A Better Man (20 page)

Especially
him.

As her sobs continued and concern strangled him, he took two steps toward the stairs and sto
pped.

Fuck
.

What kind of an ass wa
s he?

If he left her like this he'd be exactly the kind of selfish bastard she accused him of b
eing.

The wheels in his head spun, searching for a resolution. Then he turned around and, without knocking, opened her
door.

Face red, blotchy, and sniffling, she looked up, obviously surprised by his re
turn.

“I know I'm not very good at this,” he admitted. “I have no experience at being a parent, a guardian, or hell, even a big brother.” He crossed the room, pulled her into his arms, and hugged her tight so she couldn't squirm away. “But I love you. And it kills me to see you like this. So get some clothes together. You're going with me. Be ready in two hours. No excuses. No bullshit. Be at the door waiting or I'll come up here and haul your ass down the stairs. Got
it?”

Instead of arguing, she sniffed and no
dded.

He shut the door, dropped his head back, closed his eyes, and prayed to whoever could help him
out.

Forget a damn can of worms; he'd just opened up the gates to
hell.

A
typical Sunday morning for Lucy was to sleep in, make blueberry pancakes, and then take Ziggy for a walk down at the park by the river. He loved to catch a Frisbee, and her backyard was too small for him to be able to run far enough to make his huge running l
eaps.

This morning, however, was anything but typ
ical.

Not only had she not slept in, she hadn't slept all night. She hadn't meant to unleash the demons of her past with Jordan, especially when he'd gone to so much trouble to set up such a wonderful evening. He hadn't needed to know all the trials and tribulations she'd been through. He hadn't needed to know that she'd allowed someone to treat her that way. Still, for some reason she'd opene
d up.

If you'd asked her two weeks ago if she'd ever trust Jordan Kincade enough to tell him her deepest, darkest secrets, she would have laughed. Amazing how things had changed in such a short time. While she'd told him—­in part—­of the emotional abuse, the torment, and the unforgivable way she'd been handled in a sexual sense, he'd held her tight, letting her have her say in a quiet, supportive manner she'd never expe
cted.

By the time she'd finished telling him, the muscles in his jaw were clenched so tight she thought it would break. She understood most men didn't like to be dragged into a load of drama, so she'd made sure she delivered the information as matter-­of-­factly as she could, leaving her emotions at the door as much as possible. When she finished, he'd said, “I wish I could have been there to help
you.”

She wished he could have
too.

At the time she'd wished anyone could have been there to help her. But it was a mess she'd gotten herself into and a mess she'd had to get out of on her own. Still, she appreciated his sentiment and understan
ding.

Of course, his consolation only made things worse on her conscience. He'd planned such an amazing evening and she'd ruined it all by spilling her guts. She wouldn't be surprised if he wished he could take back all the effort he put into the date. Even if that wasn't how he acted when he'd walked her to her front door and kissed her very gently on the
lips.

Getting to know him proved one thing—­you could never judge a book by its cover. Or in this case, a hockey pl
ayer.

Then again, time would
tell.

Though he'd said he was interested in her, he could have only meant he was interested in the way an entomologist studied
bugs.

She'd just folded fresh blueberries into the pancake batter when her doorbell rang. Wiping her hands on a kitchen towel, she figured Mrs. B had shown up early for their grocery-­shopping excursion. Unprepared for company in a pair of cutoff sweats, a ratty “Live Love Teach” T-­shirt, and slippers, she scuffed her way to the door anyway. The last thing she needed was to make the sweet, fragile woman wait on her door
step.

Instead of her neighbor, Jordan stood at her door. How someone managed to look tired, frazzled, and yet still as handsome as ever in a dark blue Henley shirt, jeans, boots, and that oh-­so-­sexy black leather jacket was a mys
tery.

“Good morning.” She tried to hide her surprise and dismay that he'd caught her looking less than present
able.

“Did I wake you?” His dark blue gaze shifted down and up her body as a suggestive smile tilted his
lips.

“No. I was just making blueberry pancakes. Come on in, I have plenty to sh
are.”

Having heard Jordan's voice, Ziggy dashed into the room, tail wagging and looking for some affection from the new arrival. Jordan complied, bending at the knees and giving her dog a rubdown before he followed her into the kitchen. The retriever rewarded him with an audible
toot.

“Dude.” Jordan chuc
kled.

Ziggy wagged his
tail.

Her dog's habit could be embarrassing. Still, it must be nice not to give a rip when you had to let one
rip.

“I'm surprised to see you up and about so early. Coffee?” When Lucy turned to get his response he was sitting at her little kitchen table looking dazed and confused. “Are you o
kay?”

He nodded and then shook his head. “I need to ask you a favor. And I know you don't owe me anything but . . . I need you to tell me
yes.”

She laughed before realizing he was serious. “That sounds danger
ous.”

“You're going to think I'm crazy. Hell,
I
think I'm crazy. But I'm going to ask any
way.”

“Well, now I'm really curious.” She leaned her backside against the counter and folded her arms, hoping to hide some of the T-­shirt st
ains.

“If I don't go back to North Carolina and play the next series of home games I'm in breach of my contract and it will cost me upward of four mill
ion.”

“Wow. I can't even fathom that kind of money. But the bottom line is your team obviously needs
you.”

“My family needs me too. And I'd be willing to give up that kind of cash if it was just about me.” He hesitated. “But right now the vineyard is in financial trouble and I might need that money to help bail it
out.”

“Financial trouble?” Stunned, her arms dropped to her sides. “But the wine is so g
ood.”

“It's not the wine.” His long fingers nervously tapped the tabletop. “My dad and Ryan have worked really hard on getting the blends just right and several have won multiple awards at the Washington State and Seattle wine awards. Everything else at the winery is a little run-­down and needs revitalizing. But the biggest problem is when Ryan and Declan went through the finances, they discovered someone has been stealing mo
ney.”

“Steal
ing!”

He nodded. “As generous as my folks have always been, it's hard to imagine someone took advantage of them like t
hat.”

“Any idea who took
it?”

“None yet. They're still trying to figure it out. Whoever took it was really smart about it. There's no paper trail to follow, and the winery is currently in the red. That's why I have to go back to North Carol
ina.”

“I completely understand.” Reality reared its head. Maybe
she
understood but she was sure someone else wouldn't. “Did you tell Nic
ole?”

“Yeah.” He barked a harsh laugh. “And believe me, that did
not
go over well. Which brings me to my fa
vor.”

“Ask away.” How could she refuse him a small favor after he'd gone to so much trouble to set up a prom for
her?

“Remember . . .” He gave her a smile that turned her knees to water. “I need you to say
yes.”

“I'll do my b
est.”

“After I told Nicole I had to leave for a couple of days she broke down. She cried so hard it killed me. There's no way in hell I can just walk away and leave her like that. I don't know what's going on with her but I can't just desert her. And since that's obviously a major issue, I'm taking her with
me.”

“And you want me to give her some extra credit work to take al
ong?”

“Not exactly.” He stood and gently clasped his hands around her arms. “I want you to come with
us.”

“You want me to what?” A quiver of disbelief mixed with fascination tingled at the back of her
neck.

“I want you to get on a plane and go with us to North Carolina. Before the games I'll have practice. I'll be gone for hours each day and I can't just leave Nicki alone in a strange city. She's too unstable right
now.”

“Jordan, I can't just walk away from everyth
ing.”

“It's spring break. You have a week
off.”

“But I have other responsibilities. I have to take Mrs. B grocery shopping today. And tomorrow she has a doctor appointment
and—­”

“And you're wonderful for taking such good care of her. But she has children in the area who appear to be taking advantage of
you.”

“I don't think of it that
way.”

“I know.” He kissed her forehead. “That's what makes you so wonder
ful.”

“I can't leave Zi
ggy.”

“Ziggy can come along.” His warm hands slowly caressed her arms. “I know you don't owe me anything. And if I weren't so worried about Nicki, I wouldn't ask you to drop everything to help me out. But my sister means everything to me. And right now there's something going on with her that I can't figure out. It might help if she had a woman to talk
to.”

“You're a very hard person to say no to,” she admi
tted.

“Then please don't.” He flashed her a cheesy grin. “Pretty please? With chocolate-­covered Rice Krispies treats on
top?”

Want, need, guilt, and a dash of excitement warred within her heart. She agreed that taking Nicole with him was a good idea. Also, it might help the girl if she had someone objective to talk to. But if held at gunpoint, Lucy would have to admit those weren't the only reasons she was giving his request some consideration. “Give me a couple of hours to arrange thi
ngs.”

“So you'll go?” A hopeful smile tilted those masculine
lips.

“I'll
go.”

Relief flashed through his eyes just before he lifted her off her feet and kissed her sense
less.

W
hat the hell was he d
oing?

Strapped in the seat of a charter jet across the aisle from Lucy and Nicole with Ziggy stretched out at their feet, Jordan questioned his decision to bring the whole gang with him back to North Carolina just so he could play a couple of g
ames.

The awkward silence on the plane was deafening and he scrambled to figure out what to say, what to do, and how the hell to make this
work.

The only thing in his favor was Lucy—­a careful, brilliant woman who no longer made rash decisions despite the fact that she'd taken a leap of faith with him. Having her in his corner gave him a lot more confidence in the situation than he'd have if he was handling it a
lone.

For over an hour Nicki had sat silently with her arms folded and looking out the window. Lucy had kept herself busy reading a book about character traits. Maybe she was trying to find a way to figure him
out.

He couldn't believe she'd agreed to come, but he was beyond grateful. Helping out with his sister while he was at practice would be a huge relief. And since he planned to have them both attend the games, he wouldn't worry about
them.

But that wasn't his only reason for wanting Lucy a
long.

Last night they'd jumped a hurdle when she'd opened up and talked to him about her marriage. He'd appreciated that she trusted him enough to share. That confidence had made him like her even more. He didn't want to be gone for a few days, weeks, or longer and put a dent in what could be developing between
them.

As if she could feel him watching her, Lucy looked up. She pushed her glasses up her nose and smiled. A hot arrow of lust shot through him. Why he found that simple gesture so sexy he had no idea. But it made him realize he was probably in deeper than he'd initially tho
ught.

She deserved to have a man treat her like a queen. A man who'd love her and make her his top prio
rity.

Could he be that
man?

He didn't
know.

But the more time he spent with her, the more he wanted t
o be.

She smiled again, and, not that he didn't love his sister, but he suddenly wished he and Lucy were alone. He could teach her a hell of a lot about the art of seduction at thirty thousand
feet.

“Are we almost there?” the baby dragon a
sked.

“Almost,” he said. “Think by the time we land you can find a sm
ile?”