Chapter Thirty-Eight

“Get your hands off my sister!”

Charles jerked awake with a start, fumbling for the lamp with one hand, Kathy with the other. He fully expected to be hauled out of bed by his hair, pummeled by an angry Jack Browning. But Kathy wasn’t in bed beside him—shoot, he wasn’t even in bed.

He figured that out when he landed on the floor on his hands and knees.

Embarrassed, relieved, and laughing at himself, he collapsed on the rug with a groan. “Oh, yeah. I was working on the couch.”

He checked his watch. Eleven thirty. With any luck, Kathy’s brother and family had made it into town by now. He let his head rest on his arms with a tired yawn. At some point he should probably get up and go to bed, but the empty space beside him would just remind him of how much he missed Kathy.

Regardless, he pushed himself up and found his glasses, which were thankfully safe on the coffee table. At something of a loss as to what to do with himself, he wandered into the kitchen for a drink. He was standing at the sink, looking out the window at the yard beyond, when a light moved across the darkness.

“What in the world? That looked like headlights.” And since the driveway for his neighbors across the street was a good distance away from his own, that had to mean…. “Someone’s here. Oh, God. Something must be wrong.”

He opened the front door just as Kathy stepped onto the porch.

She ducked her head and smiled. “Hi.”

“What’s wrong?” He clung to the doorframe, afraid to move.

“Nothing.” She tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “Jack and Gilly made it in early. They were tired and went to bed early, so… I borrowed Mama’s car.”

He felt a smile form. “You did, huh?”

She nodded. “Sure enough.” Moving slowly, she walked up to him, not stopping until her chest brushed his. “Are you going to let me in?”

“I don’t know. The last uninvited guest who dropped by at least brought me a cobbler.” He was grinning like an idiot, but he didn’t care. “I don’t see a cobbler, Ms. Browning.”

Kathy lifted an eyebrow as her hands went to the belt on her dress. “Then I guess I’d better not plan on undoing this. I didn’t bring you a single thing to nibble on.”

Charles swallowed hard. “No? Nothing?” He was thrilled when his voice didn’t crack like a boy’s.

When she stepped back, his hand shot out, catching her by the waist and pulling her forward. He didn’t waste any time lowering his head for a heated kiss.

“I can’t stay too late. I need to be home by six or so.”

“I’ll take every second I can get,” he whispered.

The sun was just starting to lighten the eastern sky when Kathy slipped in the front door. She was a bit tired as they’d not gotten very much sleep, but the exhilaration of sneaking back into the house had given her a shot of adrenaline. She’d just started down the hall when she heard one of the kitchen chairs creak.

“Crap,” she whispered. Hoping against hope that it was her mother or Gilly, she tiptoed back and peeked inside the kitchen.

“You’re up early,” Jack said. He spoke softly to the baby in his arms, who was slurping away at her bottle.

Kathy studied him for a minute then sighed. She knew better than to walk away when he had that stern expression. Setting her purse on the counter, she crossed the room and sat at the table. “How’s my niece this morning?”

A hint of a smile appeared on Jack’s stubble-covered face, and he looked at Michelle. “Hungry. Glad to be here. She didn’t like the motel room last night. Were you with him?”

Kathy narrowed her eyes. “I don’t like your tone, little brother.”

Jack scowled right back at her. “You don’t have to like it to answer the question.”

If she hadn’t known he was worried about her, she’d have responded with sarcasm. But real concern was etched onto his face, and she couldn’t bring herself to bait him.

“Yes, I was with him.”

Jack didn’t like the answer, that was clear, though he couldn’t have possibly been surprised to hear it. “Is that a regular occurrence, you sneaking out to spend the night with him?”

“No. I usually don’t sneak, and I usually don’t try to get home before anyone else is awake. I’m an adult, Jackson, if you will recall. And it isn’t like I’m a virgin or something. There’s no virtue for me to protect.”

He glared at her and covered Michelle’s ear with one hand. “Little ears!”

Kathy lost it, nearly falling out of her chair with a fit of the giggles brought on no doubt by stress and fatigue. “Oh, Jack! She doesn’t understand a single word we say. She’s not even three months old!”

“Yeah, well, it doesn’t hurt to start practicing early.” He shook his head. “And maybe you weren’t a… but damn it, Kathy, that doesn’t mean you don’t deserve a man’s respect. I thought Southern gentlemen were supposed to be reserved and proper. What’s he doing fooling around with you like that without you two being married anyhow?” He propped Michelle on his shoulder, patting her back gently as he watched Kathy with a wary gaze.

“He’s not like Randall. Or Clay, for that matter,” she said quietly. “He’s a good man, as good as they come. I hope you’ll see that when you meet him. As far as his respect for me goes… what did Sarah tell you about him?” She knew her siblings had discussed the romance because Sarah had called her to warn her that Jack was heading to Georgia to interrogate Charles.

“She’s sleep deprived from having three babies to take care of. What does she know?” he grumbled.

Kathy shook her head, grinning around a yawn. She stood and planted a kiss on the crown of his head. “I’m going to go catch a couple of hours of sleep, Jackson. You’re sweet for worrying about me, and I love you dearly for it.”

She felt the weight of his stunned gaze as she got the pitcher of water from the fridge and poured herself a glass to take with her. Kathy’d never been overly demonstrative with him, and her declaration kept him quiet long enough for her to make it to her bedroom. She closed the door with a sigh and kicked off her shoes.

She knew better than to expect that to be the end of things. They were supposed to go to Charles’s that evening for a quiet barbecue, and Jack would get his chance then to see the truth.

“I just hope he doesn’t let his fears from the past cloud his impression of Charles.”

For the time being, she couldn’t do a single thing about Jack or Charles or any of it. All she could do was get some rest and leave the men to sort themselves out later.