Twenty minutes later, with the baby asleep in her infant seat and the food nearly gone, Case stretched out his legs on the blanket. Bracing his face in his hand, he faced Sarah.
"We should go," she said with an anxious edge to her voice, but Case wasn't having any of it. The day was far too gorgeous and selfishly he was enjoying this quiet time with Sarah.
"In a minute or two, darlin'. It's a pretty day and I'm with a pretty lady."
Color rose quickly to Sarah's face. Her cheeks grew pink, contrasting beautifully with the deep blue in her eyes. Case thought he'd stunned her speechless, which would be something, since Sarah always gave as good as she got. Case often wondered what making love to Sarah would be like. Was she as passionate in bed as she was out? Erotic thoughts drifted through his head of running his hands through her silky hair, touching her soft skin, lying naked with her. His body grew tight as a wire. Hell, he had it bad and if he didn't change his way of thinking now, Sarah would witness firsthand, just how bad.
"You think little Mo will like the boots and hat you picked out for her?'' he asked.
"I th-think so," Sarah said, her voice wobbly. He didn't know if it was a good thing or not, that he made her nervous.
"Me, too. You've got good taste. I wouldn't know how to pick out something like that. Thanks for shopping for me."
Sarah smiled, a small all-too-brief lifting of her lips. "You're welcome."
Case remembered those lips, the subtle sexy taste of her, the way she'd given in to him so fully, the way she'd gotten him hot with her tongue and her mouth. God, that mouth. He didn't know how long he'd last on the ranch if he couldn't hold her, if he couldn't kiss her again. There was so much between them, a loved one who had died, a baby delivered, a struggling ranch to run, and although those things should bring them closer together, they seemed to push Sarah further away.
She was afraid of him. Still didn't trust him.
Damn.
"I'm not trying to take Reid's place," he said more harshly than he intended. Hell, he was trying to make a new place with Sarah. Yet, she resisted and he knew how hard it must be for her to open up to him. Didn't help matters that he was Reid's brother. He'd witnessed her guilt at times, during unguarded moments.
Sarah jerked her head up. Bravely she met his eyes. "I know."
"Do you? You sure didn't like it when that lady thought I was your husband today."
Sarah stiffened, belying the casual shrug she tried to produce. "It was only natural to think that, I suppose."
"That might happen often. Living together like we do, on the ranch."
"It's your ranch, too, Case. I can't ask you to leave."
"I wouldn't," he said plainly. Not because he wanted his birthright so much as he wanted to secure Sarah and the baby's future. The promise he'd made to Reid was never far from his mind.
"Of course. We just have to make the best of the situation."
Now he was a "situation." A surly mood threatened his composure. Anger surfaced, but he tamped it down. Giving Sarah a hard time wasn't his intent.
But the lady sure was giving him a hard time.
Each and every doggone night.
"Yep, we'll make the best of the situation."
Case twirled the rope overhead then swung it out, lassoing the makeshift calf Carl had created with an old wooden sawhorse and a bucket for a head. About a dozen kids, ranging in age from three to ten years old, applauded, asking for more. Case did a few more tricks with the rope, some he'd recalled learning from a talented Na-vajo he'd met while on the rodeo circuit, others he'd dreamt up on his own. In his spare time, between competitions he'd practiced his roping skills any way he could. But today, he was having a good old time entertaining the kids.
"Now it's your turn," he said. "Who wants to try?"
Case spent the next forty-five minutes working with the older children, teaching them how to make a slipknot and toss the rope, the sawhorse being their target.
"I think you've earned yourself a beer," Carl said, when Bobbi Sue announced that it was time to open presents. "Come on over by the tree and I'll grab us some brews."
Case sat on a bench, legs spread wide, watching Sarah and Bobbi Sue set up the gifts on the porch. Sarah looked beautiful today, wearing a colorful calico summer dress and little red boots. Case figured she was testing out her wardrobe, enjoying the clothes she hadn't fit into for months. But damn, the clothes she wore "fit" her shape in a revealing way that had him working up a sweat just from glancing at her. The subtle plunge of her neckline left him imagining a full swell of breasts underneath and the slimness of her waist made him ache to hold her there, to pull her close to his hot body and show her just what she did to him. And those red boots? Hell, he imagined her in them and nothing else.
He watched her laugh with Bobbi Sue, the baby always within her reach, sleeping comfortably. Little Mo and her friends gathered around the pile up of gifts.
Carl handed him a bottle, grinning like the devil.
"What?" Case scowled at him.
"You ain't taken your eyes off of her since you got here."
Case sipped his beer. "Who, Bobbi Sue?" Case didn't mind rattling Carl's cage. Case could badger like the rest of them.
"Ah, now my wife's a beauty, but you know I'm talking about Sarah."
Case took a last glance at Sarah then looked away. He gulped down the rest of his beer.
"What are you going to do about it?"
Case shook his head, palming the empty bottle in his hand. "Nothing."
Carl pulled back from his place on the bench and laughed heartily. "Nothing?"
"That's what I said."
"Okay, gotcha. Nothing. But while you're doing nothing, Sarah might want different."
Now, Case laughed. It wasn't a joyful sound, but more a snort of disagreement. "I doubt that."
"It's true Bobbi Sue's always inventing romance when it don't exist, but I see Sarah clearly. And she's been looking at you different lately." Carl chuckled. "The fact that she's looking at all makes me wonder about her." Carl shoved his shoulder into Case.
Case didn't need to hear this. He didn't need to garner one grain of hope where Sarah was concerned. Damn Carl and Bobbi Sue for their matchmaking ways. Sarah wasn't coming around. She still barely tolerated him. He was on the ranch because he owned half interest, not because Sarah wanted him there. If she could, she'd toss him out, but Case wouldn't leave, no matter how hard Sarah made it for him.
"Trust me, Carl. She ain't looking." Carl took a minute to study Sarah on the porch. "Might be she's looking, but you're the one who's not doing the seeing."
After the party, Case parked the car in front of the house and slanted a look at Sarah, Carl's words echoing in his head. Coming home like this, with Sarah by his side and the baby in her car seat in the back shook Case's resolve.
How easily he'd slipped into "family mode" with them. It hadn't been conscious or deliberate, yet Case had a protective nature when it came to the two females in his life. He wanted Sarah, there was no denying, but it was more than that. And the more he looked at her, the more he realized Sarah was far out of his reach.
"Case?" Sarah said, breaking the silence. She'd noticed him staring, her eyes wary, maybe even puzzled. She didn't know the emotions roiling in his gut, how much she affected him, yet there was sizzling tension in the air. She had to notice the electric pulse radiating between them. Putting her hand on the side door, ready to get out, ready to run, she cast him a tentative smile. ' 'The party was fun, wasn't it?"
"Yeah."
"The children loved your roping tricks."
"Yeah."
She blinked, the soft lashes coming down to caress her cheeks. When little Christie squawked, a tiny complaint to get attention, Sarah tilted her head. "I guess I'd better get the baby in."
"Yeah," he said once again, and swept out of the car, easing Christiana out of her car seat. He handed Sarah the baby and they entered the home they shared,
Sarah heading for the baby nursery.
Case stood at the foot of the stairs, raking his hand through his hair, watching Sarah sashay up the steps in her pretty little dress. She turned at the top of the stairs and glanced down at him. "Are you coming up?"
Hell, if that were the invite he'd been wishing for, he'd take the stairs three at a time to be with her. He'd help her put the baby down, then make long, slow, torturous love to her. But Sarah wasn't offering him anything and she never would. "Uh no. Actually," he began, deciding that tonight with his mood, this would be best, "I'm heading over to the Wet Whistle. Some of the boys are throwing Grady Wilkins a shindig. Seems he got himself engaged last week."
"Oh? Anyone we know?"
"I don't know her name. I expect to find out tonight."
Christie wiggled in Sarah's arms, drawing her attention away.
"Sarah?"
She glanced at him.
"You going to be all right, tonight?"
She smiled wide. "We'll be fine, Case. You go on.
We're, uh," she started to say, but caught herself. Case didn't want to hear one more time, that Sarah and the baby weren't his responsibility, when every beat in his heart pounded out that they were.
"We're going to have us a nice bath and get to bed early," she amended, looking down at the baby. Good thing, too, because Case's imagination had taken flight-Sarah soaking in a tub of bubbles. Hell, he'd better get out of here, fast.
"Good night, Sarah."
"Good night, Case."
Nothing like a night out with the boys, Case thought with eager anticipation, to get a man's mind back in proper perspective.
Seven
After a long relaxing soak in the tub, Sarah climbed into bed. She'd put the baby down an hour ago and was eager to close her eyes and get the rest she craved.
But a restless unease completely foreign to her, crept in. An enveloping sensation that had her tossing and turning stayed with her for a good part of the night. Sarah didn't understand it. She willed her body and mind to relax, but it wasn't working. Her practical mind kept screaming, "Go to sleep." She'd learned that in order to keep up with a busy day, she needed to sleep when the baby slept, or pay the consequences.
Yet, Sarah couldn't fight it anymore. She rose from her bed and after checking on her slumbering daughter, ambled downstairs. Perhaps a drink of water or milk might help, she thought. She opened the refrigerator door, but noises, a rattling sound at the back door, startled her to attention. "Who's there?" she called out.
No answer.
The rattling continued.
She remembered that Case wasn't home. He'd gone out drinking with his buddies. Could that be him, trying to get inside the house? Slowly, with cautious steps, Sarah walked over to the door. "Case?"
Again, no answer.
Sarah moved to the window, parting the curtain slightly and her heart nearly stopped. A man in a dark ski mask shot his head around. The whites of his eyes pierced her for one long silent moment then he took off running. Sarah let out a horrific shriek. She stumbled back, clutching her chest as panic engulfed her. She began to tremble, her body reacting to the stark fear rising up.
Someone had tried to break into the house!
It was late, well past midnight. Case wasn't home. Had something happened to him? What if that man, the intruder had hurt Case? Was he lying somewhere on the property, injured, bleeding or worse? Worry set in, mingling with her fears. She recalled all of Case's warnings about the Beckman Corporation trying to buy out their land. Sarah couldn't believe that they'd go to these extremes, to actually attempt a break-in to secure what they wanted. And oh, if it were true, Case could be out there somewhere.
Sarah fought off the fright and ran upstairs to check on Christiana. The baby slept quietly, thank goodness. Sarah grabbed the phone in her bedroom then ran back to the nursery. Blocking the entrance with the diaper changer, Sarah leaned heavily on the wall. The only way to know for sure that Case was all right was to get the sheriff out here. Pulse racing, she dialed the emergency number and only when the dispatcher said they'd send someone out to investigate immediately did Sarah take her first calm breath.
Sarah dressed into an old pair of Levi's and plaid shirt then fed the baby one last time. She watched for the lights on the sheriff's car from the upstairs window and once she was certain that he'd arrived with a deputy, she went downstairs to unlock the door. Much later, after the sheriff took his report then assured her that they'd done a complete search for Case and he wasn't on the property nor was his truck, Sarah finally fell into an exhausted sleep.
Case put the key into the lock then turned the knob. Blurry-eyed, he entered the house. Sarah stood in the hallway; her gaze fastened on him, but instantly he knew something was terribly wrong. "Sarah?"
She closed her eyes briefly and when she looked at him again, her body trembled. "Thank God you're all right."
Dumbfounded, Case stared at her. Had she been worried that he'd stayed out all night? "Sarah, I can explain."
Her hand shot up. "No need for any explanations, Case. It's just that I thought something might have happened to you last night."
"Why would you think that?"
Sarah sucked in a breath, struggling to get the words out. Case had a bad feeling about this. A deep sense of foreboding settled in his gut. "Because...because someone tried to break into the house last night."
"What!"
"It's true. The sheriff came out. I thought that you'd been hurt. You've never stayed out all night before, so I...I, well, I didn't know what to think."
Guilt and disgust plagued him after hearing what Sarah had gone through last night. She sat down on the parlor sofa and told him everything, her hands trembling, her voice unsteady. He could only imagine how she'd felt when she'd spotted that intruder, knowing she was alone with her baby. Case damned himself to hell and back. "I should've been here, Sarah."
"I was scared for Christiana. I'd never felt so helpless before and all I could think about was getting to the nursery. I had to make sure she was safe. I, uh, well all sorts of images popped into my head."
Case's gut clenched once again, thinking of what Sarah had endured. "Damn, Sarah. I wish it hadn't happened. I wish I'd been here."
"Then when you didn't come home? I imagined all sorts of things happening to you."
Case took Sarah's hand, touched that she'd been worried about him. "I'm fine, as you can see, but just dog-tired. Didn't get a wink of sleep last night."
Sarah swallowed then glanced away, her eyes centering on the oak tree outside, the early morning sun making her squint. Case knew immediately what path her mind traveled, but this time she was wrong.
"It's not what you're thinking, Sarah."
Sarah pulled her hand away from his. With a quick smile, she denied his accusation. "I'm not thinking anything."
Hell, he didn't know if he should explain about his love life, or rather lack of, since he'd come home to the Triple R. Sure, women had been calling the ranch, but he hadn't returned their calls or their invitations. He'd meant it when he said he was through running around.
Whether Sarah liked it or not, he had responsibilities on the ranch and he aimed to do it right this time. Besides, no other woman on earth appealed to him. Revealing that fact might put notions in her head about his feelings for her. And they'd all be true. She wasn't ready to hear it. He didn't know if she'd ever be ready.
She had no faith in him. Hell, he couldn't blame her. She'd been frightened half out of her mind last night, and he hadn't been here to protect her. He'd let her down again. Reid, too. "Grady drank himself under the table last night. We couldn't stop him. He wound up sick and needed a nursemaid." Case stuck his finger in his chest. "I got that job, since most of the boys had taken off by then. I had to drive him home."
Sarah's eyes revealed perhaps more than she intended. "You were with Grady all night?"
"Yep, just me and Grady. I made him drink a truck-lo
ad of coffee. He's meeting his girl's parents today. He kept saying he had to make a 'good 'pression.'" Case chuckled and Sarah smiled. "Boy, can't imagine him having to bone up to her folks today. He's gonna have himself one humdinger of a hangover."
At least Sarah appeared to believe him. And the relief registering on her face made his heart pound. Had she been a bit jealous, thinking he had female companionship last night? She admitted worrying over his safety.
"I'm sorry, Sarah. I shouldn't have left you. I thought to call, but it got late and I didn't want to chance waking you or little Christie."
"Case, I've told you over and over—"
"Shh," he whispered, stopping her with a finger to her lips. "Don't say it, Sarah. The ranch and everyone on it, is my responsibility now. I hope you can forgive me for not being here."
Case smoothed his finger over her bottom lip, before backing away. He'd never felt anything softer, seen anything more enticing and if he didn't leave her now, he'd probably shock the heck out of her by kissing her again.
"Case, there's nothing to forgive. You have your own life. I can't expect you to be here with us all the time."
"Until I figure out what's going on around here, I'm not leaving you alone."
"Really?"
"Yeah, really," he said with reassurance.
A light clicked on in her blue eyes, making them look crystal clear. She didn't seem to mind his pronouncement. She'd been jealous and worried about him, too. But Case couldn't dwell on that right now. He had to get to the bottom of the break-in.
"I'm going to call the sheriff. It had to be one of those Beckman agents, Sarah. They're not going to get away with frightening my family."
And if it were the last thing he'd do, he'd make it up to Sarah for not being here last night.
Foot-stomping music coming from the kitchen sparked Case's attention. He headed that way as the fiddling, down-home tunes of the Dixie Chicks lured him, coaxing a smile from his lips. The smile turned to a full-out grin when he spotted Sarah, cooking up breakfast, swinging her hips and sashaying her way around the room. Case leaned against the door frame, arms folded, legs crossed and watched her dance fluidly to the music.
The Heart of a Cowboy Page 8