what happened yesterday?'
'Absolutely.' Caitlan understood. The memory was still fresh and raw. Laura needed her own time to heal. 'But when and if you do want to talk about it, I'd be happy to listen.'
Laura nodded, sniffling.
Caitlan gave her the plate of food, attempting to keep Laura's mind occupied with other things. 'How would you like me to French braid your hair before we leave?'
Laura's eyes widened. 'You know how?'
'Yep.'
Laura grinned. 'That'll be so cool!'
Pleased that her tactic had worked, Caitlan motioned for her to sit down on the bed while she retrieved a comb and an elastic band from the dresser. Coming up behind Laura, Caitlan sectioned off her hair and began the braiding and layering process.
'Tell me what to expect when we get to your Aunt Debbie's today,' Caitlan said, purposely making her request sound more like interest, rather than a diversion.
For the next fifteen minutes, while Laura ate her snack and entertained Caitlan with tales of many Sunday afternoons past, Caitlan finished the French braid and secured the end with the elastic band.
Caitlan was so in tune with J.T., she felt his presence before she actually saw or heard him. Heat tingled along her nerve endings and a light flutter tickled her belly. While Laura chatted on, Caitlan glanced surreptitiously toward the doorway, already knowing what she would find.
Her gaze collided with J.T.'s. This was the first time she'd seen him since he'd walked out on her in the kitchen the night before and she had to admit he looked much better, the tension and frustration seemingly gone for the time being. He wasn't wearing his hat, and she decided she preferred him without it.
Darker threads of gold warmed his green eyes, and the corner of his mouth curved in a smile so sexy and intimate, Caitlan's body flushed with a startling excitement that robbed her of breath. Before she could find her voice to acknowledge him, his gaze drifted over the blue chambray shirt Debbie had loaned her, and down the length of her jeans-clad legs to her beige leather boots. When he looked back up approval and something much more primitive flickered in the depths of his eyes.
Casually, he strode into the room, as if he hadn't just put her body in a state of nuclear meltdown. 'You girls ready to go?'
Laura's head whipped around to J.T., and she smiled up at him. 'Oh, hi, Dad. Do you like my hair?' she asked, turning her head so he could check out Caitlan's handiwork.
'Umm. I love it,' he commented, playfully tugging the tail of the braid.
Casting her father a tolerant look, Laura smoothed her hand over the intricate weaving 'I want to get a bow for the end of my braid. Wait here, Caitlan,' she said, then rushed out of the room. Seconds later the sound of drawers being open and closed echoed from the bathroom.
The smile on J.T.'s lips belied the accusatory arch of his brow. 'What did you do to my daughter? I've been in here three times this morning trying to cheer her up, and each time I could barely coax a smile out of her.'
Caitlan gave him an upswept look injected with teasing charm. 'It's a woman thing.'
'Well, whatever it is, I like it.' He grew serious, his gaze warming with gratitude. 'Sometimes I don't know the right things to say or do to make it better for Laura.'
Caitlan heard the hint of insecurity in his voice. 'I don't think she's all better, J.T., but at least the day at Debbie's will give her a temporary diversion from what happened.'
'Yeah,' he agreed, just as Laura bounded back into the room and presented Caitlan with a pretty pink bow for her to clip on the end of her braid. Once that had been accomplished J.T. locked up the house and escorted them to his Ford Ranger.
He opened the passenger door for them and motioned toward the bench seat. 'Slide on in.'
'Go ahead, Caitlan,' Laura said, smiling innocently. 'I like to sit by the window.'
What difference did that make when windows encased all four sides of the truck? The difference, Caitlan presumed, was that she'd be sitting next to J.T.-very close to him, by the looks of the small cab. The mischievous sparkle in Laura's eyes confirmed the girl's intent.
'I promise I won't bite,' J.T. murmured from behind Caitlan, his low voice sliding over her like heated honey. 'At least not much.'
A shiver rippled down Caitlan's spine, settling low in her belly. Mentally shaking off her foolishness-she was only going to sit next to him, for heaven's sake!-she climbed into the truck and settled herself in the middle-and realized what a compromising situation Laura had actually put her in.
The small cab had been built to seat two comfortably, three if the middle person put one leg on either side of the stick shift, which Caitlan did, trying her best to keep her legs modestly together. She refused to let this situation affect her!
Her resolve liquified when J.T. slid into the driver's side next to her. Her knee bumped his and the hard length of his thigh pressed against hers, the heat so intense Caitlan scooted subtly closer to Laura, giving her and J.T. an inch reprieve that lasted all of five seconds, when his hand brushed her hip-deliberately?-as he buckled his seat belt. A slow kind of fever found its way to the tips of her breasts, tightening her nipples.
The torture wasn't over yet. J.T. reached between her legs to grab the stick shift, his forearm draping over her thigh. He attempted to put the stick into reverse but came up against her knee before he could shove the gear into the appointed slot.
Her breath caught, not so much from any pain he might have inflicted, but from the way his thumb caressed the inside of her knee, a slow circular pressure that quickened her pulse.
'Sorry,' he murmured, his tone more a husky purr than contrite. 'You're gonna have to spread your legs a little more.'
Heat scored Caitlan's cheeks, and when she risked a glance at him she saw the silent laughter in his eyes. While she squirmed, he found her discomfort and embarrassment amusing, the cad! Doing as he requested, she widened her legs, giving him more access to shift freely, but leaving herself feeling too self-conscious, too aware of hands and fingers…
'Much better,' he said, grinning wickedly.
The man might not bite, Caitlan thought, but the heat wave that killer smile radiated proved just as dangerous.
Laura, grinning and singing along to a tune on the radio, looked out the window, oblivious to the charged energy between the adults.
Thankfully, the drive to Kirk and Debbie's neighboring house took less than five minutes, but for every one of those three hundred seconds she concentrated on the passing scenery and not the musky, masculine smell of him, the way denim stretched taut over his muscular thighs, or the way he'd cuffed back his shirtsleeves, exposing strong, tanned forearms dusted with dark hair.
Caitlan grit her teeth to stop the onslaught. Who was she trying to fool? The man was too masculine, too sexy, too…everything, for her not to notice.
J.T. wheeled into his sister's driveway and brought the truck to a stop next to a barn. He pulled the emergency brake, and before he could shut off the engine and unclasp his seat belt, Caitlan had scrambled out of the cab behind Laura.
Shutting the truck door, Caitlan glanced up and froze. Laura skipped up the walkway, calling for Caitlan and J.T. to hurry, but Caitlan barely heard her past the sudden roar in her ears. A peculiar sensation cloaked her, one she couldn't clearly define or pinpoint. This house, this place, seemed so familiar, like she'd been here before.
Searching her memory for any recollection, Caitlan scanned the area. The house looked recently painted, a beige color with dark brown trim, and the front yard was well manicured. Planters of blooming flowers bordered the porch. To the side of the house three horses grazed in a small fenced-in pasture. Fuzzy, wispy images teased her mind, and she concentrated to bring them into focus.
'Earth to Caitlan.' J.T. waved a hand in front of her face.
J.T.'s voice snapped Caitlan back into the present before the vision had a chance to focus. Frowning, she looked up at him, wishing she could shake the images rushing through her mind.
J.T. snapped his fingers in front of her. 'Hey, Caitlan. Are you with me?'
'I'm here,' she said, then continued cautiously, 'I know this is going to sound weird, but I feel like I've been
