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"Have a good evening, Mr. Burnsides," Eva said, suppressing a smile. Uncle Carlton was infamous for being a colorful character in a family filled with colorful characters.
When Eva rounded the corner she saw two good things.
First, Charlie was on the ground, squealing in delight as Jake tickled his ribs in order to steal the football. Seeing Charlie laugh after his earlier stoicism lifted her spirits.
Second, Jake was shirtless.
"Eva," Birdie called out. "Come play with us. You can be on my team. We're the shirts."
Jake, who very obviously was a skin, hopped up with a smile. "Nah, come be on my team."
Eva gave him a flat look. Matt jogged over, shirtless himself, and snagged the football, tossing it to his son. ''All girls have to be shirts. This isn't some frisky beach in California."
“Dang, I need to move to California," Jake joked, walking toward Eva. He grabbed his shirt from a tangle on the outdoor patio table and struggled into it, hiding all that gorgeous male flesh.
Pity.
"Charlie can take my place. I need to talk to Eva for a second."
''Awww," Will cried, "You're the best player we have."
"Have you seen Charlie run? Just give him the ball. Send him John's way," Jake cracked.
John pretended to scratch his nose with his middle finger, making Will, who was old enough to know what it meant, howl.
Dan Beauchamp, however, frowned at his son.
Eva looked up at Jake when he halted in front of her, mopping off his face with his forearm. "Whew, it's hot today."
"I need to get Charlie home and start homework."
He studied her. Eva self-consciously tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She'd left her hair down today because she hadn't had time to dry it and then braid it. The brown mess tumbled around her shoulders, getting in her way.
"I love your hair down. Smells good," he said, inhaling as he leaned closer.
"Stop."
"No."
Eva swallowed as the desire smacked into her.
Remember me? I ain't going away, sugar. You want him. He wants you. What's the friggin' problem?
Yeah, the need gnawing at her sounded a lot like a Mafia bully- strong and powerful, making insanity sound reasonable.
"What did you want to talk about?" she said, stepping back, trying to erase the memory of a bare-chested, grinning Jake from her mind. "We've said all that needs to be said, right? Or maybe this is about work?"
Jake took her elbow and steered her back toward the front yard. "It definitely has nothing to do with work."
"Wait." She wrenched her arm from his grasp. "I have to get Charlie."
"Hey, Dad?" Jake called back, twisting around. "Keep an eye on Charlie for a few. I'm taking this pretty lady for a ride."
Dan gave Jake a thumbs-up before dropping back to hurl the football across the yard toward Birdie, who flew as if she had the wings of her namesake.
"Jake," she said as he gently took her arm again.
"My truck or your car?"
