Crap. Crap. Crap.
Theo had come here to propose.
She glanced at both Dylan and Theo, and decided she would wait to turn down Theo’s offer since it was also going to involve convincing him to leave ASAP. That might take a lot longer to do than an ASAP. Her conversation with Dylan about Adele should be much shorter. Or at least it would be unless he told her that he was taking Melanie up on her offer to “team up” with him.
Dylan seemed to know her decision before she even said a word. “Why don’t you come with me to put up the mare?” he suggested.
“Ride da horsey ’gin?” Corbin asked.
“After lunch.” Dylan goosed him in the stomach, causing Corbin to laugh, and Dylan followed it with a kiss to the top of the boy’s head.
Jordan kissed Corbin, too, but it probably looked as if she’d done it only to prove that she loved Corbin as much as Dylan did. Which she did.
“I can go with you to put up the horse,” Theo said, following her.
“No. That’s okay,” Jordan assured him. “Dylan and I need to talk.”
“Yeah. He’s already told me everything. I’d like to hear your side of it, too.” And Theo kept coming. He wasn’t usually this pushy, but Jordan suspected he was more than a little jealous, especially if one of the things Dylan had told him was that he was her ex-husband.
When Dylan reached the horse, he got back on, and in the same motion, he took Jordan by the arm. With some jostling around, he pulled Jordan into the front of the saddle with him.
“Really?” Jordan protested, and she would have gotten right down if she hadn’t seen Corbin’s reaction.
Corbin giggled and clapped his hands when he wriggled free of Karlee for a moment. Karlee quickly took hold of him again. “Jordy and Daddy ridin’ horsey.”
“Karlee and I’ve been working on him saying your name,” Dylan added to her. “He’s just about got it down pat.”
That touched Jordan far more than she wanted to admit. Because it seemed to mean that Dylan wasn’t going to try to shut her out of Corbin’s life. So, instead of her demanding that Dylan put her down, she stayed in the saddle.
“Don’t worry. I’ll bring her right back,” Dylan said to Theo, and even though Jordan couldn’t see Dylan’s face, she’d bet that he was smiling.
Theo sure wasn’t.
He was looking at her as if she’d betrayed him. She hadn’t. Not really. But this might be the fastest way for her to have a private conversation with Dylan. Of course, there was no way she could justify why Dylan and she both needed to be on horseback to do that.
Since it was only a short trip from the front of the house to the barn, Jordan decided it was best to get the talk started. That way, it would maybe keep her mind off the fact that their bodies were squished against each other. Specifically, her butt against the front of those great-fitting jeans.
“Your mother and Judge Turley came to the jail to visit Adele,” she threw out there. “They were there when I left.”
It got the exact reaction she expected. Dylan cursed. “I’m betting nothing good will come of that.”
That was a bet she wouldn’t take because it was a sure thing. “Adele also wants to see Corbin so she can say goodbye,” she added, and Jordan risked glancing over her shoulder to see his expression.
She shouldn’t have.
Because the motion caused his mouth to brush across her cheek. It felt like a kiss. Damn it. Lust and empathy were not a good combination.
“Okay. I can arrange to take Corbin there.” Though he sounded as hesitant about it as Jordan was.
She had to take a deep breath to continue with the rest. “Adele gave you custody because she thought you could give Corbin a more stable family life.” Another pause, another breath. “After seeing him with you and your family today, I can understand where she’s coming from. But I’m still not sure it’s the right thing.”
He made a sound of agreement. Did that mean he agreed? Or was Dylan just having doubts about all the time and work it would take to be a good father?
“Did Adele mention if it was okay for me to visit her?” he asked.
“No.” And Jordan felt guilty for not broaching the subject with her. Of course, that whole conversation with Adele had been stressful enough without adding more talk of Dylan to it. “It didn’t come up.”
He reined in the mare once they were inside the barn, slid out of the saddle, and then helped her down. He didn’t say anything, though, until she was facing him. “I turned Melanie down, of course, but I suspect it’ll take me repeating it a couple more times before it sinks in. When it does, she’ll probably be pissed off enough to throw her support to my mother and the judge.”
That’s the way she figured it would go, too. Still... “Adele was adamant about you having custody.”
“And my mom and Walter Ray might persuade her to change her mind,” Dylan quickly pointed out.
Jordan wished she could say that wouldn’t happen, but if Adele’s flighty response kicked in, anything was possible.
“I don’t want to lose him,” Dylan added. He cursed and shook his head as if he’d admitted too much to her.
Since Dylan had dived right into those emotion-filled waters, so did she. “Neither do I.”
And there it was, the standoff that pitted them against each other.
Of course, it wasn’t the first time they’d been at odds. They’d had plenty of arguments when they were married, and the biggest argument of all had come when she’d asked for a divorce and Dylan had wanted her to stay and make a go of it. She still wasn’t sure about staying, and it might not even be necessary if she did indeed raise Corbin.
Dylan shook his head again, this time as if pulling himself out of a trance, and he glanced around at the inside of the barn. “We’ve had a lot of meaningful discussions here over the years.”
Yes, they had, and this was one of them. Perhaps one of the most important. But other things had happened here, too. Specifically, sex.
On several occasions.
No way did she want to be thinking about that now so Jordan turned to walk out. Best if they finished this talk outside. She started in that direction but made another mistake. Of course, everything about this little adventure had been a big error in judgment. This time, though, the error came from looking at Dylan again. It was a glance, but he was glancing at her at the same time.
Jordan could have sworn it caught her panties on fire.
Something was on fire, anyway. And they’d both obviously gone stark raving bananas because Dylan cursed, hooked his hand around the back of her neck and hauled her to him.
And he kissed her.
Jordan didn’t put up a fight. None whatsoever. She just moved right into that kiss as if it were amazing and wouldn’t complicate the devil out of her life. Well, it was amazing, but there were complications right from the start.
For one thing, Dylan never merely just kissed. It was always a couple of steps beyond that. Bodies touching—this time their fronts. She felt the slight stubble on his jaw. Drew in his scent and tasted the daylights out of him.
If you bottled really strong guilty pleasures, that’s how it would taste.
Like premium chocolate, ice cream, birthday cake and other edible things.
Jordan slipped right into that taste, which meant moving even closer and slipping right into his arms. He used all those maneuvers to turn her, and Jordan felt her back land against a stall door. The mare snorted, a sound that should have brought her back to reality since Dylan and she were kissing in a barn.
It didn’t.
The only reality she seemed to want right now was a four-letter word. And that word was more.
Oh yeah. Her on-fire panties snapped right in that “more” direction, and that’s exactly what Dylan gave her. All the years just melted away, and the mel
ting didn’t take the lust with it. It stayed, burning hot and making her tug him closer and closer. Until she could feel every wonderful inch of him.
Some inches were more wonderful than others, of course.
“Someone’s coming,” Dylan said.
Jordan was so caught up in the heat, it took her a moment to realize that wasn’t a sexual reference. Someone literally was coming into the barn because even over the drumming in her ears, she could hear the footsteps. She pulled away from him just as Theo arrived.
Theo looked at her. Then, at Dylan. Before he cursed. “You’ve been crying,” Theo said, going to her.
Jordan had no idea what had caused him to think that. She was nowhere near tears, but a possible orgasm had been imminent. Theo pulled her into his arms, hugging her the way someone would a child. He even patted her on the back.
“I’m so sorry,” Theo added. “I knew this would upset you.”
Dylan wisely stepped back, pulling off his Stetson and holding it in front of those wonderful inches of him that were somewhat prominent behind the zipper of his jeans. He also lifted his eyebrow, and for something that wasn’t even a word, it managed to say a lot. For instance, are you really going to stand there and let your boyfriend think you’ve been crying?
Yes, she was, but that was only because she didn’t want to have to explain the kiss. Not only to Theo but to herself. Later, when she was alone, she could give herself a good mental kick for letting it happen. It didn’t matter that she’d been thinking about kissing Dylan since she’d come back to Wrangler’s Creek. It didn’t matter that it had been a good stress reliever. She still needed that kick to knock some sense into her.
“Could you give Jordan and me some privacy?” Theo asked Dylan.
Dylan’s mumbled “okay” was hesitant, but that was perhaps because he was going to have trouble walking. Also maybe because he wasn’t sure Jordan actually wanted privacy with Theo. She didn’t especially, but there were some things she needed to say to him so she nodded. Dylan returned the nod and got moving.
She’d been right about him not being able to walk well. But as soon as he made it out of the barn, Jordan turned to Theo.
“I appreciate you worrying about me. I do, but I won’t marry you,” she said right off.
Theo’s mouth tightened. “Dylan told you. I’d wanted that to be a surprise.”
“Oh, it was,” she assured him. “But it wouldn’t have mattered if the surprise had come from you or him—my answer would still be the same. I’m not marrying you.”
“You married Dylan,” he pointed out.
Dylan had obviously been chatty today. “I did, a long time ago. It was a mistake then, and it’d be a mistake now for me to repeat it.” Now she was babbling.
Theo stared at her and slowly released the breath he’d been holding. “I just don’t want you to have to go through this alone. And I know you want him because I saw the way you kissed him.”
Jordan was certain her own face did some tightening.
“Corbin,” Theo clarified. “I saw the way you kissed him.”
Oh yes. She certainly hadn’t forgotten about that, but Dylan’s kiss was much fresher in her mind.
“I love Corbin,” she admitted. “And I haven’t decided if I’m going to quit fighting for custody. But even if I do quit and Dylan keeps him, I’ll still want to see Corbin. I’ll want to be part of his life.”
Theo kept staring at her. “What are you saying, exactly?” But he didn’t let her answer. “You’ve been in the Air Force for thirteen years, three enlisted and ten as an officer. You could get retirement pay in only seven more years.”
All of that was true, but it had nothing to do with Corbin. Not really. If she spent seven more years in the military and stayed on her current career track, Corbin would be nearly ten before she could come back permanently to Wrangler’s Creek.
If she wanted permanent, that is.
And that was the problem. She needed to figure out if she could keep the past in check and be part of Corbin’s life here, with his father.
“Does this mean you’re staying here?” Theo asked.
“For now. I don’t have to report into the base for a couple more weeks, and I’ll delay that by using my personal leave.” No one at the base was going to question her need to take more time. “I want to spend that with Corbin.”
He stared at her as if waiting for something. Maybe for her to change her mind or have this make sense to him. That wasn’t going to happen.
“You’re under a lot of stress,” Theo finally said. “Do you remember that time you went to that spa in Trinidad? You thought your Spanish was good enough to request a bikini wax, but it wasn’t.”
Jordan huffed. Another life lesson. But Theo seemed to want to tie those lessons to some of her worst moments. The penis tat and now a reminder of a massage appointment that had turned into a Brazilian followed by some bleaching of her lady parts and other areas near her lady parts. She’d gotten a bad rash and had then had to muddle her way through an ER visit.
“What I’m trying to say,” he went on, “is you could be making a mistake even bigger than the waxing and bleaching. Do you really think it’s a wise idea to be here under the same roof as your ex-husband?”
Finally, there was an easy question to answer. No. It wasn’t wise. In fact, it was perhaps one of the most unwise things she’d ever done. But she was staying. And, no, it didn’t have anything to do with that scorcher of a kiss.
Jordan didn’t repeat her refusal of the proposal he hadn’t actually asked. She didn’t spell out that he should leave and go back to work, that she would be fine. But thankfully, Theo seemed to get all of that. He leaned in and brushed a kiss on her forehead. It was much like the chaste but loving kiss she’d given Corbin.
“Just promise that you’ll call me if things get bad,” he added in a whisper.
She nodded, though it was a promise she probably wouldn’t keep. Her go-to response when stressed wasn’t to reach out for help. It was to retreat within and have a panic attack—in private.
Best not to spell that out to Theo, though, since his forehead was already bunched up with worry.
“I’ll be fine,” she added, and she hooked her arm through his to get him moving toward the house.
There was no sign of Dylan, but it didn’t take too many steps before Jordan heard the chatter coming from the front of the house. Obviously, Dylan’s family was still there, but there was a voice that hadn’t been there when she’d made the trip to the barn.
Regina.
“There he is,” Regina said. Judging from her gushy tone, she was talking about Corbin.
That got Jordan moving faster, and she let go of Theo’s arm so that she could run the rest of the way. Yes, it was Regina all right, and she had indeed been talking about Corbin. Dylan was holding the little boy, but Regina had out her hands, trying to coax Corbin to come to her. He wasn’t having any part of that, though, and had his face buried against Dylan’s neck.
“Is there a problem?” Jordan immediately asked.
That got Regina to stop her coaxing attempts, and she turned and looked at Jordan. She wasn’t sure what to expect from the woman since Regina had disapproved of her and Dylan’s marriage.
Though Regina had disapproved of the divorce even more.
Jordan had never been able to figure the woman out, and she didn’t have her figured out now. That’s because Regina smiled, and stretching out her arms again, Regina went to her, pulling her into a hug.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” Regina said, and she pulled back, their eyes connecting. “I was just about to tell Dylan about my visit with Adele, but now you can hear it, too.” Regina’s smile widened. “Adele and I had a wonderful visit. Just wonderful.”
That didn’t sound good at all, and Jordan moved to Dylan’s side. “What did Adel
e say?” Jordan pressed.
More smiling. “Adele’s rethought this whole custody thing, and we’ve worked out a solution that should make all of us happy. The three of us will raise Corbin. Together.”
CHAPTER NINE
THE THREE OF us will raise Corbin. Together.
To Dylan, that sounded about as appealing as having every strand of his body hair plucked out with rusty tweezers.
It wasn’t that he didn’t love his mom. He did. But he loved her much better when they weren’t around each other. Like now. Regina was coochie-coochie-cooing Corbin and smiling like a crazy person. Crazy because there was no one else joining in on that smilefest.
Including Jordan.
Apparently, she’d had enough of Regina’s baby talk because she huffed and moved in front of the woman. “What do you mean about us raising Corbin together? Adele told me that she wanted Dylan to have custody.”
As if stepping away from a coiled rattlesnake, Lawson, Lily Rose and their families all started to move, heading back to their vehicles. Even Karlee and Lucian went inside. Not Theo, though. The man must have thought his presence was somehow going to help this situation. It wouldn’t. Jordan realized that, too, because she glanced at him.
“Theo, I need to stay here and work out some things,” Jordan said. “I’ll call you later.”
It had a distinctive don’t let the door hit you in the ass tone to it, and lover boy finally seemed to get it. First though, he went to Jordan and hugged her. Then, Theo kissed her. Though it was just a peck on the mouth.
Dylan could do a whole lot better. Heck, that whole lot better had happened just minutes earlier in the barn, and he was still feeling the effects of it, too. Later, Jordan would likely want to talk to him about it, if only to tell him it was a mistake that shouldn’t happen again. He’d agree.
And then probably kiss her again.
When it came to Jordan he pretty much had no willpower. Dylan wasn’t proud of that, but sometimes that idiot behind the zipper of his jeans didn’t give him a choice about such things.
Lone Star Blues Page 11