All For You: Halfway ThereBuckhorn Ever AfterThe One You WantOne Perfect Night

by Susan Mallery

  Nadine fidgeted. “Dial it down, okay?”

  Confusion stole Amber’s intensity. “What’s that?”

  “All that laserlike focus. You’re trying to intimidate me, but it’s not working.” Ha. It worked all too well.

  “I wasn’t,” Amber objected.

  “Baloney. You do it to everyone, and I’m sure most cave under your resolve. Especially anyone possessing testosterone.”

  Grinning, Amber shrugged. “My point is that Shohn had a lot of wild oats to sow and now, at twenty-five, he wants more.”

  More...what? No, Nadine wouldn’t buy into any of it. She gulped down more Coke then shook her head. “Does Shohn have any idea that you’re meddling like this?”

  “Are you kidding? No way.”

  Thank God. “Then let’s make a promise not to ever tell him, and we can forget all about it.”

  Amber’s determined stare returned. “You know he wants you, Nadine.”

  She turned her Coke can, turned it again and traced the wet circle on the table... “He did sort of come on to me.”

  “Sort of?” Amber laughed. “He must be slipping if you’re not sure. God knows every other girl in town thinks he’s making moves even when he isn’t. Do you know how many times I’ve had to save his butt? Too many times, that’s how many. But you’re different.”

  Yeah, didn’t she know it. “Well, if he is interested, that’d be why—because I’m a challenge. If we ever got together, then he’d be over me real quick.”

  “I don’t think so.” Amber got a text before she could expound on that. She pulled out her phone, read the message with a smile and sent back a reply. “He’ll be here in another ten minutes.”

  “They found the missing camper?”

  “He didn’t say, but I assume so, otherwise he’d still be there looking.” She finished off her Coke and stood. “I’m supposed to get lost, though.”

  “Oh.”

  Walking to the kitchen to rinse out her can, Amber said, “Look at it this way. If Shohn only sees you as a challenge, then isn’t it better to find it out now before you fall hopelessly in love with him?”

  “Hopelessly, huh? How dramatic.” Nadine tried to infuse the right amount of sarcasm, because God knew, she’d been hung up on Shohn Hudson since they were in their early teens.

  “It is dramatic,” Amber said with a sigh, “the way the ladies all swoon over him. As his cousin, I can testify to how nauseating it is. But you don’t swoon...yet.” She put her can in the recycling bin and turned, forearms braced back on the counter, her pose relaxed. “So, what do you think?”

  “About what? Swooning?” Just the thought of him showing up made her feel light-headed. A swoon could very well be imminent.

  “No, about giving in to see how things go.”

  This was not a conversation she’d ever thought to have with one of Shohn’s relatives. “He doesn’t need your help, Amber.”

  “Ha! Of course he does.” She looked toward Louie, who was busy walking up Rookie’s back while Rookie laid perfectly still except for the tail he had thumping. “He even got that mangled old cat for you.”

  “Not so.” Nadine smiled as she shared the wonderful truth. “He went to the shelter to get a dog, but Louie claimed him, and Shohn was too sweet to turn him away.”

  “There you go!” Straightening in a rush, Amber walked from the kitchen. “Sweet on top of being passably handsome.”

  Nadine snorted. Even a close cousin could be objective enough to know Shohn was the epitome of hotness.

  “Though he’s a wiseass, he has his moments of humor, too.”

  “You don’t have to sell me on him,” Nadine told her. “I already know he’s funny and smart, generous and loyal, hardworking and—”

  “Yeah,” Amber interrupted, her tone wry, “let’s not saint him, okay? He’s a great guy, but still a guy, so he needs to have things made clear to him.”

  “Those things being?”

  “Just do me a favor,” Amber said, suddenly all business and ready to go. “Put on a shirt that shows a little cleavage, brush the dog hair off your shorts and when he makes his move, try being a little receptive. What’s the worst that could happen?”

  Her heart could get irrevocably broken, that’s what.

  But pride had saved her many times over the years, so maybe she could do this and then, with her pride, hold it all together—no matter how things went after.

  Amber headed to the door. “She looks convinced, Rookie. Our work here is done.”

  Shaking her head, Nadine picked up Louie to ensure the cat wouldn’t get out the door. “Thanks again for stopping by.” She would not thank her for pimping Shohn.

  “You betcha,” Amber said. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” And with that, she left.

  Nadine didn’t bother replying. When it came to Shohn there wasn’t much she didn’t want to do. If Shohn was willing, well then, better not to make promises she wouldn’t want to keep.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  SHOHN PULLED INTO the lot of Animal House as quietly as he could. He knew well how dogs reacted to noises in the night, and since the sun had already set, the dogs were surely tucked away for the night. If one barked, they’d all be kicking up a fuss and then Nadine would have more work to do.

  Relieved not to see Amber’s truck in the lot, he made the safe assumption that he and Nadine would be alone. Taking care to close his door quietly, he left the Jeep. Hat in hand, his imagination already in overdrive, he walked toward her house.

  Would she be wearing that same silly shirt with the suggestive comment on it? He’d thought of a dozen ways to tease her about it, and a dozen other ways to get her out of it.

  She’d left the porch light on for him, so Shohn took a minute to remove his boots and socks. His feet weren’t wet this time, but he’d spent so much time hunting for the lost camper that he had half the damn mountain stuck to the treads.

  Boots in hand, he stood and lightly tapped on the screen door.

  Nadine showed up immediately. Her long brown hair hung loose, trailing down her back and over her shoulders, curling in and around those large, luscious breasts. Her eyes were darker than usual as she pushed open the screen and said with a “come and get me” smile, “Hi.”

  Damn. He knew acquiescence when he saw it. Nadine wanted him. Tonight. Maybe even right now.

  Knowing that had an instantaneous effect on his body. His guts clenched, heat rushed to his skin, his breathing grew shallower.

  He got semihard.

  Knowing he had to keep it together, he dipped his rapt gaze over her, stalling first on her soft, damp lips, then on that heart-stopping cleavage displayed under a V neck T-shirt. This one read Life is Short—Pet Hard.

  Without a single word, he crowded in and dropped his boots just inside the threshold. The screen door closed behind them. He reached for her.

  And Louie came up his leg in a dash, already purring, head-butting his chin and rubbing all over him in ecstasy.

  “Shit.” Shohn caught the cat to help support him so he wouldn’t get shredded. So far, Louie had been great about not putting the claws to him, but his shirt could only take so much of Louie’s enthusiasm.

  Nadine sighed. “Ah. He missed you.”

  Her gentle expression fired his blood even more. Shohn wanted to see her looking at him like that, maybe after a really hot orgasm. “He could miss me a few minutes more, damn it.” What lousy timing the cat had! But Shohn pet him, anyway, giving him the greeting he wanted.

  The rumbling purrs started to sound like a broken truck engine. Eyes closed, Louie continued to rub against him.

  “Take it easy, buddy.” Shohn managed to get the cat away from his face and settled more on his chest. “Ah, that’s better.”

  N
adine smiled.

  “Now I can kiss you.” Her smile froze, but Shohn took her mouth too quickly for her to object.

  Only she didn’t. She kissed him back. Awkwardly because, yeah, they had a big old rumbling tomcat between them, but still, it was pretty hot the way she turned her head, how she willingly parted her lips.

  How she accepted his tongue.

  She tasted even better than he remembered, hotter and sweeter. She made a small sound that he took for encouragement. He answered with a low groan, his thoughts already on getting her naked and under him.

  Suddenly Louie butted his head up between theirs, and Shohn pulled away with a “Bleh.”

  Breathing fast, Nadine asked, “What?”

  “I had cat ear in my mouth.” He used a shoulder to wipe his face.

  She snickered then took his arm. “I’m sorry. Why don’t we sit down for a bit? Are you hungry?”

  Was that nervousness that had her talking so fast? “Not this time, thanks.” Shohn dropped onto her couch and again tried to rearrange the big cat. Louie was so muscular and rangy at the same time that doing anything he didn’t fully approve was damn difficult. “I grabbed some fast food to eat on the way here.”

  “I wouldn’t have minded fixing you something.”

  “Thanks, but it wasn’t food I had in mind.”

  “Oh...well, a drink, then? I’m out of Coke, but maybe some iced tea?”

  Shohn grinned over the way she avoided his innuendo. “With you looking like that, yeah, iced tea with plenty of ice would be great.”

  She smoothed her hands over the shirt then tucked her hair behind one ear. “I took a really quick shower just before you got here.”

  Damn, he was sorry he’d missed that. “If you’d waited, I could have showered with you.” To keep her from reacting to that too much, he went on in a casual tone. “It was one hell of a day and I’m grimier than usual. Not that Louie seems to mind, do you buddy?” He tickled under the cat’s chin.

  Eyes widening, Nadine opened her mouth twice before she finally said anything. “You, ah, found the missing camper?”

  “Yeah. The drunken dumbass had completely left the trails. I found him snagged up in a briar bush, sniveling and ready to wet himself. Apparently he fell in there and then kept getting scratched worse every time he tried to free himself.”

  “Serves him right for getting drunk.” Nadine headed into the kitchen to get the drinks. “Will he be fined?”

  “Who knows? I turned him over to the local authorities. He’s their problem now.” Shohn liked watching Nadine move in the kitchen, seeing the way she turned this way and that in the shorty-shorts and clinging T-shirt. She had supershapely legs and her bare feet made it all more intimate somehow. “Love the new outfit.”

  She ducked her face, letting her hair hide her profile. “It’s just an old shirt and shorts.”

  No, it was a sexier shirt and shorter shorts that she’d put on for him. “I like your hair loose like that, too.”

  She dropped an ice cube on the floor. “Thanks.” She accidentally kicked it when she went to pick it up, then had to chase it before it went under the fridge.

  “Nadine?”

  “Hmm?” Face flushed, she tossed the ice in the sink and, with trembling hands, poured the tea.

  Shohn understood, because he felt a little shaky himself. Lust had never hit him so hard. “You have a kickin’ body with killer curves, honey. I hope you know that.”

  She twisted her mouth then squared her shoulders as she faced him with the glasses of tea. “I’m satisfied with it.”

  Leering a little, Shohn said, “I’d be more satisfied with it if you were naked. But this display is great for starters.”

  She stumbled over nothing.

  Shohn bolted forward in his seat, ready to grab for her. “Easy.”

  Face flaming, Nadine managed to catch herself without spilling the tea. “Sorry.”

  “I should be the one apologizing.”

  “You do tease a lot,” she agreed.

  He wasn’t teasing, but no reason to tell her that. She was already looking very unsure of herself. Because he’d jostled the cat, he said, “You okay, Louie?”

  Head tipped back over Shohn’s arm, Louie watched Nadine, still purring.

  She set the tea on the end table. “I think Louie’s content as long as you’re holding him close and stroking him.”

  If only Nadine had the same preferences. Another thought to keep to himself, at least for now. Shohn patted the seat beside him. “So tell me how he did today.”

  “He owned the place.” Nadine sat by him, close, but not quite touching. “He could be a sheepherder, only for the dogs.” She ran one finger over Louie’s big block head. “Everywhere he went, the dogs followed.”

  “So it wasn’t a problem having him here?”

  “Not at all.”

  Perfect. Then she could continue to watch the cat, which would give him a reason to keep coming back. “I’ll hold him a little longer, okay?”

  She stared at Louie instead of meeting his gaze. “Before you leave, you mean?”

  “Before I kiss you again.”

  An expectant stillness fell over her. She licked her lips, slowly turned to put her tea on the end table and finally looked up at him. Their gazes met, held, as his heart beat a little faster.

  “I was hoping you would.”

  Damn. Her honesty put him on a low simmer. “To hell with waiting.” Keeping Louie relaxed in his arms, Shohn leaned down to take her mouth.

  Meeting him halfway, Nadine put one small hand to his neck, the other flat to his chest. He meant to keep things easy—after all, he had Louie sprawled in his arms—but he couldn’t hold back, not from Nadine.

  Her tongue touched his, and he groaned low. He leaned closer, kissed her deeper—and Louie put his claws to his thigh.

  Shohn jumped so fast that he and Nadine bumped heads.

  “Ow, damn it, cat. That hurt!”

  He rubbed his inner thigh where Louie had gotten him.

  Nadine rubbed her forehead where they’d bumped and rushed to the cat’s defense. “Maybe you squeezed him.”

  “Or maybe he’s just too damned possessive!”

  She laughed, tried to muffle it, and ended up making a ridiculous sound.

  “You find it funny that he scratched me?”

  She said, “No,” but she was still snickering.

  Shohn had to smile, too. He stroked his fingers through her hair, turned on despite Louie’s look of disgust. “You should wear your hair loose more often. It’s really pretty.”

  The compliment killed her hilarity. “It’s a mousy-brown.”

  “Says who?”

  She shrugged.

  “It’s long and thick and so damn soft.” He brought her hair forward over her shoulder, then deliberately stroked to the end so that the backs of his fingers moved over her breast. Voice going gruff, he whispered, “Very pretty.”

  With a loud, “Meowrrr,” Louie high-stepped between them, turning so his tail hit Nadine in the face while he purred and pawed at Shohn’s abdomen.

  “Ah, no, Louie, I don’t trust you.” Shohn moved the cat away from his abs and instead sat him on the sofa at his side.

  Louie came right back.

  Feeling a little helpless, Shohn looked at Nadine.

  She winced. “I think he needs more reassurance.”

  Yeah, he knew that. Poor Louie had come from a shelter, and now he wanted to know he was loved. Mind made up, Shohn asked, “Are you in a rush to go to bed?”

  “No,” she assured him hastily.

  On track so far. “Mind if I stay for a while?”

  She shook her head. “I’d like that.”

  “And onc
e Louie is feeling more secure?” He traced a fingertip over her collarbone, slowly down to the top of each plump breast. His voice went gravelly with need. “Then I’d like to show you how sexy you are, okay?”

  “I was sort of counting on it.”

  Shohn stood, which wasn’t easy since Louie kept trying to climb him like a tree. “How about I go wash up before appeasing this demanding beast?”

  She twisted to look up at him. “Wash up?”

  “Yeah. I always carry a spare set of clothes, so you don’t have to worry about me hanging around naked.”

  Eyes wide, she said in a faint whisper, “I wasn’t worried.”

  Then again, Shohn thought, hearing how husky her voice got and the way her eyes darkened, maybe stripping down was the way to go.

  Louie disabused him of that notion real quick by attempting to climb him again.

  Yeah, being naked around the cat was not an option.

  “Be right back.” He went out the door before Louie could follow. In his Jeep he grabbed his duffel bag with clean shorts, a fresh uniform and his survival kit. With his job, he never knew when he might get soaked with mud, creek water or poison ivy. It made sense to be prepared.

  The survival kit was a small pack of necessities that he carried whenever he had to be in the woods for long. On top of basic medical supplies and a few granola bars, it held a toothbrush, razor and soap.

  The condoms he kept in his wallet.

  With any luck, he’d get to spend the night with Nadine. It always paid to be prepared.

  * * *

  NADINE MADE A quick trip over to Animal House while Shohn showered in her small bathroom. She was such an animal lover that she felt positively evil for scrounging up the repellent spray and an old canister of catnip. Hopefully if one didn’t work, the other would.

  She managed to sneak in and out without disturbing too many dogs, which wasn’t easy with so much anticipation making her clumsy.

  At this very moment, Shohn was naked, wet and soapy in her bathroom.

  It was enough to rattle any red-blooded woman.

  Did he make himself at home with every woman he planned to sleep with? He carried all the necessities, even a change of clothes, so she had to assume...yes.