I'd loved Quinn, but it had never been like this. Like she was my entire world.
Like I would die if anything happened to her.
This …
I …
Holycrap.
Jed reached over and patted my shoulder. "Heck of a time for an epiphany, huh? Sorry, kid. Well, at least now you know. When I realized I was in love with my Sarah, you could have knocked me over with a goose feather. It's harder for men, I think. We're taught to be strong and protect the weaker sex."
Then he laughed. "Well, even in my time, Sarah would have cracked my head with her rolling pin if I'd ever called her weak. I can see your Tess has fire, too. Of course, you're in love with her. You'd be a fool if you weren't."
I swallowed. Hard. And then I nodded, unable to form words, put the truck back on the road, and headed toward Tess.
The woman I loved.
My true north.
When we walked into her shop, my true north was lying on the floor, wearing a strip of paper on her forehead, legs up against the wall, breathing into a paper bag.
20
Tess
Ifelt like a fool.
Susan had just walked in, and I was trying to explain the headache cure thing, instead of standing up, and naturally, that's when Jack and his grandfather arrived.
I gasped at the sight of Jed.
Even upside down, he looked like he'd aged a quarter century overnight. He was wearing a flannel shirt and jeans, but the change of clothing couldn't account for the difference.
I snapped my legs down, rolled over, and pushed up off the floor all in one movement, silently thanking the yoga I'd recently taken up. Then I caught Jed giving my face a funny look, remembered the cooling strip, and ripped it off my forehead.
Oddly enough, one or more of the oddball cures had helped, because my head felt much better. "Mr. Shepherd—Jed! Are you okay? What happened? Let's get you a seat and some water."
Jack said nothing at all. He just stood there, staring at me with the total and complete focus he always trained on me. Nobody had ever looked at me like that before in my entire life and, as always, it made my heart skip a beat.
But this—this was far more intense than usual.
"Jack?"
He didn't even blink, but sparks of amber started floating in the emerald green of his gaze, and I felt just the tiniest bit of panic. When Jack's eyes turned amber, he was either in total predator mode or feeling a different kind of predatory urge.
The kind that made him kiss the breath out of me in parking lots.
He took a step forward, intensity floating around him like magic.
I took a step back.
Susan moved to stand between us. "Jack!"
He stopped mid-stride and slowly turned his head to give Susan a blank look, as if he didn't know who she was.
Oh, no.
Oh,no.
