CHAPTER 10 #2
Something gripped Nick’s throat. He had to pull her away from that dark place she kept sinking into.
And if he had to move heaven and earth, he’d make it happen.
·
Jannie
The house was half the size of hers but twice as charming, painted in terra-cotta with a matching barrel-tile roof, the front yard covered in pink gravel that reminded her of Himalayan rock salt.
Three red and green bushes adorned the front, along with several giant cacti and landscape rocks, and a bow window showed off plants in whimsical pots on the inside ledge.
“The yard is fenced,” Jannie said, her shoulders dropping with relief.
Once, when Rolf was a puppy, Blake left the gate unlatched, and Rolf got out, narrowly escaping the wheels of a van whose driver managed to brake just inches away.
In her nightmares, Jannie could still hear the horrifying screech of tires and the dog’s high-pitched scream.
“Well, yeah.” Nick hoisted her suitcase from the back of his SUV. “That’s what you need, isn’t it?”
So matter-of-factly, he had stated that.
She looked at him, watching the play of muscles as he slid the second suitcase and his flight bag out of the back, then reached for the large case containing Rolf’s food and other doggie belongings.
The man was strength and protection personified, and now she’d discovered that he drove a large black 4x4, with sharp angles and horizontal rectangular headlights that clearly showed it was an older model.
But it looked brand-new. As she examined it, Jannie swore she remembered his mother showing up in it to pick him up from school. “Wait. Is that the same truck …?”
He smiled. “Yeah. It’s my mom’s Tahoe. Don’t tell me you remember it.”
“I do.”
Something in her throat pinched at the sight of the grin he gave her. Something else suddenly tightened too. She’d had a dull pain in her lower belly and a low-grade headache all day, and now a cramp gripped her.
Oh, no.
Her cycles had been wonky since she’d been discharged from the hospital. She grimaced. Of all the times for it to show up. Maybe it was just a random cramp. Hopefully.
“How are you feeling?” His dark eyes looked her over from head to toe.
Jannie realized she’d pressed her palm to her lower belly and quickly drew her hand away. She wasn’t used to being so … seen.
“I could use a drink,” she said.
“Regular or adult?”
She pondered for a moment. “Both.”
“I like your way of thinkin’.” He glanced at Rolf, who was busy sniffing the ground. “Want me to take him out back so you can freshen up?”
She’d used the restroom at the FBO. And she could use a few minutes away from Nick’s penetrating gaze, which seemed to miss nothing. “I’m good for now. He needs to do his business. I can take him.”
Nick nodded, slamming the cargo door shut and motioning with his chin toward the tall wrought iron gate. “How about I take the luggage inside and join you back there with drinks and snacks? There’s patio furniture out back. Unless you’d rather sit inside.”
“Outside is good.” Fresh air sounded great after being in cars and planes for so many hours.
“Here.” Nick reached into his flight bag and pulled out …
Rolf sat, eyes bright, his tail waving madly, round brown eyes shifting from his favorite toy to Nick’s face.
Warmth spread in Jannie’s chest. “You packed his periwinkle dragon?”
Nick held it out. “He brought it to me just as I was heading out the door, so I stuffed it in my bag.”
She shook her head, smiling as she took the toy and led Rolf to the backyard.
Rolf took off as soon as he heard the click of his leash unclipping. Jannie surveyed the neatly mowed grass. More tan than green but still a great thing. The gravel out front would have been rough on Rolf’s paws.
She threw the toy. The yard was much longer than it was wide, with a couple of palm trees in the very back and a double glider on the stone patio. She spotted a small wrought iron table and a storage box in the far corner. Nothing else.
Rolf had trees to mark and space to run at full speed. Perfect.
She heard a knock on the sliding glass door and turned to see Nick standing there, both hands full.
She hurried to slide open the door, and he stepped outside, holding a tray with cubed cheese and ham, cherry tomatoes, crackers, and cut fruit.
In his other hand, he held three glass bottles by the neck: two of Corona and one of …
“Dr Pepper?”
“As promised. I had a friend bring a few supplies; figured we could go grocery shopping when you want to.”
He’d thought of everything. A sparkly sensation fluttered in her chest.
She took the tray from Nick and set it on the table, watching him head to a wall-mounted bottle opener and pop off the caps.
He held out the Dr Pepper and Corona, and she took the beer and placed it beside the food tray.
He held up his beer. “Here’s to …”
“Good friends,” she said.
He hesitated before clinking his bottle to hers. “Friends.”
Was that a flicker of disappointment she glimpsed in his eyes?
She raised the Dr Pepper to her lips and took several deep gulps. When she lowered it, she caught him watching her, his own bottle paused halfway to his mouth.
Such heat in his gaze.
Her heart rate kicked up. She licked her lips. He took three long pulls of his beer. It was her turn to watch him. His Adam’s apple bobbed with each swallow. Two buttons were undone at the top of his shirt, and Jannie had an urge to trace her fingers along the hollow at the base of his throat.
He lowered the bottle, met her gaze, and there was nothing friendly about the fire flickering in his eyes.
Before she could begin to squirm under his intense scrutiny, he turned and gestured toward the glider.
“Shall we?”