Lifting a hand to shield his eyes from the sun, he unfolded his long legs from his mama’s swing and walked to the edge of the porch. He watched Shelby’s powder blue, nondescript economy car, which he had the sinking suspicion was the same one she’d had when they dated, slow to a stop. Shelby looked out the windshield, squinting through the late-afternoon sun and gave a cute little wave. Cody waved back and the smile that tore across Shelby’s face was enough to scramble a man’s mind. JT, on the other hand, did some scrambling of his own. Right out of the backseat, grabbing his gear and all but shattering the windows when he slammed the door. He stormed past Cody’s new truck, which wasn’t as impressive to a nine-year-old as Cody had hoped, and up the walkway. Damn, not even a glance at the one-ton bribe. “Jacob Tucker, you know better than to slam the door,” Shelby called as she exited the car, her voice thin. “Yes, ma’am,” JT ground out, sullen defiance coating his every stomp as he stormed up the steps.
