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She knew time was not on her side because she had an early day tomorrow, but for now she was going to enjoy this small luxury.

  Jade knew she looked like a video vixen who wanted to be pampered and treasured, but at heart she was—and would always be—a fiercely independent tomboy. She hunted. She fished. She rode horses. She rock climbed. She liked to go camping. She was all about the outdoors.

  It seemed only natural for her to start her own business as an outdoor tour guide. Wild-n-Out Tours was her baby and the brainchild of her co-partner, fellow guide Darren Jon. It had been costly to begin the business with purchasing liability insurance, buying the equipment, office space, and used vehicles for transportation of groups, but things were finally beginning to pay off. Thankfully they were able to acquire a small business loan and get lots of help from family. For the first year they mostly operated their services on the weekend, but in the last six months they decided to expand because of the warm weather and increased business. They both were finally beginning to feel good about their decision to leave their factory jobs and join together to blend their mutual off-hours outdoor adventures into a viable business.

  She smiled a little at how their business friendship had recently blossomed into them casually dating. So far everything was good. She wasn’t looking for a full-blown relationship, but it was nice to have someone to chill and go to the movies or out to dinner with.

  With regret, Jade took one last deep inhale and a leisurely stretch before she rose and left the steam room. She wasted no time dressing in her khaki capris and shirt before throwing her dirty exercise clothes in a bag and heading out the gym.

  “Night, Jade,” the receptionist called out to her.

  Jade waved and smiled. She was a regular—at least twice a week—and she was sure everyone at the small gym knew her well. Outside the gym she tossed her bag into the rear of her brightly colored Jeep Wrangler that she lovingly called Sunshine.

  As she easily shifted the gears of the six-speed manual transmission, the night air breezing against her body felt good and she was glad she had taken the black soft-top off. She had the Wrangler wide open in the wind because she was so ready to get home to the little cottage she rented from the twin brothers who owned Jamison Contractors. The brothers—who both were sexy as all get out and happily married—had completely renovated their grandparents’ cottage and Jade had jumped at the chance to rent it when she decided it was time to move out of her parents’ house.

  As soon as she reached Holtsville’s town limits, Jade slowed her vehicle down, not wanting to get a speeding ticket. Holtsville, South Carolina, was the epitome of small-town America, and Jade loved it. There were under a thousand people living in Holtsville compared to the over five thousand people living in nearby Walterboro. It felt like everyone knew each other or at least knew someone that knew someone else. True, sometimes the gossip of the closely knit townspeople worked her last nerve, but she loved the forest in her backyard, the charm of the small Main Street area, and the fact there was nary a traffic light in the whole town. She loved the laid-back pace. The sound of animals talking in the nighttime. The star-filled nights. The natural smell in the air after rain. Country fairs and festivals.

  She’d take country living over city living in a heartbeat. She was born and raised up in Holtsville. She would enjoy the rest of her years there as well.

  Jade slowed down, making the left by the lone one-pump gas station in Holtsville. Usually if she made it home in time she would stop and sit on the porch with Cyrus Dobbs, the grizzly silver-haired owner who was more false teeth than anything.

  Soon she was turning onto the cement-paved driveway of her little two-bedroom cottage. She paused and smiled at how warm, cozy, and inviting it looked. The porch light was on above the built-in swing. Her colorful flower beds perfectly accentuated the wood of the cottage and the black of the shutters and front door.

  Pulling forward some more to park in the front yard, Jade grabbed her keys and her bag. She was walking up onto the wooden stoop of the cottage when a car whizzed past and the driver tooted its horn. Jade just threw up her hand in greeting, not even bothering to look and see who it was. In the country, everybody greeted each other in passing.

  As she stepped into the house, the scent of her perfumed body spray still hung in the air. She hit the switch to turn on the living room lights and quickly walked around the room lighting the dozens of scented candles she adored.

  She loved the little cottage. It was small and intimate. Just enough room for one.

  Jade had just snuggled into the corner of her caramel microsuede couch to eat the rest of the salad she made last night when there was a solid knock at her front door. Frowning, she eyed the clock above the stone fireplace. It was going on ten o’clock.

  Still chewing, she rose from the chair to walk over to one of the two large windows flanking the front door. She frowned at the sight of Darren standing on her stoop. He could’ve called first, she thought, feeling intruded upon.

  Jade stepped back to open the door. “Hey, what are you doing here?” she asked, leaning on the door as she looked up at the tall and dark-skinned man who had the muscled frame of a gladiator.

  “Damn, I’m glad to see you too,” he said with mock sarcasm in a voice that sounded deep enough to shake the rafters.

  Darren stepped forward quickly and bent his tall frame to capture her lips with his own. He lifted his head just enough to lock his eyes with hers. “I couldn’t go another minute without seeing you,” he whispered against her lips.

  Jade turned her head and coughed to keep from laughing. He meant well, but Darren had yet to learn that his soap opera lines just didn’t work on her.

  “What happened with the rock-climbing trip?” she asked.

  Darren pushed the door. “Business emergency, so they rescheduled.”

  Jade nodded in understanding, holding out her hand as he took a step forward into the cottage. “Darren, I still have the trail walk in the morning, so I’m headed to bed,” she told him with a kind smile.

  His grin spread like warm butter on toast. “I’m just in time, then.”

  “To kiss me good night and then head back home? You’re right on time.”

  Darren leaned against the door frame and stared down at her with an intensity that actually made her smile. It wasn’t that she was not physically attracted to Darren—he was a handsome man with a body—but she wasn’t ready to welcome him into her bed, especially not tonight.

  Balancing on her toes to raise her five-foot seven-inch frame higher, she gave him a warm peck and solid pat of her hand on his chest—a solid “good night, see you tomorrow ’cause you ain’t sleeping here tonight” pat.

  Darren smiled but Jade saw the regret in his eyes. Fortunately he let it drop and turned with one final wave to leave. She stood in the doorway until the lights shining in her wide-set black eyes diminished as he reversed out of her yard. With one final blow of his horn he was gone.

  Jade walked out onto her stoop and leaned against the wooden beam to look up at the crystal clear night sky. It looked like the best HDTV. The stars shone brightly against the inky black night, and she felt such peace and serenity.

  Chapter 2

  Kaeden was the last of the Strong clan to arrive at Holtsville Baptist Church. He parked as close to the church as he could and dashed inside. He paused in the doorway to the sanctuary to find it as crowded as an Easter Sunday.

  The door opened and the sweet scent of the oncoming end of spring wafted in.

  A hand touched his arm softly. “I guess you and I better have a little prayerfest right here to get a seat, huh?”

  Kaeden’s entire body stiffened as Jade leaned around him to look into the sanctuary. His mouth opened but no words came out, so he just forced a laugh that sounded nervous. His heart was pounding so fast and so hard that he felt like he just ran a marathon.

  “Looks like I got lucky too,” she drawled when several single men rose to their feet, waving her over. S
he smiled at him before she moved past him to walk into the sanctuary to take a seat.

  His eyes dipped low to watch the movement of her buttocks in the fuchsia wrap dress she wore.

  “Uncle Kaeden,” his niece Kadina whispered loudly.

  Kaeden jerked his eyes away guiltily. He looked down as his preteen niece grabbed his hand and pulled him behind her to make room for him on the pew between her and her dad, Kade.

  His brother Kaleb turned around on the pew to eye him. “Did you just walk in here with Jade Prince?” he whispered in total shock.

  Kaeden accepted the fan Kade passed down to him from the usher, ignoring his sibling.

  Kaleb sucked his teeth. “Man, please. What I’m saying? You couldn’t pull that. Hell, you couldn’t handle all that.”

  Their burly father popped him in the back of his prematurely gray head. “Turn around,” Kael warned.

  As morning worship service began, Kaeden leaned back against the pew to chance a look at Jade. Her eyes were focused forward, but he was able to look at her full on. As much as he hated to admit it, his brother was right. There was no way he could pull a woman like Jade Prince. No way in the world.

  “Uncle Kaeden, pay attention,” Kadina admonished him as she lightly patted his hand in a mothering fashion.

  Humoring his beloved niece, Kaeden Strong did as he was told.

  Jade felt eyes on her.

  She turned her head in time to catch one of the Strong brothers turning his head forward. It was the nerdy one. The accountant. The same one who was standing in the vestibule when she arrived to church. She let her eyes rove over his profile.

  The other Strong men were a sexy set, with their fine and defined features that were made all the more appealing by their prematurely graying hair. That salt-and-pepper mix perfectly matched their bronzed caramel complexions. Even the nerd was cute with his glasses. He just didn’t have the same swagger as his siblings. Everyone in Holtsville joked that the Strongs had twins separated several years by birth. They said Kaeden looked just like Kahron, but Jade begged to differ.

  Kahron was strong in build and Kaeden was very slender.

  Kahron was well aware that he was sexy as shit, and Kaeden gave off the impression that he just wanted to be invisible. Well, to her anyway. Even those glasses, though stylish, were not the right size for his slender face.

  Jade bit her bottom lip and tilted her head to the side. Maybe with contacts…

  “You sure are looking good, Sister Jade.”

  Jade made a face at the smell of bad breath barely covered by Listerine. She said a silent thanks that her head was turned or she was sure that her nose hairs would’ve been singed. “Thank you, Mr. Lionel,” she managed to say while holding her breath.

  “Man, that’s one fine woman,” Kaleb said in pure appreciation of the thicker female form.

  All decked out in their suits, Kaeden, Kahron, and Kade all turned to look in the direction their brother was definitely intently staring. Jade Prince was walking down the brick church steps.

  Kaeden couldn’t agree with Kaleb more.

  “Do y’all see the hips on that woman?” Kaleb asked as he watched her cross the yard to her Jeep. “Lawd, I could just spread those big legs and—”

  “Respect the church ground, man,” Kaeden snapped in irritation, truly more annoyed at his brother speaking that way about Jade than anything else.

  Kaleb looked confused. “What?”

  Kahron and Kade just shook their heads, laughing at their youngest brother, who was by far the wildest.

  “Oh, so y’all wouldn’t tap that?” he asked in disbelief.

  In a New York minute, Kaeden thought, finding himself unable to participate in their usual banter on women when Jade was the focus.

  Both Kade and Kahron threw their hands up. “We’re married,” they said in unison.

  The sound of clapping behind them made all the men swerve around. Bianca was standing there in a pale yellow pantsuit with a smile on her full lips. “Good answer, gentlemen,” she said with a pointed look at her husband and her brother-in-law.

  Kahron pulled her tall frame to his side and kissed her cheek. “You’re all the woman for me,” he told her, his voice low in his throat.

  “Oh, I know that,” Bianca said with confidence. “But even I can admit that woman is fine.”

  The men all laughed.

  Kaeden lagged behind as they all turned to head to their vehicles. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his slacks. Through his spectacles he watched Jade’s Wrangler go driving by.

  The Strong family Sunday dinners were tradition. Lisha Strong used to prepare the meal alone—with minimal chopping by her daughter Kaitlyn and her granddaughter Kadina. But now that two of her sons had married, she had two daughters-in-law to help lovingly prepare their families’ meal. They laughed. They joked. They shared stories. And they cooked one helluva meal every single Sunday.

  Kaeden stood in the entryway to the kitchen, watching them cook and joke around. He smiled as he remembered the Sundays helping his mom while his brothers would ride horses and explore the hundreds of acres of land encompassing the Strong ranch. He probably could cook a macaroni to put any woman to shame—even if he had no clue how to rope a steer.

  “Kaeden? Why are you just standing there?” Lisha called out to him.

  Suddenly four pairs of eyes were on him. Kaeden shrugged as he pushed his hands into the pockets of his pants and strolled into the kitchen.

  Garcelle, Bianca, his sister Kaitlyn, and his niece Kadina all smiled at him.

  “Where are the rest of the Strong men?” Bianca asked as she used the side of her wrist to push her riot of curls off her forehead.

  “On the porch talking horses and cattle,” he drawled, hating that he wished he knew more about the family business than the financial aspects. Although his brothers were a far cry from the typical cowboy with the tight jeans, plaid shirt, and Stetson, Kaeden had always secretly dreamed of working alongside his brothers on the ranches.

  “Kadina, go and tell the men dinner is ready,” Lisha said, wiping her hands on a hand towel. “Ladies, please start to carry the food into the dining room.”

  “I’ll help,” Kaeden offered, unbuttoning and rolling up the sleeves of his crisp white shirt.

  “No, I need you to help me, Kaeden,” Lisha told him.

  Kaeden nodded as he placed his hands on his hips. “What’s up, Ma?” he asked.

  “What’s wrong with you, son?” Lisha asked with concern as she watched him closely.

  Kaeden shifted his eyes from hers. One thing that made Lisha Strong a good mother was her ability to miss nothing—good or bad. He shrugged.

  “One thing that makes us a family to reckon with is the fact that we are all in this together—”

  “No matter what role we play,” Kaeden finished for her with a smile.

  “You got it.” Lisha picked up a huge dish of her homemade peach cobbler. “Now let’s go eat. Your father has a big announcement.”

  Kaeden took the cobbler from his mom’s hands. “This should be interesting,” he said as he followed her into the dining room.

  Kaeden sat the cobbler on an available spot in the center of the six-foot wooden table before sitting between Kaitlyn and Kaleb.

  “Good food. Good meat. Good Lord. Let’s eat,” Kael said loudly as soon as everyone was seated.

  Kaeden’s mother shot him a hard stare.

  He winked at her before he grabbed a serving spoon and scooped a heaping portion of macaroni on his plate.

  Their father was a churchgoing man but not an overly religious man—thus there would never be sweeping blessings of the food from Kael Strong.

  “I am starving,” Kaeden announced as he eyed the heaping bowls of fried chicken, collard greens, candied yams, macaroni and cheese, rice, and the still hot and steaming peach cobbler.

  Kaitlyn elbowed him. “So am I, Specs, so…am…I,” she said, reverting to her childhood nickname for him.r />
  “You eat like a man,” Kaeden told her. “One of these days you have got to gain weight.”

  “That’s an understatement,” Kahron drawled from across the table.

  Bianca rose from her chair to pile a plate high with food. “Only dogs like bones. Real men like meat on them bones,” she said, sitting down and placing the plate in front of her husband. With a sly smile she added, “Like myself, and Garcelle, and Lord knows, Jade Prince. Right, fellas?”

  Kaeden choked on the lemonade he just sipped from a frosted glass.

  Kahron focused on watching Kadina feeding his two-year-old son KJ.

  “Heck yeah,” Kaleb answered in a heartbeat.

  “Right, Kade?” Garcelle asked, her Spanish accent as prominent as the voluptuous curves of her frame. There was a twinkle in her bright eyes as she cut her eyes up at her handsome husband.

  Kael chuckled as he ate, obviously enjoying his sons being ribbed by their wives.

  “Jade is not all that,” Kaitlyn said with attitude, pushing her jet-black dyed hair back from her face.

  “Yeah, right,” Kaeden muttered in disbelief.

  He looked up to find all eyes on him.

  “I thought Felecia was more your speed, big brother,” Kaleb joked.

  “Trust and believe…. I am ready, willing, and able to handle whatever woman I have in my life,” Kaeden said firmly, completely fed up with his brother’s teasing.

  “All right, now,” Lisha Strong said.

  “Since Jade is the center of our Sunday conversation, this is as good a time as any to tell everyone about my surprise,” Kael said.

  Kaeden focused his attention on his father, just as curious as everyone appeared to be about the news…and very happy that Jade was no longer the focus.

  “Next weekend my sons and I are going camping,” Kael announced.

  “We are?” they all asked in unison.

  “Y’all are?” the ladies asked as well.

  Kaeden was completely disappointed because that surprise had absolutely nothing to do with him. He returned his attention back to his food.