Tessa Ward gathered the package to deliver to the Morgan farm. Her boss, Tulley, insisted it be taken immediately. She rolled her eyes as she pulled her keys from the back pocket of her jeans. This guy must be one hell of a customer for her boss to offer her double time pay for the hour and a half it'd take her to head south of town and return to the store.

Whatever he wants. I could use the money.

She blew out a harsh breath as she walked out of the building. It'd been several days since she'd had a day off, and her feet were killing her. When the bills came due, you had to have the money to pay them. Thankfully, she'd found this new job with Tulley a month ago. It'd been a learning experience, and he was very good about working around her schedule at the diner. Working two jobs was a pain in the ass, but it kept the lights on. It wasn't like she had any friends in town to hang out with anyway. So, working was all she had.

"Wait!" Tulley hollered just as she reached the car. The old man shuffled his way down the sidewalk and held out his hand. Tessa felt the tears welling up in her eyes when she saw what he was holding. "Gas money."

"Tulley," she warned, waving off his offer. "You're already paying me extra to do this."

"Humph," he frowned.

"Paychecks don't cut until next week. Take this now, and you can pay me back later." She smiled warmly and accepted his offer of twenty dollars. She knew he wouldn't take it out of her check, but she'd find a way to pay him back.

Stopping at the gas station, she went inside and told the clerk to put fifteen dollars on gas and she bought a small bag of chips and a water with the rest, leaving just over two dollars in her pocket. That snack was going to be her dinner for the night.

Tessa was tired, but she headed down to the Morgan farm south of town as directed by her boss. When she arrived, she checked the address on the mailbox to make sure she was at the right place. The home was hidden by thick trees lining the property. Even with the bare limbs, the house was impossible to see from the road. As she came into a clearing, she smiled at the large home before her. The porch wrapped around the entire log cabin home, and to the left was a huge barn and several pieces of equipment lined up next to its doors. If she could afford to own her own home, this would be the perfect place for her. She could see herself sitting on the covered front porch, sipping coffee on a cool spring morning.

She put the car in park and shook away the dream. There was no way she'd ever be able to afford a place like that. Instead, she stepped out of her car and walked around to the passenger side, reaching for the box Tulley had given her to deliver. When she turned around and closed the door with a bump from her hip, three very large men were standing on the steps leading up to the front door.

"What are you doing here?" the bigger of the three bellowed. He was the one who had been at the store the other day. She'd been in such a hurry, she hadn't really paid much attention to him. But now? Now, she saw him. He was large, his shoulders wide. His long, corkscrew hair fell forward to cover most of his face as he headed down the stairs off the old porch. There was a wildness about the man, but she steeled her spine and held her head high.

"Tulley sent me," she offered, holding up the box. She'd been bullied for years, and she wasn't going to take it from this man, either. "You could be a little nicer, you know."

"Don't like people on my land who don't belong," he called out, narrowing his dark-brown eyes as he walked toward her.

"Are you Mr. Morgan?" she asked, looking over his shoulder at the other two men. Both of them stepped off the porch and walked closer, only stopping a few feet away.

The one with the dark-blond hair tucked a rag in his back pocket and shook his head before walking away. The second, and younger looking one, folded his arms over his chest and tucked his chin to hide his eyes behind the baseball cap he was wearing. Tessa couldn't quite make out his features, but that wasn't why she was there. She had to make a delivery, and from the scowl on this man's face, she needed to drop it and get out of there quickly.

"I'm Drake Morgan," he grunted, but the sound of his slow drawl sent a shiver down her spine. "And you are?"

"Tessa." She cleared her throat. "Tessa Ward, and I work for Tulley."

"I remember," he growled. Tessa's eyes widened, but she quickly righted her features when she realized she probably looked foolish. All she wanted to do was drop off the part and leave this man's land. He obviously didn't want her there anymore than she wanted to be there.

"Anyhow," she smirked, "here is one of your parts. Tulley wanted me to let you know the other part will be another two days. Someone will deliver it to you." That someone wouldn't be her.

"He told me the parts would be in today," Drake retorted, his eyebrows pushing together in frustration. "I need that part, little one."

"I'm sorry," she shrugged, ignoring his endearment. "If they come in sooner, I'm sure Tulley will deliver them himself."

"I want you to deliver them," he ordered as his chest swelled with a deep inhale. And yes, that deep growl of a sentence he'd strung together was, in fact, an order. "Now, set the box down and be on your way."

"Yes, sir," she replied, making sure she didn't roll her eyes or kick dirt on his boots. Geez, he was super bossy and grumpy.

As she bent over, Tessa heard him inhale long and deep again. She didn't even look at him to see what he was doing. As of that moment, she wanted nothing more than to go to her tiny apartment and go to sleep.

"Honeysuckle?" he asked, shocking Tessa for a moment. She stood up and looked him in the eyes. Drake blinked several times and gritted his teeth. She didn't know if she should answer him or run.

"What?" she asked with a frown.

"Your scent," he whispered in awe and took a step closer. "It's honeysuckle."

"Uh, no," she shook her head, "I'm not wearing anything."

"Forgive me." He paused, taking a moment to clear his throat and step away. Tessa watched as he scratched at his short beard, sliding his hand around the back of his neck to work out the tension there.

"Be here tomorrow with my part," Drake ordered after a sudden shift in his mood.

"But Tulley said it may be Friday," she began, but a hard glare from Mr. Morgan shut her right up.

"Tomorrow," he barked, and walked over to open the door to her car. Tessa didn't waste time and slid into the seat, praying the car would crank on the first try. When it did, she pulled the door and slammed it shut, putting the car in reverse and leaving the Morgan's land as fast as she could.

When she looked in the rearview mirror, Drake was rooted to the same spot, watching her as she drove away. A shiver raced up her spine as he faded from sight. Tulley never told her Drake Morgan was handsome, or that he was an asshole.