No time to waste with the flatiron. She grabbed her purse and bolted down the stairs, slipping on her black heels.
“Wish me luck,” she said over her shoulder.
“You’ll need more than luck. I’ll be here praying for a miracle.” Lilliana smiled a fake good-girl smile and waved pageant-style from the front porch.
All the way to Adaline’s, she rehearsed the new offer, trying to work a convincing tone into her voice, even though the thought of demoting Roger didn’t sit well. The parking lot was packed. Men in suits and women in sundresses clumped around the entrance. Children weaved through their legs, playing tag. She slipped into the restaurant. Her eyes took a few seconds to adjust. All the tables appeared full, but she didn’t spot Logan.
A high-school-age girl greeted her with a smile and an armful of menus. “Table for one?”
“I need to see Mr. Wilde. Is he in the back?”
The girl’s sunny smile fell. “I’m afraid he’s already left for the day, ma’am. Can I take a message?”
“No. It’s an emergency. Family related. I need to see him immediately. Could you tell me where he lives?” Not exactly a lie. It was a family-related emergency to her. Still, a small nugget of guilt planted itself in her stomach. Contrary to her reputation, Jessica didn’t close deals by lying.
The girl bit her bottom lip and clutched the menus close to her chest, staring into Jessica’s face. Finally, she rattled off an address and directions. They scrolled through her head on repeat as she drove. After a couple of miles, a narrow drive hidden between trees flashed in her periphery.
Feeling as if the clock was ticking to zero, she whipped the car off the blacktop, onto the pebbled shoulder and back around with a squeal of her tires. Once on the narrow lane, the shadows fuzzed her vision, and she tapped the breaks. The last thing she needed was to plow her borrowed car into a tree and have to beg help from Logan again.
The trees ended around a sharp bend. Fields covered in wheat-colored grass framed an old-fashioned white farmhouse on two sides while endless trees provided a green backdrop. His blue and white truck was parked in front of a modern-looking detached garage. One of the bay doors was up. The bindings clamped around her heart released a fraction. He hadn’t escaped.
Relief and anxiety warred. She parked her car in front of the house and checked her face. She missed the armor of her red lipstick and bit at her lips to draw color into them. In the natural light and without her usual layer of makeup, the dark smudges under her eyes looked more prominent.
Out of the car, she ran one hand over her hair, tucking away wild pieces, and the other down her skirt. If only she could smooth her frazzled nerves as easily. She caught her reflection in the car window. Not as professional as normal, but not a complete freaked-out mess.
Her too-high heels were meant for city pavement and marbled hallways, not crunching, uneven gravel and clumps of grass. She hadn’t had time to amend the contract, but he seemed a throwback my-word-is-my-bond type of man anyway. She twisted her fingers together, unable to keep them still.
Her step hitched. Hidden in the shadow of the garage, Logan leaned against the side, his arms crossed over his chest and one booted foot cocked over the other. A coiled, static tension emanated from the seemingly-casual, entirely male stance. He’d probably been watching her since she’d driven up.
He wore twill camo pants with utility pockets on the legs and an olive-green T-shirt. A different blue Falcon ball cap, this one newer yet still worn shiny in places, kept his expression a mystery. He didn’t offer a word of welcome.
A shyness that had nothing to do with the now-tainted offer had her stopping and scuffing her pointy toes in the pebbles, her voice sounding ridiculously breathy and feminine. “Hi there.”
His mouth curved up, and his arms dropped, his thumbs hooking into his pockets. “Hi, yourself. Thought I might see you soon, but I didn’t expect you to wander out here.”
“I went by Adaline’s first.” She clasped her hands behind her back and rocked on her feet. Bees swarmed around a mass of honeysuckle growing wild along the side of the garage, filling the silence with nature’s white noise. The air was heady with the scent of mown grass and flowers undercut with a tangy hint of pine. Someone needed to bottle it.
He pushed off the side of the garage and turned to tinker with the wires of a green and black ATV. Behind him, the hood was raised on a small black car partially covered by a light-brown tarp.
Jessica let out a slow breath and tightened her voice from Marilyn Monroe to Hillary Clinton-like proportions. “I’m here to offer you the job of running our experimental kitchens. I’ve been authorized to offer a signing bonus in addition to a twenty percent salary increase.”
He squatted down to adjust something in the ATV’s undercarriage, his thighs bulging and his butt curving. “Your daddy sure is all hot and bothered to hire me. Why?”
Hot and bothered. She rubbed her prickling nape. “Um … what?”
He stood and wiped his hands and face on a blue rag. “Why’s your daddy got such a hard-on to hire me?”
Her gaze dropped to his crotch, and she sucked her bottom lip between her teeth.
Get your head back in the game,
her pantsuit-wearing conscience demanded. She hummed to buy time to get her thoughts straightened out. “Your reputation, I suppose. Once I get your agreement, we can amend the contract with the details. What do you say?”
She stuck her hand out for a shake, hoping he wouldn’t notice the slight tremble. His face was thoughtful and serious. She swallowed. Something flared in her chest when his hand inched toward hers, but instead of clasping her hand in a firm manly shake, he grasped her fingers and pulled her hand up, toward his mouth. Shock left her hand pliable in his. He brushed his lips across the back and let go.
“I haven’t made up my mind yet, Jessie.”
She curled her fingers in and cradled her hand against her chest like his kiss was something precious. No wonder Scarlett O’Hara had fallen hard for Rhett Butler.
He pushed the ATV backward, out of the garage. A duffle bag and a shotgun were bungee-tied on the back rack. “I never imagined my reputation would bring me an insane job offer.”
Stepping out of the way, she stared at his biceps, expecting the fabric to rip into Hulk-like shreds. Her butt hit the lowered tailgate of his truck, leaving her half-sitting on the edge, her purse slipping off her shoulder. He pulled the garage door down, his back flexing under the T-shirt. She wanted to run her hands over the bulges of muscle.
She’d never experienced the kind of mind-numbing lust Logan Wilde inspired. A flash of him on the cover of
Guns and Ammo
in only a pair of underwear distracted her. Did
Guns and Ammo
do Mountain Man beefcake?
Her mind leapt down another tangential, thorny path. What did he look like naked? Probably even better than he did clothed. She shaded her eyes with one of her hands as if he could divine the inappropriate, unprofessional thoughts traipsing around in her head.
The machine growled to life with a shudder and a puff of smoke. He threw a leg over and adjusted some knobs. Over the noise, he yelled, “We can discuss it when I get back. How about dinner Wednesday night?”
Wednesday? Three days? No way could she call her father back and tell him that Logan had put her off … again. Eric and his Porsche would be pulling into Falcon by then.
“With the money we’re offering, you could get a Porsche or a Corvette or—” Her mind blanked on the names of expensive cars. She pushed off the tailgate and wrapped her hand around his forearm. The vibrations of the ATV cascaded up her arm.
“Anything you want.” She added in a hoarse voice, not sure he even heard.
He flashed her a grin, his gaze skimming down her body and away. “You don’t mean that, darlin’. Let’s talk Wednesday.”
He revved the engine, the noise scattering a group of birds off the garage roof. The ATV rolled forward, pulling his arm from her hand. If she let him get away, she might as well kiss the CFO job good-bye. Without thinking about anything but the next second in time, she hopped behind him, sidesaddle, and grabbed the metal rack on the back, careful to avoid the barrel of the gun.
He hit the brakes, throwing her forward into his broad, sun-heated back. He half-turned, his face a mask of disbelief. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
“You’re not blowing me off.”
“I’m heading into those woods”—he pointed as if it needed clarification—“and not coming out until Wednesday morning. You are not prepared. You’re in three-inch heels, for God’s sake.”
If he intended to scare her, it worked. Just a little. From here, the woods seemed an endless, unbroken ocean of brambles, wild animals, and dirt. “I’m tough.”
He shook his head and laughed a “you are insane” kind of laugh. “Hop off. Last chance.”
“Nope.” She tightened her grip.
“You’re going to break your neck like that. Throw a leg over and hang on to me.” His voice was flavored with more amusement than exasperation.
She scrambled to follow his directions, thankful he didn’t turn to watch the peepshow her panties put on. Her feet fit awkwardly behind his boots, the spiked heels vibrating against the side of the ATV, numbing her toes. She grabbed handfuls of his shirt along his sides.
The ATV launched forward, faster and more powerful than she’d expected. Circling around the back of the garage and house, they tore across the field. The hip-high grass parted like magic and rose up behind them as if untouched.
He slowed a bit and turned them onto a narrow path. The ATV bumped into troughs worn down by use. She shifted to see over his right shoulder. A narrow bridge spanned a swiftly moving river a good twenty feet wide. The water was clear and shallow, but she had no desire to plunge from the side of the rusty, rickety-looking truss.
Maybe they would turn and head down the bank. No such luck. Logan stayed on the path and even picked up speed on the downward slope to the river. She pressed into him and clenched her thighs around his hips. Her hands dropped down his shirt and slid to clamp together at his waist, her face pressing into the back of his neck.
The groan of beams cut through the engine’s growl, and clanging metal punctuated everything. Sweet Jesus. A few seconds later they were on solid ground, and Logan hit the throttle. She looked over her shoulder, the bridge a flash of rusted red through the green leaves. The wind whipped her hair around her face. Tree trunks blurred on either side of them. Birds flew in all directions at their approach, and a squirrel jumped overhead, racing them.
Instead of the darkness and gloom of a Grimm’s fairytale, sunlight dappled the path and the energy of life teemed on all sides. A sense of exhilaration hit her. The farther into Logan’s woods they travelled, the lighter the weight on her chest grew.
She laughed and fit her chin on his shoulder. The corner of his mouth closest to her rose, and the ATV surged forward, even faster. The path curved, and the land rolled, but she sensed them gaining altitude, the muddy mostly pine forest giving way to more hardwoods.
The ATV slowed with a series of jerky gear changes, and Logan steered them toward branches hanging so low, she had to duck down to avoid being poked in the eye. Thorns scratched at her bare legs. The trees petered out, and Logan pulled to a stop at the head of a beautiful clearing full of wildflowers.
The machine rumbled into silence. At first, the stillness was off-putting after their wild ride, but the quietness wasn’t the same as silence. Songbirds trilled a soft backdrop to the hammer of a nearby woodpecker. A squirrel chattered overhead.
A rabbit sat on his haunches at the far edge of the clearing. Jessica tugged Logan’s arm, excitement pushing her whisper high. “Look, a bunny!”
She felt more than heard his sniggers. “You’ve never seen a rabbit?”
Of course she’d seen them hopping around her yard in Richmond, but spotting one out here seemed different. “I have. It’s just that … I don’t know. It’s wilder out here.”
He swiveled on the ATV, grabbed her hand, and held it over his heart. No smile was visible, yet he looked as if he was laughing at her. “I promise to protect you from wild, marauding bunny rabbits with my last breath.”
His heart thumped against her hand. Steady, but quick. Or maybe that was her own pulse. The urge to spread her fingers along his pectoral muscle was overwhelming her good sense. She wasn’t out here to flirt and feel him up. The only reason she’d jumped on the ATV was to badger him about the job until he caved. Her only goal was to achieve her dream of becoming Montgomery Industries CFO.
She pulled her hand away, and Logan missed her touch, even though he’d been the one making the dumb joke. She shifted on the seat and tugged at the hem of her skirt. Her action only emphasized the length of her legs. He was between her nearly bare, insanely long legs. Legs he’d dreamed about wrapped around him.
A pair of shorts would have revealed as much skin, yet something about her skirt riding up made the exposure feel naughty and erotic. His gaze travelled from her upper thigh down to the ridiculously sexy, inappropriate high-heel shoe resting behind his worn¸ muddy boot.
Oozing red lines along her calf killed the moment. He covered her knee with one hand and lifted her leg by the ankle with the other, tipping her backward over the duffle on the rack. “Jessie, I’m sorry. I’m not taking very good care of you.”
He swung a leg over the handlebars. A flash of white panties stole any sane thought in his head about seeing to her boo-boos. As graceful as a dancer, she’d arched her leg over and joined him by the ATV, bent over and examining the scratches.
She popped up, a tense, defensive look in her eyes. “I don’t need anyone to take care of me. Do you have some antibacterial spray?”
“Now don’t get all prickly on me. I didn’t mean to offend.” His voice was gruff, and he wondered if her knee-jerk sass was from working with her father or dating assholes. He grabbed a first-aid kit from under the duffle and crouched down in front of her. He fumbled with the latch, feeling like a teenager about to get his first touch of female skin.