This Kiss (Made In Montana Book 12)

by Debbi Rawlins

  But, again, was that what she wanted to see? And heaven help her, she couldn’t discount last night. The most incredible, stupendous, holy-crap-I’ve-died-and-gone-to-heaven night of her entire life. Past and future. And screw anyone who said otherwise.

  Ethan wanted to open a camp for kids to help with their self-esteem. Oh, for God’s sake, he was just a little too perfect. Maybe she was being punked. Maybe a tiny camera had been hidden in the room. She’d see herself on some stupid reality show in two weeks. Lying next to him in bed, staring at him with big goo-goo eyes. And then she’d have to move to outer Mongolia. Sadly, last night would still have been worth it.

  Sophie sighed so loudly the woman next to her turned to eye her. She hoped she wasn’t going to be this same idiotic person for the rest of her twenties. So this was what happened after only three hours’ sleep.

  And in a few minutes Ethan, who’d had the same amount of sleep, would climb on top a two-thousand-pound bull that wanted to annihilate him.

  Okay, now she was feeling nauseated.

  She pressed a hand to her tummy and watched a young woman with long blond hair, tight jeans and killer boots walk up to the fence. The other buckle bunnies who’d staked their claim an hour ago turned to give her a sizing-up. She ignored them and called out to some of the bronc riders, who acknowledged her with waves. Popular girl.

  The team roping event finally ended, and bull riding was up next. Murmurs rose from the crowd. Fans were used to the bull riders being last. Sophie just wanted the whole thing to be over, period.

  Her phone signaled an incoming text. It was from Peggy, Sophie’s contact at the sheriff’s office. Nothing had changed as far as the charges against Ethan went. And Sophie owed Peggy lunch at her favorite barbecue joint.

  Sophie liked the older woman, so hanging out with her was always fun. Now, dinner with Craig, that she dreaded as much as a pap smear. She stared at her phone, trying to decide if it was time to suck it up and call him back.

  Ethan’s name being announced stole her attention. The signs held by fans shot up in the bleachers. She recognized a few from yesterday. The blonde newcomer let out an ear-piercing whistle, stomped one of her pricy boots and yelled, “Go get ’em, Styles.”

  His other female fans cast her looks of disdain. She either hadn’t noticed or didn’t care. Sophie ignored everyone and moved to a spot where she could see Ethan getting ready to be let out of the chute. Again without a helmet, since there hadn’t been time to drive to Kalispell and back to buy one.

  Today he was riding another bull and not Twister, so she was thankful for that. Although she’d missed the name of the brown bull that was giving him a fit. If Matt had found reason to call him something like the Devil’s Spawn, she didn’t want to know.

  She saw Ethan give the nod for the gate, and then everything happened quickly. The instant the bull lunged from the chute and the clock started, Sophie began counting the seconds.

  One thousand one, one thousand two...

  The furious animal reared and bucked and did everything in its power to throw Ethan off its back.

  One thousand five, one thousand six...

  The bull whirled, then changed directions.

  She closed her eyes. The crowd’s roar had them popping back open.

  Ethan was on the ground scrambling away from the monstrous animal. He made it clear of the dangerous hooves coming down like spiked sledgehammers and waved to the fans. The buzzer had gone off at seven and a half seconds. The announcer said something about the heartbreak score and lucky this wasn’t the finals.

  Sophie wasn’t a violent person, but she really wanted to smack the man. He was safe from her. She couldn’t move. Not until she was certain Ethan wasn’t limping or holding his arm funny. He seemed fine as he left the arena, dusting off his hat and himself. Finally able to breathe again, she headed off to meet him in the back.

  She recognized the husky Lone Wolf ranch hand who was acting as security guard and smiled at him when he opened the gate for her. She’d made it a few steps in when the blonde with the cute boots came barreling past her. The poor ranch hand tried to stop her, but the determined woman was too fast.

  At the burst of commotion Ethan turned. With a shriek, the blonde jumped at him. He caught her, but unprepared, he staggered back.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” Ethan set her down and gestured to the cowboy that it was okay.

  Sophie wasn’t quite sure what to do. Ethan’s gaze had swept over her, so she knew he’d seen her. But his attention was directed at the other woman.

  “I bet you’re pissed. Damn. Half a second.” The blonde shrugged. “At least it didn’t count.” She jerked a look toward the pen where another bull waited, cupped her hands around her mouth and yelled, “Hey, Matt, the place looks awesome.”

  Matt flashed her a smile, then went back to doing whatever he and another guy were doing to ready a scary-looking bull for the next rider.

  Ethan scrubbed at his face and motioned for Sophie to join them. Nope, he wasn’t a happy camper.

  “So I was on my way to Vegas, and I thought what the hell...?” The woman paused when she noticed Sophie standing there. Her gaze swept from Sophie’s hair to her boots. With a dismissive frown, the blonde turned back to Ethan. “I figured I’d zip up here and see how you were doing. Make sure you weren’t laid up in the local hospital in traction or anything.”

  “Yeah, thanks.” Ethan sighed.

  Sophie wasn’t feeling quite as charitable. The woman was much younger than Sophie initially thought, but that didn’t excuse her stupidity.

  Blondie grinned, then turned abruptly back to Sophie, staring at her as if she were an intruder. “Who are you?”

  “If you’d shut up long enough,” Ethan said, “I’d introduce you.”

  Something in his expression or tone spurred a sudden realization. “You must be Ethan’s sister,” Sophie said, noting a faint resemblance around the mouth and eyes. “Cara?”

  She nodded and shook Sophie’s outstretched hand.

  “I’m Sophie,” she said, and because Cara had the decency to look embarrassed, Sophie liked her better. “A friend of Ethan’s.”

  “Sure, go ahead, introduce yourselves. You don’t need me,” he said, and Sophie gave him a private look that said otherwise.

  She wanted more than anything to put her arms around him, make sure nothing hurt and kiss him into tomorrow. But not with his sister watching.

  Cara barely spared him a glance. “Sorry about before,” she said, staring at Sophie with open curiosity. “Some of the buckle bunnies get too pushy and I try to run interference. The ladies seem to just looove my brother. I don’t get it.” She gave him a cheeky grin. “They don’t know you like I do.”

  He was still grumpy. Probably overtired. And here they were supposed to hit the road right away.

  Damn. It occurred to her that Cara showing up out of the blue could complicate things.

  Sophie studied his face, the weariness around his eyes, the smudge at his left temple, the streak of grime on his chin. Everything else fell away. Nothing mattered as long as he was okay. She promised herself she would never let him stay up so late the night before a rodeo again.

  That is, assuming she’d be in a position to carry out the promise.

  He was staring back at her with those intense blue eyes, the corners of his mouth quirking up a bit.

  “How are you?” she asked softly. “Everything in working order?”

  His smile took over. “Come check for yourself.”

  Sophie hesitated. Silence doubled the awkwardness that fueled her uncertainty.

  Cara must’ve felt it, too. She glanced around, then looked from Sophie to Ethan. “How do you guys know each other?”

  “From high school,” he said as he wiped the remaining dus
t from his face and moved to stand next to Sophie. “I want to have a few words with Matt...” He trailed off, leaving words unsaid, his gaze steady with hers. “Okay with you?”

  “Of course.” She knew he meant before they left, but he was reluctant to talk in front of Cara. That proved they had a problem.

  When he moved in to kiss her, Sophie gave him her cheek. Clearly he didn’t care for that one bit. He caught her chin and forced her to face him before he pressed his lips to hers.

  “Okay, then,” Cara muttered, glancing around again. “I’m gonna grab a hot dog. You guys want anything?”

  Ethan might’ve responded in some way. Sophie hadn’t said a word, but she saw that Cara was already headed for the gate.

  Sophie raised her eyebrows at him.

  “Look, before you rip me a new one, I kissed you because you looked as though you didn’t know what to do in front of my sister.” He shrugged and touched her arm. “And I figured it might get rid of Cara for a few minutes.” He sighed. “Goddammit, I kissed you because I wanted to. Is that a problem?”

  “No,” she said. “Are you done?”

  Ethan frowned. “Kissing you?”

  A short laugh escaped her. “You know what? No more late nights.” Sophie rolled her eyes at his instant grin. “I mean it. You could’ve gotten hurt today.”

  “Oh hell, I’m pumped so full of adrenaline before a ride I could go all night.” His eyes lit and he ducked in to steal another kiss. “We should test that out.”

  Sophie laughed and pushed him away. “We kind of did last night.”

  “Let’s go for two out of three.”

  “Come on, we have to get serious,” she said, glancing over her shoulder and ignoring his murmured assurance that he was extremely serious. “I’m assuming Cara doesn’t know about your little legal problem.”

  “No.” That sobered him. “Definitely not and it’s gonna stay that way.”

  “Okay, so—any idea why she’s really here?”

  “She has a friend who lives in Great Falls, maybe that’s part of the reason.” Ethan looked out toward the crowd, frowning. “It won’t be easy getting out of here without kids wanting autographs.”

  Sophie groaned. “You couldn’t have thought of that yesterday?”

  “Did you?”

  “Sorry. Guess I’m tired, too.” She sniffed. “One of us didn’t have that extra adrenaline boost.”

  He barked out a laugh. “You did okay without it.”

  Sophie tried to think of something clever, but settled for “Oh.” And then of course she had to blush.

  Ethan’s gaze darkened. “Come on, baby,” he murmured near her ear. “Don’t make me hard. Not here.”

  Indignant, she drew back and stared. At his face. Nothing lower. “I didn’t do anything.”

  His quiet groan sounded so damn sexy it vibrated all the way down her spine and pooled in the most inconvenient place. And then he had the nerve to look deep into her eyes and smile as if he knew exactly what he’d just done.

  Wow, she’d have to figure out what had set him off. She’d definitely do it again. Later, though. She checked her watch. Right now they had to get out of Blackfoot Falls as soon as possible.

  “Go sign a few autographs,” she said. “You know you’ll feel bad if you don’t. And if you need to talk to Matt, just please be quick?”

  Ethan shook his head. “I realized the timing is wrong. He’s got too much on his plate until the rodeo is over. I’ll call him tomorrow.”

  She saw him discreetly adjust the front of his jeans and she tried not to smile. “What about Cara?”

  “I don’t know. But she’s headed back this way.”

  To make room for the other riders leaving the arena, Ethan and Sophie met Cara closer to the gate. Going beyond that would put them at the mercy of insistent fans. Sophie had really had no idea how much fan and media activity surrounded the riders. A minute ago she’d seen Cara get stopped for her autograph by two excited kids dressed like cowgirls.

  “I just talked to Dad,” Cara said after chewing a bite of hot dog. “I told him you’re still in one piece. Nothing broken that I could see. He’s still pissed at you, by the way.”

  Ethan shrugged. It seemed he couldn’t care less about his father’s disposition. Except Sophie saw his jaw clench long enough to tell a different tale.

  “Mom and I just think you’re crazy.” She grinned, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “If I were you, bro, I’d be sitting in an isolation chamber until five minutes before the finals started.”

  “If you were me,” Ethan said, “you’d have the good sense to keep your mouth shut.” He turned to watch a rider lower himself onto a restless bull thrashing against the metal chute. “Matt has himself a good contender there with Tornado Alley. That sucker’s gonna be a high scorer.”

  “I like Matt,” Cara said, ignoring her brother’s dismissal. “I always have, you know that. But I think it was shitty of him to ask you to ride this close to the finals.”

  “The benefit was planned for September. Something got screwed up. When he told me it got pushed back, I could’ve dropped out. So don’t blame Matt.”

  “Well, that just makes you even more stupid.” Cara tossed back her hair. “You get hurt between now and next weekend, and you’ll regret it. I’m taking home my second buckle from Vegas this year. You know I will,” she said with a nasty gleam in her eye. “And won’t your little corner of the family trophy case look lonely?”

  Sophie fumed. She pressed her lips together to keep from saying something sarcastic to the little twit. How could she treat her brother like that?

  “Too bad you drove all this way to tell me something I already know, runt.” Ethan ruffled her hair, which she obviously didn’t like. “Why are you here?”

  Cara smoothed back her hair. “I told you, to make sure you’re in one piece and haven’t done anything stupid. Well, stupider than this,” she said, gesturing to nothing in particular. “Miss the finals again and you’ll feel like a big loser.”

  “Wow.” Sophie couldn’t keep quiet a second longer. “I used to wonder what it would be like to have a brother or sister. If this is any example—” she shook her head “—I’m glad I don’t have any siblings.”

  Cara glared at her, a deep red creeping up from her chest to her face.

  Sophie tried not to glare back. She figured she’d said enough when Ethan put an arm around her and sighed.

  “Cara didn’t mean anything,” he said. “Our family is competitive. And sometimes we egg each other on.”

  “Would you ever call Cara stupid and a loser? You can’t tell me that doesn’t hurt, Ethan.” Sophie’s voice cracked at the end. Ethan visibly swallowed, and she knew she’d struck a nerve. She lowered her lashes, thoroughly ashamed of her outburst. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.” She forced herself to look at Cara. “I really am sorry.”

  The woman’s stricken expression made Sophie feel worse. “I wouldn’t hurt my brother,” Cara said, reverting to her bratty temperament with a contemptuous glare. The next second she deflated into a look of dismay. “Did I, Ethan? Did I hurt you?”

  He left Sophie’s side to ruffle Cara’s hair again. “Hell, runt, you have to do a lot better than that to get under my skin.”

  He was lying, of course. And Sophie for one was glad he’d done so. For now, it was better that the tension eased.

  “Quit messing up my hair,” Cara said through gritted teeth. She made a show of smoothing back the long blond locks. Mostly, Sophie guessed, to hide the sheen of tears in her blue eyes. Sophie was right behind her in that department.

  She glanced helplessly at Ethan.

  He smiled and to Cara he said, “You still haven’t told me why you’re really here.”

  Cara dumped the rest of her
hot dog in the trash can behind her. “I thought we could drive to Vegas together. But you already have company, so no problem.”

  “I’m going back to Wyoming first. I have some business to take care of in Casper tomorrow morning.”

  “Are you serious?” Her eyes widened. “You have to be in Vegas in four days.”

  “I know.”

  “Ethan...” She darted a look at Sophie, who wasn’t about to say a word. “Can’t your business wait? I mean, you don’t want to cut it too close.”

  “No.” Ethan inhaled deeply. “No, I don’t. But I’ll get to Vegas in time. No matter what it takes.”

  “I hope so,” Cara said with a concerned frown.

  Jitters flared in Sophie’s tummy. She hoped so, too.

  14

  SOPHIE WASN’T THRILLED about leaving her Jeep behind, but it would be safe in Blackfoot Falls. The main thing worrying her as they drove toward Wyoming was Ethan’s uncertain future. It was possible he’d have to fly to Vegas to get there in time. And it was also possible that he wouldn’t make it to the finals at all. The thought made Sophie’s stomach turn.

  If that crazy Wendy Fullerton refused to drop the charges and Ethan ended up spending time in jail, not having a car would be the least of Sophie’s worries.

  Sophie adjusted the truck’s air vents for the hundredth time. They were only five miles outside town. Maybe they should turn around and get the Jeep. The sensible thing was to follow Ethan to Wyoming. No, they were both too tired to drive separately.

  “What’s wrong?” Ethan took her hand. “You’ve been quiet and edgy. Are you still upset about Cara?”

  “I’m mad at myself for butting in,” Sophie admitted. “And I hope your sister doesn’t hate me forever, but I’m okay. Just tired.” She liked that he had twined their fingers together. “So are you. Don’t forget I can take over driving anytime.”

  “Cara doesn’t hate you. And she’s really not a bad kid.”