Nobody But You(10)

Hud swore, stared at his feet and then looked up again, running a hand through hair the same light brown as Jacob’s, though it was longer, curling nearly to his collar. “When the hell were you going to tell me you were home?”

Shit. Jacob hadn’t felt so helpless since that time he and two others in his unit, including Brett, had been caught and tortured for two days. “I was going to come see you.”

“When?”

“I don’t know.”

Hud turned away, and Jacob felt like he was in enemy territory and didn’t know the terrain. Fucking lost with no one to watch his six, not with Brett dead and gone. “Hud.”

Hud shook his head. “I have to go.” Then he walked away, giving Jacob what he supposed was nothing but a taste of his own medicine.





Chapter 4



Sophie was still at the front desk when Lake Patrol Guy came down the hall a little bit later, his face blank, way too carefully blank.

She knew what that expressionless facade meant. It meant he’d been deeply affected by whatever he’d seen.

She watched him go. Correction, she watched his leanly muscled bod move effortlessly in faded-to-buttery-soft Levi’s that so lovingly cupped his…assets.

And then she was flanked by the girls in the office.

“He’s so damn hot,” Dani whispered. “I mean, he just oozes testosterone and badassness, you know?”

The other office helper, Shelly, hummed her agreement. “Just like his brothers.”

Sophie divided a look between them. “There’s a pack of them?”

“The Kincaids,” Dani said. “That one’s Jacob, the missing Kincaid brother. He’s back.”

Shelly nodded. “Hud looked pissed off about it too.”

“They’re twins,” Dani explained to Sophie’s blank look. “I’m pretty sure they haven’t spoken in years. Not even when Jacob called or came into town to visit his mom.”

“Wonder if Jacob’s seen the new mural at the resort yet,” Shelly mused. “It’s got all the Kincaid siblings on it, including him, which has gotta be weird, coming into town and seeing yourself painted on the side of a building.”

“Yeah,” Dani said dryly. “’Cuz that’s what he’s worried about. Not that he hasn’t seen his twin or his other siblings in years, but what he looks like painted on a wall.”

“Hey, you’ve seen that wall. You know how good he looks.”

Sophie was flummoxed. She knew of the Kincaids; everyone in town did. They ran the ski resort up the road. She’d temped in the business office there for two days last week, answering phones, and she’d seen all of them several times. Gray was the oldest, then Aidan, Hudson, and Kenna.

And now that she thought of it, Hudson and her Lake Patrol Guy—Jacob—had looked alike, very much so. But Jacob was broader and more built, and his hair was military short—a direct contrast to the several-days-old scruff on his jaw. But more than anything, what set the twins apart was the air of danger and authority Jacob emitted.

Not that Hud was a *cat by any means. As a cop and head of ski patrol at the resort, he was tough in his own right, but Jacob was a whole new level of badassery and testosterone.

“Those brothers are hot,” Dani said. “And now that the resort has leased North Beach for the summer to host events, there’s going to be hot guys everywhere—better than any online dating app out there.”

Which meant that Sophie should put the boat up for sale. North Beach’s campground was where she’d been showering, but once summer got into swing with these events and Kincaids everywhere, including Lake Patrol Jacob, it’d be too crowded for her to be able to lie low. And if she sold the boat, she could go anywhere. Except…

She didn’t want to go anywhere. She loved Cedar Ridge.

“You okay, Sophie?” Shelly asked. “You’ve been looking a little green lately.”

No, she wasn’t okay. She was mad at the entire male population, thank you very much, not that she was about to admit such a weakness. Or her secret shame—Lucas had closed her accounts, forced her from her apartment, and as a result, the once-upon-a-time enviably chic, had-her-shit-together Sophie Marren had sunk just about as low as she could get.

So low that all her married friends had—politely, mind you—ditched her for Lucas. And just today she’d been dumped by her book club. On Facebook.

Humiliating.

But she’d made a choice not to care what others thought of her, including Lucas. And yet another choice, she decided on the spot, would be to fix her life. She didn’t need a knight in shining armor. Especially not one with dark, melting eyes who made her feel far more than she wanted to feel.

“Sophie?” Shelly asked, sharing a worried look with Dani.

“It’s nothing,” she said. “I’m fine. I just need caffeine.”

But caffeine didn’t help.

Late that afternoon, Sophie walked to the marina and stared at The Lucas where she’d left it. “I hate you,” she told it.

The kid standing in the booth at the marina gate about twenty feet away started laughing. “Lady, you don’t know your boat very well. The Lucas is awesome.”

“You think?”