Total pages in book: 32
Estimated words: 29962 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 150(@200wpm)___ 120(@250wpm)___ 100(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 29962 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 150(@200wpm)___ 120(@250wpm)___ 100(@300wpm)
I spin around and show off the sheath dress that accents my figure. “It molds my curves, so I can look fantastic in my dress and also look longingly at the dessert bar.”
He grunts, the wooden rocking chair creaking beneath his big frame as he shifts in his seat. “That doesn’t sound like too much fun.”
I give him a grin. “What about you? Do they have you in some torture device too?”
He pats his knee. In a low, seductive voice, he says, “I’ll show you mine if you’ll show me yours.”
I chuckle. I’ve never been the type to flirt. The fastest way for a woman to lose credibility in my industry is to be caught dating or sleeping with a client. I keep every man at arm’s length, careful to avoid even the hint of a scandal.
But with Jasper, I feel carefree and relaxed. He’s not in my industry, and I’m hundreds of miles from my home. “You don’t look like the type to wear shapewear.”
He leans forward and tugs on the hem of his dress pants, pulling up one leg to slowly reveal a prosthetic limb. His earlier limp makes sense now. Still, I don’t know what to say. I’ve never met anyone that’s missing a limb. “Wow, I’m really sorry.”
He rolls back down the leg of the pants and shrugs. “Don’t be. The shark attack is a cool story to tell my friends.”
I shudder. I’ve never been to the beach for precisely that reason. I know my odds of being the victim of a shark attack aren’t high, but the fact that it’s even a possibility makes the ocean a big no. “Is that how you lost it?”
He laughs then, a booming sound that echoes around us and fills me with an unexpected warmth. “That’s one of the more entertaining ways I could have lost it.”
I laugh too, partly because I’m relieved that he’s so easygoing about this. I definitely wouldn’t have minded if he’d been the handsy one at the wedding reception. “So, you’re not going to tell me?”
“That wasn’t the deal. I showed you mine,” he says with a waggle of his eyebrows.
I can’t resist teasing him some more. “It’s much too cold to show you mine.”
He strokes his bushy beard, tugging at the strands. He has a faraway look on his face, like he’s thinking hard about something. “Should I take you somewhere warmer, then?”
I tilt my head, studying him. He’s friends with Zac, which tells me a lot. Zac is solid, the kind of man that would only let someone he trusted completely into his circle. “Where would we go?”
He flashes me a mischievous smile, showing off one crooked tooth. “I have a cabin not far from here, in the mountains of Courage County. You might know that place, since the groom is from the town.”
I frown and tap my finger against my chin. I have every intention of leaving here tonight with this big, gruff man. “I don’t know you.”
He nods. “That’s fair. Let me tell you about myself then. I rescue animals on the side of the road. I can’t carry a tune in a bucket. I like to draw sometimes. They call me the Da Vinci of stick figures, and I’ve got a hard-on for a curvy woman in a red dress.”
I fake gasp rather than dwell on how happy I am that he said he has a hard-on for me. “The Da Vinci of stick figures?”
He winks. “The Louvre hasn’t come calling yet, but they will one day.”
I chuckle. “Well, I won’t hold that against you.”
He stands, getting to his feet with an easy grace that tells me he’s had his prosthetic for a very long time. He holds out a big, scarred hand. “Come on, honey. Spend the night with a mountain man who will worship your curves.”
Chapter 2
Thea
The sky is dark when I pull my rental car into a thicket of trees on a dirt path. The moon illuminates a cabin, outlining a porch strewn with throw pillows that have been knocked off the oversized wicker furniture. The front door is framed by large wooden planters filled with evergreen plants, red berries, and pinecones.
“Your place is so welcoming,” I tell Jasper as I leave the warmth of my rental car. I insisted on following him out here rather than leaving with him.
I pull his suit coat tighter around my body, delighted that his big clothes wrap around my curvy frame. As we left the wedding, he saw the goosebumps on my arm and insisted I wear it. But the possessive look on his face when I put it on had me shivering for a very different reason.
He grins, showing off that crooked tooth again. “And so am I.”
The moment I step into his cozy cabin, I have an overwhelming feeling that I’m home. I’ve heard other people talk about the comfort, safety and peace they experience when they go home at the end of a long, hard day, but I’ve never felt it. I always assumed something was wrong with me. Now I see I’ve never had a home. The thought puts a lump in my throat.