Accepting Eva [Slick Rock 8] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (3 page)

“I didn’t have a formed hip socket.
My surgeon made me a hip socket and put my femur back into place.”

Quin was still curious, but Eva looked down at her coffee mug and said, “I’ve talked so much about myself.”

“Not at all, sugar,” Gray said.

“But we still have so many questions,” Pierson said in a teasing tone.

Quin stood, realizing that they probably had asked her more than enough. He didn’t want her to feel overwhelmed by them, but he didn’t want her to go just yet. “We’ve finished for the day. Why don’t you let us drive you to wherever you’re staying?”

“Oh, thanks, but it’s not that far.”

“Are you staying at the motel, sugar?” Grayson asked.

“Yes. I plan on being in Slick Rock about two weeks.” Evana leaned over to pull the tape from her lower leg.

“Let me do that, honey. I don’t want it to start hurting you again.” Quin began to peel the tape off her smooth skin. “We can’t let you walk back to the motel by yourself, Evana. It’ll be dark before you make it back.”

“Oh!” She turned toward the window behind her. “I hadn’t realized how late it was. Could you please hand me my boot?”

Quin walked over to the other desk, picked up her leg brace, and then handed Evana the boot and brace. He watched as she pulled her sock on and then her boot with the metal bars connected just before the heel. She opened the Velcro, placed the cuff below her knee, and secured it into place.

“What is the brace designed to do?” Pierson queried.

“Um, well, as I said, my right lower leg is too bowed. So the caliper helps keep it straighter and support and strengthen my muscles, and the boot is supposed to help keep my right foot from turning in.”

“It always amazes me what specialists can do,” Gray stated as he collected the empty mugs and placed them on the tray.

Quin knew that there was a lot more to it than Evana had explained, but she had given them the basics. He wondered how such a little thing had endured so much pain, but even as he thought that, he thought about all the other kids suffering in hospitals from life-threatening illnesses. At least Evana’s condition had been corrected as she grew. A lot of other kids didn’t have that kind of chance.

“Are you hungry, Evana?” Quin inquired as he led the way out of the workshop.

“Yes. It feels like I haven’t eaten for hours.”

“Come to the diner and have dinner with us,” he suggested and guided her outside. He watched her nibble on her lip as she decided what she wanted to do and then she looked up at him with a small smile.

“I’ll have dinner with you all on one condition.”

“What’s that, sugar?” Gray asked after pulling down the large roller doors to the shop and locking them.

“You let me pay. I want to thank you all for looking after me and helping me when I was in pain.”

Quin looked at his brothers and gave them a wink when Evana looked away. If she wanted to pay for their meal, then he would let her. He didn’t think she would accept their offer to dine with them if they refused.

“Okay, but the next meal is on us,” Quin replied.

“Thank you.”

Quin noticed that she didn’t question the idea of there being a next meal. That seemed like a promising sign.

He took Evana’s elbow and guided her toward his truck, and then he gripped her waist and lifted her up into the front before closing the door and skirting around to the driver’s seat. She was buckling her seat belt as he got in. Gray and Pierson got in the back.

“What are you going to do while you’re here, Evana?” Pierson queried as Quin started the engine and backed out of the lot.

“Please call me Eva. Most everybody does.”

“Eva,” Grayson repeated. “That’s a lovely name.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Quin saw her duck her head at the compliment. “I want to take a river tour, and I also want to sample the day spa. Other than that I have no firm plans.”

“We could show you some of the sights if you’d like,” Gray suggested, and Quin held his breath while he awaited her reply.

“You’ve already done so much for me. I wouldn’t want to be a nuisance.”

“You could never be that, honey.” Quin glanced her way before turning his eyes back to the road. “Besides, we haven’t been in town long ourselves and we want to explore more of the attractions.”

“When had you planned to do the river cruise, Eva?” Pierson turned toward her.

“Um, on the weekend.” She twisted in her seat to look at Pierson. “I wanted to have the experience when there were more people about. There is nothing worse than going somewhere touristy and being one of only a few people exploring. I love watching other people’s reactions, too.”

“We’ve been meaning to take that river cruise,” Quin said as he pulled the truck into a parking space near the diner. “If you would like, we would love to come with you.”

Quin switched off the ignition and turned to face her. She was raking her top teeth over her lower lip, and the urge to take her face between his hands and soothe her sensitive flesh with his tongue was nearly overwhelming. She looked adorable in her uncertainty, and he hoped she would take him up on his offer. He had never been drawn to a woman the way he was to Eva. It didn’t matter to him that she wore a leg brace or had a slight limp. She was the sexiest woman he had ever seen.

She seemed like such a sweet, caring person, and although she looked uncertain and a little shy at times, he thought maybe deep down inside she could be feisty and passionate. The way she had insisted on paying for dinner for them helping her in her time of need showed him she wasn’t selfish and she would probably be one of the first people to show up if called on in a crisis.

“Um, are you sure you want to do that with me?”

“Why wouldn’t we want to, sugar?” Gray asked from the backseat.

“Well, most people don’t want to be seen near me, let alone go out with me.”

Quin bit back a curse. Eva looked so unsure and vulnerable. He wanted to rage at the people who had battered her self-confidence, but there was nothing he could do about her past.

But maybe he and his brothers could bolster her ego a little by spending as much time as they could with her over the next two weeks.

“We aren’t most people, honey. We would love to escort you around and show you the sights. Why don’t you think about it over dinner? Come on, let’s go inside. I’ll bet you’re hungry.”

Quin got out of the truck and waited for Eva on the pavement. Gray lifted her down, and Quin took her hand to lead her inside. He spotted a few of his friends and waved but didn’t want to get into a conversation with them. He wanted some privacy while he got to know Evana Woodridge.

After seating her in the booth, he slid in on one side while Gray moved in from the other. She smiled at them all and picked up the plastic menu.

“All right, boys, what will you have?” The cheeky, shy smile on her face seemed to light her up from the inside. Evana practically glowed with life and vitality, which made her eyes sparkle. He could nearly imagine what she would look like in the throes of passion.

Quin shifted in his seat, pushing his lascivious thoughts aside, and concentrated on the woman next to him. A light, citrusy fragrance with a hint of vanilla assailed his nostrils. She smelled so nice, he wanted to lean down, place his nose against the skin of her neck, and inhale deeply.

“I’ll just have the special, sugar,” Gray ordered.

“What is the special?”

A waitress was just coming to their table for their order and heard Evana’s question. “Today’s special is meatloaf and gravy with vegetables.”

“Make those two specials,” Eva said.

After they’d given their orders and the waitress left, Quin sat back against the seat and studied Eva. From what he had seen so far, she was a complex woman, shy but sassy, with moments of bravado that couldn’t hide her true vulnerability. Eva was the sweetest woman he had ever met.

“Where are you from, Eva?” Pierson questioned.

“Sheridan, Wyoming.”

“That’s quite a distance. You didn’t drive all that way in one day, did you?” Quin questioned.

“No,” she sighed. “I thought about it but knew it would be too much of a strain, so I did it in two days. But it didn’t seem to make much difference.”

“What do you mean, sugar?” Grayson picked up the glass of soda the waitress had placed on the table moments before.

“I have to be careful with the amount of time I spend inactive. I thought if I drove here in two days rather than one, I wouldn’t suffer any cramping.” Eva shrugged.

“What do you do for a living, darlin’?” Pierson leaned forward to see her around Gray.

“I’m a stockbroker. Or I was.”

“Was?” Quin raised an eyebrow curiously.

“Yeah, I’ve just been retrenched.”

“Shit, the economy is really struggling worldwide. So many people are suffering because the governments of their countries didn’t make the right choices.”

“Yes, it’s pretty bad. I’m one of the lucky ones. I don’t have a family to support.”

“I’m sure you’ll get a job with another stockbrokerage if that’s what you want, Eva.”

“That’s another issue.” Eva ran her finger over the rim of her glass. “I’m not sure I want to do that anymore. I didn’t realize how stressed out I was until I was forced to take a sabbatical. Handling other people’s money and trying to do the best for them in the market in this economic climate is just too much to deal with.” She sighed. “But I’m not really sure what I want to do. I think I want something simpler and less stressful. Plus, I want to find a place of my own. My mom just remarried, and even though she and her new husband, Jack, are currently traveling, I want to give them time alone.”

“I’m betting your mom loves having you around,” Quin said with a smile.

“Yes, she does, but it’s time I moved out on my own. I’ve depended on her long enough. She’s worked hard her whole life, taking on two jobs to pay medical expenses and keeping a roof over our heads. It’s more than time that I learned to stand on my own two feet.”

“Are you going to live near your mother, Eva?”

“No!” Eva almost shouted her answer, and then her cheeks turned pink and she lowered her eyes.

Quin was taken aback at her reply. He had thought he’d almost seen fear in her eyes before she lowered them to the table. Opening his mouth, about to ask her what she was scared of, he closed it again when the waitress appeared with their meals. Once she left again, Eva looked at him and then his brothers.

“Sorry. I don’t know what got into me.”

Quin didn’t believe her. The whole time she’d been talking to them, she seemed slightly evasive. He thought she was telling the truth about coming from Sheridan and looking for a chance to start over. What he doubted was the reason why.

What are you hiding, Eva?

He met her eyes for an instant, and then Eva looked away. Quin kept gazing at her, but it seemed like the subject was closed.

For now.

Evana looked at the table again and cringed over her reaction to a simple question. The three Badon brothers must think she was a little crazy.

“Are you okay, sugar?” Gray asked.

Normally Eva would be perturbed over an endearment from a virtual stranger, but Gray had called the waitress “sugar,” too, so she put it down to his friendly personality. In fact, all three of the men seemed to like using endearments when speaking to her. Quin kept calling her “honey” and Pierson had called her “darlin’” a couple of times. It made her feel warm inside and she secretly liked it even though they probably called all women such things.

“Yes. I’m fine.”

The men began to eat, and she decided that if they could ignore her outburst, then so could she. She listened as the men spoke about their mechanic shop and how they had so much work booked in they didn’t have time for any paperwork.

“What we need is someone to take over doing the books, schedule work, and order parts.” Pierson sighed and picked up his glass.

“Yeah, you’re right, but where the hell are we going to find someone with that sort of experience without having to pay a ransom for wages?” Quin pushed his empty plate away. “Even though we are running in the black and don’t owe anything, we haven’t been established long enough to hire an accountant with experience doing purchasing orders and reception duties. That is three different jobs, and we want one person to do that for minimum wage.”

“I could do it,” Eva blurted and then felt her cheeks heat.

She hadn’t even known she was going to say that until she heard those four words coming from her mouth. Three pairs of eyes turned to her and pinned her with stares. Then Quin gave her a slow, wide smile. He opened his mouth, she was sure to accept her offer, but Pierson beat him.

“You’re on vacation. You’re supposed to be having free time. Why would you want to work?”

“I’m unemployed, not on vacation. Believe me, doing your office work would be like a walk in the park after what I’ve been dealing with.” Eva knew deep down it was true. Now that she thought about it, she really wanted to help them out. They had helped her in her time of need, and she wanted to return the favor. She could still go sightseeing after hours and on the weekends, and if they accepted her offer she would have more time to stay in Slick Rock, away from Tim, and also to explore the area as much as she wanted while earning money.