Читать книгу Safe in My Arms - Janice Sims - Страница 13

Chapter 4

Jake’s first clue that he had said something wrong was when Mina got to her feet, glared down at him and cried, “What? I just kissed you! You’re not wearing a ring. What are you, one of those married men who take off their wedding bands whenever it suits them?”

He stood up, hands raised in a gesture of surrender. “That didn’t come out the way I meant it to. I’m not married. Jami, my wife, passed away five years ago.”

Mina stared up at him, mouth agape. She sat down, deflated. Jake eased back into his chair, his eyes on her face in the dim light. He hadn’t bothered turning the porch light on. The only illumination came from the reading lamp in the living room of the cabin whose big picture window they were sitting in front of. He could see Mina visibly relax.

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “What I should have said was that we have a lot in common. I lost someone I love, too.”

Mina sighed softly. “All day long I debated whether or not I should be honest with you and tell you why I wasn’t responding to you. Then, when I decide to take a chance on you, you mention a wife, and my first reaction is that I’d just made a fool of myself, kissing a married man.”

“A bad choice of words,” Jake said. “I’m an idiot.”

Mina eyed him warily and leaned back in her chair. “All right, I’m listening. Please, tell me about Jami.”

The tension in the air was gone. Jake smiled slowly. He told her that he and Jami were college sweethearts and had gotten married right after graduation. They’d supported each other through tough times and been grateful for the good times. It was the kind of marriage that was meant to last forever, he said. Like his parents’ marriage and his grandparents’. He’d been blindsided by her death.

“She was my world,” he said quietly. “For a long time I didn’t know how I would go on. I didn’t even care if I did go on. I started taking unnecessary risks, kind of testing the Reaper to see if he would come for me the way he’d come for her. More than anything, I wanted to join her.”

Mina nodded knowingly. “Me, too, and having those kinds of feelings can be detrimental to others around you when you’re airlifting soldiers out of a combat zone. Their lives depended on me, and all I could think about was dying.”

“You were in a bad place,” Jake said. “But you’re past that now, right?”

She nodded. “I’m better,” she said simply. “And you, how did you shake that feeling?”

Jake shrugged his broad shoulders. “Sometimes I wonder. It wasn’t anything I did on purpose. It was living one day at a time without her. Plus the fact that I knew she would have kicked my ass when we met on the other side if I’d committed suicide.”

“She was tough, huh?” Mina smiled.

“You remind me of her,” Jake said, smiling back at her. “Not physically. She was nearly six feet tall. When it came to determination and strength of character, though, she was very tough. Like you.”

“How do you know that about me?” asked Mina, her gaze meeting his.

“Not every woman would run through a forest alone to see if anyone survived a plane crash. You could have been going to a scene that would have given you nightmares for the rest of your life, yet you went anyway.”

She smiled and said, “Must have been my military training kicking in.”

“You know,” said Jake. “If running a lodge doesn’t work out for you for some reason, we’re always looking for a few good people.”

He couldn’t believe that slip of the tongue. He was so relaxed in her presence that for a moment his guard had completely gone down. He’d forgotten he was playing a role. He was not Jake Wolfe, DEA Special Agent now. He was Jake Wolfe, mysterious businessman. He hadn’t even told Mina whom he supposedly worked for.

He was relieved when Mina laughed and said, “Don’t let my grandpa hear you trying to recruit me. We’re joined at the hip. I’m his heir, and nothing gives him more satisfaction than knowing he’s training his successor to take over his beloved lodge.”

“I’m sorry. I take it back.” Jake laughed right along with her. “Does that offer to take me on a trail ride still stand?”

“Yes, of course,” Mina said immediately. “I’m scheduled to take a group out tomorrow morning at eight.”

“I see you all like to get an early start,” said Jake, stifling a yawn.

“People come here expecting to immerse themselves in nature,” Mina explained. “We give them the full effect. A couple from Florida has already signed up. Meet me at the barn tomorrow morning, and wear sturdy jeans, shoes and a jacket. We provide a box lunch. Make sure you phone the kitchen early in the morning to let them know what kind of sandwich to make for you.”

She rose. “It’s late, I’d better go.”

Jake reluctantly got to his feet. He didn’t want her to go. He’d been enjoying their conversation. “I’ll walk you home.”

As they strolled across the expansive lawn that separated their cabins, Jake gazed up at the sky. “Being here does make you appreciate nature more. In the city I rarely look up at the sky.”

“Too many big buildings in the way,” said Mina. “Where do you live?”

“Atlanta.” He told her the truth. He had found that the secret to maintaining an undercover life was to basically be honest about your background, altering very few details of who you were. Keeping two sets of data about two different people was difficult, and you were bound to slip up sooner or later.

“Nice town,” Mina said. “My sisters and I have been there many times, mostly to concerts or sporting events.”

“Oh, yeah, you said you have four sisters. No brothers?”

“No, just Lauren, Desiree and Meghan, who live in Raleigh, and Petra, who’s in Africa right now.”

“Oh,” said Jake. “What’s she doing in Africa?”

“She’s a zoologist, and she’s studying the great apes in Central Africa.”

“That’s cool,” Jake said, sounding intrigued. “What do your other sisters do?”

“Lauren’s an architect, Desiree’s a psychologist and Meghan is a history professor.”

“Your parents must be proud.”

Mina smiled. “Do you have any siblings?”

“I have a brother, Leo,” Jake told her. Then he laughed. “Actually, his name is Leonidas. My mother had a thing for Greek literature. I got off easy with Jason.”

“Jason and the Argonauts and King Leonidas of Sparta,” Mina returned easily.

“My mother would like you,” Jake said.

At her door, he bent and kissed her on the cheek. “Good night, Mina. Sleep well.”

“Good night, Jake,” Mina softly said, and went inside.

* * *

Once she was on the other side of the door, Mina collapsed against it dramatically, giving way to the girly side of her that wanted to dance and shout that she’d just been kissed.

She was soon brought back to reality by the sound of her grandfather’s voice. “Mina, is that you?”

“Yeah, Grandpa, I went for a walk before turning in.”

“Did you see that fella who fell from the sky while you were out?”

“Grandpa, have you been spying on me?” Mina asked, as she walked toward the sound of his voice. She found him standing in the middle of the kitchen in his pajamas with a milk carton in one hand and a huge cookie in the other.

“You’re my granddaughter,” he said shamelessly. “It’s my obligation to look out for you. We haven’t decided whether or not he’s a drug dealer, remember?”

Mina took the carton of milk from him. She poured some into a glass and handed it to him. Then she put the carton back in the refrigerator. “I don’t know what he does for a living, but I don’t think it’s anything illegal.”

“Why, because he’s a good kisser?” asked Benjamin, bushy brows arched in a questioning expression. “Be careful with that one. I smell a polecat.”

Mina laughed. She loved her grandfather’s old-fashioned expressions. “Don’t worry, I will,” she assured him. She kissed his leathery cheek. “Good night, Grandpa.”

With that, she turned and fairly floated on air down the hall to her bedroom.

* * *

The next morning, Mina woke in a great mood. She sang in the shower, ate a hearty breakfast and dressed, and was crossing the lawn to the lodge by seven forty-five. She went straight to the kitchen to collect the box lunches. Mabel Brown, the cook, an amply built African-American woman in her sixties, gave her a warm greeting then nodded in the direction of the two small brown bags on the counter.

“Where are the other two?” Mina asked.

“The couple from Florida isn’t going because the husband is experiencing hip pain and his wife’s staying with him, so they canceled their box lunch orders. Just you and the guy with the sexy voice who phoned this morning will be going on the trail ride.”

Mina harrumphed, and collected the lunches along with a couple of bottles of water from the refrigerator. “These things happen. Thank you, Miss Mabel.”

“You don’t sound too broken up about it,” Mabel said to her retreating back.

“Get your mind out of the gutter, Miss Mabel.”

“Get your mind into the gutter,” Mabel retorted with a lusty laugh.

Mina laughed as she hurried through the lobby and out the front door of the lodge. Miss Mabel had a wicked sense of humor, equal only to Mina’s grandfather’s, whom Miss Mabel had a major crush on. When she got to the barn, Jake was already there talking to the stable boy, Chad. Chad was a rangy kid of nineteen with dark brown skin and big, soulful brown eyes. He was very fond of Mina, and Mina of him.

“Good morning, Mina,” he said, grinning at her. “I’ve got Cinnamon ready for you.”

Cinnamon was Mina’s favorite horse, an aptly named sorrel with a white star on her forehead. Cinnamon knew the trails better than her human riders, Benjamin often said. She was the oldest horse they owned and the most reliable.

“Thank you, Chad,” said Mina. She smiled at Jake, who was leaning against the railing of the stall that held his mount, a dark-colored three-year-old mare by the name of Midnight. “Good morning, Jake.”

* * *

Jake hadn’t been able to tear his eyes off Mina since she’d walked into the barn. He’d awakened in a good mood, and now he knew why—the anticipation of seeing her again. “You look well rested, Ms. Gaines,” he said, smiling.

His eyes roved appreciatively over her trim body in those tight jeans, being careful not to linger too long because he didn’t want to make her feel uncomfortable. He met her eyes, and she smiled at him.

“So do you,” she said. “Sleep well?”

“I did, thank you. The cabin’s very comfortable.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” Mina said lightly.

“Chad here has been giving me some pointers on Midnight,” Jake said.

“Then he’s already told you she has a low tolerance for loud noises. Good going, Chad,” said Mina, smiling at him.

Chad blushed and continued saddling Midnight. Finished, he led the horse out of her stall and handed the reins to Jake.

“Thank you, Chad,” said Jake.

“My pleasure,” said Chad. “Have a good ride.”