by Becky McGraw
“The circuits pay well for their stock leases,” Zack chimed in. “And they pay for the vet bills while they’re leased. Ryan and I have a lead on a retired bull that was damned good bucking stock. And a few cows who threw some good bulls too. The rancher selling the bull hasn’t advertised him yet, but he needs the money fast. He’s agreed to give me and Ryan first shot at him, but we have to hurry.”
“What’s in this for us? “If we’re doing all the work, providing the upkeep on the stock, what kind of cut do you expect from the stock leases?” Dean asked pinning the tall, blonde cowboy with a hard look.
“That’s what we need to negotiate. Ryan and I want to invest in the herd, and help with the training and breeding in our off time. We have to do something when we retire, and we know rodeo rough stock. We could get the stock contracts.”
“Why don’t you just do it yourselves?” Dean asked shortly.
“Because we’re rodeo riders right now. Damn good riders who make a good living riding. We don’t have time to manage a herd, and we’re not ready to hang up our spurs just yet.” He huffed out a breath. “Besides we don’t have a ranch to hold a herd or enough money to buy one.”
“Okay, I’ll ask again. What’s in this for us? The answer to that question will determine our answer.” Dean looked at Cord again. “We can’t just make a decision on a pie in the sky deal without some specifics.”
“This isn’t a pie in the sky, Dean. It’s a good idea, dammit!” Cord threw up his hands. “You are so damned hardheaded and unbendable sometimes I think you’re made of stone. Or that’s what your brain has turned to from being so set in your ways.”
Dean sucked in a deep breath. He was not going to put his fist in his brother’s face right now, he was just not going to do it. But that is what he wanted to do. The best thing he could do to preserve the party mood was remove himself from this discussion and get another beer.
“Let me think about it. Talk to daddy and see what he says.”
Now, that wasn’t inflexible was it? He had listened to his brother’s stupid idea, said he’d think about it. Now, he was going to purge it from his brain, and have another beer. Dean turned and walked toward the fire that was just now starting to smolder. He’d been so engrossed in the conversation with his brother and his brother’s friends he hadn’t even noticed it had gotten darker, or how many damned trucks were here now. There must be thirty or more parked out in the field. Everywhere he looked there were people. Dean’s collar got a little tighter around his throat, and he ran his finger underneath. He’d have a few beers, then he was going back to the house.
This was not his idea of a good time.
He walked over to the ice chest beside a table set up on the far side of the fire, and flipped open the lid. Pulling out a beer, he used the opener on the side of the chest to remove the cap then stood back up. A radio from one of the trucks suddenly blared country music across the field and several other trucks joined in. At least they were all tuned to the same station, he thought as he lifted his beer toward his lips. His eyes snagged on Tina Montgomery sitting on a log beside one of Cord’s rodeo friends and the beer stopped halfway to his mouth.
The guy was showing her how to skewer a weenie on a coat hanger. The way she watched him you’d think he was showing her something her life depended on her knowing. The cowboy couldn’t be more than twenty-one, but Tina didn’t seem to notice or care. She was almost sitting on his lap. He said something and her dark hair danced around her shoulders as she threw her head back and laughed.
All of a sudden the fire caught hold with a loud whoosh. The heat blasted him, but was nothing like the heat that surged through his veins. His heart beat ninety to nothing in his chest, as old instinct kicked in. He wanted to go over there and snatch her away from the man, and put his fist in the bastard’s grinning face. But Tina Montgomery wasn’t his ex-wife. She wasn’t his anything, he reminded himself as he turned his back and walked around to the other side of the fire. He found an empty log, grabbed a hanger from the stack near the fire, and a got a hot dog out of the pack. He sat down on the log and shoved the dog on the end of the hanger.
“Hi cowboy, wanna cook me one too?” a soft voice asked.
Dean looked up and his eyes met grass green eyes that had to be from colored contacts, because he’d never seen natural eyes so green. They were rimmed by mascara so thick the blonde woman’s eyelashes resembled spider legs. Her lashes nearly touched her arched eyebrows. She had to be at least ten years younger than he was too. Like most everyone else at this party. He felt like a used up old man in comparison. And this woman was definitely not his type.
He dragged his eyes away, and stuck his hanger into the fire hoping she’d take his cue to take a hike. Instead, she sat down beside him, slid a hot dog onto a hanger then stuck it into the fire beside his. “What’s your name?” Chatty Cathy who couldn’t take a clue asked.
“Dean,” he replied gruffly.
He heard her sniff a couple of times, then she leaned closer to his neck and sniffed again. “Damn, boy, you smell delicious. Good enough to lick all over.”
“Not interested, honey. I’m not in a good mood.” That was about as blatant as he could be without insulting her.
“Bet I could improve your mood…if you’d let me,” she drawled suggestively.
Not likely, he thought. Dean picked up his beer from beside his leg and took a long drink, followed by another until he’d emptied the bottle. He pushed it at her. “Get me another beer will you, sugar?” He could only hope she would get distracted and find some other man to bother on the way to the cooler. If she made it back at least he didn’t have to go over there again and see Tina Montgomery with that cowboy to get another beer.
“Hold my hot dog and I will,” she said sweetly and passed her hanger to him.
Damn, that meant she was coming back.
Dean held both hangers in the fire, and watched the edges of the meat blacken. When they were done a few minutes later the girl still wasn’t back with his beer. He lifted the hangers out of the fire and blew on the hot dogs. He’d forgotten to grab buns off the table by the beer. Since Blondie wasn’t back he’d have to get a beer himself anyway. With a sigh Dean got up and walked around the fire to the table behind the cooler.
Against his will, while he slid the hotdogs off into buns, his eyes drifted over to the log where he’d seen Tina sitting before. His heart jerked in his chest and the old betrayal he was ever so familiar with when he was with Cindy tried to take root inside of him. Jealousy all but grabbed him by the balls and brought him to his knees. She was sitting on the man’s lap now, while he wiped marshmallow goo off of her cheek. The cowboy laughed as he leaned in to lick what was left, and she swatted him away with a giggle.
“Here’s your beer, honey. Sorry, I got hung up talking,” the blonde said.
He took it from her and drank a long, slow swallow to wash away the bitterness inside of him. When he lowered the bottle, he motioned to the other hot dog on the table. “That’s your hot dog, baby. It’s a little burnt, but if you put enough ketchup on it you can’t tell.”
“Oh, thank you for cooking my weenie,” she said then giggled like she was about sixteen. “I’m weird, because I like ‘em burnt.” She slathered ketchup over the dog, then looked up at him as she took a slow bite. A dollop of ketchup sat the corner of her mouth, and without thinking, he thumbed it off. She stopped chewing, heat filled her eyes and her eyebrows lifted.
Someone bumped into him and Dean stumbled forward into her. His arms went around her to keep them both from falling. He looked behind him and saw some of the partygoers had begun dancing in the firelight to the music blaring from the trucks.
He looked back at the blonde, glanced at Tina, then back at the blonde. In the dark they all felt the same. He wasn’t particular right about now. He wasn’t looking for Miss Right, he was looking for Miss Tonight. This woman wasn’t his cup of tea, but she would work if they took a walk in the woods. And
she looked easy enough in her shirt that was unbuttoned so low her black lace bra was showing, and the shorts that were so short he could see the curve of her ass cheeks. Dean finished his beer while she ate her hot dog, then tossed his bottle in the trash can. “You wanna dance, sugar?”
Her face perked up and she smiled, then slid her arm through his. “See, I told you I could make you feel better! I’d love to dance.”
Tina wiped her face with a napkin as she watched Dean and the young blonde walk off into the dark where everyone was dancing. Her heart did a little flip in her chest. It sure didn’t take him long, she thought. In the truck he’d been hitting on her. Now he found someone who was evidently more to his liking than she was. That girl was young enough. Maybe she would be too naive to see past Dean Dixon’s good looking exterior to see what a project he was. And that was just mean, but it was the truth. A woman would have to be either stupid, or have the patience of a saint to deal with the man. Tina wasn’t either. The woman was welcome to him.
Lucky evidently saw her staring, because he looked over his shoulder, then back at her. “Everything okay, darlin?” he asked with a smile.
Tina forced her lips up at the corners. She was having a good time, and she wasn’t going to let Dean Dixon ruin that. “Everything is just perfect.”
“You want to dance?” he asked looking back at the dancers.
“I don’t know how to do that kind of dancing,” she admitted. Tina had never country danced before in her life, and the songs the radio station was playing weren’t slow.
“Well you can just stand on my boots, and I’ll do the dancing until you get the steps down. How about that?” he asked with a laugh.
“I’d probably be on your feet anyway, why not?” she said with a chuckle.
“Honey, you can step on my toes any time you want,” he said leaning in to hug her.
There wasn’t a darned thing dark or tortured about this cowboy. He was all light and happiness. She was glad she’d met him tonight. After her run-in with Dean today, she needed some of that tonight. It was refreshing.
Lucky stood and grabbed her hand then pulled her toward the group of dancers. Once they stepped outside of the firelight, the temperature dropped a little since it was completely dark now, and she shivered. He must’ve noticed. “You cold, honey?” he asked.
“A little.” He stopped and slid off his blue jean jacket and helped her into it. The darned thing was about three sizes too big, and she probably looked like she was a little girl playing dress up, but at least it was warm. “Thank you,” she said smiling up at him.
“I’d put my hat on you too, but that sends a message out here in the country. I’m not sure you’re ready for that.”
“Oh yeah? What kind of message?” Tina had to ask, because she had no clue but was damned curious.
He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to kiss the top of her head. “That you’re my girl, and only I get to kiss you tonight.” Tina wondered if she’d see the blonde wearing Dean’s sexy black hat tonight, and her heart squeezed in her chest. That wasn’t her business. If that happened, it would be a good thing for him.
“Um, let’s wait on the hat. The night’s still young, and we’re still getting to know each other. Thank you for the jacket though.”
He laughed, and put his arm around her shoulders to walk her into the crowd. He lifted her and set her back down on his feet, and Tina put her hands on his shoulders. They made several circuits around the group, and Lucky, true to his word, danced like she was dancing with him. Out here in the dark, nobody could tell anyway. She hadn’t seen Dean or the blonde yet, and dammit she’d been looking, even though she didn’t want to. Lucky made another pass around the circle then she saw them standing just outside the light of the fire kissing. Tina’s lips twitched in remembrance of his hot kisses. The man knew how to kiss.
“That’s Cord’s brother isn’t it?” Lucky asked and his dance steps slowed a little.
Tina hadn’t realized how hard she’d been staring, or that the man she was dancing with would notice. He seemed to know exactly who she had been staring at. “Yeah, that’s Dean,” she replied dragging her eyes away to focus on him.
“Something going on between you two?” he asked and his voice wasn’t light like it had been all night.
Dean Dixon had kissed her twice now. Once just a few hours ago out in a bluebonnet field that had to be the most romantic place on earth. The man who had been doing the kissing didn’t have an ounce of romance in him, but he appreciated the beautiful setting. Tina couldn’t tell Lucky that though. “Um, no there’s nothing there.”
“Good,” he said and his voice returned to normal as his steps picked up again. They danced a little while longer then Tina decided she needed a drink. She wasn’t a big beer fan, but that looked like her only choice if she wanted something alcoholic and she definitely did.
“Hey can we go get a beer?” she asked.
Lucky danced them to the edge of the crowd. Tina stepped off of his feet and he dropped an arm over her shoulders. They walked over to the cooler, Lucky bent to take out two beers then opened them and handed her one. Tina heard raised voices, and at first thought it was the radio until her ears zeroed in on the tone of one of those voices. It was Dean Dixon’s. The other was a female voice. And they weren’t just yelling to hear each other over the music. She walked toward the end of the fire pit. When she rounded the corner she saw him arguing with a tall redhead, who looked almost like a she-devil with the firelight flickering over her angry face.
“Cindy, you need to get the fuck off this ranch. You lost the right to be here three years ago and you lost the right to see your son.”
“We never finalized the custody agreement, or property settlement,” she said, throwing her chin up. The other guy standing behind her tensed up, but he didn’t say a word. Tina hoped he didn’t jump in, because she could see the rage in Dean’s tortured face in the firelight too.
He looked mad enough to kill someone.
“There wasn’t anything to settle. You fucking left me and you left your son. We didn’t have a pot to piss in then, so there was nothing to settle.”
“My attorney says differently. And I want to see my son. I’m remarried now and Bobby wants his son.”
A roar erupted from Dean, and his hands flew up toward her throat. She jumped back and Dean’s hands flexed in midair then he dropped them to his side. “I wanted a fucking son too. Thought I had one. But you made sure you told me I didn’t have one when you left didn’t you? But you sure didn’t mind leaving him for me to raise!”
“I couldn’t take him with me,” she said in a whiny voice that went through Tina.
“Because you fucking hit the road with Bobby. That’s not an excuse, Cindy. That’s abandonment. No court in the country would give you custody after you abandoned your son for three years.”
“We’ll see,” she said smugly. “My attorney—“
Dean’s growl was feral. It was obvious the man had just reached his breaking point. Cindy stopped talking. Dean took an aggressive step forward, hesitated, then spun on his heel and walked off into the darkness.
Cord came up behind Cindy. “You’re trespassing here. Get the fuck off this ranch, and don’t come back,” he grated cutting his eyes to the man with her.
“My son—“
“You don’t have a son. The kid doesn’t even know you. Haven’t you hurt my brother and that kid enough? Just leave and don’t come back, or you won’t like what happens.”
She snorted. “Are you threatening me, pretty boy?”
“No, ma’am. I’m making a promise to personally toss your ass off this ranch if you come back here and cause problems. Now get your husband, and haul your ass out of here, before I do it now.” Cindy folded her arms around herself, and lifted an eyebrow.
She and Cord had a whole conversation without saying a word, and she evidently figured out Dean’s brother was dead serious. She looked at the man with he
r and said, “C’mon Bobby—we’ll let my attorney handle this.”
“You better break out your checkbook bitch, because I have a lot more money than you do and you’re not getting him without a fight,” Hope yelled loudly at her back. Cord jerked her to his side.
A crowd had gathered, Tina suddenly noticed. The music had stopped and not a soul was dancing. They had all heard what had just happened. Dean had to be humiliated, on top of being ripped to shreds by the woman who seemed determined to crush him.
Tina needed to see if he was okay. She pushed through the crowd to walk in the direction she had seen him going. Total darkness surrounded her, and the temperature dropped twenty degrees. She snuggled Lucky’s coat closer to her body, and squinted trying to figure out where Dean had gone. She knew how fast he walked when he was upset so she picked up her pace, almost jogging toward the woods.
If she remembered right, they weren’t too far from the lake and the bluebonnet field. That place seemed to hold some significance for him. Not too far wasn’t close though. It had to be at least a quarter mile or so from there. Through the woods. In the dark. Fear of what was in those woods at night made her heart kick up a notch, but she kept going.
She was really afraid what Dean might do.
CHAPTER TEN
Tina stopped at the narrow, rutted dirt path into the woods, and took a deep breath of the earthy, piney air then let it out slowly, before she started walking. She’d only thought it was dark in the field. The blackness once she stepped into the trees was absolute. No moon could penetrate the thick canopy. Dean came here because that’s probably how he felt inside after that nasty woman ripped his soul right out of his body in front of everyone at the party.
Even though he was stern with his son, not warm and fuzzy with him, it was obvious to Tina he loved his son completely. If he lost him, it would probably kill him. She wouldn’t doubt he’d have ideas of killing himself, or someone else. A man could only take so much before he snapped. The man at the fire had been on the verge of snapping, if he hadn’t done that.