“Really?” Torren asked. “You’ll watch him?”
She giggled again and wondered what the hell was up with that. She never giggled so much in her life, and here she was acting like a giddy schoolgirl. “Sure, isn’t that what neighbors do?”
Torren looked confused, and she giggled again.Dammit.
“Well, I owe you—big time. If this works out, maybe we could talk about you helping me when I have to go out overnight, just until Tucker is big enough to be trained to come along with me.” Tana found herself nodding, not paying attention to what Torren was saying. She was too busy fixating on the way his lips moved and thinking how they might feel on hers or, even better, on her body. She needed to pull herself together. Tana handed Tucker back to Torren, lingering with her hand touching his for just a moment. She liked the way his simple touch made her whole body heat. It had been so long since she felt something like that.
“I’ll bring him over with his stuff before I leave in the morning. What time do you get out of bed?” He was staring at her as if he could see right through her, and his voice was almost a whisper. She leaned into his body and inhaled his clean, musky scent. Yep, time for her to go back into her house.
“Six in the morning,” she squeaked and turned to walk into her home. She ducked into her kitchen, watching as her sexy new neighbor slowly made his way across the street and disappeared into his house. She had no idea what just happened, but the one thing that she was sure about was that Torren Harrison was going to be one hard man to ignore.
CHAPTER ONE
Torren had one hell of a trip, and he was ready to sleep for at least a day, if not longer. The small group that hired his adventure company originally wanted to just go hiking and have a campfire, but it quickly turned into a search and rescue. The man who booked the trip was in his late sixties and wanted to take his son and ten-year-old grandson on a trip they would remember for a lifetime, and that’s exactly what they got.
About halfway through the hike on the first day, Grandpa started having chest pains, and Torren had to call in a helicopter to fly him to the closest hospital. He convinced his son and grandson to continue with the trip, refusing to let them accompany him to the hospital. Thankfully, the old guy was going to pull through, although he had to have a small procedure to open a clogged artery. After he reunited the family at the hospital, he headed back into town and decided to unpack the gear. He didn’t want to have to go back into the store on his only day off. Tag was helping a customer at the register, so Torren snuck into the back to quickly finish. He knew that his brother was going to give him some shit about almost losing a client. He didn’t want to have to put up with Tag’s corny jokes about people“dying” to get out of hiking up a mountain with him. He wanted a shower, a burger, and his bed—in that order. Tag finished up with his customer and found Torren in the back room.
“Hey, man. You look like shit,” Tag accused. Torren rolled his eyes and went back to unloading his equipment.
“Thanks, these two days have been hell. So, if you don’t mind, I just want to finish up here and head home.” Torren found the whole concept of home foreign. Until a few days ago, home was a small condo that he and Tag shared. Now he’d be going to the house that he worked on with his own two hands, and it felt good. Tag nodded and clapped Torren on the back.
“I’m just glad everything ended well. How’s the puppy?” Tag asked. He smiled back at his brother, and Torren felt his stomach drop.
“Shit, I forgot that I have to pick up that damn dog. Whose idea was it to get me a puppy, anyway?” Torren threw his half-empty backpack onto the bottom shelf. It was just going to have to wait until later. He promised his sexy new neighbor that he would pick up Tucker before dinner. She mentioned something about having to take her twin daughters to dance class, and she didn’t want to leave the puppy alone for too long.
“It was all my idea, and you’re welcome.” Tag laughed and headed for the front of the store. “Asshole,” Torren cursed under his breath.
“I heard that,” Tag yelled back. “You have mail up here. Be sure to grab it on your way out, dickhead.” Torren flashed his brother the finger and grabbed the personal gear that he usually kept at his place. He took the mail that Tag held out for him. “The top envelope is an invitation to Aaron and Sunny’s wedding. They are having it at the fire station in a few weeks.”
Torren let out a long, dramatic whistle. “So, she’s finally doing it, getting hitched? How’s Aaron handling his last numbered days as a free man?” Torren clutched at his chest, asthough the thought of getting married was enough to give him chest pains.
“You know he can’t wait to marry Sunny, right? She’s the one who changed the date three times, not him. She wanted all her brothers and sisters to be able to come to the wedding. If you ask me, Aaron has the patience of a saint,” Tag said. Torren checked the clock that hung on the wall behind the register and realized that he needed to leave or he would never keep his promise to Tana to be home before her girls’ dance class.
“I’ll be out for a day or two.” He left through the front door before Tag could argue about him taking an extra day off. He earned it.
“Sunny says to bring a plus one,” Tag shouted after him, and Torren’s stomach sank. He just spent the past few months trying to pull himself together and stop dating his way through the town’s women, and now Aaron and Sunny wanted him to bring a date to their wedding?
“Not happening,” Torren shouted back at his brother and jumped into his pickup to head home.
Tana paced her little front yard, waiting for Torren Harrison to finally get home. His hellhound chewed her favorite pair of heels, and she was ready to hand him back over. She wasn’t sure what she was thinking when she agreed to watch Torren’s puppy. She chalked up her minor lapse of good sense to the fact that he was probably the best-looking man she had ever seen. It didn’t help that she hadn’t been with anyone since leaving her husband two years ago. She knew that living without the constant threat of having the crap beat out of her or her girls wasworth it, but she missed the companionship that her marriage once offered her.
When she and Matt were first married, it was good. She missed having a partner, someone with whom she could share her day. She would give anything to have an ally in raising her girls. She worried daily that she wasn’t enough for them. Her daughters deserved to have both parents in their lives. It wasn’t their fault that their father was a drunk asshole, nor was it hers. But she still felt guilty for not giving her girls everything they might need in life, namely, a father figure.
Beth came bouncing out into the yard, holding Tucker against her white dance leotard. Tana wanted to send her back into the house to change into a new outfit that wasn’t covered with mud and black dog hair, but she didn’t. Once Torren showed up to claim his puppy, they would have to hightail it into town to try to make the last half of the girls’ dance class.
“Momma, why can’t we just keep him? Sarah and I love him, and Mr. Torren said he doesn’t have time for a puppy.” Tana barked out her laugh while thinking about incorporating the little terror into their already crazy lives.
“I know you want a puppy, but Mommy can’t take on anything else that requires me to feed or take care of it. You girls are my top priority, and I don’t want to take any of my time away from either of you.” Beth shot her a look, letting her know that she wasn’t buying the crap she was trying to peddle. Tana sighed, “Honey, I just don’t have the time or money to take care of a puppy right now. Maybe in a few years, when you girls are older and can help out more.” Beth stomped her little foot, and Tana found herself wanting to laugh, but she also didn’t want her strong-willed daughter to think that she was discounting her feelings. “Go on in and find your sister. Mr. Torren should be here soon, and we will be leaving for dance class.”
Tana watched as Beth turned to leave in a huff, as if it was her idea to go in and not an order that she was following. Little Beth kept Tana on her toes. She was her determined girl and the most verbal of the two, never one to keep her opinions to herself. Sarah was quieter, more of a follower, not that she ever had a chance to be otherwise. Beth took the lead, and Sarah was fine with that. It left Sarah more time for her arts and crafts, being the more creative of the two.
Torren’s black pickup truck turned the corner, and Tana could feel his eyes on her like a scorching caress. He parked his pickup in his driveway, jumped out, and crossed the street to meet her in her yard. When she started to speak, he held up his hands.
“Before you say anything, I know I’m a little late. I had to take care of things at the hospital and then unpack my gear. I’m sorry.” What could she say to a man who started with an apology? He threw her completely off guard, but she was smart enough to realize that it was his way of diffusing her anger. She wasn’t sure what to say next or if she was even still angry. “I hope he wasn’t too much trouble.” Torren looked so hopeful, she almost hated reaching into her big “mom purse” to pull out her half-eaten heel. He took one look at the shoe and groaned. “He got to your shoes, too? Was this the only pair?” Torren took the heel from her and inspected it. “I’ll replace them for you.” Tana shook her head, not wanting him to go out of his way. They were just a pair of cheap shoes that she occasionally wore when she used to go out with her girlfriends. Being new to town and a single mom to boot, she knew that her chances of a night out were slim to none. “You know you haven’t said anything since I showed up here,” Torren said.
He smiled down at her, and Tana rehashed their conversation in her mind, realizing he was right. She opened her mouth and then shut it quickly, not wanting to stand in themiddle of her lawn with her mouth hanging open. The twins came running out of the house, Sarah holding Tucker in her arms, shouting about the puppy pooping on the carpet in the family room. Tana moaned at the news and shot Torren her dirtiest look, and the big lug had the nerve to smile at her—actually smile.
“Great, you girls give Mr. Torren his puppy, and I’ll clean up the mess. Then, we are leaving for class.” Tana turned on her heel to head back into her house, and Torren gently grabbed her arm, causing her to gasp and cringe. The look on his gorgeous face made her instantly regret her overreaction. But her past abusive relationship with her ex taught her that men could be assholes. Torren released her arm and took a step back from her as his hot gaze roamed her body, and she suddenly felt like he could see straight through her.
