“I’m dating Maggie, Kyle.”
“No you aren’t. You dated her and then you hurt her. You humiliated her and made her feel used. I waited six weeks for you to fix it and you haven’t—” Kyle shrugged “—so too bad for you. Hell, Shane, you didn’t even have the decency to call her and apologize for the way you treated her the last time you saw her.”
“Or the way you acted when you brought Kendra into The Pumphouse,” Matt added.
“You too?” Shane turned to him.
“I happen to really like Maggie. She’s a nice woman, Shane. You made her cry. You didn’t have to see her anymore, but instead of treating her with respect, you toyed with her and then you tossed her away. You didn’t show her any kindness at all.” Matt shrugged.
Edward looked at his sons and shook his head. “Is this true, son? Did you treat her as poorly as it sounds?”
“She knew it was just casual. I like her but she had to push it.”
“How?”
“When we were kissing on her couch, things got a little...heavy. And then she told me she loved it. I don’t need any love, damn it. I just wanted to go out on some dates and have a casual thing. She pushed it and I had to back off, for her sake and my own.”
Kyle’s face hardened with anger. “You dated her, made out with her and ran for the door and never called her again because she said she loved being touched by you? No! How dare she say that! My God, what a man-eater she is! How dare she compliment you! Jeez, now that I know all of the facts, I’ll be sure to run the other way.” The sarcasm in Kyle’s voice hung heavy in the air between them.
“Tell Dad the rest of it. How you’ve paraded other women in front of her and looked right through her like she didn’t even exist. You could have just said you didn’t want to see her anymore. But you set out to make her feel like nothing. I hate that you let Sandra turn you into such a prick.”
“Son, I can’t believe you’d behave in such a way,” Edward said, interrupting before anything physical could erupt between his sons. He frowned at Shane. “In any case, it sounds to me like you’d broken up with Maggie before Kyle expressed an interest in her. I don’t see what the problem is with him dating her.”
“I don’t want him dating her!”
“Why? You say you don’t want to be with her, that you had to back off. You haven’t called her in six weeks and I know you’ve been dating other women in the meantime.”
“Because. Why are you taking his side anyway?”
“Because is not an acceptable reason, Shane. I’m taking Kyle’s side because you have treated the girl shabbily and you yourself said you wanted to back off. I don’t see why you should be bothered if your brother is going to take her out.”
“What if I still want her?”
“What if, what if,” Edward said with an agitated wave of his hands. He leaned forward. “Maggie is not a thing! She’s not a toy you can hold back until you want to play with her again. She’s a person. A person who deserves respect. I surely have raised men who love women but I have not raised men who treat women the way you’ve treated Margaret Wright. Shane, you know better and you should be ashamed. Let her go, son. Why hurt her any worse? As long as Kyle treats her well and respectfully—which he’d better or his mother will have both your heads—why not let it go? You get your freedom and he gets to date a woman he likes.”
Shane leaned back in his chair, defeated. “Fine, Kyle, but if you hurt her I’m going to stomp on your neck,” he growled grouchily.
Kyle’s anger drained away. He wished like hell that Shane could get past what Sandra had done. “I like Maggie an awful lot. She’s relationship material and that’s what I’ve offered her. I intend to honor that promise.”
“Kyle Maurice Chase a monogamous man?” Marc held his hand to his chest in mock disbelief. “Well, this ought to be good. Don’t mess it up because I find Miss Margaret Wright to be enchanting. If you mess it up, she’ll never give me a chance.”
“Not a chance, monkey boy,” Kyle growled. He looked toward Shane. “Are we okay? She was very worried that this would set us against each other. I promised her that we weren’t competitive over women, just pool and baseball.”
Shane sighed. “Yeah, but don’t mess up like I did.”
“Not a chance, I’m way smarter.” Kyle stretched as he winked. Rolling his eyes, Shane continued to glower.
Chapter Five
Maggie hadn’t told Liv or Dee about her date with Kyle. She didn’t want to have to face their skepticism over the whole thing. Liv would no doubt make some loaded comment about brothers sharing women and Dee would just give her one of those patented sweet Dee looks.
She stood in front of her closet door for at least forty-five minutes trying to decide what to wear. Four outfits later, she finally chose a pair of low-slung jeans, her cowboy boots and the bronze shirt that had a bit of a shimmer to it. It had three-quarter sleeves and buttons such that a small sliver of her belly would show along with a bit of cleavage. Still, not too much of either.
Searching through her jewelry box she decided on the leather choker with the piece of turquoise that Dee had given her for her birthday a few years back and her silver hoop earrings. It was simple and not more glitz than she’d feel comfortable with.
Pulling a few strands of hair from her face, she twisted them and pinned them back from her face with pretty clips. The barest bit of makeup, a touch of Chanel No. 5 behind each ear and between her breasts—not that he’d be going there, no matter how tempted she was—and she was good to go. Except for the nervousness that threatened to make her stomach riot and turn itself out on her bedroom floor.
She jumped when the doorbell rang. He’d shown up five minutes early. Taking a deep breath she opened the door and her breath was gone.
Where Shane’s looks were rough and almost savage, Kyle’s were beautiful. He still had brown hair but it was more blond than chocolate. It was longer than Shane’s, too. Kyle’s eyes were a beautiful green, like the ocean on the day after a storm. His skin was golden from working in the sun all day. He was tall but rather than his older brother’s six and a half feet, Kyle towered at just under six feet. Tall—especially in comparison to Maggie who was an inch shy of five and a half feet—but not so tall she got a neck pain to look into his face.
And what a face! His nose was perfect, almost Roman. Full, sexy lips were framed by a mustache and goatee. Crisp blue jeans clung nicely to long legs and a body-hugging red shirt showed off his upper body nicely. He was long, lean and mouthwateringly good-looking. She stared at him, speechless for a few moments.
When she opened the door he almost fell to his knees. She was there, hair cascading around her face, just a hint of makeup, lips shiny. Her shirt was snug, breasts clearly outlined by the soft material the color of autumn leaves. Something about the shimmer of it brought out the highlights in her hair and made her eyes smokier. The thick leather choker around her neck was very, very sexy. A creamy expanse of skin peeked from between the waist of her low-slung jeans and the hem of the shirt. For a short woman, her legs were quite long and capped off with some seriously sexy cowboy boots.
“Wow,” they both said simultaneously.
“Jinx.” She grinned. “You look really handsome.”
“Ma’am, I’m just here to fight off the men who’ll mob you for looking as sexy as you do.”
Before they left for dinner, she gave him a brief tour of the house. Kyle was impressed with the work she’d done herself.
“You’ve done a heck of a lot of work, Maggie.”
“Thanks. This house wasn’t the most pleasant place to grow up at times. I feel like each time I do something to make it more my own, I chase some of that away.”
“I’m gonna want to hear that story.”
“Oh, it’s not good for digestion. On the other hand, your momma is something special.” She
grinned at the image of his flamboyant mother. “She’s one of a kind. You’re lucky to have her.”
“Don’t I know it.” He laughed and motioned toward the car. “Shall we go then?”
“Absolutely.”
He opened her car door and she got in. “You know, you don’t have to open my door for me. I’m a big girl.”
He looked at her and laughed. “Believe me, I’ve noticed. But you do know my mother, right? If she even caught wind of me not opening your door she’d hunt me down. She’s been known to come out to my job sites or my office to lecture me or interrogate me about my brothers. Secondly, I just want to take care of you a bit, part of the whole wooing thing, you know. I know you’re capable of doing it, I just want to spoil you a little.” He gave her a smile so sexy that she swore she could smell her insides boiling from the heat.
Taking a deep breath, her hands gripped the edge of the seat to keep herself from jumping on him.
Stifling a smug smile, he raised a brow, satisfied he caused such a response in her. “How does steak sound? I’m really in the mood for it today. The Oak Room’s got a pretty varied menu if you don’t want steak, though.”
“The Oak Room sounds just fine, Kyle.” Truth was, she’d always wanted to go there on a date and had never had the chance. It wasn’t fancy really, it was the meeting spot for folks her age in Petal.
At the side of his car, in the faint light of the restaurant, he leaned down to kiss her. She stood on her tiptoes and he bent his knees—they fit well. “You taste like strawberries,” he murmured against her lips.
Warmth bloomed through her at the contact. “Flavored lip gloss.” Her eyes were still closed as she replied. Still savoring the moment. With a small smile, she wrapped her arms around his back and brought his mouth back down to hers again for another kiss. She didn’t know why she felt so wanton with him, she just did. There was something explosive about their chemistry.
Chuckling, he obliged her, his mouth covering hers, sucking her bottom lip in between his teeth and laving the sting with his tongue. A breathy moan of delight escaped her.
His hands slid to the small of her back and brought her body against his tighter. Damn it she tasted good. She felt right against him, in his arms. Her soft sounds of pleasure tightened his need for her. His cock was rock-hard. He had to tamp down his impulse to roll his hips, grinding into her as he reached down to grab that stellar ass to pull her up and over him. He broke off before he lost that thin shred of control, not wanting to paw her in a parking lot.
Putting his forehead to hers he got his breath back until he was able to speak again. “Let’s go inside, Maggie.” He took her hand in his own and led her into the restaurant.
She felt out of place immediately once they got inside. Practically everyone there knew Kyle—servers, managers and patrons alike. The women eyed him appreciatively and looked at her speculatively. She recognized many of the people but many were from the crowd she’d never been included in. Suddenly, it was like high school and she hated the way it felt.
Kyle felt her tense up and, once they were seated at a small table, he scooted his chair nearer to her own. “Is everything all right, darlin’?”
“Fine. I’m just hungry.” She smiled at him, relaxing at his nearness. He looked skeptical but she didn’t elaborate so he let it drop, sticking close.
The server took their order and brought over a glass of wine for Maggie and a beer for Kyle. He held her hand, running his thumb back and forth over her knuckles. He couldn’t get enough of touching her skin.
“So, you had a story to tell. I want to know about you. About your family.”
She shook her head and put a hand up. “Oh no, we don’t need to go there. Tell me about your family instead.”
“Uh-uh. It’s your turn. We’ve already talked about Polly Chase. Let’s hear about Cecelia Wright. Come on, please?” He fluttered his lashes at her making her laugh.
Sighing, she took a drink of her wine and a bolstering breath. “Okay, the truncated version, then. Cecelia Bradshaw was Miss Georgia. Before that Junior Miss Georgia. She was also homecoming queen two years running, the Magnolia Festival Queen, and a whole host of other titles that she’d be happy to tell you all about any old time you wish. When Cece was nineteen years old, she met the son of the man who owned the largest orchard in the county and of course, Tom Wright was immediately and forever in love with her. They married at twenty and moved into the house I live in now.
“Cece has one tall, regal, golden haired daughter who is married to the quarterback and has two adorable children and they live in a brand-new home over in Cherry Hill Estates. That daughter keeps a spotless home, always has perfect hair and makeup, and bakes cookies and embroiders. Butter would not, and never has, melted in Jane Marie’s mouth. Janie, as you know, followed in Cece’s footsteps and was homecoming queen and Magnolia Festival Queen and a host of other pageants that my mother would also be happy to talk to you about.
“Now poor Cece has another daughter. This one is not tall, is not beautiful and hated the very idea of pageants. No, poor Cece’s youngest child liked—gasp—books! Not just books but history. Of course Cece’s suffering went even deeper when her husband would brave her wrath to occasionally nurture this child’s love of books and history.
“Luckily, this daughter went to college and graduate school out of town, only returning for holidays and continually disappointed her beautiful mother by not bringing home a quarterback, heck, not even a defensive end. Worse, said short, bookish daughter with the red hair—Margaret, you can have a variety of hair colors these days, darling, why don’t you let me make you an appointment at my salon—became a teacher! Are you aware how much money teachers make? Are you aware that that daughter will never marry an appropriate man if she hangs around a school all day?
“Doesn’t this all sound like I should be on some daytime talk show? It sounds bitter but honestly I’m not hindered by it. I’ve moved on and Cecelia Wright is a nice enough woman. I was just not what she expected. Anyway, now you know the whole sordid tale and you should feel free to run for your life.”
Enraged and utterly shocked, Kyle’s hands balled into tight fists. Why on earth would any mother act like that? Cece Wright should be proud to have a daughter as wonderful as Maggie. That she didn’t treasure Maggie made him sad.
“Honey, I’m not running anywhere and you know what? Red hair—your red hair—is incredibly beautiful and downright sexy. Plus, I love history and my house was always filled with books. Heck, you’d probably know that working with my momma on the Historical Society Board. Oh and I voted for Amylynne Jessup for homecoming queen.”
“Oh my, you flatterer you.” She laughed. Relief moved through him as he saw the strain leave her face.
“I thought that was you,” a female voice said. Kyle and Maggie both looked up to see Janie standing there.
“Hey, Janie.”
“Maggie.” Janie nodded her head at her sister and then looked to Kyle, her face breaking into a smile. “Hi, Kyle. What are you doing here?” Janie looked at Kyle as if Maggie weren’t even there.
“Are you asking me?” Kyle was surprised and appalled at the way she barely spoke to her own sister. Of course, given the history he just heard, he shouldn’t have been.
“Yes of course. Who else would I be asking?”
“I’m here on a date with Maggie. We’re having dinner. What else would I be doing?”
“On a date with Maggie?” She sounded incredulous.
“Why do you sound so surprised, Janie?” Maggie asked with an arch of her eyebrow.
“I, uh, well I just thought that Kyle was a bit out of, well, not from your crowd.”
“My crowd?”
“You know, Kyle and I moved in different circles. You weren’t exactly in the popular crowd.”
“High school was ten years ago, Janie,” Ky
le gritted out, wanting very much to be done with her.
“She means to say that you’re out of my league, Kyle. Isn’t that right?” Maggie asked, eyes narrowed in a way that Kyle had come to notice meant she was getting hot under the collar. He liked it, made him want to bend her over something and fuck her.
“Of course not!” Janie’s claim was utterly unbelievable, especially as she rolled her eyes.
“Well he is. But for some reason, he likes me, go figure.”
Kyle put his arm around the back of Maggie’s chair and looked up at Janie. “I do like Maggie very much. Moreover, Jane Marie Campbell, I had no idea you were such a snob, and toward your own sister. I’d have thought that out of all the people in Maggie’s life, you’d certainly be a fan. Your sister is a beautiful, intelligent and strong woman. Hell, she’s out of my league.”
“Hardly. I’m sorry, I’m not trying to be mean or anything, but Maggie knows more than anyone what her limitations are. How she managed to go out with two Chase brothers in a few months, well, I can’t begin to imagine.” She made it sound like Maggie was some two-bit whore.
“My limitations?” Maggie snorted, choosing to ignore the last comment for the moment.
“Well at least you’re smart and pretty enough. And now look, you even have a good-looking date. But you aren’t pageant material and you weren’t popular and this is not your kind of place. I’m just saying what’s true.”
Kyle’s mouth dropped open in shock. “You are truly the rudest woman I’ve ever met and you’ve been shamelessly bitchy to your sister. I think you’re jealous, Jane Marie. Now, if you’ll excuse us, our food will be here any minute and you are ruining my appetite.”
Janie spun around and stalked off without another word. He turned to Maggie and shook his head in disbelief. “My God, Maggie, has she always been like that?” No wonder she had issues about her looks.