Her stomach knotted so tight she nearly doubled over. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on breathing slow and even. Today was way too busy for her to tackle it walking like Groucho Marx. Wouldn’t look so great in Rachel’s wedding photos, either.
God, she just hoped she could keep the tension from her face.
With the couple having a sunset ceremony, Beth didn’t need to be at the mayor’s ranch until noon, so she planned to get there at eleven in case there were any glitches to the ceremony or reception she needed to tackle before she was dragged off to makeup and wardrobe. Okay, getting her hair done and then dressing in the green satin gown.
She glanced at the bed that held many wonderful Brick memories. Tonight would be the last night for that. The last night for a lot of things.
Her phone rang. She grabbed it off the nightstand and “Secret Cowboy” crossed the screen. She smiled. “Hey, handsome.”
“Morning, angel.” His deep, low tone sent goose bumps over her skin. “Just wanted to wish you good luck today. I know you’ve been planning it for weeks now.”
Her heart caught. “Ah, thanks. That’s sweet.”
“I’m a sweet guy.”
She laughed. Sweet wasn’t the first word that came to mind when she thought of Brick. Sexy. Big. Hot. Built. Hard. Sure, but sweet was down on the list.
“I am, what’s the laughter for?” Amusement coated his tone. “I’ll have to show you later just how sweet I can be.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah,” he replied. “How late do you have to stay? The very end?”
“No.” Right after dinner, when she was sure all was satisfactory, Beth would make final payments to the appropriate vendors. “Once Rachel leaves, I’m good to go.” She wished she could fast forward to that right now, and yet, it would bring her that much closer to tomorrow morning and her confession that would no doubt send him running.
“Good to know.” His tone held that delicious, sexy innuendo that sent heat flooding her veins. “See you at the reception later. Sorry I can’t come sooner, but we can only work on the female barracks around our other contracts.”
“That’s fine. Honest. You know I’m going to be working besides being in the wedding, so I’d feel bad about neglecting you anyway.”
“It’s all good, angel. We won’t be neglecting each other tonight.”
Her body was still tingling at that thought long after they hung up. The strength of her attraction to the guy amazed Beth. Just the thought of him or his voice could instantly bring a flush to her skin. Glancing at the clock, she straightened her shoulders. It was nearly eleven. Time to get the day started.
Opening the door, she stepped outside and stilled.
Leo was leaning against his truck parked outside her door.
Chapter Twelve
It took a full twenty seconds before Beth remembered to breathe. She drew in air, knowing by the shrewd look in the guy’s eyes that he’d somehow figured out her secret. Dammit. Her heart hammered her throat dry.
“You going to tell them the truth?” He wasn’t hostile, but disapproval dripped from his tone.
Straight and to the point. She liked that. No sense in playing dumb. “Tomorrow at brunch. I don’t mean to bring drama to the ranch, but I think it’s better if they have friends around.”
“To keep them from beating the shit out of each other?”
“They better not.”
His gaze hardened. “Why do you care?”
“Why do I care?” Anger heated her face. She stepped closer, jamming her hands on her hips. “I care plenty. For both of them, and I hate that this is going to hurt them.” Her heart ached at the thought and canceled the anger. She sighed. “This isn’t about me.”
“Damn right it’s not.” His tone was harsh, but his gaze had eased into not so hard realm. “What the hell did you hope to accomplish, Beth? What did you think was going to happen, sleeping with your brother’s best friend?”
“I didn’t know. By the time I did I had already…” She stopped midsentence. Why bother? Nothing could be done. She shook her head as she fought for calm and the burning in her throat. “Look, I know I don’t have any right to ask this, and I’m sorry to put you in this position but could you please not say anything to them until I have a chance at brunch tomorrow?”
He studied her for a long minute, in which time she didn’t dare breathe for fear it might sway him the wrong way. God, she’d gone through this with Jovy, now Leo.
She was going to go to hell. Twice.
“Make sure you do or I will. They deserve to know.”
“I know.” She continued to fight the useless sting in her eyes. “Thank you. May I ask how you figured it out? I know you and I have never met.”
He blew out a breath. “Cord once opened a letter from your mother, and your graduation picture fell out. I picked it up and handed it back to him.”
She gasped. “But that was over eight years ago.”
He shrugged.
Wow. She’d also had a blunt haircut with highlights. The guy was good. “You’re Nikon, aren’t you?”
His brow shot up. “Haven’t heard that name in a while.”
Made sense with the guy’s photographic recall ability.
“It’s the only way my brother ever refers to you guys. Nikon. Romeo. Straight-Shooter. Capicola. If just once he would’ve used your real names, I would’ve known…” Her voice trailed off again.
What if’s sucked.
She straightened her shoulders. “I’d better go. I have a wedding to oversee.” She stepped closer and wanted to hold her hand out to the guy, but she refrained at the weary look in his eyes. “You’re a good friend, Leo. I feel better knowing you’ll be there for both of them.”
Surprise rippled through his face, sending his brows upward as he blinked. Sadness instantly washed through her gut that her statement had shocked him. No one should feel that low about themselves.
“Guess I’ll thank you in advance. See you tomorrow.” She headed to her car.
The whole day just turned surreal, but she couldn’t let it. Rachel deserved better.
“Beth?”
She glanced over her car at Leo. “Yeah?”
“Sorry.”
“Me, too.”
More than she could ever possibly say.
…
Beth managed to get through the whole afternoon without feeling sorry for herself. Even smiled for photos. Not only was it unprofessional to cry and mope, putting a damper on her friend’s wedding wasn’t very…well…friendly.
“Are you the event planner?” The wife of one of the mayor’s golf buddies approached with a hopeful smile.
She returned it and held out her hand. “Yes. Beth Brannigan.” After exchanging names she handed the woman a business card from her little wristlet purse, and it wasn’t until she’d handed out her fourth one that she realized the danger.
Brick was due any second. Jesus, the last thing he needed was to hear her name. She walked over to her newly-married friend and accepted the glass of wine Rachel had held up to entice her over.
“You looked like you needed this all of a sudden.”
“Yes. Thanks.” She was glad Rachel hadn’t asked for an explanation. Let her assume it was just party duties that caused the anxiety attack and not her love life.
As they shared a glass of wine they discussed the day and Beth latched on to one thought. She’d never seen her friend look so happy. Sure, Rachel was beautiful in her mermaid-style white satin wedding gown with Italian lace overlay, but it was her eyes that held her. They were clear and bursting with joy. So bright. The kind that made people want to smile. Even people like her who felt like crap.
A prickling of heat rushed up Beth’s right side.
Brick.
Her pulse hiccupped. She couldn’t wait to see him. To hold him. She turned and gasped and her mouth literally watered.
Rachel turned, too. “Oh. Wow. You’re cowboy cleans up nice, Beth.”<
br />
Indeed. She nodded, throat way too dry to speak, and wondered how that could be, since she was drooling.
Brick wore a black suit tailored to fit his broad shoulders, arms, and chest, and tapered to fit his narrow waist. The sight of him wreaked havoc on her libido. He looked like a super spy from the movies. It wasn’t a stretch to imagine him with an earpiece. Desire flooded her veins, whooshing through all her good parts.
Later, they were so playing bodyguard.
She wanted to excuse herself and rush to meet him as he made his way toward her across the floor, but her legs felt like rubber. All she could do was stand there and salivate, and the closer he got, the more determined his gait, heated his gaze, sinful his smile.
“Damn, girl, he’s got you in his sights,” Rachel muttered.
Again, Beth nodded, her whole body throbbing with need, which exploded the second he stepped up to her, cupped her face, and kissed her with a slow, claiming-his-woman type of kiss that she reciprocated by shoving her fingers in his hair and pressing against his hot body. Need pulled in all directions, but she somehow retained one brain cell and kept the kiss at a PG-13 rating.
Barely.
When he finally drew back, his gaze was dark, heated, and so possessive. He’d never looked at her like that before, but instead of making her angry, she felt empowered. He didn’t want to share her. He warned others off. Staked a claim. Wanted to be exclusive. If his feelings were that strong, maybe he wouldn’t be able to give her up so easily.
God, she hoped so.
She knew she was grasping at straws but didn’t care.
For the next two hours, as guests roamed between the patio, grounds, and the pavilion, where the dining and dancing took place, she enjoyed the evening as a guest. Eating, drinking, being merry—dancing with Brick.
To her astonishment, slow or fast, the guy could dance. Although, he had excellent rhythm in bed, so she really shouldn’t have been surprised that it spilled onto the dance floor.
“You look exquisite, angel,” he uttered near her ear as they swayed together. “The color of your dress brings out the green in your eyes.”
“Thank you.” She smiled. “Rachel said she deliberately chose this color for me because of it.”
“Great choice, and with your hair up, I’ve been dying to kiss your neck all damn evening.”
His breath was hot on her throat, and she could feel the strain in his body, signaling just what it was costing him to hold on to his control.
She ran her hand up his chest then tugged on his tie. “Don’t get me started on the naughty thoughts this induced.”
He muttered a curse and brushed her ear with his lips. “Come back to the ranch with me tonight. I’ve got more than one tie in my closet.”
Beth’s steps faltered as reality set in. “I can’t.”
He frowned, all traces of teasing gone from his eyes. “Why not? You’re coming to brunch anyway.”
“I know, but I have to check out tomorrow and—”
“Let’s check you out tonight. You can stay with me.”
Her heart squeezed so tight the ache shot across her chest. “God, I want to Brick. I really do, but I still have that birthday event tomorrow, and it’s just easier from Braxton.”
And it would be easier to have her things at the hotel when he tossed her ass to the curb.
“All right.” Disappointment dulled the life from his gaze.
She ran her palms up his chest. “You can stay with me tonight, though…if you still want to.”
His grip tightened on her hips as his dimples returned. “Oh, I want to, angel. And that’s less travel time from here.”
“True.” She smiled and pressed into him. “I like the way you think.”
His thumbs were brushing back and forth, reaching to just under her bust. “You’re going to like a lot of things, later. Even with only one tie.”
A massive burst of heat flooded low in her belly and her heart rocked from the force.
Those wicked thumbs inched higher. “So, when can we leave?”
A little less than a half hour from now, the bride and groom were set to depart for their honeymoon. Anything after that would be acceptable. Given the hope and heat smoldering in his gaze, she hated to tell him, though.
“Soon.” She lifted up to brush a kiss to his lips. “In about ten minutes I have to help Rachel get changed for her honeymoon. As soon as she leaves, I can, too.”
“So ETD is about thirty minutes?”
Thanks to growing up with a military brother, she knew ETD stood for estimated time of departure. “Yes, thirty minutes.”
She’d learned a lot of lingo and reading between the lines in both verbal and written communication with Cord over the years. Even with him as a civilian she continued to read his nuances. Like now, the way he strode across the patio toward the front of the pavilion, he gave off an uninterested, lethal vibe women dug. Several heads were turning, not all female, to drool as her brother…
Shit.
Everything inside Beth squeezed tight, and for a moment, she couldn’t blink, couldn’t move, couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe.
Oh my God… Oh my God.
Cord was here. Why? She vaguely remembered Rachel inviting him back at the fair, telling him her brother would love to catch up.
But oh my God, now? Her brother decided to take a step toward social now?
Thankfully both men had their backs to each other, and a good two hundred guests separated them.
It wasn’t nearly enough.
“What’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
No, just my brother.
“I’m good. Just thought of something I need to do.” Beth tugged Brick toward the house, widening the distance between the men.
She had to get him out of there.
Now.
Not only because she didn’t want a blowout to ruin her friend’s wedding, but because this was the mayor’s ranch. The press was here, and God, they’d certainly eat up a brawl involving veterans. Especially ones who’d served together.
The knot in her stomach tightened.
“Can I help?” Brick glanced sideways at her, and it took a moment for her brain to catch up.
“Actually, yes.” Safe inside the house, she led him to a quiet corner and leaned into him. “I was thinking, no sense in us both staying here the half hour. Maybe you should go on ahead to the hotel and get things ready, and I’ll join you as soon as they leave.”
His gaze took on a sinful gleam. “You may be onto something. If I leave now, there might still be a store open along the way where I can pick up a few extra ties.”
A shaft of heat eased some of the tension from her body. “Mmm…I like the way you think,” she repeated her earlier sentiment, then withdrew the hotel key from her purse and slid it up his chest to drop into his shirt pocket. “I’ll see you soon.”
He answered by hauling her in and kissing her just long and deep enough to start the fires she looked forward to stoking later. “We’ll continue this in your room. I’ll be happy to get out of this monkey suit.”
“Ooh no. Don’t. I want to take it off you…with my teeth.”
He inhaled, eyes almost completely black as he nodded. “Yes, ma’m.”
Her insides quivered, and she wished to God she could leave with him right now. But maid of honor duties and event planner responsibilities held her back.
She walked with Brick straight outside to where the valet was set up and waited with him. It wasn’t until the last of his taillights disappeared down the drive that she took her first real breath since spotting her brother in the crowd.
Heading back inside, she acknowledged it was great that Cord took a step today and felt guilty the small milestone couldn’t be celebrated in her mind the way it deserved. Maybe later or next week. Now, she just wanted to help Rachel and leave.
Since she also knew better than to chance a meeting with her brother, because too many people had se
en her dancing and kissing Brick to keep it from him for long, she had to use the crowd as a buffer. The sooner she slipped from the public eye, the better.
Fate was on her side, because she ran into Rachel in the house, and together they went upstairs and quickly shut the door to her guest room. “Oh my God, I can’t believe Cord actually came,” Rachel gushed. “I swear he never officially responded, or I would’ve warned you.”
“I know.” Beth also knew because she was privy to the list and had checked it. Twice. “I sent Brick back to my hotel, so as long as I can get out of here without having to talk to Cord, it’ll be good. Tomorrow will be here soon enough.”
She just hoped to God Rachel’s brother hadn’t paid attention to her tonight, or said anything to her brother.
“Why don’t you leave now?”
“No. I can’t.” She shook her head. “You’re still here. Doesn’t feel right leaving before you. Plus it wouldn’t look good for business.”
Dammit.
Rachel reeled back. “Frig that. Go. Get out of here while the coast is clear. If anyone asks, I’ll tell them I sent you on a mission.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. Get out of here…you have a hot cowboy in your hotel room. No brainer. But, um before you go, can you lend me a hand?” The woman twisted around to show her row of buttons.
Twenty minutes later, Beth walked into her hotel room and leaned against the door, breathing a sigh of relief. The bride was taken care of, the bills were taken care of, and other than a brief wave of acknowledgment to Cord, she’d gotten out of the reception without a hitch.
There was quite a bit of hitching in her hotel room, though, the biggest being her breath. A tie hung off each of the lamps screwed into the wall on each side of the bed. Her heart hammered in anticipation of the unknown. She’d never done anything like that before but trusted Brick, so the adrenaline was a turn-on.
But not as big a turn-on as her hot Ranger sitting in a chair, shirt unbuttoned, tie undone, gaze dark with heat. Beth pushed off the door and walked to him, maybe ran; she didn’t quite remember how she got to the sexy man, or on him, but she was straddling his lap, kissing will all the pent-up need the guy had induced back at the party.
Her Secret Ranger (The Men of at Ease Ranch) Page 16
