Dori had moved his gear back into the house.
"You did what?" He stared at her, astonished.
"It was ridiculous for you to be out there, anyway," she said matter-of-factly. "Entirely unnecessary. There's a perfectly good bed in Jake's room, if you won't let me give you back your own."
"I won't," he said flatly.
"So I put your things in with Jake's."
"It'll be swell, Riley," Jake said with enormous good cheer. "You'll see. You'll be glad you're there."
In fact Riley went to bed with mixed feelings.
Yes, he was dry. And yes, the bed was more comfortable by far than the one he'd slept on in the bunkhouse. And Jake was a much better roommate than Chris had ever been. Neater, for one thing. Less sulky. And very eager to whisper confidences to Riley after the lights were out.
"You're supposed to be asleep," Riley told him when Jake started whispering to him when he came to bed.
"Kids don't need as much sleep as grown-ups think they do."
"How do you know?"
"I'm awake, aren't I?"
There was no answer to that. Riley slid between the crisp sheets of the bottom bunk. "You oughta be sleepin'," he said gruffly.
"I will," Jake promised. "Pretty soon." Riley heard him shift in the top bunk, then saw the curtain pulled aside.
"He's up there." Jake's voice was quietly confident.
Riley rolled onto his side and punched his pillow. "What're you talkin' about?"
"Him." Jake pulled the curtain back further. "The Stardust cowboy."
Riley groaned. "You're not gonna start up on that again, are you? It's just a story."
"I know that," Jake said impatiently. "But that doesn't make it not true." He bounced a little in the bunk above. "I'm here, aren't I? An' I'm gettin' Tugger, aren't I?" He leaned out of the bed and hung his head upside down to look at Riley in the darkness.
Riley scowled. "What else are you dreamin' about?" he muttered.
"Can't tell," Jake said. "Won't happen if I do."
Riley raised up on one elbow. "Listen, Jake, things … don't always happen if you dream 'em." He didn't want to destroy the boy's confidence, but he did want him to be a little realistic.
Jake's head bobbed. "I know. But … some things are just meant to happen. Like me comin' here. You know what I mean?" There was such earnestness in his young voice that Riley couldn't deny him.
"I know," he said, and it was true. There was a rightness about Jake's having come. For all that Riley hadn't wanted anything of the sort in the beginning, now he couldn't imagine not having Jake living there.
Or Dori, either.
He didn't want to think about that. Dori confused him, made him feel things he hadn't felt in years, made him want things he didn't have any business wanting. And he knew he'd be wanting them more than ever, now that he was sleeping just across the hall from her.
"I know," he said to Jake again, gruffly because his throat felt oddly tight. "Now go to sleep or I'll be sorry you did come."
Whatever had gone on between Riley and Tricia, it wasn't over.
Dori was sure of it.
Especially when Tricia called several days after the barbecue to invite them over for dinner. And if the invitation said a lot—the actual evening they spent with Tricia and Jeff confirmed it.
It wasn't blatant. Tricia didn't throw herself at Riley. But she touched him. She passed him in the doorway between the living room and the dining room, and her breasts brushed against Riley's arm. She managed to touch him when she was passing dishes during mealtime, too. Her hand lingered on his arm when she told a funny story and somehow just needed to touch someone to make a point.
She even ruffled his hair once when she passed him sitting by Jake near the fireplace. It appeared to be a casual movement. But Dori saw Riley jump and knew it wasn't casual to him.
Riley was as aware of Tricia as she was of him.
Dori was aware of both of them.
Jeff didn't seem aware of anything at all. Except business. He apologized profusely for his distraction. "I didn't realize Tricia had already invited you," he said after they'd eaten, "and I'd already made arrangements for a conference call this evening. I hope you'll excuse me."
Tricia pouted. "Jeff's so busy all the time. He never has a moment for me or the kids."
"That's not true," Jeff said. "Matt went with me to Cheyenne just last week."
"He never has a moment for me," Tricia corrected. She made a sound, which Dori supposed was intended to be a light laugh, but it came out sounding rather strained.
"A lawyer's work is never done," Jeff said.
"Like a cowboy's," Riley agreed.
But Tricia put her hand on his arm. "Oh, you always had time for me."
Riley stiffened and eased his arm out from her grasp. "That was a long time ago." He gave a quick laugh.
"A very long time ago," Jeff said firmly.
But Tricia lifted her chin. "Not so very," she said meaningfully. "Riley was extremely attentive in college." She smiled at her husband, then at Riley, then at last at Dori. There was a definite possessiveness in her tone.
Dori didn't say anything then. But once they were home and Jake was in bed, she tracked Riley down.
"Okay," she said. "Tell me what's going on."
Riley didn't know what was going on.
He didn't know what Tricia was trying to do. After a dozen years of her being married to another man, she was suddenly an issue in his life.
Well, actually, she'd always been an issue in his life. But up until the dance at Tanners' she'd been a resolved issue.
And now?
"What's going on?" Dori demanded again. "Between you and Tricia Cannon?"
"Nothin's goin' on!" He scowled fiercely at her. "What do you think?"
"I don't know what to think," she said flatly. "That's why I'm asking. The two of you have a past."
"We went out in high school. And college," he added grudgingly after a moment. Then, when she still waited, he scowled. "What? There's nothin' to tell!"
Dori's brow lifted, but she didn't say anything.
"Oh, hell," Riley muttered. "You want it blunt? I'll give it to you blunt. I wanted to marry her, and I thought she wanted to marry me. But I think she really wanted just to get out of here. Her old man was a pretty poor rancher, and all she could think was how great it would be to move to the city. When I went away to college, she thought I was her ticket out. She went, too. And in her mind we were gonna go together. Didn't matter to her that I always wanted to come back here and ranch. She figured I'd smarten up soon enough. Trouble was, my mother died and my old man got hurt, and I ended up coming back a whole lot sooner than either of us figured. I asked her to come with me, but she wouldn't. She was going to finish school, she said. And—" he shrugged "—I thought she would come after that. Instead she found another guy. One she hoped would take her away. And Jeff did—for a while. They moved back about six years ago. They're here. So am I. It's no big deal. And that's all."
"That's all," Dori echoed quietly. She seemed to be considering what he'd said, weighing it. And then she shook her head. "It doesn't seem as if that's all."
"Well, it is." Riley lifted his chin, daring her to argue.
They stared at each other.
And then she said quietly, "You love her."
"I loved her," Riley corrected.
"Does she love you?"
"Of course not!"
Dori just looked at him.
Riley jammed his hands in his pockets. "That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard! She's married! She's been married a dozen years. She isn't interested in me."
Dori didn't reply. But her eyes met his again, wide and questioning, still asking things that he couldn't begin to answer.
It was all in Dori's imagination. She was letting the local gossip color her interpretation of events. Riley told her so.
Even though he, too, was a little surprised that Tricia was suddenly calling hi
m up, it made perfect sense for her to do so. Why shouldn't she call him and ask his advice about a horse she was thinking of buying for her son?
Jeff was no horseman. He wouldn't know the first thing about what to look for.
So Riley did what any good neighbor would do. He gave her the benefit of his expertise.
"Maybe you could come look at one or two with me … er, us, sometime?" she suggested.
"I reckon I might do that. Just got Jake a horse of his own," he added.
"I heard," she said. "That's why I thought of calling you." Of course it was.
See, he told Dori, there was a perfectly reasonable explanation.
There was an equally reasonable explanation for her to call and tell him about a couple they used to know at school down in Laramie.
"She just wanted me to know that Lacey and Jim had a baby," he told Dori after he hung up that time.
"First child?" Dori asked.
"Hmm? No, fourth, I think."
"She called you about all of them?"
"I … don't remember," he said. He didn't think she had. But then he remembered. "The others were born when Tricia and Jeff were livin' down in Denver."
Dori just looked at him.
"It's true!"
But he knew she thought he was encouraging Tricia's calls. And perversely Tricia thought he was encouraging Dori.
"She's real pretty, Riley," Tricia had said more than once.
He hadn't denied it. Dori was pretty. He spent a lot of time thinking about just how pretty she really was. And since they'd danced—and kissed—he thought about other things, too. It surprised him sometimes how much time he spent thinking about her—even when Tricia was calling him.
"I'm beginning to think you're sweet on her, Riley." Tricia teased.
He bristled. "Don't be ridiculous. She was my brother's woman. I wouldn't go after another man's woman."
"No." Tricia said. "That's true." She sounded pleased.
He and Dori were in the middle of creating a screen saver when the phone rang.
Creating a screen saver was not Riley's idea of a great way to spend the evening. But it was pretty interesting—the alcove being as small as it was, and all. Whenever they moved, Dori's body tended to brush against his, her scent filled his nostrils, her voice teased his ears.
He couldn't have the woman he loved, but he found he was enjoying this one. He was even considering trying that kissing bit again.
And then the phone rang.
"Riley?" It was Tricia.
His body, already somewhat aroused from being near Dori, went on alert. He sat up straight. He moved his knee, which had been touching Dori's. "What's up?" He could feel Dori's eyes on him. He didn't look at her.
"I just wanted you to know I found a horse for Matt."
"That's great," he said.
"It's a seven-year-old bay gelding. Can you look at it tomorrow?"
"Don't reckon I can tomorrow. I got some haying to do in the morning. Then I'm goin' up on the Bureau land. Gotta move some cattle."
"I could bring him to you. Ride him. Meet you at the old swimming hole?"
Riley sat up straighter. Meet him? At the swimming hole? "Well, I—"
"About three," Tricia said firmly. "You could be there by three, couldn't you?"
"I … I guess. But—"
"Perfect," she said. "I'll see you then. Thanks, hon'." And she was gone.
Hon'? She'd called him hon'?
"Who was that?" Dori asked when he hung up.
"Uh … Tricia," he said, distracted.
Dori stopped looking at the computer and stared at him.
"She found a horse for Matt. Wanted me to look at him." He got up from the computer and moved away into the bedroom, edgy now, his thoughts whirling. He rubbed a hand over his hair. The swimming hole? Tricia wanted to meet him at the swimming hole?
"Can we skip that screen saver thing tonight? I'm bushed. Reckon I'll pack it in now and get an early start in the morning. It's a long ride. If I do the haying first, I probably won't be back till supper."
Dori didn't say anything for a moment. Then she nodded. "Fine," she said. "All right. Whatever you want."
All day long he considered not meeting Tricia.
It wasn't as if she really needed his approval of a horse for her boy. If she was confident enough of the horse to ride it all the way out there, it couldn't be too bad an animal.
But then he thought maybe it would be a good opportunity to talk to her, to find out—now that she'd had a chance to get to know Dori—what she thought of Jake's mother.
He wasn't sure why it mattered. She hadn't asked him what he'd thought of Jeff, for heaven's sake!
But it wouldn't hurt to see her. So when he finished checking the cattle up on the Bureau land, he made his way down to the swimming hole around three.
A quick glance around told him that Tricia wasn't there yet. He sat waiting on his horse, glanced at his watch, then dismounted, loosened the cinch on his saddle and left his horse to graze by the trees. If he was going to have to wait, he'd move closer to the water where it was cooler.
Three turned into three-thirty. Riley shifted uncomfortably on the rocks. Looking at the pond made him remember all the times he'd been here with Tricia. And his body remembered things even better than his mind did.
He eased the fit of his jeans and tried not to remember anymore.
But then he started thinking about Dori having been here with Jake. Of course she wouldn't have gone swimming in her birthday suit. Not with her son around. But in Riley's mind, Jake wasn't around. And in his head he could imagine Dori—all that rosy skin naked and gleaming as she stood in the pond and beckoned to him.
Damn!
He jumped to his feet and began to pace, glancing at his watch, wondering if Tricia had forgotten how long it took to get there. He glanced at his watch and wondered if she was coming at all.
He wasn't going to sit here waiting forever. Not when Dori was all alone back at the ranch.
He'd give her until four-fifteen. An hour and a quarter was enough time.
At quarter past four, he gave up.
And breathed a sigh of relief.
She wasn't coming. She'd thought better of it. She'd decided she didn't need Riley's opinion of her boy's new horse. She'd decided she didn't need to get any more involved with Riley than she had been the past twelve years.
And she was right.
Very very right. He got to his feet and looked around one last time. No Tricia. Only memories.
Memories that—before he went back to the ranch house and Dori—he needed to erase.
He yanked off his boots and socks, shed his shirt and jeans and shorts and plunged into the icy water.
Shivering, he broke the surface. His body hated him. His mind approved. Teeth chattering, he ducked down again. He swam across the pond, then turned and started back.
He was halfway there when he glanced up—and saw Tricia standing on the bank watching him.
She was standing right at the water's edge, smiling at him the way he remembered her smiling at him all those years ago right before she'd shed her clothes and walked straight into his arms.
Riley stopped dead and stood up. The water lapped his waist.
"I'm glad you waited. What a good idea." Her words were sultry and her hands went to the buttons of her shirt.
Riley stared, aghast. "What the—! Where've you— Don't do that!"
Tricia's hands stilled. Her lips pouted, and she looked at him, baffled. "What? Don't do what?"
"That!" he yelped when she started again. "Don't do that! Stay right there! I'll come out." And then he realized he couldn't. Not as long as she was standing there waiting for him!
She realized it, too, and grinned. It was a damned seductive grin. "Come on, then." Her laugh was musical, beckoning, tempting.
He didn't move. "Don't be stupid," he retorted.
"You don't want to swim with me, Riley?" There was a soft, teasing note
in her voice.
His face burned. "Cut it out, Trish. You didn't show up. I waited. I got hot. I—"
"I bet you did."
"It was hot, so I took a swim," he said fiercely. "Now go away—over beyond the trees and let me get dressed and I'll look at your horse."
"It's a good horse," she said. But she still didn't move, just stood there, eyes on him.
Riley glared. "Let me get out and let me see him, then."
Tricia's smile widened. She opened her arms. "Anytime you're ready, sweetheart."
"Don't play games, Tricia."
The smile faded, but still she didn't move. "I'm not playing games, Riley."
Checkmate. He couldn't get out. She wouldn't go away.
Then finally she said, "You're right. It is hot." And then, damned if she didn't start unbuttoning her shirt again!
"Trish! Stop it! Don't do that! Cripes!" He was torn between shutting his eyes and staring in fascination as she bared her creamy skin right in front of him.
His mouth went dry. "Stop!" he said again hoarsely.
But she just smiled at him. She didn't stop. She stripped off every stitch—shimmied out of her jeans, flung her shirt and bra aside, then peeled down her panties and kicked them away.
Riley's tongue seemed glued to the roof of his mouth. He couldn't take his eyes off her. It had been years—years!—since he'd seen her naked. Her body was fuller now, lusher than he remembered. She was still small, delicate, but there was a womanly look to her now.
And—omigod!—a womanly feel, too, which he discovered when she walked right out into the water and put her arms around him!
He jerked back, pushing her away. "Trish! For God's sake! Don't!"
She fluttered her lashes and pouted at him. "Why not?"
He was backpedaling as fast as he could. "You can't! You're married!" But it didn't seem to matter to her. She came after him again. "Don't do this!"
She caught his arm and pressed close. "Why not?" she asked again, looking up at him, eyes wide and luminous. "You want me, Riley. You know you do."
Well, his body did, at least. And there was ample evidence to prove it. But still Riley shook his head.
"No! I don't," he insisted. "And you don't either, damn it. You're married!"
THE STARDUST COWBOY Page 14