Trust In Love (A McCord Family Novel Book 2) (13 page)

"What kinds of jobs have you had? Maybe I can help, too," Austin said begrudgingly.

For the first time, Deja whipped her head to him, her bright blue eyes searing into him. "Jobs I refuse to do anymore. I'll find something and pay you back. I can tell you don't like me, not like Sophie does. I'm still a little leery myself here. I've never met anyone so nice. But I'm taking her for her word, just as I hope you take my word for what it is. I'll pay you back."

Austin stared for a moment, letting her eyes bore into him. He finally saw what Sophie did. "Okay. I believe you."

Austin felt Sophie's hand tremble within his, wondering why the concern still lingered. He raised her hand to his mouth, lightly kissing it, hoping to take the pain away. "Let's eat, huh? I'm starving and I imagine so are you two.

***

Sophie felt the change in him, the acceptance mingle in with the distrust. It was Deja's eyes that did it. She knew that. She glanced back over at Deja, appreciating her beauty for the first time. Long blond hair that ran down to the middle of her back. An oval face with fine dainty lips, and the bluest, deepest eyes imaginable.

A gorgeous woman sat across from her, a woman like so many that had crossed the threshold of Austin's door. Deja was exactly his normal type. Nothing like plain Sophie. Suddenly she worried his change in demeanor was attraction and not trust as she first thought. What would she do when he left her for Deja? Would he do that to her?

Sophie glanced at him, treasuring his comforting touch, the tingling pleasure his soft kisses did to her. The more he touched her, sat near her, held her in his arms; she became that much more comfortable with him. She wanted this man so much. Even as she wanted him, the thought of letting him in her bed, in her heart, scared her.

She grabbed a piece of pizza to move the conversation away from Deja. The less he paid attention to her, the better. He crinkled his mouth into a smile at her and took a bite of his pizza. They ate in silence, everyone leery of where to take the conversation.

Sophie had grabbed a second slice when she decided the silence needed to end. "I can help you look through ads tomorrow, Deja. Austin goes to the farm quite early, so I tend to get up just as early to take Axel. Whenever you want to get started is good with me."

Deja had gobbled down three slices already. She wiped her mouth from the frenzied pace. "Okay. That's really nice of you. I suppose I'll look for waitressing or something simple like that."

"Oh, actually, did you have plans tonight?" Sophie cleared her throat, looking down at her plate. She didn't want to see Austin's face when he broke the news of his plans. "Normally you go out on Fridays and sleep in on Saturdays. Not that I watch what you do or anything. I mean, that one Saturday I knocked on your door for the lawn mower and that woman was—"

"Sophie, stop," Austin interrupted her, pulling her hand to his chest that had been wobbling horribly holding the pizza. "Yes, I have plans tonight. They're hanging out with you. Yes, I plan to sleep in tomorrow. With you. The only woman for me is you. Remember what we talked about outside? I meant every word. I only want you. My plans are your plans or your plans are my plans. I've been wanting you to come to the farm and Ava even asked if you would come. I was hoping you'd want to come tomorrow. I can help look at the ads with you both. And if Deja wants, she can also come with to the farm as well. Do you want to see it?"

Sophie's hand still rested on his chest, the rapid beating of his heart plain and clear to the touch. Nervous. It surprised her to think he was nervous of her. She raised her eyes to his and gave a small smile. "I would love to see the farm."

Deja sat quietly through it all until Austin glanced at her. "Does that sound like a plan, Deja?"

"Oh, I don't think you want me at this farm you're talking about, especially since I heard you mention the name Ava. Isn't she your sister-in-law who works for the police?" Deja replied, suddenly nervous.

"Yes, she is, but she won't do anything to you unless I ask her to. She'll understand...for the most part. You're welcome to come with."

"Because you want to be around me, or you don't trust me in Sophie's house alone?" Deja asked, unable to resist.

Austin chuckled. "I suppose the latter. What can I say? I don't know you and you did break into my house. I can't learn to trust you if I don't get to know you either, now can I? So the former applies as well."

"Nonetheless, I'll pass. Sophie's kind enough to offer help and I'm gonna use it. I'll be finding a job tomorrow if it takes all day," Deja replied, grabbing another slice of pizza.

"That's fine," Sophie said before Austin could say anything else. She wanted Austin to trust her, but she also didn't want him to
want
to spend time with her.

Austin squeezed her hand again, perhaps knowing instinctively that she needed some sort of reassurance from him and stood up from the table. "Well, I'm full. I'm going to go grab some things from my house and I'll be right back. I'll let Ava know that we'll be there tomorrow. She really is looking forward to hanging out with you, Sophie."

"Well, I hope I don't disappoint," Sophie replied with a stiff laugh.

Austin set his plate down on the counter, turning to her with annoyed anger. "Sophie, please don't put yourself down like that. Don't be nervous about anything. No one blames you for the house and no one will pry into your background. Just be your beautiful self. Just please, don't put yourself down. I hate it."

Sophie nodded, hating the self-doubt that always entered. A lifetime of put-downs, hatred, jealousy, and constant fear made it difficult to change how she reacted.

Austin nodded back, then left the kitchen.

"He cares for you. In a positive way. That's rare to find, Sophie," Deja said, filling the silence within the room. "Does he normally stay with you, or does he just not trust me with you alone?"

"I'm slowly coming to see that, but a lifetime of otherwise unsavory incidents makes it difficult to transform overnight. The reality is, I don't know you that well, and yes, he doesn't trust you. He's a good man, and for some crazy reason wants me, not any other woman. Trust me when I say, he could have any woman he wants and has had them. He wants to stay here until we get to know you better. I hope I'm not hurting your feelings or seeming insensitive," Sophie replied, staring at her last piece of uneaten pizza.

"I don't believe you have a mean bone in your body, Sophie. You would be dumb to trust someone like me and you don't strike me as the dumb type. I swear I mean no harm, but those are just words. I'll prove to you what kind of person I am. I won't disappoint either of you. I'll give you your space and I'm really looking forward to a real bed now anyway," Deja said, standing up from the table. "Is that okay?"

"That's perfectly fine. I hope you sleep well."

"You too."

Sophie sighed as Deja walked out. Would she sleep well? Her sleeping patterns ranged from a nice restful sleep to nightmares plaguing her every waking minute. Would she feel comfortable with him in the room? Or would the mere presence of a man twist her tighter than a coiled snake feasting on its prey?

***

True to her word, Sophie had plied the floor with blankets, creating a makeshift bed for Austin. He graciously accepted her homemade bed, even though deep inside he craved to dive into her bed with her warm body pressed against his. He was a man true to his word, though. He wouldn't push her or press her. Letting her set the pace, an utmost importance when it came to her. He might die of starvation and thirst of the lust running rampantly through his veins, but patience was his new virtue. He wouldn't do anything that could ruin his chances.

She shyly said goodnight, tensing at first when he locked the bedroom door. He gingerly smiled, saying, "I don't trust her yet, Sophie. At least she'd have to break a barrier before getting in. I swear I'll stay on the floor." She must have believed him because she simply nodded and rolled away to her side.

He sensed Sophie's movements all night, her tossing and turning, creating an agitation inside him. He remembered his brother speaking about Ava and her nightmares, how he would comfort her, bring her back to a peaceful sleep. Not that Sophie was having a nightmare, but he could feel her tension, her fear, her restlessness. He ached to climb over to her and calm her down with one sweet touch. Clamping down his urge kept him awake most of the night. He prayed that this moment in time would end swiftly and she would happily accept him into her bed. He wasn't positive how many torturous nights he would be able to endure. But he would stay nicely on the floor if that's what it would take to make Sophie trust and believe in him.

***

"Beautiful, aren't they," Ava commented as she joined Sophie by the corral.

Sophie smiled at the horses, breathing in the fresh farm air, and nodded softly. "They are. I've never been on a horse. I was apprehensive the whole time we were riding earlier. Austin was very patient with me, so was the horse."

"Sophie, Austin told me about that woman and I'm not too sure I like what's going on," Ava said without warning.

Sophie looked over at Ava. "Please don't have her arrested. Austin's willing to give her a chance, can't you, too?"

"I wouldn't necessarily say he's willing. He's only doing it for you. He's concerned, just as I am. We don't know this woman."

"You don't know me either."

"Austin knows you and that's enough for me."

"But does he really know me? He knows what's on the surface, not what's inside of me. I haven't gone down that path, and who knows, maybe I'll never be ready for it. He wants to see where we can go, and that terrifies me. I don't know her, you're right. I see something in her that I can't ignore. Nobody was there for me, Ava...nobody. I refuse to turn my back if I can help her. Don't you believe in reform?"

Ava sighed, pulling her hair out of her face as a slight breeze swept in. "He knows enough to be willing to give his heart to you. Make no mistake. He's never given it to any woman before. I insisted that woman be arrested and he put his foot down—for you. Because you asked him to give her a chance. Of course, I like to think people can be reformed. Do I think they should be doing it in your house? Absolutely not. If anything happened to you, Austin would go crazy."

"Nothing's going to happen. Deja means no harm. I know I'm probably crazy, but it's not something I can explain. She'll pay him back. She'll hopefully have a job today. She found an ad in the papers for a waitressing job at some diner," Sophie said, glancing away from Ava's piercing stare.

"I still don't like it. I'm glad you're at least letting Austin stay with you. He'll be a perfect gentleman, I swear. I'll have his hide if he isn't. You just let me know."

Sophie swung her head back at her. "He was a perfect gentleman last night. He slept on the floor in my room, and I couldn't help it, but I was worried he wouldn't stay on the floor. I've never met a man I could trust. This isn't easy for me. Strangely, I do trust him. He's wormed his way inside me and…I don't know what he sees in me. Thank you, Ava, for giving Deja a chance. You'll be the first to know if she does anything."

Ava grabbed Sophie's hand, squeezing reassuringly. "He sees a beautiful woman, a strong woman. Don't sell yourself short. If you're even trying to compare yourself with any other woman you saw walk into his house, don't. They were all trash, and trust me, I let him know that on numerous occasions. I also let him know how much I approve of you."

Ava looked embarrassed. "That came out wrong. My approval is not a requirement." Ava gave a small smile to mend that mishap of words. "He's just as nervous as you. He's never given a relationship a chance, so give him leeway if he acts like an idiot sometimes."

Sophie smiled slightly. "I can't imagine him acting like that. And your approval means a great deal to me. I saw the same trash walk out of his house as you did."

Ava laughed with Sophie as a small chuckled escaped her lips. "I'm glad I wasn't the only one to think so."

"Oh no, I gave them a few glares I think you would be proud of," Sophie said, laughing a bit more.

Ava busted out laughing. "I bet you did. Thank you."

Ava let go of her hand, casually swiping her hair behind her ear as the wind whipped around them again. "There's something else I wanted to talk to you about."

"Austin always says I don't hold back when I speak to him. You don't either."

Ava laughed lightly. "No, I don't hold back. New Yorker in me, I guess. I would say, maybe that's why you don't either, the New Yorker in you."

Sophie glanced away, suddenly focusing intently on the horses. "I guess Austin told you I moved from there. That's territory I won't be speaking about, Ava. So don't bother. I know how to hold back my words. The things that can happ—" Sophie abruptly stopped, refusing to finish what had been on the tip of her tongue.

"We just bought our tickets to New York for next week. We'll be gone for five days. I'm worried—Austin's worried about leaving you with Deja alone. We bought the tickets before he told me about Deja."

"I'll be fine. Neither of you should worry."

"Fat chance on that. You could come—"

"If you're about to suggest that I come with to New York, I'll be leaving this farm right here, right now," Sophie exclaimed.