Free Clover by Braxton Cole Page B

the question at Jake.
    Jake climbed the stairs and held out his hand. “Yes sir, if that’s all right with you.”
    Mr. Watson had a firm grip and it caught Jake slightly off guard. He’d expected the soft hand of an accountant, and it was, but his hold on Jake’s as they shook hands conveyed a message of strength and conviction. He expressed, without a word, that Jake should think twice before messing around with his daughter.
    “That’s very neighborly of you. Thank you, Jake.” Mr. Watson gave one last final squeeze before he let go. Jake wanted to shake his hand out to relieve the residual pressure, but knew that would be seen as a sign of weakness, so he didn’t. He did cringe and whimper a little on the inside though.
    “Anytime, sir.” For all the time Jake had spent at Clover and R.J.’s place when they were kids, he could count the number of encounters he’d had with Mr. Watson on both hands. That made this one doubly important and intimidating.
    “We should get going.” Clover kissed her dad on the cheek. Then she took Jake’s hand in hers and led him away from her dad. She looked over her shoulder on the way to the truck to say, “Bye, Dad.”
    When they were safely in the truck and headed down the road, Jake forced himself to relax. “Holy crap. I had no idea how intimidating your dad could be.”
    Clover laughed and kissed his cheek. She’d claimed the middle of the seat like it was hers and that made the scary dad moment totally worth it.
    “And to make it worse, Brandon was laughing at me.” Jake still didn’t know what that was about.
    “No, Brandon was laughing at Dad. He thinks it’s hysterical when he gets all huffy like that.”
    “Yeah, well, I didn’t think it was funny.”
    “You weren’t supposed to.” Clover released his hand and palmed his thigh. When she spoke again, her hand was considerably higher and her voice considerably lower. “You were supposed to be warned off of thinking lustful thoughts about his only daughter. Did it work?”
    She fingered his inseam so close to the crotch that his voice raised a full octave when he responded. “Not at all.” It was embarrassing how easily she affected him, but he loved it just the same.
    His Aunt Tammy was right to worry. He had no idea how he was going to let Clover work for the hours she was on shift and he was left with nothing to do but stare and think about all the wonderful things they could be doing together.
     
    #
     
    Clover wasn’t expecting Jake to park and get out of the truck when they arrived at the pool. She thought he would drop her off like he had the day before. When he grabbed his bag from behind the seat with a blush and a smile, she spontaneously kissed him, because she just couldn’t not do it. “What’s that?”
    “I thought I’d swim for a while,” he said with a shrug and blushed even redder.
    “How long?” She thought of the summer when she was sixteen and first got a job at the pool. She’d picked Jake up every day on her way to work and he swam and stared at her for the entire shift. He’d been thirteen and all awkward limbs and cracking voice. She’d been indifferent to having his gaze on her at the time, but the thought of him watching her today filled her belly with heat.
    Jake shrugged again. “I’m in no hurry.”
    “Are you going to stay for my whole shift?” God, she wanted to kiss him again.
    “I dunno. Maybe. Probably.” Jake tugged at his hair and looked to the side before bringing his gaze back to look her in the eyes. “Yes. Definitely, yes.”
    Clover nodded. “Okay.” She couldn’t hold back her smile, but did manage to walk, not skip, through the parking lot and into the building. She held Jake’s hand all the way. Her smile faded when she saw Vince, but her grip on Jake’s hand did not.
    Vince stood just inside the door, where the shade of the building protected him, but he could still see out easily. He looked pointedly at their joined hands, but said