No Ordinary Man

Jess was shocked. “Even though Ian doesn’t pay much attention to Kelsey, he’d never hurt her,” she protested. “He’s her father.”

Rob laughed, his voice harsh. “Oh, Jess,” he said. “You have no idea what a father can do to a child.”

“But you do know,” she ventured, realizing what he was saying. “Don’t you?”

Something changed in Rob’s face, as if he suddenly became aware of the fact that he’d said too much, that he’d given himself away. As Jess looked at him, she saw an array of emotions parade across his face. His eyes flicked toward his apartment door, and she knew he wanted to run away from this conversation.

But he didn’t leave. He met her eyes squarely, and he answered her. “Yes.”

Watching him, Jess realized that she and Kelsey were important to him—important enough for him to risk revealing some of the past that he kept so carefully concealed.

His father had abused him. There was no doubt of that in Jess’s mind.

“It started with accidents, too,” Rob said quietly. “You were lucky you got out of your relationship when you did. I didn’t have that option.”

Jess felt her eyes fill with tears as he straightened up. “Think about getting a restraining order,” he said again, ending the conversation by going into his apartment.

He hadn’t brought the topic up again, but Jess couldn’t forget that tiny piece of himself that he’d allowed her to see. She was positive that the only reason he’d told her as much as he had was because he so very much didn’t want the same thing to happen to her or to Kelsey.

But despite that one incident, Rob continued to keep his distance. He never, ever stayed after Kelsey had gone to bed.

Funny, Kelsey’s bedtime seemed to be getting later and later these days.

Jess wasn’t sure whether to be grateful or insulted that he hadn’t yet asked her out. She could see his attraction each time she glanced into his eyes. Still, part of her liked the fact that he was moving at a snail’s pace. It was gentlemanly. It was romantic. At the very least it was different.

But another part of her was frustrated beyond belief. This was the part of her that filled her dreams with steamy, erotic visions of her new neighbor, the likes of which she’d only imagined. And boy, had she imagined. She dreamed of Rob kissing her relentlessly. She dreamed of his arms around her, his hands caressing her, their naked bodies pressed together, straining to become one…

The sad reality was, if she was really lucky, he’d stay for dinner and afterward they’d play Candy Land.

Jess went out onto the deck.

She could see Rob and Kelsey, crouched in the dirt, heads close together as they examined something at the edge of the garden.

As Jess started down the stairs, he glanced up.

For the briefest instant, she saw hunger in his eyes and raw desire on every angle and plane of his lean face. But it was gone so quickly, Jess was left wondering if she had imagined it. Still, her mouth was dry and she had to moisten her lips before she spoke.

“Hi.” A brilliant opener. No doubt he’d be too dazzled by her conversational skills to even hazard a reply.

But he smiled, apparently undaunted, standing up and brushing off his hands. “Hey.”

“We found a worm,” Kelsey informed her. “But it’s all dried up and yucky.”

“Kelsey, please don’t—” Jess sighed as her daughter wiped her muddy hands across her clean T-shirt “—get your shirt dirty.” She sent Rob a look of amused dismay. “Too late.”

“Sorry,” Kelsey said, frowning down at herself, her forehead wrinkled with her distress.

“It’ll wash out. But go up and change, please,” Jess said. “We’ve got to get going.”

Kelsey headed for the stairs up to the deck with her normal explosion of speed. She was like a miniature rocketship—either standing still or moving at the speed of sound.

Jess turned back to Rob. “You’re home early,” she said. “I was sure we’d be gone before you got here.”

He didn’t ask where she and Kelsey were going. Come to think of it, except for that one time he never asked anything that was even remotely personal. “They were having a party back at the office,” Rob explained. “The music got too loud. I wasn’t getting any work done, so I thought I might as well come home.”

Where are you going? He didn’t ask the question, but Jess could see it in his eyes. He wanted to know. So why didn’t he simply ask?

“I was going to leave a note on your door,” Jess said, answering the question anyway. “I got a call from the Pelican Club out on Siesta Key. Tonight’s entertainment canceled and they asked me to fill in. I’ve got to be there in an hour.”

“The Pelican Club.” Rob poked at the garden with the toe of his shoe, burying the mummified worm under a clod of dirt. “Nice place. I’ve gone to see you play there before.”

“I know,” Jess said quietly, watching him.

Rob glanced up at her, and the power generated as his eyes met hers seemed to sizzle the very air around them. He quickly looked away and the sun’s reflection on his glasses hid his eyes.

“Will you come with us?” The words were out of her mouth before she’d taken the time to think. But as soon as she said them, she realized that she was, essentially, asking Rob Carpenter out. She immediately backpedaled, adding, “Doris can’t baby-sit tonight, and all of the local kids are going to a dance at the high school, so I’m stuck and Kelsey’s going to be there, too. I’m sure she’d love to have someone to eat dinner with while I’m playing.” Lord, now it sounded as if she wanted Rob to come along as a baby-sitter. And that wasn’t true at all. “I’m doing this badly,” she continued almost desperately, “but it’s been a while since I’ve asked a man out and…you’re probably busy. Sorry, I’m…sorry.”

“I’m not busy.” If he was looking at her, she couldn’t tell. The sun’s reflection still kept her from seeing his eyes. But he didn’t say anything else.

“Would you… Do you…want to come?”

Rob didn’t respond at first, as if it were a question that required deep thought to find the answer. But he lifted his head and met her eyes again when he did speak, and his gaze was steady and very certain. “Yeah,” he said. “I’d like that.”

Jess smiled at him, her entire face lighting with her delight, and Rob felt more of the defenses he’d erected against this woman eroding, just totally melting away.

He couldn’t help but think about that evening last week when, after Jess’s ex-husband had put in an appearance, Rob had found himself telling her about his father, for God’s sake. He just stood there, watching and listening to himself tell her things he hadn’t told anyone. Ever. He’d had to force himself to stop talking, to walk away before he told her more. And now he’d gone and told her he’d like to go on a date with her. What was he thinking? Where was his mind?

Dear God, he was in trouble here. It was all he could do not to reach out and touch her smooth, sun-kissed cheek with his hand. She’d just asked him out and like a fool, he’d accepted, pushing them both one step closer toward the hell and heartache that was inevitable. God help them both.

“Great,” she said. “Give me fifteen minutes to get changed and then we can go. Mind if we take your car? My clutch is acting up again and—” She looked around the driveway, and then out toward the street. “Where is your car?”

“I lent it to…someone,” Rob replied, unwilling to tell her that he’d intercepted Ian again, just moments ago, out on the street in front of her house. Ian had come with the excuse that he needed to borrow Jess’s car. Rob had lent Ian his own car, simply to keep him from hassling Jess. Ian was supposed to return it later tonight. “I didn’t think I’d need it. I could call a cab and—”

“No,” Jess interrupted. “That’s not necessary. My car will get us there.” She smiled, another burst of sunshine. “I’ll drive along the bus route just in case.”

“If you want, I can take a look at your car,” Rob said. “I’m pretty good with foreign engines.”

He could see surprise in Jess’s eyes. What kind of computer geek knew the first little thing about cars? But she didn’t say a word, didn’t ask one single question. She simply accepted whatever minuscule tidbits of personal information he threw in her direction. She respected his privacy. Yet he could tell that she hoped he’d open up and really talk to her. Too bad, because that was one thing that wasn’t going to happen. He was going to leave her with all of her questions still unanswered.

“Pull your car out of the garage,” Rob said evenly. “I have to make a couple of phone calls first, but then I’ll check it out.”

“All right,” she responded. “Thanks.”

She used her key to trigger the automatic garage opener and the door that was built right into the side of the house rolled up. She disappeared into the dark, cool gloom and after a moment the car started with a muffled roar.

Unable to shake the feeling that he was being watched, Rob glanced up at the neighbor’s rundown old house. Sure enough, there was Mr. Greene, sitting in his wheelchair on his porch, staring down at him with cold, baleful eyes. Rob had seen the old man out there when he’d come home even late at night—past 2:00 a.m. Mr. Greene was always watching. He looked as if he were judging, condemning, like an aging Roman ruler, ready to give the signal of thumbs-up or down.

Thumbs-down. That seemed to fit this situation perfectly.