The Billionaire Playboy(6)

Man, were his eyes blue. Charlie caught a glimpse through the window of the Escalade parked outside as she pulled a clean shirt out of the bureau. She'd never seen eyes quite that blue. They reminded her of the sapphires in the heart-shaped pendant her mom owned. The only good piece of jewelry her mom had, it had belonged to Charlie's great-grandmother.

Thinking about Jake Sherbrooke's eyes had her thinking about some of the other attributes she'd noticed about him—the well-muscled chest that her hands had felt when she'd run into him in the foyer and the well-defined biceps she'd seen when he'd been working alongside the rest of the town boarding up windows and clearing debris.

Of course he has a great body; he probably has nothing else to do all day but workout. For a minute Charlie envisioned some of the sailors on the base back in Virginia. Sure some had great physiques but not all. Between their work obligations and families many didn't have the time it required. It's not like he has to work like the rest of us, Charlie thought, pulling her shirt over her head. Unlike her, he'd always had everything at his fingertips: the best clothes, the best cars, the best schools. Though her clothes had been clean they'd always come from consignment stores. She hadn't gotten her own car until after graduating from college, which she'd only been able to afford thanks to the Navy. People like him didn't know what the real world was like.

Charlie started to move away from the window but stopped when she saw movement below. Was she imagining things? After all, she had been standing there thinking about the man and the way he'd looked working today. Taking a step closer to the window she saw her brother and his Irish Wolfhound approaching Jake. After exchanging a few words, the two men started to tackle the large tree limbs covering the front walkway. Despite the fact that he'd already worked for several hours, Jake carried away the limbs once Sean cut them into more manageable pieces with his chainsaw.

Was he always this hands-on? Although there were plenty of other things she could be doing, Charlie stood at the window combing out her wet shoulder-length hair and watching the two men below. Every once in a while the humming of the chainsaw stopped and her brother moved to tackle another enormous limb or said something to their billionaire guest. Although she couldn't hear anything, Charlie guessed her brother was telling their guest some politically incorrect jokes, the only kind Sean knew, because more than once she saw Jake laughing.

“Find something useful to do with yourself.” Charlie tossed her hairbrush onto the bureau next to the envelope containing her re-enlistment papers. Picking up the envelope she pulled out the half-completed documents and glanced over them. She'd started to fill them out before leaving Virginia but hadn't finished. At the time uncertainty held her back. She'd hoped some time away from the base and work would help her make a definitive decision. So far it hadn't happened. While she was leaning toward staying with the Navy a tiny part of her wanted to move on with her life.

As if her eyes had a mind of their own, Charlie glanced out the window when she heard her brother's chainsaw stop once again. “You’re pathetic.” Charlie tossed the documents down and headed toward the bedroom door. Even if her mom put her to work peeling onions it would be a more productive way to spend her time than standing and watching Jake Sherbrooke work. Too bad it wouldn't be as enjoyable.#p#分页标题#e#

A little later Charlie was halfway out of the kitchen carrying a platter covered with homemade biscuits, when Sean burst through the kitchen's side door. Jake followed right behind him gripping his left arm.

“Need you over here now, Charlie. Jake's bleeding.” Sean's usual confident tone contained a note of concern.

“I told you. It isn't that bad.”

For someone injured, Jake didn't sound that concerned to Charlie. Putting the platter down on the counter, she moved toward the kitchen table. “Have a seat and let me take a look. Sean, get me the first aid kit.”

Without any argument both men complied. And just like she would with any other patient, Charlie moved closer to get a better look at the bloody open wound which ran from just above his wrist to halfway up his outer forearm. Though the cut was long it didn't appear too deep.

“What happened?” She leaned down for a closer look.

“An old nail and some shards of glass got me when we were trying to get into that old shed.”

“When was your last tetanus shot?” Charlie reached for one of the clean wet towels Sean placed on the table along with the first aid kit.



Damn it. If he'd been paying attention to what he'd been doing rather than thinking about the redhead that was now cleaning the area around the wound, he wouldn't be sitting here now. He'd still be outside doing something useful rather than thinking about all the things he'd like to be doing with the good doctor, who didn't look all too happy at the moment.