Claiming the Enemy: Dustin (Porter Brothers Trilogy 3)
“I should be going in. You need to be getting home to help Logan with his homework.”
“Did you forget your surprise?”
“I thought you would bring whatever it is when you come over?”
“Nope. This surprise is too big for me to carry.” He pressed another kiss to the corner of her mouth, then stared deeply into her eyes. “You want to spend the night with me? Greer is taking Holly and the kids to spend the night with Tate and Sutton.”
He saw the red flood her cheeks. “You didn’t? Oh, my God … I’m so embarrassed.”
“What’s to be embarrassed about?”
Her face flamed even redder. “They’ll know that we … that you … Oh, my God.”
“Don’t worry about it. I handled it … discreetly.”
“How did you handle it?” She eyed him suspiciously.
“I told Greer that if he cleared out the house for me tonight, I’d take him to King’s and buy him his own steak dinner tomorrow night.”
29
“It’s blowing away!” Jessie cried out, trying to save the umbrella that a strong gust of wind had blown out of his hand.
She helplessly laughed at Dustin as he chased the umbrella while she ran after him, catching his hand. “Forget about it. Let’s go.”
Holding hands, they ran toward his house, both of them leaping onto the porch.
Jessie twisted her hair, wringing the water out. “This is the worst storm I’ve seen since last spring.”
“At least it’s not cold enough to snow.”
“It feels pretty cold to me.” She shuddered, feeling the cold raindrops sliding down her back. Forlornly, she looked at the clothes she dropped in the mud when she tried to help him catch the umbrella.
Dustin saw what she was staring at. “I’ll go get them.”
She didn’t release his hand when he tried to tug it away. “It’s lightning too bad. I’ll get them in the morning.”
A crack of thunder had her nearly jumping into his arms.
“You big baby, it’s just a little thunder.”
“My mama was hit by lightning.”
“Your mother wasn’t hit by lightning,” Dustin scoffed as they went to the door.
“She was. She told me so.” She ran inside as soon as he opened the door. “She said the only reason she didn’t die was because she was standing on a rug.”
“It didn’t happen.”
Jessie stared at him mulishly as he went to the hall closet to take out some towels. Coming back, he handed her one.
“I’m telling you it happened.”
“It didn’t,” he argued back as he dried his hair.
“How do you know? Were you there?”
“I didn’t have to be. It didn’t happen.”
“How do you know?” Wrapping her hair in a sarong on her head, she folded her arms across her chest stubbornly.
“Because she didn’t die. You would have me believe your ma didn’t die from a lightning strike?” Draping the damp towel over a chair at the kitchen counter, he used the chair to bear his weight as he took his boots off.
“You never believe the stories I tell you.”
Dustin raised his eyes heavenward. “I wonder why?”
“One day, when the little green men show up at your doorstep, whatcha gonna do then?”
“Shoot ’em.”
“You better not shoot my green men.”
Dustin eyed her as if she had a screw loose. “You know, when I get in these arguments with you, I just want to drive myself off a cliff.”
“Why?”
Jessie held her breath when his lashes lowered and his face turned sensual. She took a step backward, her butt hitting the back of the couch.
“Because you make me want to believe you. There is no such thing as little green men, other than in your own imagination.”
“You never know.”
“I know.”
Jessie put her hands on the back of the couch to steady herself.
“Why are you backing away from me?”
When he gave her a seductive grin, Jessie knew she was in trouble.
“I don’t like the way you’re looking at me.”
“How am I looking at you?”
She shivered when he started unbuttoning her blouse.
She took his wrists to stop him. “Like I am a combo platter from King’s restaurant.”
The sexy expression on his face was replaced with one that was much easier to handle. “Come on, I’ll get you a pair of Holly’s pajamas.”
Jessie went down the hallway with him.
Dustin opened a door, going inside to turn the light on. “This is my room. Wait here. I’ll get you the pajamas.”
Curious, Jessie went inside, seeing a full-sized bed with a blue comforter spread on the top. The window had blue curtains, which Jessie rushed to close when she heard a crack of thunder. The room was small, much smaller than the bedroom at her house.
“Will these do?” Dustin asked, coming into the room holding the pajamas out to her.
“Yes, thank you. I’ll take a shower and change.”
“I’ll get changed while you take a shower.”
Jessie nervously nodded.
“Jessie?”
She turned around to face him.
“Just because you’re staying the night, if you don’t want anything to happen, we can just watch a movie or something until we go to bed.”