How easily he turned her on. Her heart pounded with excitement and their rendezvous was still hours away. “I’ll try to get there early, but I can’t promise that I’ll—”
“Shh.” He pressed a finger to her lips. “It doesn’t matter when you get there. The second you arrive I’ll be as hard as a tire iron.”
“Oh.” Enthralled by that potent image, she gazed up at him in breathless anticipation.
“You may not realize what an impression you’ve made on me.” Lazily he brushed his thumb over her lower lip. “I don’t just like you, Aria. I crave you.” And he kissed her, thrusting his tongue deep.
Her surrender was complete. She held nothing back as she melted against him, everything forgotten except this—a connection so powerful that her nipples tightened and her body trembled.
Slowly he lifted his mouth from hers. “You need to go.”
“Mmm.” She kept her eyes closed as she tried to remember where and why. Her legs felt rubbery. She didn’t want to wobble as she walked away from him. “Give me a sec.”
“Sure.” He rubbed her back.
Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes and met his gaze.
He swallowed. “I swear, when you look at me like that, it’s all I can do not to haul you into the tack room and bolt the door.”
And she would go with him despite knowing she had to get home and talk to Josh. Her cherished self-control disappeared when she was in the grip of this intense longing. The realization alarmed her.
“It’s a bad idea to head to the tack room, though. For a lot of reasons.”
“Yes.” Good thing at least one of them was exercising restraint. She unwound her arms from his neck and discovered she was still clutching the straw hat. “I might have dented this some.”
He grinned. “Don’t know how you can tell. That’s one disreputable hat.”
“I like it on you.” Stepping back, she handed it to him. “Makes you look rough and ready.”
“I’m never rough.” He settled the hat back on his head. “But when it comes to you, I’m always ready.”
Damn, he was intoxicating! She fought the urge to throw herself into his arms and beg him to make love to her. Instead she smiled as she backed away. “See you tonight.”
“Can’t wait.”
“Me, either.” Understatement of the century, she thought as she turned and hurried out of the barn. But she couldn’t think about that now. Time to switch gears and focus on her top priority. Ideally, Josh should get acquainted with Linus before the students arrived.
That meant getting him out here tomorrow. Having Brant to herself might be tons of fun, but her decision to breed Lucy made no sense if she couldn’t get Josh involved. Linus was adorable and she loved knowing he existed, but he was supposed to serve a purpose. So far he wasn’t doing that.
Once she was in the van she checked the time on her phone. She wasn’t nearly as late as she’d feared, but she kept the needle slightly above the speed limit all the way back to her apartment complex. With luck she wouldn’t catch Josh working, which would give him the perfect excuse to blow her off.
He billed the tech company by the hour and by calculating how much he needed to live on, he’d left himself plenty of time for computer games. Apparently his competitive nature had to find another outlet so now he fought digital fire-breathing dragons.
When he answered the door, he looked annoyed. “Can it wait? I’m in the middle of something.”
“Are you working?”
“No.”
“Then it can’t wait.” Her patience was nearly gone. “I need to talk to you. Please shut off the TV.” She walked in without being invited and he had no choice but to roll his wheelchair out of her way unless he wanted her to run into it.
Fortunately he hadn’t become that belligerent. He clicked off the TV and she closed the door. Forcing herself to ignore the apartment littered with trash from the junk food he ate these days, she cleared a space on his couch and sat.
She’d had visions of cooking nourishing meals for him at least five nights a week, but he’d brushed aside that offer. The apartment’s stale odor made her wonder how long since he’d cleaned. She’d attempted to do that for him and he’d told her he could operate a vacuum and mop from his wheelchair.
“I suppose this is about Lucy’s foal.” He shoved his fingers through his dark hair, the same shade as hers. He needed a haircut, but claimed that he didn’t.
“Yes, it’s about Linus.” She pulled her phone out of her purse. “He went into the pasture today. It was awesome. Rosie took a video and I want you to see it.”
He sighed. “Look, I’d rather not, okay?”
“Why?” She gazed at her brother, someone she loved with all her heart despite the fact that he’d turned into a moody, unpredictable man. “He’s amazing!”
“I’m sure he is, Aria. I’ve seen foals before and they’re cute as shit. But I’m over the horse thing. I tried to tell you that but you didn’t listen. You charged ahead with this idea of breeding Lucy. I wish you hadn’t.” He’d inherited the brown eyes that ran in the family and they gleamed with frustration.
She put the phone away. Then she took inventory of their surroundings before focusing on her brother. He used to be fit but now he looked soft and doughy. “Is this what you want for the rest of your life?”
“It’s not what I want.” His eyes flashed in defiance. “It’s what I can have.”
“That’s not true. The doctors said you could walk again, ride again, live a normal life.”
“Oh, sure. But I might have to use a damned cane. I can ride if someone helps me up on the damned horse. I can drive if I order a special plate and buy a specially equipped vehicle! No, thank you!”
She got it, then, for the first time since his accident. He’d rather live as a disabled person cut off from nearly everything and everyone he’d ever known than risk humiliation in the world he used to inhabit. As an eventer, he’d thought of himself as a warrior. That image had been permanently destroyed, so now he’d chosen to hide and be a warrior in the anonymous world of gamers.
But just because she understood didn’t mean she had to accept his decision. He was resigning himself to a half life, and she wouldn’t let him do that, not if she had a chance in hell of rescuing him.
“All right.” She faced the despair in his expression and vowed to replace it with hope. “Maybe I shouldn’t have bred Lucy in some misguided attempt to cheer you up.”
“You shouldn’t have, but once you get going, you’re unstoppable. You’ve been like that ever since I can remember.”
“And you’ve been my hero ever since I can remember.”
“Don’t say that.” He looked away. “I don’t need to hear it right now.”
“I think you do. Josh, there’s this little foal out at Thunder Mountain Ranch. He’s only one day old, but he has gumption. I didn’t know he’d turn out like that, but he seems to have been born with attitude. You were, too.”
“Yeah, well, things happen that can knock the attitude right out of you.”
“Watching Linus would make you laugh. You never laugh anymore.”
He gazed at her. “You’re not going to let up on me, are you?”
“It’s not in my nature.” She shrugged. “You said so just now.”
“Let me think about it.”
“Come with me tomorrow. Thunder Mountain Academy starts up again on Wednesday. Until then, it’s fairly quiet at the ranch.”
“I’m not making any promises.”
“Want to watch the video?”
He shook his head. “You know I’m a sucker for cute baby animals. It’s emotional blackmail.”
“I’m not above that.”
“You don’t have to tell me. I’m your brother.” A hint of a smile touched his mouth. “You’ve been using emotional blackmail on me for years. I broke up with Clara Simpson because of you.”
“She was horrible! You should never have gone out with t
hat skank!”
“I agree she was horrible, but she had a great body.”
“Don’t remind me. I saw every naked inch of it.”
“Yes, you did.” This time he gave her a real smile, almost a grin like the old Josh. “Those pictures were awesome. You could have sold them to every guy in school. I’m surprised you didn’t blackmail her.”
“I didn’t care about her. I just wanted evidence that she was two-timing you with Jerry Hauserman in the back of his pickup. I was thirteen, for God’s sake! I’d never seen people having sex before. I was traumatized.”
“I know. That’s why I had to break up with her.”
“Good thing you did, too, because...wait. Are you saying you broke up with her because I was traumatized?”
“Yep.”
“I thought you broke up with her because I presented you with the damning evidence of her betrayal.” She remembered saying those exact words when she’d handed over the pictures. It had been one of her finer moments.
“Not quite. I had a pretty good idea she was getting it on with Jerry but I pretended not to know.”
“You knew already?” She stared at him in confusion. “Why didn’t you dump her?”
“Because the sex was really good. But after what you put yourself through, not to mention how outraged you were on my behalf...” He shrugged. “I had no choice.”
“I can’t believe you didn’t care that she was boinking someone else. You’re just saying that.”
“Actually, it’s the truth. At seventeen, a guy doesn’t always make those fine distinctions, especially if he’s having sex for the first time in his life and it’s the best thing ever. I never wanted it to end.”
She was stunned. All these years she’d congratulated herself on rescuing him from the bad girl’s clutches. “And I ended it for you.”
“Yeah, but you meant well.”
“That’s humbling.” She thought about it while she rubbed a spot on her jeans where Linus had nuzzled her. Then she glanced up. “You probably think I’m doing it again, huh? Butting in when I should leave you alone.”
“In a way, yes. But this isn’t kid’s stuff anymore. I loved eventing more than I ever loved Clara.”
“I know.”
“That’s gone forever.”
“I know that, too, but that doesn’t mean—”
“It means the man I thought I was died.”
She sucked in a breath. “Oh, Josh.”
“I’m sorry, Aria, but playing around with a cute little foal isn’t going to change that.”
11
THANKS TO A lively poker game suggested by Cade, Brant managed to get through the time between dinner and Aria’s arrival. He’d texted her directions for reaching the cabin by a back road so she wouldn’t have to drive past the house. She’d said not to expect her before ten.
But he didn’t want to take the chance she’d beat him there, so he cashed in his chips at nine thirty. Everybody except Herb gave him a hard time about getting too old to stay up late.
“Hey, ease up,” Brant said. “Ringo left an hour ago and I didn’t notice anybody razzing him about it.”
“Ringo went to hunt mice in the barn, not catch extra shut-eye,” Cade said.
“Yeah, but Ringo’s been snoozing all day whereas I’ve put in long hours of manual labor, right, Dad?”
“Right, son.” Herb concentrated on shuffling the cards and didn’t look his way, for which he was grateful.
Ty pushed back his chair. “Deal me out for the next hand. I’ll walk the tired old man out the door.”
That produced more laughter and teasing, but Brant was grateful for Ty’s help in moving out. “Great. Glad to have the company at my age.” He figured Ty had something on his mind.
Sure enough, once they’d ambled down the porch steps, Ty came out with it. “What’s going on with you, bro? You’ve been watching the clock all night and that’s not typical of the laid-back guy I know.”
“Aria’s coming out to the cabin sometime after ten.”
That brought Ty to a complete stop. “She is?”
Brant met his gaze. “Yeah.”
“So that’s how the wind blows. I wondered after seeing you two together. Did you know her before this?”
“Nope. She was just some kid I passed in the halls at school. She was three years behind me. Do you remember her?”
Ty shrugged. “Not really. The name’s familiar, and I sort of remember her brother Josh.” He paused and rubbed his chin. “Are you saying this all developed since yesterday?”
“I know how it sounds but—”
“It sounds like you’ve been blindsided.” He smiled. “I wondered if that would ever happen.”
“It’s not what you’re thinking. The chemistry’s off the charts but she has her life and I have mine. Once Linus’s training is over, I’m gone.”
“Yeah, right.” Ty gave him an irritatingly know-it-all smile.
“You always were a smartass and I see that having Whitney around hasn’t changed that particular aspect of your personality.”
“Good thing you love that about me, huh?”
“Sure is.”
“Whitney has changed me, bro. I’m a better man because of her.” He was quiet for a minute. “Can I give you some advice?”
“Are you asking my permission? Because if you are, I’m gonna pass.”
“Judging from your behavior, you think a lot of this woman. If I were you, I’d make sure she understands that you’re not planning to stick around.” He peered at him. “Unless you are.”
“Nope. Not hanging around. Not my style.”
“Then she deserves to know that. She might misunderstand your eagerness.”
“She won’t. It’s not that kind of relationship.”
“Tell that to somebody who hasn’t known you for fifteen years. You don’t leave a hot poker game with your nearest and dearest unless it’s important. She’ll pick up on that.”
“It’s sex, bro. Plain and simple.” Brant knew that was a lie the second the words were out of his mouth. “Well, it’s more than sex and we get along great, but you know me. I don’t make a long-term commitment with any woman.”
“I saw the way she looked at you during lunch. You might want to give her some background on that decision.”
“I see no reason to drag that out. It has nothing to do with what’s between Aria and me. We’re both focused on having a good time with each other in the here and now.”
“Are you absolutely sure about that?”
“Look, Whitney’s terrific and I understand that you two share everything. I haven’t given Aria any reason to think we’re headed in that direction and she hasn’t implied it, either.”
Ty studied him for several long seconds. “Okay. Obviously you’re not ready to hear my words of wisdom.” He punched him lightly on the arm. “I’d better get back in there and continue my complete domination of the game. Have fun.”
“Thanks, I will.” The trek to the cabin took a while, which gave him time to think about what Ty had said. Back in tenth grade, the school psychologist had tried to get him to admit he was upset about his mother taking off after his father’s death.
Not really. He’d accepted that relationships didn’t last and he’d simply enjoy them when he could. Tonight he was about to do that very thing.
After switching on a few lights in the cabin, he went out to the small front porch and sat in one of the two rockers. By ten twenty she still wasn’t there. Although he considered himself a patient man, he couldn’t make that claim tonight. He’d kept his chair in such constant motion that he’d probably worn grooves in the porch floor.
He’d left the porch light off because he didn’t relish sitting in a spotlight waiting for her. Entertaining a woman at his place was a new experience and so far he liked the concept. The washer and dryer had come in handy. This afternoon he’d changed the sheets on the bed and turned them back. He’d washed the towels in the bathroo
m, too.
In moving from ranch to ranch, he’d always bedded down in the bunkhouse. Consequently any night spent with a lady had been at her place. While that was fine, this was better.
He’d felt right at home from the moment Cade had brought him here. He wouldn’t mind having his own cabin someday, but he couldn’t imagine how that would fit into his lifestyle. He’d just appreciate this one while he had it.
After Aria had left this afternoon he’d made a quick trip to town on the pretext of buying some snacks for the cabin. He didn’t really need them. Cade had left him stuff like bread and crackers, plus some cheese, peanut butter, jelly, a six-pack of beer and some milk. He had not, however, left a box of condoms, because he wasn’t a mind reader.
Now the bedside table drawer had that item tucked inside, and there was red wine on the kitchen counter and white in the refrigerator. He didn’t figure Aria for a beer drinker. She was a gourmet cook and they were all about wine. He’d seen that demonstrated while they’d made coq au vin.
He was ready. He couldn’t be any more ready, in fact. And still no headlights had appeared on the dirt road. He should just relax and listen to the sounds of the night—an owl hooting, the distant yipping of a pack of coyotes chasing a rabbit, the wind sifting through the branches of nearby pines, the muted growl of an engine.
He stood, as if being upright would allow him to hear it better. Yep, the vehicle was coming closer. His pulse rate accelerated. Had to be her. Then he saw the headlights bobbing along and his chest tightened.
Watching the lights approach, he clattered down the steps. He’d originally planned to wait for her on the porch, envisioning himself in the rocker, looking relaxed. Eager anticipation of a woman’s visit was so unlike him. That thought came and went and he no longer cared if it was like him or not. She was here.
He had her door open before she’d shut off the engine. Gathering her into his arms, he lifted her from the seat and nudged the door closed with his shoulder. Then he started toward the cabin.
“Wait! I brought something.”
He paused. “What?”
Cowboy All Night (Thunder Mountain Brotherhood, Book 5) Page 11
