Slow Burn (The Blake Boys Book 7) (2 page)

“Why do I bother?” she mumbled as she turned off the TV and went into the kitchen to check on the salmon she had in the oven. “Because you’re an idiot, that’s why.”

The sound of the text message alert on her cell phone pierced the quiet space. It could only be an eye witness to the smooch from hell. Michelle bit her lip, determined not to cry over Tyler Blake anymore. She’d had enough of him. It was time to move on.

* * *

It felt good to be back home at the ranch. Tyler should have felt like a million bucks after the great win on Saturday, but he felt like crap. He’d called Michelle repeatedly after the race, but she didn’t answer, and that wasn’t a good sign. Normally she would at least pick up and tell him what an asshole he was, but for the past two days there had been nothing but eerie silence. The kiss from the groupie was easy enough to explain, but he was all out of excuses, as Morgan put it the other night at dinner.

“I love you both, and I just want you to be happy. Everything will work out for the best.” Morgan kissed him on the cheek and handed him a bowl of ice cream.

Besides the statement being anticlimactic, it was totally un-Morganlike. His feisty sister-in-law butted in and pushed, that was her thing. If she wasn’t pushing, it meant she’d given up.

The severity of the situation began to sink into his dense brain. His brother Seth just smiled and helped Jake and the boys finish their dessert. Tyler needed to figure out his intentions towards Michelle, but it seemed he no longer had time on his side. He knew he didn’t want her seeing Finn, or any other idiot who might wander into the bookstore and make a play for her.

Ranch work didn’t sound like an ideal way to burn off the pent-up energy coursing through his veins, but he didn’t mind. He had headed down to the stables bright and early to get his chores done before anyone else was awake. The motivation for it was his momma telling him she had a surprise for him. News of the early Christmas present made him toss and turn all night, anticipating opening it the next day. The family kept mum about it, and he was shocked that even his blabbermouth brother Channing couldn’t be coaxed into squealing. He’d returned to the house and was on his third cup of coffee, waiting for his mother to come downstairs.

“My, you’re up earlier than usual. I thought you had ranch duties today?” His mother Teri-Lyn ran her hand through his hair as she entered the kitchen.

“I’ve already done them. Bo said he’d never seen me move so fast in my life.”

“Want some breakfast? Then I’ll take you to your present.” She smiled.

“I’d rather have my present now.” Tyler grinned.

“Get the eggs before I put you over my knee.” Teri-Lyn pointed toward the fridge.

A few minutes later she yelled for Tyler to slow down as he scoffed down the bacon and eggs. After she cleared the table and nibbled on some toast while she had a second cup of coffee, she was finally ready to go. He hopped in the passenger seat of the truck and accompanied her as she tootled around the ranch, taking the time to stop and chat with the landscaper.

Finally, his mother turned down a road leading to the south side of the ranch. The stretch of land looked more manicured than usual and there was new white fencing leading to a paved road. Beyond the fence, a five lane mockup of the Daytona Speedway had been constructed, complete with a pit lane, garage, spectator mound, announcer’s booth, and the best part of it all—two new race cars.

Teri-Lyn pulled to a stop by the gate.

“I don’t believe it.” Tyler got out of the truck.

“I thought you could use some space to practice when you didn’t feel like leaving the ranch.” Teri-Lyn said.

“Momma!” Tyler grabbed her and swung her around. “This is awesome. I don’t know what to say.”

“Just say you’ll be careful.” Teri-Lyn laughed.

“I promise.” He smiled. “It means a lot to me that you’re supporting me.”

“I had no doubt that one day you’d find something that caught your interest. I didn’t think it would be racing cars, but I’m happy for you nonetheless.”

“Did daddy mention anything to you about …all of this?” Tyler asked. He was curious about his father’s opinion on his new found career, but he’d been too afraid to ask.

The look his mother gave him was one of puzzled amusement. “You remind me of him when he was your age.”

Tyler’s eyes widened. “That’s hard to believe.”

“Trust me, your daddy wasn’t always the laid back rancher he’s become over the years. He was rough and rowdy and looking for trouble everywhere he turned. You get that sense of adventure from him.”

“Really?”

“You also got his good looks, stubbornness, arrogance and penchant for fighting.” She punched him on the arm.

“Daddy? He sounds like he was quite a handful.” Tyler scratched at his temple.

“Yes, he was.” She shook her head.

“So how did he manage to snag you?”

She laughed. “A lot of beggin’. Which is what you’ll have to do to get back in Michelle’s good graces after the smooch from that groupie hussy.”

Tyler’s head whipped around. What did she know about him and Michelle?

“Momma, it’s complicated.”

“What’s complicated about love?”

“Who said anything about love?”

“You’ve never asked me to go shopping with you to pick out a gift for a lady friend until last month, when you wanted to buy her that bracelet for Christmas.”

Tyler shrugged. “You have good taste.” The exquisite charm bracelet his mother helped him pick out was sure to bring a smile to Michelle’s face. He had planned to give it to her for Christmas, but that was before the kissing debacle after the race.

She gave him a stern but loving motherly look. “You don’t fool me. You care about her.”

“I—”

“Want to race?”

Tyler’s eyes widened. Was this his mothering talking? “What have you done with Teri-Lyn Blake?”

“Are we gonna stand here flappin’ our gums, or are we going to christen your new track?” Teri-Lyn put on a racing helmet and pulled on the strap to tighten it.

“I won’t show you any mercy, even if you are my Momma.”

“What makes you think this is my first time in a race car? Before I had you kids, I had a pretty interesting life.” She winked and got in her car.

By the time Tyler got in and turned on the car, his momma was already half way around the track. She was quick, but it was her comments about love that slowed his pace. The possibility of giving Michelle that bracelet for Christmas was looking bleak.

* * *

Michelle walked through the bookstore, satisfied they were ready for the holiday rush. She loved this time of year, the hustle and bustle of the customers always put her in a good mood. Today she would be doing orientation for her temporary holiday help, which included Morgan’s teenage niece Avery.

“Hi, Michelle.” Avery came bouncing into the office and greeted her with a hug. “I’m here for orientation training.”

“You’re very early.” She tossed the teen a blueberry scone she’d made that morning.

“I wanted to be on time for my first day on the job. Dad says I should be an even better employee since Aunt Morgan owns the bookstore.”

Michelle smiled. “Honey, nepotism is a time-honored tradition, take advantage of it. How’s the babysitting going?” Avery had been babysitting Morgan and Seth’s boys in her spare time.

“Jake’s no problem. He keeps busy drawing or playing with his toys. But the twins are another story. The trick is to keep them busy until they collapse from exhaustion.” She giggled. “Uncle Seth pays me a hundred dollars each time I watch them.”

“Maybe I should charge to watch those little twin Tasmanian devils.” Michelle flipped through the invoices. She loved Connor and Colby but often needed a vacation after babysitting the precocious duo. “Well, the orientation will be short. You’ll start next Saturday and we’ll work out your hours. I promised your dad it wouldn’t interfere with your studies, like that would ever happen.”

She rolled her eyes. “Daddy likes to worry about everything.”

“I made cookies for the last book club since this will be the last meeting for the holidays.” Michelle held up a tin.

“Cool. I thought we could do a movie night of the books we’ve read that have been made into movies.”

“That’s a great idea. I have a few motivational books I’d like to sneak onto the list as well. When your aunt comes back from Texas, we’re going to do some event planning for next year. I’d like you to take a more active role in the book club. What do you think?”

“I love it!” She clapped.

“I thought you’d like that.”

Something on Morgan’s desk caught the teen’s attention. It was Tyler’s latest magazine cover. Full Throttle magazine did a full feature on what they called “the most impressive up-and-coming driver in the industry.” He looked absolutely sinful on the cover. Those green eyes sparkled, and those faint dimples sent chills down Michelle’s spine. The day it arrived, the store was flooded with women looking for their eye-candy fix. After the third skanky chick came and asked if they had the issue with Seth Blake’s hot younger brother on the cover, she hid them in the back room and watched Morgan look for them for half the day. It was only when Morgan picked up the phone to rip the distributor a new one did she confess they were all stuffed in her desk. Morgan just shook her head and laughed, telling her payback was a bitch. She’d often had to talk Morgan down when Seth had done a salacious photo shoot.

“Did you watch Uncle Tyler’s race? He was awesome.”

Yeah, it was awesome until the end. “I caught bits and pieces of it.”

Avery took a seat in Morgan’s chair. “I have to admit I didn’t like racing until he became a driver. He’s amazing.”

“I was thinking of another word.” Michelle lifted off the chair and handed Avery a floor plan. “Think you can help me create a kick ass display to attract teen readers?”

“Absolutely.”

Avery headed to the front of the store while Michelle looked over the orientation packets. Everything seemed in order and she hoped to get her temporary helpers working immediately. The bookstore was doing well and could do even better if they had a chance to expand. They kept up with all the latest titles but there were more things they could do if they had more space. Now that she was the store manager she could bring some of her loftier plans to fruition. She just needed Morgan to sit still long enough to listen to them.

There was a tap on the office door. It was Nina and Gabby.

“Hi, ladies!” Michelle got up and reached for the little girl, who was stylishly dressed in a winter white toggle coat like her mom’s, right down to the matching tam. “What brings you two by?”

“Oh, I can only drop by when Morgan is here? I thought we settled that the last time you asked.” Nina laughed as she unbuttoned her coat.

“Force of habit.” Michelle sat Gabby on the couch and handed her the latest children’s book they got in that had yet to be stocked on the shelves.

Nina pulled an envelope out of her pocketbook. “I bring you good tidings. Here are your earnings from the Future Leaders event. I owe you big for coming to my rescue with those desserts.”

“No charge Nina, you know that.” When the caterer Nina hired for an event flaked on her, she immediately called Michelle, who’d been only too happy to share her most decadent creations.

“Nonsense. Everything you made was a big hit.”

“And I helped a friend. End of story.”

“Well, my friend, Oliver Mancini, the guy who produces cooking shows, was there and was very impressed by your work. I sang your praises and told him about your food blog. He said he was producing a new show about a budding superstar chef in the making and asked if I thought you’d be interested in auditioning!”

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

Nina shook her head. “I wouldn’t dare.”

Avery popped her head into the office. “Excuse me, Michelle, Uncle’s Seth’s friend Derek is at the front desk. He said thanks for the books and asked if you have time for a coffee with him.”

“Thanks, Avery. Tell him I’ll be out in a minute.” Michelle couldn’t control the heated flush she felt creeping up her cheeks.

Derek Popovich, the goalie for the Philadelphia Ice Pirates and good friend of Seth’s, had come to the bookstore a few times looking for books on the Alamo. It wasn’t until the third visit and two cappuccinos later that she realized he was flirting. The man looked like a Viking with a hockey stick in his hand when he was on the ice. She kicked herself every day for never giving Derek an answer the time he’d asked her to have dinner with him.

She scooted to the other side of her desk to get out of the glare she saw coming from Nina.

“How often do you and Derek have coffee?”

“He’s just being nice. I’m helping him track down some hard to get books about the Alamo.” Michelle pulled at her sweater cuff.

“You’re a bad liar, Michelle. Spill it.”

“What? The man needs a book, I work in a bookstore.” Michelle looked away.

Nina pouted. “I can’t believe Morgan didn’t tell me about this juicy gossip.”

“I didn’t think it would be wise to tell Morgan, given my unhealthy relationship with Tyler, that Seth’s friend has been asking me out for the last three months.”

“I can see the dilemma, especially after Tyler threatened poor Finn. Could you imagine Tyler getting into a fight with Derek? Shirts off. Hard bodies oiled up, engaging in a fight to the death for a chance to claim you. That’s a pay per view event I’d pre-order today.”

“Do I need to get the hose on you? And Gabby is
right
there. She’s living up to her nick name. That girl tells Patton everything she hears and he repeats it to Seth.” Michelle pinched Nina.

They peered through the crack of the double doors. Derek was standing there in all his glory dressed in jeans and a gray pea coat, looking simply gorgeous. He had a duffle bag slung over his shoulder.

“What would be wrong about dating that hunk of a man?” Nina mumbled. “Have you seen him on the ice? He’s the reason I’m a hockey fan.”

“I bet Patton would love to hear that. I’m totally going to blackmail you on that one.”