When that didn’t help, Justin paused, took her hand in his. “It would mean a lot to me if you would go with me,” he said quietly.
Put that way, how could she refuse?
Chapter Nine
Maybe she should have refused, Amanda thought an hour later as Justin drove toward his family’s ranch in southeast Laramie County.
He sent her a teasing sidelong glance. “You can’t be nervous.”
Amanda reminded herself she had already met Justin’s dad, and Wade McCabe had been very nice to her. “Should I be?”
He considered this as if it were a matter of great complexity. “Hmm.”
“You’re not helping!”
Justin chuckled. He drove past the gates of the ranch between the vehicles parked on the sides of the long, winding drive. He cut the ignition and turned to her, a devilish smile on his face. “Let’s put it this way. McCabes stick together. So meeting them for the first time as a potential...ah...significant new person...can be a little like running the gauntlet.”
Amanda rolled her eyes. “Now you’re making me feel relaxed.” And what was a significant new person by the way? Was that like a girlfriend? A special friend? Also known as a friend with benefits?
Mistaking the reason behind her unease, Justin reminded her, “Your granddad put me through the third degree.”
Amanda pinched the bridge of her nose and briefly closed her eyes. She couldn’t help but think everyone was jumping to conclusions a bit. It wasn’t as if she and Justin had done anything more than spend one night together. They hadn’t actually started dating. They hadn’t made love again, although he had kissed her again. And now that they were working together, she wasn’t sure they ever would take it any further. Especially since his relationship with the woman he had previously worked with hadn’t ended all that well.
Aware he was waiting for her reaction, Amanda sighed. “Sorry about that.”
“I’m not.” Justin unlatched his safety belt, grabbed the present he had tucked behind the seat and came around to help her out of her side, as if it were a date. Or maybe he was just being polite, since he had obviously been raised as a true Texas gentleman. “It just means your granddad cares.”
As they approached the big, beautiful ranch house, her heart was pounding. She swallowed and struggled against her nerves. Justin had told her not to bring a present; he’d said the one he’d gotten would be from them both, but was that the correct thing to do?
On the other hand, how could she have brought an appropriate present for a woman she had never met? A lady wildcatter, no less?
Amanda forced herself to relax. “So you’re saying your family will be every bit as ‘curious’ about me as my granddad was about you,” she said finally.
Justin slid a hand beneath her elbow. “In their own way, yeah.”
She leaned into his comforting touch, inhaling the brisk masculine scent of him. “What is their own way?” she asked, savoring the leather and sandalwood fragrance of his cologne.
Justin paused, then backed her over to the shade of a nearby tree. From the rear of the house, they could hear the sounds of voices, laughter and live music. “My mom and dad are both very outspoken when it comes to their opinions. But they are also very kind and respectful of others.”
“That’s good to know.”
He gave her arm a comforting squeeze. “It’s going to be okay. You’ll see.”
Moments later they were moving through the elegant, comfortable interior of the home, depositing the gift on the table with dozens of others and moving back through the kitchen, where a catering staff was busy. There, in the center of activity, was the “birthday gal” who looked about as far from the 60 sparkling on her jaunty crown as could be. Justin’s mother was several inches shorter than the six-foot-tall Amanda. She was also lithe, dark-haired, bursting with energy and every bit as attractive as her husband and sons.
Justin encompassed her in a hug. “Happy birthday, Mom.”
“Thank you. It’s so wonderful to have you all here today.” She embraced him again before stepping back. Extending her delicate hands to Amanda, she said, “I’m Josie.”
“Amanda Johnson.”
“The lovely carpenter everyone’s been talking about.” Looking absolutely delighted to have her there, Josie squeezed Amanda’s hands warmly. “So, are you here as Justin’s date?”
“No,” she said, at the same time Justin said, “Yes.”
Josie laughed. “Well, that answers my question!”
“We’re friends,” Amanda insisted, her face as hot as a prairie fire.
Josie’s smile broadened. “Always a good start to any relationship.” She plucked champagne flutes off a passing tray, handed one to each of them and clinked glass with theirs. “And exactly what I want for my birthday, too!”
Obviously knowing where this was going, Justin attempted to head Josie off. “I—we—brought a present, Mom.”
“Yes, but you know what I want. What I always want,” Josie teased.
Amanda waited to be illuminated.
Justin merely chuckled and shook his head.
“More grandkids, more weddings and more happily-ever-afters,” Justin’s dad cut in, as he came up to join them.
Amanda’s face grew even hotter, but she kept her smile pasted in place.
“So you think about that tonight,” Josie said, going on tiptoe to kiss her son’s cheek. “Because I want all my sons to be as happy as their dad and I are.”
“And speaking of our other sons...” Wade said with a broad smile, appearing to want the same thing as his wife. “The rest of your brothers are out back, waiting to say hello to you and Amanda.”
Justin took Amanda’s hand. “Then we won’t disappoint. See you later, Mom and Dad.”
Amanda and Justin moved off. It was all Amanda could do not to moan in dismay. “Your mom doesn’t mince words, does she?”
Justin heaved a sigh. “Her heart wants what it wants. Which is all of her sons happily married with families of their own.”
“How many have done that so far?”
“Two.”
The back lawn was filled with people. White-coated chefs stood over commercial-sized grills. The air was scented with fragrant mesquite wood and barbecued beef and chicken.
His hand on her spine, Justin led her through the crowd, introducing her to guests and extended family. Finally, they found Justin’s brother Colt. The sheriff’s deputy had a lovely wife and a three-year-old son. An ancient Bernese mountain dog was by the child’s side. The sight filled Amanda with an unexpected wish for a child of her own. Justin’s child...
Next up was Justin’s brother Rand—a big, strapping, macho-looking guy. Justin hugged his brother, who appeared to be there without a date. “Heard Mom’s ticked off at you again.”
“Yeah, well.” Rand waved a hand. “What can you expect when you put a devoted environmentalist and a lady wildcatter in the same space?”
Derek, a venture capitalist based in Dallas, was as well-dressed as you might expect. He had an infant daughter cradled in his arms.
Justin’s oldest brother Grady, a Fort Worth real estate developer, and his wife, Alexis, were supervising their little girl and several other small children on the backyard play set. Grady smiled at Amanda. “Colt said you’re going to be starting a carpentry program at the boys ranch.”
Amanda nodded. Here’s where it could get tricky. “I am,” she said, content to leave it at that.
Justin slid his arm around her waist, the proprietary nature of the gesture unmistakable. “She’s also been named ranch director,” he announced casually.
Grady turned back to Justin with a quizzical frown, clearly shocked. “Isn’t that the job you were angling for?”
* * *
WORD OF AMANDA’S appointment spread like wildfire, and though Justin’s parents offered their congratulations, Amanda could see that Josie had reservations about the unexpected turn of events. She wasn’t surprised to see Justin and his mother take a moment alone a little later in the evening. He returned to her side ten minutes later, his expression tense. “Everything okay?” Amanda asked.
Justin merely looked at her. “Want to get out of here?”
“Won’t your mom object?”
His lips tightened. “She’ll know why we left.”
They walked down the driveway. “Why do I have the feeling this has something to do with me?” Amanda asked uneasily.
Justin fished his keys from his pocket. “It doesn’t.”
“The director’s job, then,” Amanda persisted.
Hurt simmered just beneath the surface of Justin’s expression. He opened the passenger door for her then propped one arm along the edge and rested his head against his taut biceps. His eyes searched hers. “Our family has a cabin cruiser out at the lake, if you want to go....”
Sensing he really needed to get away, Amanda replied, “Lake Laramie it is.”
After ten o’clock, the area around the boat slips was peaceful, with only the occasional pocket of activity. Out on the lake, however, you could see boats here and there, their safety lights blinking.
Justin helped her onto the deck, undid the ropes and climbed aboard. Minutes later, they were cruising across the lake, the stars and half-moon nestled in the black-velvet sky, the warmth of a Texas summer night surrounding them. Justin drove the cabin cruiser until he found a deserted cove, well away from other boats. He cut the engine and dropped anchor, but left a few lights on deck, for safety, as well as the soft lights in the cabin below. For a while, they sat there in the semidarkness, accompanied only by the soft lapping of the water against the boat, the hum of cicadas on shore. The quiet was a blessing after the hubbub of the party.
Eventually, Justin went below and came back with a couple of long-necked beers. “You know, you don’t have to talk about whatever-this-is if you don’t want to,” Amanda said.
He twisted off both caps. “I want you to hear it from me, not someone else.”
This did not sound good.
He sighed, settling beside her on the bench seat next to the rail. “And if I don’t tell you, you will hear it elsewhere.”
Amanda took a sip of the cold, delicious beer. “Okay.”
He opened up his wallet, removed a worn photo and handed it to her. It was a young kid with dark hair, olive skin and hauntingly-old-for-his-age eyes. The eyes of a person who had seen and experienced too much. “Who is this?”
Justin swallowed. “Billy Scalia. A kid I was trying to help back in Fort Worth, when I worked at the nonprofit there.”
Their fingers brushed as Amanda returned the photo. “I take it the story did not have a good ending.”
He ducked his head. “He died.”
The pain and unjustness of that seemed to transfer from Justin to her. “Oh, Justin...” Amanda touched his arm.
Justin caught her hand and pressed it flat against his chest. “His older brother was in a gang and had gone to jail. Billy’s mother was desperate to keep the same thing from happening to Billy, so she enrolled him in our after-school program. I was put in charge of coordinating services for him. I got him a grief counselor and a tutor, and signed him up for all sorts of sports and activities, anything to keep him busy and off the streets...out of that gang.”
The heat of his body seeped into her palm. “But it didn’t work,” she guessed.
Frown lines bracketed Justin’s sensual lips. “His brother’s gang kept coming for Billy, wanting him to join. The peer pressure in that neighborhood is huge. His mother knew Billy wouldn’t make it if he stayed, and she couldn’t afford to get out on her own. I was working on a solution for both of them. She was even willing to put Billy in foster care for a while, if that kept him safe.”
“But Billy didn’t want that.”
Justin let her go. He picked up his beer again, took another sip. “He didn’t want to leave his mom, because then he felt the gang would blame her, and she wouldn’t be safe.” Justin stared out at the water. “Before I could get things worked out, the peer pressure got too much. Billy joined the gang on behalf of his brother and died during the initiation robbing a liquor store.”
“I’m so sorry, Justin....” Amanda’s eyes filled with tears.
He turned back to her, mouth grim. “That’s why I left the nonprofit and decided to start the ranch, because I knew there were a lot of kids out there, some with parents who cared, some without, all needing a safe, quiet place to go, out of the inner cities. I wanted kids who lack the kind of positive nurturing background I grew up with to have that type of love and support in a residential setting.”
Admiring his inherent gallantry more than ever, Amanda vowed, “And the Laramie Boys Ranch will be that.”
Justin nodded in determination.
Knowing what he’d just told her was somehow connected to whatever words had been exchanged between Justin and his mother back at the ranch, Amanda guessed, “Your mother liked the idea of the ranch.” How could she not? “But she thinks you should be director. Not me.”
Justin squinted. “It’s worse than that.”
Amanda traced the condensation on the bottle with her fingertip. “Tell me.”
Another grimace. “She thinks, deep down, I’m afraid of failing another kid. That I let the director position go deliberately, and didn’t fight for it as hard as I could have, because I’m already getting ready to quit the ranch—the way I quit the nonprofit and the big accounting company before that.”
Wow. “Are you?”
Justin drained his beer and set it aside with a decisive thud. “No. The ranch is where I’m meant to be, Amanda.” He paused, letting his words sink in, then stood and walked toward her. “I may not have the exact right background for it, but I’m a fast learner, and I’m going to do whatever it takes to make it a success.”
“Even if that means ceding the director position to me.”
He was only inches away, leaning over her. He met her gaze, his good humor returning. “That’s not the sacrifice you may think it to be.”
His sexy rumble sent a thrill soaring through her. “Really? How come?”
He smiled when she defiantly angled her chin and gazed into her eyes. “Because having you as my boss means I get to see you every day...and every night.”
Amanda sucked in a breath. “And that’s a plus?”
He sifted both hands through her hair, came nearer still. “Oh, yeah...”
His kiss spiked her pulse sky-high and weakened her knees. Amanda swayed against him, another thrill soaring through her. “If I thought it was just the sex...” she moaned between kisses.
“It’s not.” Justin deepened the angle and the sweetness of the caress and kissed her more passionately. “You know it’s not....”
Amanda was beginning to see that.
Beginning to want to let herself go. Loving the way he challenged her, the way he wasn’t afraid to take passion to the limit, Amanda slid her arms around his neck, pressed her body full against him and locked her mouth on his in a slow, sexy kiss that soon had both their hearts pounding. She felt the sandpapery rub of his beard and savored the exciting masculine taste of his mouth, the tantalizing tangle of his tongue with hers.
He made her feel so wanted. Needed. He was so big and strong, so unbelievably tender and patient in his pursuit of her. So good at getting her to live each moment to its fullest. To know that all that was wonderful was yet to come.
They descended the steps to the cabin and made their way to the double bed against the wall. He clasped her to him and she could feel the hard evidence of his desire.
The heat. He kissed her so thoroughly it stole her breath. His hands slid beneath the hem of her blouse to caress her bare midriff. Sensation swept through her. Buttons were dispensed with one by one. On her shirt. Then his. “I want you,” he whispered.
“And I want you,” she gasped, her nipples budding beneath her bra. Lower still, dampness pooled.
And still he took his time relieving her of her skirt, her shoes. When she was clad only in a bra and bikini panties, he brought her to him. The air between them reverberated with excitement as he took in the swelling curves of her breasts spilling out of the lace, the jutting nipples visible beneath the thin fabric.
She spread her hands across his naked chest, exploring the silken skin and smooth muscle. The hardness and heat of his pecs. The width of his shoulders, his taut biceps. She nipped at his throat. “If we were to have a beauty contest, it’s hard to tell who would win.” She smiled against his skin.
He kissed the sensitive spot behind her ear. “You think?”
She let her gaze drop lower still, to the fullness hidden beneath faded denim. Her fingers eased beneath the waist of his jeans, finding his hot, hard length. “I do...” she observed playfully as her libido roared. “I’ve never seen a man with such an amazing physique.” She kissed his chin, the underside of his jaw, his cheek. “And that face...” So ruggedly handsome. So male. So perfect in every way from the brilliant blue eyes to his rumpled chestnut hair.
He chuckled softly at the enticing ministrations of her hand, catching her lips with his in a long, sensual kiss. “That,” he said as he unclasped her bra and eased it off, “is a compliment that can go both ways, woman of my dreams...”
With a wicked grin, he dropped the lacy garment to the floor and bent her backward over his arm. Tenderly, he kissed the slopes and valleys before settling on the exquisitely sensitized tips. Pleasure filled her with hot, mesmerizing waves. The last of her inhibitions fled. Wanting only to be his, she shuddered and let out a whimper of need.
Together, they shucked off his jeans and briefs. Her panties followed. Still kissing, they stretched out on the bed. At first facing each other. Then with Amanda on top, astride him. Hands on his shoulders, she kept him right where she wanted him, tempting him with kisses and caresses until he was as desperate to have her as she was to have him.
The Long, Hot Texas Summer Page 13
