Leon was the one who seemed to be avoiding her gaze now, while she yearned to talk to him. She wished she could tell him everything, get it all off her chest. But he wasn’t in a mood to talk.
“Morning.” She dared to say, as she watched his tall brooding form, sit down at the kitchen table. He reached for the pot of jam in silence, lathering one of the toasts with it using a knife.
“Did you sleep well?” She asked, when he hadn’t responded to her.
“I slept alright.” He said, suddenly fixing his deep brown eyes on her. It made Ivy blush instantly. He was looking at her like he was challenging her, like he knew what she had been thinking. Like he knew she was lusting after his brother.
There was silence in the room, save for the sound Leon made while chewing his food. She could tell that he was upset about her behavior the previous night.
“Leon…” She said his name in a near whisper, but he didn’t look up at her.
“You don’t have to explain.” He said, like he didn’t mean it. He continued to chew on his food and stare at his plate in silence.
“But I want to.” She said, hearing the crack in her own voice. She was trying to build up the courage in her to say something, to tell him the truth.
“No, you don’t have to.” Leon snapped, focusing his eyes on her, which communicated exactly what he was feeling. She could see that he was hurt. That he hadn’t expected her to suddenly push him away like that, for no reason, out of the blue.
She knew Leon was still hurting. She remembered why he had moved to Montana, why he had bought this ranch, why he had chosen to live away from his family. She remembered the story about Vivienne, his redhead childhood sweetheart who had promised to marry him, but married his cousin, Michael instead.
A whimper escaped Ivy’s lips. She had turned into Vivienne, she had slept with Leon’s brother, she had essentially betrayed Leon the same way that Vivienne had.
She whipped around, to turn her face away from him, in silence, but she could feel her lips quivering.
“Ivy, you don’t have to explain. You should have just told me that you didn’t want me last night. I would have gone away without putting any pressure on you.” She heard him get up from his chair. He was walking towards her. She felt her muscles contract, her limbs grow cold, she was so ashamed of herself. She didn’t deserve his kindness. She had betrayed him and he didn’t even know it.
“Ivy, look at me.” She heard him say and then his hand was on her shoulder and he was trying to gently coax her to turn around, to turn to him.
She did, unable to meet his gaze, unable to actually look directly into his eyes. His harsh gaze had softened, he even had the flickering of a smile forming on his face.
“Hey, it’s alright. I’m not angry with you. You should have just told me.” He said, and he pulled her close to him. Ivy broke down, she bit down on her lip to stop herself from actually crying, but she couldn’t hold it back any more. This man was like a dream come true. He was so kind to her, so understanding and yet had no idea the way in which she had betrayed him. She didn’t deserve him; she didn’t deserve his generosity.
“Ok?” He said, pushing her gently away from him and looking into her eyes.
Ivy tried to force a fake smile on her face, and she nodded her head wildly, hoping that he would believe that she was only upset about her rude behavior the previous night.
“I’m sorry for pushing you. I shouldn’t have.” He said, whispering.
“No, you didn’t. I’m sorry I pushed you away.” She said, in a tearful voice.
“Don’t be silly. You have a right to push me away.” Leon said, and gave her his best full smile. Those sharp jaws, the high cheek bones stretched in a warm genuine smile and Ivy could feel her heart melting. She had given up all this, she had given up Leon!
“Now, back to work for me. And you should be getting on with your classes!” He said, in a sudden jolly voice. She tried smiling at him again as he turned from her and left the kitchen.
There was a harsh ray of sun filling the kitchen with a bright golden hue. Ivy turned and saw Leon leaving the mansion, through the kitchen window. She saw him walking confidently, his back straight, his shirt sleeves rolled up for the day, his cowboy hat on his head.
Ivy felt like crying again. She had betrayed him, his trust and done the very thing that he had been running away from. She had turned into his worst nightmare and done the one thing that he had never expected her to do.
Ivy knew she should be punished, she should leave the ranch. She knew she needed to go before she could cause any more harm or heartache to the man who had put all his trust in her. But before that, she would have to face Archer again. He had to take responsibility for it, just as much as she had.
Chapter 13
Ivy found Archer lying on the field behind the house, a few hours later. He had his hat covering his face and seemed to be enjoying a sunny nap.
“You!” She thundered at him as she walked towards him like she was on a mission. She was wearing a long cotton dress, the bottoms of which were trailing in the dust but she didn’t care anymore. Her clothes were the last thing on her mind today.
Archer lazily lifted the hat off his face when he heard her voice, and blinked his eyes against the sun’s harsh glare.
“You!” Ivy repeated herself as she walked closer to him. She had lost her trail of thought when she saw him. How could she express her anger at a man who looked like that?
Archer was lying in the sun with his shirt off. His skin was glistening, tanned to the color of caramel, his washboard abs were hard and rigid as he bent his torso upwards to support himself on his elbows. She could see that he was assessing her again, with his usual dangerously blue eyes. His dark wavy hair fell over his forehead in a mess, one thick curl was over his right eye as he stared at her with an unwavering gaze.
He had noticed the way the blue cotton dress stretched fabulously over her big breasts. He was following the bounce of her hips with his eyes. She was curvaceous, small and had a big frame, and his eyes told her that was exactly what he liked looking at.
That devilish smile was still on his face as he watched her approaching him, the dimples dangerously close to appearing on his cheeks. He seemed to have forgotten their conversation in his room from the previous day. He didn’t seem to be concerned any more about what he had done.
“Are you offering fries with that shake?” He asked, just as Ivy came to a halt in front of him, folding her arms over her chest. She rolled her eyes at him, ogling his beautiful naked torso and at the same time, annoyed at his casual air.
“I’m glad to see that you don’t care anymore.” Ivy snapped at him and Archer smiled fully now.
“Care about what?” He asked, straightening himself to a full sitting position.
“That we have both betrayed Leon. He’s your brother, in case you’ve forgotten.” Ivy said, trying to narrow her large green eyes at him. But she kept getting distracted by his smoking body, and Archer knew that. He had caught her looking.
“Betrayed? Don’t be so dramatic, my dear Ivy.” He said with a short laugh.
“You were quite dramatic last evening too!” She snapped at him, still in disbelief that he could be this nonchalant.
“I was surprised that Leon was sleeping with you. In retrospect, it doesn’t surprise me. After all, we do have the same tastes as you can imagine. We’re twins.” Archer was still grinning, enjoying the way Ivy’s face lit up, from shame and anger.
He didn’t seem fazed. He seemed like he didn’t care, while Ivy was aware of what Leon’s reaction was going to be. She cared that she had betrayed him the same way Vivienne had.
“Well, I’m going to just leave then.” She said, whipping around. Archer had heaved himself up in one quick motion and pulled her towards him, so that Ivy landed with a thud on his glossy bare chest. Despite herself, how much she was mad at him, how angry she was with herself, she couldn’t help but admire the strength of his maneuve
rs, how absolutely smooth this man was.
“And just where do you think you’re going?” He asked, in a whisper, looking down at her face menacingly. Ivy jerked her arm away from him, her nostrils flaring. As sexy as this man was, he wasn’t going to be able to hold her back.
“I’m leaving this place. I don’t want to be a part of this. I can’t do this to Leon.” She said, finally managing to break free from Archer’s grip.
“Are you afraid of not being able to resist me?” He asked, flexing his muscles at her. He was standing with his feet apart, grinning at her, enjoying the fact that she couldn’t keep her eyes off his washboard abs.
Ivy rolled her eyes and whipped away from him. She was glad she had made this decision. She was glad that she was going away. Archer was right. He was a temptation. She knew how he could make her feel, how easily he could make her come. He wasn’t just a fine thing to look at. And she didn’t want to put herself in that position again, of betraying Leon.
“Just don’t tell him.” She said, suddenly remembering what she had come here to say to him. When she turned, she found that Archer was in the process of silently putting his shirt back on. He took in a deep breath as he slipped it over his shoulders. Ivy saw his muscles arch, his torso move, the dark trail of hair down his navel that disappeared into his jeans. She forced herself to look back up at his face.
“But I don’t keep any secrets from my brother, Ivy.” Archer said, with a teasing cruel look on his face. He seemed like he had nothing to lose. He knew his brother couldn’t fault him. He didn’t know Leon was sleeping with Ivy, she did. And she had chosen not to tell him.
“Please, don’t. Not till I leave.” Ivy said, gulping.
Archer shrugged his shoulders and gave out a short laugh. Ivy knew immediately what that meant. She had to leave the ranch, and soon. Before Archer told Leon, before the cat was out of the bag.
Ivy turned on her heels and started running towards the house. She still had a chance to make it. If she ran fast enough, she might still be able to get out of the house before Archer told Leon and he found her, and stopped her, and made her regret that she ever met him. Ivy was afraid, very afraid now.
Chapter 14
Ivy threw her clothes into her bags, and was out of her bedroom door in a matter of minutes. She hadn’t even had a chance to look at herself in the mirror, or prepare herself otherwise for leaving the house. What she also hadn’t thought about, was how she was going to get to her own home. Her father’s house was several miles away, closer to the town center, which meant that she definitely wouldn’t be able to walk it there.
Her only option was to leave the ranch and start walking, after that she would have to try calling her father on her cell phone and hope that he would be able to drive over and pick her up. What else was there to do?
Ivy felt like a criminal, or someone who was trying to escape alive as she rushed towards the main door, carrying her bags in her hands, stumbling and rushing. She knew she had to stay strong. She had to make sure that she didn’t just burst into tears.
She had spent nearly seven weeks at this ranch. This place had soon become her home. And now she was going to leave this place forever.
Thankfully, she could sense that she was alone in the house. Neither Leon nor Archer were in yet, but she had a feeling that Archer had found Leon in the fields and now they were both on their way back to the house.
Ivy stumbled to the front door and let out a huge sigh. She only had a few moments to give one sweeping look to the whole house, drink in the space, the luxury of the mansion, the kitchen where she had spent so much time. The door to her study, which Leon had set up for her was open and she could see in, at the computer…she was going to miss it all. Most of all she was going to miss being surrounded by the scent of Leon, that masculine musky scent that permeated the whole house while she lived in it.
She didn’t have time for more, and picking up her bags again she burst through the front door.
Only to discover that she was too late. Leon and Archer were on their horses and were riding towards the estate from the far-off horizon. Leon especially was riding his horse in great speed, Archer was trailing behind. There was no way she was going to be able to make it to the front gates of the ranch without being intercepted by him first.
But still, she had to try.
Ivy bunched up the skirt of her dress in one hand and ran, silently cursing herself for having chosen to worn this long dress today, out of all days. But she had no other choice. With the bags dangling heavily on one arm, and hitching up her dress with the other, Ivy was running towards the main gate. In some strange hope that Leon wouldn’t be able to reach her, that he wouldn’t just ride after her, past the gate, till he had caught up with her.
She wasn’t thinking about anything else, other than getting away from the brothers. Not because she didn’t want to see them again, not because she didn’t want them, but because she couldn’t face up to the look on Leon’s face. She didn’t want to see the look in his eyes that would tell her exactly how she had betrayed him.
Ivy arrived at the gate which was closed shut and hurriedly, dropping the bags to the ground, she tried to unlock it, scanning the land behind her, where still in the distance she could see Leon and Archer galloping towards her. They weren’t simply silhouettes in the horizon now, they had nearly caught with her, she could almost see Leon’s rigid face.
She swung the gate open with one hand and picked up her bags again and when she turned to give the brothers one last look, she realized that they were too close now. It would only be a matter of seconds…
Leon had grabbed her, and Ivy shrieked. He had barely slowed the speed of his horse down but scooped in to lift her up. His arms held on to her as he continued riding, and lifted her up further so that finally she was sitting on the saddle in front of him, with her legs both dangling from one side.
Ivy was still shrieking. She was still in shock. In those moments of panic, she didn’t know if he was going to hurt her, if she was going to fall…but he had caught on to her tightly, he had managed to lift her up swiftly and smoothly on to the saddle. But Ivy’s heart didn’t know that, it was still beating harshly out of her chest.
They were containing to ride. She in front, aware of Leon’s hard muscular chest pressing against her back as he held on to her, his arm encircling her waist. Ivy felt hot, too hot under her dress. Her golden ringlets were blowing in the breeze as they continued to ride. She had no idea where Archer was, she didn’t dare to try and look for him, but she knew he couldn’t be too far away.
“Where did you think you were going to go?” Leon’s voice was strong and loud in her ear. She could feel his lips moving against her earlobe. Ivy couldn’t reply, she was panting hard, she felt like her chest was going to burst any moment. She knew Leon was capable of many things. But scooping her up like this? Despite everything that was going on, she knew that this man was sexier than ever.
Chapter 15
Ivy jumped off the horse without any help, even though Archer had extended a hand towards her. When Leon finally slowed his horse and eventually came to a halt, Ivy was quick to jump off. She was still trying to keep some of her pride intact, even though she was outnumbered now, by two strong cowboys who also happened to be twins.
She took a few steps back from the horse as Leon jumped off the saddle as well, and to her absolute horror, she saw Archer approach his brother. Now they were standing side by side. Nothing she had ever seen, had ever looked this good. They were both oozing masculinity, both muscular, handsome with sharp eyebrows and chiseled jaws. And she also knew exactly what they both looked like without their clothes on.
“Ivy, where did you think you were going? You have a duty to this ranch.” Leon was the one to break the silence. He wasn’t smiling, and neither was Archer. But to Ivy’s complete surprise, they both looked quite calm, and quite comfortable with each other, given that they had both slept with the same woman.
“I g
ive up on those duties. I don’t want to work here anymore.” Ivy said. She was the only one among the three of them who was still breathless, who was still speaking too loudly. She didn’t know what to expect. What sort of punishment did Leon had planned for her?
“You can’t just quit your job like that. Without notice.” Leon continued and now he had crossed his arms over his wide chest. The muscles on his arms clenched and Ivy gulped. Those were the very arms that had swept her off the ground and placed her on the saddle of his horse.
“Ok, here is my notice now.” She said, jutting her chin up in the air.
“Why are you leaving, Ivy?” Archer said and she jerked her head to look at him. How dare he ask her that? She narrowed her eyes at him and had fixed a harsh glare on his face, and to her further surprise, a smile was breaking on Archer’s face.
“My brother tells me that he recently got a taste of what I have.” Leon said and Ivy almost felt her knees buckling. Here it was. So, Archer had told him. She could feel her nostrils flaring, her lips quivering. She didn’t want to hear what Leon had to say to that. She was suddenly very afraid of him, and afraid of Archer too.
“Does that have anything to do with why you were planning to leave?” Leon continued and Ivy hung her head down in shame.
“I am ashamed for betraying you, Leon.” She forced herself to say. Now that he knew, she had no other choice but to admit to what she had done. Now there was no escaping this.
She looked up when she heard Leon laugh, and soon enough, Archer had joined him too. The brothers were laughing.
“I tried to tell her. But you know how she is, a feisty one this one.” Archer was speaking to Leon, through his laughs, while Leon laughed silently, his shoulders shaking. Ivy’s mouth hung open. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Why wasn’t Leon angry? Why wasn’t he angry with her? With Archer? Why wasn’t he feeling betrayed?
“Why are you ashamed, Ivy? Didn’t I tell you that I share everything with my brother?” Leon said, his laughter finally dying down.
Passion: A Single Dad Small Town Romance Page 75
