Justice jerked around. “I could have done that.” He didn’t really like anyone handling his dad’s stuff. A wave of guilt swept over him. But when he saw the knowing, challenging glare from Toby, Justice mounted Shasta and began cantering around the fence line.
Charlee watched as the boy she thought hung the moon showed off for his friend. Unable to stay away, she eased back inside the gate, hugging the post. Sidling up to her, Toby glanced over his shoulder, then gave Charlee a push, causing her to bang her head on the rough wood. “You don’t belong here.”
“I belong here more than you!” She stood up to him. “Justice is my best friend.”
“Oh, really?” Toby raised his eyebrows disbelievingly. “You’re trouble. You know how I know?”
“How?” Charlee asked, peering over Toby’s shoulder to see Justice riding by.
“Toby! Are you watching?” Justice called out.
“Yea, sure, that’s some saddle,” he yelled, then turned back to Charlee. “You’re trouble for Justice, because if you weren’t here, I wouldn’t do this.” With that odd statement, Toby whirled and popped Shasta hard on the hip with his fist. The horse reacted as expected and took off running, bucking a little while Justice tried to slow his mount.
Charlee held her breath, hoping he would quickly gain control. But something happened, the saddle slipped sideways, and Justice fell under the hooves of the horse. The horse danced sideways, trying to avoid him, but in the process she stepped on the stirrup, catching her foot, which scared her. What happened after that was a blur.
Justice hit the ground hard, rolling out from under Shasta. Jumping to his feet, he wiped the sting of blood from his eyes. “Shasta!” he cried, horrified as his father’s saddle fell beneath the horse’s belly, dragging the ground. He took off running. “Stop!”
The mare didn’t get far, but it didn’t take long for the damage to be done. By the time Justice caught up with Shasta and braved himself to bring her to a halt, the saddle was in tatters—scarred, torn, silver torn off. What had once been a superb piece of craftsmanship was now a ruined mess.
Panic gripped his guts, and Justice felt like he was about to puke.
“Oh, Justice.” The despair in Charlee’s voice reflected how he felt.
“Shit.” Tobias spat the word, then took off running. “I was never here.”
Justice felt like doing the same, but knew he didn’t have a choice. He was in deep shit.
“Justice!” His father’s voice split the air.
“He’s gonna kill me,” Justice whispered.
“No, he won’t, stay here.” Before Justice could stop her, Charlee took off.
She ran to Sam King. The tears were real, she wasn’t acting. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. It wasn’t his fault. Don’t punish Justice, please.”
With a frown on his weathered face, he took in the situation. “Justice! We’ll talk when I get back. You wait for me here.” Sam’s voice was calm but measured. “Charlee, you come with me.” He took her by the arm and led her to the truck.
“Dad! Wait!” Justice wasn’t sure what was happening. He didn’t know what Charlee said, he only knew he was in trouble. “Where are you going?”
“I’m taking your friend home.”
Before Justice could protest, his father had Charlee in his truck and they were gone. He didn’t know what to do. Man, he must be in deep shit if his father didn’t want Charlee to witness what was coming.
One of the hands came and helped him clean up, picking up the pieces of the saddle and tending to Shasta. After they’d finished, Justice went up into the hayloft and lay down, feeling sick to his stomach.
It wasn’t long before he heard his dad drive back up and knowing his son, it wasn’t long before he was standing at the bottom of the ladder. “Come down, Justice.”
Justice obeyed. “I’m sorry,” were the first words out of his mouth.
Sam was serious, not smiling. “I won’t hold you responsible for what Charlee did. But you shouldn’t let her tamper with my things. That saddle was expensive.”
Justice stared at his dad. “What?” Understanding dawned on him. “Wait. No.” He climbed down from the loft. “Charlee didn’t do this. I did.”
“You don’t have to cover for her. She said it wasn’t your fault.” Sam walked over to check the pieces of the saddle that were piled in a corner. “Dammit, just look at this mess.”
“Dad, she had nothing to do with this. Charlee tried to stop me. I was just showing off to Tobias.” He walked toward his father. “What did you do to her?”
Sam turned to look at him, concern on his face. “I didn’t do anything, didn’t really talk to her. I took her home, walked her to the door and explained what had happened to her father. She cried and tried to deny it, but I just thought she was being a kid.”
“What did her father do?” Justice clenched his fists.
“Nothing, he just said he’d take care of it.” Sam took his hat off and hit it against his jeans. “I told him to keep her home for a few days, not to let her come over so much.”
“Dad!” Justice whirled around, wanting to run, wanting to help Charlee. “You don’t understand. He hits Charlee and now she’ll get a whipping for nothing. I didn’t want to lose my motorcycle, but I sure didn’t mean for her to take my punishment!”
“Oh, she won’t be taking your punishment, you’ll have to wait on that cycle. And what do you mean ‘he whips her’?”
“With a belt, he leaves marks sometimes. Charlee is small.” His voice trailed off. “I don’t care about the motorcycle. Maybe I should go check on her.”
“We’ll both go.” Sam put an arm around his son’s shoulders.
Both looked at one another as Charlee rubbed Shasta’s nose. “I well remember the day Toby pushed you into using your dad’s saddle.”
Justice groaned. “Me too. I’ll never forget how disappointed my father was, and all I could think about was missing out on the motorcycle.”
“I was afraid for you. I knew he’d be mad.” Charlee tied one of the sleeping bags behind the saddle.
“Sam King could get angry, but he was never like your father, Charlee. What I regretted more was that my dad ever considered you were at fault.”
“It turned out all right. You know he quit hitting me for a while after your dad had that talk with him.”
“Actually, he did more than talk,” Justice admitted as he loaded their supplies in the saddle bags. “My dad always considered you family. He was protecting you.” Turning abruptly toward her, he asked, “What do you mean for a while?”
Charlee shook her head, not wanting to say too much. “Actually, he only hit me once more, the day I found out the truth about my past.”
Justice nodded. Charlee knew he assumed they had argued over what she found. She didn’t want to tell him it was because he caught her returning from Justice’s bed.
“Sadly, that was just the first of Tobias’s jabs at you. He always used me to embarrass you.” Why did he have to be so perfect? Even the muscles flexing in his forearms as he handled the horse turned her on, not to mention his fine butt in those tight jeans.
Justice started to say something, but she was already mounting up. The girl hadn’t forgotten how to ride a horse. He had to hurry to catch up with her. “You didn’t embarrass me,” he countered.
Maybe it was the fresh air, but Justice’s protest just struck Charlee as funny. “Oh, please.” She teased with a laugh. “I didn’t have any illusions or expectations, but you have to know I worshiped the ground you walked on. I totally let my feelings for you get out of hand.” And we made love, and we made a baby. She wanted to add, but she held that knowledge close to her heart.
Tightening her knees, “Giddy-up.” Charlee urged Shasta forward. She couldn’t believe she had said anything. Even worse, Justice didn’t respond. Hell, she’d done it again. Riding on ahead, Charlee galloped across the pasture behind the barn. The weather was warming a bit. She hoped he’d think
her pink cheeks were due to the sun and not to mortification. Curious cattle sauntered toward them, hoping for a hand-out. She didn’t slow down, thankful she knew the trail to take which would lead to Cave Canyon.
“Hell.” She was running from him. Justice tapped Cochise’s shoulder lightly with the reins, giving him permission to overtake Shasta. He raised his hand as they passed one of his crews who was setting posts. January was the month when they checked and repaired all of the fences. The portion which had been taken down by the sinkhole forced them to build a whole new section to protect the animals. “You can’t outrun me, Charlee. Shasta is no match for my Appaloosa.”
“Don’t talk about her. She’s loyal, and she tries really hard.”
He got the distinct feeling they weren’t just talking about the horse. “Let’s head toward the hot springs and set up camp. We won’t be too far from the sinkhole and the trailhead that cuts across my property.”
“Whatever you say, boss.”
Sarcastic looked good on her. The view he had from the rear of her heart-shaped ass draped across the saddle didn’t look too bad either. “Where do you live?”
The path was beginning to narrow as they headed into the wooded area. Charlee eased Shasta over to one side, and Justice brought Cochise up even with her. “I have an apartment in Austin, on the west side where the hill country starts. I’m about two blocks off the Colorado River, just a one bedroom apartment.”
“So, you live alone?”
“I did say one bedroom, Justice. No roommate.” When she met his eyes, she saw they were twinkling.
“Unless he was sharing your bed.”
“No one in my bed but me,” Charlee murmured. “Can we change the topic of conversation, please?” The deeper they went into the trees, the darker it was getting. She knew they only had about a half hour ride to go. “I called the office and they’re sending someone down tomorrow to do the radar tests. We’ll have to meet them there.” A rustle in the bushes caused the horses to hesitate. “What was that?” she asked.
“Deer probably. We also have a few wild horses still around.”
“I’m glad to hear that. I remember when you adopted some of them.” Charlee knew the range for wild horses was disappearing fast. The big ranches, like El Camino, could provide a habitat for them to continue to thrive and reproduce.
“There’s a snow white one. I’ve tried several times to get close, but he won’t let me within five hundred feet.” Justice patted Cochise on the neck. “I’ve seen him stand on that ridge near Lavaca Canyon and rear up on his back legs. He’s a sight, looks like something out of an old west movie.”
“I hope I get to see him.” She let loose her ironclad grip on the reins.
“Or it could be a bear,” he added dryly.
Charlee jumped in the saddle, causing Shasta to misstep. “Dang you, Justice.” Charlee fussed.
“Easy, easy.” Justice leaned over and touched Shasta, calming her. “Sorry. Actually, there have been sightings in the area. There is a small breeding population of black bears in this part of Texas.” When she looked around furtively, he assured her. “I’ll protect you, don’t worry.”
Charlee bristled. “I have always been able to take care of myself.”
Justice smiled. This was almost like old times. While her mind was on other things, he decided to ask the question that was bearing hard on his. “A while ago you said your feelings for me got out of hand, that you used to worship the ground I walked on.” He watched her shoulders tense. She didn’t look at him, rather she kept her eyes straight ahead. “Do you still feel the same way?”
“Why, does your ego need stroking?”
He could see he’d teed her off, her mouth was pooching out. All he could think about was kissing her. “It’s not my ego that needs stroking.”
Charlee whirled around in the saddle so fast, she almost fell off her horse. Justice had to reach out a hand to keep her from losing her balance. “You didn’t just say that.”
“I did.” Justice knew he was treading on dangerous ground. If she had no interest in him, his teasing would only alienate her. He might lose her as a friend. But he was willing to risk it, the stakes were too great. “I can’t get my mind off that kiss we shared. And like I said before, I’ve dreamed about you since you left, Charlee,” he confessed. “I don’t know what triggered it, but over the years I’ve had blistering hot dreams about you.” Justice shifted in the saddle. Even the sound of her voice made his blood run hot. Hell, he’d been hard since he’d realized it was her at the red light.
Charlee started to shake. “Who knows what triggers dreams.” He didn’t remember the night they shared. Charlee knew he didn’t. “So, what are you saying?”
“You aren’t married, you don’t have a steady boyfriend. Do you?”
“No.” She could see that they were approaching the area where the sinkhole was located. Cave Canyon was just up ahead and the hot springs on the other side of it. “There isn’t a man in my life, and I’m not pining away after one either.” With that blatant lie, she tried to put a cap on his suspicions that she was still head over heels about him.
“Why not?” He had to know.
Charlee bit the inside of her lip. He just wasn’t going to let this go. “Because I learned my lesson. I remember how stupid I was—” She stopped talking, the words sticking in her throat. “Let it go.” She wasn’t angry anymore, not since the baby. But all of it had changed her, forever. Charlee hadn’t even been able to date another man. She’d tried a few times. Most of the time she was okay, but when the nights were darkest, she felt a ragged pain and a loss that ate a hole in her heart.
To say Charlee had his attention was putting it mildly. There wasn’t a chance in hell he was letting anything go. “When? Who hurt you?” Jealousy ripped into him like a bullet.
“Justice…don’t.” They arrived at a clearing overlooking the hot springs, a picturesque place framed with large limestone rocks and a bubbling warm pool. There was still enough light for them to see. Memories of swimming in these waters as a young girl came to her. And now here she was with Justice again and neither one of them were children.
Charlee prepared to dismount, taking hold of the horn and beginning to swing her leg over.
“No, come here. Let me help you.”
She looked over her shoulder, and he stood there, arms outstretched. He wanted to help her down. God, this wasn’t wise, but Charlee didn’t argue. She placed her hands on his broad shoulders and held her breath as he pulled her off Shasta and down into his waiting embrace. “Thanks.”
“God, you smell good. I noticed it the other day. Sugar cookies.”
“It’s just my body wash,” she explained softly.
Justice couldn’t resist, he buried his head in her neck and inhaled. “I’d like to wash your body.”
She trembled. “Justice, we can’t…”
“Why in God’s name, can’t we?” He held her tight, nuzzling her neck, and Charlee felt her pussy flood with warmth. “We’re both adults, we know what we want. And I want you.” He kissed her again. “Your necklace is in my way.” He lifted her hair and went to move the cord to one side when she froze.
“No.” She tried to stop him from touching it.
But he’d lifted the thin cord from her neckline and held the tiny star in his hand. “Where did you get this?”
She pulled out of his arms and walked away. “We need to build a fire. It’s going to get cold tonight.”
“That’s my necklace, where did you get it?” His tone was low, grating and serious as hell.
Charlee stopped walking, then turned to face him. “I didn’t steal it if that’s what you mean.”
He methodically tied the horses to a bush, then wordlessly began to unsaddle Cochise, and she did the same to Shasta. Why didn’t he say anything?
As Justice mechanically went through the motions of setting up camp, his mind was whirling. She didn’t say anything but did her part, staying as
far from him as possible while still getting the sleeping bags and food arranged. He noted that she put the bags on opposite sides of the fire.
“We won’t have to sleep out here. I have a tent and a small heater stored in one of the caves.”
“Oh, is this one of your standard dating spots?” She tried not to let jealousy color her words but it was impossible.
“Hardly, but I had one of the men drop it off today. I was planning ahead.”
She grunted, thankful for his foresight but not ready to say so. When everything was set, he rose to his feet and marched over to her. “I never said you stole anything, it’s not your style. But I’m giving you five seconds to tell me about the necklace because I can distinctly remember turning the house, office and my truck upside down looking for it. I never took the damn thing off.” He was right in Charlee’s face and when she tried to move away, he stopped her, his hands clasping her upper arms. “Talk to me. Now, dammit.”
“Like I said, I was stupid,” she whispered with a measure of self-disgust and poured her heart out. There was no escaping it. “The night of Abby’s surgery, you drank too much. It was dark, you were too drunk to drive, and I helped you home.”
“What?” Justice frowned, his eyes piercing into her own. He shook his head as if trying to dispel the possibilities. Hazy impressions fogged his brain. “You were the one who took me home from The Broken Spoke?”
“Yes, I helped you.” She helped him home and then helped him break her heart. Somehow when she’d imagined making peace with the memories and with herself, this wasn’t what she’d had in mind.
“What happened, Charlee?” The possibilities were tormenting him.
She sought a way out of this, but she couldn’t even think of a convincing lie. God, help me. Maybe she could tell Justice enough to satisfy him without completely humiliating herself. “I took you home, I helped you in. Out of nowhere you decided you wanted me. I was weak, I’d always…longed for you.” She closed her eyes, unwilling to see the expression in his eyes. With a harsh laugh, she just let the truth spring from her lips. “You were drunk enough and horny enough to fuck the flat-chested tomboy.” She heard his harsh intake of breath. “I haven’t forgotten a moment of it. You forgot it all. That’s why the next day at the diner hurt me so much.”
Loving Justice (El Camino Real Book 2) Page 11
