Summer Vows

“How many do you need?”

“I’m not certain, but it has to be at least another twenty.”

“What?”

A slight smile touched the corners of Ana’s mouth when she saw his shocked expression. “I’ll take ten, but that would mean doubling up some of my things.”

“I have a few. But if you need more then you’ll have to wait until tomorrow when I go out.”

Ana lifted her shoulders. “I suppose I’ll have to wait to hang up what’s leftover.”

“Why did you bring so many clothes?”

She took several steps, bringing them closer. “I didn’t know whether you’d have a washing machine—”

“It wouldn’t have mattered if I did or didn’t, because you claim you don’t know how to use it.” Jacob saw a wave of color darken her face. “If you want I can show you how to use the washer and dryer.” When Ana stared at him, he thought of the saying that if looks could kill then he definitely would’ve stopped breathing. “Suit yourself,” he mumbled under his breath, “if you don’t want to grow up.”

“I’m definitely grown, Jacob. I can’t get any more grown, just older,” she retorted.

“Grown women I know do laundry, shop for groceries, cook and clean up after themselves.”

Ana didn’t intend to get into a verbal confrontation with Jacob over a lifestyle that had served her well with a minimum of angst. She knew who and what she was—privileged—and she wasn’t about to apologize to anyone about it, and especially not to him.

“Can you please tell me or show me where the hangers are?”

“You’ll find more in the bedroom across from the bathroom.”

Ana flashed a dimpled smile. “Thanks.” Spinning on her toes, she turned and walked out of the kitchen.

Jacob felt as if he’d been punched hard in the solar plexus when he gaped numbly at the firm roundness of her bottom in the revealing shorts. There was hardly enough fabric to conceal her buttocks.

“Ana.”

She stopped but didn’t turn around. “Yes?”

He opened his mouth, but the words wouldn’t come out. Jacob wanted to tell his houseguest that what she considered something cooler was downright indecent. And it wasn’t that he was a prude—far from it—but seeing her dress like that made him aware of how long it’d been since he’d slept with a woman.

“Would you be opposed to dining outdoors?” he said instead.

Ana peered at him over her shoulder, smiling. “Of course not, Jacob. In fact I was going to suggest it. As soon as I finish hanging up my clothes I’ll be down to help you put dinner together.”

“Make certain you put on sunscreen before we go outside. You’ve exposed a lot of skin,” he explained when she gave him a questioning look, “and the UV index is quite high today.”

A frown marred her smooth forehead. “I didn’t bring any. Do you happen to have some?”

Jacob’s smile was triumphant. “No, I don’t.” It faded as quickly as it’d appeared. “Did you bring a cover-up with you?”

Ana chewed her lip. “No. In fact I didn’t bring a swimsuit. But you may be able to help me out.”

“How’s that?” Jacob asked.

“If you’re willing to give up your rather garish shirt it could double as a cover-up.”

He glanced down at his shirt. “My shirt may be a little colorful, but it’s hardly garish.”

Ana bit back a smile. “Surely you jest. It’s loud and gaudy.”

His eyebrows lifted a fraction. “It’s garish, gaudy and loud, yet you want to wear it?”

She extended her hand. “I’ll take it now if you don’t mind.”

“You want me to take it off now?”

“Why not? It’s only going to take me a few minutes to hang up the rest of my clothes before I come back and set the table. You do use the table on the deck, don’t you?”

“Of course I do,” Jacob countered. “I’m not into lap trays.” Ana reached out to unbutton his shirt, but he caught her wrist, holding it in a firm but gentle grip. “I’ll give you another shirt and I’ll make certain it’s somewhat less loud.”

Coward! Jacob silently berated himself. Why couldn’t he just tell her that seeing her dressed that way made him uncomfortable? In fact he was quite turned on by her curves. First the call from his mother had disturbed him, and now it was seeing a woman with whom he would spend days or perhaps even weeks with who thought nothing of dressing provocatively that had him on edge.

“I’m not going to strip for you, Ana. Go upstairs and hang up your clothes. And when you come down I’ll have something for you to put on.”

Ana wrested her wrist from his loose grip with a minimum of effort. “Don’t ever do that again.”

Jacob’s expression became a mask of stone. “Do what?”

Going on tiptoe, she thrust her face close enough for him to feel her moist breath on his jaw. “Talk to me as if I were either a child or an idiot.”

Seeing her close-up, inhaling the subtle scent of her perfume made him aware of things that he hadn’t noticed before. Her eyes weren’t dark, but a clear brown with glints of gold. The color amber came to mind. She was short, much shorter than she appeared because of her slimness, and her damp hair was coal-black, the perfect contrast to her olive complexion. Not only was she beautiful, she was exotic.

It was Jacob’s turn to swallow the acerbic words poised on the tip of his tongue. Diego had cautioned him that Ana was going to be defiant and challenging. She’d chosen a career dominated by men and she’d somehow learned to navigate the testosterone-filled waters with relative ease. That is until now. She’d run into a juggernaut when dealing with Basil Irvine, because apparently the man had not taken kindly to a woman besting him.

“I am not one of your employees or a performer in the Serenity Records stable, so however you interpret what I say to you is a personal problem, Ana. I’m also not accustomed to dealing with spoiled brats who expect people to genuflect before them. I am giving up the next two months of my life, where I’d planned to sleep as late as I want, fish, sail down to the islands and if I feel the need for female companionship, then I’d find a woman to spend some quality time with who won’t bitch and moan because things aren’t going her way.

“I promised Diego that I would look after you, and I always keep my promises. Not to do so would make me less than honorable. And that’s not going to happen because you decide to throw a hissy fit. Now, please finish putting your clothes away, and when you come back I’ll have something for you to put on that will give you some protection from the sun.” He paused, watching the expressions on Ana’s face change from anger to shock. “Does this meet with your approval, Princess?”

* * *

Ana engaged in what could only be interpreted as a stare-down when she glared at Jacob. Not only was he arrogant, but also insufferable, and she wondered how long she would be able to live with him before calling her father and telling him she was willing to go to Brazil. It wasn’t as if she didn’t have other options, because she did. There was her cousin’s horse farm in the western part of Virginia. Security on the farm was so tight, no one entered or left without being monitored.

If not Nicholas, then she could stay with another cousin in a remote region of North Carolina. Celia and her husband, FBI special agent Gavin Faulkner lived in a mountain retreat near the Tennessee border. In fact she had family members all over the country where she could stay in relative anonymity. Her brother Gabriel lived on Cape Cod with his ex-DEA agent wife, her sister’s husband was a training specialist for the CIA, and there were enough former military intelligence relatives to set up their own agency. But her father and cousin had decided U.S. Marshal Jacob Jones would be the better candidate to protect her in the States because he wasn’t family.

She continued to glare at Jacob. “I’m immune to bullying,” she whispered, then turned on her heels and walked out of the kitchen, feeling the heat from his gaze on her back. If her host was looking for a fight, then she was going to disappoint him and not give in to his goading. If Ana had learned anything in life, it was how to deal with men with enormous egos coupled with an overabundance of arrogance.

First and foremost there had been her grandfather. Samuel Claridge Cole put the a in arrogance. Purportedly the first black billionaire—his actual wealth a closely guarded family secret—he used intelligence and intimidation to build his empire. His drive for success was passed along to his offspring who refused to accept defeat. And for Ana it was the same. She wasn’t that bitch, skirt or any other derogative term attributed to women in positions of power, but someone ready and willing to conduct business in the most professional way possible.

She didn’t entertain gossip, read the tabloids or grant interviews. What she did do was attend most music industry award shows with her brother, while wearing haute couture and mouthing the appropriate phrases. Once she’d assumed control of Serenity Records her love life and her personal life were kept out of the spotlight, leading entertainment journalists to create whatever spin needed to sell magazines or increase TV ratings.

If Jacob thought he was going to browbeat her or break her will, then he was in for a shocker. After all, she was a Cole woman and they ruled while their men served.