A grunt of reluctance slipped out of me as I set her on her feet, my hands falling to my sides. Nothing to do about my raging hard-on other than pray she or her son didn’t look down as a sense of emptiness overcame me. Dammit, I was becoming one of those saps you see in TV commercials longing for the girl to notice him.
But she had noticed me. It wasn’t ego, just plain fact. Most men my age had been around the block a time or two. Enough to know when a woman was interested in them. And maybe she’d be interested in something short term before I left? Lord knows I’ve neglected my sex life for too long. But the more I looked at her, the maturer she appeared, if still not old enough to be Simon’s mom.
But I’d been wrong before. Once.
Fine laugh lines fanned out from her eyes, and the glint of random grays were threaded through her long, wavy hair.
“Well, what a way to introduce myself, huh? I’m Jaci. Simon’s mom.” She held out her hand, but not before her gaze dipped to my midsection. A flush bloomed prettily on her upturned face, and her eyes went wide once more.
Oh, yeah. Interest was definitely there. Now, I just needed to figure out how to make my intent known without the kid having a clue about what I wanted to do with his mom. If we’d met in a bar, or at a party, this would have been easy. But I didn’t haveany experience propositioning a single mom, especially not with her son hanging on my every word.
He’d been over here every day after school, wanting to hang out with my dog, when he realized I’d often swing by the house in the early afternoon to let her out for a run before heading back to work for a few more hours. I could have been one of those officers that worked standard hours, but I wasn’t and I often stayed until the late shift arrived before calling it a day.
Simon had asked a million questions about her and what I did in the Air Force. When I’d given him permission to feed her and then throw her favorite ball in my backyard as I packed up my belongings, you would have thought I’d hung the damn moon.
Duchess huffed, knocking from my thoughts, and I was saved from making an ass of myself as I stared at Jaci. “Pleasure. Rafe Lucas.” I took her hand in mine, and the sensations from when I had her in my arms immediately returned.
Electric spikes shot out from the contact, travelling along every one of my nerve endings.Damn. Goosebumps erupted along the nape of my neck as she released her much smaller hand, but not before I noticed her reaction to our touch.
Jaci’s cheeks were still flushed; her head shook ever so slightly as if she needed to recover from the jolt of connection between us. Then something happened for the first time in a damn long while. I felt my lips crack and stretch. I smiled. An honest to God smile that would leave the men under my command amazed.
At least I hoped it was a warm, welcoming smile, one that also conveyed interest. Lots of interest leading to plenty of naked time and mutual satisfaction. And I had three weeks to make that happen.
“Looks like quite the uh, project in here. Are you organizing the garage or getting ready to move?” She smiled back, andit was like a gut punch immediately followed by flowing lava rushing through my gut outward. Instant warmth flooded my system. My erection, which had been calming down, reignited.
I had to replace my thoughts quickly with visions of the first time I arrived in the Middle East and witnessed the suffering of the local people after years of deprivation and authoritarian rule.
It was a hell of a way to throw a bucket of cold water on my lust, but it did the job. And then some. I pushed down the rising anxiety that always accompanied these memories. Then, sensing my mood, Duchess padded to my side and nuzzled my hand.
Thankfully, my racing pulse settled. No longer worried that sweat would pop out from my pores giving me away. My PTSD symptoms had abated quite a bit since I adopted the K-9 unit’s friendliest dog. She was one of the reasons I was making this big move to Cedar Ridge.
With an inward sigh and a rub along Duchess’s muzzle, I noticed Jaci’s lips moving, but her words didn’t compute. When was the last time I was this mesmerized by a woman? Didn’t have to think long. Never. That’s when.
“…and I hope he hasn’t been too much of a bother? We just moved in with my sister; she’s the base commander. Oh, what am I thinking? You know all that, and I’m just babbling at this point. Must be from all the excitement and worry over Simon.” The beauty ran her hands through her hair and then clasped them together.
My gaze was now drawn to her interlocked fingers as she twisted them over and over.Fuuuck. My blood pressure rose.Again.And unbelievably, my dick continued to as well. Not since I was seventeen had my zipper threatened to leave an imprint on my flesh.
As I watched her movements, an image flashed of her delicate fingers running along my chest, before trailing south,down to exactly where I needed them. Andshit, she was still talking as I lusted. What was wrong with me?
“So, we’ll be going. Say your goodbyes to Mister, uh, Major Lucas and Duchess, okay?” Thank God she stopped her erotic movements before I did something out of character like take her hands in mine and guide them to my aching appendage.
Jaci waved Simon closer to her, and the spell was broken by the picture they made. Single mom. Cute kid with an inquisitive mind. Neither of them deserved the direction my mind had wandered to, no matter how spontaneous it had been. And yet, I ignored any sense of self-preservation as I responded.
“It’s Rafe. You can call me Rafe.” The raspiness of my words filled the garage. If Jaci hadn’t picked up on my interest before, my near-growl of a demand had done the job. Her full lips pursed together, and she smiled for the first time since she skidded into myhear---uh, garage.
“I won’t be a major for much longer, anyway. After my official retirement, I’ll be moving to Idaho.” The news of my leaving soon was meant more for me than for her. To keep me from doing something stupid like pulling her back into my arms.
“Oh. Well, congratulations. Simon, stop harassing that poor dog.” Unable to remain still, the boy had knelt down in front of Duchess, throwing his arms around her neck. “Becca will be home soon, and it’s our turn to make dinner. Sorry to rush off.” Her polite, cool smile rocked me right back on my heels. And the reminder of who her sister was sunk in. Like a damn lead weight in my gut.
I watched as they walked out of my garage. Simon whispered a promise loudly to Dutchess that he’d be back tomorrow.
Her connection to the base’s commander did what nothing else could have. It gave me a dose of ice-cold reality, taming my rush of teenage hormones. No matter how tempting Jaci was, being the sister of my boss made her off-limits.
CHAPTER FOUR
JACI
Several days had passed since I’d met the sexy neighbor. His intense interest from our unique meeting that had quickly turned to polite disinterest had kept me awake more than it should have. Even though he would move soon, my body didn’t care. Every glimpse I’d had of Rafe, when I’d called Simon back home, left me achy.
