Lucky Break (Lucky 3)

Lauren walked over to the other woman. “Basically the place needs a ton of work. The electrical is sound but the plumbing is a mess, and there are some structural repairs to make. But I’m determined to get this thing finished and sold on time.”

“Good for you. I wish you luck.”

“I need it,” Lauren said. She glanced at her sister. “We need it.”

“You’re a special person, visiting like this. Not many of the people here have someone who cares.”

“Thanks.” Lauren hoped her sister knew and appreciated that fact, as well.

JASON HAD NO LUCK catching mice. The traps had been set for over a week but not one mouse had been caught. Lauren didn’t want them killed so he hadn’t called an exterminator. Besides he wanted to save her money, and all the exterminators would do was set the same humane traps he had. But the little creatures hadn’t disappeared. Far from it. And they were smarter than the average trap or cat. Avoidance was their middle name and even Jason was impressed with the little suckers.

They raced through the walls, despite the fact that he had covered all the holes. He’d heard them-there was definitely more than one-and both he and Lauren had caught glimpses. She was so on edge, she thought she saw them everywhere-when she drank her morning coffee, even when she showered. And she claimed she could feel them on her skin. They were creeping her out and Jason couldn’t do a damn thing about it.

As for the house, things were progressing. He’d assigned Connor to the garage, cleaning and painting the walls. Ross and Nate he’d settled outside, one cleaning leaders and gutters, the other stripping and staining the wood, returning the old Victorian to a clean, New England blue.

He’d hired an electrician to come in and take stock of the wiring in the house, making sure it was ready for inspection and up to code on the day of the closing. Rocco De Martino, a friendly competitor of his father and uncle, assured him all was well.

That left Jason and Lauren working on the main house by day. Thanks to her fear of the rodents, she stayed in whatever room he was in. If he was patching and spackling the walls in the living room, she carted furniture outside and boxed up things for Goodwill.

Nights were even better. He’d lugged Fred over to his uncle’s house so Hank could take care of the dog for as long as Jason was away.

They’d crawl into bed exhausted-but not too tired for sex. He couldn’t get enough of her and the feeling was apparently mutual. Afterward, she’d roll over to fall asleep, claiming her space. He didn’t know if it was deliberate or force of habit.

The first night, he’d taken her physical withdrawal like a punch in the gut. Ironic for a man who’d spent the last who knows how many years screwing snow bunnies and showing them the door. He’d given Lauren her space, but it had taken him hours to fall asleep. He needn’t have worried. Her fear of the mice led her right back into his arms.

Most mornings he woke up with her curled into him, splayed on top of him, or clutching a certain body part in her hand. At which point she more than made up for rolling over to her own side of the bed the night before.

True to his word, Jason had gotten J.R. to take a huge chunk off the plumbing estimate by promising the man he’d do the same when he finished his basement after the first of the year. He wished he could have saved her even more, but she hadn’t mentioned being short of cash lately, so he assumed it must have helped. And she was definitely grateful.

Today was master bedroom day. While he spackled and painted, she emptied drawers and closets, moving items to various piles to keep or give away.

He looked across the room and caught sight of her bending over the bottom drawer of the large chest in the corner. Her shirt rode up, revealing her slender back and fair skin, while her tight jeans dipped low, exposing the edge of what appeared to be black lace panties.

He sucked in a shallow breath and his entire body went into heated overdrive. He’d been aroused all day, watching her breasts rise and fall beneath the tank top she’d changed into after she’d started perspiring. His attempt to keep his mind on work had been downhill for him after that.

A glance at

his watch told him it was almost five o’clock. Even a slave driver wouldn’t object to him taking a break. He quietly climbed down the ladder and approached her from behind, slipping his hand down the inside of her jeans.

She squealed and jumped up, turning so he immediately caught and pulled her into his arms.

“You’re so bad,” she said, teasing him, her eyes dancing with delight.

“I couldn’t resist another second. Do you know how many times I nearly fell off that damn ladder watching you?”

Lauren wrapped her arms around his neck. “Next time just tell me before you sneak up on me. My body is on constant rodent alert,” she chided, but her eyes were already dilating with need.

He slid his hand back into her jeans, letting his first finger dip between the fine crack and settle there.

A soft moan escaped her lips. “We still have work to do.” The words didn’t come out like much of a complaint.

“We’ve made remarkable progress this past week.” They also made an incredible team, tackling one room at a time.

They’d completed the work faster than he’d anticipated. Probably because he’d known she was waiting for him at the end of each day, soft, willing and ready for him. He wondered if she realized how in sync they were with each other.

“You do have a point.” She thrust her fingers through the back of his hair, making him glad he’d been too lazy to go for a haircut.

“I suppose you could convince me to take a break,” she said, arching her back so her pelvis rocked directly into his erection.