Stacey Joy Netzel Boxed Set (20 page)

She grinned. Bracing a hand on either side
of his shoulders, she pushed up to dislodge the snow that’d piled
on her head and back, effectively shielding him. “Too late for
that, buddy, but I can promise you a cup of hot coffee in about
three blocks.”

“
Mm
. Deal.”

She stood and held out a hand to help him to
his feet. He turned her around and brushed snow from her back
before combing clumps from her hair. Then he took her hand in his,
bowed, and gestured forward with his other arm.

“Lead on, fair lady.”

Holding back a laugh was impossible.
Embarrassment over the heated kiss they’d just shared completely
out of the question. But as they approached the block where she
lived, reality hit as hard as the SUV had. She viewed her
neighborhood—temporary though it was—as Jake must see it. Many of
the street lamps were burned out and though some houses had
Christmas lights, it couldn’t compare to the glitz of downtown.

The apartment building at the end of the
street was so old, no amount of improvements could ever hide its
run-down age. What it needed most was a wrecking ball.

Loral tried to cling to her dignity, tried
to lift her chin and pretend she didn’t care as they entered the
tiny foyer and started toward the dim stairwell. And she didn’t
normally. She made no apologies to anyone, just rolled with the
punches and did what she had to for her mother.

But this was Jake. He had a beautiful shop,
drove a luxury car, and no doubt lived in a high-class condo or a
ritzy neighborhood just like his brother. As she removed his jacket
and handed it over, she thought of the tiny two-bedroom apartment
she shared with her mother.

The only thing pretty in the entire place
was the tree she’d snuck into the woods and hand chopped with an ax
she’d borrowed from the neighbor. She’d splurged on the
decorations, too, because after last year in the hospital, no way
would she let her mother’s illness keep them from celebrating
another Christmas.

Other than that, the apartment contained one
small couch they’d bought from a secondhand shop and her mother had
sewn a slip cover for, mismatched kitchen table and chairs, and a
nineteen-inch black and white TV. Their beautiful hand-painted
china had been sold, replaced with dinnerware from a local
second-hand store, and—

“Hey. Stop right there.”

Jake’s stern voice halted her in her
heel-dragging tracks. He swung her to face him and one quick glance
confirmed his frown matched his voice.

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

Had he read her mind or were her feelings
that obvious?

“I’m not ashamed.” It came out pathetically
weak, and she cringed inside as she stared at his chest.

“Look at me.”

She got as far as his shoulder, then focused
on the wall behind him.

“Loral.”

The soft-spoken command compelled her to
finally meet and hold his gaze. He lifted his hands to her face,
his strong, gentle fingers cradled her as if she were the most
delicate piece of Depression glass he’d ever held. She swallowed
hard.

“None of this stuff matters, you know.”

“Says the man with heated leather seats in
his Lexus,” she quipped with embarrassment.

“Which is now sitting in the ditch, and,
I’ll point out, did nothing to keep my butt warm on the way over
here.”

She attempted a smile, but couldn’t hold the
humor in the face of his serious regard.

“People are what matter, Loral.
You
matter. Not where you live, or what you have. Now, I’ll admit, you
might need to work on your pride some.” He smiled to soften his
words. “Take a little well-intentioned help now and again, but your
dignity comes from within. No one can take that away from you. Hold
your head high and show me some of that fire you blasted me with
back at the shop.”

Her laugh was husky with emotion. His speech
struck a cord deep inside her soul, and while she always suspected
her heart was in danger around him, after tonight, her suspicion
was confirmed. Damn him. She lifted her chin with a tremulous
smile.

“I’m sorry about—”

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “No
apologies.”

“Yeah, well, I wasn’t very nice
earlier.”

He pressed a quick kiss to her lips. “All I
recall is one hell of a kiss and the promise of hot coffee.”

She smiled and another thread snapped on the
rope that kept her heart from falling. “I have to make one stop
before we go upstairs.”

With Jake at her side, she paid the rent to
the sour-faced building manager who looked disappointed that she’d
come up with the money again. Worse than Ebenezer Scrooge before
his ghostly visits, the jerk would just love to kick them out at
Christmastime. After Loral insisted on a receipt for the cash
payment, she led Jake up the stairs to the third floor apartment
and took a deep breath while fitting her key in the lock.

The afghan her mother had used while napping
was bunched up on a corner of the couch, but the TV was muted and
all was quite as Loral closed the door behind Jake. She squelched
an immediate urge to rush and search the apartment and consciously
kept her voice casual.

“Mom? I’m home.”

The sound of the far bedroom door eased her
apprehension. Loral searched her mother’s face for signs of fatigue
when she entered the living room. She appeared well-rested.

“Thank goodness,” her mother said, coming to
hug Loral. “It looks nasty out there.”

“It is.” She stepped back and turned toward
Jake. “Mom, this is Jake Coburn. He gave me a ride home.”

Jake extended his hand. “Mrs. Evans. Very
nice to meet you.”

“Please, call me Clara. And thank you for
bringing my daughter home safely.” She rubbed Jake’s fingers. “Oh
my, you’re cold.”

As he pulled free, he cast a glance at
Loral. She gave a brief shake of her head when she read his guilty
expression. She
was
home safe, and the accident wasn’t his
fault any more than it was hers.

But her mother looked Jake up and down, and
then turned to Loral. “You two look half-frozen and soaked to the
skin. What happened?”

Her mother’s narrowed gaze told her there
was no getting around the truth. Loral had never gotten away with
much as a kid.

“Someone ran us into the ditch—” She held up
a hand at her mother’s alarm. “Settle down, Mom. It happened a
couple blocks from here and as you can see, we’re both fine. I
didn’t say anything on the phone because I didn’t want you to
worry.”

“Well, good Lord, you two must be frozen.
Loral hang up those coats and then you two go get those wet clothes
off while I put on some tea.”

Loral’s face flushed as she met Jake’s gaze
over her mother’s head. They shared a moment of humor and something
more that had to do with her mother basically suggesting they strip
right there. Not that she meant her mothering
that
way, but
after that kiss in the snow, Loral had no hope of keeping her
imagination on the straight and narrow. The gleam in Jake’s eyes
told her his thoughts travelled a similar road.

“Mom, you go rest,” she said, attempting to
steer her mother back toward the small couch. Although this had
been one of her mother’s good days, she couldn’t do as much as she
used to just yet. “I’m going to make a pot of coffee and Jake’s
going to call a taxi for a ride home.”

Her mother held her ground and looked from
Loral to Jake. “Didn’t you hear? There was a big accident out on
I-10. They’ve declared a state of emergency and the roads are
closed to all non-emergency vehicles.”

“We heard about the accident,” Jake said.
“But I didn’t realize they’d shut down the highways. I suppose
we’re lucky we got as far as we did.”

Her mother nodded. “It’s been scrolling
across the bottom of the TV for the past half hour or so.”

Jake glanced at the silent miniature black
and white, then walked over to look out the window. “Are there any
hotels nearby?”

“Nonsense. We aren’t sending you back out in
this blizzard. You’ll stay here.”

Her tone brooked no argument. Jake looked at
Loral with raised eyebrows, but she just smiled and shrugged as her
mother kept talking.

“Besides, the hotels will be full with other
stranded motorists. You’ll never find a room.”

“I don’t want to inconvenience the two of
you.”

“Please, stay,” Loral said when he still
looked unsure. “You can have my bed, and I’ll take the couch.”

“See there, it’s all settled.” Her mother
took their arms and urged them into the hall. “Go see if you can
find something that’ll fit the man, and I’ll start the coffee.”

She mumbled about the size of Jake as she
headed into the kitchen area. Loral stared after her for a dazed
moment and then faced Jake with a nervous flip of her stomach.

“So that’s what a tornado feels like.”

“Come on.” She led the way into her bedroom.
He stood just inside the doorway, staring at her queen-sized bed.
She snuck a quick glance at him at the precise moment he did the
same thing. It broke the tension and they both laughed.

“I don’t think I’ve ever had a stranger
night in my life,” he declared, walking over to sit on her hot pink
bedspread.

The contrast of his dark hair and clothes
against all that pink made it hard to look away. He should’ve
looked uncomfortable, self-conscious even, in her unapologetic
girly room, but instead he seemed completely at ease. Totally
secure in his masculinity.

She opened her closet, revealing her bright
purple robe on the door. Lifting it from the hook, she turned with
a grin. “Think this’ll fit?”

One dark brow arched upward. “I’ll dry
eventually, thank you very much.”

She laughed, hung it back on the hook and
pulled two of her extra large sleep T-shirts off their hangers.
From her dresser near the door, she took out a pair of shorts for
herself, but knew nothing she had would fit Jake. Then again, maybe
he wouldn’t need them.

Facing Jake, she summoned the girl who’d
teased and kissed him earlier. “Boxers or briefs?”

“How about dinner and a movie first?” he
deadpanned.

“Ha, ha. Just for that, smartass, you get
this one.”

Jake caught the shirt she tossed at him.
After he gave it a brief inspection, she prepared for him to toss
it right back. Instead, he reached over his shoulder, grabbed a
fistful of his black, ribbed turtleneck sweater and stripped it
over his head.

Oh, man
.

No wonder he’d felt so hard—from his defined
biceps, toned chest, right down to the killer six-pack abs. She
couldn’t tear her eyes away. Until he covered all that glorious
muscle with her pastel pink, extra large bunny shirt that barely
fit him.

A grin fought to escape. Had she just been
thinking he was secure in his masculinity? Now his face matched the
shirt and she gave in to the grin.

“Pink is definitely your color.”

His gaze narrowed slightly before he stood
up and reached for the fastener on his black pants while kicking
off his shoes. Heat flooded her body. Practically holding her
breath, it never occurred to Loral to look away. Jake took his
sweet time with the pants, unfastening the hook, sliding the zipper
down.

The deliberate delay prompted her to glance
up and found him watching her, a challenging glint in his eyes.
Desire pooled low in her belly in response to the fire lighting his
gaze. She felt the rise and fall of her chest with each breath she
took. It was a dangerous game they played, but she wondered how far
he’d take the sexy strip-tease?

Boxers or briefs…?

“Coffee’s almost ready.”

Her mother’s loud announcement sounded just
a few steps beyond the open bedroom door. Loral jumped with a gasp.
She couldn’t believe she’d forgotten about her mother!

After Loral rushed from the room, closing
the door behind her, Jake dropped back on the bed with a low growl.
Her shallow breath and flushed face had totally turned him on.

What the hell was he doing? He’d kept their
relationship professional for the past year and now, in one night,
wham! He’d undressed in front of her while her mother made coffee
in the next room.

Strangest night of his life was an
understatement.

He removed his damp slacks and wryly admired
the way his green plaid boxers clashed with the pink shirt full of
bunnies the minx had given him. She’d kept him on his toes since
the moment she’d pulled that jewelry from her pocket in the store.
Discovering each new facet of her complex personality was like a
never-ending surprise party. His mother’s illness had made him
loathe the unexpected, but in Loral’s case, he couldn’t wait to get
back out there to see what was next.

When he stood to leave, he caught sight of
himself in the mirror above her dresser. The idiot staring back at
him groaned. He should’ve argued for a different shirt instead of
messing with her. Was that little bit of sexy fun really worth the
humiliation of walking into her kitchen dressed like this?

The heat in her darkened blue eyes flashed
in his mind. Oh, yeah,
well
worth it.

Removing his wet black socks so he didn’t
look like a complete moron, he opened the door and let the heavenly
smell of fresh brewed coffee lure him to the kitchen. Loral turned
from the counter, a mug in each hand.

Surprise!

She must’ve changed in the bathroom, but it
was the navy T-shirt with
Miller High Life
printed in white
across the front that got him. The shirt practically drowned her
petite frame, ending just above her knees to give him a tantalizing
glimpse of slim legs and small feet with pink toenails.

As Jake joined her mother at the table and
Loral brought the coffee over, Clara glanced up, then did a double
take. “Nice shirt.”