The Millionaire and the Mum

It hurt Beth to see her child suffering, but what could she say? She certainly couldn’t afford to have someone build them another tree house.

Apparently taking her silence for resistance, Jack said, “I have references. I could get you some names of people you could call.”

Studying him, she considered his offer. She was tempted to take him up on it, even though she was sure this man was hiding something. He had to be. No man who looked as well off as he did would need to work for room and board. “Look, I know I owe you for what you’ve done for me today, but you could probably go to any one of the rose farms and get work. Paid work.”

“I tried the other places. They all want someone who knows something about roses.” He smiled at Matthew again, and Matthew smiled back. “I don’t know a thing about roses, but I wouldn’t mind learning.”

Oh, God, despite her doubts about him, she desperately wanted to take him up on his offer. She was exhausted, and she had so much work ahead of her if she hoped to get the farm back in working order. So what if he had something to hide? Didn’t most people? And he had saved Amy from a terrible accident, hadn’t he? Besides, he’d said he’d give her references.

“How about a trial period?” It was obvious from his tone he sensed she was weakening. “One week. If it doesn’t work out, all you have to do is tell me, and I’ll go.”

Her eyes met his again. His blue gaze was steady and direct. Maybe she was crazy, but it also seemed honest to her. She sighed. “All right. One week.”

Now he smiled. “You won’t be sorry.”

Maybe not, Beth thought. Then again, maybe she would. She sure didn’t have a great track record when it came to judging men. Right now, though, she really didn’t care. She needed help, and he was offering it. She would take her chances and hope for the best.

Jack could see Beth Johnson wasn’t sure she’d done the right thing by hiring him. Hell, if he could persuade warring fanatics to release a dozen hostages, he could sure persuade one woman to let him work for her. “I could start right away.” He gestured toward the tree. “If you’ve got a saw, I could get that tree cut up and piled over by the fence where it won’t be a hazard.”

She nodded slowly. “That would be great. While you’re doing that, I’ll make up a bed for you on the sleeping porch. That’s the screened in part at the back of the house. I hope that will be satisfactory.” This last was said primly, and she didn’t meet his eyes.

It was clear she was wary about having him inside her house. He didn’t blame her. He was a stranger. For all she knew, he could be a thief or worse—a murderer. He was glad to see she was sensible as well as pretty.

For pretty she was, even though she was dressed in beat-up boots, faded blue jeans and an obviously old yellow T-shirt with dirt everywhere—on her clothes, her face, her hands, her knees. Still, no amount of dirt could disguise the fact that her slender yet womanly figure curved in all the right places, or that her strawberry-blond hair was thick and curly and shining, or that there was an appealing sprinkle of freckles on her cheeks and nose, or that her eyes were steady and clear and the warmest golden brown he’d ever seen. Yes, she was an altogether very pretty woman.

The kids were cute, too. That boy of hers looked just like her. The little girl, though, must have taken after the father, because her hair was dark and her eyes were blue. Jack hadn’t been around many children in his life, but he couldn’t help liking the Johnson kids. Or their mother, who was still waiting for his answer.

“The sleeping porch will be fine,” he said. “But you don’t have to rush to get it ready. I’ve paid for a night at the Temple Motel, so I might as well stay there tonight.”

“Are you sure?” When he nodded, she said, “All right. But if you’re going to work here this afternoon, you’ll stay and have supper with us. My electricity’s back on, so I can cook again.” She grimaced. “Although my phone is still not working.”

“On my way in I saw some telephone linemen working.”

“Did you? That’s good. I hope they get our service back soon.”

He nodded. “I appreciate the offer of supper, but it’s not necessary to feed me.”

“I insist. That was the deal,” she said firmly.

He could see her pride wouldn’t let her accept his help today unless she could pay him something, even if it was only a meal. “Okay. Supper sounds great. Now why don’t you show me where you keep your tools? I don’t guess you have a chain saw?”

“As a matter of fact, I do.” Leading the way to the barn, she added, “Everything you’ll need is in there. While you work on the tree, I’m going inside for a bit. Matthew, you and Amy come with me.”

“Ah, Mama, can’t I stay out here and watch Jack?”

“His name is Mr. Stokes. You know better than to call an adult by his first name. And, no, you may not stay out here and watch. He doesn’t need you hanging around getting in the way.”

“I’d rather he call me Jack. Mr. Stokes sounds like some old man,” Jack said, giving Matthew a conspiratorial wink.

“Can I call you Jack, too?” piped up little Amy.

“Amy,” Beth said admonishingly.

Jack looked at Beth. “Mrs. Johnson, I really don’t mind—”

“Beth,” she interrupted. “Please call me Beth. We don’t stand on formalities here.”

“Beth,” he repeated, liking the way her name felt on his tongue. “What I was going to say is, if the kids want to watch, maybe they could sit in the bed of my truck. That way they could see, but they wouldn’t be in any danger.”

“Please, Mama, please?” Matthew begged.

“Please, Mama?” Amy echoed.

“Oh, I guess it’s all right, as long as Mr. Stokes—”

“Jack.”

She seemed taken aback by the interruption, but when she realized he’d done the same thing to her that she’d done to him, she grinned. “Jack.”

He liked the way his name sounded on her lips, too. He also liked her smile. It was open and real, with no suggestion of anything other than genuine amusement.

“Okay, then,” she said, “You two can watch, but if you get out of the truck, Jack will send you into the house, and that will be that. Understood?”

Both children nodded solemnly. “Yes, Mama.”

After one more warning to be good, Beth left the three of them and headed for the house. Telling the children to wait, Jack went into the barn and found the chain saw. Then he and the children walked back to the truck. After getting them settled in the flatbed, Jack attacked the fallen tree.

He worked steadily for the next hour or so, and just as the kids began to get restless, Beth walked out onto the porch. Jack saw that she’d cleaned herself up and now wore fresh jeans and a light brown T-shirt.

“Time for lunch,” she said. “I made hot dogs.”

“Oh, boy,” Matthew said. “Hot dogs are my favorite.”

“They’re my favorite, too.” Amy said.

Jack smothered a smile. It was obvious Amy had a bad case of hero worship where her older brother was concerned. The way she acted reminded him of how Kate used to follow him around all the time when they were young. The twins had had each other, but Jack had always had Kate, and no matter how much their father had tried to discourage her from tagging after Jack, she had paid no attention.

“I thought we’d eat on the side porch,” Beth said as she helped the children out of the truck.

“Cool! A picnic!” Matthew raced around to the side porch, closely followed by Amy.

Beth shook her head. “Those two are a mess.” But despite her words, it was clear she adored her children.

“They’re nice kids.”

“Thanks.”

“Matthew’s in school?”