Free Trusting Jake (Blueprint To Love Book 1) by Lauren Giordano Page B

of oatmeal. . . and you just ruined it."   
    "Not a chance of that happening. Right, Sport?"
    Alex turned to acknowledge Jake as he entered the room. "Yeah, right. Mom, you know what? Me an' Jake stayed up all night. And you know what else? He told me all the stuff he doesn't like to eat."
    Jen had to fight her double-take when her gorgeous, clean-shaven boss pulled up a chair near the bed. His hair still damp from the shower, he filled the room with a heady scent of soap and his fresh, outdoorsy aftershave. Inhaling the clean fragrance, she bit back the sigh of pleasure that wanted to escape. This close-up, her boss was devastatingly male. Her stomach knotted with a sudden wave of longing that left her stunned by its intensity. All she could picture were those strong, capable arms wrapped around her.
    Good Lord, what was wrong with her? Awareness tripped through her as Jen remembered the feel of his steady hands. Struggling to hang on to the thread of conversation, she managed to choke out a response. "What else is on that list besides oatmeal?"
    Thankfully, her son needed little encouragement. Her pulse still racing, she shot Jake a carefully schooled look of amusement when Alex wrinkled his nose in an obvious attempt to add color to his story.
    "Oh. . . lots of stuff. Mostly the same things as me. You know. . . vegetables and fruit. . ."
    "And oatmeal," she reminded.
    "Hey, wait a minute. I like some vegetables, and a lot of fruits," Jake protested.
    "Mom! Mom– you know what else? We watched Conan."
    "Isn't that pretty late for you?"
    "Nah. I wasn't sleepy. Jake and me. . . we stayed up practically all night. And you know what? Mom? Mom!"
    "I'm listening, Al."
    "There was this girl on there . . . and Jake said she was a hot babe."
    "Really?" Jen couldn't keep the smile from her lips when she turned to study her boss. Now that it was too late, he was probably realizing she would be privy to every detail of their nocturnal conversations.
    She wasn't disappointed when she confirmed his embarrassed smile. Jake looked as though he'd been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. It wouldn't hurt to learn a few more intimate details she could file away for a later date. Jen kept her gaze on him as she spoke to her son again. "Finish your breakfast, Al. You can tell me all about your night with Jake once we get home."
    To her chagrin, her boss seemed to recover quickly, just when she was enjoying seeing him on the defensive.
    "Hey Sport, remember our oath," he reminded. "Most of our talk was guy stuff. So, it's confidential," he lied, barely managing to keep a straight face.
    "Yeah, mom. It's class. . ."  Alex turned to him, his expression confused. "What is it again?"
    "Classified," Jake supplied the word with a smile.
    "Yeah, mom. Classified. Like the army guys. So, I can't tell you about the hot babe."
    "Uh-huh." She'd see about that.
    ***
    It wasn't until much later in the day it occurred to Jen the information highway worked both ways. She began to wonder what family trivia Alex had spilled to her inquisitive boss. Alas, the sleep deficit her son had incurred during his hospital adventure finally caught up with him. He was safely tucked in bed for a long nap before they would pick up Megan at school. Her subtle questioning would have to wait. And subtle it would have to be. Alex's new favorite word was 'classified' and it seemed to apply to every blasted question she asked.
    Left with a few hours to kill, she pondered her strategy to get Alex to talk while she carefully climbed the ladder. She'd been meaning to clean the gutters for weeks, but hadn't felt safe leaving the kids to their own devices while she was outside, fifteen feet up on a ladder.
    "Good Lord, it's a wonder they haven't collapsed." Eying the sagging gutters with dismay, she steadied herself, before yanking rubber gloves from her back pocket. Her nose wrinkled at the scent of decaying leaves when she scooped her hands into the muck. "Yuck. Nice and soggy,