Page 32 of Smooth Moves
“Hey, you having a sugar rush or what?” He frowned. “Hello? Earth to Jordan?”
She ignored the heat in her cheeks. “Sorry, I’m still digesting that big breakfast. Sue me for not moving faster.”
“Try moving at all.” He shrugged. “Fine. Keep digesting that fat pill, and follow me on the tour.”
He showed her the many boxes he’d already packed up and moved to the side of the living room. A ton of romance books, videotapes, and even a few DVDs mixed with collectibles and plain junk were stacked nearby. The sheer number of books astounded her.
“Wow. It’s like a library in here.” She stared in awe. Though his mother had clearly had a problem collecting things, she’d kept the place fairly neat. They had plenty of room to move around through the expected dust and occasional cobweb from a house that hadn’t been disturbed until recently. “Your mom has all the classics. Is that a VHS tape ofCasablanca?”
He shrugged. “Probably. Too bad they didn’t have streaming back then. Would have saved on a lot of space.”
The tour through the hallway into the back bedrooms showed a heck of a lot of movies. “Do they even make VHS players anymore?”
“I think so.” He scrubbed the back of his close-cropped hair. “There’s so much here. I swear I packed up half a room last week. And it doesn’t feel like I did anything.”
“What are you going to do with it all?” she asked him.
“Dump it.”
“What? No.” Jordan saw the anger in his expression and sought to ease some of it. “Think of all the people who could use some fun in their lives.”
He snorted. “Fun? Try escape. Why help someone else ignore their kids or husbands? This shit needs to go.”
“Not everyone goes to the same extremes your mom did, Cash.” She moved closer to him and put a hand on his forearm, feeling his tension. Understanding it. “Hey, my parents didn’t understand me at all. And sometimes I still don’t like them all that much. But my mom used to read romance books and didn’t ignore me or my family because of it.” No, she’d ignored Jordan anytime Jordan did something she didn’t like. But that had nothing to do with avoiding her family in favor of entertainment. “I know a lot of people who enjoy TV in a healthy way. Sometimes when your life sucks, that kind of fun takes you away from your misery.”
“I guess.” He looked around and sighed. “So you think I should try to sell it all?” He didn’t sound enthused.
“You could, but it’ll be a hassle. I think you should donate it. Give it to Goodwill, a woman’s shelter, or some place that could use it for their own fundraiser.”
“Not a bad idea.” He planted his hands on his hips and stared around him. “I’ll be honest. I want this shit gone so much I hadn’t thought about where to take it. Just boxing it up and dumping it sounded like a plan.” A moment of silence as he took in everything. “Um, would you mind helping me out with the donations? Maybe see who needs or wants this stuff?” In the corner, he knelt and picked up a tattered child’s book, one that had obviously seen its share of wear and tear. He didn’t say anything as he stood, clenching it in his hand.
Jordan felt for him. “Sure. I can help with the donations. Let me make a few calls then I’ll help you pack.”
He looked up and met her gaze. It was as if she saw the real Cash, the hurt little boy inside the man needing reassurance. In a blink, the expression vanished, but she knew what she’d seen.
She pretended not to notice the suspicious shine in his eyes and left the room to find something to write with. After she’d made a few calls and found places to donate, she rejoined Cash in his mother’s bedroom.
More of the room had been packed up, his mother’s clothing bagged and tagged, the way they did it for Vets on the Go!
“Hey, you’re actually not bad at this.”
He turned to see her and forced a smile that hurt her to see. “Yeah, how about that? I got some skills.”
“You mean, more than just making women faint from the sight of you?” she added in a dry tone, pleased beyond measure when he gave her a real smile.
“Well, there is that.” He leered at her. “You feeling the magic, sweetness?” He flexed a huge bicep her way, and she had to fight to pretend disinterest. “How about now?”
“Ohh. Please. I want you,” she said with no inflection whatsoever. “So, so bad.”
Cash chuckled. “Man, you are such a ballbuster. No wonder I like you.”
“You like it when people bust your balls?”
“Yeah. You’re real. I can work with real.”
She couldn’t read the look he shot her, but it felt intimate. Something more than a friendly glance. Simultaneously relieved to see him happy and nervous to be at the center of his attention, she didn’t know what to say next.
“All right, Fleming. Enough. Quit slacking.”Thank you, Cash, for smoothing over that suspended moment of awkwardness.“I paid for your time with a baker’s dozen of health-hazardous sugar crap—even let you get those frilly pink frosted donuts that are, frankly, embarrassing. Now get to work.”
“Such an asshat,” she muttered, heard him laugh, and packed with a smile on her face.
