Free Double Dealing (2013) by Linda Cajio Page A

“Burrows says it took him three days to find him the last time. Michael, you can sit on Samson later!”
    “Did you really kidnap that man, Aunt Rae?” Mark, the middle boy, asked.
    “Yes. Now upstairs.”
    “Wow!”
    Admiring the curving outline of her jean-clad derriere as she followed the boys up the staircase, Jed smiled to himself. He could still feel her lips on his. Her mouth had been so soft and incredibly sweet in surrender. She’d admitted she liked him—and he knew she didn’t want to. Her emotional defenses were weakening, and so were his. His career was in the balance, and yet he was more worried about pleasing Rae than his company. Unfortunately, there had been no opportunity so far to really talk to her, and it looked like there wouldn’t be until after her nephews left tomorrow evening. He wondered what would have happened if the boys’ visit had been delayed another week …
    If Rand’s words were correct, then the boys’ arrival had been a last minute plan by Rae. His smile widened when he realized she was using them as a form of physical protection. But who didn’t she trust? Him?
    Or herself?
    “And this is a front door too.”
    Rae sighed in exasperation as Michael, her youngest nephew, grinned happily up at his new friend. Closing the door in question after all of them had passed through, Jed smiled indulgently at the child.
    “I know,” he said, transferring his smile to her. “A long time ago people used to sail on the river, so everyone had their front doors put in backwards so they could watch out for pirates. Theneveryone got smart and started using the road, so they put in a second front door. But,” his voice lowered dramatically, “on a dark and stormy night you can still hear the pirate ghosts howl as they search the river in vain for ships to loot.”
    As the boys chattered excitedly about pirates and gold, Rae hid a smile. She hadn’t been much older than Michael when she’d proudly told the same story to Jed. Years later, she’d been disappointed to learn that the pirates had been part of Uncle Merry’s imagination.
    “Beat ya to the river!” Mark suddenly yelled.
    The older boys and Samson immediately broke into a run across the patio and down the sloping lawn. Little Michael’s chin quivered as he stopped and watched.
    “They run too fast.”
    Jed scooped him up in a fireman’s hold, saying, “We may still lose, buddy, but we’ll have fun doing it!”
    Michael’s high-pitched giggles reached Rae’s ears as Jed dashed after the rest of the group. She looked down at Delilah, who continued at her mistress’s slower pace, and said, “He found Samson’s weakness for people food, and now he’s got a friend for life. Michael thinks he’s the best thing since ice cream. Mark thinks his being kidnapped is great. Randall discovered he likes Harvey, and Burrows treats him like a treasured guest. Even my brother likes him, because he could do back-flips. You’re the only decent judge of character in this family, Delilah.”
    She wished she could say the same for herself, but she too had fallen under Jed’s spell. It was hisstanding in the corner with Samson that had done it, she decided. She liked him. In spite of everything, she liked him. And the longer he stayed, the stronger her feelings toward him would grow. The thought terrified her.
    She admitted it was her own fault. Until she’d kidnapped him, she’d been relatively safe. Her emotions had been firmly in control, and she’d been able to keep a tight rein on her attraction to him. But there had been a fire in that first kiss, a fire she hadn’t known she was capable of feeling. What would happen when that fire finally went out of control?
    Allowing her question to go unanswered, she inhaled the cool crisp air and made her way down to the riverbank. The back gardens were fading with the promise of winter but were still beautiful, and the trees were in their autumn glory. At the edge of the property,