by Em Petrova
Easton laughed. “I’m happy for you, brother.”
“What about you? Anything from the bartender you’ve been schmoozing all these months?” Ford cocked a brow.
Easton shook his head. “That’s over with. Had a taste, wasn’t to my likin’. Anyway, let’s get this started.” He walked away from Ford and into the middle of the group. Kids leaped at him, begging for him to swing them or throw them up in the air and for a few blessed minutes he was able to forget about his troubles.
On the outer fringe of the group of Daltons, Susannah stood with a woman Easton didn’t recognize, though something about the strawberry blonde tint to her hair had his fuses trying to fire. But he couldn’t quite reach into his memory and pluck out the name.
Soon the tractor rolled up with the wagon and Uncle Ted waved for his sons to gather the bales they’d use to stack and create the maze. Easton was sucked into hard work, and damn, it felt good. The evening sun was slanting its way down the sky, offering a bit cooler temperatures, but sweat still rolled down his spine to wet his plaid shirt.
With a bale in each hand, Easton went wherever the women directed. Usually with a little kid running alongside him firing questions at him.
“When did you get tall, Cousin Easton?”
“About sixteen.”
“Will I be as tall as you?”
“Lookin’ at your daddy, I’d say yeah.”
After stacking those bales, he headed back to grab more. They worked from the inside out and Uncle Ted moved the wagon accordingly. With all hands on deck, they’d make short work of it. Then night would come and Easton would be left alone with his thoughts again. At least he’d be able to sit in the yard and watch fireflies.
“Cousin Easton, do you really eat like that all the time?”
He looked down at the little dark-haired boy who belonged to Hank and chuckled. “Sometimes but it’s not polite and you shouldn’t do it around girls.”
“My sister ain’t a girl. She’s just stupid.”
“Now that isn’t nice, and you love your sister. Who else would help with your worm farm? Now run ahead and ask Cousin Susannah where the next row starts.”
The little cowboy boots kicked up as the child ran on. When Easton reached Susannah, a high shriek raised the hair all over his body. He whipped around. Men started running toward the sound.
When Easton reached one branch of the maze, he skidded to a stop to see the pretty strawberry blonde hunched over as if in pain.
He ran up to her. “You all right? What’s wrong?”
She was shaking, the short, loose waves of her hair trembling around her throat where her pulse raced.
Easton reached for her, and she snapped upright to stare at him. A furious red flush crawled over her face and she jerked her gaze away. “I’m fine—it’s the newt that’s not!”
He stared at her eyes, vivid sea green in the redness of her face. “Newt?”
She raised a hand and dashed away a tear from the corner of her eye. “Yes, it was killed, see? This is a breeding ground for the black-spotted newt. They’re threatened, and we’ll only smash them underfoot as people trample through the maze!” She looked up into his eyes. “We can’t lay the maze here. We have to move it.”
* * * * *
First Lilah had spotted one of the most threatened species in Texas, the black-spotted newt. And then she’d spotted the boy who’d threatened her heart. Not to mention her sanity after he’d given her the nickname of Lizard Lilah back when she was ten years old.
Easton Dalton.
She hadn’t set eyes on him since she was in the eleventh grade, when she’d melted into the pew in church to avoid him seeing her. If he’d been dashing then, he was damn fine now.
No—dayummm fiiiine.
He was also looking at her like she was a crazy person. Maybe she was. Country girls didn’t scream over… well, anything.
She pointed at the ground to shift his attention off her. “See?”
He leaned over to peer at the place where she pointed. The little lizard clung to the grasses, trying to camouflage itself. Lilah’s heartstrings tugged.
She straightened, nearly knocking heads with Easton but he pulled back quickly before their foreheads collided.
Damn if her body wasn’t stirring at his nearness.
And the smell of his soap.
Not to mention those muscles.
She waved a hand at the hay bales. “We have to get these out of here as carefully as possible.
He continued to stare at her.
Oh for heaven’s sake… She was getting impatient with his staring act and wondered when he would just recognize her. When he’d last seen her, she’d been gawky with knobby elbows and knees and a full set of braces. Her brothers still argued she’d looked like a colt until eighteen, when she’d filled out.
“It makes sense the newts moved into this area now, after the fire. The burning increases the growth of grasses and reduces the woody plant growth. It’s the perfect habitat for the black-spotted newt now.”
His blue gaze drilled into her, and she turned away from that look. It was the same one that had stolen her heart back in the barn at ten years old, and judging from that thrum of excitement low in her belly, it still had the same effect on her.
Two other Daltons came around the wall built of bales and stopped when they saw her.
“Liz—” Cash stopped when Witt punched him in the arm. He cleared his throat. “Lilah. Was that you who screamed?”
Easton took two steps back, still looking at her like she was once again wearing that costume that had been both the high and low points of her childhood. “Holy shit. Lilah?”
She rolled her eyes and pointed at the bales. “This is a protected area as of now. We need these bales out of here and everybody needs to clear out. We have to find a new spot to place the maze.”
The three Daltons gaped at her.
“Oh for God’s sake, just move the bales! And be careful about it.”
Cash and Witt jumped to action, grabbing one in each hand and heading to the wagon.
“Watch where you put your boots down!” she called after them.
Easton continued to stand there. “Lilah, I can’t believe… I mean.”
“That a girl you nicknamed Lizard Lilah is all grown up? Well, get used to it because if you’re in Paradise Valley, we’ll be seeing a lot of each other.”
He blinked, and she noticed, not for the first time, the thick fringe of his lashes. Damn men always got the lush, beautiful lashes while women tinted, mascara’d and glued some on.
When he didn’t speak, just dropped his gaze over her body and then back to her face, irritation hit her. “I’m with Texas Rangeland Management. I was sent over here to follow up after the fire and make sure the land thrives and the cattle have what they need from the grasses that are growing back in the burn areas.”
That dark hair of his swooped over his forehead in the boyish way that made a girl want to push it back while gazing deep into his eyes.
But not this girl. She was long past those feelings.
And why wouldn’t he quit looking at her?
“Okay, if you won’t start carrying the bales away, there are plenty of guys who can.”
She strode out of the branch of the maze, careful where she was stepping, and located the group of Daltons clustered around something on the ground.
One of the children squealed.
“Look, Luke, it’s a cute little lizard,” Kade was saying to his son.
“Guys, we need a different site. I’m going out and start scoping the land. If you can load the bales back onto the truck and wait for the details, that’d be great.” Lilah took charge of the situation.
Her dear friend Susannah approached her with a crinkle between her brows. Since this was Susannah’s dream to build the maze, she was probably feeling some distress right now.
Lilah placed a hand on her arm. “We’ll find another site with good access to a road an
d your maze will still open on time. Just give me an hour, okay?”
“I trust you. Go do what you do best.” Susannah smiled, and the crinkle disappeared.
On impulse, Lilah leaned in to hug her friend. When she withdrew, she noted that heavy dark blue stare on her again. God, this was getting annoying. Was Easton planning to saddle her with another nickname? Newt Normal or something along those lines? She could only imagine what the jerk would come up with.
Not that she was holding grudges after all these years. She couldn’t care less what people thought of her. All that mattered was how she viewed herself, and she thought she was pretty damn awesome.
She left the group, headed for her truck. The older model had both windows down, and she reached inside to pop the door using the interior handle.
“Why’d you do that?”
She whirled. Just great—Easton had followed her.
“What?” she asked.
“Open the door that way.”
“The handle’s broken and it’s the only way in.”
He came over and toyed with the silver handle as if she was too thick in the head to figure out how to open a door. Irritation hit her in a strong wave, and she pushed him out of the way.
“I don’t have time for this.” She hopped behind the wheel and slammed the door in his face. Before she realized his intention, he’d circled the truck and jumped in beside her.
It was her turn to gape at him. “What are you doing?”
“I’ll help you find a good spot. I’m thinking up toward Hank’s house.”
“Uh-uh.” She shook her head and put the truck in drive, giving in to the fact she wasn’t shaking him off anytime soon. “We’ll run into the same situation. Hank’s land got the worst of the fire.” His house had burned in the back as well but they’d been able to save the structure and rebuild what they’d lost.
While they bounced out of the field onto the dirt road running through the ranch, she stared straight ahead.
Easton was staring at her.
She twisted to look at him. “Would you quit that?”
“I’m sorry, it’s just. I recognized the red in your hair earlier but couldn’t place you.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“Sorry, it’s been years since I’ve seen you. I didn’t know you went to school for rangeland management.”
“Yes, and you’re in the oil business.”
He shifted in his seat as if suddenly uncomfortable. “Yeah,” he said shortly.
She had an idea of a good site, so she drove straight to it. Nestled in between Cash and Witt’s land, the flat area was perfect for the special needs kids to navigate.
She stopped and cut the engine. “Now if the site isn’t a breeding habitat for the black-spotted newts or some other protected species, we’ll be ready to roll in a few minutes.”
She got out of the truck and heard Easton slam the door too. This was the weirdest day she could imagine. Never in a million years would she have believed she’d be riding around the Dalton’s ranch with Easton beside her let alone striding through the high grasses in search of a site for a maze with the man.
“I have to apologize for the way I’ve behaved the past few minutes,” he said.
“Isn’t it your normal way to stare at a woman until she feels like she has several extra arms? Oh wait, I did that night of the Halloween party. Maybe you’re looking for them?” She kept her eyes trained on the ground as she walked the area.
“I’m sorry about that as well. I’ve thought about it over the years and wished I could apologize.”
“Yeah? Well, you had plenty of chances. Hope you enjoyed your tray of cupcakes you won in the bet.”
“Actually, I ate so many they gave me the skids for two days.”
“Serves ya right.” She couldn’t stop the corner of her lips from tipping up though. They had just been kids. Even though Easton was older, boys didn’t mature until what—fifty? That meant he still had some years to go.
“Yeah, it did,” he said. “I’m most sorry for the nickname.”
“Well, lucky for me it only stuck to me until I graduated from high school.” She directed a short curl out of her eye and behind her ear. The move allowed her to see Easton from the corner of her eye. His big body, the way he moved with such sureness… She didn’t want to think on it too long or she’d be back to thinking about him in a nice way.
“I’m sorry, Lilah.”
She looked up and met his gaze. “My momma taught me to forgive and forget, so I’m doing both starting now.”
“Really?” A spark lit his blue eyes. So blue they rivaled the sky on the prettiest day of the year. Damn those Daltons and their blue eyes that stole the minds and hearts of so many girls in this county.
“Yeah, forget about it.” She stopped walking and looked around herself. “I think this is a good spot. Don’t you?”
He ducked his head in the trademark Dalton nod. Another thing that had women’s hearts pitter-pattering.
But not hers. Nope—she was done with that.
“Good. You stay here and I’ll go tell the others.” She strode to her truck, hoping to leave him behind, but he followed.
“You’re not shaking me that easy, Lilah. Now tell me about what you’ve been doing with yourself while we drive back to the others.” He got into the passenger’s seat and waited for her to start talking.
If it was one thing she hated, it was being put on the spot. Not only a sci-fi nerd but a science nerd, she’d spent most of her life having people look at her funny when she spoke about something she was passionate about. She hated being in the spotlight and a question like Easton’s had her scrambling for something to say.
“Well, I had a best-selling book out by the time I was nineteen. After that I decided I’d use some of the money to help kids in Africa and backpack the land myself just to see it firsthand. With the rest of the money, I was able to end world hunger and won the Nobel Peace Prize at twenty.”
“You know, you always had a good imagination, but it seems to have gotten better.” He shot her a sidelong look and a chuckle to go with it. Both heated her stomach more than she cared to admit.
“Fine, then I’ll give you the alternate version. Went to school, worked some crappy retail jobs till I graduated and then landed this job with the state managing the land.”
“And you still love lizards.”
She raised her chin a notch. “You making fun of me again, Dalton?”
“Not at all,” he drawled. “Just makin’ an observation.”
“That about sums up my life and now we have come to the end of our time together.” She stopped the truck where all the others were standing around waiting for directions.
She looked at Easton. “Nice seeing you again,” she said by way of goodbye.
* * * * *
It really was no wonder she was being sarcastic and short with him in turn. He deserved it. But he felt compelled to make it up to her somehow. That Halloween night hadn’t been his best moment, and he really had thought on it many times throughout his life.
And holy shit. Lizard Lilah had transformed from a skinny, awkward girl with teeth too big for her face to a beautiful—and sexy as hell—woman. She was taller, reaching his shoulder in height and the reddish hair he remembered as a bit too frizzy was tamed into glossy, soft curls framing her oval face. Creamy, flawless skin and a full mouth had him thinking thoughts far too dirty for a family occasion.
Not to mention her curves. She was still slender but had hips and breasts a man could love on all night long. And her ass…
His gaze kept returning to her round backside, thinking of closing his hands around those lush globes.
As he watched her walk across the clearing to speak to Susannah, he had to tear his gaze away from her twice and remind himself he was just coming off his emotional rollercoaster with Katie.
Except, was he really? It had all been one-sided, and sure the night with her had been awesome, but knowing
she wasn’t interested had dumped a load of ice over him and cooled him off pretty damn fast.
He almost chuckled as he remembered the tall tale Lilah had told him in the truck about writing best-selling books, backpacking Africa and winning the Nobel Peace Prize. She’d definitely shaken them all up with that scream as well. To think she’d been screaming in terror that a lizard smaller than his index finger would be killed.
She didn’t look his way as she headed back toward her truck. When she reached it, though, he had the door open and waiting for her.
“You really need to get this handle fixed,” he said.
Her sea green eyes narrowed as she shoved past him to get in. “One of my brothers can have a look.”
Certain she would drive away without him, he hustled to the passenger’s door and whipped it open just as the truck started rolling.
He leaped in and slammed the door when she gassed it.
“Good thing I’m used to mounting horses that don’t hold still. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you’re tryin’ to avoid me, Lilah.”
“Very astute of you. Look, why are you cozying up to me? I said I forgive you for being a mean jerk when we were kids. You don’t have to keep talking to me to make amends. We’re good.” She threw him a glance, and he fixated on the way her full lips pursed as she talked.
“What if I want to know more about backpacking in Africa?”
She laughed, a sound that seemed to surprise even her, if her wide eyes were any indication. “Closest I’ve come to that reality is a camping trip in the Davis Mountains.”
“It’s beautiful there.”
“It is. I went with Susannah, and I’m not sure she’s up for another trip that doesn’t involve bringing your brother along.”
“Maybe we could make a double date of it,” he blurted before he could check himself.
She grew silent, staring out over the steering wheel at the dirt road leading to the new site for the maze. Crap, he’d gone too far. He clearly hadn’t learned his lesson with Katie. He’d come on strong with her and look how that had ended.
