Getting Lucky (11 page)

She wasn’t hoping to become wife number two or anything, but another Melody lesson was that relationships were about people relating. Period. They didn’t have time frames, they didn’t have specific objectives. They were just about people connecting.

Could she connect with TJ Bennett beyond helping him with his shoulder pain?

Oh, yeah she could.

Happily.

“You just let me know,” she said. “I’m actually a professional rubber.”

“Are you now?”

She nodded. “I have my massage therapy license.” True story. She’d done that before starting the nursing program. She’d loved massage and had kept her license active. There was nothing like human touch to restore all kinds of good things in a body.

That and aromatherapy were two things she and her mother
had
seen eye to eye on. Hope loved essential oils and used them herself in any number of ways. She didn’t know as much as Melody had. Hope stuck with the basics. But she

“Makes sense why my shoulder feels so good now,” he said.

“Well, that and the fact that you like me touching you,” she said. If they were going to connect, then TJ was going to be as aware of it as she was. Even if she had to spell it all out every step of the way. “Being aroused helps decrease your pain levels.”

TJ turned to face her fully. “Is that right?”

She nodded. “Oxytocin. Leads to a release of endorphins.”

“You know all kinds of things.”

“You have no idea.” Did she sound breathless? She felt breathless.

“I think this would be a good time to go back to the house.”

Or get naked. She could really go either direction.

“Hope.” His voice was soft but firm.

She realized she was staring at his abs again. She lifted her gaze to his, reluctantly.

“Time to go.”

“You sure?” she asked.

“I’m having a hard time even remembering I have a shoulder right now.”

Good. The oxytocin was working. “So we could—”

“Go.”

Chapter Four

TJ started off the dock and Hope had little choice but to follow.

She grabbed her soggy shirt and slipped into her flip-flops, then padded down the wooden slats behind him. Without him there, the dock had lost a lot of its appeal anyway.

Hope followed TJ over the grass and dirt leading away from the pond. She was treated to a very nice view of his naked back and denim-clad ass, and she realized there were advantages to having him walk away from her. But after a few yards, he slowed his long strides so that she could catch up and walk next to him.

“So how many ex monkeys do you have?” she asked in the silence.

He sighed.

“Is there a chance I might run into the orangutan? Or one of the other monkeys?”

“I didn’t say she was an orangutan.”

“That’s how I’m imagining her,” Hope said with a shrug.
She realized she was way too interested in all of this.

“I changed my mind.”

“Orangutan is more accurate, right?”

“About
you
,” he said. “You’re more like one of the fluffy yippy dogs. The ones that run around your heels and bounce up and down and yap for attention.”

She frowned at him, but he didn’t even glance at her. “You should be flattered I want your attention,” she said.

“Uh huh,” was all she got in reply.

She was wondering what was next—and how she could make what was next what she wanted it to be—when they hit the side yard.

He suddenly stopped and took her upper arm. I have to know,” he said, turning her to face him.

“Know what?” What it was like to kiss her? Because she was definitely wondering about that herself.

“What this says.” He took the side of his T-shirt in his hand and tugged her closer.

She took the step without a single hesitation.

He slowly began to pull it up her body, watching her face carefully. She knew that he would stop if she told him to. But why in the hell would she stop him?

The cotton slid along her skin, but the shirt was baggy enough on her that his fingers didn’t even brush against her. Dammit.

Once the shirt slid past the end of the tattoo, he stopped. The last curl on the last letter ended just below where her bra would hit. If she were wearing one. Which she was not. And she had never been more aware of that in her life.

Going without bras and panties was another Melody thing. She hadn’t liked to be confined in any way. Hence the flowy skirts and blousy tops and flip-flops. In fact, Melody preferred to be barefoot whenever possible.

Hope had to admit it was all very freeing. She could get used to the no-panty-and-bra thing. Though when TJ was around, she was
really
aware of her bare parts rubbing against her clothing.

His gaze went from her face to the ink that swirled up her side.

Without a word, she pulled the top of her skirt down so he could see the beginning of the letters just below her hip bone.

He swallowed hard and then read out loud, “Your life is an occasion. Rise to it.”

He looked at her again.

“Is there any chance that you know what movie that quote is from?” she asked. If he did, she just might marry him. A hot, grumpy farmer who made her melt with only a look and who was whimsical enough to know that movie would get whatever he wanted from her.

“Sorry, no.” He let go of her shirt.

Damn.

She caught the shirt and held it up. “
Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium
.”

He lifted an eyebrow.

Yeah, it didn’t sound like his type of movie to her either, and she’d just met him. “My mom and I loved it. I’ve seen it probably thirty times.”

He studied the tattoo again and she felt goose bumps erupt all over her body.

“Dustin Hoffman,” she said. She definitely sounded breathless this time. “Natalie Portman. And—”

She sucked in a quick breath as TJ lifted a hand and traced his finger over the letters on her skin.

She coughed, worked on breathing and then said, “Jason Bateman.”

It was a very ornate script font and there were lots of curls and loops. The pad of his finger was rough against her skin, and every drag on every dip made her breathing speed up and her temperature rise.

One finger. That was all that was touching her, and she felt as if he was stroking her clit and nipples at the same time.

“TJ—”

That was all the plea for more she got out before he put his big hand at the back of her neck and pulled her in as he lowered his head.

His lips were hot and greedy. He didn’t lead up to anything, didn’t tease and coax, didn’t ease in. He took over, plundered, dove right in. And nothing could have turned Hope on more.

She gripped his shoulders and lifted onto her tiptoes, needing to be closer, needing to be
taller
. She was too fricking short to get close enough and there was a definite lack of higher surfaces to boost herself onto out here in the middle of his yard.

TJ swept his tongue over her bottom lip and nipped the flesh lightly, making her groan and give him full access to her mouth. He stroked his tongue over hers as he slid his fingers up into her hair and tugged slightly, making her moan again as her head fell back. He dipped his knees and dragged his mouth down the length of her throat. If her eyes hadn’t been closed, they would have crossed.

“Hi!”

A voice broke into the moment.

TJ froze.

Hope did too, but it took a few seconds for it to sink in that someone else was here. Her whole body was humming, and all her brain synapses were firing messages like,
Get closer
,
Take him deeper
,
Too many clothes
and
He really is big and hard all over
.

All other stimuli were coming into her consciousness very slowly.

TJ groaned and rested his forehead against hers for a moment. He slid his hand out of her hair, let her settle back onto her feet and then stepped away from her, breaking all contact.

She blinked, breathed and studied his face.

Oh, yeah, he was having some trouble getting beyond the closer, deep, hard stuff too.

“Hey, TJ.”

Hope looked from his face toward the new arrival.

A beautiful blond was coming toward them, a covered dish in her hands and a good-looking guy with a huge grin a step behind her.

“Fuck,” TJ muttered.

There was no way these people hadn’t seen the kiss. Or couldn’t see she was wearing his T-shirt and that he was naked from the waist up.

Yeah, that would be hard to miss.

“Hope, this is my sister-in-law Delaney and my brother Tucker,” TJ said, turning toward the two people coming toward them.

“Almost-sister-in-law,” Delaney corrected with a big smile. “And you are?”

Hope licked her lips and glanced from Delaney to TJ and back again. “I’m Hope.”

Delaney seemed friendly and very, very curious. Tucker looked friendly and not curious so much as…knowing.

Delaney looked at TJ expectantly. Hope did too. Now what?

Then TJ surprised them all, including Hope—
especially
Hope—by putting his arm around her and pulling her against his side.

“Hope is my girlfriend.”

Fucking karma.

TJ couldn’t believe that Delaney and Tucker were here.

They were interrupting him in the midst of doing something really stupid with a woman he’d just met.

Exactly like he had interrupted
them
the first night Delaney was in town and in the midst of an emotional crisis.

Of course, that hadn’t stopped Tucker from doing something stupid…like falling in love with her.

And it had turned out not to be all that stupid.

Which did
not
help TJ’s mental state in regards to Hope.

But they were here, and the fact that it had surprised him to see them just went to show how far gone he was with Hope around.

“Your girlfriend?” Delaney repeated.

TJ stepped forward to take the casserole dish from her hands before she dropped it. No sense wasting his mother’s cooking because he’d shocked his almost-sister-in-law.

And the dish had to be from his mother. Delaney didn’t cook. She did, however, butt into his business.

Delaney frowned up at him. “I can’t believe you have a girlfriend you haven’t told us about.”

Okay, she didn’t look
shocked
exactly. But she did look annoyed.

Tucker stepped forward with a huge grin. He stuck his hand out to Hope. “Hi. Welcome. Nice to meet you.” He nudged Delaney in the back and she shook her head and smiled at Hope.

“Yes, definitely nice to meet you.”

Now TJ almost felt like he should apologize to his brother. Emotional crisis or not, stranger or not, kissing Hope had just rocked his world.

Or maybe he should be
thanking
Tucker and Delaney. He wasn’t really a fan of having his world rocked.

“We brought dinner. Mom was worried,” Tucker said.

TJ had no idea what time it was. He and Hope had been out on the dock for a while. Half-naked. He could close his eyes and picture every inch of her, from the top of her head to the colorful skirt she wore. He knew the exact shade of her nipples. He knew the exact texture of her lips. He knew the feel of her hair.

He resolutely kept his eyes open.

“Didn’t mean to worry anyone.” Hell, he’d been worrying himself since Hope had shown up. Now he’d gotten to know her—and
see
her—and he was deeply concerned.

“Well, you didn’t show for dinner, and Dad told Mom not to worry and to leave you alone. So, she got more worried,” Tucker said.

“And then Adrianne called and asked me who the girl was who had been looking for you earlier,” Delaney said. “We immediately volunteered to bring dinner over.” She gave TJ a grin.

“That’s very thoughtful of you.” He tried not to grit his teeth as he said it. Shit, Adrianne knew about Hope. Had met her. Who else had been in the bakery? Maybe half the town already knew that Hope was here.

“Well, we didn’t want Mom walking in on something she shouldn’t see,” Tucker said with a chuckle.

Yeah, this was all too familiar. TJ had volunteered to bring dessert to the two of them when Delaney and Tucker had been alone long enough to get into trouble.

“Let’s go in and have some,” Delaney said, watching Hope as if she’d just discovered a shiny new toy.

“Would you go in and get the table set?” TJ asked. “I just need to check one more thing on Hope’s camper for her.”

Delaney looked from TJ to Hope and back.

Tucker was finally the one who said, “Sure. See you in five minutes.”

“Give us ten.”

Tucker nodded with a grin. He grabbed the casserole dish from TJ with one hand and Delaney’s hand with the other, pulling her with him toward the house.