An Unexpected Cowboy by Shannon Stacey

Author:Shannon Stacey
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2021-12-16T21:44:00+00:00

* * *

Irish knew the hours between Mallory going back to the house and her sneaking into his camper were going to feel like the longest of his life, so the best thing he could do was keep himself busy.

He finished cleaning the ceiling fan blades and, since Lane hadn’t shown up yet, he found other busywork. Then Mrs. Sutton needed a hand in the house, which he never minded doing. He didn’t see Mallory while he was inside, but he could hear the low sound of her and the boys talking about something upstairs.

Finally, Lane showed up and they went down into the cellar.

“I didn’t think we were ever going to finish today’s job,” Lane told him, obviously exhausted. “I’m so glad you’re around, so I know everything’s okay down here. I keep thinking one of the jobs—either the tree service or the taproom—will ease up, but I’m still running myself ragged.”

“You know I’m happy to help out while I’m here.” He wasn’t making any promises about how long that would be because the only answer he could really give was When Mallory gets tired of me and throws me in the toy box.

“What smells like fruit?” Lane looked around, sniffing the air. “It smells like peaches or something.”

“Apricots,” Irish muttered, because he knew Lane wouldn’t let a strange odor in the cellar go unchecked.

“What smells like apricots?”

“My hands.”

Lane turned away from the tank, giving Irish his full attention. “Why do your hands smell like apricots?”

“Mrs. Sutton asked me to change a light bulb in the hallway for her, so I was in the house. There was some hand cream in the bathroom, and I didn’t realize it smelled like fruit until after I squeezed a bunch into my hand. Seemed a shame to waste it so now my hands smell like apricots.”

“Apricot hand lotion.” Lane snorted.

“My hands feel like rough-cut lumber.” They probably had for years, but marveling at how small and soft Mallory’s hand was in his for the last few weeks made him wonder if she’d noticed how tough and abrasive his were.

And that was just her hands. What would his hands feel like against the tender flesh of her breasts? The inside of her thighs?

In a few hours, if all went according to plan, Mallory was going to be in his bed and the last thing he wanted her thinking about was how rough his hands were. Smelling like apricots was a small price to pay as far as he was concerned.

Lane’s phone chimed with the sound that signified it was one of the Sutton women and he sighed. “They must have seen my truck pull in. I love these women. Truly, I do. But there are times I think about how different it would be if David and I were running this show together and I really miss him.”

Irish watched him read the text in silence, since there was nothing he could really say. He’d never met Mr. Sutton, obviously, so the only thing he knew about the man were things he’d been told.

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