Sins of the Past (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)

hands wrapped around his arm and was moving him away from the carts. He had enough time to look down and see her long red nails as they pressed into his skin a little. Jacob winced when the first word that popped into his head was “claws” when he saw them.
    “You poor thing. You just move right out of the way and let me help you. I’m Ashley, by the way.”
    “Jacob,” he mumbled, although he wasn’t sure she had heard him. Ashley had already gotten a cart and started off toward the aisles. Leaving him no choice, he hobbled after her, trying to keep up with his crutches.
    “I’m so glad I ran into you. We hadn’t got the chance to meet and Daddy has told me all about you.”
    Jacob had no idea who Daddy was since he hadn’t met anyone in town, besides Lorna. Just thinking of his neighbor made him shiver. The sight of her naked after her towel had fallen off the night before kept replaying over and over again. The fact that she had been bleeding at the time, or he that was the cause of it, did nothing to take away from the sight of her bare with those sexy curves of hers on display.
    Lorna was a natural beauty, unlike the woman currently talking as they made their way down the dairy aisle. Jacob grabbed a gallon of milk and placed it in the cart, wondering if Ashley was even aware he hadn’t even been listening to a word she said. Looking at her, he saw that she was nothing like Lorna. This woman was fake, from her overly-styled, dyed blonde hair down to her almost leathery-looking tanned skin. Compared to Lorna, Ashley was not beautiful by any means.
    “I’m sorry, what?” he asked when he realized Ashley was frowning up at him.
    “I was asking if you needed any help getting your groceries home,” she told him, her voice almost a purr. Ashley placed her hand on his arm and gave it a rub. “Maybe, I could cook you dinner while I’m there.”
    Jacob paused as he tried to come up with a polite way of turning Ashley down. His brain didn’t seem to be functioning though because the only answer that kept popping into his head was “no way in hell.” He didn’t think that would go over well with her though. He knew Ashley’s type. They saw a big strong man with no ring on his finger and they pounced, trying to sink their claws into him before someone else could. Jacob was not interested in a trophy wife and, by the looks of Ashley, he had a feeling that is exactly what she would be.
    Before Jacob could say anything, Lorna stepped down the aisle with a wicked grin on her face. “There you are neighbor. I told you to wait for me outside.” She walked straight up to Jacob, bumping Ashley out of the way and replacing the woman’s hand on his arm with hers before turning. “Oh, hi Ashley. I didn’t see you there.”
    Jacob barely held back his laugh at the overly-sweet tone of Lorna’s voice. From the way she had pushed Ashley out of the way and how angry Ashley’s red face looked, he could tell these two women had some serious animosity toward each other.
    Ashley pressed her lips together as if she tasted something bitter. “I should have known you’d be lurking around somewhere. Like mother, like daughter, right?”
    Jacob felt Lorna’s whole body tense beside him. He could hear her teeth grinding and wondered what he had gotten himself in the middle of. Because of his battle training, his reflexes were off the charts and Jacob was able to drop one crutch and catch Lorna around her middle just as she lunged for Ashley. The other woman gasped and clutched at her throat as if Lorna had actually touched her.
    “Jacob, it was lovely to meet you, but I must be going now. Maybe we can get together some other time and get to know each other.”
    He watched as Ashley turned on her impractically high heels and pretty much ran out of the store. Jacob looked down at Lorna, whom he was still holding on to, and lifted one brow. “Do I even want to ask what that was all about?”
    “Don’t even ask. Just be glad I saved you from that bitch. By tomorrow she would have had you walking down the aisle with your two point five kids in tow and the paint on the white picket fence still drying.”
    She felt good pressed up against him. Lorna wasn’t tall, only coming up to his shoulders, but they seemed to fit together perfectly. Jacob was glad she hadn’t realized he was still holding her because he was definitely enjoying himself. The curves he had imagined all night long definitely felt good in