Jackson: The Sons of Dusty Walker by Randi Alexander Page B

shrugged. “To me, it almost seems like Theresa
needed the biggest house in the county.” She looked up at him. “Dusty just
wasn’t the type. You know what I mean?”
    “I do.” He cut the engine and let them drift. The place had
rustic touches, which had to be Dusty’s doing, but from the outside, it looked
like a house that could have been built for any rich family anywhere around the
country. “He got the inside, she got the outside.”
    “Exactly.” They floated silently, the only sound coming from
birds on the shore. When the pontoon stopped moving completely, Jackson got up.
“Lou said the boat is completely stocked.” He opened a small aft refrigerator.
“Yeah. Beer, white wine, margaritas.” He looked at the plastic bottles on top
of the fridge. “Red wine, vodka, gin, whiskey. This must be the party barge.”
    “I guess so. Wow.” She stood beside him. “One of Marliss’
margaritas would taste like heaven right now.”
    He poured the slushy drink from the plastic pitcher into a
tall cup, then selected a can of beer for himself. “I’ll get the grill
started.”
    “Grill?” She sipped her drink, looking around at the seating
areas and the pop-up changing room/head at the back. “With a potty on board,
too? I could live on this boat.”
    He lifted the stainless steel grill from inside one of the
bench seats and hung it over the edge of the railing, clicking the ignite
button until the propane caught. “If you could figure a way to get a power cord
out here for those machines of yours, you’d be all set.”
    “Yep.” She settled on a seat across the deck from the grill.
“Add internet and cell service, and I could be Cyber Wise Ahoy.”
    Jackson groaned, winking at her.
    “Sorry. I’m bad at puns.”
    He sat next to her and held up his beer can. “Bad at puns,
good at everything else.”
    She shook her head but tapped her cup to his. “I don’t know
about everything, but I have been surprising myself with how good I feel when
I’m with you.” Her eyes widened and her face turned red. “I meant in bed.”
Puffing out a breath, she looked away. “Awkward.”
    Jackson took her chin between his thumb and finger and turned
her face back to his. “Darlin’, I’m a big fan of you saying what’s on your mind
without holdin’ back.”
    She smiled a little. “It’s one of those bad habits I may
never get over.”
    Staring into her eyes for long moments, he gave in to the
urge to open up to her some. “Don’t try to. It’s what makes you special.” He
kissed her, tasting the tang and sugar of her drink, then letting his tongue
tickle the roof of her mouth.
    When he ended the kiss, she breathed rapidly for a few
moments.
    He liked making this amazing woman lose her breath. Jackson
slid an arm around her, watching the sun settle behind clouds on the horizon.
“It’s gonna be a nice sunset.” He kissed her temple. “Fitting, since I saw the
sunrise after driving you home this morning.”
    “You’re going to wear me out, cowboy.”
    “I’m doin’ my best, darlin’.” He took a long pull on his
beer.
    “What kept you at home this morning?” She liked to be
direct, that was for sure.
    “I found a box in Dusty’s safe.” Jackson knew he could trust
her with the information, but did he trust himself not to get emotional about
what he’d found?
    Rori just looked at him, didn’t push.
    “It seems my dad kept a scrapbook on each of his sons.” Once
it was out, it didn’t seem so monumental.
    “That’s great.” She licked her lips. “You looked at them?”
    He nodded. “I looked at my brothers’ books. They started
with baby pictures and went all the way up to current.”
    “Hm.” She sipped her drink.
    Throughout the day, Jackson’s thoughts had drifted back to
those books, remembering small details about Dylan’s band, orKillian’s
expertise with ropes, or Rogue’s skills at the poker table. All three were guys
he’d like to know, under normal circumstances,