He grasped her ass, encouraging her as his own need escalated. Her tight sheath sucked at him while her hips moved, pulling at his cock, demanding his release. It was too much to resist.
Her moans grew louder, higher pitched until her scream rent the air and her pussy pulsed against his cock. His seed exploded from him, pumping from him in satisfying spurts. His body rocked hers and eventually her moans softened to whimpers.
Wrapping his arms around her, he buried his hand in her hair and kissed the side of her head as her forehead rested on his shoulder. Her panting was still harsh from her orgasm.
He hadn’t expected that and the reality far surpassed what he’d envisioned alone in his room. She was perfect. Strong, uninhibited and sexy.
She lifted her head and looked at him, her face once again unreadable.
He smiled. “I’d be happy to lose to you any day.”
Her eyes did widen slightly then a tiny frown graced her forehead. “Somehow I think you won that one.”
He chuckled. “As long as you enjoyed it, I’m good either way.”
Her face shuttered once again. “I’d better get back to work.”
Work? She was still fully impaled on him and she wanted to work? He kept it light, wanting her to somehow acknowledge what they’d shared. “You can always go for another ride. I don’t mind.” He winked, wanting to see that freely expressed look of pleasure on her face again.
She shook her head and stood, the pull of her pussy against his cock making him hard all over again. He groaned at the loss of her heat.
While he pulled the condom off and dropped it in the trash next to him, she yanked up her jeans and quickly donned her bra and tank.
He crossed his arms, remaining where he was as he watched her short, quick movements. She acted like no other woman he’d been with and the puzzle of Kendra Lowe, professional poker player, had him intrigued and just a bit ticked off.
She bent to search beneath the table, her jean-clad ass in the air. “Did you see where my hair clip went?”
He didn’t say anything, simply waited for her to look at him.
She finally rose and turned. Her face revealed her interest in his naked body before her usual stoic expression took its place. “Wade?”
He shrugged. “I like your hair down much better.”
“But you said it wasn’t businesslike.”
“Exactly.”
The slight blush that filled her cheeks told him he made a hit. Good. It wasn’t human to be so emotionless.
“Did you enjoy your ride?”
She moved her weight to her right hip. “Yes. Did you?”
Now they were getting somewhere. “Immensely and I would very much like to sink into your body again.”
He sensed her interest before she denied them. “I can’t. I shouldn’t have done that. I’m your supervisor. It’s wrong, low class.”
Wade stood, her words hurting more than they should. “So you feel like you were slumming to lower yourself to be with me? Fine. Just remember, next time you want a quick fuck, don’t come looking for me. When I have sex with a woman, it’s not just about our bodies. My mistake.”
Slamming his hat on his head, he grabbed up his clothes and strode to the door.
“Wade. That’s not what I meant.”
He grabbed the handle and pulled the door open. Luckily, no one was in the hall as he exited. His anger dissipated as the coolness of the area made him alert to his nudity. Entering the common room, he stopped and listened. No footsteps followed him. He sneered. Of course not, that would mean she cared what he thought. Dropping his boots, he threw on his underwear, jeans and shirt. Then he flopped down on one of the couches and tugged on his boots.
He should have never satisfied his need with his boss. He’d let himself be distracted by her uniqueness, intelligence and unreadable personality. He was better than that. He worked at Poker Flat for a reason. It was time he kept that reason in the forefront of his mind.
Stalking out the main doors, he strode toward his casita. So the woman was a poker player. He’d bet the resort was paid for with her winnings. That was a relief at least. So why did his three predecessors leave?
“Heading to bed?”
Wade halted and waited for the person to move out of the shadows. It was Powell again. “Yup. Long day.”
The security guard shook his head. “Mine has barely begun. Have a good night.”
Wade hesitated. This was a good time as any to ask some questions. “Hey, did you know the other stable managers?”
“Of course.” Powell strolled toward him. “Crandall, Jorge and Michael. They just got younger and younger. You’re the youngest. Maybe the boss thought younger would be less likely to argue with her.”
“Did she disagree with all three?”
Powell thought for a moment. “Now that you ask, I think Michael and she got along fine. Why?”
Wade shrugged. “Just wondering what I might have to deal with.”
“Well, the lady definitely likes things done her way. So if you’re fine with that, it should be smooth sailing.”
“Thanks. Guess I’ll turn in now.”
“Yeah.” Powell turned away. “Got to do my rounds.”
Wade watched the man stroll down the path to the empty guest casitas. So Kendra wanted things her way. That did fit with what he’d seen, and some men had problems taking direction from a woman. Still, that might account for Crandall and Jorge leaving but it didn’t answer the question of why Michael left.
He yawned. Spending time with the Night Owl was not conducive to a good night’s sleep. Striding down the path toward his own bed, it became clear to him spending time with the boss wasn’t conducive to his ego either. Best to let things lie as they were.
*
KENDRA STARED AT the wildlife manager in his crisp gray uniform. “What are you talking about? We haven’t noticed any bald eagles in this area since I bought the land. If one had made a nest nearby, I certainly would have seen it at some point.”
The game official shook his head. “We are simply following up on a reported sighting, ma’am. Now please show us any fireplaces you may have here.”
Kendra fisted her hands. Fireplaces? Now why did he specifically ask about fireplaces? Someone must have told him about the nest and junk she found before the chimney sweep arrived. Someone had ratted her out.
After continual problems all week that she’d reasoned away, it became crystal clear someone was sabotaging her. The question was who. Wade’s anger of four nights ago came to mind. Could he be that mad at her? She’d tried to see him the next morning to apologize, but he’d already left with Adriana and the wagon to pick up the beer delivery. After that, cracked windows, a leaky roof, and ripped-out watering lines for the lawns had taken her attention.
Lacey stood next to her, her worried look telling Kendra this was no easy matter to sidestep. “Lacey, take this gentleman out to the bar and show him that fireplace.”
“Of course, right this way.” Lacey, smart girl, led the gentleman back out through the main doors he’d entered and around the building.
Adriana burst in from the bar entrance. “Why is the Game and Fish department here?”
“They’re saying we have a bald eagle nest in a chimney. Have you seen any bald eagles?”
Adriana put her hands on her hips. “How would they know we had a bird nest in the first place?”
“Someone told them. Someone who knew.” Kendra headed for the large chimney in the common area, Adriana on her heels. She moved the logs stacked in place for the first fire and opened the flue. The chimney was clean. She breathed a sigh of relief. At least no one had blocked it since the chimney sweep had come. She closed the flue and waited.
Adriana wasn’t as patient. “We need to find out who did this. Did he say who called him?”
Kendra shook her head. “He said there was a sighting.”
“Sighting, my ass. Who knew about the nest you found?”
“Everyone on the
property. Even the sheriff and the chimney sweep knew. It could be anyone.”
Adriana sat on a nearby couch. “Yes, but not everyone wants this place to close.”
“Why would a bald eagle close the resort?”
“Kendra, you spend too much time working. If you got out once in a while you’d know when bald eagles build nests, Arizona Game and Fish don’t allow people near them. Last December they closed the entire Aqua Fria river part of Lake Pleasant until June!”
“Half a year?” Nausea threatened her insides. She couldn’t afford for her resort to be closed half the year, especially in the winter months when nudists were looking for warmer climates. “I can’t close that long.”
The side door opened and Lacey walked the officer into the great room. Throwing a worried glance at Kendra, she pointed to the fireplace. “That’s the only other large one we have. All the others are very small and are in the larger casitas. I would be happy to show you them.”
The officer wrote something on his clipboard then set it down. “It would have to be a very large fireplace. If the others are smaller then I don’t need to inspect them.” He moved closer to the twelve-foot-wide centerpiece of the resort. “Why are these logs here?”
Kendra answered. “We had them stacked and ready for our first fire, but I moved them so you could inspect it.”
He picked up his clipboard again and wrote. Then he opened the flue and peered up the chimney. When he came out, he wrote another note. “These two chimneys have been cleaned.”
“Yes. I had them cleaned to prepare for our opening.”
He looked at her with a hard stare. “Ma’am, you won’t be opening if you disturbed a bald eagle’s nest.”
Okay, it was time for him to show his hand. “What are you talking about? You said you had a report of a sighting. What does that have to do with my fireplaces and eagle’s nests?”
The man lost a bit of his bravado. “The report was of a sighting of an eagle’s nest in a chimney.”
Damn. “Who called in the report?”
“It was anonymous.”
Wasn’t that convenient? “Well, as you can see we have no nests in our chimneys.”
The man’s face grew serious. “That’s because you had them cleaned. Perhaps to hide the evidence. I’ll need to see your trash.”
“You want to pick through our trash?”
“That’s what I said, ma’am.”
“Fine. Lacey, please show this gentleman where our trash is. And just so you know, officer, we bring our trash to the dump every other day.”
The man’s jaw hardened but he nodded and followed Lacey out, his clipboard grasped securely under his arm.
Kendra collapsed onto the couch next to Adriana. “At least he won’t find anything in the trash.”
“Yeah. But I want to know who betrayed you.”
“Believe me, so do I.”
The front door opened and the sound of cowboy boots hitting the tile floor had her turning her head. Speak of the devil. Short shuffling steps followed.
Wade came around the corner into the great room, his expression worried. “Billy told me Game and Fish are here.”
Billy stopped next to Wade, his face flushed. “I tell him, Miss Kendra. He know lots about Arizona laws.”
He knows Arizona law, like maybe that bald eagle nests are a reason to close down a resort? The deck was definitely stacked against her new stable manager as far as she could see. “Yes, they are here. Right now an officer is going through the trash. Billy, you’ve been bringing the trash to the dump every other day, right?”
Billy nodded. “Every bit, Miss Kendra.”
“I’m not sure what he expects to find in there.”
Wade moved to the fireplace, glancing at the logs she’d moved. “Does he know about the bird nest you found blocking this chimney?”
She studied him. The man was too open with his emotions. She doubted he was the one who tipped them off. “Yes, he does. Someone told him. He’s out back searching for evidence right now. He wasn’t too happy I’d had the chimneys cleaned.”
Wade leaned against the opposite couch. “That’s not necessarily a good thing. He will view it as you covering something up.”
She sat straighter. “But I was being responsible so we’d have no unwanted fires in them.”
Wade shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. Game and Fish has a one-track mind and that is to protect the wildlife at all costs. It’s a good focus when the danger is real, but I haven’t seen a bald eagle while I’ve been here. It’s just not the right environment.”
The front door opened and they all fell silent. To Kendra, the officer’s shoes hitting the tiled floor sounded like the footsteps of doom. She rose. Why did she want to vomit right now?
As Lacey and the officer came into the great room, Lacey’s face said it all. The man carried a garbage bag in his right hand, his ever-present clipboard in the other.
“Ma’am, it appears you were trying to hide this evidence.”
“What evidence?”
The man opened the bag in triumph. “That. That is the remains of a bird’s nest.”
Chapter Six
‡
SHE DIDN’T MOVE a muscle, but bile rose up into her throat. Why hadn’t that been taken to the dump? She glanced at Billy who looked stunned. Someone had set her up. “I think ‘remains’ is the key word here, officer. It was a dried up nest that was broken apart. I simply threw it where it was supposed to go, in the trash.”
The man stood taller. “If this is a bald eagle’s nest, we will have to shut this place down and you will be fined, possibly receive jail time.”
Kendra wanted to laugh at the absurd mess, but she remained still. If he expected her to confess because of his threats, he was sadly mistaken.
“Officer.” Wade stepped up to the coffee table where the nest lay exposed like a testimony of damnation. “May I take a look at the nest? My family have been ranchers here for generations and I’m pretty good with bird identification.”
The officer hesitated. “Any official identification will have to be done by our department.”
“I understand.”
The officer nodded and Wade spread the bag open farther.
Kendra couldn’t have moved if she tried. She had no idea what Wade was about, which added to her stress.
Wade’s voice was polite and very deferential. “Sir, the reason I want to examine this nest is this chimney, though large, would still be small for a bald eagle nest. Ah.” He pointed. “If you look here, you can see there are a few feathers stuck between the twigs. They are striped horizontally in many rows. I believe a bald eagle has a vertical split of two solid colors. Also, in this area of the nest, it appears there is the skeleton of a smaller bird. Based on that, my guess is this was a Cooper’s hawk nest. What do you think?”
The officer joined Wade and poked around in the nest with his pen. “It’s very unusual for those hawks to build in a chimney, but then again, it’s even more unusual for bald eagles.” He lifted the nest and pointed. “Ah, there are two tree branches running through this. Either the branches spanned the chimney, which tricked the birds, or more likely the nest was lifted by strong winds and deposited in the chimney.”
“So you agree, it is most likely a Cooper’s hawk nest?” Wade’s face portrayed a respect the officer obviously appreciated.
“I do. But I will still need confirmation from our experts on staff.”
Wade stepped back. “Of course.”
Kendra took her first deep breath since hearing Game and Fish had arrived. She owed Wade in a big way.
Adriana jumped up. “Oh, I just have to take a photo of this for my sister. It’s so exciting.”
Huh? Adriana didn’t have a sister. What was the minx up to now?
The officer reached for the bag, but Adriana had already snapped a few pictures with her phone. “Can I take a picture of you holding the bag too? My sister so loves a man in uniform.”
At Adriana’s blatant perusal of his body, the officer straightened, even smiled for her picture.
After she thanked him, he picked up his damn clipboard.
Kendra motioned Lacey to see him out, but he turned and faced her.
“Ma’am, next time you find a bird nest on your property, call Game and Fish immediately. Do you understand?”
“I do.”
The man stared at her a minute longer then turned and followed Lacey out.
When the front door closed, Billy whooped and Adriana fell back onto the couch. “Holy crap, that was close.”
Kendra silently agreed. “What was the photo taking all about? You don’t have a sister.”
She shrugged. “Insurance. I didn’t want him coming back and telling us the experts found bald eagle feathers in there when clearly there weren’t. I also wanted to have his picture so we would know who was crooked in case we never saw him again and they tried to close down Poker Flat.”
Adriana’s loyalty had Kendra’s eyes tearing up and her admiration for her friend grew. “Thank you.” She turned and looked at Wade, who watched her. “And thank you. You saved my resort, my dream. I don’t know what to say.”
He studied her a moment. “If there’s no resort than I don’t have a job, so it was in my best interest.”
He turned to go but she couldn’t let him. “Wade, wait. Please.”
He stopped, but didn’t turn around.
Adriana jumped up. “That’s my cue to leave.” She hooked her arm into Billy’s. “Come on, Billy. I’ll buy you a beer.”
Kendra waited until her other two employees had gone outside. When the door closed, she swallowed. “I want to apologize.”
He finally turned around and faced her. “For what?”
She took a deep breath. “For what I said the night of the poker game. I didn’t mean you were low class, I meant my behavior was low class. I’m sorry if you thought I meant you.”
He studied her, his scrutiny tougher than any player she’d ever sat across from. “Okay.” He turned away again and headed for the door.
He wasn’t buying it. For some reason, she needed him to. “Wade.”
He kept walking.
Kendra had never run after a man in her life, not even her ex-husband when he walked out on her, but she needed Wade to believe her. She caught up with him before he reached the door. “Wade, please. I mean it. I don’t want you to think I look down on you in any way. In fact, I admire you. Believe me.”
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