The Trouble With Love (4 page)

"The best, she made the most amazing biscuits.  Even Imelda's aren't as good..." He chuckled and then shook his head, "Her recipe was top secret, so it died with her."

"You don't have any brothers or sisters?" she'd just plain forgot to ask him that before.

"Nope, mom had me and then couldn't have anymore kids...having me almost killed her."

His arm was still around her shoulders and hers around his back and she noticed he was leaning a little heavier on her.  She patted him on the stomach with her other hand and said, "Let's get you to bed, you're about to fall over."

He groaned and said, "It's upstairs..."

"Is there a room down here you could use until you're feeling better?"

"Yeah," he said and started walking toward the wide kitchen entrance.  Straight ahead was an enormous family room, with one wall nothing but windows, and deep brown leather French Country style furniture with multi-colored floral pillows and a huge stone fireplace.  It was
warm
and inviting and she thought he was taking her in there, but he hung a left in the wide hallway that separated the kitchen and family room
instead
.

They walked slowly down the hall and she saw a study, then a room lined with books that must be a library right off of it.
On the other side, there was a room with a sewing machine, dress form, and bolts of material and shelves of plastic tubs that must've been his mother's sewing room.
 
It was painted a bright yellow, and had a gingham check border right above a white chair rail all the way around the room.

He kept going then finally stopped beside a wide double door to the left.  "This was my mom and dad's room...only bedroom on the ground floor
,
"
he told her and twisted the knob to open one of the door
s
. 

Again,
Sabrina's
breath was taken away
, this time by the massive four-poster carved mahogany bed against one wall
.
  Its elegant headboard reached almost to the ceiling and there was whisper thin white material draped from each post that twisted along the rails in between.
The gorgeous carving on the bed carried over to an equally large hi-boy
armoire and chest with a mirror, and a marble ladies vanity table with a huge mirror sat on the other side of the bed.

"My god, Cole...
,
"
she said breathlessly then led him across the room to the bed, which was covered with a thick quilt that from a distance had looked store bought, but up close she saw from the small stitching it was definitely handmade.  She ran a hand over it reverently and asked, "Did your mom make this?  It's beautiful."

She saw him swallow a couple of times then he nodded.
 
Her eyes traveled to the bag of peas in his hand and she noticed they were
defrosted
now
and
it
probably w
asn't
doing him much good anymore. 
"
D
o you have a bag of peas in your freezer?"

He laughed and said, "I have no idea...don't cook much."

"Did you eat at the reception?"

"Didn't have time..." he told
with a wry twist of his lips.

Walking to the head of the bed, Sabrina pulled back the quilt and sheets, then fluffed the pillow,
and
looked up at him. 
"You want to go take a shower, and I'll go see what I can scrounge up in the kitchen.  Maybe you have something edible in there," she chuckled.

"Clothes are upstairs in my room...don't think I can make it up there."

"Which room?" she asked and put her hands on her hips. His words were getting weaker by the minute, and from the looks of it, so was he.

"Last one at the end of the hall on the right."

"Is there a bathroom down here?"
  She asked looking around, but didn't see one.

"Yeah," he said and walked over to the wall on the far side of the room and pushed it, the door opened and he pulled both double doors open.  "In here..."

Sabrina walked across the room and gasped again for the hundredth time, since she'd walked into this fabulous house.  There was a monstrous sunken tub
with jets and
a marble surround and a shower that would hold at least four people with showerheads on every wall.  The vanity had double sinks and a matching marble top with maple cabinets and stainless knobs.  It was beautiful...a dream bathroom for sure.

Determined not to say 'wow' again, Sabrina walked over to the tub and closed the plug, then
turned on the spout, testing the water to make sure it wasn't too hot
.  Picking up a bottle of
sandalwood bath gel she saw on the counter
, she
squeezed a good bit into the water.  The
heady s
cent filled the bathroom with the steam from the bath and she inhaled deeply.  It had always been one of her favorite scents.  S
eeing a linen closet beside the vanity, she looked inside and pulled out two fluffy towels and a wash cloth and set them on the vanity.
With a wave of her hand toward the tub and a grin she said, "Your bath is ready m'lord," then curtsied.

When she stood back up her eyes met Cole's and they were heated and intense.  He set the peas down on the counter and took two steps toward her then put his hands on her hips and pulled her to him.
  Before she could think about saying no, his head descended and he captured her lips with his and she sighed
then
slid her hands up his chest
slowly
to loop behind his neck.

Cole d
idn't overwhelm her, he tasted her
lips and coaxed her to respond, taking his time like he was in no hurry to deepen it. 
E
lectric current skittered along her nerve endings lighting up places inside her that hadn't seen light in a long time.  Her breath was coming in short gasps and her nipples hardened against his chest then she
moaned and
licked along the seam of his lips and sucked on his bottom lip.  Cole groaned then
grasped her butt to
pulled her
tighter against him and lift her up, before he
deepened the kiss, seeking out her tongue for an erotic waltz.

A little mewl of pleasure escaped her lips and she moved her hips against him and pressed her breasts tighter against his fabulous chest. 
He groaned then pulled his lips from hers and put his forehead against hers, his jaw clenched. 

"I don't want to let you go...why the hell did I have to pick today to get the shit beat out of me?" his voice was a low tortured whisper, like he was in serious pain on several fronts.

"Timing sucks for sure," she said with a choked little laugh. "Get in the tub, and I'll go fix
us
something to eat."  She leaned up and kissed his shoulder then teased, "Shrek," with a giggle. 

Cole swatted her behind and then pushed her away, and pulled his t-shirt over his head. "Get out of here before I take a fistful of ibuprofen and say to hell with hit," he told her with a growl.

CHAPTER THREE

What the hell was she doing? Sabrina asked herself for the tenth time since she'd left the bathroom. 
Enjoying a sexy man who wants you and could get you out of the funk you've been living in for a year and a half
,
her inner voice finally told her. 

"But I don't even
like
him!"
she yelled back at that voice.
But you want him...more than you've ever wanted anyone
,
it whispered back.
  Sabrina had no reply to that one, because it was true.

Cole infuriated her, insulted her, set her teeth on edge when he was in caveman mode, but he flipped her switches like no man had before...not even Kenny.  Guilt swamped her as she walked into the kitchen and went to the refrigerator.  Kenny was a good man, and had been good to her.  Their marriage had been solid for five years...before he'd gone and gotten himself killed.  Thanks to her brother, Gabe.
..a man she'd idolized her whole life, but now didn't even talk to.
 
He still called every now and again, but she didn't answer.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she slung open the fridge door and peeked inside. 
The shelves were pristine, glistening...and
basically
empty.
Taking inventory, she saw o
ne jar of pickles
, several packs of sour cream from a fast food joint,
and a
tub of butter
, 
b
ut other than that,
nothing but a
few
beers.  Grabbing one
,
she went to the drawers on the island and search
ed until she found
an
opener.
  Uncapping the beer, she swig
ged
down half of it
for courage before she looked in the freezer.
 
Hopefully, she'd have more luck
there
than she had in the fridge.

Sabrina opened the freezer door and
breathed a sigh of relief when she saw several packs of steak in there and pulled one out looking for a date.  Beggars couldn't be choosers, she thought
when she didn't see one.  She
shut the door and put the package on the counter.  If it was out of date, Cole could add food poisoning to his other injuries.  She chuckled
...
the way their luck was running the last couple of days, it was a distinct possibility.

Sabrina went to the big pantry across the room, hoping she'd have
success finding
sides to go with their steaks.  She knew she wasn't going to find produce in there, or useable produce
anyway
.  Any
produce
in there would probably be growing babies.
 

She walked inside and pulled the string to turn on the light and saw it was well stocked with all kinds of cans, and some dry goods.  She grabbed a box of instant potatoes and checked the date, then pulled down a can of green beans.  There was a
box of biscuit mix
that was still good.  After he talked so highly of his mom's biscuits, she was hesitant to make them, but there wasn't a
ny bread she could see.  She grabbed a liter of Seven Up off the shelf...it would have to do since she didn't have any milk.  She cou
ld use it with the sour cream
and butter to make a
biscuit
recipe she'd found online
and had tried a couple of times
.

With her arms full, she walked to the island and set all her ingredients down and then took the steak package and put it to defrost in the microwave.
  Then she pulled down some bowls from the cabinets beside the sink
.  Looking into the cabinet that probably held spices, the one beside the stove, she
found about every seasoning she could ever wish for.  That reassured her
that at least her out-of-date steak wouldn't be flavorless and bland
.  After pulling several
seasonings out of the cabinet,
she set them on the counter beside the indoor grill.

Cole was probably out of the shower by now,
and he
really did need to get ice on his face again, she thought
,
and went back to the freezer to dig around and look for so
me frozen vegetables
that might work.
  In the very back behind the steaks, she found a frozen pack of butterbeans and pulled them out. 
She had a hard time deciding on whether to bring them to him for his face, or cook them.
  Sabrina
really like
d
butterbeans.
 
T
hinking of him trying to put the can of green beans on his face instead,
she laughed and headed down the hall with the
frozen beans
.

Not thinking, she twisted the knob and walked right inside the bedroom without knocking and got an eyeful of a firm ass, long muscled legs and an incredible back, still dewy from his bath.  The urge to go over there and lick him dry slammed into her, and she gasped. "Sorry..." she
mumbled
then turned around to walk toward the door.

"Wait...just stay there a second and I'll get decent."
 

Sabrina heard clothes rustling, and drawers open and shut, then he said, "Okay..."

She turned back around slowly and felt blood rush up her neck and then across her cheeks.  "Sorry about that...I should have knocked."

"Not a problem for me, sugar,"
he told her in a low sensual tone
then added,
"You're welcome in here anytime
.
"
H
is voice, smooth as honey, danced along her nerve endings and
his gaze traveled over her
leaving a
fiery path in the wake.

She
noticed he had on a pair of sweat pants that were a little too s
hort
and
a lot too snug
, then remembered she was supposed to go get him some clothes from his room.  "Oh, I forgot to get you some clothes from upstairs..."

He looked down at himself and then back to her with a smile, "These will work, my dad wasn't quit
e
as tall as me."

"Not a lot of people are," she said and her gaze traveled up from his toes
, over his body, finally stopping at
his heated gaze
, then
swallowed down the lust that ratcheted up inside of her.
 
Even black and blue
,
and dressed in clothes two sizes too small,
the man
was so damned sexy, he had her panting with just a look. 
And wanting things she should
n't
be wanting.

Numbness in her hand had her looking down to realize she had the butterbeans clutched in her fist.  "Oh, I brought you some butterbeans for your eye," she said and walked over
and handed them
him
then backed away. 
"
Supper will be ready in a little while
...you go ahead and lay down and I'll call you when it's done
.
"
she
told him and turned to walk quickly to the door.

Why the hell was she here playing Betty Homemaker anyway, she wondered.  She should have just taken his SUV back to the ranch, or borrowed that truck in the garage, or walked if she had to.  As big as this house was, it wasn't big enough for her to avoid the sexual force that was Cole Jackson.
  The memory of the kiss they'd shared in the bedroom flickered through her mind, and she moaned then walked to the kitchen to finish cooking.

Sabrina
grabbed an oven mitt she'd found hanging on a hook by the stove, and ran for the oven to grab her biscuits out before they burned.  Frantically, she slammed the oven open and grabbed the baking sheet by the edge, letting out a relieved breath when she saw they were perfectly golden.  She didn't care if she burned the whole meal, as long as she got the biscuits right.  Why the hell she should care, she didn't know...but she did. 

Transferring them over to a cooling rack on the island, Sabrina grabbed the meat fork and flipped the steaks.  The green beans were slow cooking on the stove.  She'd found some real bacon bits in the spice cabinet and added some for flavor.  The potatoes she'd added some garlic and butter to, along with one of the sour cream packets.

Sabrina loved to cook, but she didn't get to do it often, she was always at work, or getting ready for it.  Trips to the gun range,
kickboxing and
self-defense
classes
, reading up on new or revised laws, internet research
on her cases
...it never ended.
  But she did it because she intended to stay alert and on top
of her job
.  She wasn't going to let what happened to Kenny, happen to her.  He'd been sloppy and that got him killed...and she wasn't
going to be another statistic.
 

Her focus since he died had made her great at her job, but pretty much a failure on all other fronts.  She had no social life in
Phoenix
.
..and it got damned lonely.  But she'd chosen that life, she'd been asked out plenty, but she hadn't allowed herself to lose her focus...until now, until Cole. 

T
he feelings he stirred up in her told her it was time now to reevaluate her life. 
It had nothing to do with Cole.
She needed to reclaim the life she had before Kenny.  For a year and half she'd been depriving herself of male companionship, because she felt like she was cheating on Kenny.  Well Kenny was dead, and she wasn't crawling in the grave with him.  She was young and vibrant, and she deserved to have a life.  She was going to use the three weeks she had here in
Bowie
to get her head on straight again.

Shaking her head to clear the cobwebs, Sabrina grabbed a knife from the drawer and buttered the to
p
of the hot biscuits, then got a platter and slid the steaks off the grill and turned the
fire off under the green beans, then pulled off the oven mitt and leaned back against the counter and crossed her arms.

Everything was ready
,
so why was she hesitating on going get Cole?  Because he was temptation incarnate and she was afraid she'd be tempted to make a meal of
him
if she went in that bedroom again.

Stiffening her spine, she
pushed off the counter and
walked out of the kitchen and down the hall
.  Knocking on the
bedroom door this time
,
she
said loudly, "Dinner's ready!"
Chicken that she was, she didn't wait to hear if he responded before she ran back down the hall to the kitchen, then
pulled down place settings for each of them
to
set the table.  She put the food on the table, then went and poured them each a glass of the sweet tea she'd made.  She knew southerners loved their sweet tea.

"Oh my god, my nose has died and gone to heaven..." his sleepy deep voice rumbled behind her right
ear
before his arms closed around her waist and he kissed the side of her head.
  The scent of the sandalwood she'd put in his bath made her think
her
nose had done the same.  Tendrils of the scent floated around her in an intoxicating wave that made her want to turn around and
kiss
him.

"Your nose is probably broken, so what would it know?" she chuckled and stepped out of his arms to go get them napkins and silverware.

"Wow, darlin' that apron is some kinda sexy,"
he said in a low rumble  S
he looked over her shoulder and saw him ey
e
balling her butt.

"
You must be feeling better, the hound dog is coming back out in you.  Isn't that what Luke called you?
"

Cole snorted
and said laughing
, "He was as much of a hound dog as I was any day. Cassie
's
just tied him to the front porch now."