Melt For Him(35)

“Or an anteater,” he offered, glad to keep the conversation light when it came to the woman he couldn’t stop thinking about. The woman who calmed his mind and eased the aching in his chest.

They kept up the friendly barbs for another few minutes. Becker should have felt better, because clearly Travis trusted him. But Becker wasn’t sure if he trusted himself.





Chapter Twelve

He studied the drawing on the mailbox the next morning. A penguin wearing an orange bow tie clicked his heels, like an old-fashioned movie star singing in the rain. His lips quirked up in curiosity as he leaned in closer for a better look. The penguin was comically drawn, but also precise. There was an expert quality to it, even though the creature wasn’t supposed to be the least bit realistic.

Megan’s mark on the world.

He was a few minutes early, an old habit that wouldn’t die. Being in his line of work entailed so much rushing and quick responding that he’d grown accustomed to getting ready faster than the average man.

“My mom has a thing for penguins.”

Becker looked up from Megan’s handiwork and tapped the shiny steel box admiringly. “Evidently.”

“I drew it for her a few years ago. Well, I sketched it, then painted it.” Megan stood on the front porch of a small but well-kept house. The door was painted bright red, and the windows were decorated with planter boxes that were in full bloom with spring flowers in bright yellows and blazing oranges. The two-story house was picturesque, an emerald-green lawn sloping up to meet a brick porch, but the best part was Megan, leaning against the doorjamb, all casual and crazy sexy in a faded denim skirt.

Becker’s eyes were drawn to the way the skirt showed off her strong thighs, and then her sculpted calves. Her feet were bare, and as he strolled down the stone path to meet her on the porch, he noticed she had a slender silver ring on her second toe. Becker wasn’t a foot man, but for some reason he found the ring inexplicably hot.

Then he met her gaze, and she was smiling, a sweet, almost innocent expression across her beautiful face. When she looked at him like that, he felt a press of nerves inside his chest. It was a strange feeling, and reminded him of picking up a woman for a date for the first time. He hadn’t felt this way in ages. He certainly hadn’t been celibate in Chicago, by no stretch of the imagination. He’d had lovers and girlfriends, one or two serious, including the one who’d been far more interested in his line of work than an actual relationship, but it had been a while since he’d felt as if he were waiting for a date.

Which was a stupid thought and a dumb feeling, so he locked up both the thought and the feeling in the trunk of things he didn’t want to deal with, then threw away the key. He couldn’t let himself go there with her or think of her that way. Even after that kiss yesterday. Especially after that kiss yesterday.

“I’m no expert on penguin art, but I like your style. It’s playful,” he said, gesturing to the mailbox.

“Thank you.”

“Reminds me of something my brother sent me a few weeks ago from one of the movies he’s working on.”

“He’s working on a penguin movie?” she teased.

He shook his head. “No. An outer space thing. But it’s got a comical flair like yours. And I told him as well how much I like it.”

“Then that makes me happy,” she said and pointed to the open door. “I’m just finishing up breakfast. Want to come in for a second?”

“Sure,” he said, glad that he’d battened down the mental hatches before walking into her house. Fine, it wasn’t even her home, and it wasn’t as if her mom’s surroundings would give away much about Megan and who she was beyond the little flashes she’d let him see. But then as she led him into the kitchen, he stopped short when he spotted a framed photo on the wall.

Taken years ago and faded to a sepia shade, the picture was still recognizable. A young Megan and Travis were jumping into a pool with their father. In another shot, they were roasting marshmallows at a campfire. Next, their father was pushing his kids on a swing set. Becker scanned the wall of family photos. The odd thing was all the pictures were of a young Megan and Travis. Then, there was a handful of them older, in their early teens. It was as if years went missing in the family. Becker knew Megan’s dad had died when she was young; he and Travis had talked about it. Still, it was sad to see a sort of black hole in the photographic history of the Jansen family.

He left the photos behind and followed Megan into the kitchen, the first rays of morning starting to peek through the windows. She picked up a box of Cinnamon Life cereal and waggled it at him. “Can I interest you in some cereal? I know, I know. Try to contain your enthusiasm at how awesome a cook I am.”