Peach Tree Bodyguard (Gay Romance) E-Book

Trina Solet

• Herausgeber: Trina Solet
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020

Beschreibung

Moving to Peach Tree, all Lane wants is security for his little girl, Nola, and his grandmother, nothing more. But how can he resist his hot, arrogant neighbor with a cute dog.
Joss has secrets and scars, and he's in Peach Tree to do a job, not get involved. Lane is part of that job and that's why he has to stay close, but not too close. That's not easy as Lane keeps stirring up feelings that are a lot more than attraction. If he doesn't keep his distance, Lane will figure him out.
Lane can't afford to open up to anyone, but Joss is irresistible and he keeps getting pulled in. Both men are playing with fire, but as their secrets come out, it's Joss who has to convince Lane that he's not in danger. When Joss is proved wrong, their whole world might be torn apart.

Leseprobe

Peach Tree Bodyguard (Gay Romance) By Trina Solet

Copyright © 2020 by Trina Solet

All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, locales or actual events is entirely coincidental.

All sexual activity takes place between persons eighteen years of age or older.

This novel contains material intended for mature readers.

Cover image is only for illustrative purposes. Any person depicted is a model.

Peach Tree Bodyguard

Gay Romance

Trina Solet

Chapter 1

When he went to pick out a dog from the animal shelter in Ashbury, Joss couldn't help feeling guilty. He didn't get a dog because he wanted one. He did it because he needed an excuse to walk up and down the riverbank and roam the fields and hills around the riverside cottages located on the edge of Peach Tree. That kind of thing looked a lot less suspicious when he had a dog by his side.

That might have been Joss's reason for adopting Rosie, but he had to admit the dog was sweet and he found himself forgetting why he got her. With her floppy ears and soulful eyes, she was irresistible.

Joss had Rosie, the little beagle, and an assumed identity to help him do his job without drawing suspicion. Joss was impersonating a man named Craig Drucker so he could keep a eye on his neighbors, the family living in the blue cottage.

The blue cottage was the last one in the row of river cottages, and it was the furthest one from the small town of Peach Tree. The cottage was home to Yvonne Goodwin's younger brother, her daughter, and her grandmother. Joss had regularly seen all three of them outside enjoying the nice weather of late summer.

Lane Bridger would often sit in a folding chair with his laptop. That was the name the brother now used. He was slim with dark brown hair and blue eyes behind a pair of eyeglasses. Lane was very attractive in a nerdy kind of way. And by adopting his little niece, Nola, he had made himself a young dad. The little three year old, was running around nonstop. She was like a whirlwind, while Lane's youthful, blond grandmother was in and out, bustling and keeping herself busy.

That morning as Joss jogged by the blue cottage, he slowed and saw Lane just as he stepped out of the back door. His laptop was closed and held under one arm. Still on the doorstep, he didn't move just followed Joss with his eyes the whole time he was running past the house. Joss didn't blame him, though every time he saw him he gave Lane a friendly wave.

After what happened to Lane's sister and her husband, a friendly wave from a stranger wasn't going to put his mind at ease. Even Rosie jogging next to him didn't put a smile on Lane's serious, watchful face.

That was fine. Joss wasn't there to make friends. He had a job to do and that's all that mattered to him.

***

Sunshine pouring in through his open bedroom window lured Lane outside. He had his desk in the bedroom but always seemed to end up outdoors and working sitting in a lawn chair in the back of the cottage.

The cottage was a good size with two original bedrooms and one that was added on. That one was a lot bigger and Lane set it up as a bedroom and office. Nola's room was the smallest, but she didn't spend much time in it anyway. She was always running around, chasing bugs outside. There was nothing she liked better than to pick up creepy crawly things and show them to him. Lane shuddered remembering the centipede she practically put in his lap yesterday.

Right now Nola was in the kitchen with Gran. Lane listened to their chatter as he stepped out of the doorway that led from the kitchen to the field in the back of the house.

While Nola and Gran's voices were in the background, Lane's attention was on the guy jogging along the riverbank. He was almost out of sight, but he had a dog now, a little beagle whose fur was brown, beige and white.

Before Yvonne and her husband's deaths, Lane would have been watching the guy because he was hot and had a cute dog. But now he didn't look at random guys with interest. He looked at them as a possible threat.

Once the guy moved off, Lane relaxed a little bit and took in the view. The back of the cottage looked out over the river. Right now the opposite riverbank was a deep green while the river reflected the bright blue of the sky.

They had great views on all sides. To the west there was Peach Tree Hill. The front of the cottage had a porch that faced low hills and fields with wildflowers in full bloom. Beyond that was the town of Peach Tree.

They had moved there less than a month before when his grandmother joined them. She lost her husband, and after being with him through his illness, she wanted to be with Lane and especially Nola. She said that would help her broken heart heal.

Having been a corporate type all her life, Gran had taken to living in the country better than Lane expected, even learning to cook on the wood burning stove. When he was arranging to buy the cottage, the real estate lady told him their cottage was the oldest one there. The original, wood burning stove proved it, and once Gran saw it, she was determined to put it to use.

That morning she had made pancakes on it and now she was leaning out the kitchen door and bragging, "I only burned a few of them. I mean hardly any. Maybe five." Then she made lunch plans. "I'm going to bake a fresh loaf of bread for our sandwiches."

"Don't burn it," Lane told her.

"I never burn bread," she claimed then added, "Any more."

Placing his folding chair in the shade of a small tree, Lane sat down with his laptop ready to get to work. Right on cue Nola ran out of the kitchen with Gran warning her to stay close.

"Working. Boo," Nola said. She didn't like to see him working. It meant he couldn't play with her.

She bounced an orange ball instead. On the uneven ground, it bounced wildly, but Nola didn't seem to mind chasing it.

Lane made sure to keep her in his line of sight while he worked. The field outside the house sloped gently toward the river, but she knew better than to stray in that direction.

He still warned her and she listened. But when her ball bounced and then rolled down the slope, she looked at him like she wanted to see if she could chase it.

Up from his chair, setting the laptop on it, Lane took her hand. "We'll get it together." He didn't want to scare her, but he used a firmer voice to remind her. "You always have to stay close and hold my hand when you get to these rocks."

"Have to catch the ball," she said but then something else took her attention. "Doggy!"

The guy with the dog was jogging back their way. His dog had spotted the ball and nosed at it where it lay in the grass.

"Yours?" the guy said casually, then he threw the ball so that it sailed through the air in a smooth arc and landed right next to them.

"Again! Again!" Nola demanded raising her arms up, but the guy only laughed, waved at them and ran on with his dog.

Damn it, he had a stunning smile and a cute dog. His hair was dirty blond, his eyes dark, and his body incredible. Lane did not need that kind of distraction right now. He had Nola to keep safe, and that was all he cared about.

Setting her down, he kneeled in the grass and leaned in so he was nose to nose with her. "You don't run after any balls or any doggies. OK? Stay close to me or Gran."

"OK," she said then grabbed the ball and threw it yelling, "Catch it."

Of course the ball went off to one side and rolled on the ground so he had to chase after it. As he picked it up and threw it to Nola, she didn't catch it of course. She just laughed. Then she laughed again when she tried to pick it up and kicked it instead.

Lane thought about that guy when he threw the ball – the easy, athletic motion of his nicely muscled arm and the flash of a scar under the sleeve of his t-shirt.

Chapter 2

It was Saturday and Lane took Nola and Gran on a picnic. Roast chicken and green bean salad were on the menu. Nola only wanted to play with the green beans, but she couldn't get enough of the peach slices Gran packed for dessert.

"Look at how much she loves peaches. That's a sign that we were meant to come to Peach Tree," Gran decided as Lane tried to keep up with the peach juice dripping down Nola's chin.

His grandmother knew that he was second-guessing himself about moving there. Peach Tree had more tourists coming through than he realized. He should have picked someplace quieter, but his grandmother loved it there and she had already made friends. And of course Nola was in her element.

Any time he saw her running around outside, Lane couldn't help thinking of Yvonne. Nola had her mom's golden brown hair but not her blue eyes. Lane was six years younger than Yvonne, so he didn't get to see his big sister for himself when she was Nola's age. From pictures and video, he could see how much they looked alike, but Gran said Yvonne hadn't been anything like Nola at all. Yvonne was quieter, more "adorably serious" and so smart.

Lane was pretty sure she was never into bugs like Nola. What he remembered was the grown up Yvonne, her ambition, and how she scolded him for not applying himself, for wasting his potential. Always driven to succeed, Yvonne worked so hard to make a name for herself. Then her life was cut short and her husband's as well.

They were lawyers representing a weapons dealer who was testifying against his partners. Knowing they were in danger, they sent Nola away with Lane. A week later they were killed.

Nola didn't remember her mom or her dad at all. She was less than a year old when they died. She didn't remember Lane's mom either. Lane couldn't keep in touch with anyone from his former life if he wanted to keep Nola safe from the people who killed her parents.

His mom did have another family though, but Lane didn't even get to say goodbye to his half brother and half sister before he had to go into hiding with Nola. That's why he was so glad their grandmother wanted to join them and give Nola more of a family than just him.

Having Gran there made days like today a lot more fun. After the picnic, they drove for a little bit then stopped by a marshy area that ran along the riverbank near the bridge. They chose a pretty spot and made their way toward the shallows at the water's edge.

Cattails grew tall and Gran got one of them to show to Nola. That held Nola's attention for about a second. She was more excited as she saw something jump in the water. It was probably a fish, but she had other ideas.

"Catch froggies," Nola was saying. She was ready to wade into the mud, and that reminded Lane where he parked and he was having second thoughts about it.

"Sorry to abandon the hunt, but I want to go and move the car from that muddy spot," he said to his grandmother.

"You just don't want to have to touch any slimy frogs," Gran accused him.

"Gran, it's not like she's going to catch any," he said as he left.

It was true he didn't want to touch slimy frogs, but he was afraid that he parked too close to the marshy ground and the car might get stuck when it was time to leave.

As he tried to move the car, he proved himself right. The wheels were just kicking up mud, digging the car in deeper. That was not good.

Getting out to push, Lane only succeeded in getting himself covered with mud. The car was stuck and he was getting frustrated. He would have to call a tow truck to get the car out and that made him feel like an idiot.

Kicking himself for where he chose to park, he was about to make the call when he saw a car stop on the road, a nondescript gray sedan. It was well away from him, but Lane got uneasy until he saw a familiar figure step out of the car. It was their jogging neighbor. He didn't come over, but hung onto the driver's side door as he called out to ask, "Need help?"

Lane's first instinct was to say no, but he felt dumb denying the obvious, so he told the truth. "I got the car stuck in this muddy spot." He then looked down at himself. "But you'll get dirty if you come over here."

"I'll be OK," the guy said and he walked over. He looked under the car. "It's not in too deep. I think if we work together, we'll have it out. I'm Craig Drucker, by the way. I'm a few cottages down from yours."

"Lane. Lane Bridger. Nice to meet you."

They were on opposite sides of the car so they didn't shake hands or anything, and Lane caught himself wishing they had. Was he that desperate for physical contact with a hot guy?

They had to get the car out of the mud. That's what he should be focused on. Craig had him get behind the wheel while he pushed. Mud went flying but then the car lurched forward and it was out.

Getting out from the car, Lane was relieved to have it on more solid ground, but he wasn't comfortable that he had to accept help from a stranger.

"Thank you and sorry about your clothes," Lane told him. Craig was splattered even worse than Lane. "I didn't realize the ground over there was so muddy."

"It's an easy mistake to make and my clothes will wash," Craig told him like it wasn't a big deal.

"You're going to get that mud all over your car," Lane realized. He had already messed up his own car. There was no helping that, but he didn't want Craig to suffer for his mistake. "I have a picnic blanket in the trunk. You can cover your car seat with it."

"I don't want to get it dirty. I'll just take the shoes off. And I do have sweatpants in my gym bag," he said then eyed some nearby bushes. "I see a good place I can use to change into them."

Thinking about this gorgeous guy taking his jeans off in the bushes, Lane knew he must be blushing so hard. Good thing Craig went to his car to get the sweatpants. When he came back, he told Lane, "Keep watch, just in case."

He said keep watch, not keep watching, so Lane turned away and immediately started picturing Craig taking his jeans off, with nothing on underneath, bending a little to show off a perfect, toned ass. In his imagination, Craig didn't put his sweatpants on. He turned to give Lane the front view too.

To get his mind out of the gutter, Lane started talking. "My grandmother and I just took my daughter on a picnic then we stopped here."

"That's why you had the picnic blanket. It's a nice day for it," Craig said over the sound of the bushes rustling from his movements.

"I keep thinking how this is the end of summer and we should take advantage of every warm day," Lane said.

"I know what you mean. I've been tempted to jump in the river and go for a swim," Craig said and now Lane was back to thinking of him naked, slowly entering the water then smoothly diving in. He was torn between picturing Craig's muscled body gleaming in the sun or under the light of the moon.

While drooling over the Craig in his imagination, Lane was startled when the real guy walked out of the bushes. He was dressed but barefoot.

"I hate that you have to pay for my dumb choice of parking space," Lane said.

"It's all right. Bare feet in the grass feel nice," he said and Lane got to see his gorgeous smile again. At close range it was even better.

Now Lane felt like he had to say something and not just stare at him. "My grandmother and my daughter are pretending to catch frogs. I'm sure she's getting all muddy too."

"That's how kids have fun, right? The dirtier the better." Craig looked toward the river then turned his eyes in the direction of Peach Tree Hill in the distance. "This seems like a good place for a kid to grow up. Or are you here on vacation?"

"No. We're living here. And you?"

"Just taking care of things at my late granddad's cottage before it's sold. But it's been kind of like a vacation for me too," he said then motioned toward his car. "I'll get going now. I'll see you around."

"Right. Thanks again," Lane said and watched Craig pick his way over the dry areas to his car. Before getting in, he waved. It reminded Lane of how he always waved at him as he jogged by or walked his dog. Except that from now on, Lane wouldn't be able to think of him as a stranger any more.

Chapter 3

As soon as he opened his eyes and noticed the bright sunshine coming through his window and heard Nola and his grandmother outside, Lane knew he had slept too late and felt guilty about it. He had a good excuse. He worked late into the night after a deadline got moved up, but the real reason was that he kept waking up from dreams about Craig naked in the bushes, swimming naked, jogging naked. That last one really had him going and kept him up the longest.

With his bed made, Lane could go and grab a cup of coffee and join the fun outside. He slipped on the tennis shoes by his bedroom door and soon he was breathing in the scent of a fresh cup of coffee brewing.

With his hot mug of coffee in hand, Lane stepped out the kitchen door and took in the view that never failed to put a smile on his face. The river was reflecting the sunshine and the green of the countryside. And there was the best part of the view – Nola playing with Gran, probably not tiring her out even since they were both tireless.

"Good morning, honey," his grandmother called out.

"Morning, Gran. Morning, Nola. You want to play with me?" Lane asked her.

Nola shook her head and kept running in circles around Gran. "You have a sleepyhead," she told him.

Lane touched his hair and noticed it was sticking up. That's what Nola called his sleepyhead.

A little later Lane was ready to get to work when he spotted Craig and his dog by the riverside. The dog stopped to sniff something so Craig stopped too and just looked out over the water. Watching him, Lane remembered that he said that he was staying in his late grandfather's house. He wondered if Craig's grandfather died recently.

This might be a sad time for him. Lane thought about Gran, who lost her second husband after losing granddad and then Yvonne. And Lane still couldn't think of Yvonne's death without suffering through a wave of anger and sadness, not just for her but for Nola's sake and his whole family.

That thought made him walk down the slope to where Craig was still standing next to the little, floppy eared dog.

"Good morning," Lane said as Craig turned to him with a smile. "I just wanted to thank you again."

"It's no problem," Craig said while his dog came over to sniff at Lane.

He scratched the dog's head. "You're a nice dog."

"Her name is Rosie, and she's really sweet," Craig said.

"Daddy! Doggy!" Nola yelled. She was running over with Gran following her a lot more slowly because she was looking at her phone.

"Yes, I'm meeting the doggy," Lane confirmed. "You can meet her too. Just slow down."

Nola's idea of meeting the dog was to yell doggy while Lane restrained her.

"You don't want your daughter petting Rosie?" Craig asked. "She's very gentle."

"Nola isn't," Lane told him. "And I don't want her getting into the habit of approaching dogs she doesn't know." But it was more than that. Lane didn't want Nola getting too close to people she didn't know.

"Makes sense. All dogs aren't as gentle as Rosie," Craig said and he petted her side.

"You go up to a dog slowly," Lane told Nola. "This is Craig and this is Craig's dog."

Craig smiled at Nola. "Her name is Rosie, and what's your name?"

"Nola!" she said then she crouched in front of Rosie so she could peer at her up close.

Finally, Gran joined them. "Were you snubbing us because you were watching one of your baking videos?" Lane accused her.

"I might have been," she said then she beamed at Craig. "And I see you have been meeting our neighbors."

"I was thanking Craig for helping me get the car out of the muddy spot."

Gran just kept smiling at Craig while she said, "I want to thank him for helping get you out of the mud too."

"Not me, the car. As I said, this is Craig and this is my grandmother..."

"Freddie," she said offering her hand.

"Nice name," Craig told her.

Her real name was Winifred and she had changed it to Felicia. That's how Lane was going to introduce her. It was risky for her to use her nickname from before, but she was attached to it because Yvonne used to call her Granny Freddie and she liked to hear Nola call her that too.

"You want to thank the nice man too, Nola," Gran asked her.

"Thank you!" Nola said, but it was pretty clear she didn't know what she was thanking him for. Her attention was on Rosie.

"She's been dying to meet your dog," Gran said to Craig.

"Rosie looks happy to meet her too," Craig said watching as Nola was playing with the dog's ears while Rosie sniffed her.

"Be gentle with Rosie," Lane warned her.

"Elephant ears," Nola said.

"Rosie has elephant ears?" Craig said with a laugh.

After Craig moved off with his dog to keep walking in the direction of the bridge, Lane noticed that his grandmother looked way too happy.

"Gran, we can't afford to get too friendly with strangers," he warned her though Craig was less of a stranger now.

"He can't be a danger to us, honey. He's from around here. You know I think Pat mentioned him. He's a teacher, and he's taking care of his grandfather's house. Let's ask her what else she knows."

Pat was an older woman Gran was friends with. She lived in one of the other cottages along the river. Lane expected Gran was going to call her or text her, but Pat ended up coming over and joined them on the river's shore where Nola was busy throwing pebbles into the water.

"He was a curmudgeonly old coot, a real sourpuss," Pat said about Craig's late grandfather.

"Did Craig grow up here then?" Lane asked.

"Craig would be one of the grandsons," Pat said. "There was a bunch of grandkids. None of them grew up here, but they did come to visit, raising a ruckus."

Lane nodded. It put his mind at ease to know that Craig had local connections. That meant Gran was right, and Lane could relax a little around him. Not too much though. Craig was way too hot for that.

Pat went on to share more local gossip with Gran, and Lane tried to show Nola how to skip stones instead of just throwing them into the water. Then she spotted Craig and his dog as they came back and wanted to run over to them.

"They are coming this way," Lane said as he took her hand.

"I saw you throwing rocks in the water. Are there any left?" Craig asked Nola when he and Rosie got closer.

Nola picked up a few pebbles and showed them to him. "I have more." She then threw them into the water and clapped when they splashed practically at her feet.

"The way she's throwing, I don't think you need to worry about beach erosion," Lane told him. "Oh, you know our neighbor, right?"

It didn't seem like he remembered Pat, so Gran introduced her to him. Pat smiled up at Craig. "I remember when you were this tall," she said. "You and your cousins were a wild bunch, but you were the one who took out a rowboat then lost your oars and had to be rescued from the middle of the river."

"That might have been one of my cousins," Craig said like he didn't want to admit to anything.

"Aha. You watch this one," she said to Lane, and he blushed a little. He was all too willing to watch Craig and then fantasize about him jogging shirtless and jogging naked.

Chapter 4

All this time Joss wasn't sure he would ever get to speak to Lane or meet him properly. Of course he met him as Craig Drucker. That left a bad taste in his mouth, but it couldn't be helped.

Considering how cautious the man was, it was a surprise when Lane approached him. But then Joss did loiter in front of his house for too long. If he was honest, he might have been hoping Lane would come over.

Now Joss was telling himself it would make things easier to be on speaking terms with him. Except it made things more complicated too, and not only because Lane had the most beautiful eyes and kissable lips he had ever seen.

The closer Joss got, the more likely his lies were to be discovered.

Meeting that neighbor lady, Pat, only confirmed that. It made Joss think it might have been a mistake to take on Craig Drucker's identity.

When he rented the cottage and paid off the real Craig, he assured Joss that he didn't spend enough time in Peach Tree for anyone to remember him. It looked like he might have been wrong about that, but it was too late to do anything about it now.

And that wasn't the only complication. There was Lane, who was too damn attractive in a way that busted right past all of Joss's defenses. After speaking to him just for a short while, Joss found him even more appealing. That wouldn't help him keep a clear head and just do his job.

This morning Joss was keeping an eye on Lane and Nola as they went to the grocery store in Peach Tree. He planned to walk around town while they went shopping, maybe grab some takeout for lunch.

It didn't work out that way. Just before going inside the store, Nola turned and spotted him sitting in the little park across the way.

"Look! Craig!" she said to Lane then pulled him to come over. As they came close, she noticed he was alone. "No doggy?"

"Sorry. I left Rosie at home," Joss told her.

"Are you doing errands too?" Lane asked him. "We're going to the store."

"Come with us. Shopping is fun," Nola told Joss and grabbed his hand.

"Fun, right," Lane grumbled. "For me it's all about trying to keep Nola from pulling all the merchandise off the shelves."

"I could use a few things," Joss said. He didn't see any point in saying no now.

They went into Monty's Grocery together, and Nola wanted to push the cart. The cart wasn't very big, but it was still too much for her to handle. "We'll drive it together," Lane told her.

"What does Nola want that she's such a handful at the grocery store?" Joss wondered since they were right next to a display of cookies that were on sale and she ignored them.

"She's more interested in playing with stuff than getting me to buy her anything. Look at her." Lane pointed at her as she went over to the shelf with canned vegetables.

She got some cans and held them up proudly before trying to set them on the floor. Lane rushed in and put them back then looked at the labels, changed his mind and put them in his shopping cart. "Don't take cans off the shelves," he told Nola and kissed the top of her head.

"Most kids would be grabbing for candy not cans of diced tomatoes," Joss said as he got some cans of soup for himself.

"It's my fault," Lane said. "I showed her how you can stack cans then roll another can at them like you're bowling. Now she thinks cans are toys."

"So this really is your fault."

"Hey. I already took responsibility," Lane said but now Nola was going after something else.

"Flowers!" she said as she peered at the different bags of flour.

"I can't convince her that flour and flower are two different words, and we go through tons of this stuff since Gran turned into a baking machine," Lane said as he pointed out which flour they were buying.

"For Granny Freddie," Nola said as she tried to lift the bag, but Lane was right there to keep her from dropping it.

When they were done, Nola wanted to carry everything no matter how big or heavy. Lane handed her a cereal box. While holding it she was completely hidden behind it.

Then she wanted to hold something of Joss's too. "Help Craig," she said so he let her carry a bagged salad.

"I'm going to drop this in my car then get some takeout," Joss told Lane.

"Now I'm tempted to do that too," Lane said.

After checking to make sure that Freddie wasn't making lunch, they all went together to the Peach Tree Café for takeout.

"We want something quick. We have groceries sitting in the car," Lane said to the slim, good-looking guy behind the counter whose nametag said his name was Sam.

"Cheddar and chives biscuits just came out of the oven. A soup or stew would be ready right away," he said with a pleasant smile for Lane.

Joss felt a weird pang of jealousy despite the fact that this Sam guy was wearing a wedding ring. It was too early for Joss's attraction to Lane to hit the possessive stage. That would be crazy. Plus it was incredibly stupid to get jealous over someone he could never be with.

They put in their orders and Sam had the food for them at record speed. As they were leaving, Lane hesitated right outside the door.

"Umm. Do you want to come and eat with us? I mean after you put away your groceries," Lane said.

Nola answered for him. "Yes."

"I could do that," Joss said though a voice in his head was telling him it wasn't a good idea to spend too much time with them.

Arriving at their back door with Rosie, Joss was greeted by Lane's grandmother while Nola plopped herself in front of his dog.

"It's wonderful that you're joining us," Freddie said to him.

"Nola, they can't come in if you're sitting in the way like that," Lane told her. "Come sit at the table."

She did and Joss had a look around. It was a nice, rustic kitchen with an honest to goodness wood burning stove.

"Yes, it works," Lane told him. "When I saw it, I figured it was just decorative, but then Gran was arranging for wood to be delivered, lighting it up and cooking on it."

"Doesn't it make it hot in here?" Joss wondered.

"I keep the kitchen door open," Freddie said.

"That only helps a little. Why do you think I'm always working outdoors?" Lane asked.

"I thought it was Nola who dragged you out there." Joss had seen her doing it plenty of times.

"Her too. I should just give up and drag my desk outside," Lane said as he poured a glass of milk for Nola. He winked at her and she kicked her feet under the table happily.

Joss did his best not to see the open kitchen door as a security risk and just tried to appreciate what they had there. Unlike the minimal kitchen in his cottage, this one looked like the kind of kitchen that was meant to be cooked in. There was also a nook with a kitchen table that had a big bay window giving them views of both the river and the fields and then Peach Tree Hill beyond that.

Seeing where he was looking, Lane told him, "We get a great view of the sun setting over the hill right at dinnertime."

"I see you working all the time, but I still don't know what you do," Joss lied.

"I'm in logistics analytics. I crunch numbers for a consulting firm." Lane sighed. "I know. I might as well say I gesticulate gerbil gizzards."

Now Joss laughed. "That's what I heard you say."

"I think we have everything we need for a nice lunch. Have a seat," Freddie invited him. They had their takeout in bowls and set out one for him too. Rosie was exploring the kitchen, but when they all gathered at the table, she joined them and settled next to Joss's chair.

"We got extra so you can try some of the different soups and stews," Lane said as he sat next to him.

"I might have some of the curry," Joss said, tempted since it looked like it might be spicy.

Nola was sitting with her legs dangling then kicking until Lane grabbed her feet under the table so she wouldn't kick them so much. That only made her squirm. "Look at Rosie. See how she's sitting quietly," Lane said and Rosie raised her head a little.

"Good Rosie," Nola said and Lane had to stop her from climbing under the table to join the dog on the floor.

Rosie might feel right at home, but for Joss it was weird to be sitting at the same table with them. Not to mention it was dishonest of him to accept their hospitality while he lied to them.

He just couldn't resist, and it wasn't only the warm, family atmosphere. It was Lane sitting next to him, his bright blue eyes and the body Joss was dying to explore. He could imagine himself licking him all over till he had him squirming, writhing and begging.

Afterward, going to his own cottage was kind of lonely. Good thing he had Rosie to keep him company.

His cottage was a small one, but it didn't seemed cramped since it was just him and now Rosie. There was only one bedroom and a living room that was combined with a kitchen. It was more of a cabin than a house, but Joss spent most of his time outside, keeping an eye on Lane and his family.

So far there was nothing for him to deal with. That wasn't surprising, but he still had to remain watchful. Things were tranquil here, but he couldn't take it for granted that nothing would change.

Chapter 5

There was a storm last night. Storms didn't scare the fearless Nola, but Lane always had nightmares. It was the sound of thunder. It intruded into his dreams, turned into the sound of an explosion like the one that killed Yvonne and her husband.

Rattled by the nightmare, Lane didn't sleep much but he did get some extra work done. By midmorning he needed an antidote to both work and gloomy thoughts so he took Nola for a walk to explore the hills south of the house.

He wondered how much longer they would have tall, green grass to walk through and all these wildflowers. Once autumn came, Nola would miss the bugs more than any of that other stuff.

As they wandered over the low, grassy hills, Lane had to keep her from picking up every bug and worm she found and playing with it. When he told her they should pick some flowers instead, she only agreed when he said they were for Gran.

Taking a seat in a spot with a nice view of the river, Lane tried to make a flower wreath for Nola to wear. He watched a video on his phone to see how it was done and everything, but in the end he had to settle for making her a flower bracelet.

She loved it and once they got home, Gran had more luck making a flower wreath out of the bouquet of wildflowers they picked for her. Sitting on the front porch steps, Nola was watching her at work and Lane went to get his laptop so he could get some work done.

He was heading to his bedroom when he saw a shadow fall across a window facing the river. Someone was out there.

Lane tensed but didn't allow himself to freeze up. He moved quickly. He grabbed the baseball bat he kept by his bed and reached for his phone. It wasn't in his pocket.

That wasn't good. He found Gran's phone charging in the kitchen and took it before stepping outside to investigate.

It was Craig. He was bent over the lawn chair Lane usually sat in.

"What are you doing here?" Lane demanded.

"Umm. This is your phone, right?" Craig asked picking up the phone he had just placed on the chair. "I was just going to leave it here. You left it lying in the grass over there." He pointed toward the rise where Lane had been sitting when he tried to make the flower wreath.

"I was playing with Nola," Lane said, starting to calm down a little.

"Are you blaming her?" Craig asked with a small smile.

"What? No. How did you know it was mine?" Lane wondered.

"I saw you and Nola over there earlier when I was running. On my way back, I heard the phone chime and when I went to find it and I turned it on, I saw the picture of Nola and your grandmother on the unlock screen," Craig explained.

"Right. Thanks for finding it and bringing it here. How come you didn't ring the bell or knock?" Lane asked. He felt like he was interrogating Craig, but he couldn't help it.

"Just didn't want to disturb you. But leaving it here, I did worry you would sit on it," Craig said, giving him another small smile.

"I wouldn't..." Lane started to say, but it was actually the kind of thing he was likely to do.

"So you going to play baseball?" Craig asked and Lane paled as he realized he was still holding the baseball bat.

"I... I saw someone was out here. I just..." Lane didn't know how to explain himself.