by Neva Brown
Even though the mules had finally settled, Tres and Casey stayed right with them. Neither of them mentioned fatigue or pain, even though her newly healed injuries screamed for relief and his legs felt like lead from straining to walk in running mud and water while manhandling a fifteen hundred pound mule.
About four in the morning, lightning began to dance around, getting alarmingly close as thunder cracked in the canyon. Casey shook with terror as her head felt like it would explode.
Bending low, close to Jude’s neck she urged the mule along. Blind with pain and fear and knowing no shelter was to be had, she hoped with all her heart that she had judged right. The trail should soon start an upward slope.
An eerie silence came, then lightning struck the ground some distance behind them. She threw an arm up as if to shield her head as thunder roared. The earth shook as a hellish fireball rose in the sky. That was no lightning strike, Casey thought. The frightened mules and horses, though worn out, wanted to run.
Her innate ability helped her control the mule, even though her rational responses were hampered by the raging pain in her head. She shouted back to Tres, “We’re to the upgrade. Let’s use all this adrenaline and climb out of this mud hole.”
He shouted back to the others. The tired animals, fueled with fear, picked up their speed even though the upgrade taxed their muscles as they slogged through the mud.
Finally, as the east turned gray, Jude struggled to the rims edge then up to level ground. The others followed. Tres left the exhausted Huldy and lifted Casey off Jude. Her legs refused to hold her up as she turned to check on Jake.
“You’ve done your job. Let the EMTs do theirs now,” Tres said as he held her close.
“I have to go with him,” she mumbled, her head sagging on Tres’ chest while the rain, whipped by the wind, beat against them.
Confusion reigned as Dan Brown’s crew of cowboys took charge of the animals to load them into trailers. EMTs took charge of Jake and Chuck as Brad came to check on Casey.
“I’m okay, just tired,” she assured him. “Will you go with Dad?”
Brad looked at Tres, who nodded. “I’ll take care of Casey.”
Realizing she did not have to be responsible anymore, Casey wilted. Tres scooped her up, disregarding his aching muscles. He eased her into the pickup, fastened her seat belt, and climbed in, intent on getting Casey back to Spencer Mansion. She appeared more like a soaking-wet kitten than a heroine who had led a bunch of men out of a flooding canyon. He pulled her cap off to feel her forehead for fever.
She opened her eyes slightly. “That explosion was the cave blowing up, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah, Dan said it was a real sight to see up here on top. Just as well we decided not to spend the night there.” He brushed his hand across her hair. “Shut your eyes and rest. I’ll get you home to a hot bath and rest.”
“I need to let Mom know about Dad then get on into Cielo Alto and check on him.”
“Let me call Pauline and we’ll go into Cielo Alto after you rest a little. Brad will take care of Jake and let us know how he is doing until we get there.”
Casey frowned a minute, then said, “Okay,” before closing her eyes. Fatigue made her sleep, but pain made her whimper, tearing at Tres’ heart.
The water in the Jacuzzi tub churned around her still body as Casey lay back and allowed Lara, one of the maids, to shampoo her hair. The little gray pill she’d slipped into her mouth while Lara had been helping her undress began to take effect. Finally Lara said, “Tres, warned me not to let you stay in too long. Are you ready to get out?”
“I guess so. I need to get dressed so we can get on the road to Cielo Alto.”
“He said to tell you he had to make some calls before he can leave. You can rest for a while before getting dressed if you want.”
Wrapped in a fluffy terry robe, Casey stretched out facedown on the bed and said, “Please wake me in a few minutes so I can be ready when he is.”
As the late afternoon sun slanted through the rolling clouds then disappeared below the horizon, she stirred. Still half-asleep, she snuggled under a light blanket the maid must have laid over her. Tugging on the cover to pull it up over her eyes, she discovered something held it firmly in place. Rolling over with a groan, her arm fell across another body lying on top of the blanket.
Tres’ eyes flew open. “Are you hurting?”
“All over, like I’ve been whipped with a wet rope. What are you doing here?”
The slurred, petulant tone in her voice made Tres smile. His long hours of worry faded.
“I’m not surprised. Muscle spasms gave you a hard time for a few hours.”
She frowned. “I don’t remember any muscle spasms.”
“Those pain pills you’d been eating finally caught up with you. Lara called me when you started crying in your sleep as the muscle spasms began. I phoned Brad. He told me to put damp heat pads on you, then massage the tense spots. He said he would come, but I told him to stay with Jake and let us know how he is doing.” He didn’t add that he didn’t want another man touching Casey so intimately ever again.
“Oh, my, I forgot. I have to go see Dad.”
Tres watched she struggled to sit up. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she collapsed back onto the pillows.
“You don’t need to. Jake is awake and seems to be no worse for the wear. The doctor has him on oxygen. They plan to keep him for observation for a few days, since he had such a blow to the head. Brad will look after him.”
“Are you sure?”
He pushed her hair out of her eyes. “I’m sure. I’m also sure Pauline and Maria can take care of him better than you can right now. They were at the hospital room with Jake when Brad called me earlier.”
She peered at him with unfocused eyes. “Did you know I promised myself I’d seduce you the first chance I had? But here you are in bed with me and I’m too sore to move and you look all blurry.”
Tres chuckled and brushed his hand across the side of her face and neck as his thumb caressed her lips. “That sounds like a good plan, just later.”
She began to struggle to get up again. “I’m probably going to break in pieces and bleed, but I have to go to the bathroom.”
“Be still,” he ordered as he rounded the bed and scooped her up into his arms. “I’ll carry you.”
“You can’t do that. What if somebody comes in and sees us in the bathroom together?”
He knew the drugs had her not thinking clearly, but he couldn’t help being amused at her prissy tone. “So what if somebody sees. A man’s home is his castle and he can carry cranky little girls to the bathroom if he wants to.”
She giggled. “You mean, like you’re the king and I’m the cat?”
“How many of those pain pills did you take?”
She gave him a smug look. “All I had with me down in the canyon, then when I got into the tub, I took one of those tiny gray ones. They’re great!”
“Evidently,” he said dryly as he set her on the toilet.
“Can you hold on to the bars and not fall, or should I stay with you?”
“Go away. I can manage.”
“Don’t try to stand up by yourself. Call me when you’re ready to get up.”
He shut the door and leaned against it. Brad was right about the drugs in her system and the need for bed rest.
Massaging her hurting body regularly would take some real self-discipline on his part. Just thinking about it had sent his body into overdrive. He’d just have to remember these feelings she evoked could not be acted on until she was well in mind and body. He heard the toilet flush, but instead of hearing her call to him, he heard a sharp cry, then a soft thud. Jerking the door open, he saw her curled into a fetal position on the floor. “Why didn’t you call me?”
“Didn’t want to.”
He bent down to lift her up in his arms.
She tried to pull away. “I need to brush my teeth.”
He stood her on her feet. She swa
yed unsteadily, her muscles simply refusing to hold up her weight. He hauled her up close to him. He knew she felt his body’s reaction to having her close when she looked up at him with alarm.
“Don’t worry. I can’t help the erection, but, rest easy. I won’t act on it. Let’s get you back to bed. I’ll bring the stuff you need to brush your teeth, and then we’ll call Rosalinda and ask her to send us some food.”
Thirty minutes later, pale, but as determined as one of the mules they had wrestled with in the canyon, Casey sat up in bed, propped and cushioned with pillows. With studied care, she spooned up the delicious soup Rosalinda had prepared. When Lara brought in a dish of ice cream, Casey eyed it with some distress. “I think I’m too tired to eat anymore.”
Tres took the dish. “If I dip, can you swallow?”
Casey nodded with a half-smile. Before the dish was half empty, her eyes had closed. He eased her gently down in bed.
“You could rest on the other side of the bed ‘til I wake up,” Casey mumbled.
“That’s an offer I can’t refuse. Sleep now. We have the world under control.”
Sometime during the night, Tres heard Casey whimpering. He pulled the blanket up and scooted up to her back, laying an arm protectively around her. She quieted. They slept with his hard arousal snug against her firm derriere.
Chapter 12
Casey slept, ate, and thrilled to the touch of Tres’ hands as he massaged away the pain after heating pads had softened the hard tautness of her muscles. She basked in the hazy world that fatigue and too many painkillers induced. She lay close to Tres at night. She smoothed her hands along the firm muscles of his body and felt him go utterly still as if he held his breath at times. She loved the sleek, powerful feel of him. The familiar scent of his skin made her snuggle close.
Too soon, reality pushed its way back into her life. She woke up clear-headed and with manageable pain. She was snuggled up to Tres’ back with her arm across his waist and her hand splayed across his flat, hard abdomen. Moving furtively, she inched away from his warmth then scrambled to get off the bed.
“Good morning.” His husky, barely awake voice sent delicious shivers through her. “What’s the rush?”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.” She wanted to scream at her stiff muscles to move.
“What’s wrong?” He rose up and eased her back down onto the pillows.
Her face heated as he looked down at her so close she could feel his breath tickle her ear.
“How could you let me do that? I’m really sorry. All I can say is I must have had too many pills.”
He caressed her face with gentle fingers as he said, “I know. Nothing happened. When we get together, you will be well and willing.”
She wasn’t able to meet his eyes. “But I had no right to touch you that way.”
He grinned and ruffled her soft hair. “I don’t see why not. You told me you planned to seduce me.” This time when she groaned, it was not from pain, but from pure mortification.
He laughed and hugged her close. “Oh, Casey, you are a treasure. We’re both consenting adults. At least I am.”
“But you never touched me except to massage my aching muscles.”
He tapped her nose with a finger. “You have no idea the amount of self-discipline it took not to. But I want you alert and sharing the moment when I make love to you.”
Seeing her distress, Tres wanted to kiss her senseless and stroke her until she was boneless and tingling with desire. Instead, he rolled out of bed and helped her stand up. “The rain has finally stopped so the FBI agents, who’ve been cooling their heels in Cielo Alto, will be chomping at the bits to go to Dark Canyon. It seems our little bunch of militants was a part of a rather large organization that has been under investigation for some time.”
She sank down into a chair and watched him pull on jeans over the underwear he had worn to bed. He’s going to his life, and I’m sitting here like a crippled chicken.
He bent over and dropped a kiss onto her forehead. “I’ll send Lara to help you get dressed while I go upstairs and take a shower. I’ll be back to have breakfast with you.”
Today I’m going to start living again rather than just existing in limbo. Walking stiffly, but steadily, to the closet, she found the saffron silk pants and blouse, she bought the day Dr. Newton said she could start managing on her own. She found the soft, brown, leather loafers with a design of saffron-colored patches, the saleslady had said matched. Opening a draw, she removed the coordinated lingerie, then rubbed her hand over the slick, satiny fabric, and smiled. “Not quite like the cotton undies I’ve lived in.”
Screwing up her courage, she picked up the phone to the kitchen and asked Rosalinda if they could have breakfast someplace besides her suite.
“I wondered if you would ever come out of hiding,” Rosalinda said. “We’ll set up breakfast in the morning room where you can see all the way to the creek this sunny morning. I’ll let Tres know.”
Casey submitted to Lara’s fussing over her and even felt less nervous when Lara insisted on walking with her to the morning room. Her steps became more sure and confident as she realized her head no longer felt woozy and her sore muscles were limbering up like normal overused muscles. I survived. Now, I’m ready to get on with my life.
Casey smiled at Tres when he peered over his coffee cup as she entered the room. The expression on his face made putting on pretty clothes worthwhile.
“What did you do with that dead-tired trail guide I’ve been trying to nurse back to health?”
His appreciative perusal made her glow inside and out. “I told her we were sick of her moping around and expected to see a better attitude from this day forward.”
He pulled a chair out for her. “About the time I get attached to one of those interesting little personalities, you send her packing. Do you think any of them will come back to visit once in awhile?”
Casey spoke with conviction. “I hope not. From what I remember, self-centered and contrary seemed the most prevail characteristics of them all.” She sipped the coffee he had poured for her as she watched him take the silver covers off serving dishes containing eggs, bacon, waffles, and syrup. He fixed a small plate for each of them from a crystal compote filled with strawberries, melon balls, and sliced kiwis that stood in the middle of the table. He handed her one of the plates. “Looks like Rosalinda thought we were starving. Shall I fill your plate, or do you want to help yourself?”
“I’ll manage, thank you. I’ve been waited on far too long according to my dad. Which reminds me, he told me he withdrew all entries in competitions when I got hurt. Are the Running S horses off the circuit for good?”
“Jake hasn’t found anybody he felt could do the job. The ranch has a waiting list of people wanting trained horses and brood mares. Semen from the studs that sired the winners you’ve ridden is selling at top dollar. No need to feel rushed about getting back into the fray.”
“There are a lot of good horses on the circuit and the public forgets quickly if a name doesn’t show up often in the ‘win’ column.”
“Do you want to go back on the circuit?” Tres asked as he placed another waffle with bacon on her plate and fixed it the way she had.
“No, I’d already told Dad I wouldn’t be able to travel after I started teaching at the college. I’m even surer now. I told him I’d work with a few horses on the side, but I wouldn’t have time to keep them in top form for competing.”
Casey had almost finished the second plate of food when it dawned on her, she was eating like a field hand. “My word, I’ll be waddling when I walk if I keep this up.”
Tres smiled at her. “I doubt that. You seem to burn more calories just breathing than most people do jogging.”
Her mind back on the circuit, she said, “Anyway, I was going to tell you about Todd. You met him before the horse sale. I don’t know what his plans are, but he’s graduating in December. He might do the ranch a good job on the circuit.”
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Tres refilled their coffee cups and watched her talk, knowing she had no idea how appealing she was.
Lara returned to tell Tres the FBI agents had arrived.
“Do you feel like talking to them?” Tres asked. “No need if you don’t want to relive that miserable excursion.”
She patted her mouth with a napkin. “I don’t mind answering any question they have, but I’ll pass on going to the canyon.”
Tres took her hand as she got up from the table. “Dan said he would send a couple of the older hands with them. I thought we’d go to town to see Jake and check on Mattie Lou at MacVane Manor. Her doctor is doing a series of tests to monitor the effects of this new treatment for her arthritis.”
As they strolled toward the sitting room where the agents waited, Tres felt complete having Casey near and talking with her about life’s ordinary happenings.
Her crisp, no-nonsense answers to the agents’ questions made Tres realize she was thinking clearly and felt more confident than she had since she and Sassy Silk went down in that arena. He saw an intelligent, beautiful woman dealing with serious issues without hesitation. This personality would be more complex to deal with than the ones he’d teased her about earlier. His little thirteen-year-old buddy had bloomed into a multi-faceted woman who intrigued him and quickened his senses with anticipation.
With the agents in Dan Brown’s capable care, Tres and Casey lost no time heading to town. They left the ranch in J.D.’s sleek Mercedes. Once off the ranch and onto the highway, Casey said, “I can’t remember when I last rode in a car. There is no telling how many hours I’ve clocked in a pickup. A car just never seems to fit where I need to go, but this is easy riding.”
Tres chuckled. “Life in our part of the world doesn’t lend itself to car travel very often. I usually lease a car when I have to stay in the city for business, but a pickup just seems to be what I need most of the time. I had a Jag when I was in Australia, but I sold it along with everything else.”
