by Carrie Carr
AS THEY TRUDGED up the rear steps to the house, Amanda couldn’t remember the last time she felt so tired. And Lex did most of the hard work. I just cleaned up behind her and brought her the lumber. She spared a quick glance to the woman beside her. She looks worse than I feel. Maybe I can talk her into a quick shower and then going straight to bed. A slight blush stained her cheeks after that thought. Uh, no. Don’t think I’ll say it quite that way.
Lex was about to open the door when she noticed her friend’s face. Don’t tell me she got sunburned today. "Amanda? Are you okay?" she asked, while she opened the door and allowed Amanda to precede her. "You didn’t get too much sun today, did you?"
Oh, crap. Now what do I say to avoid further embarrassment? "Maybe, I’m not sure. It could just be the exertion." Once in the house, Amanda almost moaned with pleasure at the smells emanating from the kitchen. "And hunger."
Lex pretended to be surprised. "Newsflash." Blocking the expected slap, she poked her head through the kitchen door. "Martha, we’re back."
Martha ambled out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on the ever-present dishtowel. "Yes, I can see that, dear." She wrinkled her nose. "You are planning on taking a shower before dinner, aren’t you?" She reached up and pulled the hat from Lex’s head. "How many times have I told you to take your hat off when you come into the house?" She swatted Lex with the hat. "Now go on upstairs and get cleaned up. Ya stink. Dinner should be ready in about thirty minutes." She turned quickly to go back into the kitchen, not giving Lex a chance to argue.
"I can never get the last word in with her," Lex mumbled, while she walked to the stairs. She turned and looked at Amanda. "I bet you’re not exactly smelling like daisies yourself." Lex darted up the stairs with a very riled up woman on her heels.
Following dinner, Martha chased them out of the kitchen, and Lex and Amanda sat in front of a roaring fire. The housekeeper had refused their help with the dishes, citing her inability to find anything after they put everything away the day before.
"Amanda? I’ve got to ride to one of the back pastures tomorrow and check out a few things. Would you like to come along?" Lex asked. Amanda sat on the floor at her feet, with one arm wrapped possessively around Lex’s leg. Lex played with Amanda’s hair that was tangled in her fingertips. "I remember you saying that you don’t like to ride, but—"
Amanda craned her head at an angle, so that she could see Lex’s face. "It’s not that I don’t like to ride, I’m just afraid of falling off. Could we go double?"
"I was just about to suggest the same thing." Lex slid out of the chair, settled beside Amanda and pulled her into her lap. "So is that a yes, or should I try and convince you?"
"Well," Amanda wrapped her arms around Lex’s neck. "Your horse is pretty tall." She leaned in for a kiss. "I think you’d better start trying to influence my answer," she whispered, as Lex captured her lips.
After Amanda was thoroughly swayed, she led a tired Lex upstairs and stopped at the guest room door. "Goodnight."
Lex wrapped Amanda in her arms, and kissed her with a quiet intensity. When both of them ran out of air, she broke away. "Yeah." She cleared her throat. "See you in the morning." Lex turned and crossed the hallway to her own room, trying to calm her pounding heart. She stepped inside, closed the door, and then moved to the dresser to get changed so that as soon as Amanda was asleep, she could go work on the Mustang.
Half an hour later, Lex stopped at Amanda’s door and listened for a moment. Not hearing anything, she nodded to herself. Then, rubbing her eyes, Lex tiptoed down the stairway, boots in hand.
It took her almost three hours to put the car back together, but she was more than certain she could have it running within the next night or two. Lex couldn’t wait to see Amanda’s face when she saw the car. She decided she could finish up the engine work the next evening.
The mantle clock in her bedroom chimed twice when Lex finally dragged herself back into the room. At least I’m getting to bed at a decent hour tonight, she mused, stripping off her clothes as she staggered into the bathroom. After a quick shower, she walked back into her bedroom, wary of finding a woman in her bed. Seeing she was indeed alone, the exhausted woman pulled a sleepshirt over her head as an extra precaution, in case Amanda had nightmares again, and collapsed under the sheets.
Chapter Ten
LEX FINISHED SADDLING Thunder as Amanda strolled into the barn with a backpack tossed over one shoulder. Amanda leaned up against the stall door, trying to look sexy in her faded jeans and a worn denim shirt that was molded to her body. It worked. The dark green and ivory of Lex’s old leather jacket from her high school days brought out the hazel color of Amanda’s eyes and made her look even more beautiful. Lex stared at her with an intensity that made her heart pound. She tried her best to appear unaffected and somehow managed to find her voice. "Are you about ready?" The arousal evident in Amanda’s voice startled her.
She certainly fills out those clothes better than Louis ever did. "Are you propositioning me?" Lex quirked an eyebrow at the blushing woman, maintaining eye contact with her, and noting the sudden husky quality of her own voice.
"Maybe." Amanda swallowed hard. "Are you accepting?"
Lex led the stallion out of his stall. "Maybe." She tossed the word playfully back to her companion. "Whatcha got there?" Lex asked, pointing to the backpack. "Homework?"
"Nope." Amanda walked in front of Lex, swinging her hips. "Lunch. Maybe I’ll share if you’re real nice to me." She turned back to Lex and gave her a sexy smile.
"Maybe you’ll share?" Lex dropped the reins and pulled Amanda close. "Just how nice do I have to be?" She leaned down and gently nipped her companion’s ear. "And exactly what will you be sharing?" she whispered into the same ear and then ran her tongue around its edge before tenderly tugging on it with her teeth.
Amanda legs went weak beneath her, and she stumbled forward slightly. "Ah." She couldn’t seem to form a complete thought since Lex decided to forsake her ear and work directly on her throat. Letting the backpack slide to the floor, Amanda pulled Lex closer, hanging on to her while her arousal took control of every part of her body. She moaned when Lex finally captured her lips. She was on the verge of an all-out collapse when Lex finally relented and gave her a chance to breathe. "God, Lex. Are you trying to kill me?"
"Hmm?" Lex mumbled, burying her face in the sweet smelling hair. "Oh. Sorry. I guess we should be getting on our way, huh?" She stepped back reluctantly.
"Yeah. Just give me a minute to get my legs back. Although I would like to continue this conversation later." Amanda ran a shaky hand through her hair and picked up the discarded backpack.
"I’d like that too." Lex gathered up the reins once again and started for the door. "Come on, boy. Let’s take Amanda for a little tour."
Once outside, Lex easily mounted the prancing horse, then reached down for Amanda and pulled her up in front of her. "Up, you go. I thought you’d like to be able to see where we’re going. Just hang on to the saddle horn, and I’ll hang on to you."
"Now that’s the best offer I’ve had in a long time." Amanda leaned back into the warm body behind her. One arm circled her waist as Lex gripped the reins loosely in her right hand.
"Don’t worry. I won’t let you fall." Lex whispered in Amanda’s ear, enjoying the little tremble she felt run through Amanda’s body. Come on, Lexington. Try and control yourself, or it’s gonna be one hell of a long day, she chided herself, giving the smaller waist in front of her a squeeze.
THEY RODE SLOWLY for a couple of hours. Lex took the scenic route to their destination to prolong the pleasant ride as long as possible. They made their way into heavy woods, following a worn path that Lex explained was her favorite. "I usually ride up here to get away from everything," she told Amanda. "I’ve been known to take a sleeping bag and supplies and just spend the weekend alone."
The terrain became steadily steeper until Amanda saw they were actually in the foothills just north of the ranch. "You have
stock that stay up here? What are they, mountain goats?" She felt the body behind her chuckle.
"No. There’s a small pass just ahead that opens up into a valley. That’s where we keep a small herd of wild horses and cattle. We normally take the road from the north, but we would have to drive through the creek, and that’s impossible to do right now."
"I see." Amanda reached back and patted the leg behind hers. "We’ve been riding for quite a while. Are we going to stop for lunch soon?"
Lex pulled her close again. "Yep. And I know just the right place." She guided Thunder off the beaten path and through the dense trees.
The clearing Lex brought them to was breathtakingly beautiful. There was silence all around, and the sun sliced its way through the treetops to shed light on a small pond. Lex dropped down from the horse and helped Amanda from the saddle. "I hope this is okay. It’s one of my favorite spots." She led them to a fallen tree and dropped the backpack beside it, then continued on to the small body of water. A small pit ringed with rocks nearby was the only sign that anyone had ever been there.
"Lex, it’s beautiful. This is your hideaway?"
"Yeah. I come up here to clear my mind. It’s not too far from the ranch in case I need to get back in a hurry, but it’s far enough away that no one knows where it is."
Amanda sat down in front of a log and patted the ground beside her. "Why don’t you come over here, and we’ll see what Martha packed us for lunch?" She opened the backpack and pulled out a couple of foil-wrapped packages.
"Sure." Lex ambled back over to Amanda and dropped down beside her. She accepted the package that was handed to her and peeled back the foil. "Mmm. Smells like a roast beef sandwich. She knows it’s my favorite."
Amanda took a bite of hers, too. "Oh, yum. This is wonderful. I can see why it’s your favorite." She reached into the backpack with her free hand and pulled out a bottle of water and handed it to Lex. "Here. She doesn’t forget anything, does she?" She sat her sandwich on her leg and grabbed another bottle from the bag and opened it.
Lex, who was happily munching away, shook her head and swallowed. "Nope. She probably thought I’d forget the canteen, but I didn’t."
After they finished their lunch, Lex leaned back against the fallen log and held Amanda close to her, wrapping both arms around her. She kissed the top of Amanda’s head and enjoyed the squeeze she received in return. They sat quietly and looked out over the pond.
"So, why are we checking the stock? Are you afraid the heavy rains may have done something to them? Could the creek have flooded them out?" Amanda lightly ran her hand up and down Lex’s leg.
Lex shook her head. "No, nothing like that. The other night, while I was checking the books, it looked like we were missing an unusually high number of animals."
"Okay, but isn’t that somewhat normal on a ranch this size?" Amanda asked, a little confused. Amanda’s fingers were now moving in abstract patterns, occasionally drifting higher and closer to Lex’s inner thigh.
Becoming more and more aroused, Lex tried desperately to stay on the subject, even though Amanda’s fingertips were driving all thoughts from her mind. She cleared her throat and tried to calm her racing heart. "Usually, yes. But not only are we beginning to lose cattle, but sometime recently we’ve begun to lose money, as well." Lex grasped Amanda’s hand before she lost all control. "I don’t normally do the books; that’s Hubert’s job. But I just had this strange feeling something was wrong, and it looks like I was right."
Amanda linked her fingers with Lex’s. "So what are we going to do about it?"
We. I like the sound of that. "We’re going to do a quick head count in the back pasture. I can compare what we find with what had been reported at the beginning of the summer. That should give us an idea of what’s going on." She stood up, pulling Amanda up by their linked hands. "Come on. It’s only about another twenty minutes from here."
LEX GAVE THUNDER his head and allowed him to negotiate the narrow pass, which was barely wide enough for two horses.
Amanda shivered, and the arm around her waist tightened.
"You okay?"
Amanda leaned back and enjoyed the protective grasp. "Yeah. It’s just kinda spooky. I guess because it’s so quiet." The only sound was the sodden clump of the horse’s hooves, which echoed eerily along the jagged walls. She squeezed the strong leg that was pressed against hers, feeling the muscle jump.
"Don’t worry, it’s perfectly safe. I ride through here all the time." Lex buried her nose in Amanda’s hair. "We’re almost through." She kissed the spot she’d just sniffed and then urged her horse onward.
The path suddenly opened up, making way for the more dense foliage. They rode through the thick forest in silence until Lex suddenly pulled Thunder to a stop. "Whoa."
Amanda, who had been daydreaming, came back to herself with a start. "What?" She looked around. "Why are we stopping?"
Lex pointed off to their right. "Smoke." They were on a slight rise and could see over the treetops easily.
"Where?" Amanda strained her eyes. "Are you sure?" She still couldn’t see anything.
"Yeah. It looks like it’s not too far away, either. We’d better go check it out." Lex kneed the black horse into a faster pace. "Hang on. This may be a little bumpy."
Lex became more ill at ease the closer they came to the smoke. I don’t like the look of this. It appears to be man-made. She slowed Thunder down to a walk.
Amanda felt Lex go tense. She turned around in the saddle to look up at the rancher’s face. "Lex?" She gave the hand on her stomach a squeeze. "Is that it way down there? It doesn’t seem like a very big fire."
Lex pursed her lips, then glanced down at Amanda. "I know. I think it’s a campfire, only no one should be out here." She swung down from the horse, then reached up to help Amanda dismount. "We’re going to walk the rest of the way." Lex loosely tied the horse’s reins to a nearby tree. "Stay here, boy. We’ll be right back." She rubbed his nose, then reached over and took Amanda’s hand. "Let’s go check this out."
They walked through the heavy trees for several more minutes before Lex stopped. When Amanda opened her mouth to speak, Lex covered her lips with a finger, silencing her. At her questioning glance, Lex pointed through a gap in the trees. There was a truck with a large trailer in the middle of the clearing with a handful of men milling around. By the condition of the area and of the men themselves they had been there for several days.
Sonofabitch! So this is what has been happening to our stock. Apparently they had driven the truck through the creek and gotten stranded after the heavy rains. Lex checked around. I count six men. That seems about right. She caught Amanda’s eye and motioned for her to follow.
They hurried back to Thunder, and Lex immediately went to the saddlebags and dug through them. She pulled out the little-used cell phone, turned it on, and then swore. "Damn, I was afraid of this." She crammed the phone back into the bag, buckling the cover angrily.
Amanda placed her hand on Lex’s arm. "What’s wrong?"
Lex bit back an angry reply, taking a deep breath instead. "Those guys are stealing my stock, and I can’t get a signal with the damn cell phone." She looked Amanda in the eye. "I need you to ride back to the ranch and call the sheriff."
"Uh, okay. But what are you going to do?"
Lex gave her a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. "Teach them that it’s not nice to steal."
Amanda took a firm grip on her arm. "What?" She pulled Lex closer, getting right up into her face. "You can’t be serious! There are at least half-dozen men, possibly more." She tangled her hands in Lex’s coat. "It’s too dangerous."
Lex framed Amanda’s face with her hands and leaned in to gaze into her eyes in an attempt to calm her. "I have to do something. They look like they’re getting ready to move out soon. I’m just going to slow them down until help gets here." She bent down and briefly captured Amanda’s lips with her own. "You need to hurry." Lex lifted Amanda into the saddle, and then
took a moment to adjust the stirrups. Handing the reins to her, she patted her leg. "Be careful."
Amanda stretched out her hand, waiting for Lex to grasp it. "I will." She pulled Lex’s hand up to her lips and kissed it. "You too. Please don’t take any unnecessary risks. We still have a conversation to finish."
"Don’t worry, I won’t." Lex released Amanda’s hand and stepped away from the horse. "Tell the sheriff they’re at the back clearing. He’ll know what you mean."
Amanda nodded and turned Thunder around. She led him to the path, turning back in the saddle to look at Lex again before they got to the main stand of trees. She fought the urge to race back to her, before her good sense told her she needed to get going. Snap out of it, Amanda! You’re the only one who can do this for her. If you love her, help her! Putting on her bravest face, she gave a wave and then turned Thunder toward the trail.
The stallion must have picked up on Amanda’s distress, because he moved quickly through the trees once they had made their way through the pass. Oak and cedar trees flew by too quickly for Amanda to distinguish as she hung on to the saddle horn for dear life. Breaking through the dense trees at last, Amanda heaved a sigh of relief to see the barns come into view. They charged past the isolated buildings and headed straight for the ranch house itself.
Amanda practically jumped out of the saddle near the back porch. She fell to her knees as her legs gave out. Thunder snorted, slung his head, and pounded the ground with his front foot. "Thanks, boy. I appreciate you getting me here so fast." She patted his neck before she attempted to climb the steps on shaky legs. She almost screamed when the back door swung open before she could reach it.
"Good Lord, child." Martha pulled Amanda into the house. "What on earth happened? And where is Lexie?" She led Amanda into the kitchen and assisted her into a nearby chair.
"Lex," Amanda wheezed, "is okay." She took a deep breath. "Stealing." Another wheeze, "Cattle." Another breath, "Call…the sheriff." Amanda coughed and took another breath.