by Mari Carr
“Usually am.” She laughed. “About what this time?”
“Last night…after…when I was sitting with Clayton and Wyatt. I felt something between us.” She inhaled until her tweaked shoulder objected. “I knew.”
This time Vivi was the one with tears in her eyes. “I’m so glad, Hope. They’re nice boys. Handsome too. I swear I’ve seen Wyatt staring at you before. I have a good feeling, girly.”
“It’s crazy, though, isn’t it? What if I’m wrong?” She blurted out her worries. “What if it was some adrenaline high because of what happened? What if they didn’t feel it too?”
“Hush.” Vivi petted her hair. “Don’t get ahead of yourself. I don’t doubt for a minute that your instincts are right. You’ve never had a false alarm before.”
“John—”
“You never felt it for him.” Vivi waved away her token protest. “Don’t try to fool an old lady, huh? We won’t even talk about the rest or I’ll have to hunt John down. It was doomed before he revealed his cowardice.”
“Maybe.” She hated to admit the truth.
“Let’s see how Sunday dinner goes.” Her grandmother stood, dragging Hope out of bed and toward her closet with a surprisingly strong grip. “Show me your prettiest dresses. We’ll have Sienna curl your hair so it drapes over your face a bit. It’s… What day is it today?”
“Tuesday, Vivi.” Hope tried not to wince.
“Right. So we’ve got five days. I bet makeup still won’t be quite enough to cover the bruising. If I know decent men, they’ll feel guilty for not rescuing you sooner. But you’re going to knock their boots off. I can’t wait to see how they look at you. I’ll know.”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” After last night she might not be comfortable flaunting herself. What would they think of her showing off a few short days later?
“Hell yes.” Vivi wagged a gnarled finger at her. “And if you dare try to say it’s inappropriate I’ll take you over my knee. I’m not as feeble as you think.”
“Oh yeah?” Hope laughed when Vivi pinched her.
“Try me, filly. I’m not done with this rodeo just yet.” Her grandmother whooped as she flung open the closet door.
Chapter Four
Three days later, Hope retrieved a deposit bag from beneath the counter of Compton Pass Pharmacy. She’d picked up extra shifts to help distract her from the drama at the hospital, where Uncle Sawyer had made sure John, Damon and the rest of the gang were no longer welcome. Everyone kept asking her why. It got tiring. All she wanted was her quaint hometown store where customers appreciated her warm, efficient service and the medicine she doled out.
Worry about the impending Sunday dinner, plus some pesky nightmares, had kept her up late almost every night. So she had to concentrate as she filled out the paperwork clipped to the bills she tucked into the maroon pouch. A half dozen people had actually used cash for their transactions today. Compton Pass really was antiquated sometimes.
A strip of leather with ancient sleigh bells stitched to it clanked against the glass door, the tinkle dulled by years of corrosion. Hope braced herself then glanced up from where she closed out the register. A sigh of relief escaped before she could stop it.
“Don’t say it,” her little brother, Austin, warned. Her younger cousins—Doug, Bryant and James, the Compass Boys, they liked to call themselves—filed into the retail side of the store. The pharmacist had rolled down the gate and locked up the drugs before racing off to his grandson’s basketball game.
Normally being alone while closing the store didn’t bother her. But Monday’s disaster still had her on edge.
The Compass Boys’ bikes leaned against a sign on the sidewalk outside. Though James was old enough to drive, they preferred to ride most everywhere, with horses on the ranch and those ten-speeds in town. They may have been teenagers, but she could easily imagine them growing up to be like her dad and uncles. Already they stuck together and ruled their world. “Maybe we just happened to be over this way when you were getting off.”
“I can take care of myself, guys.” She barely resisted dusting her fingers across the fading bruise on her cheekbone. The lie pinched a little. If it hadn’t been for Wyatt, Clayton and Boone…
“Sure you can.” Austin flipped the sign on the door to Closed just as someone appeared over his shoulder. Two cowboys, it looked like, though she couldn’t detect more than their hats and loose swagger clearly through the tinting on the plate glass that protected the store from the blazing summer sun, which cut through the unpolluted Wyoming air.
Things might be less than modern in her hometown, but she found that refreshing. Unlike the smog-filled canyons she’d seen on TV.
Hope tried to wave to the would-be customers. A little inconvenience was nothing if they needed help. In the rural area, they still didn’t have all-night establishments. For that matter, not much opened on the weekends either. If it was critical, they’d have to go to the emergency room or do without until Monday morning. Or after work, as most folks couldn’t stop in before quitting time. She didn’t want anyone to suffer needlessly.
“James, go see who that is and what they need.” A tilt of her chin in the direction of the receding shadows tipped off the young man. “Hurry before they get back in their truck.”
When he ducked out, she wondered if she should have sent him alone. After all, the absolute lack of contact from John had her looking over her shoulder as much as her male relatives if she were honest. Why hadn’t he bothered to call? Apologize? Offer some explanation for his temporary insanity? Check on her? Anything to prove she hadn’t made a colossal error in judgment for the past half year running.
James returned, panting as though he’d had to jog to catch up to the quick-moving pair. “Don’t worry, it was just Wy and Clay.”
This time her heart did pound triple time.
And not in fear.
“What did they need?” She chewed the inside of her lip. Damn, she should have popped out there herself. Resisting a detour past their cabin on her way home each night had been nearly impossible. She’d even found a few reasons to visit Jade in the stable. The partners hadn’t been around the couple times she stopped in. What if they didn’t want to see her? It wasn’t her usual day to work. Maybe they hadn’t expected her to be here?
“Dunno.” He shrugged. “They said they wouldn’t hold you up and that they were fine. Glad we were here to look after you.”
All of the boys’ chests puffed out at that. If the two ranch hands trusted them to protect her, they must be doing something right. Wyatt especially wasn’t known for taking shit from anyone. He was one of the lead hands. He had supervisory duties along with the day-to-day stuff. Men respected him. Leads didn’t last long otherwise.
Had they been checking up on her? Were they worried about retaliation from the guys at the bar? Jade swore they’d asked about Hope and her recovery first thing every morning at the barn this week. Knowing they cared even that much warmed her heart and a few other places too. Plus it made her feel better about her inquisition aimed at Jade each evening. When Sienna had mentioned that Wy and Clay had stopped by the Compass Girl cottage Tuesday afternoon, she’d nearly shrieked at her cousin for not waking her.
Unfortunately for her, all parties involved had agreed she looked like she needed the rest.
None of them had realized her insomnia had more to do with steamy dreams of the pair of cowboys retreating into the sunset without her than with fear or recovery from her thankfully minor injuries.
Were they passing each other in endless near misses on purpose? Or did they want to be chased?
She’d find out soon enough. No one turned down one of Vivi’s seats at dinner. The tradition in the main ranch house was an honor, plus the food made a damn fine reward in and of itself.
Two more days.
“You okay, Hope?” Doug, the youngest of the bunch, tapped her elbow.
“Fine. Just tired.” She scooped up her purse, the ke
ys to the truck and the deposit. “You guys riding home with me? I’ll need to stop by the bank on the way.”
“Sure,” Bryant said. He held the door while Austin and James began loading bikes in the back of her hand-me-down, extended-cab pickup. “Plus we can get some candy from Dever’s next door while we’re waiting.”
“Better not ruin your appetite.” Hope felt old when she chastised them.
“Have you seen that kid eat?” James chimed in. “I don’t think that’s going to be a problem.”
“I wouldn’t talk, asshat.” Doug loved to curse. Maybe because he was the littlest. “You eat almost as much as Daniel.”
Their discussion unraveled into a playful debate filled with insults and a few light punches. Everything seemed normal, yet not. Hope was glad they occupied the silence while she thought of Wyatt and Clayton and every possible reason they might have come to the store, then left without so much as a hello.
Waiting until Sunday to get the answer might prove impossible.
Saturday afternoon rolled around and Hope was still wondering about the pair of cowboys and their motives. She blinked as she realized her daydream of Clayton and Wyatt showing up on her doorstep wasn’t quite as ephemeral as she’d imagined. Hell no, one of them was really here. At her house.
Even after she blinked and scrubbed her eyes, the sexy man approaching didn’t disappear. Half of her fantasy climbed the porch stairs. She overlooked the whitewashed decking from her window seat, where she curled up with her e-reader and stared blankly, distracted from her favorite romance novel.
She hadn’t gotten past the first chapter before she’d superimposed herself and her heroes on the characters inside. Too bad the traditional story didn’t conform to her desires.
Without rushing, she took the chance to study the leaner, taller of the two cowboys who’d starred in every dirty thought she’d had since the attack nearly a week ago. And boy, had there been a lot of those. Because reality was, she’d meant what she’d said to John. About craving a ménage. Except now she knew who she wanted to have that chance with—Wyatt and Clayton, who knocked at her door with his long fingers curled into a fist that reminded her of his strength.
His affable nature only went so deep behind his soft brown eyes and the dimples at the edges of his quick, broad smile. In a once-was-white sleeveless tank partially tucked into tattered jeans, she got the feeling he’d left home suddenly. A leather cord around his neck kept an arrowhead pendant close to his heart.
Did he always wear that beneath his outer shirt? The raw materials complimented his tan skin and the earthy quality he had. Grounded, natural and easy to get along with—at least according to his peers.
Yes, she craved him. Along with his best friend. Speaking of… Where was Wyatt? They rarely ventured out solo. Or so she’d been told by the people she’d interrogated while she nosed around this past week.
His brusque raps shattered her stud-watching session and launched her from her perch. Thankful the rest of the Compass Girls had gone into town for a movie and dinner at the new BBQ joint, she dashed for the entryway. At the last possible instant, she fluffed her hair in her simple ponytail then smoothed the wrinkles from her yoga pants and T-shirt before opening the door.
“Hi, Clayton.” A smile covered the nervous tremble of her lip. At least, she prayed it did. “How are you?”
“Me? I’m fine.” He whipped his hat off and scrubbed his other hand through his too-long hair. “I’m so glad you’re here…”
“What’s wrong?” The heat of his hand warmed her palm, though she hadn’t realized she’d reached out. All her frivolous thoughts fled as soon as she noted the worry lines creasing his forehead and the tightness at the corner of his eyes.
“I hate to ask, but I need a favor.” A light squeeze on her fingers made her eager to promise the world. If only he wouldn’t let go. The connection that had blazed through her when he’d scooped her to his chest that night still burned bright. For her at least. It hadn’t been an artifact of her gratefulness. Genuine attraction tugged them together.
One worry crossed off her list.
“I’d say I owe you a good turn. Or six.” The silhouettes of the brutes that had surrounded her materialized in her mind. “Tell me. How can I help you?”
Hope mentally slapped her forehead. She sounded like a girl in one of the porno recordings Daniel had snuck onto their digital projector and Sterling had refused to delete.
Still, he didn’t resist when she towed him across the threshold, suddenly imagining repayment in the form of a killer blowjob. Well, okay, he’d have to teach her how to suck him. But she was a good learner. Jade had assured her no guy would turn one down and that they all would appreciate that form of repayment, sloppy or not.
Mind! Stop that!
“Hope?” His head tilted as he evaluated her flushing cheeks.
“Uh, yeah.” She cleared her throat. “Sorry. What did you say?”
“It’s Wyatt. He’s sick.” Clayton paced on the plank flooring of the informal foyer. “Do you think you could come take a look?”
“I’m not a doctor.” All thoughts of seducing the young ranch hand flew from her mind. Clay wouldn’t be here if it they were talking about a case of the sniffles. These guys were strong. Most of the men on the farm were. “But I’ve gone with my mom on her rounds forever and I took a lot of classes for my degree. What symptoms does he have?”
“Uh…” Clayton hesitated. His glance at the tracks his muddy boots left behind struck her.
“If you want me to help, you can’t bullshit me.” She wondered why she seemed to lose all her inhibitions around him. Her cousins would have gasped to hear her curse.
“Right.” A groan fell from his mouth. Usually curled upward, the flat line of his lips seemed especially grim. “Wy’s going to kill me. But he’s burning up. Sweating, chills, his color is messed up. He’s having weird dreams. He can’t stomach food and…”
Hope ran through a plethora of potential diagnoses until he dropped in the last piece of the puzzle.
“His hand is twice its normal size. It looks like a goddamned grapefruit on the end of his arm. It’s hot to the touch and a nasty shade of gray.” His gorgeous eyes seemed sad when he met her gaze for the first time.
“The same hand he mangled on those jerks’ faces?” She winced. As if there was any other answer.
“Yeah.” Clayton clenched his jaw. “He let Doc Anderson take a peek a couple days ago. He prescribed an antibiotic, but we haven’t had time to get into town before—”
“Fuck!” She clapped her hands over her gaping mouth.
“Someday that’s going to be funny.” Clayton winced.
“Why didn’t you guys come in that day? James told you I’d reopen the register! Hell, I’d have given the medicine to you for free. You could have started a tab and caught up with Mr. Murphy later.” She trembled with shame, regret and fury. Dumbasses!
“Wy didn’t like the idea. He didn’t want you to feel guilty.” Clay sighed. “He’s going to be pissed I’m even here, but…”
“This is nothing to mess around with. He could lose the hand if the infection spreads. Hell, it could kill him. What prescription did Doc write?” She curled her fingers around as much of Clay’s wrist as she could and dragged him upstairs toward her bedroom despite his protests about his dirty shoes.
Doc served as the ranch vet, though he had originally been a physician in the messed-up world outside their slice of heaven in Wyoming. When he’d had enough, he’d moved here and changed his course, preferring to spend his time with animals instead of men, though he’d kept up on his previous trade, just in case.
Right now she could understand. Humans were cruel, and stupid. All of them. The male variety especially.
“Will he be okay?” Clayton asked softly.
Maybe this one was different.
“We’ll do our best. Think, Clay. What was on the paper Doc gave Wyatt?” She jogged into the bathroom she shared w
ith Sterling, then dug for the pills leftover from when her cousin had recently had her wisdom teeth lasered out. Another hardheaded Compton, Jade had refused to heed the warnings on the bottle and had quit taking her medicine when she’d determined it was safe instead of abiding the directions to continue the full course. Said she didn’t want to risk her birth control pills malfunctioning.
Hope rolled her eyes. God save her from obstinate friends.
“I couldn’t make it out,” he growled. “Damn it!”
“It’s all right.” She clasped the amber plastic cylinder in her hand before turning toward Clay. The raw worry in his expression hit her in the gut. A few steps closed the gap between them. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she laid her cheek on his chest long enough to measure the galloping of his heart. The cool stone of his necklace pressed between them. Its chill heated rapidly. “This isn’t going to be strong enough to combat an advanced infection, but it’ll do to start. Let’s get it to him, help him relax, get as comfortable as possible then we’ll see where to go from there. Okay?”
“Thank you.” Clay threw his arms around her. He crushed her to his long body, burying his nose in her hair. “You don’t understand how much this means. This isn’t how things go between us. Wy takes care of me. I’ve known him forever and I can’t recall him ever being sick.”
“Unless there was a lot of alcohol involved, huh?” Hope attempted to lighten the mood.
“Wy doesn’t drink.” Clay separated them and shifted toward the door. Intermission over. She threw alcohol, bandages, antibiotic cream and a few other goodies into a toiletry bag. They raced down the stairs and out to his truck as he filled her in. “Even before he cut himself off entirely, it was never to excess. He refuses to get out of hand—lose control.”
Interesting. She filed that nugget away for later. Maybe Jade would know more about Wy’s dry mandate. They bounced across the rough patches of gravel paving the ranch road as they headed toward the cabins housing pairs or trios of cowboys.
