It’s a song from a scene in the movie Dumbo.”
“The elephant cartoon? Never saw it.”
“Well, you’re not missing anything. Parts of it are pretty depressing.”
“It’s a kids’ movie,” he said through a yawn. “How bad can it be?”
Kat lifted her head off his shoulder to face him. “Dumbo’s mom gets locked in a cage away from her baby. They can’t reach each other through the iron bars, but she can stretch her trunk out just enough to hold him and rock him while he cries.”
Jordan frowned. “This is a kids’ movie?”
“At least he’s reunited with his mom in the end.” Kat laid her head back on his shoulder. “It’s not like what happened to Bambi’s mom.”
“Do I even want to know?”
Kat pulled away and stared at him like he was one of the space aliens from his childhood books. “You’ve never seen Bambi?”
He shook his head, clearly amused. “My parents didn’t believe in television. I didn’t get one until I was much older.”
“God, and I thought I had a tough childhood,” Kat blurted.
His golden eyes lit with interest. “Why? What was it like?”
Kat shrugged it off. “Nothing worth talking about.” She began rubbing her feet together, then forced herself to stop. “I have a question for you.”
“You do that a lot.” He took her hand and linked their fingers together.
“Do what?”
“Change the subject to avoid talking about your past.”
Kat ignored him, tracing the tip of her finger across the silvery scar on his left cheekbone. “How did you get this scar?”
“Running with scissors,” he said smoothly. Kat got the feeling he used that explanation a lot. He took her hand and kissed her open palm. Then he dipped his head to nuzzle her neck. She shivered in delicious anticipation as he brushed a kiss on her bare shoulder.
She pulled away, though it wasn’t easy. “How did you really get it?”
Jordan rolled onto his back with a sigh. Several moments passed in silence, and Kat started to think he wasn’t going to answer. Could she blame him? She never talked about her past, either.
“I got into a fight in high school with a kid named Sebastian Harrington and some of his buddies,” Jordan finally said. “It was me against the four of them, and I was winning. Until Sebastian shoved me backward and I fell against a broken chain-link fence. Sliced my face to the bone. The principal came rushing out, broke things up, and I got suspended.”
Kat frowned. “Just you? Nobody else?”
He stared up at the ceiling like he was a million miles away. “By the time the principal came out, Sebastian’s buddies had run off. He couldn’t run because I had my fist in his hair. I was the one bleeding, but it didn’t matter. Sebastian’s parents were on the board and donated a lot of money to the school, so he was pretty much a golden child on campus. I, on the other hand, was the scrappy kid from the wrong side of the tracks with no support network. It was just easier for them to pin it on me and call it a day.”
Kat laid a hand on his chest. “Why were you fighting?”
A muscle clenched in his jaw. “Sebastian was harassing a younger girl who was poor. Making fun of her shoes. Laughing at her hand-me-down backpack. Then his buddies took her backpack and threw it in the garbage, saying it belonged there. Saying she belonged there. She looked like she was trying so hard not to cry. And Sebastian just stood there in his fancy clothes with that trust-fund smirk on his face.”
“That’s awful.” Kat grew up in hand-me-down clothes, and she knew what it was like to be the butt of other people’s jokes. “So you figured his face needed punching?”
Jordan smiled. “At first, I just shoved him away and retrieved her backpack. I may have also made some comments about Sebastian’s lack of masculinity because he felt the need to pick on vulnerable girls.” Jordan paused for a long moment. “Then things just got ugly. He came at me from behind, kicking and punching. Yelling that I was in no position to play the hero because I was just a trashy mutt with drugged-up hippie parents. He said I should be embarrassed to be alive because nobody cared whether I lived or died, not even them.”
Kat felt a sharp, painful ache in her chest for the boy he’d been. “And then you punched him?”
“Yeah, then I punched him.” He gave a self-deprecating laugh. “And his buddies joined in to help take me down.”
“It was good of you to champion that girl,” Kat said. “She wasn’t strong like you.”
The tension in Jordan’s face eased. “Layla’s a powerhouse now, though.”
“Layla of the Fancy Shoes?” Kat asked in surprise. It was hard to imagine her as a poor little girl in hand-me-downs.
Jordan smiled. “We’ve known each other a long time. We even dated for a brief time in high school.”
Jealousy reared its ugly head but Kat refused to look it in the eye. Everyone had a past, and it was only normal for Jordan to have had relationships with other women. It was high school, for God’s sake. What was wrong with her, anyway? She shouldn’t even care.
“Layla had it tough at home. We were both dead set on changing our lives the moment we got the chance. I did it by going off to college, and she started her own business. She’s now a successful real estate agent.” His tone grew lighter and Kat could tell he was happy for Layl
a. “She has a house by the water now, which was her dream.”
As much as Kat wanted to dislike her, she just couldn’t. She was glad Layla ended up successful. It wasn’t easy to find a place when you didn’t have a good support network to begin with. “What happened to Sebastian?”
“He moved away during our senior year because of his dad’s job. We never saw him again.”
“Well, I’m glad your story has a happy ending.”
Jordan laughed. “That one does, anyway.”
“So . . . You and Layla, huh?” she asked with a lightness she didn’t feel.
“We’re just friends.” Jordan gave her a brief squeeze. “The brief thing we had years ago was exactly that. Years ago. We weren’t even together for very long before we realized we didn’t have much in common. She’s just helping me put the house on the market when it’s ready.”
“Is it ready?” Kat’s heart suddenly began thumping hard against her rib cage. “You’re going to give me some notice, right? I mean, if you’re going to sell the place I’ll need to look for a new apartment.” She worked hard to appear nonchalant, because she didn’t want Jordan to know just how attached she’d become to the farm. It wasn’t just the beauty of the place, it was the animals and the people that came with it. The people who fit so seamlessly into the life she’d begun to weave there. Opal. Jordan. Especially Jordan. Oh, crap. She was falling, wasn’t she? Now what? The Queen of Impulsive Decisions let out a tinkling laugh. No use trying to plot your course now, sugar. This train has left the station, so buckle up and try to enjoy it.
Kat took a shaky breath. Try to enjoy it. She could do that. Who knew what would happen? Maybe a bunch of miracles were in store and things would work out for her. Yeah, because stuff like that happened all the time. She bit the insides of her cheeks and fiddled with the corner of the quilt.
Jordan shifted onto his side to face her, his expression very serious. “It’s not ready to sell yet, Kat. I still have some work to do, and the red barn needs to be cleared of all the junk. So it’ll be a while.”
Kat nodded. A while was good. She could live with that.