Chapter 4

Later that evening, Jarrod walked up to the main house to check on Jaq. He knew she was upset and hoped they could talk things through. There was a solution to this, they just needed to find it. Jarrod wasn't giving up.

He walked into the house and looked for Jaq. She wasn't in the kitchen or the study. He would check the parlor and if she wasn't there, he'd have to wait until tomorrow. He didn't think he should go searching through the bedrooms upstairs. As he rounded the corner to the parlor, he saw Jaq taking a long drink from a bottle, then she held the bottle to her chest. She stumbled around and Jarrod could tell she was drunk. He wasn't sure what he should do when she turned and saw him.

"Wanna drink?" she asked, holding out the bottle out to him. Jarrod walked toward her and took the bottle. He smelled it and realized it was scotch.

"My father's favorite. He made sure I could drink scotch," she explained, her speech slightly slurred. "No daughter of mine will sip wine and sherry only. If you can drink scotch and not make a face, you'll do well in life." Jaq said trying to imitate a man's voice.

Jarrod was trying to keep the smile from his face but was failing. Jaq noticed and smiled back.

"Take a drink counselor or give it back," she said, holding out her hand. Jarrod took a swig keeping his eyes on Jaq's. He appreciated the burn as the liquid traveled down his throat.

"My turn," Jaq said. Jarrod didn't think she should have any more, but he wanted to be careful and not antagonize her.

"How about if we sit down before you fall down?" Jarrod suggested, still holding the bottle in one hand while taking her elbow in another. Surprisingly, Jaq allowed him to lead her to the settee and they sat down.

"Jaq, I know you're disappointed about today," Jarrod began.

"No, I'm not," Jaq said forcefully. "I'm mad. And I wish I could wipe the smirk off Joe Talbott's stupid face. I wish…" she paused. "I wish…"

"You wish?" Jarrod questioned when she didn't continue. He noticed Jaq blinking back tears.

Jaq shook her head reaching for the bottle again and Jarrod relinquished it, although he didn't think Jaq should drink much more.

She took another long swig and then leaned back against the settee, cradling the bottle to her.

"We'll figure this out, Jaq. I promise," Jarrod said softly, gently tugging the bottle away. Jaq allowed him to do so then crossed her hands behind her head and her feet at the ankles. Jarrod couldn't help but notice that Jaq was an attractive woman. He'd noticed before but just in passing. He now allowed his eyes to travel over the length of her and appreciated the curves. He remembered the first time he saw her and how his mind described her figure as plump. He now was letting his mind enjoy that description. His eyes met hers and he found she was watching him. Her blue eyes held his. He knew a small amount of embarrassment at being caught and wondered if Jaq was offended.

"I know what you're doing," Jaq said, smiling. Jarrod's eyes narrowed.

"Oh?"

"You're trying to keep me from drinking the entire bottle," she said as she sat up. She leaned in closer to Jarrod, so close that their noses were almost touching. She kept her eyes on his as she reached down and tugged at the bottle. When Jarrod wouldn't release it, her face broke into an easy grin, delighting in the small game of tug of war. Jarrod smiled as well, enjoying the light moment between them. Jaq then leaned in and placed her lips on Jarrod's. He didn't move but his senses came alive at having her so close. Jaq opened her mouth and pushed her tongue against Jarrod's lips. He found he couldn't resist and allowed her to deepen the kiss between them. He was enjoying her boldness, but he also knew he couldn't let things get out of hand. Especially since she might not realize what she was doing. He selfishly enjoyed a few more moments, not having had this type of physical contact in so long. He started to push her away gently when Jaq broke the kiss.

"You're good at that," was all she said. She took a lingering look at his mouth, then she stood and left the room. Jarrod watched her walk up the stairs, hearing a door open and close. He took a deep breath and then another drink from the bottle before placing it on the small table in front of him. He left the house and went back to the small cottage where he was staying to think more about how to get Jaq out of this mess.

The next morning, Jaq awoke with a raging headache. She knew she'd drank too much, and she also remembered she'd kissed Jarrod. She sat up and put her hands on her face. She hoped she hadn't damaged their friendship. In truth, she wasn't thinking of Jarrod at all when she kissed him. Yesterday had been her wedding anniversary. Between that and the way the meeting had gone with Talbott, Jaq was sad and wanted to shut out the world. She wanted Paul there with her to help her through this and she wanted him to hold her, make her feel safe again. She was only going to have a glass or two of scotch but decided to forgo the glass and drink from the bottle instead. She didn't think about Jarrod coming to the main house.

Jaq sighed as she fixed a bath and cleaned up. She couldn't take back the kiss and she was debating on whether she should mention it to Jarrod. She really didn't want to discuss it. She didn't want to have to explain the reasoning behind it and then have him look at her with pity or become angry because she wasn't thinking of him. In her heart though she knew Jarrod, of all people, would understand.

She dressed and then went downstairs to fix something to eat. It was still fairly early and when she glanced out the back door that overlooked the cottage, she noticed the light burning in the window. Jaq walked toward the cottage and knocked on the door.

Jarrod took just a moment to answer. He was already dressed for the day and Jaq noticed the look he had in his eyes was kind.

"I was about to fix some breakfast when I noticed the light in the window. Are you hungry?" Jaq asked.

"I could eat," Jarrod responded. "Let me finish up a few things here and I'll join you."

Jaq walked back to the house and Jarrod hesitated slightly before closing the door to allow himself to watch as she walked away. He knew he needed to get his thoughts under control. The kiss from Jaq last night didn't mean there was anything between them any more than the kiss they'd shared in Stockton had. And, there was a chance that Jaq didn't remember doing it. Jarrod decided he'd let her take the lead on whether they discussed it or not.

Jarrod walked into the house and saw Jaq at the stove finishing up some scrambled eggs. She divided the eggs between the two plates and carried those to the table. Jarrod had poured them each a cup of coffee. They sat down and ate in comfortable silence for a few minutes.

"What do we do now?" Jaq asked. Jarrod raised his head to look at her. He wasn't sure if she was talking about Talbott or the kiss.

"I think we should keep looking through your father's papers to see what we can find," Jarrod responded watching Jaq's face for any indication she was talking about the kiss and wanting to discuss it.

Jaq nodded. She finished her meal and then took her plate to the sink. She turned to Jarrod.

"I just remembered the root cellar."

"Root cellar?" Jarrod asked.

"There's a root cellar just off the kitchen. I never go down there because I don't like the steep stairs, but I remember my father going down there a lot. Mother always said it was his thinking spot. Maybe he stored something down there?"

Jarrod shrugged. "It's worth a try."

Jaq showed Jarrod where the root cellar was. The door was hidden by a large rug and was difficult for Jaq to open. Jarrod took a turn and was able to open the door, and started down the stairs, taking a small lamp with him. He glanced back at Jaq who was looking at the stairs with some trepidation.

"You don't have to go down here. I can tell you what I find."

Jaq shook her head. "No, I should go. I might see something that you wouldn't recognize."

Jaq took a deep breath and followed Jarrod. Once he reached the bottom of the steps he turned and held his hand out to Jaq to help. She took his hand and then released it when she was on solid ground. Jarrod sat the lamp down and found a second one to light. Between the two there was plenty of light to see the small space. What was probably intended as a root cellar in the beginning looked to be more of a storage space now. There were several boxes and Jarrod and Jaq began looking through them. They mostly contained old books. One box was filled with what looked like promising information so Jarrod suggested they take it back up to the study so they could go through it.

Jaq started up the stairs first and Jarrod purposefully kept his eyes on the box as he followed. He couldn't let himself think that there could be anything more with Jaq than their working relationship or their beginning friendship. He enjoyed both and the thought of losing either made him sad. He recognized his marriage to Beth had not turned out as he'd hoped it would and while he'd still had needs, he was generally too stressed or exhausted during their marriage to think too much about how those needs had been unfulfilled for so long. After Jaq's kiss the previous night, he had started to feel like a young man again and his desires were strong. He couldn't afford to lose control though and risk damaging what he and Jaq had.

They reached the top of the stairs and Jarrod sat the box down so he could close the door to the cellar. It was clear whoever had ransacked Jaq's house the year before hadn't known about the cellar and they didn't want to make it easy for them to find should the decide to return.

The two worked for the next hour going through the box but it looked as though they would come up empty. Again. Jaq was incredibly frustrated. How was it her father didn't have a copy of the deed to the land? Maybe it was stolen but Jaq didn't think so. Her gut told her that her father had hidden it somewhere safe. She just needed to find it. She took off her spectacles and rubbed her eyes.

Jarrod had noticed that Jaq now wore her spectacles and couldn't help but think she looked adorable in them. He wouldn't say that to her, of course, but she wished she didn't feel so self-conscious about wearing them.

Jaq glanced over at Jarrod and couldn't help but appreciate his profile. He wore a determined look as he searched through the papers and his firm jaw was set, showing her, he was just as dedicated to finding something as she was. She allowed her gaze to go to the rolled up sleeves, revealing tan arms and his hands…his long fingers…and when he'd held her hand to steady her at the foot of the stairs in the cellar, she'd noticed a few callouses on his hands. Most would probably think his hands would be soft given his line of work, but she knew he grew up on a ranch. She couldn't imagine him not putting in some sort of manual labor from time to time. Jarrod Barkley was a skilled lawyer and she was thankful he was on her side. She had to wonder what other skills the man possessed. Kissing was definitely one of them. She wasn't lying when she'd told him the night before he was good at it.

Jaq had decided she didn't in any way regret kissing him, but she also knew it was unfair to him as her mind had firmly been on Paul. She'd loved Paul with all her heart and some days she didn't feel she could take another breath knowing he was no longer there with her. She remembered well their wedding night and how he'd been gentle, making sure she'd enjoy their time as much as he would. Once they were comfortable with their physical union, their time together was more passionate, and they never could get enough of one another. There was that time in the woods on the way back from –

"Jaq?"

Jarrod's voice brought Jaq back to the present and she cleared her throat.

"Yes?" she asked, hoping she didn't sound as breathless as she felt.

"Do you know where Tonn Bank and Loan is?" holding up a bank book to show her.

Jaq came to stand beside Jarrod, and he couldn't help but get a whiff of her hair. It smelled like roses and he took a deep breath. Jaq took the bank book Jarrod held in his hands and looked at it.

"Yes, it's in a small town about ten miles to the South. We'd go there when I was a child periodically because Father didn't like going to the bank here in town very often. I didn't think much about it then because I just enjoyed the trip there and back. Knowing what I do now about Talbott, I understand. Do you think the deed could be at this other bank?"

Jarrod took back the bank book and flipped through it. There was a small envelope that had been folded into the back. He opened it and smiled. He held a key up which would belong to a safe deposit box.

"I say we take a little trip today."

Jaq returned the smile.