Her Secret Ranger (The Men of at Ease Ranch)

by Donna Michaels

  “Name it.” His voice held no sexual innuendo. He was dead serious.

  Taking this as a sign he was the choice to her Brick or Cord debate, she decided to let him in on their dilemma. “Well, the guy building the arch for Rachel’s wedding just broke his arm and now we need to find someone to finish it. Fast.”

  “Done. Shouldn’t take more than a few hours. As you know, I’m good with my hands.” Now his sexy low tone was full of innuendo.

  She smiled and heat flushed her face. “Yes, I do know.”

  Rachel’s brow rose but Beth didn’t bother to enlighten.

  “This arch is something she’d stand under to recite vows, right?”

  “Yes.” She nodded as if he could see. “It’s partially built, although you’re welcome to start from scratch.”

  “Understood. But I can’t get there today, angel. Sorry. I have to finish putting up the drywall then tape the barracks tonight. But I can swing it after I meet with the building inspector at noon at that house you and Jovy brought lunch to on Monday.”

  “Tomorrow’s perfect. Thank you so much.”

  “You can thank me by having dinner with me afterward tomorrow.”

  She smiled. “I’d love to.”

  “Great. I’ll bring one of the guys with me to build the arch. We’ll get it done in a few hours.”

  Guys? Her heartbeats stuttered. Oh God. What if it’s Cord?

  “Text me the address.”

  “Okay,” she replied as if on autopilot.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow. Bye, angel.” Then he was gone.

  Rachel touched her arm and she jumped. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  Beth opened her mouth but nothing came out as she texted the address to Brick.

  “Okay, you’re scaring me. All the color just drained from your face.”

  She cleared her throat and tried again. “H-He’s bringing one of the guys with him to work on the arch tomorrow afternoon.”

  “That’s good, isn’t? They’ll get done faster?”

  “Yeah, but it’s not so good if it’s Cord.”

  “Oh.”

  “Yeah oh.”

  “Well, then how about I meet them at my soon-to-be in-law’s ranch? This way I can text you and let you know if it’s your brother or not.”

  Beth nodded as half her tension dissipated. “Thanks. That would work.”

  “No worries.” Rachel gave her arm a squeeze before releasing her. “You do know you’re only delaying the inevitable.”

  “Yeah. I know.” She blew out a breath. “I already made plans to be at the ranch Sunday morning.”

  Rachel lifted her mug off the counter and stilled, staring at her over the steaming brew. “You did?”

  “Yeah. Cord invited me to brunch. No sense in refusing. If things are going to be said, might as well be said there. At least there are a few guys around who might be able to help keep the peace.”

  God, she hoped it didn’t come to that.

  “Oh boy.”

  “I know. I don’t think my dirty laundry is supposed to be part of the menu.”

  But come Sunday it was going to be.

  Rachel nodded and a worried frown creased the joy off her face. Guilt flooded Beth’s chest. This was supposed to be one of the happiest times in her friend’s life and she was tossing a damper on things with her foolishness.

  That wouldn’t do.

  “Okay, enough with my problem. I’ll deal with it on Sunday.” She straightened in her seat and brought a smile to her face. “Let’s talk about you and the fact you’re getting married in a few days. How do you feel?”

  Rachel’s face brightened, and as she began to talk about how happy she was going to be on Saturday, Beth tried not to think about how miserable she was going to be on Sunday.

  …

  After tossing and turning most of the night, Beth arrived at the mayor’s ranch the next morning not so bright-eyed. Dreams of running into Brick and Cord had haunted her sleep. The first had her bumping into them at the ranch. The next at the mayor’s ranch. Her hotel. The fast food joint. And her personal favorite—she dreamt about running into them at a pond, where she was using a fuchsia napkin with Brick’s tattoo embossed on it to fish out princess crown–wearing frogs.

  When the weekend was through, she was taking a vacation.

  Right now, she needed coffee. Lots and lots of coffee.

  Heading across the massive patio out back, she noted the grounds were trimmed to perfection and possibly the greenest she’d seen in central Texas. A crew from the decorator she hired already started to string lights and yards of long gauzy white material around the large pavilion. Tomorrow the caterer’s crew was scheduled to set up the tables and chairs in the pavilion as well as rows of chairs for the ceremony in front of the arch Brick was going to build today. This would give the florist a little extra time to soften everything with flowers.

  “As long as it doesn’t rain, everything will be great.” Rachel was helping herself to coffee and a croissant the mayor’s staff had set out on a table, anxiety tightening her tone. “The forecast said Saturday is clear.”

  They both knew that could change, but she had her friend covered.

  “Good morning.” Beth smiled, filling a cup from the massive urn. “Even if it does rain it’ll be great day. The crew is fixing up the big ballroom as our contingency plan. So don’t worry. It’s all good.”

  Rachel nodded, nibbling on her croissant, not looking too convinced.

  She touched her friend’s arm. “Hey, trust me, it’ll be wonderful.”

  Again, Rachel nodded. “I just want everything to be perfect, you know?”

  “It will be. I won’t let you down.”

  “Of course you won’t. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to imply you would. I guess I just have wedding jitters.”

  “No worries.” She hugged her back. “It’s all normal.”

  “Yeah?” Rachel smirked as she released her. “Do brides-to-be leave their house with their shirt on inside out?”

  Smiling, she glanced at her friend’s pretty peach blouse.

  “Oh, it’s fixed now. One of the staff was kind enough to point it out to me when I arrived.”

  She chuckled. “Yes, all perfectly normal. I had one bride lock her keys in her car. Another drive away with her purse and coffee on the roof. One even pulled up to a restaurant, handed her keys to a valet, and forgot her grandmother who had fallen asleep in the backseat.”

  “Oh my God.” Rachel covered her mouth and laughed. “What happened?”

  “The lady snored, scared the bejesus out of the valet, who turned right around and dropped the grandmother off in front of the frantic bride-to-be.”

  That had been her second wedding and the moment Beth knew she wanted to event plan for a living. Never a dull moment, challenging, and meeting people from all walks of life reminded her that nobody was perfect and that you didn’t have to be in order to be happy.

  “Okay, I don’t feel so bad now.” Rachel continued to grin as they finished their continental breakfast.

  “Good. And you’ll feel even better after your final fitting this morning.” Nothing seemed to calm down a nervous bride more than putting on her wedding gown.

  “Yes, I know. I can’t wait. The next time it’ll be my…oh boy.” Rachel straightened and set her coffee on the table as she glanced at something over Beth’s shoulder.

  She stiffened. “What is it?” But by the time the words were out, awareness tingled all the way down her spine.

  Brick was there…and early.

  Please, God, don’t let Cord be with him.

  Heart hammering the breath from her throat, Beth slowly turned around.

  Chapter Ten

  Brick wasn’t sure what he expected when he showed up a few hours early at the mayor’s ranch to build his angel an arch, but the stark terror on her face wasn’t it. Gratitude. Surprise. A hot, wet, oh-my-God-Brick-I-missed-you kiss. Sure. But panic had never crossed his mind
.

  Just like that time he’d shown up early at her hotel when she had been waiting for her brother. Alarm prickled across his shoulders and tightened his chest.

  “Brick…hi.” She blinked, glancing past him. “Are you alone?”

  “For the moment. Leo will be here in a half hour.” Brick wanted his own vehicle in case he didn’t head back to Joyful tonight.

  Beth’s back visibly relaxed and the tightness disappeared from her face. “This is a surprise.” The smile he’d expected earlier was there now, lighting her eyes, doing funny stuff to his stomach as she stepped close to lift up on tiptoe and kiss his lips.

  He loved the feel of her mouth on him, but right now he focused on her gaze, finding no trace of terror, panic, guilt, worry. Only joy with a side of heat. Maybe the panic had stemmed from him throwing off her plans. The woman could be a little anal. She certainly had a one-track mind at times. And damn, he loved when she centered that mind on him.

  Pushing his misgivings aside, Brick wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in close for a proper kiss. Slowly, he traced the seam of her lips with is tongue and relished her soft sigh as she opened for him, granting access while her body melted into him.

  Damn he missed her taste. It’d been three long days since he’d held her like this, and his body was already tight, wanting access to a hell of a lot more. But somehow his mind held on to the fact this was not the right place or time, so he reluctantly broke the kiss.

  Her hands slid to his shoulders as she drew back. “Sorry if I seem distracted. I wasn’t expecting you until later.”

  “Is that a problem?” When his brother offered to meet the inspector, Brick jumped at the chance to head to Braxton early.

  “No.” She frowned, shaking her head. “It’s just that I have to leave soon with Rachel for a final fitting.”

  Realizing her concern had been for him all along, he relaxed and lifted a hand to brush the hair off her temple. “That’s all right. I don’t need you to be here while I work on the arch. Why don’t you show me what you need?”

  After introducing him to her smiling friend and bride-to-be, Rachel, Beth led him to the arch, or what there was of it. “This morning, the mayor’s wife decided she’d like it to be more of a permanent fixture, so I called the lumber yard and ordered these materials. They’re supposed to deliver within the hour. Did I calculate it correctly? She wants a large pergola now.”

  Brick was impressed by Beth’s knowledge of carpentry and the drawing and material list she supplied as a dimensional blueprint she supposedly whipped up that morning. He did a quick mental calculation and nodded. “Yes.”

  She set a hand on his arm and squeezed. “Thanks for doing this for me, Brick. It was such short notice.”

  He smiled at her. “I’d do anything for you, angel.”

  And he meant it.

  Color flooded her face, deepening the green of her eyes and his heart caught on her beauty. Today she had on that green dress she wore for their first dinner date that they barely managed to keep sex-free. It was the dress that hinted at her curves when she walked and drove him wild. The one he hadn’t had the pleasure of peeling off her with his teeth. Yet.

  That was going to change today.

  All morning the thought stayed with Brick as he started to construct the sides of the pergola, using the materials already there. A few minutes after Beth and her friend left, Leo arrived and got to work on the top piece when the lumber yard delivered the rest of the material.

  Over the past week Brick noticed a little change in the guy. Not a super huge drastic sunshine-and-roses type change, but a subtle one. The rigidity of his shoulders lessened. Skin across his face wasn’t taut, like he was about to bare his teeth any second and take your damn head off. But the most noticeable change was to his eyes; they didn’t appear sunken. Brick knew the guy would never be 100 percent, hell, none of them would—not after the things they’d seen and done—but Leo was on a better path than last year.

  He breathed a little easier about it and knew the other guys did, too. Especially Stone.

  “Who designed this?” Leo waved at the plans. “It’s good. Solid, simple, yet elegant.”

  “Beth.” Pride filled his chest with an unexpected burst. “Apparently the mayor’s wife decided she wanted something bigger this morning, and this is what Beth came up with.”

  Leo nodded with an impressed expression on his face. “She’s got skills.”

  Brick smiled. Exactly what Cord had said about her the other day, although the comment had been in reference to how she handled Brick. Once again, his mind went to an entirely different area of her skillset. Not the best place for it to be at the moment. With great effort, he pushed those thoughts aside, and focused on the job at hand.

  He screwed the last few screws to the final piece of side lattice, then he and Leo arranged the three pieces out on the ground and screwed the sides to the top before heaving the structure upright.

  “Looks good.” His buddy panted as they stood back to view their handiwork.

  Brick nodded. “Yep. Just needs a coat of paint. I’ll take care of it, though. You can head back to At-Ease.”

  “You sure?” Leo almost looked disappointed, but there really wasn’t much else for him to do.

  When he’d talked to Beth yesterday it had sounded like a bigger deal, so he’d asked Leo to help because of the time crunch. In reality, Brick could’ve easily handled the job himself.

  He slapped the guy on the back. “Yeah, I’m sure. Thanks for the help.” The job had gone a lot quicker with the two of them working on it.

  “Oh wow, Brick. It looks amazing.”

  He turned toward the sound of Beth’s voice and found her heading in their direction with a smile lighting her face to rival the overhead sun. Warmth spread through his chest as she walked right up to him and hugged him tight. Faint ripples of pain shot up his back, but he ignored the suckers.

  “Thank you so much.” She released him to step to Leo and pull him in for a hug. “Thank you. It looks wonderful.”

  “Are you the bride?” If the guy’s eyebrows shot up any higher they’d leave his face. But because Leo didn’t appear to be uncomfortable, Brick didn’t rush to pull her away.

  She stepped back and shook her head. “No. I’m Beth. Brick’s…” Her voice faded and she glanced at him as if unsure how to proceed with the introduction.

  “My girlfriend,” he finished for her, stepping close to slip his arm around her shoulder. “Leo hasn’t been around the few times you’ve visited the ranch.”

  She nodded.

  “Beth what? You look familiar.” His buddy frowned.

  The guy had a memory like a damn sieve. Probably photographic. Came in handy on missions. But the thing that had saved their lives on many occasions was the very thing that had caused the guy’s downfall. Leo couldn’t get certain images out of his head.

  “Madison,” she replied, sliding her arm around Brick’s waist and holding tight.

  Leo cocked his head. “Have we ever met?”

  “No. I’m from Austin. But I have one of those faces.” She shifted against Brick, and he could tell Leo’s scrutiny was making her uncomfortable.

  Brick tightened his hold on her and kissed the top of her head. “I met her at the Roadhouse last month. Maybe you saw her there, too.”

  “Maybe.” Leo shrugged but didn’t look convinced.

  “Well, I appreciate you both taking the time to come to Braxton to build this gorgeous pergola.” She released him and stepped back. “Let me pay you so I don’t hold you up any longer. I left my purse inside.”

  He grabbed her hand and stopped her when she stepped toward the house. “We aren’t taking any money from you, angel.”

  “Yeah.” Leo nodded. “Consider it a gift for your friend.”

  She drew in a breath and shook her head. “No. It’s too much.”

  Brick grasped her shoulders and turned her to face him. “It’s non-negotiable.”
<
br />   Her brows rose along with the curve of her lips. “Okay.”

  Damn, now he was going to wonder exactly what she’d meant by that, because there was definitely some heat flickering in her eyes.

  A ghost of a smile twitched Leo’s lips as he put two fingers to his forehead and saluted. “On that note, I’m leaving. Nice meeting you, Beth. When I figure out where I’ve seen you, I’ll let you know.”

  Her shoulders stiffened a split second before she turned to face Leo. “Nice meeting you, too. Thanks again for your help.”

  Maybe he imagined it. Her smile was genuine, shoulders relaxed as she held Leo’s gaze.

  Yeah, he must’ve imagined it.

  Brick brushed those thoughts aside. He had plans for tonight, important ones, and as always, they didn’t include doubts.

  …

  By the time Beth finished everything on her afternoon agenda, she was beyond ready to spend time with her secret Ranger. Her nerves were shot. Between worrying Cord was the buddy Brick would bring with him to the mayor’s ranch, to Leo studying her with a shrewd gaze, claiming he knew her. Damn, she didn’t think her heart knew what a normal beat was anymore. She was more than happy to put that part of her day behind her.

  Then there was the other part of her day. The part that included a certain cowboy. Her favorite part. The best part. Her body was a mass of anticipation as she drove to her hotel, with Brick following close behind. All afternoon she felt his gaze on her like a physical touch. One minute it was heated as if he were undressing her with his teeth. The next it was warm as if he were enveloping her in those big safe arms of his.

  She wanted both. So much.

  Wanted to physically experience both tonight. Multiple times.

  Okay, so that was ambitious for her. But not Brick. Damn that man had stamina. A heated shiver raced down her body just thinking about it.

  Heaven help her, she wanted the hot and heavy times where he was buried deep inside and they climaxed together, but she also wanted the content times where they just hung out, like on horseback, in a vehicle, eating ice cream, or this afternoon when they’d painted a pergola together. Even managed to do it without getting paint on her dress.