by Cathie Linz
“When you’re outside your hair is like liquid sunshine,” he suddenly said. “The sun hits it and makes these little streaks of gold stand out. There are times when you look too good to be true.”
“I am true,” she whispered.
“Prove it.”
“How?”
He shook his head as if already regretting his words. “Forget I said that.”
“The same way I was supposed to forget that kiss we shared out in the barn?” she said.
“Forgettin’ seems harder where you’re concerned,” he admitted before shoving back his chair and leaving the table. “I’d better go check on the horses.”
He’d never done that in the evening before. “Check on the horses?” she repeated, still astonished by the way he’d turned that seductive voice of his on and off. “What for? What do you think they’re going to do?”
“I’m more afraid of what I might do,” he muttered before jamming his hat on his head and taking off.
It didn’t surprise her that she didn’t see him again for the rest of the evening. So, he was hiding out in the barn. Fine. Let him. She wasn’t going to chase after him.
She went to her own room and brooded. She felt such a strong sense of belonging here on the ranch with Zane and his family that she’d actually allowed herself to start daydreaming about a possible future with him. Why was it so hard for him to believe she could be happy here?
Okay, so he was slicker shy. So was she. But there were times when you had to take the bull by the horns and...kiss him? What would Zane do if he came back from the barn to find her in his bed?
She’d been in his bedroom before, when putting away his clean washing. She’d just been in there yesterday. She knew everything from the green color scheme to the way he neatly stacked his loose change on top of his dresser. She’d washed his underwear for heaven’s sakes. In the same load with her own. And both had managed to survive.
So what would he do if he found her in his bed? Kick her out or welcome her with open arms?
If she was a gutsy girl she’d find out. Instead she applied an avocado face mask and considered her options. A knock on her door caught her by surprise—green goop covered her face and fingertips.
“Who is it?” she croaked. Dumb question. There were only two of them in the house.
“It’s Zane.” His voice sounded just as froggy as hers did. “I wanted to...never mind.”
She heard the sound of his boots ringing against the hardwood floor as he headed back to the main part of the house and away from her room.
What had he been about to say? Why had he chickened out? Maybe he just wanted her to make him a midnight snack, even though it was only nine at night. Or maybe he planned on making her his midnight snack.
Either way, she had to find out So she quickly rinsed the face mask away and tried to decide what to wear. At the moment she was dressed in her nightgown and ivory satin robe. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t seen her in it before. Several times.
Securing the belt around her waist, she paused long enough to splash on some cologne before heading out on her fact-finding mission. Only problem was that Zane was nowhere to be found. At least not on the main floor.
Maybe he’d gone back to the barn. Or maybe he’d gone upstairs to bed. She’d promised Rusty and Lucky she’d check in on their pets and feed them tonight. Which meant she should go upstairs anyway and do that.
Precious, already curled up and snoozing, didn’t need dinner, but King did. Tracy had brought some shredded lettuce up with her, which the iguana ate with appreciation. Joe, the mouse, however, was missing. The door to his cage was slightly ajar, which meant he’d made a break for it
Then she saw the mouse, perched on the bookcase above Rusty’s bed. Laughing down at her. Just as Randy, the horse, had in the barn a few weeks earlier.
She was tired of being laughed at. It was the last straw.
Marching over, she grabbed the mouse in one hand and read it the riot act. “Listen, buddy, you’ve been making me nervous long enough, checking under my bed every night to make sure you’re not hiding out there. And all because some bully traumatized me with a mouse when I was a little kid. Okay, the truth is that I’m never going to love mice, but I refuse to have you turn me into a quivering idiot. Are we clear on that?” The mouse wiggled its little whiskers at her and appeared to nod its head. “Good. I’m glad we both agree on that. Now you get back in your cage and behave yourself.”
Two seconds later the mouse was back where it belonged and Tracy felt on top of the world. She’d done it! She’d confronted one of her worse fears. She’d met the mouse and beat it, figuratively speaking. If she could do that, she could do anything!
Like confront Zane. Feeling gutsy and confident, she headed right for his bedroom, where she pounded on the door.
She began speaking the instant he opened it. “You came to my room a few minutes ago. What did you want?” she demanded almost belligerently.
“You.”
His blunt declaration took the wind right out of her sails. “Oh,” she sort of hiccuped.
“Yeah, oh.”
Not wanting to misunderstand him, she carefully said, “You mean you wanted me to do something for you?”
His smile was positively wicked. “Yes, ma’am, you could say that.”
She was getting impatient with him again. “Then why don’t you say it?”
“I want you in my bed.”
“I want the same thing,” she admitted. “So what’s stopping us?”
“A whole passel of things, none of which seem to matter right now.”
“Which leaves us where?” she asked.
“Here.” He leaned down and kissed her. Gently. Giving her time to back away. Letting her know the final decision was hers. Come or go. Stay or leave. Her choice.
“Yes,” she whispered against his mouth, deepening their kiss.
Once again, the heat was instant. It was as if their previous kisses hadn’t been interrupted, as if they’d picked up right where they’d left off—wanting each other with a hunger that was elemental and went clear through to the soul.
Zane made short work of undoing her robe, peeling it back to reveal the nightgown she wore beneath it. He glided his hands over her satin-covered form with both reverence and ravaging in mind. When he bent his head to kiss the curve of her breast, she threaded her fingers through his dark hair.
She could feel him smile. Her own smile turned dreamy as he practiced his tongue-tasting ways on her, lapping along the lacy edge of her nightgown before slipping his hand beneath the material to free her breast. The cool night air was a direct contrast to the wet warmth of his mouth against her bare skin. He brushed his thumb across her nipple with a velvety touch, before covering it with his lips.
Undeniable flames of desire flared deep within her body as her need for him grew with every passing second.
When he suddenly pulled away and put her nightgown back in place, she felt the loss intensely, so intensely she ached from it.
“If you change your mind now, I’ll kill you,” she warned him, her eyes glittering with feminine passion.
“I’m not changing my mind,” he assured her, his own gaze just as heated. “I just don’t aim on taking you right here against the door frame. And that’s what might have happened if we didn’t slow down a tad. We’ve got all night.”
“We do?”
He nodded. “I thought a highfalutin advertising woman like you would have figured that out some time ago. This is why my father left us alone.”
“So we could...”
“Get acquainted.”
She smiled. “I guess you wouldn’t have much trouble selling me on the idea of getting better acquainted with you.”
“You’re the one who is the expert on selling.”
“Maybe I should teach you a thing or two about the dynamics of selling. The first step is getting your audience’s attention.” Her smile was pure temptation filled with naughty
enjoyment as she undid the bow holding her wraparound nightgown in place, then whipped it open to flash her bare breasts at him before covering them again so quickly he might have dreamed the whole thing. “The second step is arousing interest.” This time she removed her nightgown and robe from one shoulder and gave him the kind of come-hither over-the-shoulder look he’d been dreaming of. “Next step is creating desire.”
“You’ve been doing that since the second you showed up on my doorstep,” he huskily confessed, drawing her into his arms.
“Same here.” She set to work on undoing the snaps on his shirt, each pop indicating a cause for celebrating, which she did by kissing the newly exposed skin.
“What’s the next step?” His voice rumbled beneath her lips.
She smiled against his chest before looking up at him. “Producing action.”
“I think I can manage that just fine.”
“I think we both can.”
Words were forsaken for action after that, as Zane kissed her and walked her toward his bed. Her long hair fell around her shoulders as he undid her hair clasp. He seemed fascinated with her hair, running his fingers through the long strands.
She focused her attention on getting him naked as quickly as possible. It seemed only fair since he now seemed intent on doing the same to her. Besides, he had more clothes on.
She removed his shirt and tossed it over her shoulder, placing tiny kisses along his bare collarbone as she did so.
He’d already removed his leather belt with the shiny silver buckle.
While he nibbled on her ear and whispered words of encouragement, she set to work on the fastening of his button-fly jeans. The sight of her slim fingers against his tanned abdomen was incredibly erotic and empowering. She felt his body quiver as she undid the first metal rivet.
The backs of her fingers were against his skin as she moved on to the next, one hand inside his jeans and the other outside—which meant the fingers of her left hand got to enjoy the warmth he was emanating while the fingers of her right hand brushed against denim and metal. Until she got lower. Then her hands were brushing against the ridge of his arousal.
Pushing her hands aside, he undid the single remaining button himself and tugged off the jeans. His underwear just happened to go with them.
He was just as she’d imagined he’d be. Maybe better. Definitely better.
While she paused to admire him, Zane took the opportunity to rid her of her robe and nightgown. Now she was as naked as he was.
Slinging her arms around his neck, she kissed him. He took her down with him as he fell onto the mattress. It was firm. Like him.
No, he wasn’t just firm, she decided. He was hard, all heat and steely need. She explored him with awe and appreciation, her fingertips not missing a thing.
“Wait,” he gasped. “Protection.” He fumbled in the bedside table, his eyes on her bare body as he yanked what was required from the drawer, holding it up triumphantly.
“Nice bubble gum,” Tracy said.
“What?” He looked and, sure enough, he held a packet of the twins’ favorite brand of bubble gum in his hand instead of the condom he’d been looking for.
“What exactly do you aim on doing with that?” she asked with naughty interest. “I should warn you that I was an excellent bubble blower in my youth. It’s all in the tongue, you know? Shall I show you?”
He groaned, his body already on fire for her. Now she fanned the flames.
By the time he finally found the condom and rolled it on, he’d made sure that he wasn’t the only one trembling with need
He came to her in one powerful surge, filling her completely. The friction of his thrusts created a ripple of undulating pleasure that grew to monumental proportions until she shouted his name as her world expanded and contracted with the ultimate satisfaction.
It was only later that she realized that she’d told him she loved him, not only with her body but with words.
TRACY WAS AWAKENED by the sound of someone pounding on the front door. Since her body was still wrapped around Zane’s, she knew it wasn’t him pounding.
“Who is it?” she asked groggily. She hadn’t gotten much sleep last night. Not after they’d made love two more times.
“You stay here. I’ll go see.” He stepped out of bed, giving her a nice but all too brief glimpse of his sexy backside.
“Your father and the twins aren’t due back yet, are they?”
“They wouldn’t knock before entering,” he reminded her as he tugged on his jeans.
“Maybe it’s Murph’n’Earl wanting their breakfast.”
“If it is I’ll get rid of them,” he promised her with a quick kiss.
He left the door open as he hurried downstairs. “Keep your pants on,” he shouted as the impatient pounding on the front door continued. “I’m coming.”
Because Zane’s bedroom was located at the top of the staircase, she could hear what was going on as he opened the door.
“Who are you?” she heard Zane ask.
Then she heard a voice from her past, a voice she never dreamed she’d hear out here in Colorado. “My name is Dennis. Dennis Waverly. I’m here for my fiancée, Tracy Campbell.”
11
TRACY LEAPT FROM THE BED as if shot out of a cannon. What was Dennis doing here? How had he found her? She certainly hadn’t told him where she was going.
She had to get dressed and find out what was going on.
The problem was that the only clothing she had up here was her satin nightgown and robe. Or she could raid Zane’s closet. She yanked one of his shirts out and tugged it on before adding—what? His jeans were miles too big for her. She found a pair of long johns she then rolled up around her waist. Big shirts and leggings were in, right?
She hurried downstairs to find that Zane had let Dennis into the front hall. She’d half been hoping he’d have tossed Dennis off his property by now. But it was cowardly of her to want Zane to fight her battles for her. She was a gutsy woman who’d gone nose to nose with a mouse. She could handle Dennis.
“What are you doing here?” she demanded, her tone cool.
“Keisha told me where you were. Said you were working on a new account out here. Barbecue sauce, I think she said.”
Tracy knew dam well that Keisha wouldn’t have been so forthcoming if Dennis hadn’t pushed her. She wondered what he’d promised Keisha to get her to talk.
“I’m here to tell you that I want you back,” Dennis said with that dramatic flair she’d once found so romantic and now just found ridiculous. “And I’ll do whatever it takes to win your love again.”
Tracy was so stunned she could only stare at Dennis in amazement. What planet was he on? Did he really think for one instant that there was any chance of her coming back to him?
Or was something else going on here?
Wait a minute. A few things Keisha had mentioned casually in her e-mails started slipping into place. Something about business at Dennis’s ad agency suffering since Tracy had quit. No doubt that was what was really behind Dennis’s appearance here along with his declaration of love.
Before she could speak, however, Zane said, “I’ll leave the two of you alone.”
She didn’t like the sound of that at all. Or the way Zane had said it. As if it had nothing to do with him. As if she was of no importance to him.
Maybe he just felt awkward.
“There’s no need for you to do that,” she quickly assured Zane. “Anything Dennis has to say can be said in front of you. I have no secrets from you.”
“You two should be alone,” Zane stubbornly insisted. “To decide how you’re going to work this out.” He hadn’t said if but how. His tone and his attitude made it clear that he thought she would be returning to Dennis and the life she had in Chicago.
Tracy was furious. How could Zane think that after the night they’d just shared? She’d even told him she loved him. Did he think so little of her?
Did he think that she jumpe
d into bed with every cowboy she met?
She was so angry she could hardly think straight. Enraged, she advanced on both Zane and Dennis, intent on giving them both a piece of her mind. And she didn’t aim on being quiet about it. Oh, no, she was mad enough to scream from the rooftop, and the decibel level of her voice reflected that fact.
First she focused her attention on the man from her past.
“Dennis, I’ll make this brief. Go jump in Lake Michigan and get out of my life. We’re history. It’s over, kaput, ain’t gonna happen, not ever in this lifetime or the next.”
She barely registered his stunned look before turning her full fury on the man from her present—Zane. “As for you,” she shouted, her voice getting even louder. “You are a total coward who’s afraid of loving again.” She punctuated each word with an angry jab of her finger to Zane’s bare chest. “Just because you had one bad experience. You think you’re the only one who’s ever made a mistake? I made a mistake with Dennis. But I’ve moved on. Not you. No, sirree. The great Zane Best knows better. But the bottom line is that you’re afraid of believing I really do love you with all my heart even though I’m an idiot for doing so. Neither one of you is worth the powder to blow you up!”
As she yelled at them, both Dennis and Zane quickly backed away from her, their hands outstretched in male confusion as if to ward her off, until they’d backed right out the still-open front door.
It was only when the door slammed in his face that Zane realized that Tracy had just thrown him out of his own house.
His first thought was that Buck was right. Tracy did have a temper that could turn a blizzard around and send it home with a suntan. Then it hit him that she’d said she loved him, not in the midst of a passion-induced haze but in a moment of feminine outrage. When she’d said the words last night while they’d made love, he’d been afraid to believe her. But now, how could he doubt her? She’d been fierce in her declaration, unwavering in her intent, which at the moment had been to get rid of him.