Rustler's Heart

by Amanda McIntyre

  “Me? I didn’t….” She stared at him as though he’d lost his mind.

  Truth be told, he was pretty damn close.

  Sally rested her arm over the back of the booth. “You know what this sounds like to me?”

  “No, and I don’t want to know.”

  “Too bad, because I’m going to say it anyway.”

  His soaked shirt clung to his chest. “Make your point, since you seem to think you have me all figured out.”

  “You forget who you’re speaking to, Rein.”

  He met her steady gaze. “I’m sorry. I’ve got a lot on my mind these days.”

  “As if that isn’t clear.” She pointed to his shirt. “Look I’m no expert on these things, but it sounds like maybe you are looking for every possible thing to find wrong with that girl. Don’t you think she’s figured that out? She’s just trying to find her way, Rein. Surely, you can remember what that’s like.”

  He did, and that wasn’t the entire issue, but he was hesitant to open up to Sally. He had to deal with the battle going on inside him about what his role should be around her. Could he continue to pretend to be her boss, her mentor as Wyatt asked him to be? Or would he have to face the fact that not since Caroline, had he wanted a woman this bad.

  “I gotta go. See you around.”

  Gripping the wheel, Rein had a hard time focusing on driving and not letting his mind wander to the sexy image of Liberty featured in a single spotlight, her body—toned and tanned—captivating everyone in the audience.

  Everyone, but him.

  He slammed on the brakes just in time preventing from smashing into the back of Dalton’s truck parked outside the main house. He hopped out, grabbed his flashlight and headed toward the unfinished cabin he’d been working on when Sally called and asked him to come up to Dusty’s.

  “Dalton went inside to make himself a sandwich. I’m sure he’d make you one if you’re hungry.”

  Startled by the feminine voice he pointed his flashlight toward the sound and found Liberty coming down the front porch steps. She shielded her eyes from the bright light. “He’d planned on walking me to my cabin, but if you’re headed that way, would you mind if I walked with you?”

  He tugged at his shirt, partially dry now, but still reeking of beer. “Sure.” They walked down the inky black lane. Rein watched the light bounce off the dirt road with each step. He cleared his throat. The silence was aggravating, but he didn’t know how to make things right. Had they ever been? Would they ever be? Could they ever be? Not from his point of view they couldn’t. “You seem to know your way around bartending.” He tried to keep the conversation light. They weren’t that far from her cabin.

  “I took a six week course offered once at one of my dad’s hotels. It’s one of those skills I figure I could fall back on if I need it.”

  “Is that how you ended up at the strip club...er…the nightclub? Is that what you call it?”

  She halted and he didn’t need a light to know she glared at him.

  “So we’re back to what I used to do for a living?”

  Rein tipped up his Stetson. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, you seem to have an infatuation with my previous work as a dancer.” She took a step closer, her face illuminated by the circle of light. She tipped her head, curiosity sparkling in those dark eyes. “Or maybe you’re just curious to see for yourself.”

  He snorted a response, swung the light to the path and began to walk. “Hardly darlin’. I prefer my women just a bit older.”

  “Seriously? Did you just pull that card again?” He felt a slap on the back of his head. His good hat flew off, tumbling to the ground. “At least I haven’t sequestered myself in these mountains with nothing but myself and cows to talk to.”

  “Steers, mostly. Beef cattle. Cows are for milk, generally speaking.”

  “You...I don’t care!” She tossed her arms in the air. “Whatever the hell they’re called. I’m really getting tired of your judgmental bullshit. You do know what bullshit is, right?”

  He picked up his hat and tapped against his leg. She did have the Kinnison temper.

  “What is it exactly that you don’t like about me, Mr. Mackenzie?”

  “This is not a conversation I want to have right now, and my name is Rein.”

  “Yeah? I’m just trying to show my respect to my elders.” She shot past him, full steam ahead toward her cabin.

  “I never said I didn’t like you,” he called after her. That was the truth. He just came unglued in her presence. Hell, he’d come undone a time or two alone at night when she popped into his thoughts.

  “Yeah? You have a damn funny way of making a girl feel welcome.”

  He sighed. He’d maybe had one too many beers, but that wasn’t causing him to push her buttons. Better off for her to be mad at him, if he couldn’t have her. And he’d convinced himself—nearly—that it would be wrong on so many levels to want her.

  She stopped suddenly and whirled on her heel to face him. He had to raise his arms to prevent from stabbing her with the flashlight. Instead, he stood there in surrender to her body brushing against his, and not in a tender way. She looked ready to knock heads, his in particular. She stood close enough that he could tell she’d worn no bra under her layered cami’s and tee shirt.

  “What do you want from me, anyway?”

  Rein swallowed. His lust ticked off at least top five choices before his brain stepped in to remind him that she was off limits. “Nothing.” He licked his lips. Damn, if he couldn’t use a beer, maybe a shot of something stronger. “I don’t want a thing from you.”

  “For what it’s worth, I am of legal age—beyond in fact, and old enough to make my own choices.” She pushed her face closer, challenging him in more ways than one. “You know, I think maybe it’s you that’s confused. I think it’s you that doesn’t know what he wants.”

  “You’re taking what I said the wrong way.” Damn, that sounded lame even to him. She nudged him chest-to-chest, and held his gaze. He didn’t dare lower his arms for fear he’d grab her and never let her go. Jesus, he was going insane.

  “Am I?” She waited a moment, torturing him with the mind-sucking scent of her perfumed skin. He tried to be cool, laugh off her driving him mad with her closeness, but the resulting grimace came because of the painful tightening below his belt.

  “What are you doing, Liberty? More games?”

  She slid her hand over his chest, toying with his collar. Her fingernails gently scraped the place where his pulse beat wild against his neck. “I’m not sure you’re man enough for me, darlin'.” She let the last word slide off her tongue slow and deliberately. The sweet scent of peppermint clung to her breath. Offering a quick and dirty laugh, she snatched the flashlight from him, turned around and stomped off alone to her cabin, plunging him and his frustrated libido in the dark.

  A moment later, the lights went on inside and he saw her silhouette outlined as she stepped out of the front door. “Good night, Mr. Mackenzie. Try not to fall in any holes.”

  The beam from the flashlight spun through the air and the heavy metal casing nearly beamed him. He grappled with trying to catch it so it wouldn’t fall to the ground, unaware he had company.

  “Mr. Mackenzie?” Dalton walked up behind him, another flashlight in his hand. “Damn, boy. Did you go and piss her off again?”

  “Yeah, well she gets pissed easily.”

  Dalton’s chuckle rumbled low in the dark. “God knows you’re never antagonistic.”

  Rein tugged off his hat and raked a hand through his hair. “Yeah, she’s different. Stubborn, and with an attitude a mile wide.” He glanced at Dalton. “Not like anyone else I know.”

  Dalton laughed quietly. “Maybe so. But I think she’s okay.”

  “I don’t have any issues with your sister, Dal. I just can’t let her push my buttons.” He started down the lane.

  “Absolutely bro, unless you happen to like it.”

  Rein stopped
and looked over his shoulder, the flashlight illuminated Dalton’s wide smile. “For the record, I don’t.”

  His brother shrugged. “Just sayin.’ Seems like you two spend an awful lot of time sparrin’ with each other.”

  “You’ve had too many beers.” Rein waved away the comment. He didn’t want to think any more about this tonight. He wanted to lose himself in his work. Do something constructive. Blow off some steam.

  “I only had two and I’ve got eyes, Rein. Not sure what you think, but I can tell when a woman is interested in a guy.”

  He refused to entertain the thought. Not tonight. “I’m going down to cabin three and do some work.”

  “Hey, Rein, for the record. You should stop up to Betty’s and see what she’s done with the place. New uniforms, new menu, looks pretty good. Liberty has quite a talent.”

  “I’m sure she did a fine job.”

  “You know, you can be as hard-headed as her.”

  “Kiss my ass, Dalton. See you in the morning.”

  “Sweet dreams, bro. I’ll be up here in civilization, if you need me.”

  In no mood to tolerate Dalton’s teasing, Rein trudged past her cabin, jerking his gaze away when he saw her pass by the window. She might well be talented in many ways, but the woman screamed trouble. She was a free spirit, and did not intend to stick around. Theoretically, that should please him, but it only frustrated him more. Dammit.

  He’d never been a loner like Wyatt. He enjoyed all kinds of people, had friends. Maybe seeing Caroline again, made him think twice about making that kind of commitment, giving himself to someone. Hell, maybe that was the one thing he and Liberty had in common. He had goals, his uncle’s dream to finish. She wanted to start a new life. Neither of them appeared to want any strings.

  And that scared the hell out of him.

  He snapped on the overhead light and in short order had changed into his grungy jeans and a worn comfortable tee shirt—standard issue when he did his woodworking. He plastered his ball cap on his head backwards and made a beeline for the sanding project he’d left earlier when curiosity got the better of him, and he went up to Dusty’s Place. It would’ve been wiser if he’d stayed home. He’d not been able to take his eyes off Liberty behind the bar, laughing and cutting up as she juggled bottles with ease, until of course, she stumbled on his gaze and he’d thrown her off her game. He’d felt like some kind of pervert, thinking about her, that kiss and where it might have led had he not stopped it.

  When she caught him staring and dropped the bottle, he didn’t know whether to feel more guilt or be pleased that he had some kind of effect on her. He hadn’t tried to stir up these feelings. With just a look she could turn him inside out. Denying this attraction gnawed a hole in his gut and he didn’t know how to deal with it.

  With that one kiss, he’d opened up a Pandora’s Box, and being ordered to stay away from another taste was akin to waving a red flag in his face. He opened the sliding door and looked out on the small patch of land that would eventually have a flagstone patio. A cool breeze washed over him, and for a moment, he closed his eyes absorbing the wet, mossy scent of the dark forest. This was his serenity, his calm and it had been since the day his uncle took him in. Jed taught all three of his sons to have pride and understand the value of taking ownership in what you’ve worked hard to build.

  With that in mind, Rein set to work, enjoying the fluid heat that burned his muscles as he used the electric sander to smooth a set of bookshelves he’d built to frame the fireplace. Seeing each cabin come to life from his sketches, brought back memories of listening to Jed and his dreams of the Last Hope Ranch. He wanted to carry that through in his designs, making sure to implement the beauty of nature and Montana’s rich traditions and history. He utilized timber from dead-standing lodge pole pine and recycled barn board to create his furnishings, using traditional wood builder’s techniques of mortise and tenon joining as well as dovetail joints. Recycling and antiques also became one of his passions—using the past to serve in new and innovative ways. Only cabins one and two were livable at this point. With Tyler working on electricity and plumbing in this cabin, Rein hoped to have an additional fourth cabin framed in before winter. With each cabin came the added task of lengthening the narrow road connecting each cabin to the main house, making it accessible in all seasons.

  He flipped off the sander and straightened, wincing as he did and rubbed his hand across his lower back. He’d been bent over for—he glanced at his cell phone—over an hour. Heaving a weary sigh, he scanned the room, seeing in his mind’s eye what he hoped to accomplish. His gaze landed on a brown portfolio laying on the kitchen cabinet.

  Wiping the hem of his tee shirt over his face, he pulled a bottle of water from the fridge and focused on the folder. He didn’t recognize it, but maybe Tyler had left it. Curious, he opened it and studied the soft colored-pencil renderings of the cabin’s interior. Extraordinarily professional, with exquisite detail, he realized that they were by Liberty’s hand.

  Had she left it there on purpose to prove a point? He studied the drawings, impressed that the artist had captured a perfect blend of contemporary with the old west in color and texture choices. The fact that the artist was Liberty gave him pause to consider that he’d been too quick to judge her inexperience, her ability to understand his concept for this project.

  Which posed yet another challenge. How could he work closely with her on the cabins and keep from wanting to touch her? Up until now, he’d given himself every excuse under the sun why he shouldn’t, but he couldn’t deny the power behind that kiss. Since, the tension between them had been akin to getting close to an electric fence. It looks innocent enough when you’re looking at it, but one touch could be lethal. He thought he heard music and walked over to the open screen. Staring out into the darkness his eyes traveled up to the dark sky littered with stars. The beauty of this place never ceased to amaze him. That’s what his uncle had wanted to share with the world.

  His saw first the light pouring out over the landscaped lawn of Liberty’s cabin. The music originated from the open patio door. He chewed the corner of his lip, debating the wisdom of where his thoughts were taking him. If he could set aside his pride, he could really use her help.

  By leaving her to work on the interiors, shop and order what they needed, she would free up his time for the construction end of things. By virtue of these sketches, she was good, damn good, and it wouldn’t kill him to play nice and tell her so. Maybe it could also help ease some of the tension. Then again, it might make things a whole hell of a lot worse.

  He tapped the doorframe with his the heel of his hand. It was clear what he needed to do. Polishing off the water, he unfastened his tool belt, grabbed the folder, and headed out the back door.

  With enough light between the two cabins, he walked down a small incline and sidestepped the group of chairs surrounding a cozy fire pit. The slow sultry beat beckoned to him, reverberating in his chest as he got close to the back door. The seductive beat curled around his senses, playing havoc with his imagination.

  He reminded himself that he’d come for a reason—a specific reason. He stopped, glancing at the file in his hand and remembered—a quick apology, an offer to work on the décor and he’d be on his way. Stepping up to the door, he looked through the screen and his heart faltered, while other parts leapt into overdrive. Barefoot, in denim cutoffs and a cami that left nothing to the imagination Liberty danced, blissfully unaware she had an audience. His mouth went bone dry, the thrum of his heart sucked into the backbeat. Lord, she was insanely beautiful.

  Her phone buzzed, startling both her and him. He felt like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. As she started to answer it, her eyes lifted to his. A tiny gasp, indicating her surprise escaped her mouth, though it was short-lived. Not accepting the call, she placed it on the table, her gaze narrowing on his.

  “You been standing there long?” She eyed him, one hand on her hip as she lowered the volume of
the music..

  Rein had to think for a moment where, who, and why, he was there. “Long enough.” He wiped his mouth, fearing he’d been drooling, blinked and held up the folder. “I found this in the cabin. I thought we should talk. Mind if I come in?”

  She tipped her head. “Sure.” She watched him a moment more then went back to shuffling through her cd collection. He walked in, feeling like a stranger in the very place he’d designed and built.

  ***

  “You like to dance?” She kept her eyes on her CDs, in a futile attempt to ease the pounding of her heart. The look in his eyes had been predatory, the set of his jaw firm on his stoic face. She felt the tension radiating off him from where she stood. Long enough? She wanted to ask him to explain his comment. Dancing on stage had been her profession, but off-stage—a type of release, how she rid herself of pent-up frustration. And this guy was the very reason she’d been tied up in knots for weeks, and not the kind they both might enjoy.

  “Not especially.” He slid open the screen door, stopping to test that it fit the frame, properly. Such a stickler for perfection. She both admired and detested that attribute of his. It was evident in how he designed and constructed his work and on a personal level, she just bet his standards were as meticulous. How he’d reacted after that kiss made it clear to her that she’d never be able to meet those standards.

  He gave her a cursory glance. “Do you have a beer?”

  She nodded toward the fridge. “Help yourself.” A thin line darkened the center back of his grey tee shirt. Her mouth lifted at the image of him bent over his sawhorse, working diligently on another project. The fabric hugged his muscles, moving with them as he leaned down to retrieve a drink. She followed the line of sweat with an appreciative gaze to where it met the top of his waistband. It’d been bad enough to have tossed and turned with the memory of how delicious he’d looked in that tux, but the fit of those worn jeans and that old tee shirt made her fingers itch, imagining his firm body beneath. “You seemed to like dancing with Caroline.” Her mumbled comment popped out without a thought and she hoped he hadn’t heard it. He had.