Teasing Trent (The Alexanders) (12 page)

“I haven't had time to shop lately, so we’ve only got the meat I’m marinating for the cookout tomorrow. I have to confess, we mainly eat microwave dinners. The only time we get home-cooked meals is when my mom comes. My mom’s a feminist, so I’m pretty sure raising a son who can’t cook is one of her lifelong disappointments.”
 

His stomach grumbled loudly and they both laughed at the unexpected noise in the otherwise quiet kitchen. She slid her hand into an oven mitt and pulled open the oven. His mouth watered as a savory aroma immediately filled the room. She placed the dish carefully on the stovetop.
 

“Well, I can hear you’re hungry, so let’s dig in. I also made string beans with potatoes. I couldn’t find anything else to make in the pantry.” She started scooping food onto plates.
 

“I’m working on hiring someone to watch the boys and maybe cook a few times a week. None of the nannies I’ve interviewed have worked out so far.” He held up his hands at the large servings she was dishing up. “I don’t think I can eat all of that!”
 

“Oh… actually this is mine.” She turned back to her plate and giggled a little. It looked like it was heavier than she was. “I was eating fast food in between bus rides on the way here so I need a home-cooked meal myself.” She settled down with her food and hummed as she bit off a piece of chicken.

They ate at the breakfast bar in the kitchen. He couldn’t stop himself from staring as she got up to get a second helping.
 

“What! I’m not one of those girls who eat a salad and claim to be full. I’m
hungry
!”
 

“No, don’t apologize. I appreciate a woman who can eat.” He didn’t add that he also appreciated the after-effects of a healthy appetite, namely the soft curves stretching out her jeans and tee shirt. She already thought he was a pig. If she knew why he was really staring, she’d probably dump the casserole dish over his head.
 

“So, where were you coming from?”
 

Her hand paused before she speared another bite of food. “Florida. That’s where I went to college.”

“It’s weird; I thought I read somewhere that you didn’t go to college.”

“Oh, I didn’t finish.” Raina looked away. “That’s probably why. Anyway, I still have friends there. What about you? Have you always lived here?”

“Virginian, born and bred. My parents have a farm not too far from here. I went to college across the water in Norfolk. Dropped out before I finished, too. I was too busy playing the guitar to study anything useful.”

She looked around. “Well, apparently you studied
something
useful.”

“Not everyone thinks so. It was a long time before I started earning enough to make a living. Then I got my break about two years ago when a major country western star liked one of my songs enough to record it.”

Her eyes widened and he grinned, enjoying her shock. “Are you surprised? Let me guess, you assumed I was into R&B or hip-hop music, right?”

“Okay, you got me. Those were totally stereotypical assumptions to make. I hate when people assume they know me before I even open my mouth. I’m a little ashamed that I’m guilty of doing it, too.” She propped her head on her fist as she watched him. “So, what got you into country music?”

“My parents own a farm, remember? My parents are a little bit country and a little bit rock n’ roll, as my dad would say. We heard country music around the house since I was a little kid. One of my uncles plays the guitar, and he taught me when I was about ten. I haven’t stopped since. That first song turned into an album, then I got an offer to collaborate on another country star’s album. The rest is history, I guess. Both of those albums did really well, so all my hard work finally paid off.”
 

He stopped then and waited, holding her gaze. When she looked away, he knew she understood. He’d told her his story. Now, it was her turn.
 

She sighed.

“My mom died a few years ago.
”

Jackson closed his eyes.
“
I am so sorry.
”
 

“
Thanks. We weren
’
t close and I regret that. That
’
s when I first starting searching for my biological father.
 
I hired a private investigator to track him down. His name was David. He invited me to dinner to tell me what he found out. I didn’t see any harm in going. He seemed nice enough.” She stood and carried her plate over to the sink.
 

“Before long he was dropping by my place just to chat or bring Chinese. He liked jazz and was a well-respected businessman in the community. I thought I’d finally gotten lucky and met one of these nice guys I keep hearing so much about.”

Jackson stood and put his hand on her shoulder. “You don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to. I shouldn’t have asked.”

“No, it’s okay. I should tell someone. I
need
to tell someone.”

As he gazed down into her big, brown eyes, Jackson had a feeling he was going to be sorry he asked.
 

Mainly because the more he got to know her, the harder it was to leave her alone.

Chapter Five

SHE BIT HER lower lip as Jackson eyed her curiously. He was being so sweet to her, even after she’d all but told him to kiss off. He’d done nothing but show her kindness and she’d responded with distrust and sarcasm. He didn’t deserve that from her. Not after he’d been so nice.

I need all the nice I can get right about now.

“He was a real gentleman. He seemed a little flirty at times, but never made a move. I figured he was waiting until after he wrapped up my case before asking me out. But for the longest time he said he was hitting nothing but dead ends. Then last week, he came by my house one morning and told me he was on to something big. This was before the accident.” She lowered her eyes.
 

“The accident?” Jackson asked gently.

He fell silent but kept his hand on her shoulder. Such a small sign of support but it made it a little easier for her to talk knowing he was on her side. She’d spent the past two hours trying not to think about how her life had recently gone up in ashes.

Literally.
 

Maybe if she talked about it, she could get past the mind-numbing fear.

“He asked me to hold this for him.” She pulled the pendant from beneath her shirt. “I thought it was a little odd. After all, if he was worried about it being stolen where he was going, why didn’t he just leave it at home? But I was on my way to the bank anyway, so I decided to just put it in my safe deposit box. I ended up on the road behind him. I saw when his car skidded and went through the guardrail.” She swallowed, just the memory of it enough to steal her breath.
 

Jackson shook his head. “That must have been scary.”

“I called the police and then tried to climb down to get to him. I didn’t know how steep it was and I fell. When the police arrived, they helped pull me back up.” Unconsciously, her hand fluttered to her wrist, where the bruises were still visible. “I could see him in the car. I kept asking the police to get him out but they couldn’t. The car was already on fire by then. We had to wait until fire and rescue arrived.”

“I am so sorry.”

Their eyes met and she couldn’t look away. He raised a hand to her face and pushed a stray curl behind her ear. But he didn’t step back after that. He seemed fascinated by her hair, rubbing the strands of a fat curl between his fingers.
 

“Raina —”
 

“My name is Ridley. Ridley Wells.”
 

He released her, reluctantly. “Wait, what?”

“I just wanted to tell you, that is…” She twisted the bottom of her shirt in her fist. “Raina Winters isn’t my real name. I changed it.”

It was silly, actually. Almost borderline neurotic that it bothered her to hear him call her by her sister’s name.
This doesn’t absolve you
, she told herself. After all, she was still lying to him. But this evening with Jackson was one of the best she’d had in a long time. As stupid as it was, she wanted him to know her. The
real
her.
 

She stepped closer and placed her hand on his chest right over his heart. “I like you, Jackson. I just want you to know the real me.”
 

“I want to know the real you, too. Ridley.” He whispered it as if testing out the sound. “I like it. It fits you. Beautiful, strong and as unique as you are.”

“Thank you.” She exhaled. Maybe she could just tell him the whole story? He actually seemed to understand.
 

“I’m glad you told me. Most of the women I meet are so fake. They just lie to get what they want but you are so different from what I expected.”

Oh, wow
. Ridley cringed.
So much for that.
She wasn’t sure how to even respond to that. How was she ever going to explain what had happened? He’d probably just think she was a pathological liar and throw her out.

After a few moments of awkward silence he asked, “So, what happened after that?”

She pulled away and walked over to the window to look out into the night. It was dark, and she couldn’t see much other than the shapes of the trees in the backyard.

“When I called the FBI agent on the case today, he told me that David was involved with some pretty sketchy people.” She smiled weakly.

Jackson crouched down until she couldn’t avoid his eyes. “Hey, hey. It’s going to be okay.”
 

“But it’s not okay. That’s why I ran yesterday.” At Jackson’s puzzled look, she continued, “I didn’t tell them that David was killed because of
my
case. He’d found a lead on my father. The FBI saw David meeting with a member of the Moreno crime family. What if that was his lead? What if Alberto Moreno is my father?” Her voice broke and she covered her mouth with her hand.

He pulled her against his chest and rubbed a hand up and down her back. It was a completely platonic move but it warmed her, inside and out.
 

“We don’t know that. It could be completely unrelated.”

“But it makes sense. It explains why my mom didn’t want him to find us and why she was so bitter. It even explains why we moved so much. She spent her entire life on the run from him and because of what I did, he might know where we are now.”

She tried to hold herself rigid, not to lean too heavily into his unexpected embrace, but her willpower was no match against the warmth he offered. Her shoulders sagged and she leaned against him, boneless, as tears streamed down her cheeks.
 

“Do you mind if I ask my brother, Elliott, to look into it? He owns a security firm up in D.C. and has contacts within the FBI. He’ll be able to find out what’s going on. Okay?”

“Okay,” she whispered. “I wish I knew what to do about this necklace. It must have been pretty valuable if David was worried about it being stolen.”

“Do you want me to put it in my safe?”

“You have a safe?” At his nod, she reached up and unhooked the clasp at the back of her neck. “Thank you, Jackson. I’ll have to get in contact with the FBI again and find out how to return it to his family.”

“Not tonight you don’t.” He put the necklace in his pocket and ran his hands up and down her arms. “Tonight you just need to relax.”

She wasn’t used to men being so attentive unless they wanted something. But his hands never strayed from her arms and he didn’t try to pull her any closer. As she turned to look up at him, Jackson’s lips brushed over her hair. She wasn’t entirely sure he’d meant to do it but the contact seared her straight down to her toes.
 

After the first rush of emotion passed, she covered her face with her hands, embarrassed to have gotten so emotional in front of him. Jackson had the perfect life. Why would he want to hear all about her problems? He was gorgeous, successful and seemed to know exactly what he wanted.
 

Which, of course, just made her feel even more pathetic in comparison.
 

 
“I’m just feeling sorry for myself. I feel like my life was finally starting to fall into place. But then this happened so, here I am. Hiding out.”

“You’re welcome to stay here as long as you need to. No one will think to look for you at my house, and you’ll have plenty of time to figure out your next move. Stay with me.”
 

“I don’t want to impose.”

“Do I look like I mind? It’ll be fun.” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

“You are ridiculous.” She pulled a paper towel from the holder on the counter and dabbed at her eyes. “I didn't mean to dump all this emotional crap on you.”
 

“You're not dumping. I asked for your story, didn't I?”

“That was probably more than you bargained for. I’m sure you don’t want to hear about my screwed-up life.”

“I think you’re being a little hard on yourself. Everyone makes mistakes, myself included.”

Ridley scoffed. “You don’t have to try to make me feel better.”

“You think I’m just saying that?” Jackson tilted his head and regarded her through narrowed eyes. “My last girlfriend was only using me to get a record deal. Oh, and the last album I produced was such a flop that I’m pretty sure the only people who bought copies of it are my mom and dad.”

Ridley stared at him, momentarily stunned. “I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything. I just want you to know you’re not the only one who screws up sometimes. No one is perfect. All we can do is go forward and try to do better.” Jackson tipped her chin up until she met his eyes. “I’m just glad you’re okay. I meant what I said. You’re more than welcome to hide out here for as long as you want.”

Ridley’s eyes went wide, then she licked her lips nervously, unsettled by the warmth of his strong fingers touching her face. He went still as well, as if surprised by his own actions. Then he backed away and cleared his throat.

“Sorry. I don’t want you to think I’m, you know, hitting on you. I’m sure you get more than enough of that.”