All Jacked Up (Rough Riders 8)

“Liesl spoke English?”

“I guess she learned from watching TV.”

He playfully bumped her with his shoulder. “See? TV’s not all bad.”

Keely’s beautiful, wistful smile appeared again. “According to Cam, Domini would’ve brought every kid in the orphanage home, so it’s ironic Cam was the one who pushed to adopt Liesl.”

“Why?” Jack’s hand inched higher on her leg.

“Cam, being nosy Cam, noticed Liesl limped, but she’d always shuffle away and hide whenever he asked her about it. When he grilled the orphanage caretakers, they told him her leg had been blown off by a land mine when she was two.”

“Holy shit. Seriously?”

“Yeah. She’d wandered away from her drug-addled parents into a freakin’ minefield. Then they abandoned her into state care. Luckily she got a prosthetic leg, which isn’t always the case, and actually, is out of the norm.”

“Why’s that?”

She shrugged. “Fittings are difficult for younger kids because they grow so much. Balance is always an issue. They constantly need new prosthetics and each one is expensive. You can imagine that isn’t a priority in what’s basically a third world orphanage.”

“Sounds like you know a lot about prosthetics,” he murmured.

“I learned tons helping Cam find the right one. Anyway, Cam was heartbroken no one wanted to adopt her due to her handicap. He understands probably better than anyone what it’s like to live with that embarrassment. That fear of being alone.” She paused. “He fought for her. He wouldn’t leave Romania without her, actually. So Liesl returned to the U.S. with them and the twins. Every day, for like three months after they brought her home, Liesl battled going to sleep at night. She was afraid she’d wake up and find her new life was all a dream.”

Keely’s voice broke and Jack squeezed her thigh.

“And now…I can’t imagine Liesl not being part of their family. Cam’s quiet life and pristine house is a thing of the past but he and Domini wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“Sounds like they should be canonized.”

“I suspect they’re not done adding to their brood. It’s funny. Cam was always ambivalent about being a parent. So it’s hysterical he’ll probably end up with the most kids out of any of my brothers. That said, God knows all my brother’s wives are in some freaky race to see who can pop out the most McKays. Jesus.

They’re all pregnant again. It’s an epidemic that makes me want to stay far, far away from their overactive uteruses.”

He gently stroked her soft skin, watching her closely. “They’re all pregnant?”

“Yep. Channing, AJ and Macie are knocked up. So’s India. And Chassie. And my cousin Quinn’s wife, Libby, is on baby number two. On the West side, Blake’s wife, Willow, is expecting their first. His brother Nick’s wife, Holly, is expecting their second.”

Jack whistled. “That’s some seriously scary reproductive mojo.”

“Tell me about it. That doesn’t include any of my friends. Many are on baby number three. Heck, some of them are already on husband number three.”

As stealthily as possible, Jack slipped his arm behind Keely on the back of the couch. Her hair was long enough he could twine a silky section around his index finger. “You’ve never been tempted to take the plunge?”

“I’ve had my fair share of boyfriends. Some say more than my fair share, but I’ve never seen myself with any of them long term.”

“Why do you think that is?”

Her body tensed. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m flawed. I’m sure you’d derive great joy in detailing all that is wrong with me.”

“I don’t know if your opinion of me bothers me worse than your opinion of yourself.”

Keely snorted. “Please.”

“You don’t need me to tell you you’re a beautiful woman, Keely. You didn’t offer a glimpse of your insecurity because you were fishing for compliments.”

Silence. An unhappy, uncomfortable silence.

“What did I say?”

“Stop teasing me.” She attempted to squirm away.

“I’m not teasing you.” Don’t snap at her. “Why is it so damn hard for you to take a compliment from me?”

“Because you’ve never given me one and it’s insincere,” she retorted.

Jack tugged on her hair until she faced him. “If you’re challenging my sincerity, then I should at least get a chance to prove it.”

“I don’t need proof. We’re pretending to be engaged for Christsake. How much more insincere can it get?”

“We might be lying about some things, but this…pull between us is real.”

Keely shivered. “That’s not—”

“I can demonstrate if you like.”

“I thought you were conditioning me?”

“That too,” he murmured. “Take a chance, cowgirl.”

“And if I say no you’ll call me a chicken?”

“Yep. I’ll even cluck.”

She laughed softly. “You are crazy.”

“I know. It’s part of my charm.” Jack angled his head until his nose brushed her ear. Goddamn. The woman’s scent was a shot of adrenaline straight to his groin. “Close your eyes, Keely.”

“Jack, I don’t think—”

“Don’t think. Just do it.”

She muttered unintelligibly, but she complied.

Fascinating.

He dragged his fingers to the top of her thigh where her hand clenched into a fist. He brushed his mouth across the lilac scented skin below her ear. “My lips are a perfect fit for this spot, right here.”

She arched into him slightly.

“I could spend an hour touching you with my mouth and my hands.”

“Over my clothes?”

“To start. Then I’d unbutton your shirt, kissing each section of skin as I bared it. I’d look my fill. I’d taste my fill.”

“And then?”

Jack’s lips skimmed the hollow of her throat. “And then whatever you want, Keely, just name it.”

“What is this proving?” she asked breathlessly.

“Nothing. I’m conditioning you to my touch, remember?”

“So this is just a game?”

“Yes.” Jack let his heated breath follow the sexy curvature of her jaw. “And no. Getting you comfortable with my touch is a means to an end, but the process isn’t a hardship. Not at all.” Hadn’t the woman noticed his c**k straining against his zipper?