Bed Of Roses (The Five Senses Series Book 4) Read online

  Mal spun around. Pulling a drawer open, she searched for the one thing she knew she shouldn’t seek. A wine opener some well-meaning client had given her. It had been an appreciation gift for a job well done on planning their son’s wedding. A case of excellent wine and crystal wine glasses had been included. She’d given the wine to Pippa, shoved the glasses into the back of her china hutch, and hidden the wine opener in the junk drawer. Out of sight, out of mind, right?

  Mimicking her father’s addictive behavior wouldn’t solve anything. Her biggest fear was that one drink could lead down the slippery slope on which her father skidded. She wasn’t going to open a Pandora’s box of trouble by uncorking the bottle. Slamming the drawer shut, she braced her hands on the counter and took several calming breaths. The solution to her new living arrangements with a sad, angry orphan wouldn’t magically appear in the bottom of a wine glass. It hadn’t worked for her dad. It wouldn’t work for her.

  Grasping the neck of the unopened bottle, she strode to the back door. A cold blast of air hit her when she jerked it open. The chilly temperature solidified her resolve. She walked to the corner of the detached garage. Opening the trash bin, she tossed temptation inside. The dull clunk when it hit the bottom reminded her of Gaby’s presence in her spare room. Dropping her chin to her chest, she released the lid of the container. She was stronger than this.

  What she needed was a punishing session on some sort of cardio machine. She glanced at the lighted window on the second floor of her bungalow. Would it be right to leave Gaby alone on her first night in a strange place? Probably not. But this was something Malin needed. Stress had always motivated her to exercise. In the past, she’d never carved out time in January or February for her personal mental health. By the time she would finish at the store and get home, it was too late, and she was far too exhausted to consider a trip to the gym.

  Right now, it seemed a perfect solution.

  Hurrying back into the house, she shut and locked the back door. After a fast stop in the laundry room to grab workout clothes that had languished on the drying rack for weeks, she climbed the stairs two at time. Pausing on the landing, she contemplated the door Gaby hid behind. It had been so long since she’d lived with anyone, since college, really, she’d almost forgotten that it was common courtesy to inform a housemate she’d be leaving.

  Drawing a deep breath, she knocked. There was no response. Okay, Gaby was going to ignore her. Fine.

  In that instant, the physical yearning for a drink made her regret tossing away the wine. She shook it off and knocked again. “I’m going to the gym for a little while. I won’t be long. We’ll worry about dinner when I get back.”

  She turned toward her room. She’d change clothes, then go. Gaby probably wouldn’t miss her.

  The door behind her flew open. “Can I go, too?”

  Surprised, Mal spun around. The doorway framed Gaby’s slender body. She seemed...eager.

  “You want to go?”

  Gaby huffed out a breath. “I asked, didn’t I?”

  “Did you bring the right kind clothes? Shoes? I could probably lend you something if you didn’t.”

  “You’re so much larger than me, I’d swim in your clothes. I brought stuff.” Icy disdain dripped from the girl’s tone.

  Mal eyed the defiant teen. Her sister had at least two inches on her. Swimming in Mal’s clothes was an exaggeration. The girl made it easy to be mad at her. “I’m leaving in five minutes. If you’re ready, you can certainly go.” She struggled to avoid matching Gaby’s tone, shooting for neutral, but afraid she’d failed miserably.

  “I’ll be ready.”

  The door banged shut, rattling pictures on the wall. Malin opened her mouth, ready to tell Gaby door slamming wasn’t allowed in her house, but at the last instant, she snapped her lips together. Gym first, rules later. Once she’d given some thought to what they should be.

  * * * *

  The noise and activity level when she walked into the Granite Bay Health Club was a stark contrast to the quiet, tense drive over. Mal had attempted to make small talk in the first two minutes of the drive, but Gaby had shoved bright yellow ear buds into her ears and fiddled with her iPhone. The volume had been loud enough to hear across the car, defeating Mal’s attempts at conversation.

  Two could play that game. Once Mal had signed Gaby in as her guest, she pointed out a bank of lockers the teen could use, then left her to fend for herself. Running up the steps to the cardio area, she raced away from an unsolvable problem.

  After a two minute warm-up she upped the speed and incline on her machine. She increased the sound level of her music to match. The volume hit earsplitting range when she entered the final quarter hour of her ninety-minute workout. Her quads and glutes burned, accompanied by the screaming of her shoulders and arms. Thanks to the pain that drove away any residual anxiety about Gaby moving in, she put this workout in the win column. The teen had run on a treadmill for forty-five minutes then moved to the weights. After a quick scan of the weight floor, she located Gaby on an abdominal crunch machine below. Mal upped the resistance on the elliptical trainer once more. Gripping the handles, she dug deeper.

  And nearly jumped out of her skin as someone waved their hand in front of her face. Stumbling out of one of the footpads, she pitched forward, rescued at the last minute when Gunnar Sims grasped her upper arm and jerked her upright. Slapping her hand on the stop button, she shut down the machine. She jerked her ear buds out.

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.” He grinned at her, the apology turning his Nordic blue eyes the color of an Arizona sky.

  “My fault. I was zoned out. Thinking.”

  She snagged the towel draped over her water bottle and mopped her face. It shouldn’t matter that her friend saw her with her hair plastered to her face and sweat streaming down her neck like a fast moving creek. But it did.

  There he stood, looking better than Chris Hemsworth, all Thor-like and drool-worthy. His green shirt accented his blond hair and added color to his cheeks. It also stretched so nicely across his chest, her fingers itched to touch. Dammit, men were not supposed to be that handsome when in the presence of sweaty women. Even the light scruff on his face looked delicious. The urge to test how it felt on her cheek replaced the destructive tension that had driven her to the gym in the first place. But replacing one vice with another wasn’t a good idea. Only her liver would be hurt if she drank. Getting involved with Gunnar Sims guaranteed a broken heart.

  He consulted the electronic display on her machine, his eyebrows lifting. “You’ve been at it for a long time. Were you atoning for some sinful food indulgence?” He handed her the water bottle.

  Sinful thoughts, more like. She dragged her mind out of the gutter. “No carbs today. Just using my time on the machine to work out some issues.”

  She popped the lid on the bottle and took a slug. The cool water eased her flaming throat.

  Gunnar gestured to the running track circling the upper floor of the gym. “Want to take a walk to cool-down?”

  Mal flipped the towel around her neck and followed. He set the rapid pace best for stretching out her hot muscles. As they traveled the bridge that rimmed the building, Mal saw Gaby moving from one machine to another. Her head bobbed in time with the music, her face somber and forbidding. She had to be nearly done, but like Mal, showed no signs of stopping. Probably exercising her demons away, too. They weren’t so different in that regard.

  Malin turned her attention back to Gunnar with a start. She’d missed whatever question he’d asked. “Sorry, what?”

  “You said you had issues. Business or personal? Anything I can help with?” he asked.

  “Not unless you own a parenting manual.”

  His confident stride faltered momentarily. He opened his mouth, shut it again, and finally continued. “I didn’t realize you had kids.”

  “I don’t. I mean, I didn’t.” She took another pull of water and continued putting one foot in front of
the other. “I’ve rather unexpectedly gained custody of a teenager. My sister.”

  “Wait a second. My sister, Rikki, told me you were an only child.”

  He’d asked Rikki about her? Heat that had nothing to do with her workout flashed into her face. “I was until yesterday. Now, Harriet is dead, and it’s my responsibility to raise her daughter.” Bitterness tipped her tone in frost, but she couldn’t help it.

  “Harriet?”

  “Her mother.” She gestured toward Gaby, who picked that moment to look up. Even from the distance, Mal noted the girl’s upper lip curl into a sneer. “That’s Gaby, my long lost sister. We met for the first time two hours ago, and she already despises me.”

  “Bitch is crazy then. There’s nothing even remotely despise-worthy about you. In fact, just the opposite. Want me to set her straight?”

  Mal shot a quick glance his way. He liked her? A smile spread over her face. “You’d do that for me? Tackle a moody teenager?”

  His deep baritone laugh echoed against the concrete walls. “She can’t be that bad. She just doesn’t know you. Give her time to warm up.”

  “I keep telling myself the same thing. I didn’t think she was moving in until the end of the month, but the lawyer suddenly dropped the bomb that he was leaving her in my tender care today. I’d counted on the next three weeks to get to know her and get through my busy season. I wanted to get everything ready for her. Clean up her room, enroll her in school, figure out what she likes to eat. I hate being thrown in the deep-end this way.”

  “You’ll work it out. You have Sam Kerrigan’s number, right?” He lifted his brows. “You can call him, and he’ll help you enroll her in classes.”

  Mal brightened at the suggestion. “Good idea.”

  “Maybe you could put her to work helping in the shop. If you’re busy, you need extra hands on deck, right? Especially since I’ve proved you can’t count on my flower arranging skills. It might take her mind off losing her mom and finding herself in a strange situation.” Gunnar shot her an engaging grin and laid his hand on her shoulder, punctuating his suggestion with a small squeeze.

  A spark traveled all the way to her toes. He was right. As awkward as Mal found the new living arrangements, Gaby had to be reeling from all the changes in her life. “How’d you get to be so smart? You don’t have kids either.”

  “Nope, but I was a kid once. And I hire teens to work here. I’ve gotten to know their habits and insecurities pretty well. Is she sixteen yet?” At her headshake, he continued, “When she is, send her my way if you don’t want her working in the shop. I’ll hire her.”

  “You don’t know her. You shouldn’t make an offer like that. If first impressions count, she’s a bit pampered.”

  He dropped his hand from her shoulder, and she immediately missed the electricity of his touch.

  He shrugged. “Maybe. But I’m expanding the child care area here, and I know my kids’ center manager will shape her up.”

  “I’ll keep it in mind.” She threw a speculative look at Gaby who was doing chest presses. “Why are you here this late? These aren’t your normal hours.”

  “Hey, when you’re the boss, every hour of your time is mandatory. Got a call at two this morning that the alarm had been set off. By the time I arrived, the police were already here. George, my night manager, didn’t get the front door properly latched and the wind blew it open. Tonight, I’ve been working on an accounting issue.”

  “You’ve been here since two? In the morning?”

  “Sounds like I’m an overachiever, doesn’t it? It was three-thirty before the police split. Club opens at five every morning, so I sacked out on a couch in my office for a couple of hours.” He pointed to the windowed office rising above one corner of the track. The end of a black couch was visible through the blinds he’d left open. “Didn’t make sense to go home. You’d probably do the same if it was your business.”

  He had a point. She’d never slept in her workroom, though, even in February or June when increased business made every day crazy. She’d have to consider rearranging to make room for a daybed, for convenience sake.

  They’d made their way around the track three times while they talked, and she stopped in the stretching area. She grabbed a mat, then lowered her body to the floor to complete her routine with a series of stretches. Gunnar rolled a stability ball over and settled on it next to her. He seemed content to ignore his duties and spend time with her. She wouldn’t complain. She enjoyed his company.

  The firm set of his stubbled jaw told her he was troubled by something. “Do you do the books for the flower shop, or do you hire someone?”

  She twisted her head and reached to grab her toes. She then lay back on the floor and brought her knee to her chest. Gunnar scooted off the ball, landing next to her hips. He grasped her ankle and helped her lengthen the stretch, leaning over her lower leg. She lost her train of thought at the intimacy of their positions.

  The look on Gunnar’s face as it loomed over her turned expectant. He tapped the bottom of her sneaker. “Anyone home there?”

  Oh, God! What had he asked? Oh, yeah. “I hired Eileen Kerrigan when I first opened the shop. She’s Sam’s mom and very good. Are you considering bringing someone in to do your books?”

  “With an MBA from Dartmouth in business, I shouldn’t have to. But I can’t make the numbers add up. It’s almost like there are two sets of books. I thought someone with a fresh view might be able to make heads or tails of them.”

  Gunnar lowered her leg to the floor then grabbed the other and stretched it well. It was difficult to keep from imagining him naked when she was laid out this way.

  Shaking away the spell he’d cast, she dug deep for focus. Two sets of accounts didn’t sound good. She swallowed hard before she answered. “Eileen works for a lot of different companies in Granite Pointe. In fact, I’m meeting with her tomorrow morning. You want me to ask her to give you a call?”

  Before he could answer, Gaby came bounding up the steps and jogged over to them. “I’m ready to go.”

  Yep, a pampered princess. It was like being lost in a dense forest, unable to identify a way out. Gaby scowled at her when she didn’t leap off the mat and race to accommodate the girl’s demand. Mal shot a “help me” look toward Gunnar. He scrambled to his feet and offered Mal his hand, helping her off the floor.

  “I see what you mean.” He schooled his face into something Mal might have called benevolent uncle before turning toward Gaby. “Gunnar Sims. You must be Malin’s sister.”

  Gaby looked at him like he was roadkill, and she jutted out her hip, an impatient gesture. An echo from grade school clanged in Mal’s mind. Any time she or one of her classmate had made a face, Sister Catherine used to say they might stay that way. Probably best to keep that little gem to herself.

  “Gunnar, this is Gabriella Jansen. Gaby, Gunnar owns this club. He mentioned he’d consider hiring you to work for him as soon as you turn sixteen.”

  “Why would I do that? My parents left me a huge trust fund. I’ll never have to work a day in my life.”

  “Gaby, we don’t know what the conditions are on that yet. I haven’t had an opportunity to review the papers Mr. Fleming left.”

  “Mom and I talked about it after Dad died. Even after he left money to a relative I’ve never met in Missouri, there’s plenty.”

  Gunnar stepped closer to Mal’s side. “I have a trust fund too. My grandfather is Silas Sims.”

  “I don’t know him. What did he do?” Gaby’s face looked like classic teenage boredom.

  If Gaby’s rude response bugged Gunnar, it didn’t show. “World-renowned nature photographer. Anyway, he set accounts up for my sister and me that we couldn’t touch until we turned thirty. I got mine last year, which allowed me to buy this place. If I’d had access to the money sooner, I couldn’t have afforded even half the purchase price. Silas made me work when I was growing up so I’d appreciate what I earned.”

  Gaby rolled her e
yes insolently. “Whatever. Can we go now?”

  Determined to stake her claim as the rule-making authority in this fledgling relationship, Mal propped her hands on her hips. “Go grab your stuff, and I’ll meet you in the lobby in a few minutes. I need to talk to Gunnar for a minute.”

  “You’ve been talking to him for like fifteen minutes. Do you really have that much more to say?”

  Petal-soft surprise flitted through Mal. Gaby had been watching her? Didn’t matter. Mal needed to establish authority with the girl. “Go now, Gaby. I’ll be right there.”

  Gaby scowled again and gusted out a big, attitude-filled breath before she stomped away.

  Gunnar laced his hand together with Mal’s and pulled it until it rested in his at the small of his back. “Good for you. She’s a pistol. Just the way I used to be. And look how I turned out. The sooner you take control of the situation, the better.”

  Mal’s limbs trembled, but she couldn’t be sure if it was because of her anger at Gaby, her extreme workout, or because her fingers were in close proximity to Gunnar’s sexy butt. Her heart thumped, accompanying the thought that she was in danger of allowing him to be more than a friend. Which would be a colossal mistake.

  She sighed. “I’m sorry. I thought Harriet had taught her manners. Now, I’m not so sure. How much of her bad behavior do I excuse because she’s reeling from the loss of her mother? God knows, I was devastated when Harriet left me and Dad.”

  “Not for you to apologize. It’s on Gaby. She’ll come around. In the meantime, just roll with it.”

  “Easier said than done, I’m afraid.”

  Gunnar laughed and tugged her closer. Turning her face up, she met his gaze. His eyelids swept down to her lips an instant before his mouth descended. It was a fast peck, something friends exchange, a gesture of greeting or parting. It didn’t matter. With the first brush of his lips, desire flared. She’d like to pretend the heat between them was the warm, gentle glow of friendship, or because their fingers were still laced together. But she’d be lying to herself. The kiss had created tingles of passion she couldn’t ignore.