“Is it okay with you and your brothers if I get this for my nephew and put it out back? I’ll understand if you don’t want to see the kids’ things around the yard.”
“I don’t think they’ll mind at all. It would be nice to see your nephew outside. I hardly see any of you out in the back, or even leave the house,” he said to her. She felt a bit insulted. He was right, though. She really needed to get Lois and Kenny to come outside more. The weather was getting warmer and the days longer. She needed to help Kenny transition back to a normal life where he could feel safe and secure instead of dependent and fearful. She felt a hand on her shoulder and she gasped and stepped to the side.
Beck looked at her strangely and she quickly recovered.
“I’m sorry, I was lost in thought.”
“You know, you should get a few things for him. Maybe a baseball glove and bat, or a football. We used to always play in the back yard growing up.”
She stared up at him. He was very tall and muscular like a martial artist.
“I suppose so.”
“In another couple of weeks, you can take him swimming down by the water hole,” Beck said as she continued to walk around with him right next to her.
“The water hole?” she asked, glancing up over her shoulder at him.
Just then, a couple of little kids came running by them, and she stepped back out of the way and immediately felt Beck’s hands on her hips. He was pressed up behind her and instantly she felt an attraction, a sexual desire for the man. She swallowed hard and pressed forward.
“The swimming hole is a place we all go to swim once the weather is warmer. It’s a bit of a ways down from behind our house. Does your nephew know how to swim?” he asked her.
“Not really. He hasn’t had any real practice or been around water much. We lived in the city, and he hasn’t even started school.”
“Shouldn’t he be in school now?” he asked her
As they walked around the yard sale, she felt his hand at her lower back, guiding her. She looked up toward him, feeling pretty comfortable talking to Beck. He stopped her and she turned around to face him. He kept his hands on her hips and she could feel his thumb caressing her skin right where the hem of her shirt didn’t quite reach the waist of her blue jeans.
“Kenny is very shy to begin with. Back in New York, he went t
hrough some…some intense things that he hasn’t really recovered from. My sister and I need to take our time transitioning him into school and especially moving out here. This is all so new to him. That’s why when I saw the bike and the jungle gym I figured it might help him feel like a little boy and begin to like living here. He lived in an apartment in the city, so this country living is different, too.”
He held her gaze, his blue eyes remaining on her lips a moment, and she got a funny sensation.
“Then we definitely need to get the bike and the jungle gym. Maybe even a small basketball hoop and ball, too?” he suggested.
She chuckled.
“I’m on a bit of a budget. Plus, I have those baked goods to buy, too,” she said with a wink.
“Are you going to share them with me?” he asked. She felt her cheeks warm. He was completely flirting with her, and she didn’t think this was a good idea.
She looked away, picking up a small jewelry box and then placing it down.
“Well?” he asked, whispering against her hair and sliding his hand along her waist as he passed her then stood right next to her other side.
“Well what?”
“You owe me, so the least you could do is share the baked goods.”
She swung her head to look at him.
“I owe you? You mean for taking the items in your truck back to the cottage for me?
He smiled. “Well, that, but more importantly,” he said and lowered to whisper to her as he placed his hands on her hips from behind. “For saving you from little Tommy’s eighteen-year-old brother.”
She chuckled. “That bad, huh?”
“Unless you like pimply faced wise guys who weigh about two hundred and eight pounds. He isn’t tall, either,” he said and winked. She chuckled.