Forever Wishes (Montana Brides, Book 4) Page 5

Or maybe a night of hot sex and high heels had done it. Whatever the reason, she wasn’t getting her hopes up about why he’d arrived on her doorstep. She didn’t know much about what happened after a one-night stand, but the name gave her a serious clue.

  “Did you get a hard time from Nicky about forgetting to call her?”

  Erin thought back to her carrot cake bribe and grinned. “Nothing a slice of cake didn’t fix. She’s heading back to Denver tonight for a few days.”

  “Have they decided what they’re going to do about their jobs?”

  Erin sipped her lemonade. Nicky owned her own management consultancy company in Denver. Permanently commuting between Montana and Colorado hadn’t been an option she’d wanted to consider, so she’d come up with another plan. “She’s going to see if one of her senior consultants wants to manage the day-to-day operations of the company. Nicky will work on specific projects from Bozeman and fly back to Denver for meetings. Have you known Nicky and Sam long?”

  “I’ve known Sam forever. We starved our way through college together. There’s nothing like being rock bottom broke to bring out the best in your friends.”

  “I can’t imagine you living on the poverty line.”

  “We were so broke that we wouldn’t even have come close to the poverty line. Some days we ate cereal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.” He laughed at the disbelieving look on her face. “It’s true.”

  “Okay,” she smiled, “I’ll believe you, but only because I’m a sucker for a good story.” Grabbing a knife, she started to move a batch of gingerbread onto a plate.

  “If you want to show me what to do, I’ll give you a hand.”

  “Do you really want to help or do you feel sorry for me surrounded by this mess?”

  Jake found an empty space for his glass and set it down. “I want to help. Besides, the cookies taste really good. I’m always open to trying another one to make sure your quality control measures are up to scratch.”

  “I’ve got plenty for you to take home.” She waved her hand behind her. “My reject pile is pretty impressive.”

  “Rejects? How can a gingerbread man get rejected?”

  “Broken arms, missing legs, and the odd singed body part,” she laughed.

  “They don’t need to be cookie cutter perfect to taste great.” He moved across the kitchen and picked up a gingerbread man with half an arm missing. “Adds to the character. Believe me, anyone that tastes these cookies won’t be worried about what they look like, especially the kids.”

  Erin stared at the gingerbread man making its way into his mouth. He was right. And best of all, she now had more than enough to keep everyone happy. “Thank you for your pearls of wisdom, oh wise one.” Taking a plate out of the pantry, she passed it across to him. “If you want to stack a dozen gingerbread men on here, that’d be great.”

  “No problem. Talking about food, I thought I’d take you out for lunch next week. What do you think?”

  “Are you asking me out on a bona fide first date?”

  “That depends. Do I get any extra points for calling it a second date?”

  Heat rushed to her cheeks at the teasing note in his voice. After the night they’d shared it would be interesting to see what extra privileges he thought a second date might bring. She left her knife on the counter and walked across to him.

  “Well...” Two could play tease and what she lacked in experience she was more than happy to make up for in enthusiasm. “A first date is like ordering an ice cream cone; you look at all the flavors and choose one you think will taste nice.” She moved a bit closer. On tippy toes whispered, “The second date is when you get to lick the ice cream and see if it tastes as good as it looks. Are you ready to be licked?”

  Erin’s gaze swept over Jake’s face as her fingers tweaked the collar of his shirt. She laughed happily and went to step back from his stunned expression.

  Jake wrapped his arms around her. “I think we’ve already covered dates one and two. Tell me what I can expect on a third date?”

  Erin’s smile disappeared as he pulled her closer, anchoring her against his chest. Her heart rate rocketed skyward, matching the anticipation thumping through her body. “Third dates can be tricky.” Heaven help them both. She knew exactly what she wanted to do with him on a third date. And on a fourth, fifth, and sixth, if he’d have her.

  Lowering his head, Jake devoured her mouth with his lips, softly at first, then with increasing pressure as she pushed forward for more.

  Lifting her arms around his neck, she moved against him, restless for the hard length of him pressed against every square inch of her body. His warm hands drifted over her back, molding her to him, leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake.

  A loud beeping noise filled the kitchen. Moving her lips to his throat, Erin’s sluggish brain tried to work out what was causing the noise.

  “Gingerbread!” Wrenching her body away, she spun toward the oven. “Saved by the bell,” she muttered.

  Jake moved out of her way as she slid the tray onto the stainless steel counter. With trembling hands, she started to move the cookies across to a cooling rack, praying Jake was having the same trouble breathing as she was. Sneaking a peek in his direction, she sighed.

  A dull blush stained his cheeks. He caught her gaze and grinned.

  Reaching for a knife, he helped her stack the gingerbread. “Tell me about the tricky third date we’re going on?”

  Erin jumped, nearly dropping the last cookie on the floor. Kissing Jake Williams should be put on the list of the world’s most dangerous habits.

  He took an unnatural interest in the wave of heat burning her face.

  She poked her nose in the air. “I’m flushed from the heat in the oven.”

  “Whatever you say.” He lightly kissed her hot cheek.

  Bustling around the kitchen, Erin tried putting third date activities out of her mind before she ended up burning her fingers. She glanced at Jake and swallowed. The grin on his face told her he was looking forward to exploring their third date potential. And he wasn’t the only one.

  “What day suits you for lunch?”

  Lunch? How was a girl supposed to concentrate after being kissed senseless? “Umm. How about Wednesday?” She didn’t know if Wednesday would be a good day or not. The way her brain had short-circuited she’d been impressed she could remember the names of the days of the week, let alone choose one.

  “Wednesday, it is. If you give me your cell phone number I’ll call you the day before to make sure it still works for you.”

  Finally, her brain picked up the pace. Paper, pen. Easy. She handed Jake her number and looked him in the eye. “I don’t know if this thing happening between us is a good idea.”

  “They say the same about chocolate. But it doesn’t stop people from devouring tons of it.” He tapped her nose with his fingertip as he turned to leave. “I’ll see you on Wednesday. After that, you can tell me if you’re ready to gain a few pounds.”

  ***

  Wednesday quickly turned into the day from hell. Arriving at the library that morning, Erin discovered that four librarians had called in sick. Calling in all favors, she’d managed to get enough casual staff to cover the check-out desks, but everything else had to go on hold.

  Unfortunately, two classes of five and six-year-olds were booked to come in for a half hour reading session with Superman. Superman being Jeff Emerson, the local history librarian and most buff male in the building.

  Superman was at home, vomiting over a bowl in his bathroom. Erin didn’t want to disappoint fifty-eight kids who were expecting to rub shoulders with the man of steel. There was only one person that would go anywhere near to fitting the costume and he was one phone call and twenty minutes away.

  “No.”

  “Come on, Jake. It’s for the kids.”

  “No, it’s not. You just want to ogle my manly bits in ultra tight Lycra.”

  Erin burst out laughing. Long shot or not, she wasn’t finished t
rying to convince him that he’d fit the bill nicely. “The costume was made for you. The color will bring out the blue in your eyes. It’s only half an hour.”

  “More like thirty minutes of torture.” With a hopeful note in his voice, he asked, “Is this what you might call my payback time?”

  Trust him to try and wiggle out of his pre-auction promise with something over and done with in thirty minutes. She really wanted to save that for something more adventurous than dress-up time at the library. And he knew it.

  “You drive a hard bargain.” Erin’s gaze wandered around the almost empty library. The few staff that had made it into work were busy shelving books before the front doors opened. “If you do this, all debts will be cleared. I’ll even take you out to the movies and dinner on Saturday night.”

  Jake drawled down the phone, “Sounds to me like that’s our tricky third date.”

  “Could be.” Erin sighed a little wistfully, before remembering where she was.

  Jake didn’t say anything. She took that as a positive sign. Putting his manly virtues on display was obviously a big thing for him. Erin jumped when he began to speak. Her mind had wandered again, thinking about how manly his virtues were.

  “As long as I get to play Superman with you after the movies, you’ve got a deal.”

  This time, Erin kept quiet. Wiping her palms along her skirt, she imagined what Superman might want to do.

  Let’s face it, she thought. She was desperate and he was available. If Lois Lane could handle Superman, then Erin Reynolds could do the same.

  “Fine.” Squaring her shoulders, she glanced out of her office window, watching normal daily life carry on outside the building. This conversation had been anything but normal. “Be here for eleven thirty, otherwise the deals off, Superman.”

  Jake’s laughter echoed down the end of the phone as she quickly disconnected.

  ***

  Jake arrived at the library fifteen minutes before the two classes were due to arrive. Erin looked up from shelving a trolley of books. “What’s with the sunglasses, Superman?” He’d left his Aviators wrapped around his face, hiding killer blue eyes that would have made half the women in the building swoon.

  The hot-bod radar on every female pricked to attention as he moved through the aisles. With his gunmetal gray suit hugging all six-foot-five inches of him, and an attitude that said he was here for business, not pleasure, he was a sight to behold. Definitely bad boy central.

  “Shh. I’m hoping if I leave them on, no one will recognize me.”

  “Umm. I hate to be the one to tell you, but Superman didn’t wear sunglasses. And the kids are going to see a lot more of you than your eyes.”

  Pocketing his glasses, he stared at her with his big baby blues. “Fine. Show me my changing room. Let’s get this show on the road.”

  “The bathroom’s this way.”

  A groan of despair followed in her wake. “You’d better watch out. I’m coming after you big time on Saturday, Lois.”

  She tripped over her feet. Blast. Keeping her gaze locked on the desk in front of her, she didn’t look back. If she’d learned anything over the last few days, it was that Jake Williams missed nothing. A grin would be plastered all over his face at her hormonal slip.

  Grabbing the costume off the hook in her office, she passed it to him. “Second door on the right, Clark. Your audience arrives in ten minutes. I’ll be waiting for you in my office.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  While Jake changed into his alter ego, she went through her action plan for the superhero story-time. Carolyn would be organizing the classes of kids when they arrived, and she’d already put the books aside for Superman to read. It was just a matter of waiting until he’d…Oh–My-God.

  Her breathing stopped. Maybe this hadn’t been such a good idea.

  Standing in the doorway, Jake looked like he could conquer the world. Blue Lycra hugged every toned muscle in his body, and there were lots of them to hug.

  She’d underestimated just how well he’d squeeze into the costume. He didn’t need blow-up muscles to impress the kids. He’d been built for action the old-fashioned way, and the red “S” on his chest accentuated just how well developed he was. Her mouth went dry remembering what the man of steel looked like under all that Lycra.

  “Are you wearing boxers?” Erin’s hand flew to her mouth. Sinking into her chair, she tried desperately to make herself invisible.

  Jake’s eyebrows rose about a foot in the air. With an innocent expression dancing in his eyes, he said, “Why, Lois? Are you worried about my panty line showing?” Flicking the back of his red cape in the air, he turned to give her an impressive view of his bottom. “Actually, my boxers didn’t work under the costume so I whipped them off.”

  Her cheeks felt as though they were flaming redder than his cape.

  “Want to take a look?”

  Every hormone in her body leaped to attention. Pushing her chair back, she darted toward the door, wanting to put as much distance between her and the man of steel’s oh-so-perfect body. The only problem was that Superman didn’t get the hint. He stayed where he was, smack bang in the center of her only escape route.

  For good measure, Jake put both arms out, trapping her in the office. “If you want to get through, you’ve got to tell me the magic words.”

  “Wrong story,” she muttered. “That was Aladdin.” Erin didn’t dare look in his eyes. Staring straight at his chest happened to be as far north as her gaze was brave enough to travel.

  It was just a pity that her vision got a little blurry the further down the ‘S’ her eyes traveled. She yanked her gaze up, determined to at least give the impression that she was a grown woman and not a sex-starved jellyfish.

  “The magic words I’m thinking about have nothing to do with Aladdin. Try again.”

  Her gaze landed squarely on laughing blue eyes. So much for keeping a professional distance between them. Standing behind her desk and shooing him out the door would have been a lot safer, but then she would have missed the devilish glint in his eyes. And the sexy dimple creasing his cheek.

  He waited, leaning toward her. “Do you want me to whisper it in your ear?”

  Every bone in her body melted. If Superman ever returned to the library, he’d come with a health warning and a strict ‘parental supervision required’ notice for all attendees.

  They should have chosen Captain Carrot as their superhero. Erin tried to imagine Jake dressed like a muscle-bound rabbit. With a disgusted sigh, she realized that he’d still look like sex on wheels and probably convert half the librarians into vegetarians.

  Jake looked as though he’d quite happily stand in her doorway all day. She crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Okay. Tell me the magic words. But make it quick, the kids are waiting.”

  He leaned forward, whispering the password in her ear.

  The blush that had skimmed her body earlier was nothing compared to the hot and heady wave of heat slamming into the pit of her stomach. He’d been as subtle as a bright pink bus on the highway. And to make matters worse, she now knew what Superman had in mind for Saturday night.

  ***

  At the end of the storytime, Erin hustled Superman into her office. “I feel like the manager of a rock star, except I don’t know whether I’m protecting you from the kids or their moms.”

  A mini-stampede of pint-sized superhero worshippers had ambushed Jake before he’d opened the first page of his book. The kids had been agog at the fact that Superman had landed in the library parking lot on a downwind from Metropolis. One of them even insisted their mom had sewn kryptonite into his shirt to protect him from Superman’s powers.

  “The moms I could handle, but Kryptonite-kid just about dropped me to the ground with his karate chop.” Jake unhooked his cape from around his neck. “He must have been an evil Lex Luthor clone in disguise. There were some pretty serious behavior issues going on inside that kid’s head.”

  Erin took the cap
e he passed over, hoping like crazy he wouldn’t strip anything else off in her office. He yanked at one of his boots, leaving it on the chair in front of her desk.

  “What have you got planned for next week?” he asked.

  The other boot joined its partner. Erin’s gaze locked on the blue bodysuit. He wouldn’t take if off in her office. She knew he wouldn’t. She licked her lips. But maybe if she slipped the costume into her bag on Saturday night, she might get to see if Superman lived up to his public relations spiel.

  “Earth to Erin? Are you listening?”

  She blinked, trying to figure out what he’d asked her.

  “Next week…who’s reading the kids a story?”

  Her expression must have looked as blank as her brain.

  “Story-time?”

  “Oh…Spiderman.” She cleared her throat. “We got a good price on the costume hire if we ordered two at once.” Erin mentally whacked herself on the head. As if he really cared about how much the costumes had cost. She clutched the red cape in her hands, holding on tight. “I know lunch couldn’t top what just happened in the library, but do you want to go to the café next door?”

  “Why, Miss Reynolds, I didn’t know you cared.”

  Heat washed across her cheeks as his eyes laughed at her. He knew she cared and right at this moment she was worried she might care too much.

  He unbuckled his yellow belt. “Are we flying or walking?”

  Grabbing his work suit off the back of her door, she pushed it into his hands. “Definitely walking. Otherwise, you’ll cause a riot.”

  “Spoilsport. I hope you’ve got that costume booked for a few more days, Lois.”

  Erin felt a blush streak across her face. The man could read her mind faster than a speeding bullet. She smiled sweetly at him. “You won’t need a costume for what I’ve got in mind, Superman.”

  It was his turn to look a little hot and steamy under the collar. He sent a wicked glance her way before disappearing down the corridor.

  Erin gazed at the door for a few minutes after he left, wondering what she’d gotten herself into. Dreaming about a certain male wasn’t going to get the stack of invoices on her desk approved for payment, or the latest budget re-forecast finished before three o’clock.