The Naughty List Bundle - Kylie Adams [109]
She didn’t appear quite convinced. She stared at her feet in deep concentration.
A niggling sense of panic seeped in. Misty had been very clear about her feelings on involvement of any kind. The only way Morgan could see around that was to wrangle his way into her life. Keeping her here, hiring her on, showing her she could trust him and rely on him was part of a great plan. He’d just have to make damn sure it worked. “As I said, it’s not a hard job—”
Her head shot up and she glared at him. “I’m not afraid of hard work.”
“I didn’t mean that.” Sometimes Morgan wished he was as good at soothing frazzled nerves as his brother Jordan. Jordan could talk the orneriness out of a mule, whisper a baby bird to sleep. He was one hell of a vet, but his talents carried over to people, as well. Morgan, on the other hand, usually relied on rigid control to get his way. He managed things, taking on other people’s problems and resolving them so they didn’t have to worry. Most people appreciated that.
Only it didn’t work with Misty. She bucked him at every turn, refusing to accept what he was best at offering.
“All I meant,” he continued, “is that you could easily do the job. You don’t need any special training or skills. And by accepting it, you can stay here indefinitely, which rids you of the cost of room and board.”
She was already shaking her head before he’d finished. “I can’t just stay here free, Morgan.”
He straightened. “Why the hell not? You hadn’t been in a hurry to leave until I prodded you along.”
“That’s not entirely true.” She looked flabbergasted by his persistence, but he’d be damned if he’d back off. “Sure, I had hoped to hang out for a week or two more while I figured out what to do next, but then I’d have left. I never intended to stay here any longer than that.”
He scowled at her. Everything had changed the moment she’d dropped to her knees in front of those bushes. She should stay, which meant he no longer had to fight himself for wanting her to stick around.
She’d said she wasn’t as outgoing as she’d pretended. He wasn’t buying that for a single second. She might not be such a real flirt, only using that as a way to cover her worries. But she was brazen and outrageous and beautiful. She was also strong and proud, qualities he’d always admired in men and women alike. But for right now, he wished she wasn’t quite so proud.
“Honey wants you to stay.” That was the only argument he could think of that might convince her. Telling her he wanted her to stay didn’t seem to be such a great idea. She’d ask him why, and beyond telling her he wanted to ravish her senseless, he’d have no excuse. Even knowing she was pregnant by another man, now that she’d admitted she wouldn’t be marrying that man, hadn’t dampened his lust. In fact, he admired her courage, which seemed to add a keen edge to his feelings.
In a mumble totally unlike her usual decisive tone, Misty said, “My sister is new here. This is Sawyer’s house and—”
“Honey is new, but permanent. She can invite anyone here that she wants.” Misty had a lot to learn about them, first and foremost what family meant. When Honey became Sawyer’s wife, she became an equal member of that family.
Actually, Morgan thought, smiling a little inside, she’d been an accepted member of their family as soon as they’d all realized Sawyer loved her.
“But Sawyer might not care for—”
“Sawyer will love having you here. But truth is, the house belongs to all of us. My father built it back when he and my mother were married. When she and Gabe’s father retired, they decided to move to Florida, and we took over the upkeep of the house. Since grown men need some privacy, Gabe converted the basement into an apartment, and Jordan did the same with the rooms over the garage.”
She looked him over as if trying to figure him out. “But you still live in the house.