“Good.” Dillon kissed his wife, and Jo couldn’t help watching as Gloria gently rested a hand on her husband’s chest. Jo quickly averted her eyes. Unfortunately, they ended up landing to the right...which was where Mr. Thaddeus Knight was standing.
He winked.
“Thad tells me you tried out the hot tub last night,” Dillon said.
Oh, good God.
“Mmm-hmm,” Jolie intoned. What else had Thad said?
“It’s good for a body. Helps you sleep.”
“Sure does.” Jo could not meet Dillon’s gaze. Or anyone’s, for that matter.
“Have you met Curtis?”
Thankful for the change of subject, Jo looked up and greeted the third man with a smile. Then the discussion turned to the estimated arrival times of the rest of the guests and all mention of the hot tub ceased as the men sat down to eat, Thad taking the seat right beside her.
“Morning, Ms. Jolie. You’re looking well.”
His words were drawn out, one syllable running into the next with weird inflections that seemed to mock, or could be suggestive. It was hard to tell with that Southern accent, which only served to remind Jolie of her early-morning fantasy session.
Could he tell what she was thinking?
“Thank you,” she mumbled before stuffing a forkful of egg into her mouth.
Thad’s right hand was within her line of sight, because it rested right beside her plate. She stared. His hand was exactly as she’d imagined it. Large and well formed, tanned—or maybe that was just his olive skin tone. His fingers were long and veins stood out on the back, like he actually had muscles in there.
Vivid images from her early-morning musings filtered through her mind. She glanced up. “You said you’re a hand. What does that mean, exactly?”
“I could tell you, but showing you would be way more fun.”
Déjà vu struck.
“Then you’d better show me,” she said, as if reading from a preordained script.
“It would be my pleasure.”
Chills ran up her spine, sifting through her hair and settling on the crown of her head as she stared into Thad’s eyes. His dark blue eyes.
Cerulean, cobalt, indigo... Her writer’s mind came up with a list of synonyms for blue while she got lost in the azure depths of his gaze.
An idea washed over her as she dove into that ocean of blue. What if she stopped being embarrassed about the fact that she’d been caught skinny-dipping? What if she embraced it...no, flaunted it, instead? What if Thad really was interested—like in her fantasy—and what if she welcomed it? What would it be like to be that person?
“What size are your feet?”
Hell, she could be anyone she wanted to be on this trip. No one knew her. No one would know the difference.
Thad snapped his fingers in front of her face. “Hello?”
“Huh?” Oh, God. He was talking to her and she was staring at him openmouthed. She gave her head a shake. “Sorry. I—”
“You were a long way off just now. Everything okay?”
“Yeah. Perfect.” She smiled. “What did you say? Something about feet?”
“I asked you what size you are. Thought you could borrow some boots because if you’re going to be traipsing around in the snow and ice, you need a better pair of footwear than the ones you drove up in.”
“Oh...right. I’m size eight.”
“Do you have a size eight she could borrow?” Thad asked Gloria.
“I’m sure I can find something.”
“All right, then. You get suited up, miss, and meet me in the yard in ten.”
* * *
WHILE THAD WAITED for Jolie to get dressed, a car drove up the lane toward the ranch. He squinted in the bright sun, made brighter by all the newly fallen snow. The car was one of those sporty deals, meant for city driving. Not for snowy country roads. Good thing whoever it was had arrived this morning instead of last night.
Once the car was parked, a man and a boy got out. The boy was probably about nine or ten years old, his hair stuck up at all angles, like it hadn’t been combed in a good couple of days. His eyes were wide and uncertain as he took in the surroundings.
Thad started over, the dogs on his heels, but Humper couldn’t contain his zealous nature and went bounding on ahead, straight at the kid.
“Humper!” He didn’t want a repeat of last night.
Too late. Humper launched himself at the boy, toppling him into the fresh pile of snow. Thankfully the sounds the kid made were ones of laughter and not abject fear. Not like the soft whimpering notes that Jolie had been making last night.
A sudden image of Jolie lying naked beneath him, blinded him. She was making the very same noises as she had last night, only in his fantasy it was from pleasure, not fear.
Thad rubbed his eyes.
Where the hell had that thought come from?
Probably the result of watching that crazy dog. He whistled and Humper looked up, tongue lolling in ecstasy. That goddamn mutt’s tongue was too big for his fat head. He ignored Thad, focused on the boy, who was standing upright again, and gave in to his basic urges.
Striding up to the dog, he pulled him off. “Sorry about that, kid. This dog’s still young and trying to exert his dominance on anything that moves. Even some things that don’t move.”
“It’s okay,” the boy said. “He reminds me of Biscuit.”
“You’ve got a dog, do you?”
The boy glanced at the man. “Well...we used to. He went to a farm. Right, Dad?”
“Right.” The guy mussed the top of his son’s head. His eyes were tired. Sad. There was a story there; Thad could see it plain as if the title of a book was written across the man’s forehead.
“Would you like to meet the other two?” Sue and Digger sat obediently a few yards away.
“Yeah!”
A short whistle brought the other animals over and after a quick introduction, the kid was running around the yard with three ecstatic dogs chasing him while his father carried the bags inside.
Thad turned. He’d been aware of the woman’s presence, as she came to stand behind him, before she’d even said a word. Why he sensed her like he did, he couldn’t say. Was it her scent? That sweet, delicious smell of peppermint candy?
“Hi.”
“Hiya, city slicker.”
She grimaced at the name but then pointed at one of the animals that was chasing the kid around on the other side of the yard. “The dog’s name is Humper?”
She continued to watch the chase and he took the opportunity to study her. She looked different by day. In the bright light, her brown hair had honey streaks running through it, and her big eyes were flecked with gold. Her mouth was wide, probably too wide, but he liked it, particularly when she smiled. In fact, he wanted to see one of those smiles right about now.
“He comes by it honestly,” Thad explained when she met his gaze again. “Sue went out looking for a baby-daddy a year and a half ago. Must have been slim pickin’s because, while these mutts are friendly, they aren’t exactly the sharpest tools in the shed.”
There it was. The smile he’d been going for. Too bad she went