Читать книгу Mr. Predictable: Mr. Predictable / Too Many Cooks - Carol Finch, Carol Finch - Страница 13

JAKE AMBLED toward the horses. “So what’s up with your loud clothes? I’ve already figured out they’re a disguise of sorts.”

Moriah missed a step. “I beg your pardon?”

“Why are you begging my pardon? You haven’t offended me in almost five minutes,” he said flippantly.

“I just happen to like colorful clothes,” she replied as she mounted the buckskin.

“Aw, c’mon, Mo. I’m not as stupid as I look.” Jake swung effortlessly onto the sorrel mare. “For some reason, you don’t want the male of the species to notice how attractive and well-built you are. That wild wardrobe is not so much an attention-grabber as a clever distraction. So is that perky, bubbling facade of yours. I wonder if anyone at Triple R has ever actually met the real Moriah Randell.”

Moriah felt her temper rising when Jake tried to pick her apart. Then she realized she’d just experienced what he must be feeling when she tried to impose her unfamiliar beliefs on him. Willfully, she focused on remaining cool, calm and collected. “No need to worry about me. We’re here to discuss methods of altering your routines and improving your life, remember?”

“How can I forget? You harp at me every chance you get. So what’s your story, sugarplum?”

This man was going to be even more trouble than she originally anticipated. Her other guests arrived here, keyed on themselves, anxious for suggestions and solutions to their stress. Not Jake, damn him. In an effort to keep the focus off him, Jake poked and prodded into her psyche. Well, if opening up to him promoted his willingness to relax and confide in her, then so be it. Refusing to answer his questions might leave the impression that she was as obstinate and unapproachable as he was. One mule-stubborn individual around here was plenty.

Moriah led the way to the path that skirted the river and formulated her thoughts. “My story is nothing earth-shaking,” she began as she settled comfortably on the saddle. “I spent a great deal of time caring for my ailing mother during adolescence, while my father worked long days and made numerous business trips. When my mother died, my dad dealt with his grief by taking on even more projects that kept him away from home.”

“So you didn’t have the opportunity to run fast and loose as a teenager,” he presumed.

“No, caretakers are rarely allowed that privilege,” she agreed, smiling ruefully. “By the time I entered college I had a solid background in caregiving and nursing. I also liked to dabble in psychology and I developed an interest in stress management, after watching Dad run himself ragged. After I graduated I worked as the assistant director of stress management for several corporate firms in Oklahoma City.”

“If you were doing what you were trained to do, why did you leave your job?” Jake asked, watching her astutely.

Moriah squirmed uneasily in the saddle. “Because I…” Her voice fizzled out. She drew a deep breath, ignored her humiliation and blurted out, “Because I got my heart broken and I wanted to make a new start.”

“Good enough reason,” Jake remarked. “Who was the jerk?”

Moriah relaxed enough to chuckle. After five years, she could be a little more objective. Plus, Jake took her side without question, which made her feel better about herself. “He was my boss. A blond Adonis who could charm women—especially the naive ones like me—into believing he was the quintessence of Mr. Right. He took advantage of my willingness to share the workload and handle paperwork, which made him look good to his corporate clients. I thought all the attention he showered on me meant he felt the same way I did.”

“But…?” he prompted as he eased the sorrel up beside her.

“But he didn’t,” Moriah murmured. “Turns out he was bed hopping with three other women in the office. I was supplying him with all the spare time needed for his personal version of recreational pursuits. I realized that the only relationships I knew anything about, the only kinds I excelled at, were the ones built on someone else’s need and dependence on me. I know I’m shamefully inadequate as a serious marriage prospect.”

Jake glanced over at her and frowned. “How’d you arrive at that conclusion?”

Moriah shrugged. “Because it made sense. I was never really wanted for myself, only what I could provide in the way of help and assistance for others. In short, I grew up learning to be there for someone else.”

He snorted in disagreement. “You’re selling yourself short, Mo. Like I said, you’ve got the looks, brains and outgoing personality, despite those loud clothes.”

“Maybe so, but I always end up attracting people who depend on me for emotional and physical support. I’m like an ambulance to the rescue. My flashy clothes merely announce: Hey, here I am. What can I do for you today?”

Jake threw back his dark head and barked a laugh. It was a full rich sound that seemed to come from deep inside him. Fascinated, Moriah stared at him, watching his sensuous lips curve upward and his obsidian eyes sparkle with inner spirit. A warm, fuzzy sensation fluttered through her body when she realized she’d seen her first glimpse of the man trapped inside his rigid routine.

“You should do that more often, Jake. Laugher definitely becomes you.”

“Well, I haven’t had all that much to laugh about in a decade,” he admitted. “When I lost my parents things turned serious in a hurry.”

Moriah halted her horse to stare at the scenic view of the river, hoping Jake would experience the same sense of peace and tranquility that flooded over her. Apparently, he did. She noticed his grasp on the reins slackened and his gaze wandered admiringly across the river that glittered like mercury in the sunlight.

“I see you’ve managed to return the focus of the conversation back to me,” he said, sparing her a brief but perceptive glance.

“Yes, well, as recreational director it’s my job to urge guests to relax. Discussing the reasons for stress in your life makes you aware that you need to change your routines and habits. Whatever works, whenever it works, is my motto.”

“You’re shrewd, Mo,” he murmured. “This is kinda like a cattle drive from days gone by. Cowboys moseyed the livestock along the trail at such a leisurely pace the dumb creatures never realized they were being led to slaughter.”

Moriah wrinkled her nose. “I’m not sure I appreciate that comparison.”

“Yeah, well, I wasn’t sure I wanted some wanna-be psychologist picking around in my brain and analyzing me six ways to Sunday, either. But hey, here I am, opening up to you when I had no intention of doing it.” He tossed her a quick grin. “That’s progress for you.”

“Minimal progress,” she qualified. “You were about to tell me what your life was like when you assumed responsibility for your kid sisters.”

“Was I?”

“Yes, you were. If I can spill my guts to you, then the very least you can do is return the favor.”

Jake nudged the sorrel in the flanks and clomped down the path. “I had two teenage sisters to raise, a fledgling business to run and a social butterfly of a fiancée who expected, and demanded, more attention than I could provide. She’s a blue-eyed blonde, by the way,” he called over his shoulder.

“Ahh…” Moriah said insightfully. “That’s another reason why I kept getting vibes of resentment from you. You were transferring your frustration toward her to me.”

“Yeah, I suppose,” he admitted. “But thankfully, you’re turning out to be nothing like her. Anyway, Shelly was jealous of my loyalty and devotion to my sisters. While I was trying to give my sisters special attention during a crucial time, Shelly found herself a sugar daddy who could provide the expensive gifts and fawning attention she thought she deserved, being the goddess she was and all.

“I walked in on her and lover-boy at her apartment one night when I wasn’t expected. By the time Shelly got through twisting the incident around, she made it sound like it was all my fault she looked elsewhere for affection and attention. That’s when I figured out that I wasn’t too good at relationships that didn’t involve dependence from the party of the second part. The humiliating rejection stuck like a dart through the heart and deflated my male pride. Thankfully, I was smart enough not to make the mistake again. Besides, I had my sisters to raise and my business to run. I didn’t have time or the inclination for anything else.”

So he understood what it was like to be jilted and to have people depending on him. They had more in common than she first thought. “And since that time it’s been you and your sisters against the world, until they married.”

Jake nodded his raven-black head. “Pretty much. But at least Kim and Lisa turned out all right. My parents would be proud of them. My folks were devoted to each other and to us kids. It only seemed natural for me to follow the example of keeping the family united and strong.”

“But then, you got yourself stuck in a monotonous rut,” she commented gently. “It was your loyal and devoted sisters who came to your rescue.”

“They bound me over to you, the ungrateful little brats,” he muttered sourly. “Turncoats, is what they are. To think of all I’ve done for them!”

“They obviously care deeply or they wouldn’t have made these arrangements,” Moriah assured him.

“Yeah, so here I am, pussyfooting around at the resort, wondering if any work will get done at the shop during the next two weeks, pacing the floorboards with nothing to do but wait for you to show up and lecture me on the error of my robotlike ways.”

“But you’re making headway,” she encouraged him. “Twenty minutes ago you had a stranglehold on the reins. Now you’re relaxed. That’s progress. All we have to do is get you to let it all hang loose.”

“In this underwear? Are you kidding?”

Moriah snickered. “See there? You can even joke around and laugh at yourself. Yesterday that was an impossibility. You were too uptight and angry to do anything except bite my head off. Our next hurdle is to get you to do something impulsive, something totally unplanned, unexpected and off schedule.”

“Hey, I can be impulsive if I feel like it,” he said, affronted.

“Couldn’t prove it by me, Mr. Predictable,” she teased him. “When was the last time you hauled off and did something totally out of character?”

He frowned pensively.

“Well?” she prompted.

“Don’t rush me. I’m thinking.”

“That’s your problem. You do too much thinking and planning and moving along according to routine,” she told him.

He swiveled his head around to focus directly on her. “You want impulsive, do you?”

“Yeah, I do. Climb out of your rut for once in your life, Jake,” she encouraged him. “It’s okay to make time for yourself. Just go for it. Kick up your heels once in a while. Do something different. Do something impetuous, if only to prove to yourself that you can.”

“Fine. You want extemporaneous and impromptu? You’ve got it.”

He leaned over to snatch Moriah off the saddle and planted her on his lap—facing him, her legs straddling his hips. He bent his head and kissed her. It wasn’t just a playful little peck on the cheek, either. It was a hot, steamy, burn-off-your-lips kind of kiss that demanded a response—whether you meant to give one or not.

Moriah hadn’t planned on wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing up against him. She hadn’t meant to let him invade her mouth with a second plundering kiss that stole the breath clean out of her lungs. She didn’t expect him to clamp his hands around her rump and haul her against the hard evidence of his arousal. She didn’t expect to feel the blaze of desire frying her alive. But there they were, climbing all over each other on top of Ol’ Sally who didn’t so much as twitch her ears in objection.

The mare stood there docilely while Jake and Moriah got it on like a couple of hormone-plagued teenagers going at it in the back seat of a car. It was the damnedest thing Jake had ever experienced in his life. One minute Moriah was daring him to be impulsive, and poof! He dragged her to him and kissed her like a starving man devouring a feast. And worse, Jake couldn’t seem to get enough of the taste and scent of her. Every time he came up for air he found himself craving more. He stared at her kiss-swollen lips—and she stared at his—and they came together again like fire and dynamite.

That long dry spell must’ve caught up with him, because he was so hot and bothered in the time it took to blink that he felt the insane urge to peel off his clothes and follow this wild impulse to its natural conclusion.

The feel of her full breasts mashed against his chest, the feel of her parted thighs resting on his own drove him right out of his mind. Mercy! He didn’t need a caffeine zing when these sizzling sensations were bouncing through his veins like pinballs. Desire definitely had a stronger kick than coffee and chocolate combined.

His self-control hit the skids and his hands developed a will of their own. They mapped the full swells of her breasts, feeling her nipples harden against his prowling fingertips. Her nails raked over his back as he skimmed her ribs, measured the trim indentation of her waist and scanned the flare of her hips with his hands. Damn, she felt as if she were made to fit into his hands, fit against his aching male body.

Light-headed from panting for breath, Jake experienced the sensation that he was tumbling off balance. Too late, he realized he and Moriah truly were off balance. Ol’ Sally had decided to step down the steep incline to have herself a drink at the river. When she lowered her head to slurp water Moriah and Jake were left with nothing to hold on to except each other. They somersaulted pell-mell over Sally’s downcast neck and landed with a splat—their arms and legs tangled up worse than a pretzel.

Jake floundered upright, after swallowing a couple of gallons of water. He burst to the surface like a spouting whale, then glanced wildly around, trying to locate Moriah. She surfaced three feet away from him. Her long hair was plastered against the sides of her head and her eyes were as wide as serving platters. Sputtering, she struggled to catch her breath.

Gape-mouthed, she stared at him and he stared back, his jaw sagging on its hinges. She appeared astounded—as he was—by kisses and caresses that carried the impact of a nuclear blast.

He should say something, but his tongue seemed to be stuck to the roof of his mouth and his waterlogged brain had short-circuited. He wasn’t sure what to expect from Moriah. Anger and indignation, probably. After all, he hadn’t exactly asked permission to kiss her breathless and put his hands all over her. Jeez, he couldn’t believe he’d done that! What the hell happened to his sense of decency?

“Hey, you said do something impulsive,” he said before she could jump down his throat. “Besides, your flower garden ensemble needed watering.”

Boy, that was totally lame, he thought with an inward groan. He expected her to rear back and slap him—it was what he deserved. Or at the very least, chew him out royally. Most women he knew would’ve been furious about getting their hair and makeup ruined by a dunking in the river.

“Well,” she said eventually, “I did ask for impulsive, but that wasn’t exactly what I had in mind. Next time I’ll be more specific.”

When Moriah took an impromptu swim he decided to join her. For sure, he needed to cool his heels—and other parts of his body that had overheated. He wondered if she was suffering the same need to cool off and put some time and emotional distance between that explosive kiss that they had just experienced.

Jake was more than a little relieved that Moriah chose to pretend the kiss didn’t happen, because that was fine by him. She piled on her horse and started yakkety-yakking about ways to reduce stress so his life would become more well-rounded and personally fulfilling. Jake tried to pay attention, he really did, but the way her wet clothes clung to her voluptuous body like a coat of paint was one hell of a distraction.

MORIAH PULLED the cake from the oven, set it aside to cool, and then rifled through her cabinets for vanilla and a sack of powdered sugar. She had decided to make Jake’s birthday an event that would bring her guests and staff together for a party in the lobby. The occasion would serve two purposes—celebrating Jake’s birthday in a casual setting and creating time for informal conversation. There were no power lunches or business conferences at Triple R, and Moriah wanted her guests to function in laid-back settings. They needed to carry on conversations unrelated to business. One of their biggest problems was learning to broaden their focus of interests.

Plus, this shindig would ensure Moriah wouldn’t be alone with Jake. Having discovered how wildly responsive she was to him had thrown her for a loop. After that scorching kiss, she’d needed a swim to get herself in hand. She’d told herself not to get involved with Jake. Yet, she’d stepped over the line—did a hundred-yard dash over it was more accurate! But damn, that man knew how to kiss and leave a woman burning—inside and out!

Moriah told herself to calm down when she realized she was whipping the icing so frantically that she nearly beat the finish off the bowl. She was tense and she almost never got tense because she practiced breathing exercises and relaxation techniques. Yet, here she was, reliving that incredibly amazing kiss and wishing for more of the same. What was she thinking!

“Relax,” she told herself sternly. “Focus.”

“Pardon?”

Moriah had been so distracted that she forgot she’d brought her dad over to her apartment for a private visit. He’d been making some electronic adjustments to his motorized cart and watching TV while she whipped up the cake.

“Nothing, Dad. Just talking to myself.” She glanced over at her silver-haired father to note he was fumbling with the remote control. Her first impulse was to dash over to help him, but she stayed where she was. William Randell was learning to work around the partial paralysis in his left side and was determined to be as independent as possible.

“Whose birthday did you say we’re celebrating tonight?” Will asked.

“Jake Prescott’s.”

“The new guy,” he said with a pensive nod. “The one who put up the big fuss about being here. Is he doing better?”

“Uh…yeah. I saw him and his pup canoeing down the river this afternoon. I think he’s settling in.”

“Anna said another guest arrived a couple of hours ago to replace the guest in cabin two. From Saint Louis, right?”

“Right.” Moriah washed the powdered sugar off her hands, then plunked down on the sofa. “Very demanding sort of individual.”

“Gonna be trouble?”

“Probably. He’s expecting an instant fix to stressful habits he’s spent a lifetime developing.”

“If anybody can teach him to relax and unwind, you can, hon,” he said confidently.

Moriah leaned over to give her dad a peck on the cheek. “Thanks for your vote of confidence.”

His hand folded over hers and she swallowed the lump that suddenly clogged her throat. For years they’d passed by each other like ships in the night without really knowing each other. Her dad had been a guest in his own home and Moriah never felt as if she understood him until he was forced into retirement and required her care.

It had taken Will a year to adjust to his limited lifestyle, but now he spent his time modifying and creating electronic gadgets, whizzing around the resort on his cart and relaxing. Even better, she and Will had grown close these past three years.

“Did I ever tell you how grateful I am to have a daughter like you?” he murmured appreciatively.

She leaned over to give him an affectionate hug. “Did I ever tell you how grateful I am to have you?”

He patted her shoulder. “Thanks, honey. Don’t know where I’d be without you.” He inclined his gray head toward the kitchenette. “Better finish up that cake before I get all blubbery on you. It’ll ruin the hard-ass image I maintained in the business world.” He tapped the remote against the armrest of his cart. “Damn gadget won’t work right. What idiot tinkered with the design of these things anyway?”

Moriah chuckled as she bounded to her feet. “I do believe it was some of your technology that pioneered those gadgets. You were an electronic wizard in your day.”

His eyes twinkled and he smiled, though the muscles in the left side of his cheek drooped noticeably. “I was, wasn’t I?”

“Damn straight, Dad.”

While Will turned his attention to the new remote he’d designed to control all the lights in Moriah’s apartment, she iced the cake—and cursed herself soundly when her thoughts circled back to Jake. She couldn’t keep avoiding him. She’d left a rose on his doorstep this morning and asked Tom Stevens to deliver the glass of wine the previous night. It wasn’t like her to dodge awkward situations. She usually laughed and smiled her way through them.

Unfortunately, the tactic didn’t work quite as well with Jake. She was entirely too aware of him, too attracted to him, too embarrassed that she’d climbed all over him and groped at him while they’d kissed each other breathless. Sweet mercy! That was totally out of character for her. She didn’t do stuff like that—until Jake came along.

Moriah sighed in frustration, wondering what had gotten into her. She’d never reacted to a man like that before. She had to keep her distance and clear the air—sexually charged though it most definitely was—between them. Tomorrow she’d have a nonchalant visit with Jake, she decided as she slathered vanilla icing on the strawberry cake. They’d get past that impulsive kiss and things would be back on an even keel—she hoped.

JAKE PACED the floorboards, then checked his watch for the umpteenth time in two hours. This place was driving him straight south to crazyville! He’d had nothing to do all day and he’d had all day to do it. Sure, he’d checked out a canoe and paddled Spitwad on the river for an hour, and then he’d hiked up the hillside path to visually pan the plush valley below. Still, he felt edgy, restless and twitchy. He needed a computer mouse under his fingertips and a monitor screen to stare at. He needed to work to keep his mind off Moriah who’d been avoiding him since that sizzling kiss that made him uncomfortable in all the wrong places.

He needed to apologize—if he could manage to get her alone for more than five seconds. She’d breezed by once or twice, flashing that cheery smile, on her way to visit other guests, but she’d taken a noticeably wide berth around Jake.

He checked his watch again, then glanced down to see Spitwad sprawled on the floor, sound asleep. Speaking of sleep, Jake couldn’t believe he’d slept until eight o’clock this morning. Ordinarily, he was up and at ’em by six. He was pretty sure Moriah had added a sedative to the wine she had Tom deliver the previous evening. Surely his internal time clock and razor-sharp business edge hadn’t deserted him on their own accord. There had to be a reason—like sleeping potions and tranquilizers and such, he decided suspiciously.

Whirling around, Jake headed for the door. He was going to find Moriah and get things squared away. She needed to know there’d be no more kissing, that he’d keep his hands to himself. She wouldn’t have to feel wary or uncomfortable around him because he wasn’t going to touch her again—ever.

Jake strode swiftly toward the lodge that was lit up like a Christmas tree in the darkness. He’d probably have to chitchat with the other guests a while before he managed to draw Moriah aside. He’d get the apology over with and then hightail it back to his cabin to play tug-of-war with Spitwad. The mutt had already chewed a hole in one of Jake’s socks, so he’d tied the demolished sock in a knot and whiled away his time with the pesky pup. Amazing what lengths a guy would go to when he had to entertain himself—or risk going insane from boredom. In two weeks he’d probably be nuttier than a jar of Jif.

Jake was fifty feet from the lodge when Moriah appeared on the porch. The golden glow spotlighted and accentuated her eye-catching physique. She was wearing a jungle-print ensemble that featured zebras, tigers, colorful parrots and frothy ferns. Her blond hair was piled loosely atop her head by some invisible means of support he couldn’t figure out. Damn, but he’d like to unwind that silky mass of hair and run his fingers through it, then pull her lush body against—

Jake gnashed his teeth and cursed himself soundly. Damn it, he had to get past this physical attraction and he better do it fast.

“Hi, Jake,” Moriah called out, waving her arms like a cheerleader on the sidelines. “I was on my way over to see you.”

“Yeah? What for?” Did he sound casual enough? Too snippy and uptight? He tried for a neutral tone that disguised his frustration. “So, what’s up, Mo?”

“There’s something I want to show you.” She gestured for him to follow her into the lodge. “Come on inside and have a look.”