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  Chapter Six

  Summer merged into fall. The aroma of newly fallen leaves spiced the air. Kylie started high school. True to her promise, Jocelyn developed a plan to raise money for the girls’ soccer team. Daily life settled into routine, the nights unraveled into madness.

  Images of ice-blue eyes darkened with desire, tight abdominal muscles that rippled underneath her fingers and clenched rock-hard when he came, that musky, male smell, the heat of his mouth on her skin had her buzzing the vibrator nightly. Tonight felt worse than usual. The new dildo she’d snagged in desperation just couldn’t give her what she needed—the ferocity Jared gave in spades. When the clock inched over to 5:00 a.m., she woke Kylie and dragged her out for a longer run, hoping a demanding workout could cure what ailed her.

  Dressed in shorts and tank tops in deference to the Indian summer lingering over Madison, Jocelyn and Kylie jogged to the high school track for their morning run. After they had two miles under their belts, another runner sprinted alongside them.

  “Morning, ladies,” said Jared with a smile. “I haven’t seen you here before.”

  “Damn,” Jocelyn said under her breath. Not the way she wanted to start the day.“We usually run later. Jared Wyatt, this is my daughter Kylie. Kyles, Mr. Wyatt is the new athletic director and coach of the girls’ soccer team.”

  Kylie smiled shyly and then looked at the ground, increasing her pace to inch a few steps ahead of the adults.

  “Nice to see you out of a business suit. No pocket for your phone either,” Jared said.

  “I work hard. I’m not all about work. There’s a difference.” She sped up to Kylie, unwilling to get caught in the battle of the snarks before breakfast. It only took seconds for Jared to reach them.

  Teeth gritted, Jocelyn ran around the track neck and neck with Kylie and Jared. When he accidently bumped her thigh, she flinched and stumbled on the toe of her sneaker. Propelled forward, she hurled her shoulders back, bent her knees and tightened her thigh muscles, regaining her balance enough to prevent her from sprawling to the ground. She snarled a warning to dissuade anyone from asking how she was doing.

  Several laps later, Jared broke the silence. “Kylie, you’re a superb runner but you’re holding back. If it’s okay with your mom, I’d like you to run the next couple of miles with me setting the pace. Your track team performance is impressive but I want to see what you can really do.”

  Jocelyn hesitated, concern flip-flopping in her belly. She might crave Jared but she didn’t trust him.

  “Mom, can I?” Kylie’s voice oozed eagerness.

  “Go ahead, baby girl.” Suspicions of Jared aside, supporting Kylie’s running ambitions was second nature to her. In sneakers was the one place her daughter felt at home. Her heart was close to bursting as she watched Kylie maintain Jared’s pace, cheeks flushed, eyes sparkling, owning the smile flashing across her face. And Jared’s butt, truly God’s gift to women.

  After polishing off the additional three miles in record time, Jared led Kylie through a series of short sprints in the middle of the field. Worry dug a pit in her stomach. From what she’d seen, Jared manipulated opportunities as well as she did, moving pieces around to meet goals and beat opponents. Would he use Kylie as a pawn in this game of his?

  She was going to find out, and headed over, asking Kylie to do a cool-down lap while she spoke with Mr. Wyatt.

  Hands on hips, she squared her shoulders and got up in his face. “Jared, whatever’s going on between us, my daughter’s off-limits.”

  Stretching into full height, he looked down at her. “I don’t use children, Jocelyn.” He stepped toward her so their bodies touched. “I’m the high school athletic director and Kylie is a high school athlete. My world, my rules. Never question my sports decisions or my ethics again.” The hard set of his chin hinted at the cold rage within him.

  Shuffling back a few steps did nothing to help her escape that damn sexy smell of his, still strong even after the workout, and the things his nearness did to her body. “I do not intend to interfere in high school sports. It’s you I don’t trust. If my daughter is hurt in any way, I will run you out of this town so fast, Jared Wyatt, it’ll make your head spin.”

  “Bring it on, baby. You’re out of practice. You’re not used to fighting someone who hits back.”

  “Arrogance is most men’s undoing. I’ve used this fact to my advantage more times than I can count. Goodbye, Jared.” Waving Kylie to join her, she jogged a cool-down lap home to calm the pulse racing out of control that was not from the workout.

  * * * * *

  Len Reynolds called Jocelyn at work. Kylie had an incident at school.

  Not again, she thought, en route to the high school. In the elementary and middle schools, Jocelyn waged war to upgrade the schools’ ability to teach children with ADHD and other special needs. With her wide-ranging business and personal networks in town, she also grabbed leadership roles in the PTA, on the school board, local charities, to channel resources to the schools to make it happen. It looked as if she’d be starting all over again now that Kylie had entered high school. Parked in the school lot, she steeled herself for the battle to come—one she was long tired of fighting.

  “Hey, baby girl,” Jocelyn said to a glum-faced Kylie, slouched in a rickety wooden seat in the waiting room. After kissing the top of her daughter’s dyed black hair, she maneuvered into an equally wobbly seat next to her.

  “Mom, do you have to call me that here?”

  “Check the attitude, Kylie, but I take your point. I’ll watch my use of it.”

  “Thanks, Mom.” Relief flooded her voice.

  “Afternoon, Ellen,” Jocelyn greeted Len’s Secretary, a guard dog of a woman with a perpetual growl glued to her face. Ellen was splayed across an oversized wooden desk shielding the entrance to the principal’s inner sanctum and looked ready to pounce. ”I want to thank you for the carrot cake. It was delicious. How’s Ned’s new job going?”

  Ellen’s mug re-formed into a smile. “Fantastic, Ms. Wade. The cake was the least we could do. We can’t thank you enough for referring him. Len will just be a minute.”

  The intercom sounded. “The superintendent can see you now. Head on in,” Ellen said.

  Hand in hand they entered the office to find two men, heads bent together as if in mid-secret. Len looked up after the door clicked. His grizzled hair was slicked back with too much mousse. “Jocelyn, I know you’ve met our new athletic director. I’d like him to participate in this meeting.”

  “Jocelyn, Kylie,” Jared said, eyes warm.

  Her lips thinned to a frown, her hands took root on her hips. “Why would you want the athletic director in a private meeting about my daughter’s classroom behavior?”

  Len pinched his forehead. “Trust me on this, Jocelyn. He offers something to the discussion.”

  “Talk fast, Len.” She motioned her daughter to take a seat but remained standing.

  “Kylie disrupted her math class.”

  “Who’s her teacher?” Her fingers furrowed into her hips.

  “Calvin Reed, although I’m not sure how relevant that is.”

  She bit her lower lip to slow the anger threatening to consume her. “Rambling Reed. Of course that’s relevant. Calvin couldn’t stay on topic when I was in high school. He’s not an appropriate teacher for any teen with a challenged attention span. You will have her moved to another math class. Now I ask again, why’s Jared here?”

  “Jared wasn’t hired to coach boys’ soccer. He specializes in coaching ADHD and other special-needs kids on team sports, which as you know can be particularly difficult.” Attention-challenged youth struggled with team sports and required specially trained coaches, who could be hard to find. It’s one of the reasons Jocelyn encouraged her daughter to run, it fit her better.

  Her eyes narrowed as she studied Jared’s face, his features impassive. She wasn’t quite sure what to make of this revelation. If it weren’t Jared, she’d probably be hugging Len
in gratitude right now.

  “I’m starting with the girls’ soccer team and I want Kylie to join. She has the makings of a champion center forward.”

  “What?” That came from left field. Was this for real? Her eyes shot venom. She wanted Jared to know just how suspicious she was of this maneuver.

  “Why are we talking about sports? The issue on the table is academics—a teacher who can’t hold the attention of an average kid assigned to teach a kid who struggles to pay attention.”

  “It’s not an either-or situation,” Len said. “Jared’s programs are one strategy we’re implementing. I also have training scheduled for the teachers on management techniques for dealing with attention-challenged teens. In the meantime I will change Kylie’s math class.”

  “Go on.” Jocelyn leaned back against the wall and waited. This sounded promising.

  “But Kylie has to work on her skills as well. Acting out is not an acceptable coping mechanism, no matter who her teacher—or her mother—is.” Len’s voice strained a little. “Jared’s strategies have demonstrated measurable academic and behavioral improvements. I’m going to insist that Kylie engage with this sports program.”

  “You are going to insist, Len, with me? I don’t think so.” Jocelyn frowned at both of them.

  “Jocelyn,” Jared said, lowering his voice to draw their attention. “I have reports from my work in past schools showing the kids’ advancements.” He pulled a folder from the bag nestled at the foot of his chair. “Here. Feel free to distribute it as you see fit. Turning to Kylie, he looked her straight in her eyes and smiled. “The kids have a lot of fun too.”

  “Mom, I’m okay with it. I don’t mind trying soccer.”

  One surprise after another. Her daughter had never expressed interest in team sports before. “Really? You sure about this?”

  Kylie nodded.

  Running her fingers through her hair, Jocelyn stole a moment to collect her thoughts. A breath escaped, releasing a wad of anger that had been lodged in her lungs since Len phoned. This might be good. Maybe she wouldn’t have to fight this one out. Jared’s presence threw her reasoning off. If it weren’t him making the offer, she’d have jumped at the opportunity, not have Kylie goad her into it.

  “Well, Len, I’m impressed. I came expecting a fight. Thank you, I don’t think I could stomach another battle. Let me know how I can help.” For the first time in a long time, hope bubbled in her heart and soothed her jangled nerves. Maybe she wouldn’t have to carry this alone.

  Gathering her things to leave, Jocelyn glanced at Jared. “I can’t seem to get away from you, can I?”

  His grin had victory written all over it.

  In the hallway, Jocelyn faced her daughter. “Tell me, sweetheart, where’d the sudden interest in soccer come from?”

  “I like Coach Wyatt, Mom. He looks me straight in the eye and treats me like I matter. Most teachers seem a little afraid of me.”

  In a Grinch moment, that ray of hope in Jocelyn’s chest grew ten times larger. Yes, this really might be a good thing. “Just don’t feel obligated to continue if it doesn’t feel right.”

  “Sure, Mom, but I really want to try this. I love track and running, but they’re yours. I want something that’s mine.” Kylie kicked at a crack in the yellowing tile floor.

  She lifted her daughter’s chin and drew her face closer. “I couldn’t be more proud of you, sweetheart.” Her heart burst with tenderness for her daughter, growing up before her eyes, and for Jared. An expert on special-needs kids and sports, a coach who gained the trust of her cowering daughter in record time, and the only man in the whole damn state not quaking in fear of her, who sent her libido into spasms with a glance. His web was tightening around her and she didn’t seem to mind.

  Chapter Seven

  Kylie bounded into the house, shorts and jersey streaked with mud, long wisps of hair escaping her ponytail. “Uncle Gid, Granddad.��� Her voice bled joy as she jumped her uncle and squeezed him in a bear hug.

  “The feeling’s mutual, squirt.” Lieutenant Colonel Gideon Wade held his niece tight with one arm. The other held the knife he’d been using to chop vegetables. His broad grin lit up a lean, handsome face, framed by military-cropped gold-blond hair and heartbreaking brown eyes.

  “Watch the knife, big brother. Kyles, go change and wash for dinner. Your uncle’s visiting for two weeks so you will have plenty of time to get your bear hugs in.” Gideon was the closest thing Kylie had to a father and she adored him.

  “Okay, Mom. Do I have time for a shower? I’m a muddy, dirty mess.”

  “We eat in thirty minutes. Choice is yours.”

  “Shower it is.” Kylie headed upstairs and the rest of the family finished making dinner.

  When the dinner plates hit the table, Kylie slipped into the seat next to Gideon, fresh in blue jeans and green T.

  His fingers ruffled through her still-damp hair. “Those auburn roots are showing.”

  She shrugged in an attempt at nonchalance. “I’m letting my real color come back.”

  “Works for me, squirt. Tell me about high school. The soccer’s new.” Gideon took salad and passed it on.

  “Yeah. I play center forward on the soccer team and I’m pretty good, I think, and my teammates are really nice.” Her face lit up like a light bulb.

  Jocelyn exchanged glances with her brother. Who replaced the dour goth girl who moped around the dinner table with this smiling teen? Jared’s name was written all over this. Hope for her daughter grew hand in hand with her respect for him, which burned through the anger that shielded her heart, and it terrified her. She did not do vulnerability. That suit didn’t fit and she got rid of it years ago.

  “That new athletic director’s your coach,” said Alan. “He’s all the town’s talking about. The rumor is that Joci tried to tell him what’s what and he gave it right back. It’s been a long time since anyone stood up to our Joci and won.”

  “He did not win,” she said under her breath.

  “There’s a man out there who can go a few rounds with my sister and get my niece to smile. When do I meet him?”

  “Friday night at the Chamber dinner,” Alan said.

  Grumbling, she stood to clear the table and piled the plates. She spun around and her hip caught the edge of the chair. The plates tumbled to the floor, shattering. Tiny fragments sprayed around the room. “What a mess. I’ll get the broom.”

  “What’s got your panties in a twist, baby sister?”

  “The new athletic director,” Kylie and Alan said in unison.

  * * * * *

  Jared arrived early to the Chamber dinner to tour the room before his speech and get a feel for the surroundings. If he were being honest with himself, he wanted to steal some time with Jocelyn before it got crowded. The chinks in her armor were showing and he intended to heap on the pressure.

  The banquet hall was a class act, Jocelyn’s touch visible in every detail. Elegant lace-edged white tablecloths covered round tables scattered around the room. Floral centerpieces of multicolored roses filled the hall with subtle color and scent.

  Satisfied with the setup, he headed to the sixth floor balcony to review his notes. The balcony was known for its view of the Madison River and offered an ideal setting to pull his thoughts together before his speech.

  Others had the same idea. A couple leaned over the railing in the far corner, exchanging whispers, the man’s arm draped over the woman’s shoulders. Her laughter spiced the night air, its rich, sexy tone familiar. “Jocelyn?” he asked, green venom exploding through his bloodstream. They turned to the sound of her name, the man’s arm still resting on her shoulders.

  “Hello, Jared, do you need something?” Jocelyn’s shoulders stiffened and the blond man flinched, his gaze traveling from her anxious face to Jared’s angry one.

  “I didn’t mean to interrupt,” Jared said, his body tensed for a kill. After all that crap about not doing relationships… Who the fuck was that guy? How man
y years would he get for murder?

  “No interruption, man. I’m Gideon Wade, Joci’s brother. You must be the new athletic director.” A grin tugged at his lips.

  “Jared Wyatt.” He offered his hand for a shake, his body relaxing. “I remember your name. Did you box for West Point?”

  Recognition glinted in Gideon’s eyes. “And you boxed for the University of Dallas. You beat me my sophomore year at national championships. That left cross of yours sent me back to practice. Don’t ask me to thank you, I hate to lose. How come we never crossed paths again?”

  “I bulked up, moved to light heavyweight the year after we fought.”

  “Rumor has it you’re slinging a few rounds with my sister. I don’t admit this often but she’s the tougher Wade to beat.”

  Anger flushed her cheeks cherry red. “When are you heading back to DC, Gideon? You’re starting to overstay your welcome.”

  “Play nice, baby sister. I’m reconnecting with an old sparring partner.” Gideon squeezed her shoulders and kissed the top of her head.

  “I’ll leave you two alone while I check on the dinner arrangements. Jared, be down in fifteen minutes to go through sound checks. Gideon, make sure Dad takes his meds at dinner and stay out of trouble. I don’t want to have to save your sorry ass like last time.” She stormed off and never looked back.

  “Has she always been this controlling?”

  “Yep, always. I wouldn’t change her though. You still spar, Jared?”

  “Not for sport, but to stay in shape.”

  “I’m here for two weeks. Feel like getting in the ring again, give me a second chance to kick your butt back to Texas?”

  “My pleasure, but it’s your ass heading east with my footprint stamped across it.” Jared liked this turn of events and he liked Gideon Wade, a straight shooter who promised more ammunition to win over his elusive sister.