He stepped inside. “Hi, Maggie. Is Lori here?” He held up his folder. “I have more papers for her to sign,” he said, suddenly hearing the noises coming from upstairs.
“Oh, she’s here.” Maggie grinned. “Been working all day trying to get things finished before her sister and nephew’s arrival tomorrow. Charlie’s helping.” There was a big thud and Maggie looked concerned. “But maybe you should have a look.”
Jace nodded. He headed for the stairs and took them two at a time to shorten the trip. He walked down the hall and was surprised when he found the source of the noise. It was coming from the room across from Lori’s childhood bedroom.
He looked in the slightly open door and found Charlie and Lori kneeling on the floor with sections of wood spread out. The two were engrossed in reading a sheet of directions.
Lori brushed back a strand of hair, revealing her pretty face. Then his heart went soaring and his body heated up as she reached for something and her jeans pulled taut over her cute, rounded bottom.
“It says right here that A goes into B. Okay we got that, but I can’t find the next piece.” She held up the sheet of paper. “Do you see this one?”
Hiding his amusement, Jace stepped into the room. “Could you two use some help?”
They both swung around. “Mr. Yeager,” Charlie said and got to his feet. “Oh, yes, we could use your expertise. And since you’re here to help, I’ll go do my work.” The older man left, looking relieved.
Jace turned back at Lori. “What are you building?”
“Bunk beds,” she offered.
Jace pulled off his jacket as he glanced over the stacks of boxes. “Why not buy it assembled?”
Lori stood. “I didn’t have time to go to Durango, so I got them online. I didn’t realize it would come in boxes.”
“You should have called me. I would have sent Mac over.” He took the paper from her. Their hands brushed, and he quickly busied himself by looking over the directions. “Okay, let’s lay out the rails and the end pieces.”
Lori took one end and he took the other. He set the bolts, then went to her end. He was close and could breathe in her scent, which distracted the hell out of him. He finally got the bolt tightened. He got up and went to the other side, away from temptation, but she followed him.
Over the next hour, they’d become engrossed in building the elaborate bunk-bed set. They stood back and looked over their accomplishment.
“Not bad work.” He glanced at the woman beside him and saw her blink. “What’s wrong?”
She shook her head. “Zack is going to love it. He’s had to share a room with his mother the past few months. Thank you for this.”
“Not a problem,” he told her. “You helped me out with Cassie. I know how much you want to make a home for your sister and your nephew.”
“They’ve had a rough time of it lately.” She put on a smile. “It’s going to be great for them to be here.”
Jace looked around the freshly painted blue room. “I thought you were going to put Zack in your old bedroom.”
She shrugged. “I tried, but I couldn’t bring myself to touch it.” She looked at him and he saw the pain in her eyes. “I guess I’m still trying to figure out why my father kept it the same all these years. Crazy, huh?”
Unable to help himself, he draped his arm across her shoulders. “It’s okay, Lori. You have a lot to work through. You’ve pulled up your roots and come back here. There’s a lot to deal with.”
She looked up. “But I have the funds now to take care of my family.”
That was the one thing that kind of bothered him. He’d been pretty well-off financially before his divorce, but to have a woman with so much money when he was trying to scrape by hit him in his pride. But he truly thought it bothered her more.
“So how does it feel to have that kind of money?”
She scrunched up her nose. “Oddly strange,” she admitted. “It’s far too much. I’m the kind of girl who’s had to work all my life, and when I lost my job a few months ago, I was really worried about what was going to happen, especially for Gina and Zack.”
“They have you now.”
She looked up at him, her eyes bright and rich in color. “And I have them. I wouldn’t stay here in Destiny, money or no money, if they couldn’t be with me. Their safety and well-being is the most important thing to me.”
He frowned. “Why wouldn’t they be safe here?”
She glanced away. “It’s just a worry I have.”
He touched her chin to get her to look at him. “Lori, what aren’t you telling me? Is someone threatening you or your family?”
She finally looked at him. “It’s Gina’s ex-husband. He’ll be getting out of jail soon.”
“Why did he go to jail?”
“Look, Jace, I’m not sure Gina wants anyone to know her private business.”
“I’m not a gossip. If your family needs protection then I want to help.”
Lori was surprised at his offer. She wasn’t used to anyone helping them. “Eric is in for drug possession and spousal abuse. He swore when he got out he’d make Gina pay for having him arrested.”
She felt Jace tense. “So that’s why you were headed out of state?”
She nodded.
“Does this Eric guy know where Gina is moving to?”
“No one knows. We haven’t even told Zack. I want so badly for Gina to make a life here. She has full custody of her son, but we’re still afraid of what the man might do.”
“This house has a security system. I hope you’re using it.”
She nodded.
“And I think you should have protection for yourself, also. You’re worth a lot of money and you could be a target for threats from this guy. Maybe a security guard isn’t out of the question.”
“I can’t let my life be dictated by a coward.”
Jace clenched his fists. “I don’t care for a creep who gets his jollies by beating women, either, but you still need to take precautions. Not an armed guard, but maybe a security man disguised as a gardener or handyman.”
She hesitated. “If Gina will agree.”
“What about you? I’m sure you’ve had some run-ins with your brother-in-law.”
Lori shivered, recalling Eric’s threats.
Jace’s eyes narrowed. “Did he hurt you, too?”
“Just a few shoves here and there, but I couldn’t let him hurt Gina.”
He cursed and walked away, then came back to her. He reached out and cupped her face. “He put his hands on you, Lori. No man ever has the right to do that unless the woman wants it.”
She stared into his eyes. That was the problem. She wanted Jace’s hands on her. Badly.
JACE had trouble letting go of Lori. He knew the minute he touched her again this would happen.
He cursed under his breath. “This isn’t a good idea.” His gaze searched her pretty face, those bedroom eyes, then he stopped at her perfect