Into His Keeping Read Free

complete command of both her schedule and her needs was baffling.
     
    Jill glanced around nervously. She knew the signs. He was popular, obviously sought after by the entire female half of the staff regardless of the woman’s age. She was a new girl and not skinny. Nothing about his attention made sense except the worst possible outcome for her.
     
    As he was about to shut the locker with her bag lunch in his hand along with his, Jill frowned up at him before he could touch her again. “Why are you doing this?” she whispered urgently.
     
    “What?” Holdin asked seriously and subtly moved so her back was to the locker, the tall open door concealed her on one side and his big body shielded her from anyone else’s view. He’d managed to put the two of them in an intimate space, blocking out the chaos of the group going to lunch around them. Everyone who started at six had lunch now. Later shifts would have it after this crew got back on the floor or stockrooms.
     
    “Why are you being to so…so nice to me?” Jill asked directly, her eyes searching his face. “You don’t even know me.”
     
    Holdin studied her silently for a second. “Do you want me to back off?” he asked, ignoring her “why” question and asking one of his own.
     
    “I don’t know. I don’t know you ,” Jill responded, confused.
     
    “I know.” He smiled slowly. It was the brain-scrambling grin again. “So let’s get to know each other, Jilly-girl. Okay?”
     
    Jill nodded again and clenched her legs together. The clench reaction was as new and shocking as everything else. His free hand let go of the locker door, allowing it swing open slightly. Holdin’s hand slowly raised to Jill’s face, his index finger bent so his knuckle gently rubbed her bottom lip, which she was biting again.
     
    “Stop that,” he crooned softly. “It’s sexy as hell and you need to go easy on me, woman. I’m a helpless male, you know. Slave to my hormones. Try to be gentle with me, Jill.”
     
    She burst out laughing at his silly comments. They both knew who was in control and it wasn’t her. He’d called her “woman”. It was almost too much. Laughing up into his smiling face made her dizzy on a cotton candy type of high. His hand moved from her mouth to casually reach around her, pulling her up against his body so he could kick the locker door shut. It was done so fast and smoothly she hadn’t even stopped chuckling before he released her and had a hand on her back again as they walked out of the locker room. She had no idea which direction they were going.
     
    That was when she knew it didn’t matter if this was some sort of joke. Being the center of Holdin’s attention, even for a little while, was worth it. She’d worry about the crash and burn later.
     
    He grabbed her hand. “Lunchtime, dollface.” he announced as they strolled into the larger staff room.
     
    Holding hands meant they were dating. It was the sign that said “Holdin’s woman”. Jill knew it but was to breathlessly shocked and then thrilled to question him. She ate lunch with Holdin and didn’t mind at all as he made introductions. It was nice not to have to sit alone and watch people chat. Being the new hire could have been intimidating in this situation. It was late January and too cold to eat lunch outside. Everyone had to gather here. Holdin put her at ease as simply as that. Not only was she included at the center table, she was accepted as Holdin’s woman.
     
    There were questions and a few almost nasty comments from some of the other women. Holdin put an end to the nasty comments by acting as if the women had to be joking and then ignoring the subject. The older men around the table could have been more of a problem, Jill realized. Holdin took care of that too. At his side, no one bothered her more than once.
     
    His attention hadn’t been a joke. No, it was almost the most amazing thing that had ever happened to her. Holdin surrounded her,