by Jill Sanders
It drove him nuts to watch her fall over the edge. Her hair was fanned out on the pillow, all that rich, dark silkiness. Her dark lashes rested on her cheeks and her lips looked pink and swollen.
When he pulled her leg up closer to his chest, her eyes opened again and her hands moved to his arms. She had a slight smile on her lips and when he leaned down to kiss her, she tasted so sweet, he forgot everything else.
He felt himself building too fast, but when he tried to pull back, her fingers dug into him and held him close. Her hips pumped with his and soon he was losing himself.
Ryan felt her fingers running up and down his back and held a moan of delight. “I’ll move in a moment,” he said into her hair, enjoying the smell of it and the feel of it against his cheek.
“It’s okay.” She sighed. “I don’t mind.”
He pulled back and looked down at her. She had a smile on her lips and looked even sexier than before.
“I hope this doesn’t complicate things too much.”
She frowned a little. “I’m not looking for complications.”
He rolled over and sat up as she pushed back to lean against the headboard.
“I suppose we should have thought this through.”
She shook her head. “It was bound to happen. I mean...” She blushed a little and he smiled.
“Couldn’t keep your hands off me, eh?”
Her eyes darted to his. Then she smiled when she noticed that he was joking.
“I just mean that we’re young, and we’re going to be cooped up together for a while.” She shrugged. “Besides, I’ve never been one to deny myself.”
He smiled and said under his breath, “Thank God for that.”
She chuckled. “I didn’t notice you holding back any.”
He chuckled and shook his head. “It’s been a while.”
“Oh?” Her eyebrows arched and she pulled the sheets up to cover herself. He almost laughed at her attempt. Instead, he pulled the sheet away and pulled her closer to him.
“Yeah, being undercover isn’t all glam and parties. I can’t even remember the last time I went out on a date.”
She pulled away and looked up at him. “Seriously?”
He nodded. “Probably over three years ago.”
She shook her head and rested back on his shoulder. “Well then, we’ll have to make a night of it soon. You know, to update you on your skills.”
He smiled. “I’m up for the challenge.”
“Are these from when you were shot?” she asked, running her fingers over the scars on his stomach.
He looked down and remembered the pain. “Yeah.” He leaned his head back and closed his eyes.
“What happened?” He could feel her looking up at him.
“Drug bust gone wrong. My snitch drove me to the nearest hospital and dumped me.”
“I read the reports from the hospital. It was touch and go for a while.”
He glanced down at her questioningly.
“Melissa was the nurse who helped you. She was interning in the ER at the time.”
He thought about it. “I thought she looked familiar.”
“I guess you met her when you were younger as well. She’s close friends with Haley.”
“Small towns.” He shook his head. “Before next week it will be all over town that we’re a couple and living here.”
“Do you mind?” She looked up at him.
He frowned. “Gossip can be bad.” He thought of all the busts that had gone bad because of a rumor.
He was too busy remembering to see her frowning.
“Well, I’m too wired to sleep. Especially since I slept the whole day away. What do you say to a movie. I’ll make the popcorn.”
He nodded and watched her jump from the bed and pull on her yoga pants and shirt. Then he got up and walked into the living room and pulled on a pair of shorts and a T-shirt his brother had given him.
They watched two movies and during the second one, she fell asleep on his shoulder. When he carried her back into the bedroom, she didn’t even flinch as he laid her on the bed and covered her up.
Then he walked back into the living room and pulled out the secure phone. He dialed his captain first and got his voice mail. He didn’t know the number of the cellphone and at this point didn’t want anyone else to know it, so he hung up before leaving a message.
Then he called Nikki’s father.
“Nikki?” he answered on the first ring.
“Nope, she’s asleep.”
“Is she okay?”
“Yeah, we made it here okay.”
“Just where is here?”
He shook his head. “If you’ve read my file, you’ll know.”
There was silence, and then he heard the man rummaging through papers. “Right. I had her car towed in. They said there was front end damage.”
“Yeah, bill me.” He smiled.
“They also said there were bullet holes in the trunk.”
“Yeah, bill the department.”
“Is there a reason you called?”
“I stopped by Mr. Holton’s this evening and had a chat with him about you.”
“And?”
“He told me a little about what you used to do. About who you are.”
Mr. Holton, Grant and Melissa’s father, had been best friends with Nikki’s old man, who had been the man who had taken down Hijo del Diablo’s predecessors.
“And?”
He chuckled. “I thought you might be able to help me out.”
“Son, I’m retired.”
“Right, I just thought that since one of the most dangerous drug lords in the country was now after your daughter, you might come out of retirement for a while.”
There was silence, and then he sighed. “Yeah, I’ve been working on it since you called yesterday. I’ll need some information from you first.”
He thought about it. “Okay, can we meet?”
“No, not right now. I’m overseas at the moment.” He heard something drop. “Damn it. Um, tell you what. I’ll do some more research and get back with you when I’m in the States. Is your position secure?”
He thought about it. “Yeah, almost everyone in my family carries and shoots first then asks questions. As long as we stay on the ranch, we’ll be okay.”
“Good. Hey, West?”
“Yeah?”
“Keep my daughter safe.”
“Yes, sir.”
Chapter Seven
Nikki held the reins tight and felt like squealing, but Lauren was right next to her on another horse, and she didn’t want to look like a fool. So instead, she held her breath and tried not to fall off the bouncing horse.
It wasn’t as if she hadn’t ridden a horse before. But it had been almost ten years since she’d gone to camp and climbed on the back of a beast.
She was wearing borrowed clothes that fit her perfectly. The boots were a little big, but the thick pair of socks had filled in the gaps. Her long dark hair was tied up and shoved under a large hat that shaded her from the warm sun.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Lauren looked over at her.
She smiled and nodded. “It’s just been a while.”
“We can slow down.” Lauren went to pull on her horse’s reins.
“No, I love the speed. I just need to get my pace back.” She held the reins tighter and gripped the saddle horn as her butt bounced up and down in the saddle.
“Use your knees. Don’t sit, stand.” Lauren showed her. “Like this.”
She watched Lauren ride beside her smoothly. The woman looked like she’d been born in the saddle. Her back was straight, her knees slightly bent. She moved slightly with the smooth motion of the horse. Nikki mimicked her and felt instant relief as the saddle stopped shoving her butt bone into her stomach.
“There.” Lauren smiled. “Now hold the reins like this.” She showed her.
Nikki dropped the reins a little and tried to relax her arms and elbows.
; “Perfect. Let the horse do all the work.” Lauren moved smoothly beside her.
Nikki laughed. In a few minutes, her thighs would be killing her if she didn’t sit soon.
“You can relax a little more. Don’t stand up in the stirrups.”
Nikki followed her instructions and felt the burning in her thighs dissipate.
“Now you’re riding.” Lauren smiled and Nikki smiled back at her.
After they’d ridden halfway across the field, she started to enjoy the view and stopped focusing so much on the logistics of riding.
“I’d forgotten how much I enjoyed this.” She sighed as they pulled to a stop underneath a large tree.
She was sure Ryan had put Lauren up to taking her riding as a way of having someone else babysit her, but Nikki didn’t mind, especially after she had seen the beautiful dark red horse Lauren had brought for her.
“I’ve packed a lunch. If you want, we can go meet the men.” Lauren nodded towards the hills. “They should just be about an hour’s ride up.”
She thought about how sore she would be tonight, but she didn’t mind. It had been years since she’d been out of the city. The fresh air and the warm sun were soothing her mind. She smiled and nodded. “Lead the way.”
They rode in silence for a while, enjoying the scenery. The fields had already turned brown. Most of the wheat had been cut and was sitting in large hay bales, ready to be picked up. Some of the trees were still green, but others had already turned colors and the leaves floated down with the breeze. Here there were rolling hills, covered in pines and magnolias. It was in complete contrast to where she was used to living. She’d been born in Houston and had rarely left.
Her father had taken her to the country on several vacations shortly after her mother had left them, choosing her second husband over her firstborn and her ex-husband.
Lauren seemed to be getting comfortable with Nikki and told her about how they’d lost their mother in a tornado when Lauren was eight and their father to a heart attack ten years later. Then she’d shaken her head from the sadness and started talking about how she’d met her husband.
Lauren told her the story of how they had known each other all their lives. Of how they had married the day after her father had been buried so she could keep the ranch and stay in charge. Then she’d told her how Chase had left town for years and returned a few years ago. They had fallen in love and remarried for real.
“It sounds like it’s a good thing that he came back.” She smiled.
“Yes, although he was quite annoying at first.” Lauren smiled. “I guess it was because I was afraid that he’d come in and take over Saddleback.”
Nikki smiled. “Doesn’t he do that now?”
Lauren laughed. “He’ll claim he does.” She laughed.
Ryan was sweaty and had a layer of dirt covering every inch of him, and he’d never been as happy as he was right then. He knew he was going to have a few new blisters on his hands, but he didn’t mind. There were five other men out there with him rustling cattle. So far, they were having an easy time of it. They had ridden up to the hills and had found the herd in one of the high fields. There were over a thousand of them and herding them had been fairly easy.
But just before lunch, a group of around a dozen broke off and started heading in the wrong direction. He’d yelled over to Chase and told him he’d collect the strays. It had taken him a little under an hour to have the eighteen cows back in with the herd.
The other men had stopped for lunch and were all sitting under a large tree by a brook. When he pulled his horse up next to the others, he heard Nikki laughing and glanced over to see her head thrown back in laughter. The richness of her laughter had his groin tightening, and he cursed himself for the instant response.
Just because they’d slept together didn’t mean anything, he kept telling himself. He knew they were just using each other. There had been attraction. Instant attraction. A hell of a lot of attraction. He shook his head clear and tied the reins on a low branch so the horse could graze and cool off.
He started walking towards the group and overheard Nikki talking about one of her cases. She hadn’t talked to him much about what she did as a PI. To be honest, he hadn’t even really thought about it since his mind had been consumed with keeping them safe up until then.
Even now, he knew he couldn’t drop his guard. Even though he felt completely safe on his cousins’ property, he knew that at any minute, they could be swarmed by members of the drug cartel trying to kill them.
But as he watched Nikki laughing with his cousin, he couldn’t stop thinking about being with her again.
Her dark hair lay across her shoulders in two long braids. The hat on her head was a little too big, but the rest of the clothes she was wearing fit perfectly. She looked very good in worn riding jeans and a button-up collared shirt. Actually, she looked just as sexy in this outfit as she had in the skimpy red number she’d worn the other night at the club.
She was sitting on a long log with her ankles crossed and there was a speck of dust on her chin; she looked like she belonged there. Gone was the fragile princess, replaced by a sturdy cowgirl and, for some reason, that only turned him on more. When he stepped into the circle, their eyes met and he felt the full impact of the attraction. Her lips parted and her breath hitched when she saw the raw desire he was feeling for her.
Her words fell away from her lips for a moment. Then she licked those pink lips of hers, looked down at her hands, and finished her sentence. Everyone sitting around had seen the exchange and had noticed the attraction. He couldn’t help but smile as he sat down.
Chase cleared his throat and handed him a bottled water, a sandwich, and a bag of chips.
“Did you get the strays okay?”
He nodded and took a swig of the water. “One of the little guys got stuck in some mud. Took a while for me to rope him.” He shook his head.
“You’re out of practice.” Lauren smiled. “You’ll get the hang of it again. If I remember correctly”—her smile turned a little wicked—“you were better at roping than Reece.”
He chuckled. It was an old argument. “I bet I could still beat him.”
“Well,” Chase chimed in, “I’m not too sure about that. “Your brother does run his own busting business now. He’s pretty successful with it too.”
He smiled. Reece had told him all about his new venture and how he’d taken up busting and bronc riding after their father had died. Hearing the story had caused him a great deal of pain, knowing that his brother had suffered financially because of their old man.
But he was happy that Reece had finally found something and someone to love. His eyes caught Nikki’s across the small space, and he watched her tongue dart out and lick that luscious bottom lip of hers.
He finished his sandwich and chips. He was still starving, but food wasn’t what he wanted now.
“Well…” Lauren got up and dusted her jeans and picked up the bag of trash they’d created. “We’d better let you men get back to it. These cows won’t drive themselves home.” She smiled and hugged her husband.
“Are you going to ride back with us?” Chase asked, pulling her close.
She smiled and looked over at Nikki. “What do you say? Are you up for cattle driving?”
Nikki looked at Ryan and when he continued to look at her, she nodded her head slowly.
“Sure, I’ve never been on a cattle drive before.”
“I’m sure my cousin can show you the ropes,” Lauren said, taking her husband’s hand and following the rest of the men towards the horses. Then she stopped and looked over her shoulder. “Ryan, she’s still getting used to riding a horse. Take your time coming back.” She smiled and pulled her husband towards the horses.
He heard Nikki cough a little and looked over at her as she pretended to be busy dusting off her jeans.
He walked closer to her. “Did you catch up on your sleep okay?” He brushed a strand of her hair away from her eyes.
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She nodded and stuck her hands in her pockets.
“Do you want to rest a little more before getting back in the saddle?”
She turned and watched the rest of the group start hustling the cattle towards the ranch. Looking back up at him, she nodded. “I know it’s because I haven’t been in a saddle for years, but my thighs and butt are already killing me.”
He smiled. “Mine as well. It’s been over seven years since I’ve sat in a saddle.” She sat back down in the soft grass, and he smiled when she sighed. He sat next to her and leaned back against the log.
“I remember coming here as a kid and skinny-dipping in that pond.” He nodded to the water behind them.
Her eyebrows shot up. “Really?” She smiled. “Did you ever bring girls out here?”
He laughed. “Are you kidding. With my cousins around, I never had a moment alone with a pretty girl.” He shook his head and looked off towards the group. Actually, it had always been little Haley who had been the biggest meddler. Haley had always fancied herself a matchmaker. She’d even followed him around when he’d gone out on dates to make sure everything was working out like she’d planned.
Nikki laughed. “Yes, I gathered they could be like that.” She nodded towards Lauren and he smiled.
“She doesn’t mean much by it.”
“Oh?” She leaned next to him. “As long as it delays me climbing back in that saddle, I’m okay with it.” She pulled off the oversized hat and set it next to her.
“We’ll have to get you a better fitting hat.” He brushed a long strand of hair that had come loose from the braids.
She moved her knees up closer to her. “Are we planning on staying that long?”
His eyes zeroed in on hers. “Who cares. You look good in a hat and braids.” He tugged lightly on one of her braids as she smiled. He leaned closer to her. “Actually, I think I like this outfit better than that little red number you wore the other night.”
He watched her breathing turn labored and saw her chest rise and fall. His eyes were fixed on her as he leaned closer and placed his lips on her warm lips. She tasted like spring and felt like heaven as his hands dipped into her hair, pulling the lose braids free.