Rolling Like Thunder

by Vicki Lewis Thompson

  After fetching his hat, he went out onto the front porch and found Chelsea sitting in a white wicker chair looking as mellow as he felt. She had a project demanding her attention, but she was putting it aside to spend time with him. He didn’t take that lightly.

  “You look settled in,” he said. “Would you rather stay on the porch and watch the world go by?”

  “I’m not sure a lot of the world will go by on this little corner.” She stood. “Let’s go explore.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” He held out his hand and she linked her fingers through his without hesitation. Walking along the sidewalk holding hands seemed so natural, yet they’d never done it before.

  He’d kept any touching to a minimum with Chelsea. Oddly enough, she’d done the same, although she was a hugger with people she knew and liked. He decided to mention it. “I just realized that until this weekend, you’ve never hugged me.”

  “That’s right.”

  “So it was intentional, then. Did you think I’d push you away?”

  “I wasn’t sure what you’d do, but I decided not to risk it, considering the heat we seemed to generate when we were close to each other. I figured a hug could go one of two ways. Either you’d reject it because it was too intense, or we’d end up in the nearest coat closet tearing at each other’s clothes.”

  “Option B is the most likely. I touched you as little as possible because I didn’t trust myself. I was worried about that on this trip.” He laughed. “Guess we know how that turned out.”

  “Blame it on the dancing.”

  “Or I could drop to my knees in gratitude because of the dancing, and the cold walk home, and finding myself in the room next to yours with no other guests in the house.”

  “So you don’t think you’ll regret what’s happened?”

  “I’d be a fool if I did.” He hesitated. “How about you?”

  “To steal your comment, I’d be a fool if I did.”

  “No matter what?”

  She squeezed his hand. “No matter what. Obviously you believe we won’t have the same dynamic in Seattle, and you could be right.”

  “I probably am. I’ve known myself a long time.”

  “True, but we won’t find out until we get there. At least we won’t have that other thing, that weird Frankenship where we couldn’t admit we were in lust.”

  “‘Frankenship’?”

  “Sort of a friendship, but with strong sexual overtones that made us act like zombies around each other. A Frankenship. It’s a term I made up.”

  He grinned. “Perfect description. I’m glad we killed it.”

  “Actually, you killed it. I was headed into my room to sleep alone Friday night until you admitted you were crazy for me.”

  “But then I was ready to give up for lack of condoms. I say killing our Frankenship was a combined effort. And now it’s dead.” He took a deep breath. “And I’ve never felt more alive.”

  “Good sex can have that effect.”

  “It’s not only the sex, although that’s a huge part of why I’m feeling so good. It’s—I hate to say this—it’s being away from O’Roarke’s.”

  “But weren’t you gone for almost a week in June?”

  “Yeah, but I was worried sick about Rosie, and then when her condition seemed to be less dire than we’d all thought, we found out that they were about to lose the ranch. Now Rosie’s in good health and we have a way to save the ranch.” He looked over at her. “But mostly it’s the sex.”

  She laughed. “Thought so. Well, we’ve walked the length of Main Street.”

  “So we have.”

  “Now what?”

  He paused to look around. “I got so carried away with what we were talking about I didn’t pay attention. Sure is quiet.”

  “Sure is. Except for the diner, everything’s closed up tight. A lot different from Seattle on a Sunday morning.”

  “That’s for certain.” He glanced back at the area they’d already covered. While engrossed in their conversation, he’d walked past the general store where they’d bought the condoms, a post office, a hair salon and an ice cream parlor, all closed.

  Spirits and Spurs stood at the far end on the opposite side of the street. Beside it was a feed store, and he pointed to a life-size plastic horse on its roof. “You won’t see anything like that in Seattle.”

  “Probably not.” She glanced at the building next to it. “No one-story banks, either. But judging from the brick they used, it was probably put up about the same time as the building you renovated for O’Roarke’s. In fact, there’s mostly brick construction along this street, except for Spirits and Spurs.”

  “Which might be the oldest structure in town.”

  “I wouldn’t be surprised.” She gazed across the road where six pickups were angle-parked in front of the diner. “I’d love to support the local economy, but I’m stuffed from breakfast.”

  “Me, too. We could go there for dinner.”

  “Oh, I forgot to tell you. Josie wondered if we’d meet her and Jack for dinner at Spirits and Spurs.”

  He pictured dancing with Chelsea again and the idea filled him with pleasure. “Sure, that would be great.”

  “She’s really serious about a microbrewery and wants to start ordering equipment. She’d love your advice.”

  “I’d be happy to talk to her about it, but that might not be so easy if there’s a band.”

  “No band tonight.”

  “Oh.”

  She chuckled. “You should see your face. Do you want to dance? Maybe they have a jukebox or a sound system.”

  “I never thought I’d look forward to dancing, but the minute you mentioned Spirits and Spurs, that was my first thought. I do like it way better than I expected to, and besides, it’s a great excuse to hold you.”

  “Then we’ll see if they have music available. Ready to walk back?”

  “Guess so.” He surveyed the street again. “Let’s cross over and walk down the other side.”

  “Watch out for traffic.” Then she laughed. “Kidding.”

  “It really is a sleepy little town.” Other than the pickups in front of the diner, the street was deserted. “I wonder if Josie can make a go of a microbrewery in a place this small.”

  “If that’s all she had to work with, probably not, but she’s planning to draw from surrounding areas, and specifically Jackson. Tyler and Alex have all kinds of promotional ideas once Josie gets going.”

  “And it’ll have the Chance name attached. That should help.” He decided the joy of holding hands was underestimated. Feeling that connection while walking with Chelsea was turning into one of his favorite things.

  “I don’t think she intends to trade on the Chance name. The Spirits and Spurs is her baby, not Jack’s, and I get the impression she wants the microbrewery to be her project, too.”

  “But wouldn’t the Chance name boost sales? They’re so well known around here.”

  “It might, and naturally some people will know she’s married to a Chance, but she doesn’t want to emphasize that. The important hook will be the historic saloon, ghost drinkers in the bar and all of that. This family is terrific, but she doesn’t want to be totally defined by her association with it.”

  Finn had a tough time imagining being overwhelmed by family or rejecting a great marketing tool like the Chance name. “I don’t really get it, but my buddy Cade might. He was freaked out when he suddenly discovered he was a Chance cousin and instead of having no relatives he had a boatload. But I was a little jealous of the guy.”

  “Having been here for a few days, I can see how the Chances could be intimidating. We’re dealing with a dynasty here, and Josie wants something that she made all by herself. I can understand that.”

  “Yeah, maybe. I only had one
relative, and that didn’t feel like enough.”

  “But he focused all his attention on you. I had a friend who was an only child and I thought that was great. No competition.”

  “I guess that’s true.” He felt an unexpected tug of nostalgia. “We did stuff, just the two of us. Simple things like going fishing and camping, sometimes renting movies if it was bargain day. I need to remember that.”

  She glanced at him. “He sounds like a nice man.”

  “He was.” He didn’t say anything for a while. “I’m kind of hard on him, but he was a nice man. He knew I was lonely. He used to say that he’d love to adopt a sister or a brother for me, but he couldn’t afford it.”

  “That’s touching.”

  “It is now. At the time I was mad because I didn’t have anybody to play with.”

  She squeezed his hand. “I get that. Beth and I have had our knock-down, drag-out fights, but I’m glad she’s there. If I ever have kids, I’d like to have two.”

  “Do you want some, then?”

  “I do, assuming I find the right person. How about you?”

  He sighed. “Honestly, I don’t see myself having any.”

  “How can you be so sure?” Her words had an uncharacteristic edge to them, as if she might be tired of hearing him say things like that.

  “I’m just being realistic, Chels.”

  She sighed. “I know. Sorry. God knows people shouldn’t have children unless they really want them.”

  “Or feel they can give them the time they’ll need.”

  “Right.”

  “You’d make a wonderful mother, though.”

  She glanced at him. “Thank you. I think I would, too.”

  11

  THEY WENT BACK in silence. Chelsea resisted the urge to challenge Finn’s stubborn belief that he couldn’t be a successful businessman and have a personal life. She hadn’t walked in his shoes, after all. She hadn’t been a kid whose grandfather had begged for half-priced pastries.

  His marriage to Alison hadn’t helped matters, apparently. Chelsea hadn’t gotten to know her very well. She’d been too busy being pea green with envy. But she suspected that Alison had painted an appealing picture of a more relaxed lifestyle. It was a worthy goal, but Alison hadn’t been the right woman to carry it off.

  Chelsea had done some investigating after Finn and Alison’s quickie Las Vegas wedding. Okay, a lot of investigating. Alison worked a nine-to-five salaried job for a paper-products company and she’d met Finn because he placed orders through her.

  The life of a business owner had nothing in common with a salaried employee. Someone with a regular paycheck was unlikely to relate to things Chelsea felt on a gut level—the uncertainty of monthly or yearly income, the constant threat of some catastrophe wiping out profits and the realization that you were the driving force behind it all.

  She understood why Finn was so determined not to let anything interrupt his concentration. She also realized that if he didn’t find a way to deal with that kind of pressure and give himself permission to enjoy life outside of work, he could be headed for a lonely life at best and an early grave at worst.

  In her PR business, she’d seen it happen. Whether or not Finn ended up with her, she didn’t want him to be alone and unhappy. Someone like Alison wasn’t likely to be the answer, as he’d found out. Chelsea couldn’t guarantee that she’d be any better at helping him balance his priorities, but she felt qualified to make the attempt.

  They exchanged only pleasantries as they returned to their respective rooms and got ready for lunch with Lily and Regan. Chelsea decided pleasantries weren’t working for her. Leaving her room ten minutes before they were scheduled to start downstairs, she knocked on his open door.

  He glanced up from the room’s small antique desk where he’d been typing something on his laptop. “Is it time to go? I thought we had—”

  “We do. We don’t have to leave yet. May I come in?”

  “Sure.” He shut down the computer and stood. “Something on your mind?”

  “You know there is. We started out that walk in a cheerful mood and somehow ended it on a sour note. I want to fix that.”

  He tunneled his fingers through his glossy, dark hair, mussing it in a very sexy way. “Me, too. What happened?”

  His innocent question grabbed her by the heart. He wanted to be happy and carefree, but the poor guy didn’t know how. “I think we forgot to live in the here and now.”

  After a long pause he nodded. “You’re right. Instead of walking down Main Street and enjoying the beautiful day and a chance to be together, we got into the subject of having kids.”

  “Yep. A loaded subject that had nothing to do with our activities today. I can’t speak for you, but creating a baby is not a high priority for me today. In fact, I was present when we bought an entire box of supplies to keep that from happening.”

  “So we did.” His frown disappeared and a slow smile touched his beautiful mouth. “And that’s where we should place our focus, on the use of the contents of that box.”

  “That’s my conclusion.” She moved in close and slipped her arms around his neck. “Not right this minute, because we have places to go and people to see. We also have a dinner date with Josie and Jack. But after that...” She wiggled against him.

  He pulled her in tight. “And we should take advantage of the privacy we have now because I have no idea how things will shake out for us at Thunder Mountain.”

  “Because they think of us as platonic business associates?”

  “Uh, not exactly.”

  “What do you mean not exactly?”

  “I mean that Cade, Lexi and Damon, because they all know me so well, might have picked up on a certain...interest I had in you back in June when we asked for your help.”

  She was delighted to find out that his friends had some advance knowledge of the situation. “What about Rosie and Herb? Do they have any clue that we might be more than friends?”

  “Herb doesn’t usually get into that kind of issue if he can help it, but Rosie is a matchmaker from the get-go. She’d love to think something was going on between us.”

  “But we’ll have separate sleeping quarters, obviously.”

  “I’d expect that. They’ll probably give you a room in the house and I’ll be out in the Thunder Mountain Brotherhood cabin.”

  “The cabin you shared with Cade and Damon when you all lived at the ranch?”

  “That’s it. Rosie always assumes any of us who show up will want to sleep out there for old times’ sake.”

  “Then we’ll be separated every night, huh?”

  He cupped her bottom and his fingers flexed against the denim. “’Fraid so. Unless we get creative.”

  “Let’s do that.” She nudged his fly. “Let’s definitely do that.”

  “It makes no sense for me to sneak into the house where Rosie and Herb would be right down the hall, so you’d have to sneak out and visit me in the cabin.”

  “How soundly do they sleep?”

  “Herb sleeps like the dead. After years of having so many teenage boys to worry about, Rosie keeps one ear open all the time. And she has eyes in the back of her head.”

  “Maybe that’s just as well.” Chelsea gazed up at him. “I don’t feel right sneaking out of the house when I’m a guest. I’m sure the etiquette police wouldn’t approve.”

  “I figured that would be the case. As it happens, I’ve given this some thought.”

  “Have you, now?”

  His blue eyes sparkled. “After the past two nights, you think I wouldn’t?”

  “I’m glad, because I have no clue about this place. I didn’t know if we’d have bedrooms right next to each other, like here, but if your foster parents are close by, that’s not such a gr
eat setup, either.”

  “That’s why I think, all things considered, we should plan on daytime sex.”

  “Oh, really? Rather than have me sneak out under cover of darkness, you want to do it in broad daylight? Where, pray tell? In the hayloft? In an empty stall? That doesn’t sound like a better option to me.”

  “Cade and Lexi had some hot times in the tack room, but I won’t put you through that. Now that I know you can ride, we can pack a lunch, pack our condoms and have us a picnic in some secluded spot.”

  “Oh.” The image of that was erotic enough to dampen her panties. “I’ve never done it outside.”

  “It’s a whole new experience.”

  “So you’ve done it?” She didn’t enjoy the image of him enjoying sex in the great outdoors with someone else, but doubtless a guy as cute as Finn hadn’t been celibate prior to his arrival in Seattle.

  “I have, but it’s been a while and I guarantee none of them were as beautiful as you will be lying on a blanket in the sunlight.”

  “None of them? Sounds like you had a high old time in the woods, O’Roarke.”

  “Hey, weren’t you the person who just told me to focus on the here and now? Unless you want me to start asking questions about the guys you’ve been with...” He lifted his eyebrows.

  “No, you’re absolutely right. No dwelling on the past or the future. But concerning our present, won’t Rosie and Herb suspect what we’re doing?”

  “Herb won’t because I’m sure he feels it’s none of his business. Rosie believes everything to do with her boys is her business, but if she likes you, she’ll offer to pack the sandwiches and send us on our way.”

  “If she likes me? What if she doesn’t?”

  “She’ll love you. I didn’t mean it like that. You’re great, and besides, you’re the mastermind who helped us create the Kickstarter campaign. Like I said, she’ll be trying to play matchmaker.”