She looks down at my feet. “Oh, shit.” She jumps off the dresser and grabs a wet towel from the floor near her bed. Crash pokes his nose into the room and she smacks it lightly. “Bad dog!”
She wipes his feet, then follows the tracks through the living room, scrubbing them up.
Sherm is on the porch petting Burn.
“He’s been sitting at the door whining for you all day,” Ulie tells Sherm, gesturing to the dog at his feet. “He has an unhealthy fixation.”
Sherm lifts the dog into his lap with his uncasted arm and hugs him. “He’s just scared.”
“Well, his brother keeps peeing on the floor, so take them for a walk.”
He puts the puppy down and retrieves the leashes from the hook near the door.
I’m going through the motions, but I realize my mind is still one hundred percent consumed by lascivious thoughts of a petite blonde. “I’m heading out for a minute,” I say, unable to restrain myself anymore. “Keep an eye on the boys.”
Ulie looks over her shoulder, and her brows press together. “Where are you going?”
“There’s something I need to do,” I tell her, and it’s true, even though every shred of common sense is screaming at me not to.
I step out onto the porch, see Sherm heading down the path to the beach with the dogs. I move to the edge of the bluff and look up the shore.
Grant is running along the beach toward the house. He looks like I feel when I’m running down there—trying to outrun the demons. I know what mine are. Maybe I should sit him down at some point and try to understand his.
I head toward the driveway, swipe a palm along the handlebars of his Harley. It’s up to me to keep this family from self-destructing. So far, I’m doing a pretty shit job of it. With anyone who could help me dead, running, or behind bars, pulling the business out of chaos is going to be harder than I thought. Less firepower means tighter focus and more planning. If I’m doing it on my own, I need to stay sharp.
Right now, I’m not.
I’ve got my own demons to dance with. I’ve got to nail down what makes Adri Wilson so goddamn irresistible. Then I need to fuck her out of my system, or figure out how to resist her so I can focus on the task at hand.
I drop into the driver’s seat of the Lumina and don’t let myself think about how dangerous this woman’s hold on me is as I drive, faster than I should, hoping to catch her before she leaves school.
I pull into the parking lot and stalk to her classroom, praying that she’ll be gone already, and praying that she won’t. The door’s unlocked when I turn the knob. I hesitate before pushing it open.
The room is empty, but her messenger bag is open on her desk . . . which means she’s still here somewhere.
I step outside, meander back up the walk. When I get to the parking lot, I see several small groups of people clustered in the playground behind the office. I move slowly that direction. Adri is off by herself near the jungle gym.
Everyone I pass looks up at me. Conversations stall. They’re working in groups setting up what appear to be plywood stands. When I reach Adri, her back is to me and she’s staring at a stack of plywood and two-by-fours on the ground. A strand of golden hair has escaped her ponytail. She’s twisting it around her finger as she fidgets with a plastic bag of bolts in her other hand.
I clear my throat and she looks up. When those baby blues find me standing here, her eyebrows arch and her mouth drops open a little. She smooths the strand of hair back with her palm. “Why did you come back? Did you need something?” she asks, regaining her composure.
“Yes,” I say without taking my eyes off her.
“What do you need?”
My heart kicks in my chest. As much as I know I shouldn’t . . . can’t . . . I need her. “To tell you yes. I was an ass before and I’ve changed my mind about dinner . . . if the offer still stands.”
Her eyes widen. She glances behind me, probably to determine if anyone is within earshot. She steps closer and lowers her voice. “You could have told me that when you dropped Sherm off tomorrow. You didn’t need