by Karen Kelley
“I’ll tell him a thing or two.” Her gaze narrowed on his door.
“That’s the way,” Dixie said. “Give ’em an inch and they take a mile.”
“Hey, I resent that remark,” Wesley complained.
“You two stay out of it!” She stomped down to his room and pounded on the door.
She heard footsteps; then his door swung open. Before he had the chance to say a word, she jabbed her finger at his chest. “I didn’t give you permission to kiss me, and I’d damn well appreciate it if you kept your distance.”
“Okay.”
She opened her mouth, then snapped it closed. “Good, I’m glad you see that kissing will only make things more complicated. An intimate relationship between us would be ridiculous. I mean, we each believe in something totally different.”
“You’re right.”
He was being awfully agreeable. Too much so. She didn’t trust him. But she couldn’t very well argue with someone who wouldn’t argue back.
“Okay.” She turned on her heel and started toward the stairs. She was starved, and it was past time for lunch. What she really needed was a chocolate doughnut...
“But you enjoyed it,” he told her before she made it to the staircase.
She turned. He was leaning against the doorframe with just the hint of a smile on his face.
“What?” she asked. Had she heard him right? Had he actually taunted her?
“I said you enjoyed my kiss.”
She tilted her chin and raised her eyebrows. “Now you’re on an ego trip?”
He shook his head. “No, just stating fact. Are you going to deny that you liked my touch?”
Coherent thought escaped as she remembered just what it felt like to be held in his arms. The way his tongue had stroked hers. The heat emanating from his body. The heat that was building inside her right now just thinking about it.
She drew in a ragged breath. “Yeah, I liked it a lot. But until you change your views about ghosts, I can’t see us getting chummy.”
“Maybe I can convince you otherwise.”
She turned back to the stairs. “Only in your dreams.” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, the irony of what she’d said hit her, and she laughed.
Lord, she was losing her mind.
But she couldn’t stop the thrill of pleasure that ran through her at the thought of Trent attempting to seduce her.
Foreplay.
Yum.
Not that she would let him seduce her. No, she was much stronger than that.
Trent straightened and went back inside his room. Only in his dreams? He’d already been there and done that. Now he wanted the real thing.
He paused before putting away his black notebook.
Selena didn’t think he could seduce her. She’d practically thrown down the gauntlet. But he’d seen the excitement in her eyes. She wanted him to seduce her.
Let the games begin.
He left his room and went downstairs. He could hear her in the kitchen talking to someone, but again he heard only Selena’s voice.
“Are your ghosts here?” he asked as he joined her.
Her head jerked up, and her cheeks turned a rosy hue.
“No, they’re not here. I was talking to myself. Don’t you ever talk to yourself?”
“No.”
“Then I guess that makes me crazy.”
When he didn’t answer, she frowned. He liked the way she frowned. It made her bottom lip poke out. He wanted to draw it between his teeth and suck on it.
“Stop looking at me like that,” she breathed.
“Like what? Like I want to make love to you?”
“Yeah.”
She drew a deep breath and took a doughnut from the box on the table. He could tell she was flustered. When he joined her at the table, she eyed him warily, but he only reached around her and got a doughnut out of the box and bit into it.
“I thought you didn’t like doughnuts very much?”
“I like anything... sweet.” He nodded toward the flowers. “Nice flowers.”
She looked over her shoulder. “Blue. My favorite color.”
Had Matilda given them to her? Probably, since Matilda was working with Selena to convince him that Dixie and Wesley were real. And she’d been picking blue flowers the other day. He was on to their game.
“I’m thirsty.” She put some distance between them.
Running away. He thought so. But she couldn’t fool him. He knew when a woman wanted more. Maybe he and Tye weren’t so different after all.
She pulled a water bottle out of the refrigerator and twisted off the cap. While she was drinking, she glanced at him.
He winked at her.
She choked, jerking the bottle away from her and spewing water everywhere as she began coughing.
Damn, he didn’t want to kill her. He tossed the doughnut on the table and hurried to her, pounding on her back. She sucked in a long, ragged breath.
There was a roll of paper towels on the counter. He grabbed them and tore off a handful.
“You okay now?” he asked while dabbing at her face.
“I’m fine, no thanks to you.” She grabbed the paper towels and ended up with half of them.
“You don’t sound fine.”
“I’m fine,” she repeated between gritted teeth.
“Well, don’t bite my head off. I was just trying to help.”
“By winking at me?”
“No, I was flirting with you then. Now I’m trying to help you.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Stop flirting with me. That would help a whole lot. I told you I’m not going to let you kiss me again.”
“I guess going to bed is out of the question, then.”
That might not have been the best thing to say. Her face turned red, and he didn’t think it was because she was sexually turned on by his nearness.
“Your shirt’s all wet,” he commented.
Really wet. It looked as if she’d spilled half the bottle of water on it. Not that he was complaining. Her top clung to her breasts. The water must’ve been really cold.
“Let me warm you up,” he said without thinking.
“You’re... you’re... ”
“What?” he asked. “Crazy? Probably, because I know anything between us would be more than a little foolish. But I don’t always play by the rules.” He pulled her into his arms and lowered his mouth, catching her deep sigh of pleasure.
He tasted her, drank in her essence, and it was even sweeter than before. His hands moved beneath her shirt. He deftly unhooked her bra, bringing his hand around to the front and cupping a breast.
It was all he could do to breathe as he brushed his thumb over the tightness of her nipple. This was what he’d been dreaming about, what he’d yearned for every time he looked at her.
But he wanted more. He stepped back and pulled her shirt over her head, letting it fall to the floor, then tugged her bra off. It landed on top of her shirt. In one swift movement, he picked her up and set her on the counter. Her hands tightened around his neck.
“If I’m asleep, don’t wake me.” He cupped her breasts.
She moaned.
This was exactly how he’d imagined she’d look. He lowered his head and scraped his tongue across first one nipple, then the next. She whimpered, arching forward.
She tasted as hot as she looked. He drew her nipple into his mouth and sucked while his hand massaged her other breast.
She ran her fingers through his hair and pulled him closer. Finally, he was going to have the relief his body had craved since he’d first laid eyes on her.
“Is anyone home,” a feminine voice that he didn’t recognize called out.
He groaned, then drew in a deep breath.
“Oh, crap, Barbara.”
He dragged a hand through his hair as Selena scooted off the counter and scooped up her shirt, yanking it over her head. He wanted to grab her hands, keep her from covering those luscious breasts. He even went so far
as to reach toward her, but garnered only a glare.
“Who’s Barbara?” he finally asked.
“She works at the paper,” she hissed as the rat-a-tat of heels drew closer. Selena glanced around, then finally shoved her bra into the nearest drawer as Barbara waltzed in.
“Oh,” Barbara said in a sultry voice. “Did I interrupt?”
Trent thought her short laugh sounded bitchy.
She was hot, he’d give her that. She wore a cream-colored jacket and a matching skirt that showed off long legs. Under the jacket, she wore a peach blouse cut so low it was almost illegal. The shirt might have clashed with her red hair, but somehow she pulled it off.
“No, you didn’t interrupt,” Selena said, anger edging her words. “I spilled my water.”
“So I see.” Her gaze raked over Selena as if Selena were something to be ridiculed.
“Did you want something?” Selena’s eyes narrowed dangerously.
Barbara waved the pencil and pad she carried. “I wanted to see if I could get a story for my column.”
She looked at Trent, her gaze slowly moving over him. Damned if he didn’t feel like taking a shower.
“I’d bet next week’s paycheck you could fill my... column,” she said.
“Oh, give me a break,” Selena mumbled. “I’m going to change my shirt.”
Oh, yeah, leave me with the barracuda, he wanted to tell her, but she’d already left the room.
“So, can you?”
He dragged his gaze away from where Selena had been. “Can I what?”
She laughed low in her throat. “Give me something for my column?” She waved her pad. “You know, what’s it like staying in a”—she cleared her throat—“in a haunted hotel with our resident psychic?”
“You don’t believe she can talk to the dead?”
She covered her unladylike snort with a cough. “Do you believe she can talk to the dead?”
“No.”
“Would you like to elaborate?”
She walked closer, her scent swirling around him. She smelled nice. Not as good as Selena. He kind of liked Selena’s tropical scent. It was lighter, fresher.
Barbara swept around him and pulled out a chair. When she sat down, she crossed her legs. Her already short skirt rode up a few more inches.
He met her eyes and saw the knowing glint. She’d given him a taste, and he had a feeling she wouldn’t stop there with a little encouragement from him.
But would it be because she wanted him or because she wanted to upset Selena?
He already knew the answer. Hell, from the moment she’d walked into the kitchen, he’d seen SLUT flashing across her forehead. She’d do anything for a story, anything to tip the scales in her direction. She was a fraud, only in a different way, and he liked her kind even less.
What was she really after? It might pay to find out.
He pulled out the chair across from her and sat down. “What kind of column do you write?”
Her smile practically shouted victory. “I write the gossip column each week. You know, what’s going on in Garvey County and other small towns, and the city, of course.” Her hand fluttered close to the vee of her blouse.
A practiced move, he was sure. He leaned back in his chair. “So, what kind of gossip do you think you’ll find here that might interest your readers?”
“It looked like it might have been pretty intense when I walked in. Did I interrupt anything?”
“Like Selena said, she’d spilled her water.”
Barbara’s forehead puckered. Then she shrugged. “You probably are telling the truth. Selena doesn’t date much, so there must be something wrong with her.” She gave a short laugh. “The last guy she dated was such a loser.” A delicate shudder rippled over her.
Yeah, he’d pegged Barbara right. A real bitch.
“Your story?” he prompted.
As if she’d just remembered her excuse for being there, she picked up her pencil and tapped it on the table. “So, what’s it like living here in this... ” Her expression held more than a little distaste. “In this dump. I mean, it was all I could do to walk up the steps leading to the front door. Even if it doesn’t have ghosts, the place is deplorable.”
“You didn’t notice the woodwork? Or that the floors are hardwood?”
She gave a little laugh. “I saw the grime and dust. I’m sorry. I’m a city girl. I don’t do old and dirty.”
He had a feeling she’d do old and dirty if it boosted her career.
“You haven’t answered my question,” she reminded him.
“You don’t like Selena very much, do you?” he countered with a question of his own.
Her eyes widened. “Why would you say that?”
“Just stating a fact.”
She hesitated for a few seconds before apparently deciding she had more going for her than Selena. “Why should I like her? I’d been at the paper two years when she comes waltzing in and immediately the editor gives her a column. Her own column!”
“And what does that have to do with you?”
“He cut the size of mine to make room for hers. She talks to dead people, for Pete’s sake. How idiotic is that?”
“Yours has a lot more to offer?”
She squared her shoulders. “Damn right. I let my readers know what’s going on. I had planned on asking for more room. You know, cover the trends and maybe branching out into the fashion world. Women need to know how to dress if they want to get by in the world.”
“As opposed to talking to the dead.”
“Don’t tell me you’re defending her? The man who claims ‘if you can’t see it, it isn’t there’? If you judge me, then you have to judge yourself because we’re exactly the same.”
“The same?” He came to his feet. “Lady, we’re not even close to being the same. You use people to get ahead.”
“And what’s so wrong with that? There are a lot of sharks in the water. You eat them before they can eat you. That’s the way the world works.”
“Not my world, sweetheart. You’re not going to find a story here, so maybe you’d better leave.”
She came to her feet. “Are you throwing me out?”
“It would look that way.”
“The least you can do is walk me to the front door. Just in case there’s a ghost or two.” Her words were brassy, and he had a feeling he was seeing the real Barbara.
Hell, she’d scare any ghosts off if there were such a thing, but yeah, if it would get rid of her quicker, he’d walk her out.
He followed her to the front door. There was an exaggerated sway in her hips. Not the sexy sway Selena had.
When they reached the front door, her attitude immediately changed, and the seductress came out. The lady had more personalities than he could count.
“I can’t interest you in giving me a story?” She pouted as she ran a long red fingernail down his shirt. “I guarantee I could make it worth every minute if you give me an exclusive interview.”
Before he could do anything, she moved against him and raised her lips, kissing him full on the mouth. He put his hands on her arms and moved her away from him none too gently.
Barbara’s gaze raised, but she wasn’t looking at him. Damn, he didn’t want to turn around, but he had to see.
Selena stood at the top of the steps, her lips set in a grim line. Before he could say anything, she whirled around and marched in the direction of her room.
Barbara’s soft chuckle drew his attention back to her. Never in his life had he wanted to kill another human being—until now.
“You’re a real bitch.”
She smiled. “Maybe next time you won’t be so quick to dismiss me. It doesn’t pay to take me for granted. I saw what you were thinking when I said I write a gossip column. You dismissed me as fluff, but you underestimated me.”
“No, I had your number right from the start. I just didn’t think you would stoop this low.”
“Oh, honey, I’ll go as low as I have t
o if it means getting the job done.”
“Yeah, I suspect you wouldn’t mind getting on your knees for just about anyone.” His gaze raked over her. “But, honey, I wouldn’t want that mouth on any part of my body. You can walk the rest of the way to your car by yourself.”
“Bastard!” She spun on her heel and slammed the door as she left.
Barbara seethed for a moment as she stood on the filthy porch. She’d thrown everything she had at Trent. He should’ve been on her side. He was out to ruin Selena, but it looked more like he was screwing her. God, she hated Selena. If it weren’t for her, she’d have twice the column.
“Your scheme didn’t work.”
She jumped, her eyes narrowed on the lanky cowboy. “Where the hell did you come from?” She hadn’t seen him before.
She started to go down the steps, but suddenly stopped and looked at the cowboy. Her gaze moved over him as she speculated. He seemed to be comfortable sitting in the rocker. Maybe he lived nearby. He might be the person she needed to question.
A slow smile curved her lips. They hadn’t beaten her yet.
She thrust her chest forward. Her thirty-six D cups were her best assets, and she’d certainly made use of them over the years. Men loved squeezing them, burying their faces between them.
Whatever it took to get ahead. That was her motto.
“Do you live close by?” she innocently asked as she perched seductively on the railing.
“You could say that. Wesley’s the name, ma’am.” With one finger, he raised the brim of his hat and grinned at her.
He was cute, and the way he was looking at her, she knew he appreciated a real woman. She’d never been ridden by a cowboy before, they always smelled like horses, but there was always a first time for everything. Especially if it meant beating Selena.
“So, what’s the scoop?” She chuckled. “Is the place haunted?” Oh, yeah, she was going to get her story after all. Nothing was going to stop her now.
A woman wearing a hideous red dress trimmed in ugly black ruffles seemed to just appear. “What do you think, sweetie? Is it haunted or not?” She looked straight at Barbara.
This couldn’t be happening. The woman had just... just come out of nowhere. Out of fucking thin air. Her gaze whipped from one to the other. “Where the hell... ”
“I’m Dixie. Remember my name, sweetie, and the fact that this is my cowboy and I don’t like it when a woman flirts with my man.” Dixie waltzed over and stood in front of her.
