The Cowboy and the Cougar (The Cougar Chronicles #1)(9)

"Is everything okay, Holly?" Cindy asked. "It’s not like you to miss an appointment."

I don’t miss an appointment…when I have one. Holly smiled at the receptionist. "Just running late is all." Now, what to do with Jack? He’d already been waiting and to keep him any longer would look bad to Cindy. "Come with me, Mr. Sherwood."

She opened the door to her office, gestured him in, and closed the door.

"Don’t you have a home to go to?"

"Yup." He took a seat in one of the chairs in front of her desk. He looked completely comfortable and at ease. And absolutely edible.

Damn him.

"Then why aren’t you there?"

"I have a legal problem."

"How’d you find me?"

"A little bird." He chuckled. "With a raspy voice and smoke on her breath."

Holly rolled her eyes. "Sheila. One day I’m going to revert to my teenage years and kick that woman’s ass. I could take her, you know."

Jack’s smile lit up the room. "Aw, leave her alone. Poor thing’s gonna be on oxygen in ten years anyway."

"That’s her own doing."

"True enough, but don’t blame her. I was persistent."

"Of course I blame her. She should keep my private information private."

"Sugar, your business name and address are hardly private. I would have found you eventually. Sheila just sped up the process a little by telling me you were an attorney. It was easy enough to find you after that." He leaned toward her and whispered. "I coulda googled you and found you myself."

Holly moved away. Being too close to him kept her from thinking straight. She sat down behind her desk, inhaled, and looked right at him, determined not to be mesmerized by his dark gaze.

"What is it that you want, Jack?"

"Besides you in my bed?"

A rush of heat crept over Holly’s skin. She cleared her throat.

"Yes, besides that."

"I told you. I have a legal problem."

"Which is?"

"I need a document drawn up, giving me sole custody of my son."

An anvil landed in Holly’s stomach. He had a son?

"You have a son?"

"Sugar, you look like someone just told you pigs could fly. Surely this can’t be that surprising."

"Well, I just—"

"If you’d have had that drink with me last night, so we could get to know each other, I would’ve told you all about Sam."

"And his mother?"

"Was a mistake I made seven years ago. No, I take that back. She wasn’t a mistake, or I wouldn’t have Sam. She came to me a year later. He was only a few months old. Said she couldn’t take care of him, that he was mine. So I took him."

Holly stomach was churning. Jack was not who she thought he was. He wasn’t a player, wasn’t just after sex. "Did it occur to you to have a paternity test?"

"Yep. I had it. He’s mine."

"Whatever happened to your...uh... his mother?"

"Never heard another word from her."

"Is your name on the birth certificate?"

"Yes."

"Then there shouldn’t be any problem. The mother clearly abandoned him. If you haven’t heard from her in six years, why are you worried about it now?"

"It’s something I’ve put off long enough. I need to tie up some loose ends."

"Good enough. I have to tell you though, this really isn’t my area. If you had googled me, you’d have found that I’m an estate planning lawyer. I write wills and trusts. I don’t dabble in family law."

"I want you to handle it."

"I’m not qualified. I have a rolodex full of great family attorneys who will be more than happy to help you."

"I want you."

She let out a sigh. "You’re not hearing me, Jack."

"Correction, sugar. You’re not hearing me." He stood, walked around the desk and turned her chair to face him. One long finger gently nudged her chin upward and she met his gaze. "I’ll take the referral to a qualified attorney. I want this done right. But I’m still going to be here every morning until you agree to have coffee with me. Just coffee. No alcohol. No dinner. No kisses, no sex. Just one hour, Holly. That’s all I’m asking. One hour to get to know a little about me, and I’ll get to know a little about you. If you still want to say good-bye after that, I’ll walk away."

"But I’m too old for you."

"Bullshit." His fingers glided over her jaw line to cup her cheek. The calloused pad of his thumb stroked her bottom lip lightly.

She closed her eyes. His touch felt so wonderful, so perfect.

Would it really hurt to have coffee with the guy? They had no future, but heck, some caffeine and a heavy dose of cowboy drawl sounded pretty good right about now.

Oh, she’d regret it. Spending time with him would make it all that much harder to say good-bye. God knew, though, she’d been through worse.

"All right." She placed her hand over his, still holding her cheek. It was firm, warm and masculine and made her heart flutter.

Okay, that was a mistake. She brushed his hand away from her face and dropped her own to her side and stood. "Let’s go."