Page 30 of Fallout
The smile Mallory aimed his way seemed tentative, a little unsure, and he had to assume it was because of his sudden abruptness, the way he’d all but yanked his son off her lap.
As an afterthought he said, “Thanks for joining us.”
“Thank you for inviting me.” Her smile firmed a little but he could still see wariness in her eyes. “I had fun.”
“Right. Yes. Me too. Us too. Okay.” He got to his feet, Mallory doing the same, and the moment stretched for a few seconds before Jake tipped his head and offered her a final smile.
Before either of them said anything else or he could second guess his decision to end their playdate, he turned and walked toward the house. Every step of the way he fought the urge to look back, to take one last look at her. Keeping his focus straight ahead, he strode forward with determination, up the back steps, across the small deck, through the open door and all the way to the room he’d set up for him and Mad to share without looking back once.
When Jake had his son tucked in his crib, he took a moment to just breathe. To stare at his sleeping boy. To remember why he couldn’t let himself be distracted by a woman no matter how she made him feel.
Mallory did something to him. Something he’d never experienced before and it wasn’t sexual attraction, although that was there. It was deeper than that, and it confused the hell out of him.
For the life of him, he couldn’t put into words what he was actually feeling.
He certainly didn’t understand it.
They were strangers. Landlord and tenant.
Nothing more. And yet…
With a puff of laughter he left Mad to his nap. He was being ridiculous. She was nothing more than an attractive woman he’d seen on the street who now happened to be his tenant.
So what if he felt attached in a way no two strangers should be? And just because he was experiencing some weird phenomena didn’t mean she was too.
Shaking his head, he stepped into the kitchen and froze.
Mallory crouched just outside the back door, the folded picnic rug, cookie container, jug and cups in her arms.
She glanced up and spotted him. “Oh. Sorry. I didn’t want to come in uninvited but didn’t want to leave everything outside.”
Gazes locked, they stared. Him frozen in place, her peering up at him with a myriad of emotions in her eyes. He had the urge to lean down and kiss her. To put his lips on hers, to push his tongue inside her mouth and taste her. To know the sounds she would make if he yanked her against him and kissed her deep and wet. What it would feel like to do all that naked.
Then she slowly blinked, her lashes fluttering over blue eyes swirling with emotion, and he snapped out of his daze.
“Shit. Shoot. Sorry. Let me…” Jake raced forward and bent to grab some of the things she carried before she put them down on the deck. “Please. It’s okay. Come in,” he urged.
For the first time since they’d met, Jake felt awkward. He knew he’d made it that way with his abrupt departure from their backyard picnic. And if the look on Mallory’s face was any indication, she felt it too. He needed to fix it somehow. Needed to repair whatever damage he’d done to their budding friendship.
“Look. I’m sorry. I’m not used to…” He waved his hand between them in an attempt to get his thoughts across. “This.”
“This?”
He swallowed. “Yeah, this…” Jesus, what the fuck was he trying to say?
“That’s okay.” She gave him a closed-lipped smile. “I’ll just put these here and get out of your way.”
Before he could stop her, she’d placed the jug and cups on the kitchen island and fled. There was no other word to describe the way she rushed out of his house.
He wanted to go after her and explain. He even took a step before stopping himself.
How the hell could he explain what was going on in his head? How did he tell her anything when he didn’t have a clue what was happening between them or understand it?
Staring at the empty doorway he could only hope he hadn’t ruined whatever this thing was. He hoped they could be friends. He liked her. A lot. And he really did need her help in his search for someone to look after Maddox while he was at work.
He had to find someone to take care of Maddox sooner rather than later. Ry only had another two weeks off work so he couldn’t wait any longer. Like with the house, he should have started the search right away, the minute he’d accepted the job.
Instead he’d taken the generosity and hospitality of Ry and Maz and pushed everything else aside to be dealt with later.
