Rodeo Rancher

by Lauren Wood

  “I am not really going to call you Maggie. You are nice, cute face and all, but what I am looking for is a little different.”

  I could tell that it wasn’t what she wanted to hear and for a moment I worried that she was going to start crying. I couldn’t stand the sight of a woman that was upset, but I ignored the urge to comfort her and I just kind of ignored all of the thoughts that were running through my head.

  “Look, I had a great time last night Maggie.”

  She looked at me with a little hope that maybe I would change my mind. I didn’t want to though and even though everything I said about her was true, the fact of the matter was that I knew at the end of the day I would never see her again. If I did, it would be a random run-in and it would be awkward.

  “Do you want me to take you home?”

  Maggie wasn’t ready for the switch of conversations and she just stared at me blankly with her blue eyes. Would it have been different if they were twinkling green like Carol’s? I could still see them in my mind’s eye and I knew that if she would have looked more like Carol, maybe I would have been willing to call her back and to have something more to do with her. But she wasn’t and I didn’t feel any obligation to her.

  “No, I think that I have taken up enough of your time.”

  I didn’t blame her for being mad and I waited for her to leave before I took a deep breath. I needed to get dressed and go down to see Carlos. He had promised me a job. It wasn’t the money that I needed, but time away from the city and everything about it. I just needed a change. I wasn’t sure for how long, but anything to get me out of here was going to be great. I had to get out of here before I drove myself crazy.

  ***

  “So what do you have for me?”

  “I need you to take a road trip for me, take a car down south.”

  My ears perked up with the direction, but I tried my best to not let out anymore emotions. He was sick of hearing about Carol too.

  “Okay. So what is the car for?”

  “I am selling it.”

  “Anything extra that I should know about that needs to be delivered?”

  Carlos shrugged and nodded his head. “You know we might as well make a trip of it, right?”

  I shook my head and agreed. I had a feeling that it was all about the extra cargo and not the car at all. That meant that there was no telling what kind of car it was going to be. My luck it would be some beater that I would have to drive at night because it wasn’t even road worthy. It wouldn’t be the first time that I had to hump a stash in a trashy car. They thought that it made it look less conspicuous, I always thought that it just made it harder to get there on time.

  “I got it Carlos. Just tell me where and I will leave today.”

  “That ready to go huh?”

  I told him that I was ready to get out of Chicago for a while. I was sick of the same sights and I needed something new to get my mind off of everything. Anywhere but here would be good right now.

  “I haven’t even told you where you are going yet.”

  “It doesn’t matter. I need to get out of here, so anywhere is good.”

  Carlos cocked his head to one side, trying to figure out my dilemma. I wasn’t going to say anything, Craig was the exception and the drinking hadn’t helped when it came to loosening my lips. Carlos was different. He was my boss and I didn’t want to look weak in front of him.

  “I think you are going to like this place that I am sending you to David.”

  He was messing with me, dangling something in my face and I wasn’t sure what it was. What did he have that was so good to give him a grin like that?

  “I need you to go down to New Orleans David. Do you think that you can handle it?”

  I wasn’t sure that I heard him right, but I was definitely ready to take that road trip. I wouldn’t have to call a number that never got answered anymore. I was more than determined to find Carol while I was down there and I had a feeling that was why Carlos had me going. He must have known that she was from there. I may have mentioned it a time or two, that or Joel was running his mouth to him about it.

  “Sounds like a plan Carlos. I will get a bag together and I will leave in a little while.”

  He grinned at me and I tried to ignore it, but it was impossible to. What in the world was he thinking?

  “What?”

  “Nothing, I just thought that you would be a little more excited about going there, that’s all. I mean, isn’t it where that chick is from that you never shut up about?”

  He was playing dumb, but he knew. They all knew. When a guy like me started turning down tail, it was time to sit up and take notice.

  “Yeah that is where Carol lives.”

  “Well take your time coming back. I don’t need you for a while if you want to go and see the sights.”

  I knew what he meant and I thanked him without ever saying the words. He was giving me a gift and I was going to take it. I hadn’t had time off in a while to get away when everyone else was in the city. There was a first time for everything after all, but this was new to me.

  Leaving Carlos’ house, I was in a bit of a daze. Not sure what I was going to do about everything, I tried to imagine what Carol was going to say when she saw me. Would she remember me as much as I had remembered her? Would she even want to see me?

  I hoped so and if not, I still remembered her weakness and I was not above using it to my advantage.

  Chapter 3

  Carol

  “Why are you telling me this Cameron?”

  “Because I thought you would like to know that he was looking for you. Joel said he just got into town and there was only one name that he mentioned.”

  “I don’t know why.”

  My friend snorted at me and I was left to look down. I couldn’t meet her gaze. I wasn’t good at lying to her and this was one of the times that I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.

  “Come on Carol, I think half of the people at the wedding heard the two of you.”

  I could feel my face getting hot and it was impossible to look her in the eyes. “You don’t have to say it like that.”

  “Well then tell that to someone that doesn’t know what you two did. It was my wedding and I think I heard more about you and him getting it on, then I did about my dress. I had that flown in from Paris, but it is you two that I still get to hear about. Way to go with taking away all of my shine.”

  “You know that I didn’t mean to.”

  “Were you drunk?”

  I would have liked to have said that I was, but I had been far too sober to blame it on that. I had done it because David was everything that I wasn’t looking for. There was a reason that I had picked a man like him. It wouldn’t matter when he left. It did of course, something transpired between us, but the fact of the matter was that we were too different to ever be much of anything.

  “No, I wasn’t drunk. He had good game and it was hard to refuse him.”

  “Well you did something to him. He is asking for you and you know he is staying in one of the apartments? He is right around the corner from you.”

  It was not a conversation that I wanted to have. I didn’t want to see David. Things were going good now and I didn’t want to ruin it.

  “I have Steve now. He is good for me.”

  Cameron rolled her eyes. “He is not good for you. He is…. I don’t even know what he is, but I know that you are not happy.”

  “I am.”

  I didn’t sound very convincing and I didn’t blame her for not believing me. I didn’t even believe myself, though I tried to. Steve was the kind of guy that I was supposed to be with. He was the type of man that wanted to get married. We already talked about it, even though we had only been dating a couple of months. That was progress as far as I was concerned.

  “Just because it worked out for you, doesn’t mean that I need that kind of guy. Besides, Joel is different. He isn’t really a bad boy. He is softer than most of them. David is ju
st rough.”

  Cameron smiled and didn’t say anything for a time. “There is a difference when it comes to Joel. There is a sweetness that had taken me off guard. That is what I had fallen in love with. He looks good in leather too.”

  “Well David is no Joel.”

  “I met him for a few minutes, he seemed nice enough. You didn’t seem to be too bothered by him at the wedding.”

  I thought of what it was he had talked me into doing and while I was completely open to it, I wouldn’t have done it with a man like Steve. He would have never even thought to do something like that. He wouldn’t have gone along with it if I had wanted to. The two men were so different and part of me knew that was why I had picked Steve from work. He was quiet and polite, just the kind of man that I needed.

  “He is a mess, trust me. I am going to stay as far away from him as I can. How long is he supposed to be in town?”

  Cameron shrugged and told me that she didn’t know. He was supposed to be there doing work and I could just imagine what that actually meant. I hadn’t asked him at the wedding what he did because I knew I didn’t want to know the truth. Whatever it was, I am sure it was illegal.

  “Well don’t give him my number and make sure Joel doesn’t either. Do whatever voodoo it is that you do on him, but I don’t want to see him. He is nothing but bad news and I don’t want to ruin a good thing.”

  “Okay, I will, but do you really think that Steve is the one? You haven’t even had sex with him yet.”

  “That is not by my decision. He is the one that wants to wait. I think that is going to change though. If not, I am going to change it.”

  She giggled a little and I knew that she was thinking along the same lines that I was thinking. We had been dating long enough and if I had to go into full seduction mode, I was okay with that. All I knew for sure was that I didn’t want to wait anymore. The mere mention of David got me feeling a little hot and bothered. It also reminded me how long it had been since we were together. He was the last man I was with and it felt like that needed to change or it was going to mean something.

  “Well you go girl. It is about time. Here I was thinking that you really cared about him and that was the reason that you were turning into a nun.”

  “No, it is nothing like that. It is just a decision that I decided to make. I needed a break.”

  “It has been a drought for you Carol. I don’t know how you aren’t crawling out of your skin.”

  I didn’t mention that I was, instead I just gave her a noncommittal noise. I was crawling out of my skin. All I wanted was for Steve to really kiss me and touch me, but he always pulled away and got himself together. I was left in need, wondering if there was something wrong with me. It drove me absolutely crazy.

  “I’m fine. It is not that big of a deal. You stop thinking about it after a while.”

  “Uh huh.”

  Her face told me that I was full of shit and once again, I didn’t blame her. It did matter and bringing up David wasn’t helping anything at all.

  ***

  Getting home that evening, there was a part of me that wanted to call Caroline and get David’s number. I was sure that if I called her, I would get a hold of him and then I would feel better. He had known my body, manipulated it like it was his own and made me feel a way that I had never felt before. There was a strong possibility that I would never feel that way again and the idea of that bothered me.

  I didn’t call her though. I wasn’t supposed to want David. It was obvious that he wasn’t the one for me. I am sure he was just trying to get laid. He was in town and he thought that I was easy. That was all it was. Then why did I want to see him so badly, knowing exactly what he was and what he wanted from me? Why was I so tempted to know that he was close?

  I tried to ignore the thoughts of our time together. It was hot, hotter than I had ever experienced before and I couldn’t concentrate. I went to bed early that night and didn’t wake up thinking about him. I took that as a win and decided to continue in that manner for the rest of the day.

  Around noon my thoughts were drifting and instead of feeding into the need that my body liked to remind me of, instead I called Steve to see if he wanted to go out tonight. We usually went out on Fridays and Sundays, but I didn’t care what day it was. It was time for us to take the relationship to the next level. I had to get David out of my mind and I wasn’t afraid to use Steve to help me.

  “Hey Carol. I didn’t expect to hear from you. Are you off work early?”

  “No, I am hiding in the bathroom so I could talk to you.”

  “Classy.”

  “Yeah I know.”

  “So what is up?”

  “I just miss you Steve.”

  “I will see you on Friday.”

  “I know, I just, I don’t want to wait till Friday. I know that you work late through the week, but I was hoping that maybe you would make an exception and we could see each other tonight?” There was desperation in my voice that I knew was easy to hear. I couldn’t help it though. I was in dire need.

  There was a pause on the other side of the phone, but I didn’t really read into too much. I knew that he had a thing about going out during the week, but he was going to have to get over that. I needed him and he was going to have to get over the waiting thing too. If he wanted to be with me, I had needs as well and almost three months was long enough in my eyes.

  “Okay Carol, if you can’t wait. Do you want to go get something for dinner when I get off?”

  “Why don’t I make you something and you can come over here?”

  Another hesitation before he agreed. I had to wonder what it was that he had to think about. We were together after all and it was only a logical step.

  “Yeah that will be good. What are you making?”

  I hadn’t really thought about it, so I just said the first thing that came to mind. He wasn’t as enthused as I would have hoped, so I suggested something else before he agreed. “Good Steve. I can’t wait to see you.”

  “Are you sure everything is okay?”

  “Yeah, why would you ask that?”

  “I don’t know. You just don’t seem to really be acting like yourself.”

  “No, I am good. I just miss you is all. I want to see my boyfriend.”

  He told me that he wanted to see me as well, but I could tell that he knew. Something was up. I wasn’t going to deny it anymore. It was time to move on with Steve, so I could forget all about David.

  Chapter 4

  Steve

  I got off of the phone with Carol and I had to wonder what it was that she wanted. She wasn’t a patient woman to begin with, but it seemed like now it was even worse. There was a part of me that wondered if she was going to break up with me. My heart hurt even thinking about it and it was the last thing that I wanted to happen. We hadn’t been going out that long, but it was the longest relationship that I had ever been in.

  “Steve, are you going to take that call on 3? You know that the boss doesn’t like it when we leave the customers on hold.”

  Waving Dave off, I tried to tone down the sudden aggravation. He was the type that stayed in everyone else’s business and it was usually mine that he was into. It drove me crazy and my fist was still tight when I answered the call.

  “Yes Mr. Weimer. I understand that you are anxious, but that is how the stock market works. You have to handle a little risk. I wouldn’t put your money anywhere that I wouldn’t put my own.”

  “I know that Steve, I am just watching this number fall and it is making me sick to my stomach.”

  “Have a little faith Scott. It is all going to work out. I see the numbers. I am going to buy some more up for the short time once it hits 15. Then you will see. Give me 24 hours and everything will start to make sense and I am sure you are going to feel better.”

  “That is all of the money I have Steve. I need to know that everything is going to be okay.”

  I told him again that it was. I knew that he had a
lot of money on the line, but I still didn’t like to be questioned about any one trade. He had given me his money to work with, that was a lot of trust, but now he wasn’t so sure and I wasn’t so sure that I wanted to keep making him money.

  “I can sell your position now, but you are going to take a loss.”

  “What about the fact that it is going lower?”

  I couldn’t tell him that I knew some information that was about to come out and the stocks were going to take a huge rally once the company’s big contract was announced. I almost wanted him to tell me to pull out, just so he could feel like an ass when he found out that it was all under control. I didn’t like the loss of confidence on his part. It made me mad more than anything else.

  “You do what you want. If you leave it with me, this is what I am going to do. If you want to pull out, cut your loss, but don’t call me tomorrow.”

  “Steve, I didn’t mean it like that.”

  “It doesn’t matter Scott. Tell me what you want me to do?”

  “I want you to make me money.”

  “That is what I have done for several years. Nothing has changed. Stop getting spooked. I have to go.”

  I didn’t wait for an answer on the other end. It didn’t matter what it was that he wanted. I knew that it was going to go my way. I had studied the stocks and companies they represented for too long. Not to mention the steady stream of insider information that I got.

  The call irked me and I thought about taking off early to see Carol. She was just what I needed after a stressful day like today. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to see her, but I had a feeling that it wasn’t going to be good news. It was never good news when a woman wanted to see me out of the blue. I had to take a break to get my anxiety down. When it came to stocks, I had more confidence than sense, but when it came to women, Carol in particular, I was afraid that anything I did would make her leave me. She already had way more control over me than I think she would ever realize.