JACK'S CHRISTMAS MISSION Page 6

  Oh, dear! Poor choice of words. Charm the pants off her indeed. Why had that phrase come to mind so readily? she wondered. The sexual implication was undeniable. Okay, so Jack Parker was sexy, and she wasn't totally immune to his sex appeal or his good-ole-boy charm. No big deal. She was human, wasn't she? She had urges just like other women did. But having urges and acting on them were two different things entirely.

  Yawning, she checked the time on the lit digital clock on the bedside table. Since she only had to review the edited Christmas shows at work tomorrow, she only had to work half a day. Then she'd be off for a long, four-day Thanksgiving weekend. She wondered if Jack had family who would miss him Thanksgiving day. She and Hetty had planned a quiet meal at home for themselves and Wendy after which they would get out the Christmas decorations and start preparing for Wendy's favorite season. Maybe Jack could help them bring the tree and other stuff down from the attic. This year, instead of Hetty saying it would be nice to have a big, strong man to lift and carry things she'd be pointing out to Peggy Jo how handy it was to have a man around the house. And not just any man—Jack Parker. A real Texas cowboy, who made Peggy Jo feel things she didn't want to feel. Made her think about things she didn't want to think about—not now or ever again. As Peggy Jo drifted off to sleep, Jack Parker was still on her mind.

  She could hear him saying her name, calling her darling as he had called Wendy darling earlier in the evening. He was smiling at her, touching her, pulling her into his strong arms. And she loved being there, safe, secure and comforted.

  He eased her gown off her shoulder, then leaned down and planted a kiss on her warm skin. She shivered as his mouth moved up her neck and to her ear.

  "Let me take care of you, darling. Let me give you what you need."

  "Oh, Jack." She lifted her face to his and all but begged him to kiss her.

  His mouth hovered over hers, tempting her. She sighed as his big hands caressed her, and the moment her lips parted, he took her mouth with his. Her femininity tightened as spirals of desire spread through her body.

  "Oh, Jack … I want you. Please … please…"

  "Please what, darling? Say it. Tell me what you want."

  "I want you to make love to me."

  He ripped the gown from her body and mounted her. Suddenly he was no longer gentle, no longer considerate. She stared up into his face, into his menacing gray eyes. Oh, heaven help her. This wasn't Jack. The man on top of her, frightening her with his cruelty, was Buck Forbes!

  * * *

  Jack came out of the bathroom, his hair still damp from his shower, and removed the pajama bottoms from his suitcase. He always kept pajamas for when he was on a case, though he preferred to sleep in the nude. Most clients frowned on having a naked bodyguard running around the place at night.

  As he pulled on the navy-blue bottoms, he thought he heard a noise. Moans. Groans. As if someone were in terrible pain. He walked out into the hall and realized the sounds were coming from Peggy Jo's room. From her bed. From her lips.

  He rushed into her bedroom. She had thrown off the covers and her gown was twisted around her hips, revealing her legs. She tossed her head back and forth on the pillow her body flinching again and again, as if she were trapped and unable to move. She appeared to be having a nightmare.

  "Don't … don't … don't…" she moaned repeatedly.

  Tears seeped out from under her closed eyelids, cascaded off both sides of her face and onto her pillow.

  Jack sat down on the edge of the bed, clasped her shoulders and shook her gently. "Peggy Jo, wake up."

  She roused slowly, opening her eyes only a fraction "Please, don't hurt me. Don't…"

  He lifted her up and into his arms, stroking her back tenderly. "Shh … hush … it's all right. I'm here. Jack's here. You're safe with me."

  "Jack?" She mumbled his name as she eased her arm around his waist and clung to him.

  "Nobody's going to hurt you while I'm around. You were just having a nightmare."

  She lifted her head from his shoulder and opened her eyes wide. "Jack? It's you, isn't it? It's really you?"

  "Of course it's really me," he replied. "Who did you think it was?"

  She stared at him as if she were uncertain how to answer his question, as if she were almost afraid to answer him And then it hit him. She'd probably been dreaming about her ex-husband. Either him or the unknown stalker.

  "Who were you dreaming about?" he asked.

  She tensed in his arms and tried to withdraw. He wanted to continue holding her but realized the last thing this woman needed right now was for some man—any man—to confine her. So he let her go. But she didn't go far. She simply slipped out of his embrace but stayed close, her hands held in front of her in a protective gesture.

  "My ex-husband," she finally said.

  "Do you have nightmares about him very often?"

  "No. I haven't dreamed about Buck in years."

  "It's probably just all this stalker business. You're confusing the danger and fear you once felt about your ex-husband with your feelings about your stalker."

  She breathed deeply. Jack tried not to glance at her breasts, but he couldn't seem to keep his gaze on her face. Her peaked nipples strained against the cotton flannel material of her gown. Oh, how he'd love to touch her.

  No touching! he reminded himself. She's a client. And she's not paying you to seduce her.

  "I'm sorry if I woke you," she said. "I didn't scream, did I? I didn't wake Hetty or Wendy?"

  "You weren't screaming. Just sort of groaning. You sounded like you were in pain."

  "I learned not to scream when Buck hurt me. If I screamed, he'd just hit me harder, just hurt me more." She turned from Jack, as if she suddenly couldn't bear to look at him because he was a man. "I'm all right now," she said. "You can go back to bed."

  His hand hovered over her shoulder, but he didn't touch her. But he wanted to—damn, how he wanted to! He'd never wanted to hold and comfort a woman more than he did Peggy Jo right this minute. But if he tried to take her into his arms again, she would probably protest. And if he made too big a deal of what had happened tonight, come morning she would resent the fact that he'd seen her at a weak moment. Even though he'd just met her today, he already knew one thing about Peggy Jo Riley—she prided herself on being strong and in control. So it had to be killing her that, even though she was self-reliant and independent, she now had to depend on not only the police to help her, but a personal bodyguard to protect her.

  Jack rose from the bed. "I'll see you in the morning."

  She nodded and tried her best to smile. The effort failed miserably. She slid down in the bed and rested her head on the pillow. Without thinking, Jack reached down and pulled the covers up to her shoulders.

  "Thanks." Her voice was a mere whisper.

  Before he left the room he picked up the snow globe and wound the music box, then set it back on the nightstand. When he reached the door, he paused and looked back at her.

  "If you want me—" he grinned "—just holler. I'm here for you, Peggy Jo."

  * * *

  Chapter 5

  « ^ »

  When Peggy Jo made her way downstairs, still groggy from lack of sleep, she heard the sound of Wendy's laughter. It was the sweetest sound on earth. No matter what was wrong in her life, just hearing her daughter's happy giggles banished the blues, at least for a little while. The smell of fresh coffee and Hetty's banana-nut muffins induced her to hurry into the kitchen. There sat Jack Parker in faded jeans, navy-blue sweater and black boots. Simply having him around changed the mood of the entire household. For one thing he took up space. He was a fairly big man. And he made noise. Male noise. Heavy footsteps. Rumbling laughter. A baritone voice. And there was that aura of rugged strength and testosterone-powered energy that surrounded him and seemed to touch everything within a fifty-foot radius. By the way Wendy and Hetty were acting, it was plain to see that Jack had won them over completely. And in less than twenty-four
hours!

  "Morning, Miss Peggy Jo." Jack rose from his chair, displaying gentlemanly good manners. "I hope you slept well."

  "Do I look as if I slept well?" Oh, that's it, Peggy Jo, bite the man's head off without any provocation at all. She sighed. She knew he was trying to be polite and was just making conversation. "Sorry. No, I didn't sleep well, but I'm okay."

  "I'll pour you some coffee," Hetty said. "Sit down."

  She nodded, then leaned over to kiss Wendy on the forehead. "Good morning, sweetpea. Ready for the last day of school before your big four-day weekend?"

  "Sure am." Wendy chomped another bite of muffin, chewed a couple of times and then spoke with her mouth full. "Are we going to—"

  "Finish eating first," Peggy Jo said. "Then talk."

  After swallowing, Wendy washed her food down with a big swig of milk. "Are we going to decorate the house this weekend? Hetty said that it's sure going to be nice having Jack around to bring the boxes down from the attic and to reach things on the top of the tree and—"

  Peggy Jo gave Hetty a scolding glare. "Wendy, I'm sure Mr. Parker—" and she strongly stressed the formal use of his name "—will be of help, but it may not be much fun for him. He'd probably rather be with his family tomorrow for Thanksgiving than work." She pulled out a chair and sat.

  "Well, ma'am, as a matter of fact, I'm looking forward to sharing Thanksgiving with three gorgeous gals." Jack winked at Wendy. "Besides, I haven't got much family to speak of, just a few cousins back in Texas."

  "It would seem Jack is like us, pretty much alone in this world," Hetty said, then placed a cup of hot coffee in front of Peggy Jo. All smiles, she turned to Jack. "Like you, all I've got in the way of kinfolk are some cousins spread out hither and yon. And Peggy Jo's the same, if you don't count her stepmother and stepbrother. And we don't."

  "No, we don't." Peggy Jo certainly didn't consider her father's widow and stepson to be family. They still lived in her father's house and enjoyed a comfortable lifestyle, thanks to her father's hefty life insurance policy. She didn't hate Agnes or Derek anymore, but she was glad they were no longer a part of her life. Of course, there were times when she wished her father was still alive, times when she longed for the chance to make things right with him.

  She lifted the cup to her lips and sipped the aromatic brew. Hetty always ground the coffee beans fresh and served only gourmet blends.

  "Mommy says that she and Hetty and I are a family," Wendy told Jack proudly. "Hetty's the grandmother and Mommy is the mother and I'm the little girl. Since you don't have anybody else either, would you like to be the daddy in our family?"

  Peggy Jo choked on her coffee, the liquid nearly spewing from her mouth. Jack picked up his napkin, reached over to pat Peggy Jo's back and then wiped her mouth.

  "Are you all right?" he asked.

  "Wendy Sue Riley!" Peggy Jo shouted, once she gained her composure. She could not believe that her child had asked this man, who was little more than a stranger, if he wanted to be her father.

  "What did I say wrong?" Tears welled up in Wendy's big blue eyes.

  Jack scooted his chair closer to Wendy's, then clasped her little chin between his thumb and forefinger. "Darling, you didn't say anything wrong. It's just that becoming someone's daddy isn't as simple as your asking me and me saying yes. It's a rather complicated matter."

  "What's a comp-clated matter?" Wendy sniffed.

  Peggy Jo opened her mouth to speak, but before she got a word out, Jack continued, "It's something that isn't easy. You see, before somebody could become your daddy, your mommy would have to marry him."

  "Oh. Okay." Wendy looked directly at her mother. "Could we marry Jack?"

  "No, we most certainly could not!" Peggy Jo wished the earth would open up and swallow her. And the sooner the better. When she saw the disappointed look on her daughter's face, she felt just awful. Then when Hetty cleared her throat, Peggy Jo glanced at her and saw that I-told-you-so look on her face. She reached over and grasped one of Wendy's small hands. "Don't you remember my telling you that Mr. Parker is an employee. Mommy hired him to work for her. He's not my boyfriend. And he isn't going to be your daddy."

  Wendy looked puzzled. "But you hired Hetty to work for you and she's my grandmother. You said so. I don't see why—"

  "If you're through with breakfast, young lady, come with me to get your coat and book bag," Hetty said, then glanced at Peggy Jo. "I'll drive her to school this morning since you don't have to be at the studio until ten."

  Hetty ushered Wendy out of the kitchen, leaving Peggy Jo to face a grinning-like-a-possum Jack Parker. "I can assure you that it's not a laughing matter. You may think it's amusing to have my daughter ask you to be her father, but I can assure you that I do not find it the least bit amusing."

  "Darling, lighten up. Nobody but Wendy took what she said seriously."

  "Don't call me darling. I find the use of that word much too familiar."

  "Excuse me, Miss Peggy Jo, ma'am. I didn't mean any offense. It's simply a term I use for ladies I like."

  Stretching, Jack leaned back in the chair, crossed his arms behind his head and cupped the back of his head with his hands. Peggy Jo tried not to look at his broad chest, at his wide shoulders and big arms, but despite her resolve not to look at him, her gaze settled on his body, scanning him from head to toe.

  Jack chuckled. Peggy Jo dodged his head-on gaze.

  "Recently Wendy has been talking quite a lot about why she's the only child in her class at the Chattanooga Christian School who doesn't have a father." Peggy Jo removed a muffin from the tray, laid it on her plate, picked up a knife and sliced the muffin in four pieces.

  "I'd say it's perfectly natural. She wants what all the other kids have." Jack eyed Peggy Jo in a manner similar to the way she'd raked her gaze over him. "I'd think it would be a simple matter for you to solve. Find yourself a man and get married."

  "Been there. Done that. Got the scars to prove it," Peggy Jo said flippantly. She found that distancing herself emotionally from her nightmare marriage helped her tremendously. She preached to other women, through her books, her TV show and her personal appearances, that they could not only escape from their abusers but that they could go on to live normal, happy lives.

  "You're a smart woman. You've got to know that all men aren't like Buck Forbes."

  "Of course I know that. It's just that I'm not willing to risk screwing up again. I'm perfectly happy with my life exactly the way it is."

  "Without a man?"

  "Yes, without a man." Peggy Jo popped a quarter of a muffin into her mouth.

  "Pity," Jack said. "And such a waste. A woman like you should have a man in her life."

  Swallowing hard, she directed her gaze at him. "What about you? You aren't married. Don't you want a wife and kids? Don't you need a woman in your life?"

  Jack slapped his knee and guffawed loudly. "Touché, Miss Peggy Jo. Touché. Nope, I don't want a wife, but that doesn't mean I don't enjoy having a woman in my life."

  She felt as if a heavy weight had dropped on her chest. Of course a guy like Jack Parker would have a woman. Probably more than one. "Then there's someone special in your life?" What do you care? she asked herself. Damn it, this man's personal life is none of your concern.

  "Not at the moment. But there have been several special ladies, and I'm sure there will be a few more in my future."

  "Mmm-hmm." Just as she had figured. Jack was a ladies' man. "You know why I'm opposed to marriage, so want to tell me why you are?"

  "No reason," he said. "I just don't think marriage is for me. I like being footloose and fancy-free."

  Peggy Jo suspected there was a more complicated reason, one he simply didn't want to discuss. Maybe there was something in his past that was too painful for him to talk about to anyone. Men had a way of denying their true feelings, of hiding behind some outdated macho bravado. Nobody could hurt a tough guy, and she suspected that Jack thought of himself that way.

&nbs
p; "Do me a favor, will you?" She popped another muffin quarter into her mouth, then lifted her cup to her lips.

  "Anything I can do for you, I will. That's my job."

  She nodded, swallowed and licked a crumb from the corner of her mouth. When she did, she involuntarily looked at Jack and caught him staring at her mouth. An odd sensation of sexual arousal shot through her. There was something very carnal about the way he was looking at her mouth, as if he wanted to taste her lips.

  This has to stop! she warned herself. She was letting her ridiculous attraction to Jack get way out of hand. Okay, so he was good looking and funny and charming and nice and Wendy adored him. She'd just met the guy yesterday. He could be a total fraud for all she knew. And even if he wasn't, she would be a fool to fall for the big lug.

  "Be nice to Wendy, but please, don't encourage her affections," Peggy Jo said. "Don't do anything special to make her care about you. If she becomes too attached to you while you're working for me, it'll break her heart when you leave."

  Jack nodded. A strange look crossed his face. "Sure. I understand. The last thing I'd ever want to do is break anybody's heart. I'm a love-'em-and-leave-'em sort of guy, but I always try to leave them smiling."

  Heat suffused her body. She couldn't control her reaction to his comment. She would just bet he left them smiling. An unbidden thought came to mind—what would it be like to be Jack Parker's woman, even for just a little while?

  * * *

  Jack pulled the car into Peggy Jo's reserved space at the WLOK studio's parking lot. A crowd of at least two dozen women waited at the front door, all chanting, "We love Peggy Jo." A guy with a video camera stood off to the side taping the cheering throng.

  "Wonder what that's all about?" Jack asked. "Or is this something you're used to on a daily basis?"

  She shook her head. "I can't imagine what's going on. We don't usually have a crowd unless I'm taping a show. I have no idea what this is about, but that's Watson Stutts with the video cam. He's one of WLOK's News Scene cameramen. He only tapes things for airing on the news segments."