“Maybe fate brought you here because this is where you will begin the journey to happiness,” Jackson said. “Most days I’m happy to make my furniture, go to the craft fairs, have a beer after work and a swim when it’s warm weather, but there’s still an ache down deep inside my heart that screams at me that there is something more than this,” Jackson said. “Then I feel guilty for not being satisfied with what I have and the peace that it brings me.”

“Yep,” she agreed, and then she dived into the water, swam out to the edge of the creek, and sat down on the grass beside Tex.

“Are you running from me?” Jackson teased before he did a perfect swan dive into the deep water.

Nessa couldn’t very well tell him that she was attracted to him and that just sitting beside him jacked her hormones into overdrive, especially when she thought about that kiss they’d shared. Or that she wondered if he had something to do with whatever she needed to be happy.

“Nope,” she answered.

He got out of the water, tossed his towel toward her, and said, “Use this to dry your hair. Did you ever miss not having siblings?”

“Oh, yeah, I did.” She soaked up most of the water from her thick, red hair and then handed the towel back to him. “I always wanted a sister or a brother, but Mama says God thought I was enough for her to handle.”

“I have an older sister and an older brother. I was an oops baby, as Mama called it.” Jackson took the towel from her, then draped it around his shoulders.

Nessa stole sideways glances at him, catching glimpses of his square jawline and his broad shoulders. But what caught her attention most was the soft black hair on his chest, still dripping with water. She would have loved to be brave enough to reach out and touch it, then run her hand down his sculptured face, look deep into his eyes, and kiss him.

“Did you get along with your siblings when you were younger?” Nessa finally asked.

“They were gone from home by the time I even started kindergarten. I really didn’t know them so well until I went to work at the firm, and then”—he shrugged—“we argued a lot—and I mean a lot. My sister didn’t think Dad should give me high-profile cases that she felt she deserved and could do a better job with than I could. My brother only just tolerated me even being at the firm.”

“Was that the reason you left the business?” Nessa asked.

“No, I left because I was tired of the long hours, the stress, and doing a job that I didn’t even like. You said you like kids, so you must like teaching. Think you’ll look for a teaching job around here?” Jackson asked.