“Make love to me, Brett,” she pleaded.
“I plan to,” he breathed as he rolled to his side and he reached for her jeans. When the metal button gave way, he pulled the zipper down and Jessie raised herself so her pants slid off easily. He dropped them to the floor. Brett’s hot gaze moved over her body, searing every inch of her naked flesh.
“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered.
His words made Jessie feel brave, and she reached for his belt and unbuckled it. Tossing the strip of leather beside the bed, she went to work on his zipper. Brett sucked in a breath when her hand brushed across his fly. She started to pull back, but he pressed her palm against him so she could feel his desire. He drew her close and whispered. “Lady, you’re driving me crazy.”
Jessie started to speak, when she heard a knock at the door, then her brother saying her name. Oh, no! It was Josh.
“Just a minute,” she said, her voice choked, her heart hammering in her chest. She scrambled off the bed and grabbed her robe from the closet. Combing her fingers through her hair, she glanced over her shoulder at Brett. He had on his shirt and was buttoning it.
Jessie walked to the door and opened it, stepping into the dimly lit hall.
“Welcome home,” Josh said in a sleepy voice and hugged her. “Why didn’t you wake us up?”
“It was so late and Katie was asleep and...we were all so tired.” She hoped she sounded convincing.
He gave her a curious look as he glanced toward her room. Her heart skipped a beat. “Did you bring us anything?”
She smiled. “Yes, I did. And if you let me get a few hours’ sleep, I’ll give it to you in the morning.” She kissed him and sent him back to his room.
He paused halfway there and looked over his shoulder. “We missed you, Jess.”
“I missed you, too.” She watched until he disappeared, then she went back inside her room and sagged against the door.
Brett was completely dressed, only his hair showed any evidence of what had almost happened. “I guess we weren’t thinking too clearly.”
“It never should have gotten started.”
“Sweetheart, we can’t seem to stop it,” he said as he walked toward her.
Jessie quickly raised her hands. “Well, we can’t let it happen again.”
Brett sighed. “Okay, I’ll agree that things got a little carried away.” He ran a shaky hand through his hair. “I’ll back off...for a while.”
“No, Brett,” she began, her voice unsteady. “You have a well to bring in. I have a farm to run and a family to take care of. We have to do more than just back off.” She paused. “I don’t think it’s such a good idea for us to be seeing each other.”
The silence in the room was deafening. Finally, Brett spoke. “What about this past weekend? Are we just going to ignore what happened?”
Jessie looked away, the pain tearing her apart. She loved him so much. “It was a dream weekend, Brett. It’s time to come back to reality.”
“What about what almost happened there in your bed? We...care about each other, Jessie.”
Jessie felt the tears stinging, but she prayed she could stay strong. “Brett, please, it’s for the best. When the well comes in—” she swallowed hard “—you’ll be gone.”
Brett walked to the window and stood looking out at the moonlit lawn. He wanted to shake Jessie, or kiss the daylights out of her, he couldn’t decide which. Hadn’t she admitted that she had feelings for him? Maybe he’d scared her off.
Maybe he was the one who wasn’t thinking clearly. He knew he had to concentrate on rebuilding the business for the time being. That had to come before he could make any promises—to anyone.
He turned to Jessie. The hurt he saw in her eyes tore at his gut. He ached to take her in his arms and make the pain go away. Only he knew in his heart the best thing he could do was leave.
“You’re right. Things were moving too fast.” He went to the door and she moved aside for him to leave. That hurt, knowing she could let him walk out so easily. “But it’s not over, Jessie.” He leaned closer to her, able to feel the heat from her sweet body.
“I’ll be back,” he promised.
* * *
The next morning, Katie could hardly contain her excitement at the breakfast table. “You should have seen all the horses. And there were a whole bunch of new colts. Can we buy more horses, Mac?”
Mac took a sip of his coffee. “Maybe, but we have to wait until the wheat is cut and we see how well we do. Right now, we need other things.”
“What about a swimming pool? Can we get one?”
“Honey, we have one of the best creeks in the county right here on our property. Why would we need a pool?” Mac winked at Jessie.
“That’s yucky.”
“You tell Brett to bring in the well, and we’ll think about it.”
“I can’t believe it.” Josh pushed his chair back from the table. “She just asks and you get her anything she wants.”
“I do not,” Katie argued.
Josh grabbed his new Dallas Cowboy’s hat off the hook by the door and jammed it on his head. “Katie comes home from the Murdocks and thinks she’s too good for the rest of us.”
“I just wanted to know if we could have a pool,” Katie said. “You can swim in it, too.”
“C’mon, Josh,” Mac said calmly. “She doesn’t have any idea what things cost. It doesn’t hurt to dream.”
Josh looked as if he wanted to say something, but didn’t. He went out the door, letting the screen slam. The sudden noise made Jessie jump. She looked at Mac. “What’s wrong with him?”
“I’d say he’s a little hurt that he didn’t get to go with you and Katie,” Mac said. “And Mary Ellen Parker is going out with another guy.” He got up and poured another cup of coffee and leaned against the counter next to the sink. “I was thinking I might go into town today and look at some used trucks,” he told her. “It’s about time we retired Old Red, or...maybe hand it down to Josh.”
Jessie had a hard time focusing on what Mac was saying. She had hardly slept all night. Thoughts of Brett had kept her up until dawn. And if that wasn’t bad enough, his scent was burned into the sheets on her bed where they had almost made love. She knew her eyes were swollen from crying. Would she ever get the man out of her head—out of her heart? She closed her eyes. Somehow she had to. Her family needed her.
“Josh has worked hard at the vegetable stand half the summer,” Mac continued. “I know we’re payin’ him, but he’ll be sixteen in a few weeks and I want him to enjoy being a teenager.” He stared into his coffee. “Not like us, Jess. Dad had us working all the time. I want our little brother and sister to have more than we did. I know the truck isn’t much, but if Josh promises to keep up his chores, I see no reason why he can’t get his license and drive it.”
Jessie studied her brother. He had been handling the farm and the family so well that she kept forgetting he was only nineteen himself.
“Maybe if you buy the new truck, there will be some money left over and you could fix up the old one,” Jessie suggested. “It could use some new tires, and a new seat cover would hide the big hole on the driver’s side.”
“Maybe we could give him the truck for his birthday at the end of the month.”
“Are we talking about Josh’s birthday party?” Katie asked.
Just then, Hatty came through the door. “Who are we havin’ a party for?”
“Josh!” Katie squealed.
“Katie, it’s a surprise. Now, go upstairs and gather up your dirty clothes so I can wash them,” Jessie said.
The eight-year-old did as she was told. Once Katie was out of the room, the party plans were discussed with Hatty, who offered to bake the cake.
“Now, tell me all about the weekend,” Hatty asked after Mac excused himself and left the ladies at the kitchen table.
“We had a nice time,” Jessie offered and turned back to finish the dishes.
“C’mon, I want to
know about you and Brett. What happened between the two of you?”
Jessie felt as if her heart were shattering into a million pieces, it hurt so much. She looked at Hatty. “I discovered we’re all wrong for each other.”
* * *
Brett stared out the trailer door toward the farmhouse. It had been a week since he’d brought Jessie home, since he’d nearly made love to her. A week since she’d pushed him out of her life.
“You wanta check these mud samples, mate?” Marcus asked, holding out a printout.
“Sure,” Brett said, a little ashamed he hadn’t had his mind on the well lately. That had to change. Maggie and Tyler had invested a big chunk of their savings into this project, and he couldn’t let them down. He couldn’t let his mother down, either. It was imperative he do everything possible to bring in this well. The Murdocks’ future depended on it.
He looked down at the printout, checking the readings. He blinked and read them again, then stared at Marcus.
“You sure about this?”
Marcus smiled. “You mean the mud weight? Yeah. It’s decreased. And there’s been a drilling break, so I had Chuck go another twenty feet just to be sure.”
Brett started to smile. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“We did. I guess you weren’t paying attention. So I figured I’d run the tests, and if they came out positive, then I’d force you to look at them.”
Brett continued to read the results about the gas shows, and the presence of fluorescent in the mud samples. He needed to take a deep breath to stay calm. Finally, proof positive that they were close.
“Let’s do the drill stem test.”
The Australian grinned. “I’m way ahead of you, boss. C’mon, let’s go out and take a look.” Marcus tossed Brett a hard hat, and took one for himself as together they walked out the door.
Once on the drilling platform, Brett checked the readings for himself. He had a hard time trying to hold back his excitement as he watched the crew remove the drill bit and set up for the test.
“You look like you’re about to burst, mate,” Marcus said.
“If this testing isn’t done quickly, I probably will.”
“Slow down, son.” He slapped Brett on the back. “It’ll be a while yet. Kind of like waiting for your first child to be born. They take their own sweet time.”
Brett nodded. “What do you think, Marcus? Do you think we hit it?”
The older man readjusted his hard hat. “All the signs are there, mate, but I’d be a fool to say for sure. Now, your daddy was the true wildcatter. He used to get a feeling about certain wells.”
“I hope it runs in the family because I’ve got a strong feeling about this one,” Brett said.
* * *
Jessie hung up the phone and turned to Hatty who was sitting at the kitchen table.
“I can start classes as soon as next week,” Jessie explained. “Or wait until this fall when the regular semester begins. They just need my grades from high school.” She sat down across from her friend, the only person besides Maggie who knew she might go back to school.
“Well, child, the sooner you get started, the faster you can finish,” the older woman suggested. “And why put off until tomorrow—”
“What you can do today,” Jessie finished the familiar saying. “Oh, Hatty. Do you really think I can do this? I mean...I’ve been out of school a long time.”
“Honey, I have all the faith in the world in you.”
Jessie wished she felt as confident. It had been only a week since she’d come back from Texas, two months since the drilling had started, since her life had changed...forever. Now she was actually planning on going back to school. Who would have dreamed...?
Her thoughts wandered to Brett. Did he miss her as much as she missed him? How were things going at the site? Katie and Josh had seen him, but he hadn’t been by the house. He’d taken the kids out for pizza one evening, and Josh had done some work at the site to make extra money. Jessie hadn’t even seen Brett’s car around the place. That was probably good, though. It was time to get on with her life.
“So you think I should start right away?”
“What else you got to do this summer?” Hatty shrugged, giving her a sly look. “You got rid of the man in your life.”
“You know I had no choice.” Jessie stood and went to the window. Even after a week, the separation from Brett was still painful—more painful than when Tommy Anderson had broken her heart. Through the lonely nights, she’d lain awake, remembering Brett’s touch and the way he’d kissed her.
“I don’t think you should have let a couple of fancy dressed Texas girls talk you out of your man.”
Jessie thought back to her visit to the beautiful Murdock ranch and the sophisticated Caroline Murdock. “They just made me face the facts,” Jessie began. “I’d never fit in.”
“That’s the craziest thing I’ve ever heard,” Hatty chided. “You’d fit in just fine. That man loves you.”
No! Jessie shook her head. She couldn’t let herself believe that. Men like Brett didn’t fall in love with women like her. They went for well-bred, educated women, not someone who only knew about farming and raising babies. No, Jessie recognized her place. And it wasn’t in Brett’s world.
Suddenly, something outside caught her attention. There was a puff of white smoke coming from the site.
“Hatty, come here and look at this.” Jessie pointed as the woman joined her at the window.
The women exchanged a look. “Could it be a fire?” Hatty asked, but Jessie didn’t know the answer.
She raced out the back door, with the recent derrick accident still on her mind. She jumped into the late-model blue truck Mac had bought last week, and turned the key. She gunned the engine and threw it into gear, kicking up gravel as she headed down the service road toward the site, praying that no one had gotten hurt. She pulled up next to the trailer and jumped out to see the crew shouting and cheering. Then she spotted Josh. Thank God! He was all right.
“Josh,” she yelled.
He ran to her. “Oh, Jessie, isn’t it great? The well came in.”
Jessie sagged in relief. “Is that what all the commotion is?”
“Yeah, Brett and Marcus ran the control test to bring the gas to the surface.” The boy had to stop to take a breath. “When they turned the valve, they ignited the escaping gas so it wouldn’t be dangerous, and also to prove there’s gas in the well, and—” he pointed to a pipe about fifty feet from where they were standing “—that black smoke means there’s oil, too.”
Jessie’s heart thudded against her ribs. “They really found gas?”
“Yeah, we’re gonna be rich.” He hugged her.
She pulled back to find Brett hurrying toward her. Her eyes were hungry for the sight of him. He was in work clothes, a hard hat perched on his head and his to-die-for grin on his dirt-smudged face. He let out a war whoop as he picked her up in his arms, swinging her around. Then, without setting her down, he claimed her lips in a kiss that sent a wild swirl of pleasure to her stomach and lower. All she could do was hold on, and enjoy the ride. That was until the whistles and hollers from the crew broke them apart.
“Put me down,” she demanded, embarrassed and furious she’d been carried away by the excitement.
Brett could see Jessie’s anger, and he was thrilled by it. It was so much better than her indifference for the past week. And he could tell by the way she’d kissed him that she still cared.
“Isn’t it great? We hit gas and oil,” he cried. She backed away, but he grabbed her hands to keep her from going too far. “Everything’s different now, Jessie.” He glanced around and saw the interested onlookers and pulled her toward the side of the trailer. It wasn’t much better, but at least no one could hear them. And he had a lot to say to her.
“We don’t have to wait. We can have a life together now.” He saw the hopeful look in her eyes, and pulled her into his arms. “Hell, this isn’t exactly how I’d pla
nned this, but...I want to marry you, Jessie,” he blurted out.
“But...but,” she stuttered, managing to break his hold and stumble backward. “Brett, you can’t mean that.”
“I mean every word,” he promised. “I love you, Jessie Burke. Say you’ll marry me.”
Jessie was in shock, but her heart was soaring at the same time. Brett loved her. She had pictured this happening in her dreams, but never for real.
Brett smiled. “Don’t try and tell me you don’t love me.”
“Love isn’t the answer to everything. There are too many differences between us.”
“Name them.”
“You live in Texas, I live here.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “A lousy hundred miles.”
“I have a family to raise,” she countered.
“And I have a business to run.” He stepped closer. “Jessie, these things can be worked out. We can do them together.”
“There are other reasons.” She didn’t want to bring this up, but there wasn’t any other way. “You have an education, Brett. I don’t.”
“So I went to college, big deal. If you want to go, there’s no reason why you can’t. With the money this well is going to bring in, you can do anything you want.”
Jessie’s hands bunched into fists. “No, you don’t understand, Brett. It’s not just a college education I’m talking about. I don’t even have a high school diploma.”
She saw the surprise in his eyes. “What?”
“I quit high school.”
“You think that makes a difference to me? Well, it doesn’t, Jessie Burke. I love you.”
Jessie raised her hand. “Just stop, Brett.” She took a deep breath. “It may not mean anything to you now, but someday...” She closed her eyes when she saw him shake his head. “Don’t you see, that’s not all.” She swallowed back the tears. “I can’t survive in your world.”
Chapter Eleven
Brett could only watch as Jessie marched off toward her truck. Shock was the only thing that kept him from going after her, that and the fact that he wanted to hit something. His hands curled into fists. Really hard.
Wildcat Wedding (Wranglers & Lace #2) Page 15
