Cross Country Chaos Read online

  “Girl, I’d grow wheels out my ass to chase him down.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Kelly was thankful the school year started. Mart came over several times for dinner, but they’d yet to have another night alone. Kelly had to run errands in Sarasota one morning and realized she’d be within twenty minutes of Mart’s house.

  Why not? The thought of even just a few minutes alone with him thrilled her.

  She turned onto University Parkway and worked her way east toward his house.

  Better call, make sure he’s home.

  Kelly waited for a red light and dialed his home number. It rang twice, and then a woman answered.

  “Hello?”

  Kelly’s heart dropped. She glanced at the screen. She’d dialed the right number.

  “Who is this?” Kelly asked, hoping she kept the fear out of her voice.

  “This is Carole.”

  “Can I speak to Mart?”

  “He’s in the shower. Can I take a message?”

  The car behind her honked. Kelly glanced at the green light and hit the accelerator. “Shower?”

  “Yes. Can I take a message?”

  “No. No message.” Kelly punched end and threw the phone onto the passenger seat. She pulled into a parking lot until her hands quit shaking.

  How could I have been so wrong about him! I will not cry. I will not cry—

  But she did—long and hard. And when her phone rang a few minutes later, it was Mart. She punched end, sending it straight to voicemail.

  * * * *

  Mart looked at Carole. “Did she say anything?”

  Carole rooted under the sink for her feather duster. “No, just said no message, and hung up. Where the hell—oh, here it is.” She stood with the duster in hand, grabbed her dust rags and polish from the counter.

  “I’m going to start charging you more for those bookshelves, I don’t care how many years I’ve been cleaning your house. I’m getting too old for that dang ladder. My knees can’t take it. You can’t even reach them. Why don’t you get some shelves built, move them down lower so you can enjoy them?”

  Mart was about to respond when her husband walked in from the garage. “What did you say was wrong with the sprinklers, Marty?”

  Mart was still distracted by Kelly’s call. Why didn’t she leave a message? “Uh, the rain sensor’s not working. I had to shut the system off manually the other night when we had that storm.”

  “Bob, come here and help me dust real quick, please?”

  “Honey, I’m filthy. I’m sure Mart doesn’t want me tracking dirt through his house.”

  “Carole, it’s okay. Leave the shelves. You did them last week, they’ll be fine until next week,” Mart said.

  “Thank you. I promise I’ll get them next week.”

  Mart tried Kelly’s phone again.

  * * * *

  Kelly looked at her ringing phone and punched end.

  Dammit, I’m not going through this again! She knew it was too soon for a relationship, and look what happened.

  Oh, he’s a nice guy, everyone said.Oh, he luuuvs me. Then what the fuck was he doing with a woman at his house? And he was in the shower?

  Screw that. I am a friggin’ IDIOT!

  Go home? She considered it.

  No, goddammit, she was going to let him have it. She’d tell him to go screw himself in person right now and end it. This time, the satisfaction was hers. She’d decide how to tell the boys later.

  And she wanted a look at this Carole bimbo.

  Kelly worked herself into a rage. Her anger overflowed, seething by the time she reached Mart’s. Every conceivable scenario played out in her mind, including snatching the woman bald and castrating Mart with her bare hands.

  An SUV with an empty lawnmower trailer was parked on the street in front of his house. A sign on the side read CB’s Complete Home Care.

  Good, an audience.

  Kelly wheeled into the driveway behind Mart’s van and slammed the Element into park, shut it off, and jumped out. She stormed through the front door.

  Mart was in the kitchen with a man and a woman, both older, probably in their early sixties. Kelly startled them when she slammed the door hard enough to rattle the front windows.

  “Martin Rawlings, I have a few words for you, you son of a bitch! Who the hell was that answering—” Kelly realized the man and woman wore identical work shirts, with the same logo as on the SUV sign. And name tags.

  The woman was Carole. The man was Bob.

  Mart looked shocked. “Kel, what’s wrong?” He wheeled over to her, his hair still damp from the shower.

  Kelly froze mid-rant, realizing for the first time she might have made a huge error in judgment. “Uh, um…”

  Carole smiled kindly. “You must be Kelly. Mart’s been raving to us about you.”

  Kelly’s face reddened. She stepped back and leaned against the counter, still trying to process this new information. “Uh, I…”

  Mart took Kelly’s hand. “Sweetheart, what’s wrong?”

  She looked from him to the couple and back again, then at the floor. “Oh boy.” Then she cried, embarrassed.

  And relieved.

  “Kelly, please, what’s wrong?” Mart sounded frantic, but all Kelly could do was sob and fall into his arms.

  Carole made the connection first and shook her head. “I’m sorry, Kelly. I should have identified myself as his housekeeper. I didn’t mean to scare you. I thought you knew who I was.”

  Kelly cried harder. Mart hugged her. “Kelly, are you okay?”

  Her tears turned to laughter, and she nodded, sniffling. “Yeah, once I get this foot out of my mouth, I’ll be fine.”

  “Would you please tell me what’s wrong?”

  “I’m an idiot, that’s what’s wrong.”

  He hugged her to him, tightly. “No, you’re not. What happened?”

  “I thought…never mind. It doesn’t matter what I thought.”

  “Yes, it does.”

  She looked at Carole. “I’m sorry.”

  “For what?”

  “The revenge fantasies I had on the way over here.”

  Carole laughed. “Honey, if I called home and some strange woman answered my phone and said Bob was in the shower, I’d want to rip her head off, too.”

  That sent Kelly into another round of tearful laughter.

  Mart gave up trying to talk to her. He held Kelly until she recovered and sat up.

  “I’m okay.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah. I think so.” Kelly grabbed a paper towel and blew her nose. “I freaked out. I’m sorry.”

  “Kelly, I’m sorry,” Mart apologized. “I didn’t realize—”

  She held up a hand. “Mart, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions. It’s just too many years of bullshit.” She met his gaze. “Are you sure you want to date a crazy woman?”

  “I think it’s sweet.” He smiled. “In a creepy, boiled bunny kind of way.”

  “I was in the area and wanted to surprise you. Surprise!”

  Carole laughed. “I’ll finish my dusting and get out of your way.”

  Bob exited through the garage, leaving them alone in the kitchen. Kelly looked at the floor and took a deep breath. “I am such an idiot.”

  “Stop that.” The harshness of Mart’s voice startled her. “Kelly, quit putting yourself down. It’s okay, it was an honest mistake.” His face softened. “I’m sorry I scared you.”

  “Is there anyone else who might answer your phone I should know about?”

  “Carole and Bob have worked for me for at least ten years. Every week. If it wasn’t for them, I’d live in a pigpen.”

  “You got that right,” Carole hollered from the living room.

  “Quiet, you,” he shouted back, laughing. He turned to Kelly, pulling her to him. “I love you. There’s no one else in my life but you. I’ll do whatever it takes to earn your trust.”

  Mart led her
to his bedroom and closed the door. He transferred from his chair to sit with her on the bed.

  “Come here, beautiful,” he said, pulling her into his arms. “You’re the only woman I want.” He kissed her, and she melted against him.

  They came up for air a few minutes later. “I’m sorry I didn’t trust you.”

  “It’s okay. You went through hell—those fears don’t disappear overnight.”

  They laid on the bed, his arms around her. Kelly didn’t want to move, wanted to spend her life in that moment with him. “I should have known better.”

  “I’m glad you came over. I can only imagine what would have happened if you hadn’t.”

  Kelly groaned and rolled onto her back, covered her face with her hands. She knew exactly what would have happened—she would have ignored him, deleted his voicemails unplayed, forbid the boys to talk to him, totally cut him out of her life. “I don’t want to think about that.”

  “Kelly, please don’t shut me out. If you get mad at me, have it out with me. I’d rather go through a thousand false alarms than not have a chance to show you how much I love you.” He kissed her, and she rolled over on top of him.

  “I wish we had more time.”

  “That makes two of us.”

  “What were you doing in the shower?”

  “I got hung up in a conference call this morning, couldn’t get to my workout until a little while ago. What are you doing up here?”

  “I had to run some errands, hit the post office, get some printer cartridges. I was already up here, figured I’d come all the way over.” She saw the look on his face and laughed. “Go ahead, say it.”

  He kissed her. “I’d rather do it, but—” he looked at his watch, “the boys will be home too soon to really do you justice. And I think I owe you after that scare.”

  “No, I owe you. Dinner?”

  He smiled. “Six o’clock. My treat.”

  It stunned her she could go from insanely happy to insane and back again in such a short span of time. Zero to psycho bitch in three-point-two flat. Must be a record.

  Must be love. “Why do you want to be in my life? I’m obviously crazy.”

  He reached up and brushed the hair out of her eyes. “Because I’m crazy about you.”

  * * * *

  Mart picked them up a little after six. The boys chose a local pizza parlor with a game room. After dinner, Mart gave the boys ten dollars for the change machine and told them to have fun. Denny snatched the bill from his hands and raced away with Paulie close behind.

  They watched the boys horsing around. Mart leaned close. “What are you doing this weekend?”

  She shrugged. “Same ole same ole. Why?”

  “Are the boys going to their dad’s?”

  She shook her head. “He canceled. Again.”

  “Oh.” Mart watched them.

  She realized there was something more. “What?”

  “I was hoping we could have another night together. Alone.”

  Her heart flew as heat built between her legs and spread through her body.

  So this was desire.

  “I could ask my mom to take them,” she whispered.

  “It’s not that I don’t want to spend time with them.”

  She leaned over and kissed him. “I know what you mean. Adults need playtime, too.”

  “It’s scary you can read my mind like that.”

  “Hey, you’re the one turning me into a sex fiend.”

  He laughed. “I’ve created a monster?”

  “It’s just I never knew it could be so good.”

  “If it’s not good, we’re not doing it right.”

  “Too bad my ex never got that memo.”

  “I’m glad he didn’t. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be sitting here right now.”

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Kelly called her mom the next morning. “Would you mind if the boys spent Friday and Saturday at your house?”

  “Nights?”

  “Yeah.”

  Kelly closed her eyes, hoping the question wouldn’t come, but it did. “Why?”

  “Does it matter?”

  There was a pause. “Are you seeing Martin?”

  “Not a topic for discussion.”

  “But you won’t be home.”

  “Mom—”

  “Relax, honey. Yes, you’re an adult. No, I’m not judging. When’s the wedding?”

  “Mom!”

  “The boys love him, and he is a very nice man.”

  Kelly tried counting backwards from ten. Nope, didn’t work. “Mom, my love life is no one’s business but mine.”

  “All right, fine. Yes, I’ll take the boys. If you’re not going to be home, at least give me some numbers where I can reach you.”

  Kelly hesitated to answer. Sharon filled the silence. “You’ll be with Martin, won’t you?” Kelly could hear her grin.

  “Yes, all right. Happy?”

  “Have fun.”

  * * * *

  With her arms full of groceries, Kelly didn’t bother knocking.

  “I’m here,” she called out.

  Mart’s voice came from the hall. “Be out in a minute.”

  She dumped everything onto the counter and looked down the hall. She heard a metallic, clanging noise from the one open door. She found him exercising, stretched on his back and strapped to the home gym bench, his muscles standing out in his chest and arms as he worked against the weights.

  “Mmm, nice.” He wore a pair of clingy, cotton shorts, and nothing else.

  He grinned. “Like what you see?”

  “I’d like it more if I saw more,” she teased. She sat in his wheelchair and ran her hand up his leg. She didn’t see them very often. He usually wore jeans or pants. His legs were thin, barely muscled, an afterthought in stark contrast to the rest of his body. As she reached the inside of his thigh, he jumped and smiled.

  “You felt that?”

  He nodded. “I have patchy sensation in various places.”

  “Oooh, gives me something to look forward to.”

  “What’s that?”

  She leaned over. He gasped as she ran her tongue over the spot on his thigh. “Finding every little nook and cranny I can kiss you.”

  “This isn’t helping me finish my workout.”

  She brushed her hand against the front of his shorts, which no longer laid flat. “At least I have your interest.”

  “You always have that, Kel.” He crooked his finger at her, and she leaned in for a long, lingering kiss. “I’ll be about ten minutes.”

  “Don’t wear yourself out.”

  “Just getting warmed up.”

  She goosed him between the legs, and he grinned. “Don’t keep me waiting too long, big boy.”

  Kelly brought in the rest of the groceries and her overnight bag. She found a skillet and was browning the chicken strips when Mart wheeled into the kitchen, still shirtless. He put his arms around her waist and ran them up under her shirt to her breasts, pulling her against him.

  “Whoa, tiger, hot stuff on the stove.”

  “Hot stuff right here.” He lifted her shirt and kissed her back.

  “Don’t make me swat you.”

  “How do you know I wouldn’t like it?” She turned and threw her arms around his neck, careful not to hit him with the spatula.

  “I can think of a lot of things I bet you’d like, mister.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Well, girl, are you going to tease me or show me?”

  “After dinner.”

  He let her go. “Do I have time to take a shower?”

  “Why don’t you hold off.”

  “Why?”

  “Maybe I want to take one with you.” She winked.

  “It’s times like this I wish I had a hot tub.”

  He put on some music, helped with the salad and side dishes. They spent most of dinner flirting. When they finished, he took her dishes and put them in the sink.r />
  “Leave them. We’ll do them later.” He led her to the bedroom, crooked his finger at her, and patted his lap. She sat, and he ran his hands under her shirt, kissing her, her arms around his shoulders.

  “You don’t know what you do to me,” he whispered as he nuzzled her ear.

  Her hand slipped inside his shorts. “I have an idea.”

  After their shower, they ended up in bed. It was after ten when they curled up together, spent.

  He kissed her shoulder, wrapped his arms around her. “I love you so much, Kelly, you have no idea.”

  Hearing him say those words made her lightheaded in a good way. “I love you, too.” She did. Despite her fears the other shoe would drop, she loved him.

  Part of that fueled her fear, that she loved him so deeply so soon.

  As if reading her thoughts, he said, “As long as it takes. I mean it. As long as it takes for me to earn your trust, whatever you want me to do, I’ll do it. Anything.”

  She rolled over to face him. “Just love me.”

  He did.

  The next morning, he wasn’t in bed when she awoke, but she smelled coffee.

  If Mart wasn’t the perfect man, he was damn close.

  Stretching, Kelly went into the bathroom. One of his button-up work shirts hung on the doorknob. She slipped it on. It was large on her, fell mid-thigh. She left it unbuttoned and strolled into the kitchen wearing it and nothing else.

  Mart was at the stove cooking scrambled eggs. He smiled when he saw her.

  “Good morning, beautiful.” He moved the skillet off the burner and reached for Kelly, kissing her stomach, pulling her into his lap. “God, you’re a wonderful sight.”

  She put her arms around him. “Like what you see?”

  He nuzzled her neck. “You better believe it.”

  “Hope you don’t mind I borrowed your shirt.”

  “If you want to walk around all weekend dressed like that, no complaints from me.”

  “I bet.”

  He patted her thigh. “Let me finish breakfast.” She reluctantly stood after one more kiss.

  “Can I help?” She reached over to the back of the stove and took a piece of cooked bacon off a plate.

  “I’ve got it.”

  She poured coffee and sat at the table, watched him cook. Hopefully Denny could learn more than a few life skills from him.

  Okay, that’s putting the cart before the horse. Right now they had nothing more than a steamy romance. Who said anything about marriage?