Fringe Benefits (7 page)

“Really bad. Have I mentioned the noise?”

“Nate…”

Getting down on one knee, he clasped his hands. “Or the smell?” He raised his hands as if seeking divine intervention. “Dear God, the smell!” When she laughed, he knew he had her. He clasped his hands and held them to his chest. “Do I get this gorgeous basement as my new home?”

“I should be ‘deaf to pleading and excuses. Nor tears nor prayers shall purchase.’ ”

It was his turn to laugh as he got to his feet. “What if I told you that women who quote Shakespeare make me hot?”

“I’ll have to reconsider letting you have my basement.”

“Then women who quote Shakespeare no longer make me hot.”

“Good.” Dani glanced around her basement. “So you’ll take it?”

“Oh, yeah,” Nate replied.

*   *   *

Although Dani was happy, she was also terrified. “I haven’t even told you the rent yet.”

“Can’t be any worse than the long-term place. Trust me, this is a huge step up in my world.” His smile slowly bowed to a frown, but the spark of humor remained in his eyes. “There’s only one problem that I see.”

How easy it would be to become accustomed to the way he loved to tease her. “Problem? Hmmm…” She deliberately waited a few moments. “Sorry. I can’t think of a single problem… besides having to use the upstairs kitchen from time to time.”

“It’s not that.”

Although she would probably regret asking, she did anyway. “Then what’s the problem?”

Nate grabbed her wrist and tugged her toward him hard enough she ran right into his chest. He slipped his arms around her waist, giving her little choice on what to do with her arms—either shove him away with them or loop them around his neck.

Dani chose the latter.

“The problem is”—he kissed her nose—“I won’t be able to keep my hands off you.”

Before she could say a word, his mouth was on hers.

She’d almost forgotten how wonderful his lips felt pressed against hers, how much those lips could make fire shoot through every limb. And when his tongue tickled the seam of her lips, she stopped thinking and tried to just… feel.

Her heart hammered a rough beat as her tongue rubbed against his. No man had ever made her so hot so quickly. Her breasts tingled as her nipples tightened, and her core throbbed with want.

The kiss ended only long enough for her to catch a breath. At least her pride was saved since Nate panted for air as well. Then his mouth was on hers again, his tongue probing and teasing and raising her desire to a fever pitch.

Dani couldn’t stop a soft moan when he slid his hands down to cup her backside and pulled her pelvis hard against his, letting her feel his erection.

Nate kissed his way across her cheek and traced the ridges of her ear with his tongue before burying his lips against the sensitive skin of her neck. Each little nip and soothing lick sent her head whirling.

“I want you, Dani,” he whispered, his voice ragged and full of need.

Good sense came back in a flood that felt like being dunked in cold water. “Stop.”

Easing back, he knit his brows and stared down at her. “What’s wrong?”

“J-just stop.” She put her hands against his chest and pushed.

He only resisted for a heartbeat or two before releasing her. “I don’t understand.”

With trembling legs, Dani made her way to the stairs. “We can’t do this again, Nate.”

“Are you saying you don’t want me?”

She let out a sad little snort. “Of course I want you.”

“And you know I want you. So what’s the problem?”

“Problem? Try
problems
.”

“You’re still stuck on the you’re-my-boss crap?”

“It’s not crap!” Fisting her hands to keep from shouting, she tried to explain her tumbling emotions. “I
am
your boss. I’d think that growing up with a teacher would’ve ingrained the teaching hierarchy in you.”

He shrugged. “Department head really isn’t that big a deal. You know it, and I know it. I sure didn’t see any rules about teachers being forbidden from dating other teachers. Aren’t there even some married couples teaching at Douglas?”

He had her there. “There are. And you’re right; there’s no rule against it. But there is common sense. You’re new, Nate. The first two years are probationary. You don’t want to give them any reason to look at you too hard. Sure, being department head isn’t a big deal, but it’s important to
me
. I want to move up in the world, hopefully be a principal one day. You think the school board would approve me for any administrative job if I got involved with someone under my supervision?”

Nate’s lips thinned to a tight line.

“And you and I both know that there’s also a difference in our ages, and not just a year or two.”

“Not enough to matter to me,” he insisted.

“It’s eight years, Nate. That’s a lot in my book.”

The frustration of desire unquenched was bad enough, but now she had to deal with something she wasn’t at all used to.

Self-pity.

Dani folded her arms under her breasts. “I don’t want to fight about this anymore.”

“We’re not fighting,” he said. “We’re…
discussing
.”

“We’re
fighting
,” she insisted. “Which is exactly why we can’t do this. We have to work together, and now we have to live together. It’s better if we don’t complicate things. Okay?”

He reached his hand out. “Dani, please.”

“I mean it. We can’t do this. Not now. Not ever.”

Nate heaved a sigh before he gave her a curt nod. “Fine. We’ll do it your way. I’ll be nothing but your colleague and your tenant. Happy now?”

Dani nodded, glad she’d won.

So why did she feel like crying?

The next Saturday, Dani stepped out on her porch, cradling her cup of coffee between her hands. It was moving day for Nate, and she was worried about meeting his brother.

A blue pickup was backing into the driveway as he signaled directions to the driver. A walnut bedroom set, a thick mattress, and a box spring were piled in the truck bed. Since the basement was furnished in every room but the bedroom, those items would be all he would need to settle in.

“That’s it!” Nate smiled as he hopped up the porch steps. “Do I need a key?” His smile was better than caffeine to perk her up. “Or did you leave the door open?”

“No key needed this time,” she replied. “But I do have your spare. It’s sitting on the kitchen island with the garage door remote. There’s a Post-it note on it with the keypad code.”

A brunette with short, stylish hair exited the passenger side of the pickup while a tall blond guy jumped out of the driver’s side. The man looked like Nate with glasses, which meant he had to be his brother. She blinked, trying to clear her sleep-fogged brain so she could remember his name.

Patrick.

At least she wasn’t so old her memory was starting to go.

The woman came to join Dani and Nate on the porch while Patrick popped open the truck’s tailgate.

“You must be Nate’s mom.” Dani smiled, not sure whether she should shake the woman’s hand. Since she hadn’t known his mother was coming, she wasn’t at all prepared for what to say.

“Guilty,” the woman replied, returning the smile. “I’m Jackie Brennan. You must be Danielle.”

“Guilty,” Dani echoed. “Would you like a cup of coffee?”

“Oh, hell yeah.” Jackie nodded toward the truck. “Nate, go help your brother.” Then she glanced to Dani. “Where’s the door to the apartment?”

Having no idea what Nate had told his mother about the basement suite, Dani could only reply honestly. Thankfully, he beat her to the punch.

“There isn’t a separate entry, Mom. We can just carry stuff through the front door.” Directing his attention to Dani, he added, “We brought extra rugs to put on the floor to protect it.”

“Thanks, but there’s no need,” Dani replied. “Robert brought over shrink wrap that movers use about half an hour ago. It’s ready to go.”

Damn
. Now Jackie probably thought that she was OCD about her home. She was, but she didn’t want to start off on the wrong foot with Nate’s mother.

“Good thinking.” Jackie’s tone seemed genuine. “Now, about that coffee…”

Relieved yet still nervous, Dani led Jackie to her kitchen. After setting down her own mug, she grabbed another from the cabinet and filled it. She slid it in front of Jackie, who’d taken a seat on one of the barstools that pulled up to the kitchen island.

Dani put the ceramic container with sweetener closer to her guest. “Would you rather have sugar?”

“No, the pink stuff’s great.” Tearing two packets open, Jackie let the white powder sluice into her mug. “Do you have any half-and-half?”

“Can’t drink coffee without it.” Dani retrieved the carton from the refrigerator and set it next to the sweeteners. She also fetched a clean spoon. “Can I get you some breakfast? I have cereal. There’s oatmeal or—”

Jackie waved the question away. “Thanks, but no. Patrick and I stopped on the drive over. The coffee’s great, though.”

Silence reigned between them until Jackie had taken a few sips of her drink. Cradling her cup much the same way Dani did, Jackie let her gaze bore through Dani. “So you’re Nate’s boss?”

“I’m his department head. You were a teacher, right?”

Jackie nodded. “I have to admit, I’m a little… concerned.”

Cocking her head, Dani set her nearly empty mug aside. “Concerned? Why?”

“This is Nate’s first job.”

“And?”

“I don’t want him living with you if you’re going to be thinking about him as an employee while he’s here.”

Unsure of what Jackie was implying, Dani had to ask, “Are you telling me Nate is different in his personal life than at school? Should I be worried about noisy parties or—”

Another wave of Jackie’s hand dismissed the thought. “No. No. Nothing like that. I just know how hard that first year of teaching can be. I want him to have a place he can relax and not worry about keeping on that ‘teacher mask.’ Make sense?”

This, Dani understood. “Yep. Sure does. He can be himself here. No worries.”

“If he has to see you every single time he comes home…” The thought was left hanging in the air.

Part of Dani wanted to reply with typical sarcasm.
He can’t see me if I’m upstairs. Or doing laundry. Or out in the yard. Or plain not home.
But it probably wasn’t a good thing to piss off Nate’s mom when they’d just met. “I’m sure we’ll learn to give each other space. Nate didn’t seem to mind that there isn’t a kitchen in the basement.”

Jackie’s eyes flew wide. “Wait… what?”

“The suite doesn’t have a full kitchen, but—”

“He won’t have a kitchen?” Jackie hopped off the barstool and hurried away, leaving her barely touched cup of coffee behind. “Please excuse me, but I need to talk to Nate.”

She was out the door before Dani could explain.

Great
.
It only took two short minutes to make Jackie Brennan hate me.

*   *   *

“Uh-oh. Here comes trouble.”

Nate was trying to hold on to the dresser and had absolutely no idea what had made Patrick stop and issue that warning. While he stood on the driveway, Patrick was supposed to be lifting the other end down off the truck. As it was, it seemed like Nate was bearing all the weight. “C’mon, Pat. I don’t have time for teasing. This sucker’s heavy. Let’s get it out of the truck.”

“Nathaniel, may I have a word with you?” From the volume of his mother’s question, she had to be standing right behind him.

Not that he could see her. His cheek was pressed against the dresser as he held up his end. “A little busy, Mom.”

“There’s no kitchen?”

“Mom… kinda busy here.” At least she held the door open for him. When he and Patrick reached the basement door, Nate said, “Need a breather, Pat. Put it down for a second.”

“Sure thing.”

Once Nate had a moment to rest his arms and gather his thoughts, he finally turned to his mother. “There’s a kitchenette. It’ll be fine.”

Patrick snorted. “Like Mom would know whether it’s a good kitchen or not. We all know she can’t cook to save her life. Have you forgotten the first Thanksgiving with Mark?”

A smile spread over Nate’s face. “Forget that fiasco? Never.”

“What happened?” Dani asked.

Since he hadn’t seen her come up behind him, he jumped at her question.

Her hand settled gently on his arm for a quick moment, and she offered him a sweet smile. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

He tossed her a wink in return. “No worries.”

“So tell me about Thanksgiving.”

Jackie folded her arms under her breasts as her eyes shot daggers at her sons. “Hasn’t that story grown stale by now?”

“Not in the least,” Patrick replied before glancing at Dani. “She set the turkey on fire. Nate had to jerk the smoke detector off the wall to get it to stop blaring at us.”

“We ended up eating side dishes for Thanksgiving dinner,” Nate added. “And my stepfather wasn’t even scared away by it. He actually proposed to her that day.”

“The man’s obviously a glutton for punishment,” Patrick said before Jackie playfully punched his upper arm.

Had his mother not been standing right there, Nate had no doubt that Dani would have burst out laughing. As it was, she was pursing her lips tightly, and her eyes were bright. In the time he’d spent with her, he’d enjoyed her sense of humor. Hopefully his mother would learn to enjoy it as well, because he planned on seeing exactly where his attraction to Dani might lead.

He just had to convince Dani to give him a chance first.

“We should get this downstairs so we can get the bed next,” Nate said. “I need a place to sleep tonight that doesn’t have as many lumps as Mom’s mashed potatoes.”

Jackie let out an indignant gasp. “Who decided this was pick-on-Jackie day?”

“Didn’t you hear?” Patrick asked, tossing a wink to Dani. “Congress passed a resolution that every Saturday is pick-on-Jackie day!” He hefted up his end of the dresser. “Let’s go. You’re slacking, little brother.”

With a grunt, Nate lifted his end. At least the dresser was the only truly heavy piece of furniture. The rest would be easy. Not that there was a lot to move anyway. The basement had great furniture, and he almost felt guilty that he was going to be the one to break it all in.

There had been a small quarrel between him and Dani over the rent. What she’d proposed had seemed ludicrously low, and Nate, wanting to be fair, told her what he thought he should pay. They finally settled on a price somewhere near the middle.

He was getting the better end of the deal, and he damn well knew it. He also appreciated that she clearly remembered how difficult it was living on a first-year-teacher’s salary. The price was more than reasonable, especially for a furnished suite in such a great house.

After they set the dresser in the bedroom, Nate waited while Patrick bounded back up the stairs. His mother stayed downstairs, a familiar expression fixed on her face that said she needed to dispense what she always thought was worldly wisdom. Nate would let her have her say; then he’d probably set her opinion aside.

Although Jackie Brennan was a very intelligent woman, she often let that intelligence get overrun by her emotions, especially where her sons were concerned. What she had to remember was that Nate and Patrick weren’t children anymore. It was no longer necessary for her to protect them; she needed to let go.

“You really think this is a good idea, Nate?” his mother asked.

At least Dani had remained upstairs and didn’t have to hear the worry in Jackie’s voice. He sure didn’t want her to think his mother’s concern was personal. “Yes, Mom, I do. A
very
good idea. I’ll be able to save enough money to consider buying a house in the near future instead of pouring money down the crapper of some shitty apartment or rental house.”

“I know that extended-stay hotel wasn’t great, but there have to be other alternatives.”

“You do realize how small Cloverleaf is, don’t you?” he asked.

“Of course I do.”

“Then you know why I made this choice. The only decent apartment complexes have six-month-plus waiting lists because of the Barrett Foods factory bringing in so many new employees.”

“What about a house?”

He shook his head. “I’m not discussing this anymore. I made my decision.”

“You don’t even have a kitchen.”

Grabbing her shoulders, he turned her toward the kitchenette. “Sure I do.” Instead of keeping up the verbal fencing, Nate cut to the chase. “What’s the real reason you’re against this move?”

Jackie crossed her arms under her breasts. “She’s your boss.”

“So what? It’s not that unusual to rent an apartment from someone you work for. Didn’t Patrick and Caroline live in his supervisor’s rental house?”

“Well, yeah, but—”

“You worry too much, Mom. This will be fine. No,
more
than fine. This will be perfect for me.” He put his hand on his mother’s shoulder. “I mean it. Perfect.”

Jackie thought it over a long time before she spoke again. “You like her, don’t you?”

Seeing no reason to deny it, Nate nodded.

“I just worry about you. You had such a bad time after Kat.”

“Of course I had a bad time after Kat. We lost a baby together.”

“I know that was rough, but I’m not talking about the baby. I’m talking about how horribly sad you were when you two broke off the engagement. I don’t want to see you go through something like that again. That’s all.”

While he loved that she cared enough to be concerned, he also needed her to ease up and let him live his life. “Relationships don’t come with guarantees.”

She rolled her eyes. “Don’t I know it.”

Nate squeezed her shoulder. “Spit it out, Mom. Quit beating around the bush.”

“Fine. She’s older than you are. A lot, judging from her being department head.”

“Yep. She is.”

Why did she always have to look so shocked when he was honest? “I mean… she doesn’t look
that
old. But she’s got to be well into her thirties if she’s chairing the English department.”

Whistling a happy tune, Patrick came down the stairs carrying the nightstand.

When Nate recognized the song, he leveled a frown at his mother. “For God’s sake, what did you tell him?”

Her brows knit. “What are you talking about?”

“He’s whistling ‘Mrs. Robinson.’ ”

“Sure am,” Patrick said as he walked past them to put the nightstand in a corner. “Quite a cougar you’ve got there, bro.” With a grin, he started singing, “ ‘
And here’s to you, Mrs. Robinson…
’ ”

Jackie frowned. “I can’t help believing this is a big mistake.”

“Seriously?” Nate dropped his hands to his hips, wanting to shout at her, yet knowing he couldn’t. Not only would Dani hear, but also Jackie was his mother and deserved his respect. That didn’t mean he wasn’t going to set her straight, though. “First of all, I’ll remind you it’s
my
life.”

“I know that,” she snapped.

“Do you? ’Cause it sure doesn’t feel like you’re letting me live it.” His stance relaxed, as did his anger. “Second of all, she’s really not that much older. Even if she were, none of this really even matters. We haven’t even been on a date yet. How about you relax and just wait and see what—if anything—happens?”

Jackie closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, Nate. You’re right. It is your life. I shouldn’t be sticking my nose into your love life. Sometimes it’s so hard to remember that you and Patrick aren’t kids anymore.”

She sounded forlorn, so he gathered her into his arms and gave her a hug. “It’s okay. You’re only looking out for me.” After she hugged him back, he turned her loose.

“I’m going to go finish the coffee Dani got for me. You can get your bed put together and get some clean sheets on it.” As she trotted up the stairs, she passed Dani, who was on the way down.