Page 24 of Her Rugged Guardian

I shivered visibly. While I’d been unable to get warm after coming home, the dampness something I wasn’t used to, I had no doubt I wasn’t trembling because of the chill in the air.

“You cold?” he asked, turning toward me and crowding my space. His voice was more like a rumbly growl, completely animalistic.

Now my legs were trembling, which was ridiculous.

“Yeah, I’ll live. I’ll be right back. I’ll meet you in the kitchen.” The edge in my tone remained as I closed the door behind him, retreating as if I’d lost a round in boxing. I couldn’t remember when or if a man had affected me this badly. Even the day I’d met my ex while I was standing on the side of Interstate Sixty-six after my alternator had gone on the fritz. Cars had whizzed by at eighty miles per hour, only Stephen stopping to come to my rescue.

I’d taken an instant dislike to him. It had taken me over a year to realize I should have followed my instincts and kicked the bastard to the curb, waiting until Triple A had arrived. Great. Now Mr. Grinch had forced me to relive the worst two years of my life.

Groaning, I headed upstairs to the hall linen closet, grabbing two of the fluffy towels purchased by my mother. One of the things I had to give her credit for was that she’d done everything in her power to make the place homey for what few guests she’d had over the last couple of years of her life. Every room was decorated with nice linens and soft pillows. There were bookshelves full of books, paperbacks and hardcovers of various genres.

The half dozen bathrooms had baskets of shampoos and conditioners, different scents of shower gels and even bubble bath in the two suites. She’d died so unexpectedly that the entire house reminded me of a time capsule. Other than dusting and vacuuming, freshening up the bathrooms, all the cleaning crew had really done to change anything was removing food from the refrigerator.

It seemed odd that I was thinking about details of the house. I’d yet to take the time to delve into the less tangible assets, trying to determine what needed to be tossed out versus kept. Now wasn’t the time. I’d come to the conclusion I was still grieving, mourning a woman that it had become obvious in the last years of her life I barely knew.

As the echoes of rain pelted against the roof, I clutched the towels to my chest, curious whether Jake’s work had stopped the leak. As I walked into the master bedroom, I was certain I’d find a flood yet was pleasantly surprised. I obviously hadn’t given Jake’s contracting skills enough credit. Okay, I hadn’t giventhem any credibility, but he’d come on like a force of nature, acting as if he owned the place instead of me.

I backed out of the room, a sudden wave of sadness hitting me harder than when I’d walked into the house the night before. Now that this was my home, the weight of everything needing to be done was a more significant burden than I’d anticipated.

Leaning against the wall, I closed my eyes briefly, uncertain of when the last phone call I’d had with her was. My guess was that I’d been in a hurry as always, racing from one meeting to another, refusing to give her more than a few minutes of my oh-so precious time. Gah. I was a terrible daughter.

I jogged down the stairs, trying to think about how I could tell Jake I didn’t want him working on the house any longer. Was that really even the truth? Right. I’d ply him with chocolate then tell him to get out.

Good plan, girl. Really stupid.

By the time I reached the kitchen where I expected to find him, I was shivering to my core. He wasn’t there. Why should he be? He wasn’t the kind of man to take orders from a girl. Oh, hell, no. He was a rulebreaker. That much I could tell. Another disgusted huff pushed past my lips as I stared at the misshapen cupcakes. I needed the peace offering.

I continued to clutch the towels against my chest as I moved into the living room, holding a single cupcake out as if it was made of gold.

Jake was crouched in front of the lit fireplace. The way he was staring at the flames was mesmerizing, so much so that I found myself remaining just inside the doorway. Meanwhile, the poor guy was dripping on my floor. Moose was happily snoozing inone of the beds I’d unpacked from the boxes sent ahead, on his back with his legs open.

Not a care in the world.

I knew the old adage that dogs had an extraordinary ability to sniff out bad people. My pup was no exception, Moose hating Stephen from the bottom of his heart. He’d growled every time Stephen had come into the room, nipping at him once. To see my baby like this was impressive, yet I remained at a stalemate in my mind.

Maybe I’d just gotten off on a bad foot with Mr. Grinch.

As I walked closer, Jake finally turned his head in my direction. I’d be damned if his luminescent gaze didn’t dart from my eyes to my lips. Instantly, my body reacted as it had done before, the treachery of desire sweeping through me like a tsunami. Explosive heat lanced my core and I had to look away for fear of bursting into flames.

He was the one who walked closer, the slight echo of his boots crowding my mental space.

“Towels and a cupcake. I must admit I can’t remember the last time I was offered such a combination.”

I slowly turned my head, realizing I’d been holding my breath. When I thrust the cupcake out with a stiff arm, his grin reminded me why the man annoyed the hell out of me.

“It’s for you.”

“Interesting. You do bake.”

“We shall see.” Another rumble of thunder made me wince.

“You’ll get used to them,” he said in a low and far too seductive tone.

“What?” Him? His voice? His good looks? His thick cock? What?

The slight curl of his lips was as if he could read my mind. If that was the case, I was in for a whole lot of trouble. “The storms here. They can seem violent but we’re in a protected cove, rarely getting damage from any of them.”

“Oh. Okay.” My God. I’d lost my ability to speak rationally.

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