Out of Uniform

Dee could sense more coming and held her silence while the teen pulled her thoughts together. Her computer search could wait. The baby swing clicked away in the silence.



Emily finally sighed. “I guess I’ll have to take my own advice and just go live with Jacob.” She glanced at Madison. “It’s not like I have a lot of choices.”



“I’m sorry, sweetie. I wish I had an answer for you.” Dee tugged on the hem of her latest charity gift.



Jacob took care of everyone, shoveling driveways, pulling cars out of ditches, even helping finance teenage dates. Three days of cleaning with Grace had clued Dee in that Jacob wasn’t paying for much. The woman had cataracts for crying out loud. She couldn’t see dust until it flew up her nose.



Emily pegged it, all right. Jacob suffered from a major case of protector syndrome.



Which meant she wasn’t anyone special to him, just another stray wandering into his life. She couldn’t shrug free of the feeling she wanted to be more.



Problem was, Jacob deserved to have someone who could take care of him, as well. He deserved an equal, not another charity case.



Why did that Jacob Stone have to screw up everything? The man was too damn possessive of her, a female who wanted to haul butt with her child.



His kid.



The Suburban cranked to life. He’d planned everything to a tee, how to shake free of her while keeping his kid close, but now Stone was helping her. Before long, she would be able to stand on her own and that would threaten all of his plans. He needed more time, something that bastard could ruin.



He backed the SUV out of the parking space before pulling onto the highway. Once he cruised to sixty miles per hour, he slid in a CD, cranking the volume so the kid in back would settle down. Shouldn’t take too long since he’d already figured out the tyke’s favorites.



He would have to wait until his child fell asleep tonight before making a move to regain control. But without question, something needed to happen soon to shake things up.



And what was the best way to get back at a man who didn’t scare easily? Hit him where he was vulnerable. Mess with his woman.



Luckily, he had access to Dee’s room key.



Sitting in the back of the Ford pickup and watching the stars, Jacob didn’t hear Dee’s footsteps until she tossed a blanket into the truck bed. He lowered the beer from his mouth. “Get back inside where it’s warm.”



He winced at his own irritable tone, not that it seemed to deter Dee.



“What are you talking about? It’s a balmy forty degrees out here tonight. And no wind chill. The snow’s even melting. I barely need a coat.” She hooked her knee on the tailgate and hefted herself up. “Mind some company?”



“Yes.” He’d had a crap day.



His time with Chase hadn’t netted any great reassurance either way. The guy vowed he loved Emily, but acted like more of a playmate with Madison.



Then he’d realized Emily had screwed up the cash drawer again, coming out short.



And to top it off, Dee looked too damn hot in the new clothes. Helping her was playing hell with his libido. The pink sweater had hugged her br**sts all day long.



Just staring at her coat, he wanted to slip his hands beneath and find the soft cashmere—the even softer woman. “Dee, go back inside.”



Ignoring him, she closed the last two feet between them, working her way over the slick patches of metal. Parking lot lights hummed in the silence as she stood, unmoving, hands stuffed in her coat pockets.



Somehow he couldn’t scavenge the words to make her leave. “Damn, you’re stubborn.”



“Damn, you’re cranky.” Without giving him time for a comeback, she jabbed her thumb upward. “Get up.”



“What?”



“Get up. I want to spread out the blanket to sit on.”



He eased to his feet. Why did she have to invade his space, showing up all hot and smelling good when he just wanted to drink his beer and watch the Northern Lights in peace? “I didn’t invite you out here.”



“But you have the best seat in the house.”



Best seat? She couldn’t mean the double entendre the way he would have in referring to her. Still, a grin teased at his face.



Her startled gaze flew to his, down to his backside and up again. A flush crawled up her cheeks that threatened to raise the temperature five degrees. “I, uh, your seat…”



“Thanks.”



“Best place to view the Northern Lights, I meant,” Dee said in a prim, schoolmarm tone. She whipped the blanket out and plopped down. “Come on. Sit.”



He recognized a determined woman when he saw one. Arguing would get him nothing but fired up and frustrated—more frustrated. And he didn’t really want her to go.



“Here.” She flung a wad of something into his lap before dragging a corner of the blanket over her shoulder.



Jacob uncurled one hand from his bottle and picked up…a hat. He set his beer to the side and turned to Dee. “You have a thing about hats.”



“Well then, put it on.”



“Bossy.” A half smile touched his lips, if not his mood. He reached for Dee’s scarf. Did she know she swayed toward him anytime he brushed near her? Like now. Slowly, he unwrapped the length from around her ears. Dee listed forward. It would be so easy to cover her mouth with his and lose himself in her softness.



He tugged the stocking cap over her head. “Hat’s on.”



“Very funny.”



Taking more time than he needed, he pulled her hair free from the back, brushed stray strands away from her face. He ached to pitch aside his gloves and warm her skin with his.



The puffs of air coming from her mouth grew faster, heavier. “I meant for you to put it on yourself.”



His smile hitched higher. “To quote Emily, ‘Duh.’”



He flipped the collar of his coat up and retrieved his bottle. One long swallow later, he relaxed against the cab of his truck. He wasn’t drunk, even though he wanted to be, just buzzed enough to forget why he needed to send Dee back inside. So he let her stay.



How tempting could she be, swaddled in a wool coat with an oversize knit cap on her head? Too tempting after his having spent the day battling his hunger for her. He’d all but gawked through the window at her like some drooling adolescent.



Damn, she was cute.



Jacob tipped the bottle back again.



She pointed into the distance toward the lights striping the sky over the Cascade Range. “That’s Mount Rainier, right?”



He nodded. “Yeah, except around here we call it ‘The Mountain.’”



She chewed her top lip. “That could be a sign, then, that I’m not from this area.”



“Could be. Nice catch on your part. The way you’re putting pieces together, it’s only a matter of time until you have your memory back.” He wanted that for her, even as he wondered how it would affect whatever the hell was drawing them to each other.



“I remembered something. I think my Internet cruising may be working at sparking memories.”



The beer turned flat on his tongue. He should be happy for her, and all he could think was, Now she’ll leave sooner.



“That’s great. Tell me about it,” he prompted as he’d done often during their memory-jogging sessions. Except now her voice held an edge that told him this one was about more than a simple prom dress.



“It’s not much really. Just a snippet.”



“Tell me anyway.”



She crossed her legs and canted forward. “I was looking up stuff on Valentine’s Day and I came across an article about Valentine’s Day getaways.”



“Valentine’s Day? Oh, hell, that’s today isn’t it? The holiday for women.”



She elbowed him. “For guys, too.”



“Yeah, whatever.” He grinned, then remembered…“Tell me about your memory.” A memory sparked by Cupid would likely be about some other guy. He wished he’d brought a six-pack of beer out with him.



“I’m swimming in an indoor pool, and there are mountains showing through the glass wall, like it’s a resort area.”



He so didn’t want to hear about her romantic getaway with a Mr. Smith. “Uh-huh.”



“I wade back toward the stairs, and I’m calling out to someone about not forgetting the baby’s water wings.”



Hell. He’d been a selfish ass thinking of his own needs when it came to her memory. He’d all but forgotten she had a child in the picture.



She glanced at him, her eyes unblinking. “You know, water wings, those little inflatable things that go around children’s arms when they’re swimming.”



“I know.” Over Dee’s shoulder, hazy lights streaked across the sky, as magnificent as ever, but he focused on her.



“Then I hold out my hands for my baby, and man, I’m happy.” She tipped her face up, a Madonna glow shimmering from her like the nimbus glow overhead. “I can already feel the weight of that chubby little body settling against my breasts. I can smell baby shampoo and powder. And I reach just a little more…into empty air.”



Strain pulled lines into the corners of her eyes. “I can’t help but wonder if it might be better remembering nothing. These hints are…torture. I don’t even know for sure if the child I’m remembering is mine. Maybe I was helping a friend or even some stranger as I longed for a kid I don’t have anymore.”



Seeing the pain in her eyes made him want to gather her in his arms and take life’s blows for her. Jacob lifted his bottle. “Want some?”



“Yeah,” she said through a watery chuckle. “I think I do.”



Dee gripped the neck with her thumb and three fingers, pinky extended, and sipped.



She grimaced.



He allowed himself a rusty chuckle. “Guess we can surmise you’re not much of a beer drinker.”



“You wouldn’t happen to have a nice bottle of Merlot on hand would you?”



“Fresh out.”



“Too bad.”



The curve of her grin enticed him to forget with an intoxication that beat anything waiting for him in a bottle.



Northern Lights continued to shoot their paths, silver and pink fingers of light surging across the sky. He had a beautiful woman beside him on Valentine’s Day. It was the perfect setting for seduction—any other night.



Dee scratched a fingernail along the beer label. “Sometimes I wonder if I’m making these memories up, creating a past that I want to have.”



“Do you really believe that?”



She glanced at him. “No. But it’s easier to accept than thinking about a child going to bed without his or her mother.” Her fists clenched. “Damn it, Jacob, why isn’t anyone looking for me?”



The frustration in her voice slayed him—and justified his near-savage need to touch her. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “I don’t know.”



Her head fell to rest against his chest. “You would never do it, let someone you care about fade away.”



But he’d done just that with his sister.



Jacob shoved the thought aside for the moment and focused on Dee.



She relaxed against him. “When I have these flashes, I know how I felt. Even when I can’t see everything, the emotions are so clear.” She tilted her face up to his. “I love this child, so it must not be a stranger after all. How can I feel so much for a person I wouldn’t even recognize on the street? Is that crazy?”



“Not at all.” The warmth of her seared his side, firing a need to pull her closer. But first he had to know. “What about when you’re asking for the water-wings? How do you feel about the person you’re talking to? What do you hear in response?”



“Airplanes,” she blurted, then looked down at the beer bottle between them, still cradled in her hand. “Silly, and not at all helpful.”