Southern Heat Book 1 : The Secret Room (2 page)

A few minutes passed before Amy realized that Jack wasn't inside.
Well, he is a stable boy
, she thought to herself. She walked back down the stairs and made her way around the right side of the house where the pastures were. Thankfully, she had worn her less expensive cowboy boots.

Over the pasture, she saw a gorgeous red barn that had all of the amenities that any horse would ever want. It looked picture perfect as if someone had painted it right there in the field. As she walked toward it, Amy could see someone laying on the ground just inside of the riding ring.

“Oh my gosh!” she yelled as she dropped her briefcase and jumped over the metal fencing to get to the person. A man, probably in his mid 30's, was laying on the ground with a cowboy hat over his face. He was wearing a gray, form fitting t-shirt, muddied up jeans and a pair of snakeskin boots. Just under his hat, she could see his brownish blond sun speckled hair peeking out.

“Sir! Wake up! Are you okay?” she said falling to her knees beside him. Trying to remember her CPR skills from middle school, she placed her fingers on his neck to check for a pulse. In the process, she put her knee down right on his crotch area. Just then, he jumped with a start and sent her falling backwards, legs up, onto the ground.

“Oh, gosh, ma'm.... I am so sorry!” he said grabbing both of her hands and pulling her up to a sitting position. “You might want to.... um....” he said pointing down at her dress which was up around her waist showing a hint of her black lace panties.

“I thought you were dead!” she said jumping up as she dusted her dress off.

“Not unless you came here to kill me...” he offered a crooked grin as he stood up and placed his hat back on his head. “Jack Parker, ma'm” he said reaching out his slightly muddy hand.

“Amy Kincade.... Callahan Real Estate Group....” she said reaching out to shake his hand. “Now, can you tell me why you were laying out here in the muddy riding ring when you knew that I was coming for an appointment? I have been standing at the front door for over 15 minutes,” she said irritated.

“Well, Miss Amy..... I have a very good explanation for that. I wasn't in the house,” he said smiling coyly. “And, for your information, I was taking a quick nap. I like to sunbathe. What can I say?”

“Maybe next time you could plan your schedule a little better, sir. I don't like people wasting my time,” Amy snipped.

“Wasting your time? Boy, you are a firecracker, aren't you?” he said walking away from her towards the barn.

“No, not a firecracker. I'm a business woman. Would you have done this to a man?” Amy asked, in hot pursuit of him as he walked to the barn.

“Listen, lady, I took a nap. Don't you ever take naps?”

“Well.... no.... I don't. I've got a busy life,” she said.

“Well, you need to slow down and smell the roses. Don't be so uptight. Anyway, I have a busy day today also, so why don't we just stop arguing so I can show you the property?” he said starting to get a bit frustrated.

“Fine.” Amy said.

“Oh, and thanks for trying to save my life. If I ever feel like I might keel over, I would certainly welcome you trying to climb on top of me....” he winked.

“I was trying to do CPR....” she said snapping back once again.

He walked around behind her to unlock the gate leading out from the barn. Suddenly she felt one of his large hands moving down the back of her dress from her mid-back to her butt.

“Hey! Keep your hands to yourself...” she yelled slapping his hand away.

“Relax.... You had some dirt on you from your fall over there....” he said holding both hands in the air as if the police had just pulled him over.

Jack led Amy out into the first field where they kept a couple of prize winning horses. The hot summer sun was beating down on her, and Amy wished she had worn a hat. Noticing her squinting her eyes even through her sunglasses, Jack took off his hat, dusted the extra red Georgia clay off and placed it on her head.

“No, thanks...” she said starting to remove it.

“Amy, please take it. You have a lovely face. I would hate to see it get burned. Sunburns aren't sexy.... It'll ruin your well put together look,” he smiled. Amy relented and left the hat on her head.

“Thanks,” she said looking down.

“See? I'm not all bad. I really was just sleepy. The Tarton's are pretty demanding bosses,” he said kicking the dirt off of one of his boots.

“I'm not mad anymore. You just scared the crap out of me. My uncle died of a heart attack a couple of years ago at a family picnic. He just fell onto the ground, and when I saw you.....” she started before having to choke back tears. “Well, anyway, I was just trying to help.”

“Oh, Amy, I'm so sorry. Really. I was just fooling around with you. I'm truly sorry about your uncle,” he said putting his hand on her right shoulder. Contrary to everything in her, Amy felt a rush of electricity when he touched her.

He's just a stable boy. Well, a stable man... He's not a boy, that's for sure. Gosh, look at those baby blue eyes. Look at those broad shoulders. You haven't been touched by a man in awhile. That's all it is. Focus, Amy,
she thought to herself
.

For a moment, they stood there without moving, his hand on her shoulder and her eyes starting at him. Realizing that she was in dangerous territory, Amy stepped back and changed the subject.

“Can I see the house?” she asked.

“Sure. You lead the way...” Jack said pointing in front of the barn.

The home and the grounds around it were beautiful. They were the most manicured grounds she had ever seen in person.

“Do they have a gardener?” she asked as she leaned down to smell a pink rose nestled up against the white pillars on the back patio of the home.

“I'm the gardener, I suppose,” Jack said from behind her.

“You? I thought you were the stable....” Amy stopped herself.

“The stable BOY? Is that what you were going to say?” he said with a slight crooked smile.
Man, that crooked smile really does something to me
, Amy thought.

“Well, I.....”

“It's okay. I know that's what Mrs. Tarton calls me. She's kind of a bitch that way,” he said walking up the stairs to the back door. “Let me clear this up for you, Miss Kincade. I have a degree in horticulture. I grew up with horses, so I took this job to work as the stable manager. I also know how to do garden design and maintenance, so I handle that here as well on the Tarton Estate. While I might look like a country bumpkin, I have just as much education as I bet you do,” he said.

“I wasn't trying to imply that you were dumb or a bumpkin, as you put it,” Amy said rolling her eyes.

“Firecracker. That's what you are,” he said opening the door and chivalrously pointing for her to enter first.

“Hey, wait a minute there, Jack. I didn't say anything. You are the one who just went off on me for being surprised that you have two jobs here. And, to set the record straight, I think Camille Tarton is a bitch too. So get that straight!” Amy snapped back as she attempted to walk past him to get into the kitchen, stopping mid-way to make nose to nose contact with him in the door way.

“Thanks for the clarification, Miss Kincade. And may I say that you smell better than those rose bushes out there?” he said as his warm breath covered her face. She didn't want to move. Pressed up against him in the doorway, she could feel his heartbeat on her chest.

“Well, you smell like a mixture of sweat and mud...” she replied trying to use humor to get out of an uncomfortable situation.

“That's what real men smell like. Haven't you ever smelled a real man?” he whispered into her ear as he slid out from the doorway into the mud room.

“I don't think it is any of your business who I have smelled, Jack,” she smiled letting out a sigh of relief as she followed him inside.

Soon, the beauty of the home overwhelmed her senses. The majesty of the Southern mansion was incredible. From the original hardwood floors to the period light fixtures, Amy knew she wanted this listing. Each room had its own appeal. The ceilings were high and the furnishings were exquisite. She had never seen anything like it.

“This place is beautiful,” she said in awe as she turned in a 360 degree circle in the front entryway. “I would love to live in a place like this someday,” she whispered.

“Yes, it is nice. The Tarton's don't appreciate it nearly as much as they should,” he mumbled.

“What do you mean?”

“I shouldn't get into it. This is business, right?” he smiled.

“I think business left the building as soon as my dress ended up around my waist,” Amy laughed.

“That was a nice moment, for sure...” Jack chuckled winking at her.

“Ugh..... I shouldn't have brought it up....” Amy said putting her head in her hands in embarrassment. Her face was red. She suddenly realized that she was still wearing Jack's hat. She handed it back to him and he eased it up to his nose taking a long breath with his eyes closed.

“Mmmm.... there's that smell again. Thanks for that. I won't get anything done for the rest of the day,” he said.

“Do you flirt this much with every girl that comes here?” Amy asked point blank.

“Nope. Just the good smellin' ones,” he said grinning as he plopped down onto the brown leather sofa in the main family room. “Ain't this the dumbest thing you've ever seen? A leather sofa in an antebellum home?” he asked looking around.

“You know, you are supposed to be selling this place to me....” she said smiling as she sat down in the matching leather chair.

“Yeah, well, let's just say that I hope someone buys it that actually appreciates it. This home is rich in history and the Tarton's have junked it up with all this modern stuff,” he said looking around the room.

“Where will you go? I mean when I sell it?” Amy asked.

“Not sure yet. If the new owners don't want me to stay, I might move back to Texas and try to get a job  on an oil rig or something,” he said.

“You'd like to stay here, though?” Amy asked.

“I love it here. This house was here in the Civil War. It was one of the few that was saved in this whole area. I love the land, but I don't love the Tarton's,” he said rolling his eyes.

“Yes, I can see that,” Amy laughed.

“You want some sweet tea?” he asked standing up and walking towards the kitchen.

“I don't want you to get in trouble...”

“I won't. They're gone until tomorrow. Apparently some country club function downtown. They're staying in a hotel tonight. The penthouse, of course. Gag....” he said sticking a finger in his mouth.

Amy giggled hysterically at the face he was making.
Cut it out, girl. You still have seven more months without a man. Be cool.

As she watched him fix the sweet tea, Amy was amazed at how comfortable she was with him. It was like this was her house and that was her husband. She started imagining what it would be like to live there, secluded from the glare of city life, with her own family. The smell of the magnolia trees filtered into the kitchen from the open door to the patio. It was like heaven on Earth.

“Here you go,” Jack said as he handed her a tall glass of iced sweet tea with lemon on the side. “I didn't  know if you liked lemon, so I put it on the side,” he said.

“I don't actually, so thank you,” she said removing the lemon.

“I don't like it either. Too froo-froo for me,” he said putting his pinky in the air like he was at a tea party.