The Bad Boy's Secret Romance Read online

  Assuming she could even catch it if she saw it. Maybe she wouldn’t be able to.

  As she came closer to the rock, she realized that whoever was in the truck that was parked in the lot must have found the puppy. Because she could see a head with a ball cap on it poking out from behind the rock where she did her yoga.

  Her heart tightened, and her blood heated. She quickened her steps. She didn’t know why she felt possessive of the dog. It wasn’t hers. And she didn’t need a dog, didn’t want one. She didn’t have time to take care of one for starters. And what she’d said to the man last night was true; her sister already had a dog, and they didn’t need two.

  The light wasn’t great. Not only was the sun not up, but the sky was cloudy. Still, there was definitely someone there, and she couldn’t figure what else they would be looking at off the trail beside the rock.

  As she came around, the body of the man came into view, and her heart turned and shifted.

  Was it the man from last night?

  She didn’t remember shoulders that broad. Or a waist that narrow. But he wore a T-shirt and jeans, and she could see the soles of his boots as he knelt beside the bush. He hadn’t been wearing a ball cap last night, and she had the distinct impression of wavy hair, which she couldn’t see today.

  Her steps slowed. She hadn’t been sure she’d ever see him again. But she was pretty sure this was him.

  “Funny meeting you here.” Her voice was a little huskier than what it normally was in the morning.

  She couldn’t be sure, but she thought a small shock rippled through him, like he hadn’t been expecting company. But his movements were slow and smooth as he shifted and looked over his shoulder. She caught a flash of white and figured he was grinning at her.

  “Funny? I was kinda hoping I would see you. I also found your friend. But he hasn’t decided whether or not he likes me yet today.” The man’s head turned back toward the puppy, and Justice moved closer.

  She wanted to ask his name. Wanted to introduce herself. But she didn’t want to make a lot of noise or do anything to cause the puppy to run away.

  “I’ll stay back here. I don’t want to scare him.”

  “I appreciate that. I’ve been working on this for thirty or forty minutes. And the closest he’s come is about two feet away. Feeding him steak. I’d face some pretty dangerous things myself for a couple of bites of steak.”

  “Typical man,” she said. But she heard the humor, almost fondness, in her voice. Funny, because a line like that she typically uttered with bitterness.

  “The brains in the stomach?” He asked it easily, like he wasn’t offended, and she figured her words had come out with the right inflection.

  “Most of them.” She shifted a little and could see movement in the bush. Lowering her voice, she said, “I think he’s coming closer.”

  “Yeah, he came about two more steps, then stopped.” He didn’t sound impatient. “I’m starting to think whoever dropped him off might have been a little harsh with him before he did so.”

  Justice pressed her lips together and didn’t say anything. The idea of hurting an innocent puppy didn’t sit well with her. But she couldn’t fix that now. There was no way to tell who had dropped him off or if he had even been dropped off.

  “So we’re going to assume that he was abandoned?” she asked.

  “Yeah. If he wasn’t, not sure we want to take him back to where he came from.”

  “I see.”

  “Although, if I ever catch him, we’ll still try to find the owner. I could be way off base in my assumptions. He might have been taken and abused and then dropped off here, and the original owner had nothing to do with it.” The man seemed to shift. “Assumptions can be dangerous. And often wrong.”

  She didn’t detect any bitterness in his tone, but she had the feeling he felt the same way about that subject that she felt about men in general. There was bitterness under the surface there.

  She didn’t want to lean against the rock and get her outfit dirty, so she crossed her arms over her chest and waited while the man crouched, still and quiet.

  The dark slowly faded, and the world became shades of gray, with a mourning dove hooting somewhere across the river, a redheaded woodpecker pounding against a tree for breakfast, and robins being joined by a chorus of other birds, singing their morning songs.

  The world was waking up, and she needed to get to work.

  She spoke quietly so as not to scare the pup, which she could barely see. “I hate to leave you. I feel like we’re partners in this, for some reason. But I can’t stay. I have an early morning meeting.”

  “I can’t stay too much longer, either. I was supposed to be at work at seven. But I was really hoping I would catch him today. Other people are bound to see him, and I’d rather he didn’t go to the pound. I can’t keep him at my place indefinitely, but we could use a shop dog.”

  He said “we.” It didn’t surprise her too much that he worked in a shop. Although she wouldn’t have been shocked if he worked in a factory in Richmond either.

  Maybe he was a mechanic. Or a bodyworker. Or he made cabinets or something. He did something with those hands. They were capable and looked strong. Not the kind of hands she was used to looking at all day.

  “I have a meeting scheduled over lunch, and I have something that’s going to keep me after work until almost dark tonight. But I’ll be swinging by to check on him on the way home. Whatever time that is.”

  “I might be able to slip away at lunch. Depending on how much flak I get for coming in late. But I have something tonight too, and it’ll be dark for me as well before I can get here.”

  It was a week night; she didn’t think he probably had a date. But she wondered what else would take him until almost dark. Didn’t sound like work. But their relationship, if she could even call it that, had hardly progressed to the point where she could ask personal questions, so she clamped her lips around the one that wanted to erupt from her mouth.

  “I guess I’ll leave a note on the rock if I get him and you’re not here,” she said. More because she wanted to know if he was able to catch it than that she thought she would. She hoped he’d say the same, and he didn’t disappoint her.

  “I’ll make sure I grab a piece of paper from the counter at work today, and I’ll leave something so that you’ll know if I get him. If you don’t see anything, you’ll know I didn’t.”

  Unless someone took it. They could leave a note, and someone could think it would be a fun thing to grab it and take it with them. She hardly thought anyone on the trail would do that or care, but one never knew.

  The only other thing would be to ask for his phone number. Or give him hers. But it was a certainty their relationship hadn’t progressed to that point.

  She had to be content with what she had. A note would do it.

  “Well, if you don’t mind then, I’d better get out of here.” She tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear, a little nervous, because she didn’t usually do things like this. She took a breath. “I hope I see you again.”

  She’d felt drawn to him last night, even though he wasn’t the type of guy she normally hung out with. But seeing him on his knees this morning, up before the sun because of a stray puppy, trying to coax that puppy out, it just said something about him. He hadn’t been doing it to impress anyone, but because he wanted to. He had no idea she was coming back this morning. He wasn’t trying to get anywhere. He just cared about the dog. And she liked that.

  “You said you come here pretty often?” he asked, his voice low and smooth, still conscious of the puppy and that he didn’t want to scare it.

  “At least three times a week. Except in the winter.” For some reason, she was breathless. She’d signaled her interest; he seemed to be responding.

  “Then I’ll make sure I see you again.” He turned his head more fully, and his dark eyes met hers. The world was still gray and misty, but she could see more clearly now. Those brown eyes, shaded b
y his brows. Strong nose and square jaw.

  “You look familiar,” she murmured, just saying her thought as it came in her head.

  “You do too.” He seemed to be murmuring in the same way, but she could almost see the wheels turning in his head. He had the advantage over her, because he knew her name. And it wasn’t a common one. A shadow seemed to float across his face, and she wondered if he’d figured out exactly who she was, placed her. It couldn’t be a good thing, not from the look on his face. His words confirmed it. “I don’t think I want to know who you are.”

  Despite the arrow of fear that touched her chest, she lifted a corner of her lip. “Then let’s not say. We can just be the river companions.” It was foolish of her to even suggest it. A guy like he was, well muscled and tough, wouldn’t be a smart man for her to tangle with. She should be walking away. Not trying to get closer. “We don’t have to figure out who we are. We can just be strangers meeting beside the river, and this is our own world. We can step out of real life.”

  It was a make-believe idea. And he wasn’t a make-believe kind of man. She could tell that by looking at him. Anyone could.

  But to her surprise, he nodded. “I like that idea. Who we are out there,” he jerked his chin behind her toward the parking lot, “doesn’t need to matter when we’re here. This feels like a magical spot anyway.”

  She felt that way. Something about standing on the rock, and stretching toward the rising sun, had always made her feel like she was transported to another time and place. Why not share it? Although it truly did surprise her that he was going along with it.

  She wasn’t sure what that said about him.

  Of course, she wasn’t exactly the kind of woman that engaged in make-believe play either. Not only because of her job, which she was very serious about, but because of her serious, driven, type-A personality.

  People depended on her. She had a group of women who were depending on her, personally, to help them start their own business. That was the thing that was near and dear to her heart. To help women succeed, over men if necessary.

  She was serious and driven, yes, and normally the idea of what they just said to each other wouldn’t hold any appeal to her at all. But she found herself longing for it. She didn’t want to know the details of this man’s life. And she didn’t really want him to know hers. Almost like a summer fling. Although she didn’t want things to go that far.

  Just a summer friendship.

  She wasn’t sure he would be happy with that. Honestly, the man didn’t fit in any of the categories that she typically put men into, and she wasn’t sure exactly what he did want.

  “It is. A magical spot. Yes. And when we’re here, we’re just us.” She smiled a little, not her normal business smile, not even her I’m-not-happy-but-I’m-smiling-anyway smile, but an actual, real smile. Not a big one. But enough.

  And he returned it. He nodded. “Then I’ll see you here again. Because of that, there’s no need for me leave a note. Don’t look for one.”

  She couldn’t see his eyes very well because of his ball cap, but she definitely saw the crinkle at the corners. She liked it. Her smile grew bigger.

  She didn’t say anything else before she turned and walked away.

  Chapter 4

  Justice made it through the early morning meeting. It was the same old same old. She was the branch manager for her bank in Peach Bottom, and she went over goals, projected customer targets, and the handling of various portfolios.

  Outside Richmond, the Peach Bottom branch of United States First National was the highest performing branch they had. She had a way with customers, and she had a way with her team members as well. Not to mention the local folk were loyal. Her dad was a judge, well respected, and people knew it.

  All that combined to making her the most successful manager in the company, year after year. For the last five years.

  But that success rang a little hollow, because her heart lay in women’s issues. She didn’t exactly see men as the enemy, although sometimes she felt like they were. After what happened to her sister Mariam, it was hard to feel any other way.

  Plus, if she had been a boy, she would’ve been the valedictorian of her graduating class.

  “I’m heading to Richmond, Tammy,” she told the bank’s head teller. “If anyone calls and it’s an emergency, give them my cell phone number. Otherwise, I’ll see you in the morning.” She gave a professional smile, even though she considered Tammy a friend as well as a colleague, and walked out the door.

  There was an open house at a trucking company in Richmond, and she was going for personal and professional reasons.

  Thoughts of the puppy and the man had been in the back of her head all day. But she had this open house to get through first.

  She got in her car, her one splurge. She had a nice salary, as manager of the bank, but she lived simply with her sister, sharing a house in town. Nothing fancy. For now.

  Maybe someday, but first and foremost, her heart was in investing in other women. She was the daughter of a judge, and even though there had been a few hiccups in her life, she had it better than most women. She wanted to reach her hand around and help some others. Investing in solid business plans was a good way to do that.

  She found an opportunity with this trucking company, and she had friends who were ready to take advantage of it.

  Her car drove smooth and sleek, like velvet over skin. She felt luxurious and pampered sitting cradled in the driver seat. And even though she wanted to help other people, she didn’t regret for one second the money she’d spent on her car.

  It made the drive to Richmond go quickly, and she ran over in her head the power players and the people on whom she needed to make a good impression.

  Her stomach was tight and a little painful as she pulled into the big paved lot. Just enough nerves to give her an edge, but not enough to make her clumsy. The perfect point. The point where she loved to work.

  She had a little more riding on this than she usually did, because of her own personal interests, but she felt confident she could pull it off.

  Grabbing her clutch, she threw the key and her phone in it after locking her car and strode across the smooth blacktop, her heels clicking.

  Maybe she should have changed; it was a trucking company after all, and most of the people here wouldn’t be dressed up. But the heels gave her an advantage. Already tall, with them, she’d be taller than most of the men here. Which was another thing that was unfair. Men were usually stronger, taller, heavier.

  She didn’t like being at a disadvantage.

  The man beside the river flowed through her mind again. He was stronger and heavier, but she hadn’t felt like she was in competition with him. Funny, because most of her life was about beating the competition.

  Cars and trucks filled the company lot. Mostly trucks. There would be other bankers here; she wouldn’t be the only one. But there were a lot of other folk coming as well. The kind of people she saw across her desk. The ones who looked at her, filling out applications.

  That was fine; she could mingle with them.

  Off to her right, the garage sat in the distance, with several bays up and mechanics working on trucks that were parked inside.

  Justice spared them a glance, a little more interested than she might have been a few days ago, because of the man by the river.

  Would he work in a shop like that?

  She would never consider herself a snob, but she hadn’t given too much thought to people who worked in places like that. Probably the way those people didn’t think much about her and people like her. Everyone seemed to live in their own little world and feel distrustful and suspicious of the folks who didn’t share it.

  Definitely she, and the people she worked with, fell into that category. Funny, because they often looked at other people and complained that they did the exact same thing.

  It was a relief when she got to the big glass doors of the tall modern building and pulled, the air-cond
itioned air sweeping out and cooling her flushed skin. Just walking across the parking lot in the heat of the Virginia June day had caused a bead of sweat to trickle down between her shoulder blades. Grateful that the AC was cranking inside, she lifted her face to the blower and strode confidently in.

  A receptionist sat at a hightop desk in the middle of a giant foyer with soaring ceilings.

  “Good afternoon. You’re here for the open house?” the receptionist asked in a smooth voice that sounded like it belonged on the radio.

  “That is correct.” Justice stopped in front of the desk, moving her clutch to her left hand while the receptionist handed her a pen.

  “Please sign here.”

  Justice signed her name with a flourish and strode to the double doors that the receptionist indicated. Looking forward to the challenge and using the pinch of her stomach to propel her forward, she opened the door and strode into the room.

  ~~~

  Thad stood with his brother Foster, off to the side of the massive conference room. They’d been deep in conversation with the owner of the trucking company, Barry, for a good forty-five minutes. He was starting to feel like they were monopolizing Barry’s time, and he’d made eye contact with Foster, indicating it was about time for them to go. They wanted to get the contract for their Richmond Rebels’ garage, but they didn’t want to keep Barry from talking to anyone else. Though they’d learned a lot, and Thad was pretty sure they made a good impression.

  Barry’s son had been with them for a while, but he’d excused himself just a few minutes ago. Thad had lost him in the crowd, but as he had been unobtrusively watching where he went, he’d caught a glimpse of a dark-haired woman who looked very familiar. Thad was trying to scan the crowd for her while wrapping up the conversation with Barry.

  “I can tell you the Richmond Rebels are on our short list. Ten years ago, your reputation had extended the whole way into Richmond, with what you did to motors and turbos. I know that wasn’t all quite on the up-and-up, but just good ol’ boy fun. Still, it’s the good things I heard about you then that even got you on the list to begin with.”