Love Required (7 page)

“It usually takes more than one lesson and possibly a diagram to figure it all out,” Jason said.

She just gave him a laugh before her gaze met his, and they stared at each other silently for a few moments. Jason cleared his throat and broke the trance that seemed to be settling over them. “Okay, so I have some good news and some bad news. Which do you want first?”

Tori groaned. Of course there was bad news. “Okay, give me the bad news first.”

“All right, the bad news is that your spare is also flat.”

“Seriously?” she asked as she looked at the offending tire lying on the ground before looking back up at him.

Jason nodded. “Afraid so. But the good news is that your flat tire just looks to be a nail, which can be repaired easily. Did the flat happen today or do you have another car here?”

She grumbled inwardly at how things could go from fine to complicated at warp speed. “No, I found the flat last night. My landlord dropped me off this morning on his way to the store.”

Jason sounded irritated when he said, “What kind of man drops a woman off to take care of a flat tire on her own with an infant in the backseat?”

She wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. Chivalrous men were few and far between, but clearly Jason was one of them. Why couldn’t he be the kind of man she had found instead of Damien? Shaking her head at the direction of her thoughts, she responded, “My landlord is a seventy year old, cane-wielding man with terrible arthritis. I’m quite certain if he was physically capable to fix it for me, he would have.”

Jason dropped his shoulders and gave her a nod. “Okay, he gets a pass then.”

“Good, he deserves it,” she said with affection as she thought of how lucky she was to have found her landlord, Hal. She wasn’t sure how she would’ve made it without him. He didn’t charge her rent, but rather she helped him prepare meals and did some small household tasks he couldn’t perform. Hal was like having a grandfather around, and that was something she never had the luxury of. She cherished the experience now. For her, it felt like two people who needed one another found each other at just the right time.

Jason interrupted her thoughts. “Okay then, how about we take you to get this repaired?”

“Oh, I couldn’t interrupt your day like that. I’ll figure something out. Surely you boys have plans today,” Tori said quickly, feeling bad for his time she had already wasted.

“Nonsense. This is the kind of stuff we stupid men like to do,” he replied with a smirk.

“You’re gonna keep reminding me of that, aren’t you?” she asked with feigned annoyance.

“Sure am,” he assured with humor before adding, “Besides, there’s a crew of women in my family who would totally kick my ass if I didn’t help a lady in distress out.”

“Lady in distress?” she scoffed as she rubbed the sore spot on her butt. “I don’t think I was in distress until you knocked me on my ass.”

Jason barked out a laugh and said, “Good point. And it only reinforces my requirement to assist you.”

“Maybe, but you’re basically a stranger to me. What kind of lesson would we be teaching these impressionable boys if I were to just get in a car with you?” Even though what she was saying was true, she hoped he caught the humor she added. Considering her options, she was going to have to accept his offer, but she wasn’t an ignorant person. He was a stranger, but the fact that she met him last night and he had two young boys with him made her much less worried.

He smiled brightly. “Very good response, Tori. You’re right, I am a stranger. So …” He paused and pulled his wallet out and retrieved a business card from it. Holding his hand out, he continued, “Here is my business card, which has all my information on it. Bring it inside to the receptionist and tell her that I’m helping you with your flat tire.”

Taking the card from his hand, her fingers brushed his, and she smiled when she could see the muscles in his arm tighten. It was good to know she wasn’t the only one affected by their proximity. Lifting the card up to examine it, she gave him a questioning look. “And telling them in the office that you’re fixing my flat tire will accomplish?”

“Two things actually. First, it will help prevent them from towing your car while we’re gone. Second, it will leave a trail if something were to happen to you—someone knows who you were with. Therefore, proving that you have nothing to worry about when you get in my car.” He gave her a smug smile as if he was so smart.
Nothing to worry about? Yeah right
. She had a feeling that being near this man was a dangerous thing, and not for the
Silence of the Lambs
kind of reason, but more like the
Love Potion No.9
kind of problem.

Even though she had already decided she would accept his help, she made it look like she was still considering it. She wasn’t sure if this was her way of playing hard to get with the first man who evoked a reaction from her in a long time, but she had a feeling he would appreciate that she was thinking about it. His praise a few minutes ago, and the fact that he seemed irritated that she was doing this alone with her daughter in tow, told her that he was
that
kind of guy who cared about people in general.

She turned and leaned into the car, lifting and shouldering her purse as she turned back to him. “Would you mind grabbing the car seat for me while I run your business card inside?”

His smile spread wide as he nodded. “Sure thing.”

The smile he was wearing transformed his face from a strong masculine man to a carefree young man. It wasn’t as though he hadn’t given her a smile already, but that one, it was different. It was mesmerizing. Shaking her head to break the spell she was falling under, she said, “I’ll be right back.”

“We’ll be waiting for you, Tori.”

CHAPTER FIVE

JASON watched as Tori walked away, taking in the subtle sway of her curved hips. He couldn’t look away from the heavenly sight, and he felt his body tighten as he imagined what it would feel like to run his hands over those curves. Taking a deep breath, he absorbed the vision and let the euphoric sensation that came with it spread through his body. He wasn’t sure what it was about this woman that had him reacting this way, but he knew he wanted to feel a whole lot more of it. When she finally disappeared into the same office he and the boys had visited earlier, he managed to pull his gaze from the closed door.

As he looked down at his nephews, he willed his body to calm down. “Okay, boys, looks like we get to take two ladies out to eat this morning.” He said as he walked toward his car with the flat tire. Loading one and then the other in his trunk before moving to the back seat of Tori’s car, where he retrieved the infant seat and base to move into his. Closing the door, he made sure to grab her keys and what looked like a diaper bag sitting on the front seat before locking the rest of the doors.

Dylan asked, “I thought we were taking her to fix her tire? Do they have food there too?”

Jason laughed. “No knucklehead, they don’t. But it’ll take a little time to get the tire fixed so what better thing to do then escort the ladies to an early lunch.” He motioned to his car, telling the boys to head that way. Once there, he secured the base and seat in the middle, thankful he recently got a lesson from Jake on how to do it properly. Not that he was an idiot or anything, but since Jake was a paramedic, he helped at the firehouse when they held open houses allowing parents to have their car seat installation checked to make sure it was done properly. Prior to that, Jason had no idea how important it was to make sure a seat was level.

After he finished, the boys climbed in on either side of the seat, and Jason drove his car around the lot. Pulling up in front of the doors Tori had gone into with the baby, he got out and positioned himself on the passenger side of the car to wait for her. No way was he gonna just wait in the car and not open her door for her. His mother raised him to be a gentleman, so he made sure to always act the part.

It was natural for him to open doors for a woman, escort her through rooms, pull out her chair, and stand when she left the table. He never hesitated to act on those instincts. He not only wanted to open doors for Tori, he wanted to carry her through those doors so she wouldn’t have to worry about tripping or stubbing her toe. 

Jason knew these feelings were completely irrational and would have to be examined more closely. But for now, he was going to gather information on the green-eyed beauty who’d cast a spell over him. Nope, no need to track her down since she managed to fall on her butt right in front of him today.

TORI chatted with Darlene, the office receptionist, for a moment as she tried to slow the excitement that was making a circuit through her body. The sudden warmth she was feeling had nothing to do with the temperature outside. The older woman smiled and talked the customary baby talk that seemed to take over composed adults when a baby was in their company. There was just something about little ones that brought out the best side of people, and Tori loved having a front row seat to it.

Once Lexi was hoisted into Darlene’s arms, Tori realized that coming into the office might have been a bad idea. Jason may have suggested it, but he neglected to take into account that when there was a baby in your arms, everyone wanted a piece of the baby love.

Smiling to herself, she watched Lexi stare at the older woman with a strange expression on her face. She didn’t want to be rude but she needed to get out of there. Didn’t Darlene understand there was a man who was the pure definition of masculinity waiting outside for them? After a few moments, and figuring it was as good an excuse as any, she said, “Well, we better get going. I have a ride waiting for us to take me to get my flat fixed.”

Reaching for the baby, Darlene reluctantly handed her over with the standard look of disappointment people had when their “baby time” was done. Tori smiled in understanding as she pulled Lexi against her chest. Leaning forward, she kissed her daughter on the head before readjusting her on to her hip. Darlene waggled her fingers at Lexi in an exaggerated fashion as she said good-bye in her baby-talk voice before looking back up to Tori and asking, “Didn’t you work the wedding reception last night?”

Tori nodded as she shifted the baby to her other hip and re-shouldered her purse, making a mental note that she needed to grab the diaper bag from the car before they left. She nodded, “Was there a problem or a complaint about last night?”

“Oh no, not at all,” Darlene reassured her. “I was just going to ask you if all the men there looked as good as the one who was just in here. Quite a looker, if you know what I mean.”

Tori couldn’t help but laugh a little. Darlene might have been in her late sixties, but she clearly had great taste in men. “Yes, there were quite a few good looking men there last night.” She didn’t want to come off as inappropriate with her response, but she wasn’t the one who brought up handsome men. Dropping her voice to a whisper, she leaned forward like she had a secret. Darlene was instantly intrigued and mirrored Tori’s posture. “But the one who just left was the best looking one for sure. And as it turns out, he’s more than just good looks; he’s the one taking me to get my tire fixed.”

Darlene’s eyebrows shot up as she stood straight. For a second Tori thought that maybe she had crossed a line, but then Darlene smiled big. A second later, she was around the desk and looking out the window by the door. Tori knew when Jason must have come into view because Darlene sighed. She actually sighed. Turning back to Tori, she said, “Mmm, mmm, mmm … if I was thirty years younger.”

Dropping back down in the seat behind her desk, she fanned herself. “I sure hope you shaved your legs today, young lady.”

Now who was saying inappropriate things? “Darlene! I can’t believe you just said that.”

“What? It’s true. You wouldn’t want to make a terrible first impression by rubbing sandpaper legs up against him when you’re wrapped around him. Things might end before they even get started.”

“Oh my God, I take it back. I can’t believe you said
that
!” Tori exclaimed in shock as she tried not to blush at the image of her beneath that big body of his as she wrapped her legs around his waist.

The older woman shrugged. “I may be old, but I’m not dead, sweetie. I know how these things work.”

Shaking her head and moving toward the door, Tori said, “It doesn’t matter if I shaved my legs today because they won’t be wrapped around or rubbing up against anyone later. He’s just being a gentleman and helping me with my tire.”

When she turned to open the door, Darlene said, “Honey, a gentleman calls a tow truck. A man who’s interested finds a reason to be in your presence longer.” Looking back over her shoulder at Darlene, she realized she didn’t have a response. He could’ve just called a tow truck, but instead he was personally making sure her tire was fixed. Suddenly she was very happy that she did, in fact, shave her legs that morning.

Stepping out into the late morning sun, Tori pulled her sunglasses from the top of her head to shield her eyes. It was a bright, clear blue sky and a lovely day to be outside. Too bad she had a car to take care of instead … her thoughts trailed off when she caught sight of Jason. He was talking on the phone while leaning against his car, in his tight t-shirt with jeans, slung low on his waist. A waist that she had imagined squeezing between her legs a few moments ago.
Apparently she had no control over her recently revived libido any longer.

He had pulled the shiny black car up to the curb, and it gave her a little thrill to know that he did that for her. He was certainly polite. Then she recalled Darlene’s comment from a few moments ago and wondered if he was acting as a gentleman or was an interested man finding a reason to be in her company. Her rational mind warred with her heart. Her girlie parts kicked both her mind’s and heart’s asses when it declared that the second option was the only one, and a small tremor worked its way from between her legs and vibrated outward.

Pausing for a moment, she squeezed her legs together to help dispel the sensation. She was unsuccessful. She moved toward him as he ended his call and gave her a breath-taking grin. She’d heard of such smiles existing, but had yet to find one in person. But she had a feeling that Jason would be able to elicit a whole mess of sensations that she was unfamiliar with.
Stop it
, she scolded herself before she could catalog all the possibilities.