by Marin Thomas
“That’s irrelevant. Matt’s a city kid and doesn’t have the same experience country kids have.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“You probably tell Matt not to talk to strangers.”
“Of course I do. Perverts who prey on kids are everywhere these days.”
“And kids raised around Markton are taught to stop and help a stranger in need.” Dexter exhaled loudly. “Matt lives in a different world than kids around here.”
Snort. “Did my father do something to put you in this grumpy mood?”
Feeling his control slip, he said, “You want to know why I’m upset?”
“Upset? You’re acting like a bear with a splinter in his paw.”
Enough was enough. Dexter swung the truck onto the shoulder of the road, hit the brakes, shifted into Park and released his seat belt. “This is why I’m upset.” He leaned across the seat, grasped Josie’s face and kissed the sass out of her.
Good Lord! Stunned by the feel of Dexter’s mouth moving against hers, Josie didn’t immediately respond to his kiss.
Dexter paused, his lips brushing hers when he spoke. “Want me to stop?”
“No.” The word slipped from her mouth on a sigh. Josie closed her eyes and gave herself over to the tingles racing through her limbs. Several gentle, slow brushes of his mouth against hers, then his tongue delved inside. Light-headed, she curled a hand around his neck and slid her fingers into his hair, then melted into a puddle of heat.
While his tongue explored, his hand glided down her neck, fingers brushing aside the collar of her blouse before continuing south until he found her breast.
The subtle scent of Dexter’s maleness combined with his aftershave made her woozy. Never had a man kissed her with such obsession—as if she were his world. His universe. His reason for being.
Josie had had two lovers in her lifetime. Her job and raising Matt left little room for a relationship. Most men her age refused to become involved with a woman who already had a child.
Dexter’s not most men.
Before passion overruled common sense Josie’s brain insisted this was just a kiss….
But then Dexter’s hand unsnapped her seat belt, and she launched herself against him, kissing him like a love-starved harlot. She straddled his thigh, pressed her breasts against his chest and moaned into his mouth.
The sounds of heavy breathing filled the truck cab. She fumbled with the buttons on his shirt, managing to free two from their holes when a vehicle whizzed past and laid on the horn.
Startled, she bolted across the seat and leaned against the passenger door.
Dexter got out of the truck, then stumble-walked several feet along the shoulder of the road before stopping to stare into the distance.
While Josie adjusted her clothing, she took shallow breaths, hoping to slow her erratic heartbeat. Wow. With one kiss Dexter had blown her world to smithereens. She tapped her fingertips against her swollen lips and closed her eyes.
Her sexual attraction to Dexter frightened her. Becoming intimately involved with her son’s uncle was so not a good idea. She liked Dexter a lot—okay, more than a lot. She admired his generosity in helping her father and appreciated the way he’d taken Matt under his wing. There wasn’t much not to like about the man.
Until both families were told the truth—that Dusty was Matt’s father—she’d better not complicate the situation by becoming involved with Dexter. She studied his lone figure alongside the road. Did he regret kissing her? She left the truck and approached him. “Is everything okay?”
He spun. “I don’t know. You tell me, Josie.”
Hoping to erase the frown across his brow she said, “It was just a kiss.”
The frown deepened. “You sure about that?”
No. She crushed a pebble beneath her boot heel while she considered his question.
“Hell.” He paced in front of her. “My brother is Matt’s father.”
“Your point being…?”
He motioned to her, then himself. “We can’t do this. It’s wrong.”
Her heart sighed. Why did Dexter have to be such a good guy? The kind of man who put others before himself? Who took the high road? You wouldn’t be so enamored with him if he wasn’t. Dexter was exactly the kind of man Josie yearned for.
His blue eyes pinned her. “I can’t…won’t come between my brother and his son.”
“Our relationship has nothing to do with Matt and Dusty.”
“You and Dusty haven’t had time to discuss the future.”
“What future?” Other than sharing a child, Josie and Dusty had no relationship.
The lines around Dexter’s mouth relaxed. “Might be best if you told me where you stand with Dusty.”
“We’re not in love with one another. What I felt for your brother years ago was a teenage crush.”
“Obviously those feelings stuck around or Matt wouldn’t be here.”
“Do you want to hear what happened between me and Dusty? It’s not as exciting as you’re making it out to be.”
Dexter averted his eyes, and Josie imagined that he struggled with wanting yet not wanting to know the intimate details of Matt’s conception. If Dexter chose not to hear her out that meant he wanted to forget their kiss. Josie, on the other hand, did not want to forget the kiss.
“I’m listening,” he said.
Her knees wobbled with relief. “I had just begun my first court-reporting job when the elevator doors in the Smith-Davidson Building in downtown L.A. opened and there stood your brother.” She rushed on before Dexter changed his mind about listening. “Dusty said he was in town on business. He insisted on taking me out to dinner to celebrate my new job. I offered for him to stay at my apartment instead of a hotel, because my roommate was out of town visiting her parents.” Now that four years had passed she could look back on that time with an unprejudiced eye.
“We never meant for anything to happen. But we began talking about the past and dating in high school, and then we shared a bottle of wine, and, well, it was one of those for-old-times’-sake things. I hadn’t been involved with anyone in a long time and I guess I was lonely.”
“You two didn’t take precautions?”
“We did. But the condoms in the medicine cabinet had expired.” She shrugged. “The next morning I woke up and Dusty was gone.”
“I’m sorry he hurt you, Josie.”
“Dusty didn’t hurt me. I was grateful in a way.” She rushed to explain. “After I left Markton I’d always believed there was a part of me that would love Dusty forever. But that night proved I had moved on.”
“And then you found out you were pregnant with Matt.”
“Yes. At first, I worried that carrying Dusty’s child might reignite my feelings for him.” She smiled. “But that wasn’t the case.”
Regardless of Josie’s lack of feelings for Dusty, Dexter would stand by his brother. His twin had a say in what happened with Josie and Matt and no matter how Josie tempted Dexter—and, man, did she tempt—he had no business becoming involved with his nephew’s mother. “We’d better gas up your truck.”
If they didn’t get going he’d kiss her again. And one kiss would lead to another and then another and eventually trouble bigger than the state of Wyoming.
Chapter Eight
Saturday morning Dexter brushed Digger’s coat until sweat beaded his brow. He’d risen at dawn to check on the horses and give instructions to the hands before he left the ranch for the day. Earlier in the week he’d promised Josie and Matt he’d take them to the National Little Britches Rodeo at the Wilson County Fairgrounds in Powell, a small town northwest of Markton.
Nothing he did anymore made sense. He was determined to keep his distance from Josie, yet at the same time he couldn’t get close enough to her. He shouldn’t have suggested the rodeo, but he figured he wouldn’t be spending time alone with Josie and Matt once Dusty returned. Dexter wanted a few memories of his own to tuck away in his heart befor
e he was forced to give Dusty, Josie and Matt a wide berth while they worked through their plans for the future.
After the roadside kiss they’d shared this past Tuesday, spending a minute, much less a day, with Josie probably wasn’t a smart move on Dexter’s part. Matt’s presence might convince Dexter to keep his hands to himself but the little tyke couldn’t prevent Dexter from fantasizing about the boy’s mother and the feelings she stirred in him.
The kiss should never have happened—no matter how attractive he found Josie. No matter that he enjoyed her company. No matter that he genuinely liked her. No matter…nothing. Josie was off-limits. Period.
He blamed his weakness for her on the fact that his breakup with Shannon had left him gutted and lonely. He’d truly loved Shannon and had been looking forward to settling down with her and starting a family—Josie was a sad reminder of that lost dream. She and Matt were Dusty’s instant family—not his.
Dexter yearned to believe that Josie had spoken the truth—the torch she’d once carried for his brother had burned out. But that was years ago. Life threw curve-balls, forcing people to adjust. Dusty and Josie deserved a chance to rekindle their feelings for one another—they owed it to themselves and to Matt to try and be a family. Dusty might not be in love with Josie but he was bound to hold affectionate feelings for her simply because she was the mother of his child. With time, those feelings would deepen and evolve into love.
The possibility churned Dexter’s stomach. What if Dusty isn’t ready to settle down? Dexter couldn’t remember his brother’s last serious relationship. Whether Dusty was or wasn’t ready to marry hardly mattered. Their father would demand Dusty live up to his responsibilities and marry the mother of his grandson—grudge or no grudge against Hank Charles.
“Figured I’d find you out here.”
The words startled Dexter and he spun. “Hey, Dad,” he said, surprised to see his father in the horse barn. J.W. limped forward, leaning heavily on his cane, and Dexter suspected the old rodeo injury to his leg was bothering him more than usual. “What’s up?”
“Your mother tells me you’ve been spending a lot of time over at the Lazy S.”
Dexter patted Digger’s rump before leaving the stall and latching the gate. “Then I guess Mom told you I’m boarding Bud Masterson’s mustang over there.” He held his father’s sober stare.
“Didn’t we decide you had too many responsibilities with the Cottonwood horses to take on more?”
You decided. “I’m not shirking my duties around the ranch.” Hell, Dusty took off to God-knows-where all the time and his parents never complained. If Dexter so much as stepped out of line once, they were all over him like buzzards on a rotting carcass.
That’s because you’ve willingly taken on the lion’s share of responsibility.
Dexter supposed he was partly to blame for his over-enthusiastic work ethic. When something needed doing, he did it—often when the chore wasn’t his responsibility. Dusty once called him a control freak. Maybe his twin was right. Dexter needed to learn to delegate. The ranch hands were capable of managing the chores around the barns; they just needed the opportunity to prove themselves. “Big Ben and the others have things under control when I’m not here.”
“Better use of your spare time would be practicing for the Hoedown at the end of the month.” J.W. trailed Dexter through the barn, stopping when Dexter entered the storage room to check on the feed supplies.
“Little tough to practice when my partner’s AWOL,” Dexter said.
“Have you heard from your brother lately?”
“Nope.”
“Your mother’s worried about him.”
Which meant his father was worried, too, although he wouldn’t admit it. “I’m sure Dusty will be home soon.” Then the fireworks would go off.
“Back to that mustang. Couldn’t you have found another place to board the horse instead of the Lazy S?”
Dexter faced his father. “You’ve had a grudge against Hank Charles for a long time.”
“We don’t agree on much.”
“It’s more than differing philosophies. Hank insists you don’t like him because he was better at rodeoing than you were in high school.”
“Charles is blowing hot air.”
“Is he?” Dexter paused, allowing his father a chance to admit the truth, but J.W. was a proud man and the words never came. “I saw his trophies, Dad.”
J.W.’s face paled. “Is there another reason besides the mustang that you’re socializing with Charles?”
“What do you mean?”
“Jesse said Josie’s back in Markton with her son.”
“So?”
“Your mother always believed you had a crush on that girl when Dusty dated her.”
Well, heck. Apparently Dexter hadn’t hidden his feelings as well as he’d believed. Why hadn’t his mother ever mentioned her suspicions to him? “Josie and I are just friends.” He struggled not to squirm under his father’s penetrating stare.
“You sure about that?”
“There’s nothing going on between us.” The kiss he’d shared with Josie flashed through Dexter’s mind, and heat flooded his face. He turned away before his father noticed.
“That’s good. You can do better than a Charles.”
Better? Wait until his father discovered his grandson was part Charles.
“Bill Chester mentioned he treated Lazy S cattle for pinkeye.”
Dexter wished his father would come right out and say what was on his mind instead of blurting out single sentences. “I moved the herd closer to the house—” His father opened his mouth, but Dexter cut him off. “Seeing how Hank’s still recovering from a heart attack and Josie can’t handle the cattle, I thought it was the neighborly thing to do.” And in case his father found fault with being neighborly, Dexter added, “I’m covering the vet bill out of my personal funds, not the ranch account.”
Tense silence settled between the two men. “Is that all Charles said about me—that I never beat him at rodeo?”
“Hank hinted that there was more to the animosity between you two than a few rodeo buckles. He suggested I ask you for the details.”
A mask of indifference slid over his father’s face. “I don’t know what he’s talking about.”
Figured you’d say that. There were times, like now, that Dexter believed his father kept secrets. But what secrets? Dexter had never believed the ridiculous rumors that had surfaced on and off through the years, claiming his father had had an affair early on in his marriage. J.W. was a straight arrow and a man of principle. He’d never cheat on Dexter’s mother. The rumor had probably been started by a jealous person. There were plenty of people who envied the Cody wealth.
“Is there anything else you need to discuss, Dad? I’m in a rush.”
“It’s nine in the morning. Where are you rushing off to?”
“I’m taking Josie and her son to the rodeo in Powell.”
“Thought you said you weren’t involved with Hank’s daughter.”
“I’m not.”
“Your mother and I never approved of Dusty dating her.”
“I’m twenty-seven years old, Dad. You have no say in my personal relationships.”
“So you are dating her,” his father said.
“No, I’m not.” And yes, the kiss had been a mistake—one he wouldn’t repeat.
“Your brother came to his senses and stopped seeing that gal. You’d be wise to follow suit.”
Dusty’s not as perfect as you believe.
“What’s going on?” Dexter’s older brother Walker stepped into the barn, blocking the exit. “The ranch hands are standing outside listening in on whatever it is you two are arguing about.”
“Something you need, Walker?” J.W. asked.
“I’ve got good news. The second well looks as if it’s going to bring in the mother lode.”
Walker intended to put his chemical engineering degree to work by harvesting the remaining untapped
natural gas reservoirs beneath the Cottonwood Ranch and then starting the Cody Natural Gas Company. Dexter was glad his older brother had found his niche in the family business and appeared happy and content since his marriage to Paula. Time would tell if Dusty adjusted as easily as Walker had to instant fatherhood.
“That’s great news.” J.W.’s excitement fizzled when he switched his attention to Dexter. “Mind my words, son,” he said. “She’s nothing but trouble.”
His father’s warning about Josie rubbed Dexter raw—mostly because J.W. was right. If Dexter knew what was best for him and everyone else concerned, he’d keep his distance from Josie.
Not an easy task when the memory of her kiss set off explosions inside his head.
J.W. slapped Walker on the shoulder. “Come up to the office when you have a minute. I’d like to hear more details on the gas well.” The old man shuffled from the barn, leaving the two brothers alone.
“What have you got there?” Dexter pointed to the maps in his hand.
“Something I need to show you.” Walker nodded over his shoulder. “Follow me to my truck.” They cut across the gravel drive.
“Where’s your shadow?” Dexter asked. Even before Walker and Paula married, her two-year-old son, Clay, had developed a serious case of hero worship and had followed Walker everywhere.
“Paula drove Clay to the park in town to take his mind off his blankie.”
Little Clay didn’t go anywhere without his blue blankie. “What happened to his snot rag?” Dexter grinned.
“We don’t know. Paula and I have looked everywhere and can’t find it.”
“Buy him a new one.”
Walker snorted. “Wish it was that easy.”
They arrived at Walker’s truck and he unrolled a map and spread it across the hood.
“What am I looking at?” Dexter asked.
“A geological survey Dad had done right before he bought a huge chunk of the Lazy S Ranch back in the late eighties.”
“Where’d you get this?”
“Found it hidden in the closet up at Granddad’s cabin.”
Dexter’s business degree was of little use in attempting to decipher the symbols on the map.
