Kate's Secret (Bluegrass Spirits Book 2)

by Kallypso Masters

  “Wait. You mean this buddy in the dream is…no longer alive?”

  He shook his head then answered, “No,” in case she couldn’t see him. “It’s the Danny I told you about.”

  She closed the gap between them, and her hand squeezed his forearm. “I don’t want to pry, but if you want to talk about him, I’m here. You said he died five months ago.”

  He nodded, his throat closing with emotion. He hadn’t even talked to his family about Danny yet, although they’d been at his memorial service and understood.

  “Did it happen stateside or during a deployment?”

  “We haven’t deployed in more than three years.” While he didn’t want to say the ugly word, he did so anyway. “He died at his apartment. Appears to have been a suicide, although the medical examiner couldn’t rule out accidental death.”

  “Oh, Travis! How awful for his friends and family, doubly hard not knowing with any certainty what happened.”

  More than you can imagine.

  He nodded. “I should have tried harder to get him off the painkillers. I thought we were making progress and that he was moving in the right direction toward a new life after…But opioids eventually killed him.” Travis didn’t intend to go into the details of all that Danny had suffered after the deployment that sent him home prematurely.

  “I can’t imagine how hard it is to go back to civilian life after all you experienced over there. Sounds like the two of you were close.”

  He nodded. “He was closer to me than my own brother, if that makes sense. And Clint and I are pretty damned close.”

  “I’m sure the bonds forged in combat supersede blood ties many times.”

  That she didn’t judge him for making a statement like that helped relax him a little more. He couldn’t explain why he’d listen to a ghost in a dream, but wanted her to understand what had brought him to her doorstep.

  When she laid her head on his shoulder, all thoughts of Danny escaped him. “I’m glad you made it back, Travis.”

  Almost sounded like she meant back here to her farm—and her. This place felt more like home than anywhere he’d been since they’d split up. Then he realized she simply meant home to the States. “Yeah. Me, too.” What else was he supposed to say? He’d been so glad to return from that disastrous second deployment and hadn’t wanted to go back for a third, but did.

  When she shivered, he moved closer to wrap his arm around her at the exact moment the door slammed shut without warning, blocking out what little daylight there had been. Neptune nickered outside.

  Katie jumped up, out of his arms. Her feet scuffed along the dirt floor as she headed for the door. She probably welcomed the intrusion, wanting to break contact with him. The squeak of the rusty, cast-iron handle confirmed her whereabouts as she pressed the latch repeatedly, without success it would seem.

  “I can’t get it to open.” Frustration in her voice coupled with a bit of panic told him she didn’t find the notion of being locked in here a particularly welcome predicament. He, on the other hand, saw the possibilities of his playing the hero for the only woman he’d ever loved. A good tug ought to open it up, but why rush?

  “What are we going to do, Travis?”

  The rising panic in her voice quashed his libido, so he turned on the flashlight app on his phone. “Let me take a look.” Keeping his voice calm, he stated the obvious. “Neptune must have spooked.” With his reins tied to the ring on the door, the horse likely inadvertently pulled it shut. Standing, Travis closed the gap between them and placed his hand over hers on the handle before she jerked away. “Probably just jammed from the humidity swelling the wooden planks.” He gave the door another tug. Nothing. Several more attempts offered the same results.

  “I can’t figure out why it’s still stuck,” he said, shining his light around the edges of the door. He could still see some light coming through from the outside near the hinges. “Darnedest thing I’ve ever seen.” He tried the handle again but couldn’t get it to budge.

  Katie brushed his hand aside and began yanking in earnest. Apparently, being stuck in the springhouse with him wasn’t high on the list of her favorite things. “Is there someone we can call to help us out of here?” he asked. “I have my cell phone.”

  “Yeah. My neighbors, Lidia and Jason Brodie. But I doubt we’ll get a signal from in here.”

  He glanced down at the face of the phone. “You’re right. No service.”

  Quit your worrying, Trav. I’ll let you both out in time.

  He heard Danny as clear as day, but Katie didn’t react at all. Hallucinating again.

  Instead, she grabbed the cell phone from him and held it aloft, trying to find a signal in this dead zone.

  What if he told her he sometimes thought he heard Danny talking to him? Would she think he’d lost his mind? But if by some miracle his friend was around, then he wanted help getting them out of here. Katie couldn’t remain stranded up here without food and insulin for long. “What the hell are you doing?”

  Katie lowered the phone, but saw her cock her head in the phone’s illumination. “Sometimes I can get a signal in other places on the farm if I move the phone around.”

  He didn’t realize he’d spoken aloud until she answered. “Sorry. Good idea.” Danny was going to make him look like an idiot yet.

  Lighten up. Damn, if I was locked in here with a sexy woman like Katie… I’m just trying to help things along. You sounded like you were giving up. But if things go the way I planned, you can name this one after me.

  The Danny voice wasn’t even making sense anymore. What the hell did he mean by this one? And who’d he think he was calling Katie sexy? Not that she wasn’t, but a friend wouldn’t come right out and say it. Travis tried to shake off the delusion and went to the door to try it again. After multiple attempts, he gave up.

  “Why don’t we sit down?” she suggested. She took a spot on the stone wall surrounding the water trough again, and he followed suit, taking the phone from her hand just before she lit into him.

  “Did you set this up? Is someone out there holding the door closed? Travis, if this is your idea of a joke—”

  “Whoa! Don’t bust my chops. I had nothing to do with this.” Man, she didn’t trust him as far as she could throw him. “The way I figure it, Neptune yanked the reins attached to the door, and it shut.” No way was he going to tell her they might both be the victims of a supernatural prank, because he didn’t want to believe that, either.

  Still concerned about Katie’s health, though, he asked, “When’s the last time you ate something?” She’d been working all afternoon. Had she eaten supper before going for a ride?

  “Supper—an hour or two ago.”

  Damn. She couldn’t go too long without eating or her sugar would tank again.

  She pulled some pouches out of her pocket. “Don’t worry about me. I have fruit gummies on me at all times, just in case. These’ll last me all night, if we have to wait for someone to come looking for us tomorrow. I can even share.”

  “I’ll be fine. I trained for situations like this.” Well, the not eating part. “We have plenty of water. I’m more worried about you.”

  After being locked in the springhouse only a short time, Travis was beginning to feel as stir-crazy as he had before his run. “Don’t worry. I’ll get us out of this mess.”

  Danny, boy, if you’re really responsible for this situation, you’d better resolve it PDQ. If not, I’m going to come after you when I get to the afterlife.

  “How? No one’s going to come looking for us until tomorrow when my first student arrives. I just hope they think to search up here. They may not realize Neptune’s missing, too. But with our trucks in the drive, surely they’ll get suspicious. I’ve never been late for a lesson.”

  Travis wasn’t about to take advantage of the situation or Katie’s anxiety, but when she began trembling and wrapped her arms around herself again, he took the shirt from around his neck and handed it to her. “Here, pu
t this on. It’s not very heavy, but another layer is better than nothing.”

  “N-n-no, I’m fine.”

  “Like hell. You’re shivering.”

  “Well, I wasn’t expecting to get locked in here tonight. And it’s hot as Hades outside, so I thought I was dressed appropriately.” She let him drape the shirt around her shoulders and tugged the flaps tightly closed in front of her chest. For good measure, he wrapped an arm behind her and pulled her against his chest. Lord knows he was anything but cold at the moment. Her lemony scent filled the air, making him long to steal another kiss, but he put the brakes on the impulse.

  “Travis?” she whispered.

  “Yeah?” His voice had become husky.

  “You’re like an oven.”

  He grinned. “You’re welcome.”

  “You aren’t wearing an undershirt, are you?”

  He chuckled. So she’d noticed. “Nope. Not a chance during a muggy Kentucky summer—not during a Tennessee one, either.”

  She groaned. “I was afraid of that.”

  She started to wriggle away from him, and while he didn’t hold her all that tightly, he hoped she’d reconsider. “I’m just trying to keep you warm, Katie.”

  “It might be best if I scoot over here a while.”

  “What’s the matter? Don’t trust me?”

  “No, it’s not you. I don’t trust myself.”

  Seriously? Was there hope yet?

  With the pounding of his heart in his ears, Travis cupped her chin and guided her face toward his. The pulse in her neck jackhammered against his pinky, telling him she was at least as excited as he was. Travis only hesitated a fraction of a second to give her time to say no, but when he heard no protest, he lowered his lips to hers. A sigh puffed against his lips. He teased hers by flicking his tongue playfully, giving her every opportunity to push him away if she didn’t want this to go further.

  When she wrapped her arms around his neck, he lifted her onto his lap without breaking contact with her mouth, placing her just where he wanted her to be.

  Chapter Eleven

  A torrent of emotions flooded through Kate. Most of them told her to push him away, but the strongest voice in her head insisted she hold on tight. So she did.

  Opening her mouth, her tongue clashed with his until he drew hers deeper into his mouth, releasing and sucking it back even harder. This kiss had gone from zero to one hundred much faster than their prior ones. She melted to the core, throbbing in places that left her unable to think or breathe. The tightening of long-buried frustrations pooled low in the center of her body. In the past, she’d been slow to surrender to him, but not tonight. This might be their last time together, and frankly, she’d missed him. She knew why she’d avoided him all day, but there would be no denying him tonight. They were trapped, and at the moment, she didn’t really want to be rescued.

  When his hand slipped under the two shirts she wore and cupped her breast, a wimpy warning bell chimed once, twice—but she ignored them both. The feel of his hand over her bra reminded her of all she’d missed out on. None of that mattered now. Years of loneliness and regret evaporated. In this moment, there was only this man and a grown-ass woman with a burning need for him.

  He parted the flaps of the shirt he’d just put on her and lifted the hem of hers above her breasts. Her hand raked through his hair as he broke away from her mouth and trailed kisses down the column of her neck. Her breathing became shallow. Thank heavens he supported her back or she might have fallen into the trough behind them.

  Perhaps a good dousing’s what you both need.

  Kate froze. Daddy?

  Ridiculous. Ignoring her annoying conscience, Kate trailed her fingertips lightly along Travis’s neck to his pecs. She stroked the muscles there, playing with the dusting of hair in the center of his chest and pinching one of his nipples at the exact moment he did the same to hers. She drew in a sharp breath as a zing of sensation bolted to the core of her sex.

  A moan escaped her. “Oh, Travis.” She came close to telling him how much she’d missed this, but what if he rejected her after finding out about—

  Travis cupped her breast and lowered his lips to her nipple, sucking and biting on the sensitive peak through the silky fabric of her bra. She wanted to remove the thin barrier, but instead clasped her hands behind his head, delighting in his sensual adoration of her body. No man before Travis had made her feel like this, and there had been none since.

  Tell him.

  Kate wished the nagging voice in her head would mind its own business. She’d tell him about Chelsea. Soon. But not now. Not until—

  The door opened and crashed against the wall, startling them both. As abruptly as they’d fallen into each other’s arms, they pulled apart. Travis groaned. No, wait. She did, too.

  More. She wanted so much more! Kate drew a ragged breath, ready to scream in frustration before coming to her senses.

  “Your timing sucks,” Travis said.

  She tugged down her shirt and removed the one he’d loaned her, handing it back to him. “I didn’t hear any complaints earlier,” she said. Embarrassed suddenly, she wondered if he’d seen the stretch marks on her breasts and belly here in the darkness. She’d remained mostly covered, so probably not. Still, would this happen again, possibly where she wouldn’t have the benefit of darkness?

  “I wasn’t talking to you, Katie.” Following his gaze toward the open doorway, Neptune stood staring at the two of them.

  He was talking to her horse? She almost giggled as the pent-up energy dissipated.

  He planted a chaste kiss on her cheek. “Katie, I still go a little crazy whenever I’m around you.”

  “Yeah well, in case you missed it, the feeling is mutual.” Was he trying to give her a graceful way out of the situation? It might be best that she take it. “Let’s forget what happened in the panic of the moment,” she said.

  Easier said than done.

  Smiling down at her and cupping her cheek, he said, “Not a chance, woman. I wasn’t in a panic at all. Why don’t we head back to the house and find us a comfortable bed?”

  “I don’t think that would be wise.” She stood, wringing her hands. “The bed part, that is. But before we get locked in again, let’s get out of here.”

  Travis chuckled. “No doubt I’ll lie awake all night finishing what we started.”

  Her face flamed at the image he’d planted in her mind. She focused on the situation at hand instead. “Funny how the door came unstuck so easily for Neptune. He must have kicked it in.”

  Travis glanced at the horse then the door, but seemed skeptical. “I thought horses kicked with their back legs.”

  She looked over at Neptune who had gone back to munching on the tufts of ultra-green grass near the spring’s runoff. If not the horse, then who or what would have busted open the door at just that moment?

  Daddy?

  Oh, come on, Kate. He’d never manipulated the physical world like that before. Sure, there had been a couple of instances where she’d smelled his pipe tobacco, but nothing like this.

  But she’d heard his voice chastising her during that kiss. Could it be?

  No. The thought of her dad spying on her with Travis mortified her. Didn’t souls have important spiritual work to do on the other side rather than interfering in their daughters’ love lives?

  She closed her eyes, not believing what she was thinking at the moment. After a deep breath, she said, “We’d better be heading back to the barn before it gets too dark.”

  “Good idea.”

  Her nipple and lips still tingled where he’d touched her, kissed her, sucked on her…

  “You go ahead and ride back,” he suggested, cutting off the memory. “I’ll see you in the barn.”

  Before she left him, she said, “I appreciate your concern about my sugar levels when we thought we might be locked in the springhouse overnight.” That he’d been worried about her welfare affected her in equally troubling ways.


  “Be careful.”

  She left the cool interior, untied Neptune’s reins, and remounted. Staring down at Travis a moment, she made a decision that had been a long time in the making. “Why don’t you come to the kitchen after I cool Neptune down?” Only Kate was the one needing a cool-down tonight. “I made some brownies.” She wasn’t sure her black-bean version would be to his liking but the high dose of cocoa would certainly calm her jangled nerves.

  “Sounds good.” His smile warmed her all over again, but then he grew serious. “God, Katie, I’ve missed you.”

  She couldn’t bare her heart to him yet. “Oh, I doubt you’ve given me much more than a thought or two all these years.”

  Fishing for compliments much, Kate?

  “I’ll plead the Fifth then.” His grin once again made her stomach flip-flop. If things had continued in the direction they’d been going, she and Travis would have been making love in the springhouse again. Would they have had sex if Neptune—or the ghost of her father?—hadn’t called a halt to their passionate embrace? Lord knows she wouldn’t have had the self-control to stop herself.

  Thank God someone or something had, though. Think of the regrets she’d add to the list if they’d gone any further tonight without her being fully honest with him! All hell probably would break loose as early as tonight, assuming she got brave enough to confess over the brownies. Despite the niggling feeling she was courting disaster, she asked, “Would you like to ride back with me on Neptune?”

  His eyes smoldered, heating her up all over again. He grinned. “No thanks. I doubt I could keep my hands off you, and we both need some time to sort out where we’re going. That might best be done separately.”

  She nodded. At least one of them had a clear head. Inviting him inside her house again might also have colossal ramifications, but she wouldn’t rescind the offer. She pressed her knees against Neptune’s sides, clicking her tongue as she trotted off toward the barn.

  As the clapboard farmhouse came into view, doubts assailed her once more. How was she going to tell him about Chelsea when the time came? How could she explain to him why she’d done what she’d done? Worst of all, how was he going to react to the life-altering news?