Navarro or Not

Chapter Two

So much for the peach being a possibility. Navarro glanced over at Nina, who was studiously ignoring him. That was his invitation to leave, but perversely, he wanted to stay.

It was her roundness, he decided, that he found so delicious. He wanted to take a bite of her—bad. “So, maybe we’ll have to agree to work together.”

She turned to face him. “What do you mean?”

He shrugged. “You’re not happy. We’re not happy. No one’s exactly thrilled about the situation. Valentine’s suing us, you know.”

“She has a right to financial assistance from the father of her child.”

“Maybe. If Last is the father.”

Nina gasped. “How dare you?”

“Hold on there, sparky. We have a right to wonder. Last only saw her one night.”

“Okay.” Nina crossed her arms. “How is saying something like that helping us to work together?”

He scratched his head for a minute, thinking hard. Crockett would handle this moment so much better; he’d just sweep Nina into bed and somehow the problem would solve itself.

No, that thought didn’t make Navarro feel better.

Well, if he was their oldest brother, he’d find some anal-retentive solution to talking Nina down out of her tree.

Or maybe not. Mason had never figured out their next-door neighbor and family friend, Mimi, so it was no use looking to his brother’s example for inspiration.

Nor Last’s. The brother with the lollipop-colored memories of the way their family used to be had kept the brothers hewn to hearth and home to make him happy. Until this latest escapade.

Crockett maybe? Archer? Bandera?

No, no and no.

It was up to him to sort out this huge problem. He could wind up a hero, if he figured out a way to fix it. The family could get back to its version of normal, if he played his cards right.

“Hey,” he said, his voice calm, the way it would sound if he was soothing a skittish mare. “Let’s get back to fixing this bed. Then we’ll talk about the other.”

That would give him time to think.

“Actually, I feel very awkward having you help me,” Nina said. “It feels wrong.”

“You don’t owe me anything—”

“I’m not suggesting that I do,” she snapped. “More like you owe us.”

Navarro cautioned himself to keep his cool. He upgraded her from snippy little peach to fiery. Gently he began sawing at a piece of lumber, keeping straight to the line he’d marked with his knife. “So, this bed means a lot to you.”

“Yes. I’m going to get pregnant in it one day.”

He miscued the saw and went into the hardwood floor. “Damn!” Checking the damage, he said, “We’ll pull the rug over that when I’m finished.”

“It doesn’t matter,” she said, sitting on the floor. “We’re already being charged damages for the room.”

“Really? By whom?”

“Marvella. When the bed broke, it scratched up the floor.”

He glanced under what remained of the frame. “Does seem as if she has a point. So, are…you planning on getting pregnant soon?”

“First, I’d have to find the man, wouldn’t I?” She gave him a pointed look. “And I haven’t met the right one yet.”

“Every day brings a new opportunity,” he said cheerfully.

“Thank you for your opinion, which was unsolicited, I believe.”

He grinned, relieved that there was no boyfriend hanging around her. “So, what if your husband of choice doesn’t want kids? I, myself, for example, do not want children. Nor marriage, but that sort of goes with the territory.”

“Then he wouldn’t be the right man, would he?”

“Now that was a very sensible, librarian-style answer,” Navarro said approvingly. “No messing about. No worrying about broken hearts. Just, when I meet the right man, it will all happen the way I imagine it.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Are you making fun of me?”

“No.” He returned to sawing, waiting for her to comment further, since he’d obviously given her something to yammer back at him about.

But she sat quietly, watching him.

He kind of liked her watching him. To be honest, he liked having her full attention. “I would have thought a cute librarian like you would have already been dragged down to the secret labyrinth of the book stacks by now.”

“I would slap anybody who tried,” she said, her tone even.

“Oh.” He made a mental note not to get slapped.

“No man with he-man tendencies would be the man for me,” she told him. “I like gentlemen.”

Uh-oh. No one was ever going to accuse any of the Jeffersons of being gentle. “So, how did you say this bed ended up in this pitiful condition?”

“Best as I can tell, it happened the night your brother was here.”

He stopped what he was doing and gave her his full attention. “Last would not break a lady’s bed and then leave her to deal with the consequences of having no place to sleep.”

“Please.”

“You don’t know my brother.”

“I don’t have to. I’ve seen all I need to.”

Navarro had to admit his patience was starting to slide out the window. It was a cursed thing, Jefferson patience. Very rare, very mercurial and, sometimes, very hard to keep under one’s hat. “Did your sister say that Last was responsible?”

“I think she felt that accusing him of the baby matter was sufficient. I, however, feel that he should be held accountable for everything he’s done.”

Okay. Navarro realized that facts had to be faced. He was in a room, developing hots for the only woman on the planet who seemed to be secretly designed as his nemesis. There was no happy meeting point between them; there would be no sweet build up to the happy climax. “Moving on,” he said. “This should be fairly easy to finish.”

“Good.”

He ground his teeth at the “And well it should!” tone. It so reminded him of being in the library with old Mrs. Farklewell. Every time the Jefferson boys were in the school library, they heard a constant litany of “Shh! Shh!” in the tone that only a first-chair violinist and a librarian could muster.

“Well, look who we have here!”

Navarro glanced up at the woman in the doorway. She wore a lot of makeup and seemed very pleased to see him. Marvella.

“A Jefferson.” She fairly crowed. “Cleaning up the mess baby brother left behind.”

The hair under Navarro’s hat started itching. “I’m cleaning up a mess. That’s all I have to say.”

She stroked the black kitten she held in her hands. “And getting acquainted with your future sister-in-law. How nice!”

Navarro and Nina glanced at each other.

“Family time is so important. You feel free to stay as long as you like. Which Jefferson are you, by the way?”

“Navarro, ma’am,” he said automatically, the polite habit coming hard after many years of Mason knocking manners into their heads.

“Well, Navarro, there is a rodeo coming up.” She smiled at him. “You know how I love those Jefferson brothers riding for my salon.”

“I—”

“Someone’s got to pay for this damage,” she said, the expression on her face full of faux concern. “Such a shame to scar up a nice hardwood floor this way. I believe one of the screws even embedded itself in that wall,” she said, pointing. “You know, Last is the first Jefferson brother who’s come in here and treated my home like a shabby saloon. The rest of your brothers seem to prefer the heart-shaped spa.” She shook her head. “But maybe he prefers dry land. Oh, well, no matter. I’ll leave a note at the desk saying you’re to have run of the house while you’re here. Think about my offer.”

She glided from the doorway.

Navarro turned to face Nina. The peach had gone truly pale. Putting the saw down, he sat on the floor. “Holy smokes, she’s evil.”

“On that, we can agree.” Nina nodded at him.

“So we need to play on the same team, against her. Don’t you think?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Because that’s what she’s expecting. She wants you and I to band together.”

“To what purpose?”

“I don’t know. Maybe so you’ll pay for the room damages. She can charge you more than me, obviously. Librarians don’t make that much.”

“So I’ll pay the damages.”

She looked at him, her blue eyes hopeful. “It’s nice of you to offer without me having to ask you to pay for your brother’s mess.”

“You know,” Navarro said, “it takes two people in a bed to make something happen.”

“That would be the premise,” she agreed. “And something happened.”

“But I think your theory is too obvious,” Navarro said thoughtfully, trying not to stare at her ankles as she crossed them delicately in front of her. “I think Marvella would rather see us at each other’s throats. Divide and conquer.”

“Elaborate, but possible,” Nina said, nodding. “What would she gain?”

“Two pawns. If there are bad feelings between us, Marvella is free to work her witchery without us being the wiser.”

“You may have a point,” Nina said reluctantly. “In fact, it has always been the enemy’s way to weaken by division, according to many of the great moments in history.”

“Exactly.” Navarro held out his hand. “Let’s shake on working together.”

“I don’t know,” Nina said. “We’re related now, by Valentine’s baby. Shaking seems quite weird.”

But she put her hand in his and, later, after Navarro had time to review his actions, he would often wonder if this was the moment that changed his destiny.

He pulled Nina toward him and kissed her square on the lips.

He waited for the smacking he so righteously deserved and which she’d all but promised any man who tried to drag her into the metaphorical book stacks—but, to his amazement, Nina put her little hand behind his head and held him as she kissed him with a heated peachiness a man could only pray he experienced once in his life.

One shot. That was usually all a man ever got at something like this. Navarro was not known for wasting time or energy. Pulling Nina into his lap, he kissed her deeply, enjoying her passion and her surrender. Maybe all the more sweet because it was wrong, Navarro kissed her hard, fast, wanting as much of her as he could get.

“Ahem!”

Nina jumped out of his lap like a timed-release spring, fleeing a good yard away from him. “Damn it, Crockett!” Navarro said. “What the hell?”

“I might say the same. You were supposed to be carrying some lumber up here, bro. I thought maybe Marvella had you in her clutches.”

“Not quite.” Navarro cursed his empty lap, wanting Nina back immediately. He turned to look at Nina—who was staring at Crockett.

“Twins?” she said. “Twins?”

Crockett grinned. “Two for the price of one.”

Navarro winced. “Not smooth, bro.”

Crockett glanced at him. “Maybe I should start marking off some wood and keep my mouth shut.”

“Excellent idea.” Navarro looked at Nina, realizing unhappiness was her key emotion. “Hey,” he said softly.

“No,” she said automatically. She shook her head. “No.”

Regret filled Navarro that the moment was lost. But it had been sweet while it lasted—and if he ever got a chance to recapture it, he was going to go for it.

Consequences be damned.

NINA COULDN’T BELIEVE her eyes. There were two versions of the man she’d just kissed putting her charmed bed back together! The only way she could tell them apart right now was by shirt color. And personality. Crockett was the brash, outspoken one. Navarro was a methodical thinker. Which should make him boring—but he wasn’t. Her lips were still on fire from his kiss!

How embarrassing to plant herself in his lap—despite all her good intentions to the contrary! Maybe that was part of his plan, to show that neither of the Cakes sisters could be counted on not to fall under a man’s spell of temptation.

She stared at the brothers’ industriously bent heads and decided that probably wasn’t the case. They seemed more hot-blooded than deceptive. Although I wouldn’t count out the deceptive part, either.

Okay, she just had to never lose her mind around Navarro again. And then everything would be fine.

“Friends?” he asked her.

“I’m not sure,” she replied.

“I’m voting for kissing cousins,” Crockett said with a grin. “Now that we’re all related, anyway.”

Navarro slapped him upside the head. Nina smiled. “We’re not related yet,” she told him.

“We’re related to Valentine’s baby,” Crockett replied. “And anyway, once you’ve kissed a Jefferson, you’ll never be able to—ow!” He pulled back from his brother’s slap. “It’s true, all the women say it!”

“Say what?” Nina asked.

“Nothing,” Navarro said.

“No, tell me. I want to know.”

Navarro sighed. “The saying goes that ‘Once you’ve kissed a Jefferson man, you’ll kiss anything he wants you to.”’

Nina laughed out loud. “Is that a saying you brothers made up? To create your own mystique?”

Navarro shrugged.

Crockett shook his head solemnly. “We’ve never had to toot our own horns.”

“Oh, brother.” Nina stared out the window. “Hey, look!”

The brothers came to stand beside her to stare down into the courtyard. Marvella was talking to Valentine, who appeared to be upset.

“I’m going down there,” Nina said, but Navarro held her back.

“Hold on,” he said. “Let’s be good spies.”

“My sister needs me!”

“No. She needs something, but not necessarily you butting into her business.”

She pulled herself out of his hands. “Since when did you become my guardian?” she demanded, keeping a watch on Valentine who was now wiping at her eyes.

“Tried to tell you,” Crockett said. “Once you’ve kissed one of us, you’ll never want to let go of him.”

“That’s not what you said,” Nina said, outraged.

“I’m paraphrasing.” Crockett shrugged. “Most women in your position would be happy right now.”

“My position? What position is that?”

Crockett never took his eyes off Valentine. Nina had a feeling he was talking by rote, ladling the same ol’ bunch of nonsense the brothers probably gave every woman.

“Me and Navarro and a pretty bed all in a room with you. Most women would be happy. They might even try to fulfill some kind of twin fantasy.”

Nina gasped, and Navarro put his hand over her mouth. Her eyes widened at the feel of his arm around her shoulders, his hard length lined up against her back.

“Shh,” he told her. “Let Crockett think.”

“Let him think!” she said, pulling free. “All he does is…is talk about sex.”

Navarro nodded. “That’s what a man does when he’s thinking. But trust me, there’s some serious busywork going on under that hat.”

“I need to be with my sister,” Nina said.

“No,” Crockett said, waving her back.

“You don’t care what happens to her! You don’t care that she’s upset!”

“Sure we do,” Navarro said. “She might be carrying Jefferson goods.”

Nina whipped around to stare into Navarro’s eyes. “Goods?”

“Okay,” Crockett said. “Here’s the deal. Marvella wants Valentine to do something she doesn’t want to. Valentine is upset. I’m going to nonchalantly stroll outside for a smoke.”

“You don’t smoke,” Navarro said.

“Sure I do, for this charade. And Marvella’s going to think I’m you,” he told Navarro. “So don’t blow my cover by letting her know there’s two of us in the house.”

“What do you want me to do?”

“Keep your eye on the peach. But don’t do anything else, because I might need a rescue. Listen in case I shout.”

“What’s the point to this?” Nina asked.

“Nemo salis satis sapit,” Crockett said, heading out the door.

“What?” Nina said. “What did he just mumble?”

“Two heads are better than one, loosely translated,” Navarro said, leaning so he could spy from behind the curtain more easily. “Sometimes Crockett likes Latin. As do I.”

“You guys are really weird,” Nina said. “I don’t know if having two heads is a plus for you.”

“But you liked kissing me. Admit it,” he said, staring down as his brother entered the courtyard, whistling innocently.

“Would you stop?” Nina demanded. “That’s exactly what your brother did. Talk about meaningful things while your mind is on something else.”

“We have excellent focus,” Navarro said. “And we’ve been good way too long.”

“Whatever.” Nina watched Marvella greet Crockett. “Think she’ll notice he has on a different shirt?”

“No. No one gets past the pretty face.”

Nina rolled her eyes.

“Besides, he’d just say he changed, and Marvella wouldn’t doubt that because a cowboy always carries a change.”

“I wonder why,” Nina said dryly.

“Hey, we’re trying to help you here, if you hadn’t noticed.”

“What’s Latin for ‘I’m not exactly buying that’?”

He ran a finger slowly up the back of her neck and Nina shivered. “So tell me again about how much you liked kissing me.”

“I grade your ego an A-plus,” Nina murmured. “But clearly it was you who liked kissing me since you can’t stop talking about it.”

Outside, Crockett plucked a rose and handed it to Marvella, which she took with a laugh. To the casual bystander, it would appear to be any other Sunday afternoon, passed pleasantly by people who enjoyed each other’s company.

Only the flash of Valentine’s face as she glanced up at Nina’s window gave away the mirage.

“Something’s not right,” Nina murmured.

“I know. We’re going to help you fix it. You’re new to town. We have to spot you some lag time on learning how to outwit Marvella.”

“But that’s my sister!”

“It’s okay,” Navarro said. “Trust me.” Then he made her shiver again as he put an arm around her. “So back to the kiss we shared—”

“A mistake of epic proportions.”

“Really?” He turned to face her.

“Yes.”

“So you’ll not be kissing anything of mine I ask—”

“No.”

He raised his brows. “Well, that is new.”

“You’re not fooling me, Navarro Jefferson. Any woman with an ounce of sanity would listen to the bull you’re peddling and say, ‘No, thank you.”’

“I like your sense of self-respect.” He turned her head gently so she was looking down into the courtyard again. “Now watch Crockett close the deal.”

Nina watched, amazed, as Crockett led Valentine away from Marvella, apparently with Marvella’s approval. He handed Valentine a hanky out of his pocket, which she gratefully took.

Two minutes later Crockett and Valentine walked into the bedroom.

“Are you all right?” Nina asked, rushing over to her baby sister.

“I’m fine.” Valentine sank into the only chair in the room, while everyone else gathered around her. “And don’t ask me to talk about it, because I can’t.”

“Why not?” Nina demanded.

“I just can’t.” Valentine turned sad eyes on Crockett. “Thanks for coming to my rescue.”

“I like gratitude in a woman,” Crockett said. “Maybe we should try for a foursome.”

To Nina’s surprise, Valentine giggled. “Pass. One Jefferson was all I needed.”

“See?” Crockett said to Nina.

“Okay. Hold on a minute here,” Nina said. “Everybody hear the new rule. No more joking about sexual matters. It’s in very poor taste, considering the…situation.”

Valentine and the two men stared at her.

“Whew, that’s the librarian in her coming out,” Navarro said. “No sense of humor. Where’s your bun?”

Nina swept a hand over her chin-length hair. “Buns are passé for librarians. Why are you all taking this so lightly?”

“So we don’t cry?” Valentine said. “Personally, I prefer their way of talking about it to yours, Nina. No offense or anything. But ever since you got here, you’ve been acting like I should be trundled off to a nunnery, and you’re starting to make me nervous.”

“Nervous?” Nina glanced at Navarro.

“There’s a good chance you’re repressed,” he told her.

“I’m just a woman trying to take care of her family,” Nina said sternly. “I take care of my family differently than you take care of yours. Certain matters deserve respect, and pregnancy is one of them.”

“Yes, but I swear I’ve developed a twitch since you arrived,” Valentine said. “Nina, I’m never going to be able to live up to your standards.”

“Ah,” Navarro said. “Now we’re getting to the deep issues.”

“What are you talking about?” Nina said. “We’re sisters. We have no deep issues to overcome.”

“Yes, we do,” Valentine said. “Even though I love you. Can I have a glass of water? I’m not feeling too well.”

“I’ll get it.” Crockett sprang to do her bidding.

Navarro pulled Nina into the circle of his arms. “Don’t worry,” he said. “Everything is going to be fine.”

“Nothing is going to be fine!” she insisted, but she didn’t try to pull away. “My sister is unmarried and pregnant, and our heirloom bed is broken. How is everything going to be fine?”

“Because,” Navarro said, putting his lips against her temple. “I’ve decided you need me.”

Valentine laughed.

Nina bristled. “I have never needed anything less.”

“That’s not what you were saying when we kissed.”

“You kissed him?” Valentine asked. “You know what that means, don’t you?”

“I know, I know. It means that, in the future, I’ll kiss anything he wants me to.”

Valentine frowned. “No, Nina. It means that he’ll love you and leave you.”

Nina’s skin turned cold. “He can’t love me and leave me. We will never have those feelings for each other. In fact, the only reason we’ll ever be on speaking terms is because of the baby.”