Lean on Me (The Mackay Sisters) (7 page)

“You’re blushing.”

“Do you want that DVD shoved where
the sun don’t shine?”

“Not particularly.”

“Then change the subject.”

Tracey rolled her eyes.  “Fine.” 
Taking a mouthful of chicken, she started the DVD again, only to pause it
during the previews.  “By the way-”

“I get the shivers as soon as you
say that,” Lori informed her.

“Ha ha. 
By the way
, I saw
Tommy.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah.  Odd to see him driving
down your street.  He doesn’t live near here, does he?”

Lori frowned.  “No.”

“I saw him driving slowly past
your house, he seemed to be looking over here.”  Tracey forked up salad and
chewed thoughtfully.  “Odd bloke sometimes.”

“Yeah,” Lori said slowly.  “Odd.”

“Something’s going on with him.” Tracey
nodded.  “We’ve all noticed it.”

“Mm.”

Tracey looked sideways at her. 
“Do you know what it is?”

Lori shook her head.

“Yeah, well, whatever it is, he’s
really moody lately.  I mean, he’s always been the quiet type but he’s bordering
on outright rude sometimes.  He’s lucky he’s the only café in town or he’d be
out of business.”

“Oh, he’s not that bad,” Lori
said.

“Okay.”  Tracy stared at the
screen for several seconds in silence before mumbling, “Wonder why he was in
your street driving so slow and looking at your house.”

A little unnerved but hiding it,
Lori shrugged.

“Are you two having it on?” Tracey
demanded.

Lori choked, coughing and
hurriedly dropping the plate onto the coffee table.

Tracey pounded her back.  “Because
you’d tell me, right?”

Leaning away from her friend, Lori
coughed and wheezed.  “Stop!”

“Here.”  Tracy thrust the glass of
soft drink at her.  “Drink.”

Obeying, Lori took several
mouthfuls, drawing painful breaths and still wheezing afterward.  “Cripes,
Tracy!  Are you trying to kill me?”

“Hey, I’m just asking a question. 
You’re the one that choked.”  Tracy was completely unrepentant.  “So, are you
and Tommy having a fling?”

“No!  Shit, Tracy, no.”  Wiping
her mouth with a serviette, Lori took several deep breaths.  “No, I don’t know
what’s wrong with Tommy, no, I’m not having it on with him, and no.  Just no.”

After staring at her for several
seconds, Tracy finally nodded.  “Okay, I believe you.”

“Thanks.  Really.”  Lori picked up
her plate.  “And don’t ever try to kill me again by springing something like
that on me when my mouth is full.”

“Sure.”  Tracy pressed the play
button on the hand control and the DVD resumed playing.

Relieved, Lori rested her bandaged
ankle on the coffee table and resumed eating.  Only her mind wasn’t on the
movie, but on Tommy.  Why was he driving slowly along her street?  Was he
watching her house?  And why? It was an extremely unsettling thought,
especially combined with the way he had looked at her yesterday morning when
she’d been broken down on the side of the road.

She thought about him.  Tommy was
a big bloke, tall, muscled, and intensely private, but there had been a definite
change in him lately.  It didn’t answer her question of why he was on her
street.

Heck, maybe he was just driving
past, looking at the houses.

Nah, that wasn’t Tommy.  He didn’t
do things like that.  A prickle of unease went through her.  What was he up to,
and why did she have the weird feeling that it might involve her?

“So,” said Tracy, “Are you having
it on with Matt instead?”

This time the mouthful of chicken sprayed
right across the table as Lori went into another choking fit.

“Geez.”  Tracy pounded her back. 
“I was just asking.  Talk about drama.”

“You,” Lori choked out, “are so
dead!”

“Heard that before,” Tracey
replied pragmatically.  “No doubt will hear it again.”

Chapter 3

Waking early the next morning,
Lori observed Minx sitting quietly by the bedroom door.  Normally she’d be
mewoing but today the old ginger cat sat patiently waiting, seemingly caught up
in her own thoughts.

Getting out of the bed, Lori was
pleased to find that her ankle didn’t hurt half as bad as the previous day,
more a dull ache to remind her to be careful.  Walking across to Minx, who
lifted her head to watch her, Lori bent down, stroking her head before picking
her up gently and snuggling her close, speaking softly as she walked with only
a slight limp out into the hall and through the kitchen to the backdoor.  Unlocking
it, she set Minx down on the floor and followed her out onto the veranda,
hugging her arms across her chest as she peered out at the yard.

The sun was up, a warm sheen that
touched the flowers and had them lifting their heads to greet the morning. 
From a few doors up a dog barked and birds chittered in the nearby trees.  The
chill of the night had been chased away, a reminder that it was slowly turning
to autumn but summer still had a tenacious grip on the weather.

Minx walked slowly down the steps
and out into the garden, lifting her head to sniff the air before making her
way to the garden bed.

Peeking around, Lori didn’t see
anyone in Matt’s backyard, so she stepped down into the yard and walked out
into the sunshine, breathing in the early morning air.  Definitely warmer, but
still cool, in the odd way summer going into autumn could sometimes be.

Minx tended to her business,
something she’d done for years every morning regardless of the litter tray that
sat in the laundry for her use.

As Lori watched her, she was struck
anew at how her beloved cat was aging.  A little scrawny, a lot thinner, and
definitely not as lively as she used to be.  In her youth she’d stalk amongst
the flowers, catching butterflies, tormenting snails, and bounding through the
gardens, delighting in life.  Now she sat, her nose up to the sunshine, eyes
half closed in contentment.

After a few minutes of her sitting
there, Lori called softly, “Finished yet, little old lady?”

Minx flicked her ears, seemed to
think about it before slowly getting up and making her way stiffly back to
where Lori waited.  Scooping her up, Lori took her back inside to give her
breakfast and one of the pills she had daily to help with the arthritis.  Once
Minx was settled with a bowl of food, Lori showered and dressed, ready to face
the day.  Regardless of a sore ankle, there were chores to do that she’d just
have to complete slower than normal.

Relishing the daylight, she
cleaned the house.  Hanging the washing out on the line was an achievement on
its own.  Minx perched on the sofa and watched until she fell asleep.

Lori was sweeping the front
veranda when she noticed a car go past, a woman watching her through the side
window. The car slowed as the driver seemed to hesitate, then it fastened up
and drove off.

Weird
.  Scratching her
head, Lori watched the car disappear along the street.  It was only when it was
followed shortly after by Tommy’s ute that she got that shiver down her spine. 
Especially because Tommy glanced at her, the expression on his face annoyed
before he put his foot on the accelerator.

No sooner had he started to go
faster than his brake lights flashed on and he stopped.

Leaning on the broom, Lori watched
curiously.  What the heck had she ever done to upset him?  Her curiosity
changed to wariness when his reversal lights came on and he started backing up,
his ute coming to a stop right outside her gate.  Turning off his engine, he
got out and walked up the garden path with a hard expression on his face.

She might have known him all her
life but she’d never been friends with him.  Sure, a friendly nod, an
acknowledgement, a smile and a ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ at the café, maybe a
comment about the weather or something on the news, but that was all.  To see
him advancing, his expression anything but pleasant, was unnerving and Lori
took a tighter grip on the broom handle as she stepped back.

“Lori,” Tommy said.

“Tommy,” she returned.

“I need to talk to you.”

“Um, sure.”   Still wary,
wondering what he was going to say, she gripped the broom handle a little
tighter.  Tommy was a big bloke, the broom handle rather thin, but it was the
best she had, though why the hell she felt she might need protection from him,
she’d never know.

Or maybe she would know in a few
seconds.  Going by the thunder starting to cloud his face as he looked down the
street he was pretty angry and getting angrier, if the flashing of his eyes
were another indication.

When he swung that angry gaze back
to her, she couldn’t stop an involuntary step back.

“You saw me,” he stated bluntly, coming
to a stop not far from the veranda steps.

“Saw you?”

“The other morning.”

“I’m not sure-”

“Don’t pretend to not know what
I’m talking about,” he said harshly.

Lori blinked.

“We’ve got a problem.”

“We do?”

His scowl grew darker and he took
a step closer.  “Yes, we do, and we’re going to discuss it right now.”

That didn’t seem wise.  Lori
backed up another step.  “Look, Tommy, I don’t know what’s going on but it’s
none of my business and-”

“Damn right it’s not your
business!” Big hands fisted, he took a deep breathe.  “It’s no-one’s Goddamn
business and if you repeat what you saw-”

“I didn’t see anything, I-”

“’Morning, Lori,” a deep,
pleasant, and oh so welcoming voice came from the side fence.

Relieved beyond words, she looked
around to see Matt leaning on his fence, his forearms lying across the top as
he lazily surveyed her before switching his gaze to Tommy.  “G’day, Tommy.”

Tommy glared at him.  “Matt.”

“Got a problem?” Matt asked
mildly.

Tommy looked from Matt to where
Lori stood gripping the broom handle and back again.  One deep breath, another,
yet a third before he swung away growling, “No problem.  See you later, Lori.” 
He shot her a steely-eyed look over one broad shoulder.  “I
will
see
you.”  Hands still fisted, he strode back down the garden path and through the
small gate to his ute, getting in and driving away without a backward glance.

Not good at confrontations at the
best of times, Lori took a deep breath of her own.  Okay, that was all entirely
unexpected and most unwelcome, but what the hell had it been all about?  She’d
never had anything to do much with Tommy, so why was he so angry at her?

A movement at the corner of her
eyes showed Matt hauling himself easily over her fence to drop into the yard,
his sneakered feet hitting the lawn, knees bending to take the impact before he
straightened lithely to stroll across the lawn, his hands in his shorts pockets.

Coming to a stop at the foot of
the veranda, he gazed up at her.  “Everything all right?”

Having two good-looking men in her
front yard first thing in the morning was unusual, but she much preferred Matt
to an angry Tommy.  With Tommy she felt suddenly threatened, but with
Matt…well, she felt safe.

Her gaze dropped to him and she attempted
a smile.  “No worries.”

“Didn’t seem that way to me.”  His
dark eyes swept over her face.

“Well, you know…”  She shrugged.

“No, actually I don’t know.”

Not sure what to say to that, she
limped to the wall of the house to lean the broom against it.  Her heart was
beating a rapid tattoo and she felt a little unsteady from the unexpected visit
from Tommy, his aggression a little scary.

There was a sudden warmth at her
back, a long arm reaching around her, a big hand taking her own in a strong
clasp.  “You’re shaking.”

Startled, she swung around, forgetting
about her ankle, teetering off balance as it gave a painful twinge.

Immediately Matt steadied her, one
arm sliding around her waist as his hand tightened around hers, drawing her up
against him.

“Here,” he instructed calmly. 
“Lean on me.”

Flustered because he felt so warm
against her, so close her blood started to go all sluggish and she felt her
knees go to jelly, she braced her hand against his chest to keep distance
between them.  “Oh, no, I’m okay.   Really.”

Damn, his chest was hard, hot, his
pec swelling right into her palm.  Holy cow that was making her cream.

No sooner had the thought hit her
than she was horrified.  And not only at the thought, but at the fact that her fingers
had curled, her palm nestling against that pec, and the sensation of a male
nipple was pressing into her palm.

Oh baby.  Oh yes.  Oh no!

Horrified, she jerked her hand
away, her gaze flying up to meet Matt’s, hoping he hadn’t noticed her
compulsory groping of his impressively muscular pec. 
Man boob!  Man boob! 
Think of it as a man boob and it won’t sound so - so - yummy.

Were his dark eyes a little darker
than normal?  Were they just a little wider?  Oh God, no wonder they were
wider, he’d probably never had a woman groping him before, well, now.

“Oh, I am so sorry,” she babbled,
pressing her palm flat against his sternum, only to whip it away again as soon
as she started to mentally salivate at the sensation of both pec swells dipping
in the middle. 
All ripe for a tongue licking - stop it!

 
What was wrong with her? 
Her fantasises were starting to fog her brain, seeping out from her dirty
dreams to play -
oh yeah, baby, play! No!
- in reality.

Slapping her palm on the wall
right beside her, she swallowed -
oh yeah, swallow…stop stop stop! 
Forcing
herself to think straight, she croaked, “You can let me go.”

Matt just continued to look down
at her.  Okay, stare, really.  Probably still shocked to shit, though she’d
have thought he’d have dropped her like a piece of hot coal long before now.

Especially after the pec grope.

Not really sure where to look, she
dropped her gaze to his chest.  “Matt, you can let me go.”

“Lori, are you all right?” he
asked quietly, still not removing his arm from her waist.

Oh, that was right, he’d been a
witness to the embarrassing little scene in her front yard.  No wonder he was
still staying close, no doubt he thought she needed help.  Well, Lori Mackay
was made of sterner stuff, she didn’t need anyone feeling sorry for her.

Lifting her chin, she looked him
directly in the eyes.  “I’m fine.”

“That seems to be your trademark
answer.” His dark eyes were unfathomable as he studied her face.

Looking for tears?  Probably.  He
wasn’t going to find them, though, she never cried in public.  Not even when
she’d been seven years old and the elastic had given out in her panties and
fallen around her ankles.  In public.  At school, actually, right in front of
her whole class.  Nope, not one tear had fallen then, though her cheeks had
been on fire.  Tears were something she did in private.

So if Matt Winters was waiting for
tears, they weren’t going to fall.

Pulling her shoulders back, she
tapped at his arm, ignoring how warm it was beneath her fingertip, how she
could feel the play of muscle against her waist as he moved.  “Please remove
your arm.  I’m perfectly capable of standing on my own two feet.”

This time he did as bidden, even
taking a step back.

Feeling a rush of both relief and disappointment
at the loss of his nearness, she would have made for the door except he was now
standing in front of it.  In fact, he turned and leaned his back against the
security screen, his gaze studying the street.

“What was that all about?” he
asked.

“Tommy?”  It was almost with
relief that she grasped the subject.  “No idea.”

“He seemed crapped off about
something.”

“Yep.”  When Matt cast her a
sidelong glance, she shrugged and repeated, “No idea.”

“Hmmm.”  Returning his gaze to the
street, he watched a car drive past.

Not knowing quite what else to do,
Lori took up the broom again and recommenced sweeping the veranda.  “Day off?”

She could feel him scrutinising
her.  “Yeah.”

“Doing much?”

“Gardening.”

She glanced at his clothes. 
“Right.”  Man, he could fill out a t-shirt, the worn, soft material hugging his
luscious torso.  Matt wasn’t overly muscled in a weight-lifting way, not like
Ghost, but his muscles were undeniable.  The swells of his pecs, the bunching
of his biceps and triceps, even his legs in the shorts hinted at muscle.  They
certainly weren’t scrawny legs and she half wished he wore stubby shorts
instead of board shorts.  At least stubby shorts would give her a good view of
his muscled thighs.  Even a glimpse of the proverbial plumber’s crack if he
bent over. She bet he had a nice arse.  He certainly had a nice one to look at
in shorts, so naked - hoo boy.

Talk about sexual harassment, even
if he wasn’t aware of her doing it.

Seeking to shift her mind from the
titillating thought of what Matt would look like naked, Lori swept the dirt off
the edge of the veranda.  She really should start trimming the roses.

“How’s the ankle doing?” Matt queried.

“A little achy but otherwise almost
back to normal.”

“Good to see you didn’t sprain it
too badly.  Just ensure that you rest it today, elevate and some ice.”

“No worries.  Thanks.”

There was silence for a few
seconds before he asked abruptly, “Do you see much of Tommy?”

Surprised, Lori looked around to
find him studying her, his expression unreadable.  “I see him around.”

“Are you going out with him?”

“Who, me?  No.  Whatever made you
think that?”

“The fact he came around here obviously
angry about something.”