a.m. had only been possible because Len had the boys sleeping at his place. Which was beyond kind. Even now she was back on normal shifts he insisted they continue to board with him.
As for her attraction to Len, that wasn’t going anywhere. Len was unfailingly polite and respectful but he never looked her over. It figured her lust was one-sided. Wasn’t as though a man like that couldn’t take his pick of women. Of pretty women.
Even when she had been young, she had never been pretty. And nowadays she knew she was downright drab. Nothing to see here folks. But even a hefty plain girl could dream of a handsome lover.
Lenny’s big hands always drew her eye. She loved to look at his long tanned fingers and the hair that curled on the backs of his hands. They were so massive, so dexterous for all their muscularity, that they made something deep inside her soften and melt.
You’ve got it bad, girl, she told herself. But the thought of those big competent hands caressing her softness was a pleasure she couldn’t seem to forgo. She just hoped her fantasy life didn’t show on her face when she met him in person.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Len lay on his mattress under the oldest of the blankets that he had brought with him. He was quite proud of himself for giving the better one to the boys. Of course Hunter had snatched the new one from the Walmart, but Cord was content to know that he was using something of Len’s.
“Cool,” he had said with shining, hero-worshiping eyes.
Len wasn’t cold, but he was restless and horny as hell. It had been a month since he had met Erin and instantly recognized her as his destined mate. A month. And he had not even kissed her. She glanced sideways at him when she came to the house to pick up the boys, but she made no moves of her own.
And he could hardly grab her in front of those two boys, even though he could tell she was attracted too. That would embarrass her and set a terrible example to those two rapscallions.
At least she seemed to be eating better. Or she looked better. Without that hideous white coverall, she had turned out to be a tall, pretty, curvy blond. He didn’t much care for the braid she sported now, but in her own clothes she had a bit more shape. Although those men’s tee-shirts she wore were ugly as sin.
Erin had generous breasts and broad birthing hips. Long round thighs. The roundest, sweetest, bounciest ass. He wanted to see her naked, but he had no idea how to get to naked when he couldn’t even get her alone. Not with those two chaperons.
The boys had brought them together, and were keeping them apart. Erin worked long hours and when she was off she looked after the boys. And since he had vowed to put her brothers to work every spare minute, when they weren’t doing their homework at his table, he was monitoring their use of power tools or making them food.
At least they turned out to have a flare for construction—especially Hunter. Show them once, and they pretty much got the idea. They didn’t like do-overs, but he and Joe had made it clear that shoddy work had to be redone. And maybe twice more, if it still wasn’t right. They were getting to be fair carpenters and even the tile work didn’t look too bad.
But he could hardly ask Joey to look out for the boys on Saturdays while he took Erin out. Joe was doing some courting of his own. He didn’t talk much about it, but Len guessed it wasn’t going well. For sure the Benoit brothers were unlucky in love.
Obviously, Erin could not leave the boys to their own devices. They were full of beans and unless they were busy would get up to mischief. Or worse. Besides, when he had told the judge he would be personally responsible for Cord and Hunter staying out of trouble and going to school and showing up in court, well he had taken complete responsibility for them. Including on the weekends.
If anything he had increased respect for Erin. She had only been in her early twenties when she became the twins’
Rebecca Hamilton, Conner Kressley