Down by Contact - A Seattle Lumberjacks Romance (23 page)

“How does it do that?”

“College coaches have to be good at
fundraising and recruiting, which requires a certain level of
class. You’re a classy woman. The guy you pick has to be at least
somewhat classy.”

“You would think.” She tried not to smile.
So did Zach.

“Look at Tomcat and LaShonna. She dresses
him every time they go out, and he looks like a million bucks. He
just follows her around carrying a glass of wine and smiling.
Doesn’t have to do a thing. He’s already received offers to do
college play-by-play once he retires.”

“What if you don’t win a ring this year? Are
you
retiring?”

“I’m winning that ring.” He’d win or die
trying.

“So what is this important job?” She was
stalling, grasping at something other than the real subject of this
conversation, he could tell.

He’d humor her for a while. “One of the
defensive assistant coaches for the University of Washington is
retiring this year. I want his job. I spoke to my agent, and he
gave me the same line HughJack did. Get out there, tuxedo and all,
and start schmoozing folks.”

“You think my presence will help you get
that job?”

“Yeah, your ability to say the right thing
at the right time, and you always know how to dress or act in any
situation.”

“Maybe you need to learn how to behave in
social situations instead of relying on someone else? Make small
talk. Charm your co-workers, team owners, university donors. That
type of thing.”

He shrugged one shoulder. “I guess.” It was
a huge concession from a proud man with a stubborn streak larger
than the state of Texas.

“Maybe you should start with Tyler.”

Zach rocked back on his heels and shook his
head. “No way. Not that ass.”

“You don’t think you’ll need to deal with
bigger asses than him in your future career? Maybe it’s time you
learned to cope with people you don’t necessarily like.”

“I don’t think there are bigger asses than
Harris out there.” He tempered his opinion with a half smile.

“Of course there are. What about the brash
young freshman who hasn’t proven a thing but still has that cocky,
disrespectful attitude? How are you going to handle him?”

“The way you teach me to handle him.”

“Good answer.” She almost smiled.

“So will you do it? Short-term. Until the
season is over and I get the job.” The more he said the words the
easier it became to convince himself it was a solution for both of
them.

“Teach you some manners? I’ve been
trying.”

“No, marry me.”

“Zach, really. This is a crazy idea.”

“It’s a practical idea.” Okay, so maybe it
really wasn’t so practical. In fact, it was pretty darned crazy,
stupid, and irresponsible. Even more, it was like making a pact
with his own personal devil, the woman who’d been his obsession
when he should’ve been concentrating on keeping his baby brother
safe. Maybe in some weird, twisted way this
was
his payback.
God was forcing him to keep Kelsie safe as penance for not being
there for Gary.

But who would keep his heart safe from
Kelsie?

* * * * *

Marry him?

Kelsie’s head buzzed, as conflicting
thoughts battled for supremacy inside her muddled brain.

Zach’s idea was nuts, crazy, absolutely
insane.

She absolutely could not consider it.

Yet, she was.

Desperate women did desperate things. Right
now, she wasn’t sure what made her more desperate: homelessness,
fear, or being in need of a hot night with a hotter man?

Good or bad, Zach Murphy attracted Kelsie on
a physical level, always had, even though she’d masked her interest
behind friendship and then ridicule. This would not be an
unconsummated marriage of convenience, and it wouldn’t be one
either of them would escape unscathed. But could she keep it just
physical? What if her heart entered into it? Maybe it already had,
or she wouldn’t even be considering this, would she?

Kelsie glanced toward the window. She could
go back to living in her car, but only a too-stupid-to-live woman
would do that. Yet, how stupid would marrying Zach be? She’d just
gotten out of one bad marriage that almost destroyed her. She’d
crawled her way back slowly, and she never wanted to be under
another man’s control, especially a man who had a score to
settle.

What if his marriage proposal was a way to
get even? How well did she really know Zach anymore?

She didn’t have a lot of confidence in her
judgment. She’d thought she’d known Mark. When it came down to it,
she hadn’t known him at all, from his first pointed criticism of
her yellow sun dress the day after their wedding to the time she
asked for a divorce, and he beat her almost to death, and she
awakened in a hospital a day later. Then, to add insult to injury,
her own parents had believed every word Mark said, devastating
her.

Kelsie had stood on the outside looking in.
She’d filed for a divorce and asked for nothing because Mark would
maintain control if she’d gotten alimony. Terrified he’d punish her
for leaving him, she’d run away. Only he had tracked her down. It
was only a matter of time before he struck, and this time she might
not be so lucky as to survive.

But…

She stared at Zach’s kind face. She wanted
to trust him, but she didn’t—couldn’t—trust any man. Zach’s pure
size and strength combined with his career in a violent sport
forced her to be cautious.

Sure, there’d been warning signs with Mark,
but she’d ignored them. A nearly fatal mistake. Once that ring
circled her finger, she’d become his possession, walking, talking,
and dressing exactly as he decreed. She might as well have been
locked in a cell for ten years.

What about Zach? A marriage would mean more
to him than it would to her, despite all his practical
justifications. Would that be fair to him?

Her gaze slipped downward, past his
wonderful lips drawn in a firm, straight line, his strong, square
chin, those broad shoulders and wide chest, to his flat stomach.
Lower still. His cock, the very one she’d been worshipping minutes
ago, strained against the fabric of his jeans, and begged for
mercy. Or was it retribution? She licked her lips, her eyes still
down south. Her brain turned fuzzy, as she imagined all that
glorious muscle and brawn on top of her, moving inside her, making
her come in a rush of passion.

Oh, God, help me.

Zach cleared his throat, shifting from one
foot to another. “Well?”

“Zach, I can’t.” She croaked out the words,
betraying the raw need behind the refusal.

He ran a large hand over his face then
stared her down with determination in his eyes. “I need you to do
this for me. It’s the quickest way for me to achieve my goal while
the window of opportunity is open.” Then he played the one card
that trumped her ability to say no. “You owe me one.”

“I—Zach, I don’t think this is a good idea.”
Suddenly, her knees gave out, and she sank down in a chair.

“It makes sense on a lot of levels. The most
important of which is it would keep you safe.” He gained
confidence, his voice clipped and strong, as if he wouldn’t be
denied. His naked chest dotted with dark, wiry hair swam in front
of her face.

Kelsie shook her head to clear it. “I can’t
think with you standing there half-naked.”

“I could be totally naked if that would
help.” He chuckled.

Her gaze slammed back to his crotch, and
Kelsie’s face heated up like a spaceship rocketing to the sun.
“You’re not helping.”

He grinned, as if he assumed he was in
control of the situation. “Take a half hour, I’ll be in the kitchen
making a snack.”

Kelsie closed her eyes and bit her lower
lip. He was right. Her life couldn’t get any more screwed up unless
Zach turned out to be as controlling as her ex.

Deep down her instincts had warned her about
Mark. Her instincts didn’t say the same thing about Zach. Not at
all.

Lord, she wanted him. Like she’d never
wanted another man.

She buried her head in her hands. Scranton
crawled into her lap and pushed his wet nose against her cheek. His
little tongue licked her chin. Kelsie hugged him to her, finding a
small measure of comfort in his warm little body.

The push-and-pull in her head ping-ponged
from yes to,
Are you freaking nuts?

Zach offered stability she hadn’t had in a
while, but he was a strong personality who’d try to dominate her.
He attracted her. She wanted to sleep with Zach with or without a
marriage, yet something in his eyes warned her that he cared too
much. She could break his heart again, and then she’d be back to
being the selfish opportunist she’d once been.

She needed her independence, but she could
set boundaries with him. On the plus side if he didn’t comply,
she’d leave. And she’d be able to get her business on track. Not
only could she help legitimize Zach as a contender for the coaching
position, but he’d legitimize her business. After all, if a woman
could give a man like Zach a little culture and social graces, she
could do that for anyone.

Kelsie rubbed her cheek against Scranton’s
soft fur while the battle raged in her head with more controversy
than a presidential debate. She’d done worse to get where she
needed to get, but she was a better person now. A far better
person.

A deal with a brawny, brown-eyed devil might
be the worst or best deal she ever made.

She lifted her head and glanced out the
window again. Somewhere out there was a faceless man who followed
her relentlessly. He might have stood near her car countless times
and stared in the windows, his face pressed against the glass as
she slept. He might have taken pictures of her or followed her into
the public park bathroom in the dead of night when she needed to
pee. Even worse, what might he do in the future? What might he be
capable of? She couldn’t stay in her car at Zach’s, not now. She’d
be back to a deserted parking lot or a city park. All alone. At the
stranger’s mercy.

No one would hear her scream. They’d find
her bruised, naked body in a dumpster.

Kelsie shuddered.

She had few options and fewer choices, but
one thing she knew for certain, Zach would keep her safe, and she
owed him. It was the reason she’d come to Seattle. She could pay
her penance and be an asset to him. She could help him land that
coaching job by schmoozing those touchdown club donors, the
coaches, and their wives.

Wouldn’t that be a win-win in a bizarre sort
of way?

Kelsie stood, still holding Scranton. “What
do you think, little guy? Does living here beat living in a car?”
Scranton wagged his tail and yapped. Staying here apparently had
his vote.

Sometimes given to rash, split-second
decisions, Kelsie made one. Squaring her shoulders, she walked into
the kitchen before she changed her mind.

Zach glanced up when she entered, his brow
furrowed with worry, as he clenched and unclenched his hands.
Finally he shoved them in his pockets and leaned against the
counter in a casual pose that was anything but.

She cleared her throat. “Can I tell you a
story?”

“I guess so.” His brows knitted together in
the cutest way, as confusion crossed his rugged features. She found
his vulnerability endearing. It sealed the deal in her mind.

“I was in Starbucks a few days ago, and a
woman came in on the arm of man. She wore Ann Taylor, and he wore
Fremont thrift shop.”

Zach frowned and squinted at her, as if he
was certain he was missing something.

Kelsie rambled on. “They didn’t seem to fit.
A woman needs a man who complements her in appearance but doesn’t
steal the limelight.”

“Okay.” Zach frowned, obviously clueless as
to where her babbling was headed.

“The man’s stubble and his long shaggy hair
made him look like a homeless person. He needed a stylish haircut.
He needed a shave. She needed to take him shopping for well-fitting
clothes at a store that did tailoring. He was a big man and
off-the-rack stuff wouldn’t fit him properly.”

He frowned. “Custom-made stuff is
expensive.”

“But quality lasts and men aspiring to
certain positions need to wear clothes befitting of the
position.”

“How do you know he was aspiring for any
position other than the missionary one?” Zach’s mouth twitched into
a half smile.

“Because I listened to their conversation.
He’d been trying to find a job and couldn’t.” She did something
very old-style Kelsie and snorted her snobby little snort. “A guy
won’t be hired for certain types of jobs dressed in redneck
casual.”

He raised one eyebrow. “So you would’ve
dressed him for success?”

“Yes, and I would have made sure he looked
the part every time he went out in public. No more holey jeans or
ratty T-shirts.”

Zach’s dress of choice. He shifted his
weight, still resting his butt against the counter. “Maybe that’s
what makes him most comfortable.”

“If that’s the case, then he wasn’t the
right man for that woman.”

“He may have been the perfect man behind
closed doors. Maybe she likes the challenge of a project.”

“She does, but the project needs to
cooperate to get what he wants, and spend his money to fund the
project.”

He started to smile, as if he’d finally
figured out the method to her madness. “The project will cooperate
but under protest.”

“Good. Then I believe things will work out
to be mutually acceptable to both parties.”

“So that’s a yes?” He stared at her
earnestly, like a little boy pleading for a second piece of
double-chocolate birthday cake. Only she was the cake. She couldn’t
disappoint him. Not this time, even though a small sane part of her
screamed at her to run like hell.

She wouldn’t run. She wouldn’t hide. She’d
face the music and give him her answer.