by Bianca D’Arc
That she hadn’t trusted him had hurt on a very deep level. Her change in attitude and willingness to believe in him had gone a long way toward healing that pain. Now, he had only one thought in mind—making the ranch safe again, so that they could live together here, if that’s what she wanted, in peace and security. He would do anything to be certain his mate was safe.
While the threat posed by Jones and Pepe was toward shifters at the moment, it was still a threat. People like that—those willing to hunt other beings for money—weren’t the kind of folks Cody would allow to be around his mate. They had to go. One way or another, Jones and Pepe’s days were numbered on this ranch.
That thought in mind, Cody finished up his chores while on the phone with Shane, making plans for tomorrow night. After that, he called ahead to set up his dinner plans. He had a few things to tell Cassie that couldn’t wait much longer. The first of them would be revealed at dinner.
A new spring in his step as his plans fell into place, Cody finished his work early and hustled back to the bunkhouse to get ready for his date. A shower and a change of clothes were in order, and the sooner he got that accomplished, the sooner he could be with Cassie again.
*
Cassandra was ready at six o’clock, curious as a cat about who Cody was taking her to meet. She hadn’t realized he had friends in the area, though she had to admit, she didn’t know all that much about him. All she knew for certain was that he’d appeared when her foreman had advertised locally for ranch hands. Rich had liked him and his ability with horses enough to give Cody the job, but other than that, what did she really know about Cody Tyler?
His truck was shiny in the twilight as he pulled around to the front of her house and picked her up. He insisted on getting out and coming around to greet her with a kiss that nearly made her swoon. Then, he opened the passenger door for her, whistling low when her legs were exposed as she hoisted herself into the cab of the pickup.
“You look good enough to eat, little girl.” The low voiced words rumbled through her as he leaned across to secure her seatbelt, rubbing his chest over hers. When he pulled away, her nipples were hard little points pushing out the fabric of her bra and shirt. He glanced down, smiling when he saw the reaction and licking his lips. The promise in his eyes made her blood heat. “Yeah, I’m gonna nibble on you later tonight, but first, we’re going to have dinner like civilized people.”
He closed the door and loped around to the driver’s side, climbing in with little fuss. He drove like he did everything else, with calm assurance and skill. They talked about the ranch and his work with particular horses as they headed for the town called Big Wolf. He went through the small town, passing into an upscale residential area on the outskirts. Her curiosity piqued when he pulled into one of the long driveways.
“You wanted to know about the woman who was in my truck.” His eyes darkened, and she braced herself for what he might say. “This is her house. The woman who lives here is my sister, Megan. She’s coming with us to dinner tonight so you can meet her.”
“Your sister?” Damn. Her voice had actually squeaked. Cody grinned at her.
“My little sister, to be more accurate. She was in a car accident a few weeks back. That’s why she was all bruised up. She showed up unexpectedly at the airport and called me for a ride as I was in my truck, on the way here,” he explained. “I stopped by the airport to get her, and she agreed to wait in the truck while I talked to Rich. She was worn out from her trip, so she was happy enough to doze in the sunshine.”
“That explains a lot.” She felt bad for doubting him. She’d decided to trust him, but knowing the facts made her feel even better about trusting her gut.
“This is the house where I grew up,” he went on, shocking her. “I was living here until I took the job at your place. It worked out well because I’m still close enough to keep an eye on Megan, but she insisted rather forcefully that she doesn’t want me coddling her. Still, she’s my baby sister. I want to be nearby if she needs me, and working at the ranch is a useful way to give us each our own space, yet be near each other. She’s used to me being a little eccentric, and I truly like the work{MISSING SYMBOL}and your baking{MISSING SYMBOL}so it’s all good.”
“So, you’re saying working with Rich is just a sort of…a cover for you?” She had to chuckle at her own words. It sounded like something out of a bad spy novel to her, but he wasn’t laughing. In fact, he looked very serious. “I mean, if you own a house like this, you must not need the money, right?”
“You got me. I am pretty well set, but like most folks, I do need to work, and I really do enjoy working with horses. I’ve always been able to coax them to do what I want and train them for others. I like the challenge and the satisfaction when things go right. And then, there’s you.” His gaze zeroed in on her.
“Me?” Her mouth went dry.
“From the moment I first saw you, I was intrigued. What was a city gal like you doing owning such a big spread? I liked the way you hired experts and let them do what they did best. You have a natural management style that really works. You inspire your people, and they love you for the pastries, but even more for yourself.”
“Management style?”
“Hmm.” He gave her a rueful grin. “Not a cowboy thing to say?”
She shook her head. “I’m afraid not. It’s more like something we city slickers would say.” She offered him a teasing smile, hoping he’d say more. She was already fascinated by the things he’d revealed.
She’d wanted to get to know him, and she felt glad he’d decided to open up and share parts of his life with her. These little bits of information only made her want to know it all. To understand all his facets and what made him tick.
Chapter Seven
“Would you be disappointed to learn that I’ve spent a little more time in the city than you might think?” His mysterious eyes twinkled at her in the darkening night.
“Now you’ve got me even more curious—but not disappointed. I don’t think you could ever disappoint me, Cody.” She held her breath after making such a bald admission, but it didn’t seem to faze him. He only smiled in that devilish way that melted her bones.
“That’s good, Cassie, because although I was born here in ranch country, I’ve never worked for anyone as a cowboy until now. My last name isn’t Tyler. Tyler’s my middle name. My last name is Billings. As in Billings Industries International.”
“You’re C.T. Billings?” she whispered, astounded at the idea.
“Damn, I guess it was too much to hope that you’d never heard of my company.”
“Give me a little credit. I did own a business for more than a few years. And I have an M.B.A. Heck, we studied your corporate structure in one of my classes! You started with small airplanes, right? And expanded from there.” Shock held her still, though he continued to stroke her hand. “I’ve been having sex with C.T. Billings?” Hysteria rose, fast and hard.
“Making love.” Cody unlatched her seatbelt and pulled her across the bench seat into his arms. “We’ve been making love, Cassie. It isn’t just sex when we’re together. At least not for me.”
Her heart skipped a beat. The look in his eyes was so open now, so yearning. She could deny him nothing.
“Not for me, either. Oh, Cody!”
He kissed her, urging her body as close as possible though the steering wheel got in the way. She was lost in the magic of his kiss, unable to focus on anything other than his words of…almost love. He hadn’t come out and actually declared himself, but it was enough for now. Too many shocks were making her lightheaded.
Tapping on the driver’s side window finally broke them apart. Cassie looked up to see a laughing blonde woman watching them.
“Away, brat!” Cody called in a good-natured tone. “We’ll be out in a minute.” The blonde laughed and went back to the porch but stood watching them with an impish grin. “That little hellion is my sister, Megan.”
Cody groused about the inte
rruption but got out of the truck, urging Cassie out the driver’s side with him. He lifted her down, letting her body drag along his as he set her on her feet, stealing her breath. No fair, when she had to meet a member of his family.
As it turned out, Megan was lovely. Welcoming and friendly. They didn’t go into the house, preferring to sit on the porch for a few minutes in the early evening air and chat.
“I reserved a private room for us at the barbeque place,” Cody told Cassandra when Megan said how much she was looking forward to dinner. “Our reservation isn’t for another thirty minutes,” Cody explained. “Since we’re so close, we can leave in about fifteen minutes, or so.”
That’s when Cassandra realized that Cody had given her a few extra minutes to get acquainted with his sister before they were actually at the restaurant. It was a thoughtful thing to have done.
Megan was tall and gorgeous. She was clearly intelligent from the way she spoke. She didn’t have any residual, bruising that Cassandra could see. Honestly, Cassandra was a little intimidated by her, but Megan was also considerate and seemed to be doing her best to try to put Cassandra at ease. It was hard not to like her.
By the time they piled into a big luxury car that had been parked in the garage, Cassandra felt much more at ease with Megan. Cody drove, since, apparently, this expensive vehicle was also his. It made sense, since he was really C.T. Billings.
That still blew Cassandra’s mind. Billings Industries was worth a very large fortune. The company had started with a few small planes and pilots, running local cargo routes all over the south and west of the U.S. From there, the company had branched out to bigger routes and larger planes.
She remembered Billings had apparently lost interest in that part of the business after it had grown into a very large international delivery service. He retained a large portion of the shares, but the company itself was run by a board of directors now, and C.T. had little to do with the day to day. At least, that was what her professor had stated when they’d studied the company’s corporate structure in one of her classes.
Billings, himself, the professor had told them, had diversified into financial services. He was rumored to run a very large portfolio of investments for a very select clientele. So select that the actual clients were only rumors.
The only odd thing was that Cody looked too young to be the highly successful C.T. Billings. Of course, Billings was known to have started his first company when he was just a teenager, so Cassandra supposed it was possible. Cody was incredibly handsome and kept himself in shape. He—and his sister, obviously—had to have really good genes.
They arrived at the restaurant in good time, and Cassandra was struck by the way everyone greeted Cody and Megan. Not as important rich folk, but as genuine friends. They gave Cassandra a few sidelong glances, but when the mayor of the town stepped over to say hello as they were waiting to be taken to their table, he surprised her by not only knowing who she was, but by being friendlier than anyone else in town had ever been to her.
“I’m glad to finally meet you, ma’am,” Joe Villalobos said with what looked like a genuine smile. “As you know, your ranch isn’t part of the town’s lands, but I do like to keep an eye on our neighbors. When old man Singleton died, I was watching like everyone else to see who would buy such a large spread.”
“I’m sure you’ve heard by now, that I’m not much of a rancher,” Cassandra stated honestly. “But I hired a man I think knows what he’s doing, and while Rich runs the ranch, his wife is putting the buildings back to rights.”
“Cody tells me it’s coming along nicely,” Joe said, giving her a conspiratorial wink.
“Ah, now it makes more sense. Cody’s your inside man, getting the scoop on the goings on, eh?” She meant it as a joke, but even as the words came out of her mouth, she realized it might just be true.
“Something like that,” Joe agreed easily, apparently not offended at all by what could have been interpreted as an accusation. “I also hear the perks of the job—pastries to die for, I’ve heard some say—are part of the attraction. I wonder if you wouldn’t mind giving our town bakery a little advice sometime. Barbara and Ed make really good breads, but they really don’t make many fancy sweets. Just cookies and the occasional cake, by special order.”
“Really?” Cassandra was truly surprised. “There’s no bake shop that makes pastries?”
Joe shook his head. “No. Not for a while now.” Joe’s eyes lit with amusement. “Maybe that’s something you could help us with.”
Cassandra was saved from having to make a reply when the hostess came over to take them to their table. They took their leave of the friendly mayor and followed the woman to the back of the restaurant, where there appeared to be several private rooms. Cassandra had seen the restaurant when she’d been in town, of course, but she’d never been inside and hadn’t realized that the casual-looking place was really very well equipped for almost any kind of gathering.
Her professional eye noted the order in the kitchen as they passed and the door swung open. The surfaces gleamed, and the scents issuing from inside were heavenly. She was looking forward to seeing the menu, and the meal.
Cody held Cassandra’s seat politely then did the same for his sister, who’d paused to say something to the hostess before she left them. His manners were impeccable, and Cassandra was seeing a whole new side to her adventurous lover that only intrigued her more.
“Cody mentioned that you’re still developing recipes,” Megan said as they all got comfortable. It was clearly a conversational gambit designed to get Cassandra to explain why.
“When I sold Cassandra’s Cakes, I retained an advisory position, and if I come up with commercially viable recipes, they get first crack at them. If they pass, I’m free to market them on my own.”
“Really? That sounds like a sweetheart of a deal. I’m assuming the creation of new recipes is where your passion really lies, right?” Megan asked.
“Exactly right. Growing my business was a means to financial security, but living out West was my dream, and now that I have the ranch, I’m free to follow my passion.” She sounded a bit wishy-washy, but Megan’s eyes glowed with approval.
“I want to be you when I grow up,” she said, then blushed, looking away. “I mean, I’m grateful for the job I have with Cody’s company. I enjoy the investing game a lot, but I’ve never really found any real passion for my work. I think that’s the ideal—when you do something you really love.”
“It is,” Cassandra agreed. “It took a lot of time for me to get to this point. You’re young. You have plenty of time to figure it out.”
The waiter arrived just then, greeting the siblings familiarly. It seemed like everybody knew Cody and Megan in this town, but considering they’d grown up here, that made sense. They ordered lots of food. The brother and sister each ordered appetizers, entrees and side dishes while Cassandra, hungry as she was, only felt up to ordering a salad and a main dish.
When it came to the table, the salad was small but perfectly proportioned as a first course. That, plus one of the rosemary bread rolls was perfect. Cody and Megan, on the other hand, shared the appetizers like they were going out of style, commenting on the quality and cooking styles of the shish kebabs and sliders they were consuming. They offered to share with Cassandra, but she declined.
The main courses were huge. Incredibly well-cooked and served on the largest plates Cassandra had ever seen in a restaurant, the amount of steak and ribs was generous, to say the least. Cassandra’s own filet mignon had been butterflied, at her request, because she liked it cooked very well done. The teenaged waiter had frowned a bit when she’d asked for it to be served that way, but at a nod from Cody, he said nothing and retreated.
Cassandra wondered what that had been about, but she couldn’t find a polite way to ask. Megan kept the conversation rolling along, talking about her schooling, which she’d completed a few months before. She’d gotten her MBA from one of the most presti
gious schools in the country, paid for, she’d said, by her big brother.
Cassandra was getting a much clearer idea of what Cody was all about. Surprising as his revelations had been, she felt okay with the idea that he was telling her the truth before things went any further between them. They’d had amazing sex, but it felt like he wanted her to get to know the real him. That meant something significant, she thought.
It might just mean that he was thinking about the future. A future…possibly…shared between them?
The more she was around him, the more Cassandra wanted him around. Cody the cowboy or C.T. the business mogul, it didn’t matter. The man who wore both names with ease was the man who fascinated her more than any other ever had. She realized she was well and truly falling in love with him.
Dear Lord in heaven. She was falling in love with Cody.
She should have realized it before now. It seemed so obvious in hindsight. He was such a fascinating man, and as a lover… Well, there was really no comparison.
Cody thought the evening was going well. Cassie seemed okay with all the revelations. He hadn’t really wanted to bombard her with everything all at once, but the fact that she was his mate kept pushing at him, making him want to just get it all over with and see what she said. His inner wolf wanted to howl in frustration that she still didn’t know that the wolf existed.
He had to tell her about his other half. He had to let her in on the shifter secret. She was his mate. She not only deserved to but needed to know the truth.
Still, he’d probably hit her with enough for one day. He’d gone from poor ranch hand to eccentric tycoon. That was probably jarring enough, for now.
He was glad to see the way Cassandra hit it off with Megan. His baby sister was one of the bright spots in his life. Since their parents’ passing, Megan had been his responsibility, and he loved her deeply. He’d been so proud of the way she’d conquered her fears and gone out in the world to get her degrees, then come back, as he had, to make her home here, where they’d both grown up.