Heather's Challenge [Cattleman's Club 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Jenny Penn

  “So, let me make this real clear, my girl is not a toy and you better not treat her like one or I’ll treat you like one and break you. Got me?”

  “Yes, sir.” Alex nodded, giving him the only acceptable answer to a question like that.

  “Good.” Ralph released a deep breath and relaxed back into his seat. “You know normally I wouldn’t interfere in Heather’s affairs but this situation between you and Konor... It’s a little different.

  “Not really as much as you would think,” Alex assured him.

  “Trust me, I’m not trying to think too much on it.” Heather’s father paused, taking another swallow of beer and letting the silence thicken.

  Alex didn’t break it either. Instead, he turned his attention back to the stars and the strangely addictive thoughts of a pregnant Heather. So, maybe he’d punch a few holes in a few condoms and see what fate had in store for them. Whatever it was, he sure as hell wasn’t expecting Ralph’s next comment.

  “About Heather I mean, but the club, on the other hand…” Ralph paused to cast Alex a sly look. “I got to admit I’m mighty curious about that.”

  Chapter 20

  Sunday, May 25th

  On Sunday morning, Heather got up early as she normally did and headed off to the bakery, working out the night’s pent-up frustrations kneading the dough that Tina would come in and bake while she went back home and rallied Taylor for church.

  As usual, he was sluggish and uncooperative, but she managed nonetheless to get him dressed in his suit with his hair and teeth brushed and out the door within a half hour. Ten minutes later she left him and his bible with the other children gathering in the church’s library for Sunday school.

  Pausing in the church’s lobby to call into the Bread Box, Heather made sure that Tina and Howie had everything under control. Things would be slow at the bakery until all the churches started to let out around eleven. Then it would be an “all hands on deck” kind of situation. The only way to survive those moments was with good preparation.

  Planning was the key to almost everything, including managing two unmanageable men, which was just why Heather had spent a good portion of the previous night considering just what she was going to do about Alex and Konor. She’d come up with nothing, which was unfortunate because no sooner had she gotten off the phone with Tina than Heather turned around to find both Alex and Konor coming through the church’s front door.

  Heather froze, her breath catching at the sight of them. Dressed in suits that did little to hide the power of the muscles lurking beneath their tailored cuts, they moved through the crowd like dark, sleek predators stalking through a field of colorful prey, and just like prey, the crowd parted before them.

  The speculation and anticipation thickened in the room as Alex and Konor left a trail of whispers in their wake. They fell silent as both men finally came to a stop before her.

  “Hey, sweetness.” Alex’s voice echoed loudly through the tiled hall as he stepped up to drop a quick kiss on her cheek. “You look as beautiful as ever.”

  The laughter lurking in Alex’s tone was reflected in his gaze. He knew he had her good and cornered just as they both knew she wasn’t anybody’s sweetness. Not right then.

  Far from it, but there was very little Heather could do with such an attentive audience watching but play along and smile back up at him as she tried not to growl over her words.

  “Sheriff, what a pleasant surprise.” She didn’t bother to ask what he was doing there, not about to give him the opening Heather sensed he wanted. Instead she turned a pointed look on Konor, who lingered a step or two behind Alex wearing a smirk that Heather’s stomach twisting with nerves. “And you brought a friend, how…delightful.”

  “Miss Lawson.” Konor nodded his head politely, keeping a respectable distance. “You are looking as pretty as ever this morning.”

  Heather couldn’t help but be pleased by both men’s approval, but that didn’t change the fact that they were up to no good. After all there was only one reason a man showed up at a woman’s church—because he was serious about the relationship. That was definitely not the deal she’d offered either man.

  While Heather probably should have been pissed, and she was definitely unnerved, that didn’t stop the longing from twisting through her, which just went to prove how dangerous Alex and Konor were. It also went to prove that her refusal to join them last night hadn’t deterred them.

  If anything, it appeared to have emboldened them, because they were clearly not going to be so easily dismissed. As if reading her mind, Konor’s smile widened mischievously before he spoke up loud enough for all to hear him.

  “You are one lucky man, Alex, snatching up the prettiest woman in town.” Konor cast his best friend an enviable look while Heather felt her cheeks heat over that compliment.

  “Yes, I am,” Alex agreed easily, moving to Heather’s side to take her hand and solidify their status as a couple before she could stop him, leaving her only two choices—make a scene or play along. Making a scene was out of the question... Or maybe not. Maybe it was just what they deserved.

  “Konor! Alex!” Her dad’s voice boomed loud through the foyer as he strode forward to extend a hand toward the two men, cementing their status before almost the whole congregation. “I’m glad you two could make it.”

  “Where else would we be?” Alex asked, casting a sly look toward Heather as he all but taunted her. “After all, it’s Sunday morning, time for God and family.”

  It was lines like that that had gotten him elected. They flowed smooth and easy over his lips, and were spoken with just the right touch of sincerity to make everybody believe him. Everybody, that was, but Heather. She hadn’t voted for him, and she wasn’t about to be played by him either.

  “That’s so true.” Heather matched Alex’s smile with one every bit as smug. “I’m sure your mother would be proud to hear such fine sentiment coming from her son…if she were here to hear it.”

  Of course she wasn’t, because everybody knew that Anna Krane was a Methodist and went to the Christian Charter Church across town, which was just where Alex should have been. That pointed hint blew up in her face as Alex agreed with her without hesitation.

  “Don’t you worry none, sweetness. My mama knows she raised me right,” Alex assured her with a smoothness that had Heather wanting to growl. “Now she’s just hoping I’ll find a good woman to help me pass on such fine virtues to the next generation.”

  “Yes, well, if we have the wedding by August, your mother can be babysitting by next spring,” Heather pointed out, more than aware of the gasps and titters of whispers that rippled over the crowd. The gossips would have her pregnant by the end of the day and no doubt Alex would be getting a call from his mom in the near future.

  She could only imagine how that conversation would go and would have paid good money to hear it. Of course, Heather had forgotten about her own father, who was currently staring at her as if she’d grown a second head. His amazement, though, should have paled in comparison to Alex’s.

  After all, Heather had just upped the ante. He should have been pale and trembling, trying to figure out just how to get himself out of the pit she’d just buried him in. Only Alex didn’t look scared or worried or even annoyed. In fact, he was smiling down at her like the cat who’d just captured a bird.

  “Yes, but if we got married in June, she’d be guaranteed a child by April,” Alex pointed out, making even Konor glance at him sharply. Apparently they hadn’t agreed on the wedding, and neither had Heather, but she’d gone too far down this road to back up now, especially not with an audience straining to hear every word.

  “Do you really think you need the extra time to do it right?” Heather frowned thoughtfully, loving the heat that flared in Alex’s eyes at that question. “Because I really do need the time to plan the perfect wedding and you wouldn’t want to deny me my dream, would you?”

  “Oh, no, sweetness. I wouldn’t deny you anything.”
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br />   Heather’s stomach quivered at the promise glinting in Alex’s eyes. She was going to pay for this…and she may end up having to get married. That idea should have sent a cold chill down her spine, but it didn’t. It was too hot beneath Alex’s gaze for Heather to feel anything but heated awareness. She wasn’t the only one feeling the tension.

  The sense of expectancy swelled around them as the crowd seemed to edge in closer, all waiting to see what Heather said next. Only she didn’t have a comeback. Thankfully she didn’t need one. Instead the church bells saved her, chiming in a clear call for everybody to start filing into the nave.

  Heather caught a glimpse of her father’s relieved expression before Alex began leading her down the main aisle. He claimed a pew up close to the altar, sliding in first so that Heather ended up caught neatly between him and Konor, trapping her in an the intoxicating bubble of heat and musk.

  The rich heady scent of men, soap, and cologne filled her head and body with a delicious curl of want that had her shifting on the hard wooden bench, but there was no escape from the need beginning to build rapidly within her. Alex didn’t help.

  He rolled his thumb over her palm in slow, lazy circles that sent a thrill racing up her arm and matched the shimmer of excitement boiling in her stomach as Konor’s thigh pressed up against hers. She could think of little else but them and all the sweaty, dirty things they planned to do to her.

  By the time the service had ended her nerves were wrung raw from the need clawing at her. The need and the worry. After all, she was engaged now and planning on starting a family, or, at least, that’s what everybody would think by the end of the day once word started spreading through town.

  Heather didn’t even waste time hoping the news wouldn’t make the rounds. There was no stopping the flow of gossip. Not that she much cared what people said or thought, but there was one person she was worried over hearing the rumors—Taylor.

  God only knew what he’d think when he heard about her impending nuptials. It would probably be best if she were the one to tell him, but what exactly was she supposed to tell him? It wasn’t like she was actually engaged.

  Heather worried over the disaster she’d helped to create as the line feeding out of the church plodded slowly and steadily on, everybody at the front having to stop to greet the reverend before stepping out into the bright sun. Of course, the reverend wasn’t the true celebrity in the room.

  The crowd thickened around Alex as everybody, apparently, needed to have a word with him. It would have been the perfect moment to escape, but Alex refused to let go of her hand even when she tugged pointedly on it. Instead, he forced her to stand there and face the consequences of the show he helped put on before church.

  While the men were all eager to talk sports and politics with Alex, Heather was left to defend herself against their wives as they crowded in close, congratulating her on her fine catch. Even the reverend gushed over the news, more than excited to welcome the local Sheriff to his fold when Alex finally made it to the door.

  It had taken them only a half hour. By then, Konor and her father had already taken off with Taylor to go help set up for the church’s Memorial Day fair. They’d be busy all day, Alex informed her before declaring that he had to get to work. Dropping a quick kiss on her cheek, he strutted off, leaving her standing there in his dust with no idea how to get herself out of the trap she’d helped construct.

  * * * *

  Alex knew exactly what he was doing when he stopped by his parent’s house, knew that he was about to blow everybody off their rockers, especially Heather. She wanted a war and now he was about to go nuclear. The thought brought a smile to his lips as he pulled to a stop in front of the yellow-brick ranch he’d grown up in.

  The house sat not three houses down from Heather’s and was full of happy memories. Just walking up the front path took him back in time to when he didn’t even need to knock on the front door. Now he knocked but still didn’t wait for anybody to answer before opening up the door and sticking his head inside to holler out a greeting.

  “Mom! Dad! Anybody home?”

  “We’re back here, Alex!” His mom called back from the kitchen, drawing him through the house toward the clink of plates and the delicious aroma of apples and cinnamon.

  He entered the bright spacious room that was nearly identical to Heather and her father’s kitchen to find his sister seated at the big, round Formica table his parents had bought long ago. It was already set for his mom’s traditional after church treat. Today it looked like apple crisp was on the menu.

  “Hey, kiddo.” Alex dropped an affectionate hand on his sister’s head, giving it a quick rub that had her jerking back and shooting him an annoyed look.

  “You know I have kids now, Alex,” Sandy muttered with a dour look as if he had somehow managed to forget the two nephews he could hear running around in the backyard.

  “Yeah? I think I might remember them…what were their names again?”

  “Ha. Ha.” Sandy rolled her eyes before giving him another sour look. “Why aren’t you dressed for work?”

  “Why would I be dressed for work?” Alex shot back just to aggravate his sister. It was a favorite pastime of his. One that always earned him a disapproving look from his mother, as it did that morning.

  “Hey, honey.” His mom paused as she crossed the room carrying a pitcher of tea so that Alex could bend down and drop a quick kiss on her cheek.

  “Hey, Mom.” Alex smiled as he watched her move to set the pitcher down on the table before heading toward the back door to call his dad and nephews in for tea.

  It was like watching a scene from his past. Alex felt almost transported in time to when he’d been the one outside wrestling around with his dad. His mom would come to the door and holler for the two of them to come on in before the ice melted and the desert cooled. They’d come stomping in to find his sister seated where she as now, keeping up the gossip with his mom. Really the only thing that had changed over the past twenty years was his mom had a few more wrinkles and his sister a few more pounds.

  Other than that, the next ten minutes were like reliving a play they put on every Sunday morning with his mom harassing the men to wash up and his sister making all her snarky comments until everybody was seated in their correct seats. Then his mom began to dole out the apple crisp in order of seniority. Alex’s dad came first. Alex came second, and down the line she went, saving herself for last.

  By the time she settled down to take her first bite, Alex’s nephews had nearly wolfed down their entire portions and were eyeing the pan for seconds, which, of course, his sister complained about to no avail. Their mother insisted on treating her grandbabies.

  She didn’t actually get to eat until almost everybody else was done. Alex would have felt bad for his mom, but he knew she liked things the way they were. Any attempt to offer assistance was treated more like interference and instantly rejected. It was no different that morning.

  The food was good, the conversation rapid, and the kitchen filled with a happy mayhem until the crisp was gone and his nephews had disappeared back outside. Only then did Sandy return to her earlier observation about his lack of uniform as she asked whether or not he was working today.

  “Why are you so worried about my schedule?” Alex asked, giving Sandy a suspicious eye. “You got some bank you want to rob?”

  “Like there is any bank in this town worth robbing.” Sandy snorted.

  “Or maybe you’re a double agent, working as a mole for a drug dealer.”

  “Did you just call me a rodent?” Sandy stiffened up indignantly before turning to cry to their mother. “Mom! Alex is making fun of me. He compared me some kind of rodent.”

  “Now, now, you two.” Their mother fought back her obvious laugher as she shook her head at them. “It’s Sunday, time to rest...and to give me some.”

  “Yes, Mom.”

  Alex and Sandy agreed in unison, though Alex punctuated his by sticking his tongue out at
Sandy the moment their mother’s back was turned. She gave him the finger in response, finally drawing a comment from their father as he roused himself from the nap he had appeared to be taking at the head of the table.

  “Now, Sandy, that’s not proper ladylike behavior,” their dad chastised her as he shook his head sadly. “You won’t ever get a husband with that kind of crude behavior.”

  “I’m already married, Dad, remember? Husband, kids…?”

  “Yeah, but you don’t want to set an example of crude behavior for your children,” Alex pointed out piously, drawing another dirty look from Sandy. “As their mother, it’s your moral obligation to guide them toward living a righteous and wholesome life.”

  “I’m getting lectures on morality from the man who can’t even make it to church on Sunday?”

  “I made it to church.”

  “You did not,” Sandy retorted, giving him a pointed once over. “And you clearly weren’t working, so…”

  “So obviously, I went to a different church,” Alex finished for her, causing the whole room to come to a still as his whole family looked at him like he’d just announced that he was actually a woman.

  “You went to a different church?” His mom repeated, the alarm in her tone unable to mask the hurt lurking in her words. “Why? Why would you do that?”

  Clearing his throat, Alex took the plunge, knowing just how deeply this revelation was going to cut his mother. “I went to the First Christian Baptist Church.”

  “Baptist?” His mom gasped as if he’d proclaimed himself a Satanist.

  Her eyes widened with a shock that would have been comical if the panic in her gaze hadn’t been so sincere. Of course, Sandy had never been much for restraint when it came to their mother’s more theatrical response. She didn’t even try to hold back the laughter as she gave voice to her own amusement. Their father, on the other hand, was quick to assure their mother that the end of the world hadn’t actually come that Sunday morning.