Chapter Ten

“So you and this Jack guy, huh? What’s up there?” Sarah asked Bridget while walking around the store and rearranging items on the shelves.

Bridget suppressed an irritated sigh and followed behind her older sister to undo the changes she’d made. “We’re dating. What else do you want to know?”

Her sister threw a look over her shoulder, one brow cocked and a smirk on her lips. “I want to know what you two were doing in your bedroom for hours yesterday. You damn sure looked pretty satisfied after he left.”

“Sunday Funday.” It slipped out of her mouth before she had a chance to realize the gift she’d just given to Sarah.

“Oh-ho-ho! And just what kind of ‘fun’ was my baby sister getting up to? Dear God, please tell me you were not getting it on while I was just down the hall?” Sarah spun around, her eyes sparkling with amusement.

“Will you leave me alone? We did not have sex.” Not full-on. Technically. But Sarah didn’t need to know. Bridget smiled and went back to the counter to pretend to look over the expenses. She glanced at her phone to check if the hospital or Gran had contacted her but found nothing. Sighing, she tried to focus.

Part of her brain wanted to concentrate on Gran and what her recovery would look like. Doctor’s appointments, meds, even basic things like cooking for her and helping her get around. Chores like cleaning and running errands. And she was now the sole full-time employee at Three Sisters. She’d need to cover Gran’s shifts, work longer days then at night make and package products. Plus online orders were picking up, so she’d need to figure out how to get all of those completed and mailed, too.

The other part of her wanted to relive the amazing Sunday she’d had with Jack in her bed. The man definitely knew what to do with his mouth and hands. And his beard! My God, that had been a freaking revelation. She hadn’t known how much added sensation all that soft hair would bring. A shiver brushed down her spine at the mere memory of how good he’d made her feel. She could only imagine how explosively good it would be when they were both naked together. Bridget squeezed her thighs together as desire pulsed low in her body.

Ugh, she had to get a hold of herself. Bridget dropped her face into her hands and exhaled. She needed to sort out how to take care of Gran and balance the store on her own and have a boyfriend. Something would have to give. Deep down she knew what would be sacrificed. She swallowed a whimper. Maybe when things improved with Gran, she and Jack could pick things up again.

If he was still around.

And still single.

She was screwed and not in the good way. This sucked so much.

“Hey.” Sarah waved her hand in Bridget’s face. “What is up with you? I’ve been moving stuff around all over the place and you haven’t chased me away. What gives?”

Bridget pushed up from the counter and glared. “Really? You’re doing this on purpose? Stop messing with my store! You’re making more work for me and I don’t need anything else added to my list.” Stomping off, she walked the perimeter of the room and began rearranging everything back into proper order.

“Touchy. Sorry, baby sis. I didn’t mean to hit a nerve.” She plopped down on a stool and started looking through the new business software. “Seriously, what’s going on?”

Bridget spun to pin her with an exasperated glare. “You can’t figure it out? You’re here for a week. Maybe two. While I appreciate your support, I’m here for the long haul and have to take care of everything. The store is my sole responsibility now. Gran will need care. Products have to be made and online orders need to be shipped. Plus, every Saturday and half of the Sundays for the next month are booked with festivals. How can I go off to these events when Gran would be left alone? I don’t have time for everything.”

“Whoa,” Becca said as she emerged from the back room of the store. “You aren’t alone, or did you forget I exist? That Gran is my grandma, too?”

Bridget blinked at her. “Where did you—did you come in from the back door? I didn’t know you were coming in today.”

Becca pursed her lips as she leaned against the counter. “I gathered as much. Look, I know you’re the owner of the store and you and Gran run things like a well-oiled machine, but I’m here. Let me help you. You don’t need to take on the weight of the world.”

Bridget crossed the room and hugged her cousin tight. “I appreciate this, Becca. I do, but what about the farm? You can’t abandon all of your duties there.”

“True. I can also help more here. Unlike some people, I do hire employees because I can’t do everything. It’s fine, I promise.”

“And I can stay longer, too,” Sarah chimed in. “My boss understands and told me I could work remotely for a few weeks if needed. I’ll stay with Gran.”

“You’ll stay with me. Gran will, too. She can’t do those stairs, at least not right away.”

Sarah laughed and shook her head. “There’s no way Gran will agree to that. And frankly after Sunday, I don’t want to be in the house with you and your boyfriend while you two are banging.”

“What’s this?” Becca perked up. “You and Jack had sex?”

Bridget shot Sarah a shut-up-or-die look. “No. Not exactly.”

“Mmhmm.” Becca smiled slyly. “So he went downtown, then?”

“Oh my God, this is none of your business!” Her cheeks burned like they were on fire. “Since when did the two of you decide you were entitled to all the details of my love life?”

Sarah cocked a brow. “Since forever. We’re family.”

“I’m curious, how was it with the beard?”

“Becca!” Bridget exclaimed. The beard had been a sexual revelation for her, but they didn’t need to know her inexperience. “How would you even think to ask that?”

She snorted. “I bet you a thousand dollars I know more about the intricacies of oral than you.”

Bridget covered her ears and sang aloud like a five-year-old. “We are not having this conversation. Jack knows what he’s doing. Like really, really knows what he’s doing. We’re leaving it at that.”

“What is it that I know how to do?”

Bridget squealed and jumped, spinning around. Jack stood in the doorway. Embarrassment melted her bones and she wanted to find a hole to crawl into and never come out. “Wha— Wh-when, uh…” She shot a glare over her shoulder. Her so-called family had set her up. They had to have seen him walking up and she hadn’t heard the door chime. She faced him again and pasted her polite customer smile on her face. “What are you doing here? This is a surprise.”

“I’m done at work and thought I’d come say hi. See how Gran is doing.” He kissed her cheek and moved his lips to her ear. “Don’t think you’re getting out of this conversation.” He nipped her earlobe and she coughed back a moan.

“H-hey.” She squeezed his hand. “I’m glad you’re here. How was your day?”

“Nothing to write home about. Same old. How’s Gran?”

“Good. I think. I haven’t heard from her since this morning. I was thinking of swinging by after I close the store tonight.”

“Do you want me to drive you over? We could grab dinner on the way back?”

How was she going to balance all of this? Sure, Becca could help take some of the responsibilities of the shop and maybe Sarah would stick around an extra week or two, but did she have time for Jack? Was it fair to him to only be able to give a fraction of herself?

“You two should go now before visiting hours end,” Sarah jumped in. “Becca and I can wrap things up here and you can head out early.” Her sister shot Bridget a no-nonsense look and shooed her toward the door.

“I need to get my coat,” Bridget said and walked to the back room, pulling Sarah with her. “What are you doing?” She rounded on her sister. “I don’t need you managing my life.”

“I saw your face and I know you, Bridge. You’re overthinking and taking everything on yourself and talking yourself out of a relationship.” Sarah put a hand on her hip. “You are not going to dump Hottie McLumberjack because you’re freaking out in your head. Let Becca and I help you. Now go! See Gran and enjoy the yummy man-ness waiting out there for you.”

“Okay, fine. You win.” Despite her reservations, Bridget grinned and grabbed her coat. “See you back at home.” She handed her keys to Sarah.

“Maybe. And eventually I’m getting details out of you about all the things Jack is so good at.”

Bridget left her sister cackling in the back room as she joined him out front.

Traffic was light getting to the hospital and Bridget hurried as they walked up. She was anxious to see the woman who’d raised her and who she’d seen almost every day of her life for close to twenty years. As they entered her room, Bridget blinked away tears. “Hey, Gran,” she said around the lump in her throat.

“Oh, honey, come here.” Gran held out her arms and Bridget hugged her.

She had to admit her grandmother looked better than she had just after surgery, but she still had things hooked up to her and obviously wasn’t at her peak self. She wanted to squeeze her Gran tight but made sure not to put too much pressure on her. Bridget pulled back and used her sleeve to wipe off her tears.

“Feel better?” Gran asked and she nodded. “That’s good. Hello there, Jack. Thanks for bringing my Bridgie to see me.”

“Happy to do it. You’re looking better, Ms. Wildes.”

She waved her hand. “Call me Gran or at least Esme. No reason to be so formal. I am feeling much improved.”

“All right, Gran,” he said.

“Have you heard anything from the doctors?” Bridget asked. “Any idea when you’ll get discharged?”

“They want me here until the end of the week. I think that’s unnecessary, but what does an old woman know?”

“Then you’ll come back to stay with me.” She fixed a stern look on her face when her grandmother opened her mouth to argue. “I mean it, Gran. I doubt your doctor will let you go back to climbing those stairs to your apartment right away, and it will be good to have someone else around. Sarah and I will be there, too. It’ll be like old times.”

“Lord save me from overprotective granddaughters.” She sighed, but a hint of a smile played at her mouth.

Bridget rolled her eyes. “Keep this up and I’ll have Becca join in, too. Then you’d have the three of us under one roof. All keeping watch on you.”

Gran put a hand to her chest. “Stop that, Bridget! It’s not good for my heart.” She chuckled and laid her head back on her pillow. “I’ll stay, but only for a little while. You need your independence and so do I.” She glanced at Jack over Bridget’s shoulder. “After all, you have a very dashing boy courting you. You don’t need me cramping your style.”

“Gran!” She closed her eyes in mortification, unable to look at either her grandmother or Jack.

“It’s true.” She shrugged. “Now you two go on. I’m tired, and I bet you’re hungry for dinner.”

Bridget kissed Gran’s cheek and stood. “I’ll text you tonight to check in. And one of us will come by to visit tomorrow.”

She stood and Jack leaned in to kiss her grandma’s cheek, too. Her heart melted a little at how sweet he was to her Gran. Maybe Sarah and Becca were right and she was overthinking. There had to be a balance of some kind. Didn’t there?

 

* * * *

Jack held Bridget’s hand as they exited the hospital and walked back to his truck. The look on her face told him how hard this was for her. He wished there was something more he could do, but he couldn’t magically fix Gran.

But he could take Bridget to dinner and help keep her going. They climbed in and headed back toward town. The sprinkling of oaks were turning in full color now—the pops of red, orange, and yellow were spectacular against the dark green of the thick firs. He found himself enjoying the surrounding nature far more than expected. His high-rise apartment in downtown Seattle made views this like all the more valuable. He could get used to this kind of beauty all the time.

“Italian food sound good?” he asked.

“Perfect. I could use a massive plate of carbs right now.”

After arriving and ordering their food, Jack watched as little by little the tension drained from Bridget’s body. He reached across the table and played with her fingers. “Tell me about your day. Everything okay?”

“Sure.” She smiled, but the corners of her eyes were tight.

“Hey, talk to me. You’re definitely not as relaxed as you were when I left your house on Sunday. Did something happen at the store?”

She refused to look him in the eyes and swallowed hard. “No, nothing specific. There’s just a lot going on.”

He nodded and laced his hand with hers. “I know this has to be crazy stressful for you. You know I’m here to help, right?”

“I do. It’s—there’s so much with the store and Gran and it’s been just me for so long. Gran helps, but without her… I don’t know how to manage everything. Covering all of the hours for the store, making and packaging products, plus all the festivals over the next four weeks…” Tears glittered in her eyes.

Jack moved to her side of the table and put his arm around her. “You aren’t alone. You have your sister and cousin and me. I don’t mind spending my evenings making your magic balms and my Saturdays selling them. I know you’re overloaded, but let the people who care about you help. You’re worth it.”

Her smile was wobbly but looked genuine. “Thanks, Jack. You’re an amazing boyfriend, you know that?”

He shifted in his chair, uncomfortable with her praise. No other woman had seemed to like him for him. They had always liked his money more. Not that Bridget knew about the money, but that was a problem for another day. Today he needed to focus on Bridget and her needs.

He pressed a soft, chaste kiss to her lips. “Keep that kind of talk up and I’m going to get spoiled. Now tell me, honeybee, what is it that I’m really, really good at?”

The gorgeous flush that tinted her skin went all the way past the collar of her sweater and he wished he could see how far down it went. He chuckled and kissed her again, lingering a little longer. If he could, he’d spend all day kissing her. The soft sweetness of her made his body hard in all the right ways. The pleasure she gave him was addictive.

“Fine, I’ll tell you, but only if you promise to refresh my memory. I might be overestimating your skills.”

Heat washed through his limbs and his blood flowed south as he made a low, rumbling sound in his chest. “You’re on, baby.”

The server brought their food then and he focused on trying to control himself while they ate. He watched as Bridget dug into her food. She must not have eaten much today based on how fast she was inhaling her fettuccine alfredo.

“What’s the update on the rumor mill at work? Is there still a big company thinking of buying?”

Jack bit his tongue and winced at the pain. Not that he didn’t deserve it. Swallowing, he said, “I haven’t heard much else on site.”

He had heard a ton from his father each time they talked. Like when was he going to stop messing around out in the woods and come back to real work in the office. It was odd, but Jack preferred the logging work. Yes, he missed negotiating and the thrill that came with closing a new deal, but he enjoyed the physical labor. The camaraderie with his teammates and being outdoors were things he appreciated. He liked the little offshoots of roots he was putting down here.

Plus, Bridget was amazing. He was most definitely not ready to end things with her and go back to Seattle. He wanted to give this relationship a chance and that wouldn’t happen if he were three hours away. He knew Bridget would go back to her isolated life and focus on the shop. He loved seeing this brighter, more outgoing side of her. He wanted that to be her all of the time. Her confidence was sexy.

“How are things going with Three Sisters? What about the online orders?”

She tilted her head to the side. “Sales are good. Up from last year, which surprises me. This new software you turned me on to seems to be helping quite a bit. The predictions based on previous years have been helpful in keeping my stock levels stable.” She took a sip of her wine. “Online is picking up. The website seems to pull in a good amount of traffic from the tracking I have. I’m pleasantly surprised. And a little nervous. If the web orders pick up too much, I don’t know how I’ll manage.”

“You hire more people. Look at expanding your production. Simple.”

“But…” She paused and chewed her lower lip. “I don’t know if I want that. I mean, I want to be comfortable and make sure the store does well, but I don’t want to be some giant conglomerate. I like the shop big enough to keep the doors open and small enough to keep the local feel. I mainly want to stay in the black and not teeter on the edge of red all the time.”

He furrowed his brow at her statement. He’d never met another business owner who didn’t have their sights set on expansion and growth and domination. It was weird. And refreshing. What would it be like to simply be content? Safely comfortable with his business stable and steady and not plowing forward? “You could always pull the online ordering if you think it’s getting too complicated. The website is still good for recognition and getting actual foot traffic through the door if someone is looking at what’s available in Fallbank from a shopping perspective.”

“Yeah, I could do that. We’ll see how things go through October. I might be speaking too soon. It is good to keep sales growing. I just don’t want this to get out of control.”

“Speaking of keeping things under control, should we go back to your house and you can show me how you package things up? I’m a quick learner.”

 

* * * *

When they returned to her house, Bridget walked in to find Sarah curled up on the couch with her computer. “Hey, we’re back.”

Sarah looked up and smiled, closing the lid on her laptop. “Hey, yourself. How’s Gran? She texted to say she was okay, but…”

Bridget tossed her purse and keys on the entry table with Jack trailing in behind her. She thought back to Gran and how strange it was to see her in a hospital bed. “She’s got her spunk back. She still looks tired and pale and frail—and I will murder you if you ever tell her I said that—but she’s in good spirits.”

Despite being tired, Bridget knew she needed to package more of her lavender-and-honey body lotion. She motioned for Jack to sit. “I need to grab some things from my shed. Go ahead and get comfortable. I’ll be working on products for the next few hours.”

She ducked out to her shed and grabbed the bottles and batch of lotion she’d made last night. Hauling it inside, she set it on the coffee table and sat to get to work.

“Hey, wait. Show me how to do this.” Jack shifted forward to watch with care. “Put me to work.”

“You don’t have to,” she protested, but he shook his head.

“I want to.”

“I’ll help, too,” Sarah volunteered. “You know I know what I’m doing.”

Bridget talked Jack through the process while Sarah moved full speed ahead. After half an hour, they’d gotten into a good groove with the packaging and she was pleasantly surprised at how fast they were going. “At this rate I might not be up until midnight after all.” She grinned.

“See what a little teamwork can do for you?” Jack winked and lifted one corner of his mouth. A shiver danced down her neck. Good grief, could he be any sexier?

“So, Jack. Tell me about you. Bridget told me you’re from Seattle, but that’s it. What do you do?”

He didn’t answer for long enough that Bridget looked up. Instead of finding something wrong, she saw him laser focused on the ritual of measuring and pouring into the jars she used for the product.

When he was done, he cleared his throat. “Well, I’ve done construction mainly. And a friend of mine got me interested in logging, so that’s what brought me here.” He looked over at Bridget and smiled just for her. “Seems to be a good choice so far.”

Bridget was absurdly pleased by his declaration but said nothing. She concentrated back on the task in front of her.

“I can’t figure it out.” Her sister peered at Jack. “Why do you seem familiar to me?”

Jack looked sharply at Sarah. “I, ah, don’t know.” He rubbed a hand over the back of his neck and shrugged. “Maybe we have mutual friends or met at some point at some event or another. Hard to say.”

“Maybe…” Sarah didn’t look convinced.

“Or I could have one of those faces that everyone thinks looks familiar. I get that a lot.”

Sarah shrugged and went back to helping with the lotion. “If you say so.”

“What do you do in Seattle, Sarah?”

“I work in marketing at a large firm in the city. I went to UW and did an internship there my senior year. It rolled into a full-time position after graduation, so I stayed.”

Bridget watched her sister closely as she spoke. She wanted to see if there were any signs she might be growing tired of city life and want to come back home. Yet Sarah never seemed interested. She loved her job and had a high-rise apartment overlooking the Puget Sound. Bridget was forever hearing about the sporting events and clubs and musicals she went to. The friends she hung out with and random dates she went on. Sarah never seemed lonely. Not that her dating ever turned serious. Not since Cornelius.

And goodness knew Cornelius didn’t date. He was a confirmed bachelor who kept to himself. Bridget’s chest tightened as she thought of him alone in his house. She’d been glad when Jack had moved in with him. Bridget did her best to invite Cornelius over once or twice a week for dinner, but she knew he had to feel isolated.

Focusing back on the task at hand, she pulled her thoughts back to the present. It didn’t help to dwell and there wasn’t anything she could do about the fact that Sarah and Cornelius, who had once seemed to be the perfect couple, were broken up and not getting back together again anytime soon.

Jack peeked over at her and winked. She couldn’t stop her grin. Well, at least she’d found someone. It terrified her a bit to think of how fast she was tumbling into love with him, but she didn’t want to deny it. Her life had been empty for years now. Even before Sarah had moved to Seattle and Gran to the apartment above Three Sisters, she’d felt out of place. Like she didn’t fit in with this town no matter how hard she tried or how much she loved it here. The people didn’t love her back. Well, some of the people. Those who did were friendly but not necessarily friends.

Had that been because of them? Or her? Bridget wondered now if this distance between herself and others in town wasn’t at least a little bit her fault. If maybe she’d held everyone at a distance the same way she had when Jack had first arrived.

She watched as he meticulously filled one bottle after another. Slowly. So much so that she almost laughed, but it had taken her time to get faster, too. A pleasant warmth spread across her belly as she watched his concentration. His eyes held the same determination in them that they did when he was between her thighs, hell-bent on giving her what had been the best orgasms of her life.

An ache went through her just thinking about it. Wiggling a little, she filled the last jar and set it with the others. “We finished them all! I can’t believe it. In only two hours, too.” She beamed at Jack and Sarah. “Thanks for helping. This would’ve taken me past midnight to do on my own.”

Sarah brushed her off. “Like I wouldn’t help you with this stuff. We can do more tomorrow or the next night if you’ve got stuff made. Or whatever you need. This is something I can’t do in Seattle. I miss it.” She stood and stretched. “I’m going to bed. I’ll be working remotely tomorrow, but I can come into the store to help out, too. I’ll see you in the morning. Goodnight, Jack.”

They both said good night and Sarah petted Candle on her way out of the living room. Bridget began picking up bottles and loading them into the crate she used for carrying supplies to the store, and Jack jumped up to help her.

“Thanks again,” she said as he bent next to her. She couldn’t help but check out his ass and an appreciative sigh passed her lips.

He straightened and ducked his head to steal a kiss.

It was too quick for her to even respond so she pushed up on her toes and pressed her lips to his. Sinking into the moment, she molded her body against his and lifted one hand to the nape of his neck and the other at his waist. God, but he had abs she wanted to lick. She wanted to explore even farther down his body, but tonight wasn’t the night. It was already late and she hadn’t gotten the chance to pick up protection yet either. Much to her body’s frustration.

“Mmm.” She hummed and stepped back.

“Hey, wait a minute,” Jack protested with a lazy smile. “Why’d we stop kissing?”

“Because it’s late. I know you have to be on site early and I’ve got to get to the shop, too. Plus, my sister is twenty feet down the hall. And I still don’t have condoms. Do you?”

He shook his head. “I know you’re right, but I don’t want you to be. Not when it comes to you and me together in a bed.” He tugged at her waist and kissed her again. “I guess this means I should go.”

Frustration and desire flared so hot inside her, she wanted to cry. But she knew if he stayed, they wouldn’t be able to stop. She wouldn’t want him to. She’d beg him to keep going. To make love to her.

Candle yowled and jumped down from her perch on the cat tower, then walked over to the hall and sat there, staring at her. Apparently, her cat was ready for bed. She laughed. “Yeah, I think this means good night.”

They walked to the front door and he kissed her again, slow and sweet. “Night, honeybee.”

“Good night.” She smiled as he made his way down the sidewalk back to his house.