Ben’s face turned the shade of the fire truck beneath them.
Great. Just what she needed. A macho showdown thirty feet above the ground. She shifted her weight and blocked Ben and Luke’s view of each other, then chatted with Luke as he moved the bucket up, cut a couple of branches, and tugged the chute loose from the tree.
Ben balled it up, his hands working like he was furious. But at least it kept him busy. There was barely enough room in the bucket for the three of them to stand. Definitely not enough room for a brawl.
The tower motor pulled them lower. Luke helped her climb down the steps to the ground.
“Thanks,” she muttered. “Appreciate the rescue.”
“Anytime. Seriously, Paige.” He eyed Ben. “I meant what I said. We had fun together, right? Can I call you sometime?”
She was pretty sure that last question was only for Ben’s benefit. She shook her head. Men. What was it with the macho-caveman-this-woman-belongs-to-me-thing? She and Luke might have had some fun, but it was nothing worth repeating and he knew it. “Probably shouldn’t call me,” she said as sweetly as possible. Because she hadn’t changed her mind about putting out.
“Okay then,” he said with a teasing smile. “You know where to find me if you change your mind.” Luke walked back to the truck.
Ben glared at her. She glared back.
“Mr. Noble?” Fire Chief McCormick interrupted their stare down. “I’ll need your help with the incident report.”
Ben’s face colored again. “Of course,” he said briskly, then followed the chief toward the truck.
“Paige!” Avery ran over and smashed her into a hug. “Oh, I’m so glad you’re okay.” She pulled back and looked her over. “You are, right? Nothing hurts?”
“I’m fine,” she assured her, which was mostly true. Her legs had even stopped shaking. But then she looked past Avery and saw Bryce standing a few feet away, arms crossed, dark expression, talking to one of the firemen.
Avery glanced over her shoulder, then leaned close. “He’s ready to kill Ben,” she whispered.
“Well it wasn’t all his fault,” she admitted. She never should’ve agreed to go with him anyway. It was dangerous in more ways than one. “I only hope this won’t mess things up with the trip.” Not now. Not when she was trying to prove herself.
“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Avery said with a reassuring smile. “I’ll go talk to him.”
As soon as she walked away, Ben sauntered over. “Have you dated all the firemen or just that guy?”
Paige eyed him. “You sound jealous.”
“Maybe because you seem happy to go out with an ass like him and you won’t even give me a chance.”
How could she explain it to him? She’d dated Luke because she knew nothing would ever come of it. She’d never fall for someone like Luke. It was easy. Fun. Then when they parted ways, there were no hard feelings. Her heart didn’t hurt.
Ben’s touch carried more weight. It had more depth. With Ben, there’d be expectations. It wouldn’t be enough for him to know Paige the cool guide who joked around like one of the guys. He’d want to know all of her, even those parts of her she hardly knew herself.
“Benjamin!”
The sound of his mother’s shrill voice tensed her body.
Gracie Hunter Noble sprinted past her, her pricey designer coat flapping in the breeze, and threw herself at her son like he’d returned from the horrors of war. “Good heavens! You can’t do this to me, Benjamin! You know my heart can’t take it!” His mother pulled back and inspected him. “Why, you could’ve been killed! How many times do I have to tell you—” She looked up. Her eyes met Paige’s.
Well damn it all, the woman hadn’t even noticed her. She should’ve made a break for it while she could’ve.
“You.” She pointed one of those red shellacked nails in her direction, then turned back to Ben. “You agreed you wouldn’t get involved with her.”
Ben shook his head, but before he could say anything, Paige marched up to Gracie. Thank you for making this so easy. “You have nothing to worry about, Mrs. Noble. We are definitely not involved.” She refused to let herself wither under the power of that woman’s gaze. “In fact, I was just telling Ben that I’m seeing someone.” She gestured over to the cluster of firemen, and, yes, it was a desperate move, but he hadn’t exactly given her a choice now, had he? “Luke Simms. He’s right over there in the uniform,” she gushed. “So you obviously have nothing to worry about. Ben knows I’m not available.”
“Oh.” Gracie gazed over at Luke. “Well. How wonderful. He looks like a nice boy,” she said, no longer glaring.
Ben didn’t seem to think the news was wonderful. He came at her. “Paige—”
“Luke!” she yelled to cut him off. Because she didn’t need Gracie Hunter Noble breathing down her neck. And she sure as hell didn’t need Ben.
Luke trotted over to their awkward circle. “Yeah?”
“You busy tonight?”
A slow smile spread across his face. “Nope.”
“How about dinner?”
“You got it,” he said, looking her up and down. “I’ll pick you up at eight. Take you someplace nice. Elevation 8,000?”
“Sounds perfect.” She tried to gaze at him like a woman in love. “See you then.”
“Yep. See ya then.” Luke sauntered back to his truck.
Ben stepped up to her. “This is shit.”
She looked past him. “I really should get back to the lodge.” With a fake smile at Gracie, she wiggled her fingers in the kind of wave the woman would appreciate. “I’m looking forward to our trip. Bye now.”
Before Ben could stop her, she stomped over to the tree where Bryce stood. From the dark look on his face, he’d witnessed the whole scene.
“I need a ride home,” she said, fashioning her eyes into a repentant plea.
He simply straightened, rested a hand on her shoulder, and guided her to his 4Runner. She climbed in and slammed the door, keeping up the facade until Ben had walked away. Releasing a long breath, she clicked in her seat belt and hid her face in her hands.
The engine started.
She dropped her hands to her lap and looked over at Bryce. His gaze bounced between her and the road.
“What?” she finally demanded.
“I’m only gonna say this once,” he said, shifting gears before he punched the gas. “I’m not your big brother. I’m not your parent. But I know Ben.” He slowed the car and looked at her carefully. “I’ve seen it enough. Some woman screwed him over and now he’s on the rebound.”
“I know that.” She waved him away like the whole thing didn’t get to her. Like her heart didn’t pound when she was around Ben. “You heard what I told his mother.”
“I also know you’re not dating Luke. And I see the way you look at Ben.” He stopped the car and draped his arms over the wheel, stared out the windshield. “Worse, I see the way he looks at you.” He frowned in that stoic, don’t-want-to-say-it-but-have-to way. “Last thing I want is for you to get hurt. This isn’t the first stupid stunt he’s pulled. He’s reckless. Half the time he doesn’t think.”
“Are you sure?” Because that didn’t seem right. The Ben she’d seen was deliberate. Smart. Funny. And yes, so damn hot. He had a lot going for him…
“I lived with him for three years in college,” Bryce reminded her. He slipped the Jeep back into gear and headed for the road. “Look. If you want to have some fling with him, it’s none of my business. But at least wait until this trip is over. I can’t afford to have Gracie come after me right now.”
“Relax.” She’d taken care of it. Ben had looked like he was about to explode when she said she was seeing Luke. “Anyway, the only reason I went with him today was because he promised he’d leave me alone. One paragliding trip and he’d quit asking me out. That was the deal.” Though she had a feeling the whole thing was a setup. He knew what that free fall would do to her. He knew she’d let down her guard.
Bryce still didn’t look convinced. He had that worried furrow he got whenever something didn’t seem right. She’d seen it so many times. He didn’t say much, but she could tell when he was worried about something. “Remember, Paige. He’s gone after this. Back to Texas, then headed for DC, most likely.”
Reason five hundred and seventy-eight why they didn’t belong together. “I know he’s leaving. And I’m starting the therapy program like we’ve been talking about.” She wasn’t about to let him forget that. “This is too important to me, Bryce. I won’t do anything to mess this up, to threaten the ranch.”
Not even Benjamin Hunter Noble was worth that.
Chapter Eighteen
He should know better. Give Gracie Hunter Noble one stinkin’ centimeter and she’d take fifty damn miles. Just like she’d done when she took over the high school prom his senior year, just like she’d done in his campaign, and just like she’d done now in this whole thing with Paige. He never should’ve let her believe she actually had any say in his love life, never should’ve made that deal with her.
Well, no more deals. Mother or not, it was high time he put Gracie in her place.
Ben threw her rented Escalade into gear and gunned the engine.
“Good gracious, Benjamin!” Gracie braced both hands against the dash. “Will you slow down? I never should’ve let you drive! You’re fixin’ to kill me!”
“If I wanted to kill you, I would’ve done it a long time ago. Trust me.” He jerked the wheel and they left the chaotic scene in the meadow behind, firemen still milling around, probably tweeting about what a dumb-ass he was. He turned onto the dirt road that led back up Aspen Mountain.
“What are you doing?” Gracie looked over her shoulder. “The highway is back there.”
“We’re not taking the highway. I have to pick up the Jeep.” Which still sat at about ten thousand feet on the mountainside. The half-hour drive would give them plenty of time to talk.
Steering over the rugged terrain with a not-so-careful hand, he buzzed down the window. The air was still cool, even though the sun blazed its high-altitude warmth. Man, he could get used to that mountain smell—crisp and fresh, a tinge of evergreen.
“Really, son. Must we have all the wind?” Gracie grimaced and smoothed her white hair. “I have a luncheon and I’d rather not look windblown.”
“I’m hot.” Mostly from the way Paige had set his blood to a boil when she’d asked out that loser right in front of him. So she refused to give him a chance, but was obviously willing to hang out with some man who had clearly blown his chance with her a long time ago.
Not that he blamed Paige. It was Gracie’s fault, with all of her old-biddy comments and glares. When it came to Paige, she’d been as cold as a mortician’s mistress, and he intended to put a stop to it.
“Better hold on.” He swung the wheel and sped up the first switchback.
“This doesn’t look very safe.” His mother ducked her head and looked upward at the cliffs towering above them. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to drive back down.”
“You’ll be fine.” It would be something to watch, that was for sure, seeing as how she usually had a driver cart her around like a queen. Back in the day, before she’d risen to near-dignitary status, she’d grown up on a ranch. He knew for a fact she’d been driving on the Texas back roads since she was twelve. He’d seen pictures of her, barefoot and clad in overalls, a handkerchief tied over her head, capricious grin on her freckled face. What happened to that girl? There was a time Gracie hadn’t cared about whose last name was what or how much someone had stockpiled in their bank account. He had to wonder if that girl still lived inside of his mother somewhere.
Keeping an eye on the ruts in the road, he turned down the twangy country music she loved. “Why’d you marry Dad?”
Pain gripped her features like it always did when anyone mentioned his father, but she covered it up with a scowl. It’d start with a sad twinge of her mouth, but she’d steel it so fast you’d miss it if you didn’t know what to look for.
“That’s a silly question.” A wave of her hand dismissed him. Her eyes focused hard on the windshield, like she was reading a script for her next lines instead of gazing at the scenery.
He wasn’t about to let her off that easy. “Was it because he had money? Because his daddy was a senator?” He already knew the answers to those questions, but he wanted her to remember. He wanted to hear her say it.
“Of course not.” A tremor ran through her voice before it thickened with anger. “Don’t be ridiculous, Benjamin. I loved your father. I loved him very much.”
Another turn faced them east, where the midmorning sun still sat low. He pulled down the sunshade to save his eyes. “Why?”
“What on earth do you mean, ‘why’?” Her posture changed, shoulders stiff and straight, chin tipped too high. It spoke for her. Please stop. I don’t want to talk about him. Because it was too painful. She’d told Ben once, after the funeral when she’d drunk herself honest, that she never should’ve let herself love someone so much because it hurt too bad. She’d lost part of herself and she was afraid she’d never find it again.
In his book, that was the only kind of love worth having. If it didn’t change you, what the hell was the point?
He slowed the SUV, navigated a rocky section of the road slowly. Wouldn’t do to nick the oil pan and distract her with a breakdown. “I want to know. Why’d you love him? Why’d you stay with him for so long?”
“I…it was because…” Chin still jutted, she shook her head. “Why are you asking me this?” An accusation hid in the words. Like he was being cruel. Nothing spawned guilt trips like fear, and Gracie was more skilled at guilt trips than a Catholic headmistress. A long time ago, it had worked on him, but it didn’t get to him so much anymore.
“You must have loved something about him. Or maybe it was the money. The fame.”
“He made me feel free,” she said, her regal, soothing tone almost desperate. “It had nothing to do with money, Benjamin. Your father…” She bit her lip and exhaled through her nose. “…he wanted me. The way I was. Even as a silly eighteen-year-old girl.”
That was putting it lightly. Even he could tell from the pictures of their early days together that his father was smitten. He’d had it bad. He remembered one image clearly. His mother sitting on a horse. She wore a long, flowing skirt and her hair was parted into loose braids that fell down around her shoulders. She was laughing. And Dad…he was staring up at her with a look of awe, like he couldn’t believe what he saw. Ben had come across the picture when he was about eight. It’d been tucked into a box with everything else that existed pre-fame. Like Gracie wanted it all to be forgotten. To his young eyes, his parents looked like movie stars from those old Westerns Granddad sometimes watched. Sometimes, when Gracie was gone on her long trips to Paris and Rome and the South of France, he’d dig out that picture and wish that was still his mom. She looked happy. Gracie the Senator’s Wife smiled all the time, but it never changed her eyes, never made them sparkle the way they did in that picture.
“We were so young,” she murmured. “Hadn’t the faintest idea what we were getting ourselves into. But I never got over it. How he chose me.”
Ben glanced at her. Tears glowed in her eyes, but in true Gracie form, she blinked hard. “He chose me every day for all those years. Even the day he died. He chose me.”
Ben let silence settle between them. Listened to the gravel and stones ping the undercarriage, let the breeze erase the anger. Dad might’ve chosen her every day, but she didn’t choose him. She was cold. Controlling. No wonder she didn’t want to talk about him. She knew she didn’t deserve him.
It took a while, but the irritated curl of his fingers subsided. His words would still cut her, but he couldn’t let them go. “He chose you even though you didn’t come from money. Even though your daddy was a drunk.”
“How could you—?”
“I’m gonna pursue Paige.�
�� That’s what this was about. Much as Gracie hated to acknowledge it, everything didn’t revolve around her. “And you can’t do a damn thing about it. So I’d like you to stop tryin’.”
She twisted to face him, her eyes widened into a warning. “You can’t pursue her. She’s seeing someone else.”
“She said that to get you off her back. You’ve been awful to her and I won’t have it. Not anymore.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He glared at her. “Innocence is one thing you can never claim.” He turned the car up another switchback and caught a view of Aspen, growing smaller and more distant the higher they climbed.
“Benjamin, please—”
“I see something in her,” he interrupted. “Something worthy of choosing.”
“But your campaign…”
“I’ll still run my campaign. I’ll still win that Senate seat. And I’ll do it on my terms. Dating who I want to date. Living the life I want to live.”
Her cheeks tightened into that stubborn old mare look. “It will never work out. Not with her.”
“What makes you so sure?”
“A girl like that doesn’t commit, Benjamin. She’s too free-spirited, too naïve.”
He hit the brakes so hard, Gracie jolted forward. He waited until she looked at him, then pointed straight at her, in case she really didn’t see the irony. “You were that girl.”
“Exactly,” she snipped. “So I know what I’m talking about. Trust me. Please. She’s not right for you.”
He eased a foot back onto the gas because this was pointless. If they didn’t get to the top soon, one of them won’t survive the trip. “I don’t understand. You stayed with Dad for almost forty years. You were free-spirited, too. Once.”
She folded her arms. “I did things I’m not proud of.”
Heat flared in his gut and spread through him. “What things? What the hell are you talking about?”
“We had a hard time in the beginning,” she said to her hands. “His schooling, all his political aspirations. I felt neglected.”
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