CHAPTER TEN
MAXI’S NAP THREE days ago was the last time Miles saw her actually relax. She worked sunup to sundown, slept seven hours a night—usually after exhausting sex—and never seemed tired.
She was back to being the dynamo he remembered, both in bed and out.
The following week went by without a single threat, but that didn’t mean it was problem free. The damage to the roof of her barn exposed wood rot, meaning they needed to rebuild part of the roof. A bigger job than expected.
He could do it, but she’d complain.
Hell, the more she got back to herself, the more she wanted him to kick back and watch her work. Miles wasn’t sure how to break through that stubborn wall of independence. What did she expect him to do? Sit on the porch drinking iced tea in the shade while she seeded the lawn and dug in the flower beds? Even when she’d put together the lawn furniture she’d bought, she’d tried to refuse his help.
Like hell.
Now, with him on the roof again, tearing away the damaged section, she stood below the ladder fretting.
He wore jeans to protect his knees, but no shirt, and he had to admit, he liked the lustful way Maxi stared at him.
“What’s the verdict?” she asked.
“A lot of damage.” He dug his fingers into a spongy section of wood, then crumbled it over the side to show her.
They both heard an ATV approaching. Maxi shaded her eyes and stared toward the long driveway.
Miles, alert to the visitor, since she hadn’t had any, hurriedly came down the ladder. The last person to call was the cop, Fletcher, and he’d had the good sense not to return, not even with a report about the rifle shot.
But the guy now arriving wasn’t Fletcher, was at least fifty years his senior.
Wearing a straw hat, a gray T-shirt and jeans, the guy smiled and waved as he pulled up on a dusty ATV and stopped right in front of them. He pulled off his hat, swiped his forearm over his brow and gingerly swung a leg over the side of the vehicle to dismount, his movements slow and methodical to match the limits of his age.
Once he had both feet on the ground, he brushed off his hand on his jeans and extended it to Miles. “How do? I’m Woody Barstow, Maxi’s nearest neighbor.”
Miles felt the strong grip, despite the man’s age. “Mr. Barstow. Nice to meet you. I’m Maxi’s friend Miles.”
“Call me Woody. Everyone in these parts does.” He grinned, putting creases into aged cheeks. “I’m glad to see she has some company out here.”
Maxi was all smiles. “It’s good to see you again, Woody. How’ve you been?”
“Oh, I’m all right. But that storm gave me some trouble and I’ve been doin’ repairs or I’d have been over to check on you sooner.”
She pointed up at the barn roof. “Us, too.”
“What’s this?” Woody went past them to the ladder. “Lost some shingles?”
Miles answered, “A few, but that’s not the problem. It’s the wood rot that’s the bigger issue.”
“You don’t say.” He scratched at his chin. “I built this barn for Meryl ’bout fifteen years ago.”
“You?” Maxi said, “I didn’t know that.”
“Oh, yeah. Your grandma and I were real friendly. Good woman. Liked her a lot.” Troubled, he glanced at Miles. “If there’s wood rot, that means I didn’t seal something properly.”
“No,” Miles said, wanting to reassure him. “I think another storm took shingles off a few years back. They weren’t replaced, and that probably let the water in.”
“I should’a been checkin’ for Meryl. Just never thought of it.” He gazed out at the rest of the property. “She was an independent sort, always wanting to do for herself, but usually I could talk her into lettin’ me help on upkeep. I trimmed back big branches from these trees so they wouldn’t fall on the house, replaced a window for her once and helped her pick out the new furnace and air-conditioning.”
“Did you do the electricity?” Miles asked.
“Nah, that was a friend of mine. He put in the new breaker box and such at cost as a favor to me. I worried she’d burn the whole place down without it, everything was so overloaded.” His graying brows pinched together. “Will’s gone now, though. Passed a year ago.”
“I’m sorry,” Maxi said.
“It was his time. He’d had a good life.” Woody drew a breath and again looked around the land. “I kept all this mowed for your grandma, you know. That’s why I’m here. Figured I’d offer to come up with my tractor and take care of it.”
“Oh,” Maxi said, surprised by the offer. “That’s so sweet of you, but I can take care of it.”
“Why would you wanna do that when I already have the equipment?”
Miles didn’t say it aloud, but he was thinking about Woody’s friend Will who’d just passed away. He didn’t think it’d be a good idea for Woody to be out in this heat for any length of time.
“I’ll be around,” Miles said instead. “I can take care of it.”
“No,” Maxi stated. “It’s my property and I’ll do it.”
Woody looked between them before cackling a laugh. “Damn, she reminds me of Meryl.”
Miles smiled with him. “I actually saw a riding mower in the barn. If it works, it should do the trick.”
“It works,” Maxi assured him. “I started it up one day.”
“You look mighty happy about that,” Woody noted aloud.
“Thinking about my grandma. A few times when I came to visit her, I caught her on the riding mower. For some reason it always embarrassed her.”
“The woman hated to sweat,” Woody stated. He leaned in to whisper, “I know cuz I caught her on it once, too.”
Miles would be willing to bet there’d been a romance brewing between Meryl and Woody. “I’m sure she valued you as a good friend.”
“That she did.” His expression sobered. “I’m the one who found her, you know. Came to tell her I was heading into town and wanted to see if she’d go along. She sometimes did. We’d do our grocery shopping together, stop at the diner, just...chat.”
Two elderly people alone, finding companionship together. Miles felt extra bad for the guy. Did he have any other friends around? Maybe he and Maxi could extend an invite or two.
Maxi, probably thinking the same thing, put her hand on his shoulder in sympathy. “I’m so sorry, Woody.”
“It was the awfulest thing.” He patted her hand. “Just the awfulest.”
After a comforting squeeze, Maxi asked softly, “Woody, would you mind giving me some advice?”
He swallowed hard, shifted and finally nodded, his friendly expression back in place. “Be glad to. About what, exactly?”
“Well, I’m going to cut the grass soon. With all this rain, it’s really greened up.”
“Yeah, it’s real pretty, ain’t it?”
“But I was thinking about another way to keep it trimmed. First, though, I thought I’d add an extension to the barn.”
That was news to Miles. “An extension?”
She nodded. “For goats.”
Together, Woody and Miles repeated, “Goats?”
“I’ve been researching it, and goats could keep that property cleared for me. They’re friendly and smart and, from what I’ve read, they eat a lot.”
What the hell? Miles stared at her, but she didn’t meet his gaze.
Woody looked as startled as Miles felt. “Well, now, goats ain’t a bad idea. It’s a good idea, actually. But you don’t need to add on to the barn. Why, I could build you another shelter farther out—”
“No, I want all the animals right here, closer to the house. In fact, I’m considering a chicken coop on the other side. So what do you think? How hard would it be to add on to the side of the barn over there?” She pointed to where she, apparently, wanted the first addition.
Woody scratched his chin again, then looked at Miles. “It’d really be easier to build a different shelter.”
Miles agreed, but it wasn’t his decision. He shrugged. “She’s the boss.”
Woody gave him an assessing look. “I figured maybe you two were sweethearts.”
He didn’t deny or confirm that when he said, “Wouldn’t matter. It’s still Maxi’s property to do with as she pleases.”
Maxi beamed at him for that reply. “Here’s what I’m thinking.” Assuming both men would follow, she headed for the far side of the barn. “The rotted wood is up there, and I understand that part of the roof will have to be torn out to repair it with fresh lumber. Well, why not extend the roofline down a little farther? We could cut a door into this wall, to connect it to the main body of the barn. I could close it when I want to keep the goats outside, but open it when I wanted to let them in. I figured a smaller enclosure could be built out here.” She swept her hand to show what she wanted.
Miles could see it. “You’d need to fence in the property, too.”
“Luckily the rain has softened the ground.” She wrinkled her nose. “Lots of postholes to dig.”
Startled by that, Woody rubbed the back of his neck. “Goats, huh?”
She nodded. “Goats.”
“And chickens, too?”
“That’ll be the project after the goats.”
He nodded in distraction, then jumped subjects. “You know how I met your grandma? I wanted to buy this property from her. She wouldn’t sell, though.”
Guessing where that was headed, Maxi said gently, “I won’t sell either.”
“Oh, I know that. Knew it soon as I met ya.” Then his eyes twinkled. “But if you ever change your mind...”
She smiled with him. “You’re the first person I’ll call.”
“Then if you’re sure I can’t cut the grass for you—”
“I’m sure.”
“—I’ll be on my way.”
As he headed back to his ATV, Miles followed. “I like your ride.”
“This old thing? She gets me around to the neighbors. On these old gravel roads, damn near everyone drives their four-wheelers—even though we’re not supposed to. Gotta take the truck when I go into town, though.”
“You know any hunters who use them?”
“Yeah, ’course I do. Bastards, er, excuse me, Maxi.”
“That’s all right.”
“Anyway, damned hunters drove through my property and tore up my garden. If I’d seen them, they’d have felt the sting of buckshot. But it was early morning, and by the time I got outside, they were gone.” His gaze sharpened on Maxi. “You had trouble?”
She glanced at Miles, clearly remembering his warning. He smiled to let her know he appreciated it.
Answering for her, he said, “Someone took a wide shot or something. Rifle slug hit the barn, passed through and got embedded in the rafter.”
Eyes wide, Woody whistled. “Someone could have been hurt!”
“That’s how I saw it. Anyway, if you hear of anyone hunting around here, let me know, okay? I’d like to have a word or two.”
Woody grinned again. “I bet you would, a big guy like yourself.”
“You’re not exactly small,” he pointed out. Woody Barstow was probably five-ten at least, and while he looked thin, he didn’t appear frail. He stood straight, shoulders relaxed but back.
“Aw,” he groused. “These old bones damn near rattle when I walk. But I can’t complain. No, I can’t.” He climbed onto his seat with as much care as he’d used getting off the ATV. “Maxi, you have my number. You need anything, especially with that barn addition, you just let me know, okay?”
“Thank you, Woody. And the same to you.”
He smiled. “Yes, ma’am. You’re a good neighbor. Appreciate that.” He started the engine, did a slow, wide turn and puttered cautiously down the long driveway to the gravel road.
Miles turned to her, his brows up and his curiosity ripe. “Goats?”
The surprise in his voice made her laugh, and damn, he liked that, seeing her so relaxed and excited about a project.
“I’ve been thinking about it, mostly because my grandma thought about it before me. I saw her a few weeks before she passed and she was talking about it.”
“Just hadn’t gotten around to it?”
“I think it was more that she read up on them.” Mischief twinkled in her dark eyes. “She told me the term horny goat suddenly made sense, and that goat sex definitely didn’t sound sexy.”
Miles grinned. “No?”
“Actually, it’s pretty gross.”
Ready to tease her back, he asked in feigned innocence, “How so?”
In a scandalized whisper, she confided, “Apparently male goats stay ready, if you get my drift. And it’s...visible. Plus, they pee on everything, including themselves.”
“Glad I’m not a goat.”
Her mouth twitched. “I’m glad you’re not, too.”
This was the first time he’d seen her so animated, and like every other facet of her personality, it turned him on. “So you really do want to extend the barn?”
“Even though it’s what my grandma had wanted, I’d been putting it off, since I had so many other repairs already on my plate. But since we have to redo part of the roof anyway, now seems like a good time.”
“That’s a lot more involved than just a roof repair.”
She stepped up to him, her small, soft hands pressing on his bare chest, her head tipped back so she could smile up at him. “I know.” She took a breath. “Don’t blow a gasket, but I’m going to hire someone.”
Blow a gasket? Yeah, he just might. Irritation gathered, making him frown, but he attempted to keep his voice even. “Are you forgetting that you hired me to protect you?”
“Not for a minute.” She stepped closer still, until her plump breasts pressed to his ribs. “But I can’t stop living my life, right? And what better way to move on than to stay busy.”
Was that what she was doing, making her life so busy that she couldn’t think about the existing danger?
Was he part of that plan, a means to keep the bad things at bay...but nothing more? “No one is asking you to stop living, but you do need to run things by me, at least until we’ve solved the mystery of who’s bothering you.” Such a mild way to remind her she could have been killed, yet even in his annoyance he was reluctant to disturb her current upbeat attitude.
“You said it yourself, having more activity here will get rid of the illusion that I’m all alone.”
If Miles could help it, she’d never be alone again. And just where the hell had that idea come from? Sidestepping his appalling inclination to make more out of what they currently had, he said, “I suppose I could get the guys out here to help—”
“No.”
That adamant denial gave him pause and ratcheted up his annoyance. “No?”
Uncertainty shifted her gaze away from his. “I don’t want you doing more than what you were hired for.”
There it was, her insistence that he sit around twiddling his thumbs—a stark reminder that while she might have employed him, and she sure as hell enjoyed the physical part of their relationship, she still hadn’t let him in. He was no closer to her now than he’d been before her visit to the Body Armor agency and, damn it, it infuriated him.
Because she didn’t want him close.
Stung by that truth, Miles considered how to react. Yeah, he wanted to tell her what he really thought, that he didn’t appreciate being used, but would that get him the desired effect? Probably not. After weighing his words for a few seconds—while trying to ignore the touch of her fingers against his bare skin—he finally said, “Maybe now’s a good time for you to tell me the exact parameters of my job.”
Those teasing fingers curled against his skin. “You already know.”
“No, I don’t think I do.” He caught both wrists and, to help him focus on his grievance, gently moved her hands away. “Enlighten me.”
Going stiff, she stepped back. “You’re supposed to protect me.”
“Yeah.” So far, so good. “And?”
Her frown deepened. “Setting up the surveillance stuff was good. You did such a great job with it, Woody didn’t even notice. Everything blends in.”
He nodded, accepting the accolade. “Thanks. And?”
Taking a stand, she said, “That’s it. Protection. Not roof repair or grass cutting or—”
Her repeated efforts to cut him out irked enough that he asked, “Sex?”
She sucked in a breath, her expression suddenly hurt. “I figured that was freely given.”
“Oh, hell yeah, it is.”
She relaxed the tiniest bit.
Until he added, “Just as my help with other things is freely given.”
She went right back to bristling...times ten. “That’s different and you know it.”
“Yeah. At least you don’t mind using me in bed.”
Heat rushed to her face. For a second, she looked like she might cry, and it devastated him. Then she fisted her hands and snarled, “We use each other.”
He wanted so much more than that. Laughing at his own stupidity, he bit out, “Jesus, I’d almost forgotten. Sex doesn’t mean much to you, does it? It’s less personal than me hammering in a nail on the roof.”
The embarrassed color washed from her face. “I’m not paying you to hammer nails.”
“Not paying me to fuck either.”
As if he’d slapped her, she dropped back a step. Before Miles could apologize, she stiffened her shoulders. “I misunderstood your interest.”
He did his own stiffening. “That’s not what I said, so don’t do that whole female BS of twisting my words around.”
“Female BS?” Charging forward two steps, she poked a finger at him. “Listen up, Legend.”
Shit. He was back to his fight name again?
She breathed hard but said nothing else. Finally, she twisted around, her back to him, arms crossed tightly and one hip cocked out.
Miles waited. He knew a pissed-off woman when he saw one, not that her anger wasn’t deserved. Yeah, his comment about paid fucking was over the line.
Hell, he didn’t want to fight with her. He wanted her to open up, accept him.
He wanted her to want him, in all ways, as much as he did her. He just didn’t know how to make it happen. But insulting her sure as hell wouldn’t do it. “Maxi—”
“I was unfair.”
Miles wasn’t entirely sure what she meant by that, so he didn’t yet say anything. Sometimes silence was a safer bet than another verbal fumble.
Her proud shoulders slumped. In a small voice, she whispered, “You made it clear you didn’t want to get sexually involved again.” With a humorless laugh, she added, “Obviously I did. But knowing how you felt, I shouldn’t have...insisted.”
Wondering where she was going with this, wishing he could better understand, Miles said, “Pretty sure I was willing.”
She shook her head. “No, you weren’t, but I teased you and even got annoyed when that didn’t work. You finally gave in, but it wasn’t your idea.” She used the toe of her shoe to nudge at a weed in the yard. “I didn’t take ‘no’ for an answer. I forced the issue and that was wrong of me.”
He would have laughed if he didn’t know for certain how she’d react to that. Force? Not even close. Yes, she’d worked against his plan, but so what? The end result had sure been memorable.
He couldn’t bear seeing her look so guilty and dejected. “Truth is, Maxi, that’s one of the things I enjoy most about you.”
She went still, then peeked back at him. “What do you mean?”
“How up-front and honest you are about sex. How much you enjoy it.” With me. He stared into her startled eyes. “You don’t play games about what you want, and that’s a huge turn-on.”
Biting her bottom lip, she faced forward again. After a second, she gave a shrug. “I want you. Did from the moment I first saw you. And you were even better than I’d anticipated.” Again scuffing the toe of her shoe in the dirt, she complained, “It’s so blasted complicated. It’s like I know what I need to do, but you’re here now and I can’t be expected to resist that.” Another glance. “Unless you don’t want the same. And if you don’t, I swear I won’t pressure you again.”
He couldn’t help smiling. “You know better.”
“Do I?”
Slowly Miles closed the space between them, then cautiously rested his hands on her rigid shoulders. She didn’t jerk away, so he considered that a good sign. “I was trying to make a point.”
That had her turning away again with bitterness. “Yeah, that I’m needy enough to take sex even though it’s not in the job description?”
“No.” Well...yeah. Sort of. “You’re not needy, so forget that. After everything you’ve been through, I do think you enjoy the closeness, though. And so do I.”
She said nothing.
“The point is more that this situation isn’t the usual job. We’re both adapting, right?” He rushed to clarify, “I don’t mean the sex. If you’ll recall, I wasn’t the one who called quits on that the first time around.”
Her head dropped forward and she heaved another breath. “I know.”
Rubbing his thumbs into her shoulders in a brief massage, he reiterated, “I want you, Maxi, no matter what else is going on. Remember that, okay?”
Beneath his hands, the tensed muscles in her shoulders loosened. This time her head tipped back. “I can’t help but feel the same.”
So she might fight herself, but the chemistry was too strong for her to resist? Relief hit him like a wave of...lust?
He gave it quick analysis and concluded, definitely lust.
Any acceptance from her fired his blood, and damn it, that wouldn’t do. He’d been ridiculously obvious in wanting her, and yet she still held him at an emotional distance.
She’d said it plain out, that she didn’t want to want him, and that made all the difference to things. It was the reason he’d been reluctant to get involved again in the first place.
He’d completely lost sight of his plan, but it was past time he got back to it. If sex was the big draw, then by God, he’d use it to his advantage—and hopefully make other, more concrete and lasting, progress along the way.
“Usually a bodyguard is there to ensure things go smoothly in a designated time frame, rather than an open-ended deal.”
Showing some interest, she asked, “What kind of time frame?”
It didn’t take him long to come up with an example. “Like an MMA fighter who doesn’t want to get mobbed by fans. The bodyguard can run interference on that during a promo stint for one evening.”
Interest growing, she looked back at him again. “Did that ever happen to you?”
“Few times.”
She twisted to face him fully, her umbrage possibly forgotten. “Really?”
As she’d turned, he’d adjusted his hands so that they now framed her neck, his thumbs caressing her jawline. It’d be so easy to slide them under her chin and tilt her face up for a kiss that led to a whole lot more.
Uncommitted sex, that was what she wanted.
He wanted the sex, too. Well, that and more.
But they needed this talk.
“I was doing a promotion gig once and there were some fans that’d had too much to drink. Even though I was behind a table, one of them kept trying to crawl over to get into my lap.”
Her expression of fascination flashed to irritation. “You’re talking about women?”
Miles hid his grin. “The sport does have its fair share of female fans.”
“I didn’t realize.”
He noted her acerbic tone. Jealousy? He’d like to think so. “There were four of them being outrageous, three of them egging on the fourth to steal a kiss.”
Her lip curled. “Oh, and I just bet you were all kinds of unwilling.”
“Actually, I was. They were completely smashed, and I was working. Hell, the line of fans was long, and people were taking pics left and right. I knew then that I needed a bodyguard, someone other than me who could play the heavy and tell them to get lost. Luckily Cannon and Armie were there, and they lent a hand.”
She blinked. “Cannon and Armie?”
“Friends of mine. Both champion fighters.”
“What did they do? Drag the women away?”
Miles couldn’t help but laugh at that image. “Hardly. If either of them had been noticed, they’d have been mobbed more than I was. No, they sent over a guard from the event and that guy corralled them. It wasn’t a dangerous situation, but it was awkward as hell.”
“Did you ever hire a bodyguard?”
He shook his head. No, instead of needing a bodyguard, he’d quit the sport he loved. Thinking about it twisted his guts.
Talking about it was out of the question. Not yet. Definitely not while she stayed so uninvolved.
He forced a smile. “I became one instead.”
“But—”
Choosing to finish that particular battle on another day, he said, “Let’s check on that mower you mentioned, see what kind of shape it’s in.”
“Miles!”
He turned, relieved that she was no longer using his fight name. “I didn’t quite bring that full circle, did I?”
“No, you didn’t.”
“Okay, so I’m going for plain speaking and I hope you’ll try to hear what I mean, even if I say it wrong.”
Impatient now, she said, “I’ll try.”
“I’m not an idle guy. No way am I going to sit around day in and day out doing nothing, especially not when you’re working. It’s not how I’m made. I can keep an eye on things, which is all I’m really doing right now, while also getting some of the things done that you mentioned—things I enjoy doing.”
She gave that some thought and offered an olive branch. “You really do enjoy it?”
“Don’t you?” He could almost swear that she did. Dirt under her nails, sweat on her brow, cat hair everywhere—she looked to be in her element. But she seemed just as at ease in the kitchen, or shopping, or, better still, in bed.
With him.
“Yes,” she confirmed, and then logically, “but it’s my place.”
“Doesn’t matter. I like using my hands. I like the sunshine and fresh air. Hell, I like sweating.” And he liked spending time with her. No, better not go into that right now. “I want you to stop worrying that you’re taking advantage. If I don’t want to do something, I won’t offer.”
“But you’re working so hard.”
He laughed. “I work harder at exercise.”
“When you were in MMA?”
“And at the agency.” He explained, “Body Armor has a gym and an even better indoor gun range so we can all stay at the top of our game.”
“That’s part of your job, then,” she decided. “But this is just...labor.”
“Do I look like I can’t handle it?”
With a soft sigh, she said, “You look amazing.”
Damn, he did love the way this one particular woman looked at him, as if she could devour him with that dark, velvety gaze. “Keep that up,” he warned, “and we’ll be doing the nasty here in the dirt.”
The crude comment made her grin, lightening the earlier antagonistic mood. “With a bunch of cats watching?”
“Probably.” He held out a hand. “Will you trust that I’m enjoying myself?”
She waffled, but in the end she stepped up to him, took his hand and said, “Thank you.” With her head on his shoulder, she asked, “Will you kindly remember that it’s my property and I’m not an idle person either?”
“Sounds like a deal.” They’d both work all day, and burn up the sheets at night. Yeah, a very sweet deal.
And somewhere along the way, maybe he’d win her over.
A guy could hope.