"You have to keep Darla," Daniel insisted. "She needs you."
Tasha was suddenly close to tears. Maybe it was all the changes over the last few months. The loneliness and despair. Followed by the warmth and cuddliness of the puppies. Then the Mavericks with their laughter and antics.
And most of all, Daniel, bringing such unexpected joy and desire into her life.
It was almost as if she'd finally come home.
Chapter Eleven
The men dropped off Tasha and the puppies at her place, carrying in the new crate, the dog toys, and all the other gear they'd bought. Once inside, they marveled at what she'd accomplished on her own, and Daniel loved seeing her bask in the glow of their compliments. Unfortunately, she turned down their offer to join them at his place for drinks and a barbecue dinner, insisting they'd come to have a guys' weekend and she'd only cramp their style.
"I still can't believe Tasha did all of that by herself," Will said as the five of them sat on the back deck drinking beer. "And from watching your DIY videos, no less." His grin took away any heat Daniel might have otherwise felt from the dig.
"But that roof--it's still a total mess." Sebastian shook his head. "I'm surprised she was willing to buy a place like that."
"We can't let her do it alone." Matt clearly couldn't believe Daniel wasn't fixing her roof right this minute.
"She's extremely independent," Daniel said. "The only reason she's accepted my help at all so far is because of the puppies." He would have done so much more for her if he didn't believe his actions would chase her off.
"She can't refuse all of us," Will insisted.
"But why the need to be so self-sufficient?" Evan mused. "Seems to me that she doesn't want anyone getting too close. And I can't stop wondering about the reasons."
Sebastian immediately overrode him. "The why of it doesn't matter. I've only known her a day and I'm already certain she's a great person. Everyone has their issues, their demons, and we all deal with them in our own ways. The five of us know that better than anyone."
"We sure as hell do," Will agreed. "But regardless of whether she's dealing with demons or not, one thing is certain--it's going to take more than some videos and determination to fix that roof anytime soon." He smiled broadly. "Good thing she's got a handy group of guys hanging out nearby."
"We could have it done by the end of the weekend." Matt agreed.
They weren't saying anything Daniel hadn't already thought. But they didn't know Tasha like he did. "You guys really aren't getting just how badly she wants to take care of herself."
"And you really aren't getting just how badly we want to help her," Will said.
"Besides," Sebastian added, "Mom would read you the riot act for not helping someone in dire need."
"Mom understands independence."
"She sure does." Will whipped out his phone and pushed speed dial. "But that won't stop her from agreeing that we should put a new roof on Tasha's cabin tomorrow."
Even as Will held the phone to his ear, Daniel had the glimmer of a plan. The guys might be right. Tasha wouldn't feel like it was him pressuring her if they all offered to help. And hopefully, she wouldn't feel there were strings attached either. If you couldn't accomplish a task one way, he'd always thought, you found another. And this way just might work.
"Mom, what are you up to tonight?" Will winced at her response. "You're watching John Wick: Chapter 2? That is a seriously violent movie." He rolled his eyes at her retort. "I'll let you get back to the mayhem in a few minutes, but right this second, Daniel needs your encouragement to help his neighbor fix her leaky roof." He nodded. "Yes, we've all met her and she's great." Grinning at Daniel, he added, "Really great." He laughed at something Susan said. "I'm handing the phone over right now. Love you. Give a big hug to Dad." Then he shoved the phone at Daniel while the others snickered.
"He's in for it now," Sebastian said in a gleeful tone.
"I've been waiting for an update on your neighbor," Daniel's mother said when he took the phone, scowling at the others. "Good thing Will decided to call."
Daniel would have called earlier, but he'd still been chewing on her remark about bumpy relationships--and the ring of personal experience in her words. Standing, he wandered back into the house, away from the others.
"Were you ever serious with anyone before Dad?"
"No. Your father is the only man I've ever loved."
So much for hoping she'd been talking about someone else. He waited for her to question why he was asking, but she didn't. It was, honestly, kind of weird how silent she'd gone.
"So," he said into the empty space, "it's been a busy couple of days up here in the mountains." He told his mother about Tasha finding Darla, Spanky, and Froggy in the cave, how together they'd hand-fed them every few hours through the first day and night, then outfitted them with a new crate and chew toys galore.
"Tasha sounds so sweet and caring."
"She is, Mom. Fixing up her cabin, helping the puppies, the work she used to do as a graphic designer--all of those things light her up and make her happy."
"She sounds amazing, Daniel. The boys seem to love her. She's wonderful with puppies. And she loves your videos. If you ask me, you should snap her up right now. And of course you and the boys should fix her roof."
Despite his mom's edict, he ran a hand through his hair, thinking of his earlier concerns. Questions that had been echoed by Evan, although in a much harsher form. "I agree, we should definitely help with her roof. We'll start tomorrow, even if we have to think on our feet to convince her." He'd made up his mind on that before he even took the phone from Will. "But what bothers me is that I still haven't figured out what drove her to give up her career and come here to live in a run-down dump in the woods. And why she's so intent on going it alone."
"I'm sure she has her reasons for wanting to be left alone and to keep herself closed off to everyone," his mother said, echoing Sebastian's thoughts. "Very good reasons, I'm guessing."
Though his mother was talking about Tasha, Daniel couldn't help but wonder if she was also referring to herself--as if she'd once been in a similar sticky position where she'd thought she needed to hide out, away from everyone she cared about and who cared about her.
It was that weird note of personal experience in her tone that made him antsy.
"But maybe," his mother continued, "what she really needs is the right person to come along and show her that it's safe to open herself back up. Someone who isn't going to run when she gets scared and tries to push him away, even if it's the last thing she really wants to do." She paused for a moment. "Take it from me, I know all about it."
Daniel's heart pounded loudly, pulsing in his ears. Was she going to divulge something about her relationship with his father that he'd never known?
"How do you know?" The words croaked from his throat.
"Will was so tough. Matt was so desperate to show he didn't need us. Sebastian wanted to hide his artistic talent for fear of ridicule. And Evan couldn't admit how badly he needed a mother. None of my boys were anywhere near ready to open up when they first came to live with us. Your father and I had to be so persistent, even if it sometimes felt like our love was driving them away, rather than bringing them closer."
But what about Dad? Did something happen between the two of you?
Though the questions were on the tip of his tongue, they never made it all the way out. Not only because he was nervous about hearing her response, but also because something told him his mother wasn't ready to completely confide in him.
And if there was anything to confide, was it his business to dredge it up all these years later? Especially if it changed everything he'd believed to be true for so long...
"What if I think I'm helping," he finally said, "but really I'm only mucking things up more for her?"
"You might make things worse." His mom was always cheerful, but never sugarcoated. "Or maybe that's just the excuse you're giving yourself, the worry yo
u're clinging to, so that you don't have to risk putting your heart out there for her."
He'd taken risks in a dozen different ways--he'd put his money on the line, gambling with his patents, hoping he could actually sell the products, risking the whole operation by going global, overextending his resources. Even the DIY show had been a gamble. He thought of the moment Tasha had paused the video on that first day, leaving his mouth gaping. That was all people might have seen, just a gaping mouth. It had been wild speculation.
But the truth was that in all his risk-taking, his heart had never been up for grabs.
"What's really holding you back, Daniel?"
He wanted to ask her the same thing. Instead, he answered the question about Tasha. "I'm just wary because she's wary. I can't help feeling she's hiding something."
"Maybe she is. When you're young, you don't always make the right decisions. You get yourself all mixed up. You're not even sure what's right or wrong anymore. You do what your family thinks you should do."
"Your family?" He stressed that one word. His grandparents had been gone by the time he was a toddler. He'd never known them. And oddly, now that he thought about it, his mom never talked about them.
He could hear her breathing, as though she'd been running. Or was panicking about something. "I meant Tasha's family. I'm just being hypothetical. You know what I mean. You just..." She trailed off into nothingness.
But he no longer believed that she was being hypothetical. Or was simply talking about Tasha.
"Mom--"
"I have to go now, Daniel."
"But, Mom--"
"I said I have to go." If he wasn't mistaken, she'd actually snapped at him. His mother, who never snapped, who always had words of wisdom, who always knew exactly what to say. Then she did the weirdest thing of all. "I'll talk to you later." She didn't even say his dad was calling her back to watch the movie. She was simply gone.
Daniel stared at his phone, half expecting the line to still be open, that she was coming right back. But his screen went blank.
This was more than mere bumps. His mother had fumbled and over-explained. Then she'd hung up on him.
Something had happened in his parents' marriage, he was nearly certain.
And he was very much afraid that whatever it was would bring into question all his beliefs about the very foundation of what marriage and love were supposed to be.
Chapter Twelve
Tasha had taken only one sip of her morning coffee when the pounding of work boots pummeled her porch and male voices boomed in the air. She opened the door to five big men with impressive tool belts and was instantly overpowered by their size, their good looks, their innate confidence--as if they owned the world.
Which, among them all, they practically did.
Daniel stood in front like their emissary, too beautiful for words. "We're here to help. Especially with the roof. But anything else you want done too."
Her mouth opened, and the only thing that came out was a stunned, "The five of you came to help me?"
Tears of gratitude pricked at her eyes that these powerful, successful men--four of whom were, for all intents and purposes, strangers--would offer to help rebuild her cabin.
These past months, she'd been so focused on how she could have missed the darkness inside her family that it was hard to wrap her head around such a selfless offer. One she badly needed, considering her cabin truly had been uninhabitable during the recent storm. There was no way she and the puppies could make it through another one.
"Working vacation," Matt said, his smile as wide as his face. His son must be absolutely lovable.
"We all spend too much time at our desks," Sebastian added, "and need a good workout."
"Speak for yourself." Will flexed his biceps. "I get plenty of workout time."
They amazed her with their humor, always ribbing each other. Five big, happy, smiling guys...who surely would abhor her if they knew her story. Especially given that she couldn't accept their help, then immediately shove them out the door again. They'd want to get to know her. Good God, what if they wanted her to meet their wives and girlfriends?
She couldn't do it. As desperate as she was to mix with people again, to talk and laugh, she couldn't allow it.
As if he could read everything written on her face, Daniel said softly, "It's okay, Tasha. We want to do this. It's fun for us. There's no obligation."
She wanted it too--wanted the camaraderie and the conversation and the fun more than she'd ever wanted anything in her life. Well, apart from Daniel's kiss. She wanted that more than her next heartbeat.
But the only right thing to do was turn them down. It wasn't penance otherwise, was it?
"It's really sweet of you all," she said, "but I haven't ordered the materials I need. So there's nothing to be done yet."
Will slapped Daniel on the back. "We've got a home-improvement mogul in our midst, remember?"
Sebastian hooked his thumb over his shoulder. "And a Top Notch store just over the hill in Carson City with a warehouse chock full of anything you could possibly need."
"Even better," Matt put in, "you can get it at cost."
She looked at Daniel, and he spread his hands in a don't-blame-me-that-they're-dying-to-help gesture.
They had her beaten all around. Even Evan, though he hadn't uttered a single cajoling comment, wore his tool belt. They were clearly determined to pitch in. En masse, they would charm the heck out of any person they'd ever met.
But hadn't falling for charming already gotten her into enough trouble? Then again, if she'd known any of the Mavericks before meeting Eric, she surely would have seen right through him. His versions of charming and powerful were paper-thin by comparison.
She was still fighting with herself when one of the puppies started to whine in the crate, whimpering for her to let their hunky new friends inside.
"How is Noah's little Spanky?" Matt's eyes danced.
"He's great. And always hungry."
Will stepped into the action too. "I told Jeremy about his new puppy before he left for camp this morning. He was so happy that Harper didn't even get upset at my highhandedness. Plus, I'm pretty sure she's been secretly hoping for a dog."
How could Tasha resist them? And how could she resist Daniel when he looked at her like that--as though her happiness was directly responsible for his?
At last, she held the door wide and stepped to the side. "Come on in."
Giving her a huge smile, Sebastian retrieved a measuring tape from his voluminous tool belt and got straight to work with Will, Evan, and Matt.
Meanwhile, Daniel surprised her by grabbing her coat, taking her hand, and drawing her outside, his warmth and strength momentarily--and deliciously--engulfing her. The sun sparkled on the lake below them, dazzlingly beautiful, and Daniel had to let her go as the trail narrowed. She missed his touch more than she wanted to admit.
"What are they measuring?" she asked, stopping at a rock outcropping to view her cabin.
"Floors, walls, kitchen. They'll do the roof too. You can use the measurements whenever you're ready. We'll add them to that app I showed you, if you'd like."
"Daniel, I--"
He put his finger to her lips. It drove her crazy when he did that, making every cell in her body tremble for a taste of him.
"I promise I'm not going to steamroll you. I just want to help." He smiled his killer smile. "And my mom ordered us to be gentlemanly and help you out."
"You talked to your mother about me?"
"Of course I did."
She was stunned by this news, but tried not to show it as she said, "So you're doing this because your mother told you to?" She imagined a tiny white-haired lady shaking her rolling pin at her five able-bodied sons. Of course they'd do anything she ordered.
He tucked away a lock of hair that had escaped her ball cap. Her body tingled with awareness at the light touch.
"Well, I'm definitely not doing this because you're having a Bad Hair Day.
" He tapped her cap, and she laughed as she remembered the slogan stitched on this one. "Your hair is beautiful."
"Thank you," she said, "but I swear I wasn't looking for compliments when I put it on."
"I'm not complimenting. I'm just stating a fact." He ran the length of her ponytail slowly through his fingers, and she shivered as though he were touching so much more--her lips, her cheeks, her body. "And I'm doing this because I want to." His voice was as gentle as his touch. "I hate the thought of you being in a house that leaks. You don't even have a working stove or a real bed. But my friends and I have the means and the skills to help. And Sebastian's right--I have a warehouse full of everything you need."
"I'm grateful, I really am." But that's not how she sounded. All because she couldn't tell him that she was scared--or why. She especially couldn't explain why she didn't deserve all the wonderful things he and his friends wanted to do for her.
"Just take one minute." He seduced her with his deep voice, his expressive gaze. "Close your eyes." He lightly touched her lids.
With his voice and scent surrounding her, making her knees so weak she had to reach out and hold on to him with one hand, she had no choice but to do what he said.
"Now tip your head back and imagine."
"Imagine what?" she whispered, though she was already visualizing being in his soft bed, with his big hands on her, his muscled body over hers.
"Your cabin. The way you want it to be."
In her mind's eye, all she could see was her future hot tub. And the two of them in it together. Naked and wet.
"Tell me what you want."
I want you to touch me.
"I see log cabin walls."
"What else do you see?"
You above me. I can taste your naked skin.
"Hardwood floors. With a slate hearth for the wood stove."
"Tell me more," he said, his deep voice as enticing as all the small touches he constantly showered on her.
"There's a counter separating the main room from the kitchen, with barstools, so I don't need a kitchen table."
"That's perfect," he murmured as if he were talking about the feel of her skin against his.
"Maple kitchen cabinets. Maple floors. It's light and open and airy."
"Good." He paused and lowered his voice to an even deeper tone. "Now tell me about the bedroom."