LITMIR.BIZ

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her chin, his warm breath on her face, his heated scent filling her head. The urge to kiss him made it difficult to think—especially when his attention dropped to her mouth.

      His thumb moved over her bottom lip. “You’re making me nuts, Honor.”

      The rough words were so low she barely heard them. “I don’t see—”

      Abruptly he released her and stepped back. “It’ll help Colt if you let him stay busy. I try, but I just don’t have that much for him to do.”

      The new space between them left her oddly bereft. Ridiculous. She barely knew the man, and what she did know confounded her. Clearly he found her incapable of managing her own home chores; he’d already said as much.

      Did he resent her as a neighbor?

      Want her as a woman?

      She frowned at him. “And they say women are difficult to understand.”

      That earned her a brief self-deprecating smile. “I’ll attempt to be clearer.”

      Oh. Anticipation set her heart racing.

      “Colt is still finding his place here.”

      Well, darn. She’d wanted him to be clearer about those tantalizing touches and long looks. Then again, the fact that he cared for his nephew only added to his appeal, so she merely nodded.

      “The busier he stays,” Jason said, “the less time he has to dwell on changes out of his control.”

      She wanted to help, she really did.

      Pretty much, she always wanted to help—which Lexie claimed to be one of her biggest weaknesses.

      Drawn to Jason, she inched closer and only realized it when his attention went back to her mouth. “The thing is,” she said, “I can’t afford to pay him.”

      “No one asked you to.” He shoved his hands into his pockets. “You really need to learn what it means to be neighbors.”

      Whoa. His jeans just slid an inch lower. She gathered her wits with an effort. “If it means clearing my yard and other hard work like that, then I have to do something in return for you.”

      His eyes flared, then narrowed. “If anything comes up, I’ll let you know. But for now, you’re the one with the surplus of stuff that needs to get done.”

      “Stuff you keep claiming I can’t do on my own, but I can.” She just needed more time. Maybe more energy. And the right tools...

      Did it annoy him that she hadn’t yet gotten to the yard? Oh God, probably. He kept his own grounds pristine, and hers looked like a dump.

      Shame put her shoulders back and stiffened her spine. “I promise that I’m getting to it as quick as I can.”

      “You’ll get to it quicker if you stop being stubborn and let Colt help you.”

      It wasn’t about stubbornness. It was about carrying her own weight so others, he especially, didn’t resent her. “This is ridiculous—”

      “I agree. So let him help.”

      “Fine.”

      “Great.”

      Thinking it might be a good time to redirect the conversation, she tossed out what she thought was a bland enough question. “So, is your brother divorced or widowed?”

      Frowning, Jason turned away from her and muttered something low.

      So low that she couldn’t catch it but thought it might’ve been a curse. “What?” she asked with suspicion.

      “It’s complicated.”

      Was he throwing her own words back at her? “What exactly does that mean?”

      When he said nothing, she got the message loud and clear. He could grill her, but she was supposed to mind her own business. Sidling around him, she said, “Never mind.”

      “Damn it,” he whispered roughly as he caught her arm and turned her back to him. The seconds ticked by; tension expanded in the air.

      “Honestly,” she said, matching his tone. “It’s fine.”

      Jason dropped his hand and blew out a breath. “After sixteen years of marriage, Meg cheated on Hogan, bankrupted him and while he was divorcing her, she crashed her car into a tree and died on him.”

      The bottom fell out of her stomach. “Oh my God.”

      He looked past her shoulder, his expression pained. “Through it all, he never stopped loving her.”

      Honor gave in to temptation and touched his chest. “You’re right.” Empathy made her voice softer. “It sounds very complicated.”

       4

      LEXIE CAME IN loudly whistling, as if she thought she might interrupt something risqué.

      Jason had to laugh when Honor gave a guilty leap away from him.

      At least it broke that choking tension—a good thing, since he’d been a nanosecond away from kissing her.

      Leaning in close, he teased, “We weren’t doing anything.”

      She blinked fast and answered just as quietly, “Of course not.”

      “I wanted to.” Even as he said it, Jason knew he shouldn’t tease her. But the ladies were cute together, their personalities, like their physical appearances, opposite yet complimentary. “And so did you.”

      Hectic color rushed into her face. She took a halting breath—and nodded. “I did.”

      Well, damn. Forget nobility; he was about to reach for her.

      “I’m coming in,” Lexie called out.

      Redirecting her attention, Honor growled, “I’m going to muzzle her.”

      Jason tamped down on his urges.

      Since his brother and nephew had moved in, it seemed a perpetual gloom overshadowed everything. All their focus had been on Hogan losing...everything.

      Well, not everything. He still had Colt and as far as Jason was concerned, that was where the focus should be: on his son. Everything else would fall into place.

      But the struggle was real for all of them. So many things had changed almost overnight. They were family, so they’d get through it, difficult as it might be. Jason had to believe that Hogan would get it together soon.

      Until that happened, their new neighbor proved a nice diversion.

      Honor wasn’t as problematic as Jason had imagined. She had a gentle way about her, both strong and fragile, that softened everything—even the obvious issues.

      She was still weighed down with responsibility, and her schedule was a real mystery, but she was also a fighter. He admired that. A lot.

      As Lexie stuck her head into the kitchen, she said, “You have some swoon-worthy neighbors, Honor. Present company included.”

      Because Honor stayed silent, Jason picked up the slack with some verbal sparring. “I could say the same about Honor’s friends.”

      “Friend,” Lexie corrected. “I’m numero uno with her.”

      “Noted.” He’d already realized that no one else had ever visited her.

      “So, Jason, tell me about this other guy, Nathan. Is he as studly as the rest of you?”

      Studly, huh? “Not sure that’s how I’d describe him.”

      She pointed at him. “You need to introduce me soon.”

      “I thought you were into Sullivan.”

      “Mmm...

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