Taming His Montana Heart(22)
“It was.” He hadn’t realized he’d be telling Haley this but now that he’d started, he found it easy to keep talking. “She said I must think she was crazy to be so upset over a car that wouldn’t start. I told her I’d get someone to look at it. She thanked me but explained she was waiting for Daron to do that. Apparently he’d been keeping it running and she was hoping he could work his magic again because she couldn’t afford to replace it.”
Daron had gotten off the Skidoo and was bent over looking at an Arctic Cat. Shaw couldn’t imagine what he found so fascinating, but he wasn’t a grease monkey. More to the point, having a conversation with Haley took priority. Her eyes were clear and bright, her cheeks bearing winter’s impact, sexy despite her sweatshirt and snow pants.
Her body talking to his.
“The next time I saw her she was driving her car,” he told Haley. “She told me Daron had replaced some of the wiring and put in a new belt. She also said that one day when he got off the bus he was lugging a battery. He’d been saving his lunch money to buy it. Apparently he’d skipped school and gone over to the auto parts store. Obviously that was before he stopped attending.”
When Haley’s eyes glittered, it was all he could do not to wrap his arms around her to let her know they were on the same page. “I’m so glad you thought of him.” Her voice was rough. “That’s one kid who deserves a chance.”
“He’s raw, self-taught for the most part. When I talked to his mom first thing this morning she was excited. She’s also concerned he might not take directions like he should.”
Haley went back to studying Daron. “My brother, who has two teenage daughters, says that’s universal. Unfortunately I won’t have a lot of time to show him what needs to be done. Hopefully he doesn’t need a lot of direction.”
“Let me know if he does. I’ll put down the hammer.”
“That’s my job, not yours.”
Daron hadn’t filled out yet, but the boy was about eight inches taller than Haley and probably stronger. He didn’t want Haley to have to confront him, not that he was concerned she couldn’t handle it.
He placed his hands on her shoulders. Technically his hands were on her sweatshirt, but she was under the bulk. Making him thinking thoughts he hadn’t for a long, long time.
Unnerving and exciting thoughts.
“I know it is, but I created the situation,” he said. “Let me know if he gives you any trouble.”
She’d tilted her head up, which made him even more aware of her large, direct eyes and slender body. There wasn’t any warmth to the day and snow was piled all around insulating them from the rest of the world and his crazy to-do list. The morning air smelled newborn and the sky made a lie of the fact that spring was long months away. No manmade sounds reached them. He didn’t care about anything except these moments and the woman he was sharing them with.
As long as she didn’t know what he’d done, something might come to life between them.
What about after she finds out?
“I’ll give Daron chances,” she said softly. She made no attempt to move away. “Lots of chances.”
“All right.”
Her eyes stopped glittering, and he recognized something other than empathy for a teenager trying to find his way in the world, pain maybe. “Shaw, I know what it’s like to not know what to do with my life, to wonder if it’s worth it.” She pressed her lips together. “I don’t want the same thing happening to him.”
To wonder if it’s worth it. He knew exactly what she was talking about. Wondered if they’d ever share and what the consequences might be.
Damn, too complicated.
*
“So many teenagers are self-absorbed,” she said when Shaw called later in the day. “Daron seems to get the big picture.”
Shaw had already let her know he’d clear his schedule tomorrow if she could join him in mapping out a route for the sled dog competition. Instead of concentrating on what she was saying other than ‘yes’, she’d imagined spending several hours alone in the wilderness with him. Their world would be quiet and remote, isolated. There’d be just the two of them on a single machine with their bodies touching. Sometimes talking. Sometimes just being together.
“I’m not sure that’s good.”
“What isn’t good?” She couldn’t believe she’d already lost track of what they were talking about.
“Growing up fast. I’ve seen too many kids pushing to be adults before they’re ready. They want everything now. Instant gratification. It backfires if they haven’t developed a sense of right or wrong. By then it can be too late.”
“You’ve seen that happen to people you know?”
“Idiots I used to have to deal with. I don’t mean to make a blanket statement. Life knocks all of us.” He paused. “Some more than others. It just shouldn’t happen until we’ve had enough experience to know how to handle the consequences of those knocks.”
“You’re right about life giving some people more hits than it does others.”
Hearing her words stopped her. If she wasn’t careful, she might slip into territory she’d worked hard to escape. She didn’t dare ask where his wisdom had come from because he’d expect the same in return. She looked around hoping to come up with a way to change the subject. However, nothing other than how his voice sounded in her ear came to mind.