He’d been working all day without a proper break. Shouldering more responsibility than any one man should have to.
Jolene picked up the thermos of water and untouched apple left over from Nate’s lunch and crossed to the wooden ladder leading up to the loft. On impulse, she pulled a blanket from a tack hook and carried it with her.
At the base of the ladder, she debated logistics for all of about five seconds, then stuffed the apple down the front of her blouse and buttoned it in. She looped the blanket around her neck, clenched the thermos firmly in her left hand and climbed.
Ten rungs later, Jolene stepped off onto the loft platform. “Nate?” She set the thermos on a nearby bale and spread the blanket out over the bed of loose hay covering the floor of the loft. Dozens of dust motes shimmered in the rays of sunlight above the spot, creating an ethereal atmosphere around her. “Nate?” she repeated, squinting up into the square of sunlight above her. “You should come see this. It’s beautiful. Nate?”
Was that a curse?
“Jolene?” Quick, uneven footsteps pounded overhead, sending a considerably less magical cloud of dust down over her head. She had to blink and turn away. She jumped back a step, midsneeze, as a red metal toolbox dropped through the opening and crashed to the loft floor, stirring up more dust and shaking the planks beneath her feet. “Jolene Kannon-Angel, I swear to God…”
A pair of brown work boots, attached to long, muscular legs, dropped through the hole next. Then, a naked back. A few black and blue spots marred the smooth ripple of muscles, but the sheen of healthy perspiration actually enhanced the impression of masculine strength. Broad shoulders, sturdy triceps and a royal blue cap followed as Nate lowered himself through the roof.
Jolene’s lips parted involuntarily. Her father’s old jeans cupped Nate’s backside, yet left an oddly erotic strip of trim, white cotton brief showing at the waistband. She clenched her thighs together, caught off guard by a sudden gush of dampness and heat.
“I just wanted…” She began, but a grunt of pain drew her attention to the stark white bandage at the top of his tanned shoulder. “Does it hurt?” Duh. “Sorry.” She swallowed the apology on a nervous laugh.
But he wasn’t smiling when he turned around.
His glance at the ladder told her exactly where this discussion was headed. “I swear, woman. You promised—”
“I promised I wouldn’t climb up the ladder to the roof of the house.”
“You—” He sputtered, snapping his mouth shut to re-think his argument. “You—” He peeled off his cap, smoothed his palm across his dark hair, then jerked the cap back into place. Jolene curled her toes inside her boots and held her ground when he advanced a step, his gaze centered squarely on the swell of her belly. “What about the baby?”
“He climbed up with me just fine.” She found her own nerves calming in the face of his protective anger. “We appreciate your concern, but we are both fine. You’re the one who needs to take a break. It’s okay if you abdicate responsibility for a few minutes and relax.” She pointed to the opening above his head. “The sunlight streaming in makes this a beautiful place to rest.”
Instead of glancing up, Nate dropped his gaze to the red plaid blanket beneath his feet. He took note of the steel thermos and the bales of hay surrounding the two of them. His chest heaved in a weary sigh that emphasized the flat bronze nipples peeking out through a T-shaped mat of curly dark hair. Before she could close her eyes, Jolene had followed the narrowing trail of hair until it disappeared into the waistband behind the snap of his jeans.
Whoa.
Nate had fallen as silent as she had.
The air seemed close. Her pulse hammered in her ears.
Suddenly, the sunny spot didn’t feel like a warm, magical place of rest, but something decidedly hotter. Secluded. Intimate. She didn’t know what to do about it, but she understood the sultry invitation hanging in the air between them.
Nate understood, too.
“Jolene.” His voice was a throaty rumble that shivered along her spine. “I don’t think—”
In a burst of nervous energy, Jolene pulled the apple out of her blouse and held it out to him in her open palm. “I thought you might be hungry.”
CHAPTER TEN
JOLENE HELD OUT the shiny red apple like Eve offering temptation itself.
Nate couldn’t think straight. He couldn’t get past the hungry perusal of