“Yesterday I saw the note you wrote to yourself about being short a thousand dollars on your mortgage. It was on your nightstand.”
“You did?” She hadn’t realized she’d left it there.
He shrugged and nodded. “I saw it when I used the phone. Look, sweetheart, I only wanted to help you. I’d sort of figured out that you were running short on money to keep the ranch going. When I was leaving this morning, I saw the note again. I left the money to help you, not to hurt you.”
“If that’s the truth, why didn’t you just ask me about my finances?” she asked, not sure she believed him. His motives might have been magnanimous, but she realized that no matter how hard she tried to protect herself, he had the power to hurt her.
Somehow she’d lost control of her heart.
Deke grimaced. “Well, to tell you the truth, you were so determined to make the ranch profitable on your own, I was trying to spare your feelings.” He walked toward her, closing the distance between them. He wanted more than anything to pull her against him, but he held himself back from touching her. “Things sort of blurred when we became lovers, Mary Beth. I care about you, and I didn’t want to hurt you, so I didn’t come right out and talk to you about what I suspected.”
She rolled her eyes. Deke felt as if he was beating his head against a brick wall—a very prideful one. “I do care about you, honey.” Damn, she was stubborn. “To be totally honest, I’m a little hurt that you haven’t talked to me about your financial situation,” he admitted, his tone defensive.
Her eyes remained frosty. “It’s my problem, not yours.”
“That may be, but I want to help you.”
“Let me see if I can make this perfectly clear for you. You’re the last man on earth that I want help from.”
He gave her a pleading look. “Would you just hear me out? That’s all I’m asking.”
Regarding him with wariness, she crossed her arms over her chest. “All right. You’ve got exactly one minute.”
“I want to invest in Paradise. As a silent partner.”
Immediately suspicious, Mary Beth snorted. “Now, why would you want to do that?” Paradise was about to go under. Why would he want to risk money on it?
“It’s the perfect solution for both of us. I have a lot of winnings saved up. I could put that money to good use on Paradise. Using it, you’d be able to get the ranch in the black. This is good land, and you’ve got a start on making the ranch a success. You just need capital.” Shrugging indifferently, Mary Beth looked away from his watchful eyes. He’d thought she’d be happy about his offer. “Are you willing to lose everything because of your pride?”
Her eyes sliced back to his. “I’m not sure I care anymore.” It was an honest answer. She was tired of fighting so hard to make the ranch a success. It was exhausting trying to do practically everything on her own. She was working herself to death. And for what? Nothing. Paradise was going under.
“I don’t believe that.”
“It doesn’t really matter to me what you believe. I wanted to make a go of it here, but it didn’t work out.” She’d learn to live with her failure eventually. “Maybe it’s time I accepted the fact that my father was right about me. Maybe I can’t run the ranch.”
Deke swallowed hard. He didn’t think she really believed that. But there was more at stake than just the ranch. He’d thought there was something between them. Had he been wrong? “And what about us, Mary Beth?”
“What about us? As you put it, we were lovers. That’s all. I never expected it to last.” It hurt to say the words, but after everything that had happened between them, she wasn’t going to trust him again. Maybe she’d jumped to conclusions when she’d seen that money, but what was she to think? Deke could have asked her about the stability of the ranch, could have talked to her.
But he didn’t. And apparently even he believed that she couldn’t make a go of the ranch on her own. “I told you before that I wasn’t staying in Crockett.” She wondered now how she’d ever be able to stay without Deke’s love. Sex would hold them together, but for how long? He’d said himself that he didn’t have anything emotionally to give a woman…to give her. He’d made it clear that the rodeo was more important than anything or anyone.
In the end, he would walk away from her. Just like every other time.
Deke was a bit shaken by her casual dismissal of what they’d shared. Was that truly how she felt about him? He refused to believe that. And regardless, he wanted her at Paradise where he’d know she was okay. So he tried another tactic. “I’m giving you a chance to make this ranch successful. You’ve worked hard at it. Don’t give up now. If you do, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life.”
If he could get her to agree to let him invest, that would keep her in Crockett. Right where he wanted her. “Think about it, Mary Beth. The reason it’s been so tough for you is that your father left the place in shambles and strapped you with a load of debt. If you accept my offer, you can run this place any way you see fit. You call the shots. You make all the decisions. And the ranch will stay in your name.”
Mary Beth felt herself softening. He was offering her a chance to make Paradise the ranch she’d always believed it could be. She wanted so much to take a chance, but she just wasn’t convinced she could trust herself around him.
When she remained silent, Deke looked at her, his gaze intense. “Please believe me, sweetheart. I never meant to hurt you.”
Her eyes misted. “I wish I could believe that, Deke.” She wanted to trust him, but the only way she could was to keep him at arm’s length. Every time she’d opened herself up to him, he’d managed to wound her in some way. Just like her father.
“Then take me up on my offer.”
She wanted to. Badly. He was offering her what she most wanted—to make Paradise a success. But at what price? Her heart? She just didn’t know if it could take another beating. She had to protect herself some way. Somehow. Keeping their relationship platonic would save Paradise, and it would protect her heart. To Mary Beth, it was the only solution.
“If I say yes, then you have to agree to this being a business arrangement only.”
Uneasy, Deke shifted his stance. “Meaning?”
“We’ll keep things between us strictly business.” Yes, she decided, that would work. She had a weakness where Deke McCall was concerned. And obviously, nothing permanent could come from a relationship with him. Maybe she’d survive if they kept things between them platonic.
Deke frowned. “C’mon, Mary Beth—”
“I mean it.”
He took in the stubborn tilt of her chin. Arguing with her wasn’t going to get him anywhere. But if he agreed, she’d stay in Crockett. It was a small victory, but one he savored. Right now Mary Beth was still a little confused. He’d give her some time to come around. And if she didn’t, well, he’d worry about that later. “If that’s the way you want it, okay. I’ll stop at the bank in town and set up an account for you to draw from.”
“All right, then. Thank you.”
Now that he had her acquiescence, Deke breathed a relieved sigh. It was far from over between them. Mary Beth just didn’t know it yet.
Ten
As Deke drove up the road to Mary Beth’s house, he spotted a pickup with two men heading toward him from the opposite direction. He touched the brim of his hat as the truck sped past, recognizing both Pete Newton and Charlie Baines. Both men gave a brief wave in his direction.
A few weeks had passed since he’d talked Mary Beth into letting him invest in Paradise. Deke surveyed her property as he neared the house. In that short time, she’d made a lot of improvements. She’d had the fencing surrounding her land completely replaced, the machine shed repaired and painted, and a new roof put on the barn. It seemed she’d had no trouble putting the men to work.
Pulling to a stop in front of her house, Deke switched the engine off, got out and stretched his legs. What was wrong with him? You’d think he could stay away f
rom a woman who barely gave him the time of day. But no, here he was, wanting to see her so badly that he’d driven all night long to get there.
He’d called Mary Beth as often as he could from the rodeo. She’d always made a point to tell him how things were going at the ranch, letting him know each and every step she was taking to make it a success. As if he cared about the damn ranch!
Deke was back for one reason only. To see her. The finals would start in Vegas in three days. He was aware of his priorities, knew he had to give his full attention to bull riding. For the past few weeks he’d stayed away from Mary Beth and had done just that. He’d managed to hang on to the lead, but anything could happen in the finals. A couple of bad nights and he’d lose everything he’d worked for. His chance to win the championship for his father would disappear.
Deke had ridden the circuit for years, and each one had taken a toll on him. This year seemed to be his best chance to win the bull-riding title. He prayed it was. He just didn’t think he had it in him to rodeo another year. His body ached all over. And he was getting damn tired of being thrown by raging bulls, icing down his aches and pains and traveling from city to city.
Recently Jake had asked him when he was going to settle down. Deke had sloughed off answering by cracking a joke. He’d never talked with his siblings about his reasons for continuing to participate in the risky sport of bull riding. It was easier to let his family believe that he loved the danger and thrived on the adrenaline rush than to admit to them that he told their father he’d hated him. Deke didn’t think he could stand to see the disappointment in their eyes. There wasn’t a day that went by that he wasn’t haunted by their father’s hurt expression.
Shaking off the unpleasant memory, he walked up the steps to the porch and knocked on Mary Beth’s door. His heart raced at the thought of seeing her.
Mary Beth was standing in the middle of her father’s room surveying her day’s work when she heard a knock at the front door. At the sound, Lightning and Lady jumped up and raced out of the room. She chuckled and followed them out, weaving around packed boxes stacked haphazardly on the floor.
It was rare for her to have visitors, and she welcomed the interruption. Going through her father’s belongings had brought back all the feelings she’d thought she’d dealt with—his disappointment in her, her desire to please him, her resentment because he was never there for her and her mother.
And though she usually treasured her solitude, her life had been so empty without Deke. Was she ever going to get him out of her mind? Out of her heart?
A wistful sigh escaped her lips. She was no closer to forgetting him now than she’d been the day she’d told him she wanted to keep their arrangement strictly business.
Hah! That was a laugh. If he were here now, she would probably jump his bones!
She’d tried staying busy, focusing on work to keep him out of her mind. Since she’d hired two additional employees to work at the ranch, she’d had some free time to see to what needed to be done in the house. Starting in the kitchen, she’d worked her way through it, cleaning one room at a time, leaving her father’s room until the very last.
She’d even tossed out all of the old travel magazines, thinking living in Crockett wasn’t so bad. Now the inside of the house fairly sparkled—like it had when her mother was alive. For an old place, it didn’t look half-bad.
The knock came again, louder this time. An edgy restlessness shifted through her as she neared the front door. Christmas was less than a month away, and she’d begun feeling the same gloomy, depressing emotions she experienced whenever she thought of the holiday.
For the past two years, she’d spent Christmas alone on the ranch. She’d pretty much ignored all the hoopla, preferring to treat it just like any other day. It had been for her. She’d had no loved ones to share the holiday season with.
Mary Beth thought of Deke and how nice it would be to spend the holidays with him. She loved him with all her heart. And time away from him had only made her miss him even more. Every time he called, every time she heard his sexy voice, her resolve to keep him at a distance melted another fraction. Since she hadn’t made any progress toward forgetting him, she might as well have continued seeing him!
She muttered an oath beneath her breath. She had no one to thank but herself for being heartsick. It had been at her insistence that she and Deke share a business relationship. She couldn’t fault him. Deke had respected her wishes.
Dammit! She should never have made that stupid stipulation. Maybe she would have ended up with a broken heart if she’d continued seeing him, but at least she would have enjoyed herself along the way!
Reaching the door, she opened it. Her breath caught. “Deke!” she squeaked. Her eyes widened as her gaze skimmed his body. His washed-out blue jeans hugged his hips and thighs, and his shirt brought out the blue in his eyes.
Deke felt her warm smile all the way to his toes. Damned if she didn’t look happy to see him. Thrilled, he didn’t question why. “Hey, sweetheart,” he said, giving her an engaging grin. Hungry for the sight of her, his eyes lingered on her face. “Well, can I come in?”
“Oh…uh, of course,” she stuttered. She nudged the dogs out of the way and moved aside for him to enter. Deke leaned down and patted Lightning and Lady as he came in, and Mary Beth blew out a breath as she watched his big hand lovingly stroke their fur.
He straightened, then put his arm around her and drew her to him. “I’ve missed you,” he said thickly.
Startled, Mary Beth’s eyes met his, and her heart tripled its beat. Her gaze slid to his mouth. All she could think about was how much she wanted his kiss. Maybe she was weak. Maybe she was just a fool, but at the moment, here in his arms, she wanted nothing more than to be with him. “I’ve missed you, too,” she whispered, her voice raspy.
Deke aligned his body with hers. “Yeah?” He studied her, a bit surprised. What had happened to all her reservations? “How much?” he asked. Lowering his head, he briefly touched his lips to hers. She tasted sweet, like pure honey. He wondered if he’d ever get his fill of her.
She pressed her body closer, then smiled up at him. Her lips found his again, her teeth nipping his lower lip. “Mmm, so much.”
Throwing caution to the wind, Deke kissed her deeply, hungrily. Blood roared in his ears. “Sweetheart, if this is how you’re gonna welcome me, I’m coming home more often.” His hands slid from her waist to her breasts, and when she eased away to give him better access, moaning that sweet, seductive sound she made when he found and touched her nipples, he gently rubbed his thumbs over each protruding bud.
Heat ignited in the core of her. Mary Beth’s pulse began to race. His warm hands slid beneath her shirt, unclasped her bra, then he stripped them both off and tossed them to the floor. Desire burned in his eyes as they lowered to her breasts, to her dusky-pink nipples. His hands cupped her, testing their weight.
She gasped when he lowered his mouth and gently caught her taut nipple with his teeth. Oh, she’d missed this—the incredible way that this man could make her feel. She wanted to be loved by him, wanted to feel him inside her.
Her fingers found the buttons of his shirt and began slipping them through the buttonholes. Then she yanked the tail of it from his jeans and finished the rest. His shirt followed hers to the floor.
Her hands touched his skin, and Deke sucked in a breath. When she began to unbuckle his belt, he stopped her. “Sweetheart, I want you so much right now, if you touch me, I think I’ll embarrass myself.” With an expression of pure need, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her to her bedroom. “Let’s do this right.”
He eased her on the bed, and his lips sought hers hungrily. Slowly, methodically, he kissed a path down her throat to her breasts. His hand lifted one soft mound to his mouth, and he sucked her nipple, teasing it with soft bites. Mary Beth’s eyes drifted shut as her hips began to move. Deke took her other nipple in his mouth as he stripped off her boots and jeans, then slid her pan
ties down her thighs and tossed them aside.
His gaze swept over her. Something powerful moved inside him—a sensation unexpected and perplexing wrapped itself around his heart. And at that moment, Deke realized that he wanted Mary Beth for more than just this moment in time.
He slowly skimmed his hand down her body, loving the feel of her satiny skin beneath his palm. She lifted her eyelids and looked at him, her eyes glazed with passion. Deke’s body trembled as she quivered beneath his touch.
His heartbeat quickened as he worked his clothes off. He joined her on the bed, aligning his body to hers. With each moment, each touch, he watched her, unable to get enough of looking at her.
Leaning down, he pressed his mouth to her neck. She smelled so incredible. Mary Beth turned her head toward him, seeking his mouth, his kiss. Her lips clung to his, hungry, yet gentle—urgent, yet so unbelievably soothing. He took his time with her, using his lips and tongue, tasting her skin as he trailed hot, wet kisses down her neck to the sensitive area between her breasts.
Mary Beth twined her arms around his neck, and she drew her to him. Deke’s chest constricted as he positioned himself and joined their bodies. Fire raged inside him, and he sank all the way into her.
Perfect. She fit him so completely.
And when she moved against him, a storm of emotions came at him all at once. He trembled with the force of them, with his need for her. If he could make love to her for the rest of his life, it would never be enough.
But the fire she’d started inside him became a flaming inferno, raging through his body, stealing his ability to control his emotions. When she peaked, softly calling his name on her lips, he found his own release. He held her tightly to him as a million brilliant lights exploded like fireworks in his mind.
It was at that moment that Deke knew he was in love with Mary Beth.
“I woke up and you were gone.” Deke gazed at Mary Beth as she stood at her father’s dresser. His chest constricted. How could he leave her now? But he knew he couldn’t stay. He wasn’t good at relationships. He’d blown it with his father, hadn’t he? What made him think that he wouldn’t screw this up, too? When he’d decided to come and see her, he’d known that he couldn’t stay long. Nothing had changed.
Her Texan Temptation Page 13
