Her Uniform Cowboy (Harland County Series Book 3)

by Donna Michaels

  The other eye opened.

  “That’s better. Now, listen to me. You have nothing to be embarrassed about.”

  The snort that left her throat caused her head to jerk back and hit the refrigerator. “Yes, I do. A good number of things. But I am really sor—”

  He pressed a finger to her lips, intending to stop her apology, but…ah hell, he hadn’t expected the instant awareness that spread through his body, heating his spine. She must’ve felt it too, because her brown eyes widened, and she trembled against him.

  That’s all it took to send him to the same state he was in last Thursday on the couch. Just one touch. That was it. One miniscule touch. He had no defense. He was done. His brain shut down and need, fierce and consuming, took over.

  Cupping her face, he closed the distance between them and covered her mouth with his.

  Damn, he knew it.

  He knew those tempting lips of hers would feel soft and supple…and hot.

  When she let out a breath of acceptance and slid her hands up around his neck, he discovered heaven. There was no other word for the feeling of completeness that came over him. Everything about the woman in his arms was right. Her touch, her curves, her lips. Christ, her lips. She kissed him with a matching wild abandon, lips drinking and drinking like she’d been thirsting for him, and only him. And if they hadn’t needed air, no way in hell would he have stopped.

  With a reluctance he’d never known, Kade broke the kiss and set his forehead against hers, careful not to touch the bruise on her temple. Spurts of warm air hit his neck, signaling she too was having trouble getting her breathing under control.

  “Wow,” she said with a gush. “That…was…”

  “Wow,” he finished for her, and she laughed.

  “Yeah, like firecracker wow.”

  He drew back to frown down at her. “Just firecracker?”

  She smiled. “Okay, maybe an M80.”

  “Unkewl Kade...” Cody appeared out of nowhere, standing next to them, rubbing his eyes. “What’s an M and M 80?”

  They broke apart, and the sound of Brandi’s head smacking the refrigerator went unnoticed by his nephew who blinked up at him.

  Jesus. How much had the little guy seen?

  “Is it wike chocwit?”

  Completely at a loss as to what the right thing was to do—ask the four-year-old if he’d seen the kiss, and if so, address the kiss, ignore the kiss…ask Brandi for another kiss. No…no…that would be bad. At least, not in front of his nephew.

  “Cuz I wike chocwit.” The little boy continued to talk, apparently oblivious to the battle going on in his uncle’s thick head. Heads.

  Knowing he needed to respond, Kade swooped up the sleepy child and went for the fail-safe maneuver; he tickled his tummy. “No, an M80 is like a firecracker, but bigger,” he said, looking pointedly at the silent designer.

  She smiled, and his heart actually rocked in his chest. Rocked. That wasn’t good. Movement. Damn. No. That was not good. He didn’t need a woman making him feel his heart. Causing his heart to move. Life was much easier without that complication. Hell, he’d managed just fine without that complication for over thirty-two years.

  Suddenly, he didn’t feel so good.

  Time to go.

  He transferred his gaze to the little boy in his arms. “What do you say? You ready, buddy?”

  “I guess. Can we get some ice cweam? Bwandi said I could get chocwit ice cweam fwom Fostews aftew my nap. And I napped. Isn’t that wight, Bwandi?”

  “Yes, you did,” she said, stepping close to ruffle his nephew’s hair. “I’m sure your uncle will get you some ice cream.”

  Two small hands grabbed his jaw and turned his face. “Can we, Unkewl Kade?”

  He grinned. “Sure. Go gather your stuff,” he replied, setting the child down. “We’ll stop for it on our way home.”

  “Yippee!”

  He chanced a glance at the silent woman, but couldn’t tell what she was thinking or feeling. Was she sad? Mad? Relieved? He had no idea. He only knew he had to leave.

  “Come on. I want chocwit.” Cody tugged his hand. When he didn’t budge, his nephew glanced up. “Come on, Unkewl Kade.”

  “Don’t you have something to say to Brandi?”

  Big blue eyes blinked up at him. “Oh. Yeah. I fowgot.” He turned to his babysitter. “Do you want some ice cweam, too?”

  Damn. That wasn’t what he’d meant. His heart stopped for a full beat. A full beat. Shit. More movement. Once again, the sexy woman interfered with the beating of his heart. Not good.

  “Awe, thanks, sweetheart, but no,” she replied, kneeling down, staring at his nephew eye-level. “You two go ahead. Enjoy.”

  “We will. Thanks for pwaying with me today,” Cody said, body slamming her with a hug.

  She laughed and hugged back. “Anytime.”

  “Okay, Cody. Let’s go.” He set a hand on the boy’s shoulder, really needing to get out of the small cottage. Breathing was becoming a chore. “I think someone could use some alone time.”

  The pretty designer’s smile turned sad. “Yeah. I think someone could.”

  Now he felt like an ass. He knew she was self conscious and confused. No doubt trying to figure out what the hell just happened in her kitchen. But he had no answers. He was at a loss, too. He needed to regroup, and that wasn’t going to happen in her presence. So, rude or not, yeah, he was kissing then running.

  The alternative was feeling, and hell no, he was not having any of that.

  For a Monday, the day didn’t actually suck. Brandi had half expected the sky to fall or a horse to run into her car or a handsome sheriff to kiss her like she was his last breath then leave her high and dry. Oh wait, that last part happened yesterday.

  Though, she shouldn’t be so hard on the sheriff. Heck, after their incredible kiss, she’d had the urge to run, too. He just beat her to it. The man made her feel too much, that was the problem. And the last thing she needed was to feel with her heart. But, damn, if there was a way to keep her heart out of it, she wanted more of his delicious kisses.

  Shaking her head to rid her mind of the Kade-induced fog that had clung to her ever since their lips met, Brandi gathered her purse, and what was left of her wits, and exited her rental car for her meeting with Jordan at the restaurant.

  Based on their requests and the measurements she’d gathered at the McCall’s last week, Brandi was confident the master suite plans on her tablet were going to please her friends. Especially their standup shower.

  Smile tugging her lip, she entered the quiet restaurant and stood just inside the door to allow her eyes to adjust.

  “Hello,” she called, slowly making her way toward the kitchen.

  Incredible smells of fresh garlic, butter and onions filled the air, and Brandi’s stomach promptly growled, reminding her it was time for a snack. She fished a cereal bar out of her purse and knocked on the swinging kitchen door as she pushed inside.

  “Hello?”

  “Hi, Brandi.” Kerri smiled at her from in front of the stove where the incredible smells percolated. “Jordan is upstairs in the apartment. She said to tell you to go on up when you got here. So, go on up.”

  “Okay,” she replied, readjusting the strap on her shoulder before she bit into her bar.

  Kerri stepped forward, smile twitching her lip. “Wait… Don’t you have something to tell me?”

  “No.” She frowned and shook her head. “I don’t think so. Why?”

  Her friend’s smile widened. “Connor and I noticed Kade’s truck outside your house last night…”

  Cereal bars didn’t taste so good when you choked on them.

  She coughed and shook her head again. “He was just picking Cody up for Jen.”

  “Uh, huh.” The cook folded her arms across her chest and regarded her closely.

  Damn, she looked like her sister.

  “Then why the sudden need to choke?”

  “Because…because…” She glanced
at the door. “I really should get to my meeting.”

  Kerri chuckled. “Okay, I get it. Believe me. You’re wearing the same look I lived in last year, thanks to a very confusing cowboy.”

  Not knowing what to say or how to respond without incriminating herself, Brandi just nodded. Best to not even open her mouth. Her friend stepped close and squeezed her free hand.

  “If you ever need to talk, I’m here. Okay?”

  She nodded again. “Okay. Thanks. But I’m good…and should go.”

  “You do that.” Kerri released her with a laugh. “I’ll see you in a bit.”

  Happy to make her escape, she turned and shot out the door in one point two seconds. A new record. Personal best. She was still congratulating herself as she knocked on the apartment upstairs.

  Jordan opened the door and smiled. “Hi, Brandi. Come on in. I’m excited to see the plans.”

  “I’m excited to show you.” And she refrained from blowing out a breath in relief. Another bullet dodged. She’d half expected her client to take one look at her and ask her about kissing Kade. After all, Jordan was nothing if not astute.

  Following the woman into the open kitchen, she forced her mind into business mode. “I’ve incorporated all your wish list items into the master bedroom footprint.”

  “Sweet!” The beautiful brunette rubbed her hands together. “I can’t wait to see.”

  A smile tugged Brandi’s lips as she pulled her tablet out of her bag, fired it up and set it on the counter between them. “Here you go.” She called up the plans and waited and watched as her client’s brown eyes widened.

  “Oh my God, Brandi. This is fantastic.”

  “Thank you. But you haven’t even seen the 3-D rendering.”

  Jordan grabbed both her arms and squeezed. “You have it in 3-D?”

  She laughed. “Yep. It’s on my laptop. Call me old fashioned, but I prefer to use the software on the computer, not the tablet.”

  “Sweet,” her client said again, releasing her arms.

  Smiling, Brandi removed the computer from her bag and set it on the other side of the counter. “And I found these great glass tiles for your shower in the colors you wanted,” she informed as her laptop booted up.

  “Cole is going to freak.”

  That visual caused Brandi to laugh. She highly doubted the CEO of McCall Enterprises ever freaked over anything in his life. “Speaking of Cole, please tell him thanks. I absolutely love this rendering software his company puts out. So much easier to maneuver than the old program I used to use.”

  “Thank your boyfriend’s cousin.”

  Brandi glanced up from her computer and frowned. “What?”

  “Kevin,” Jordan replied as if that clarified everything.

  “What about him? And I don’t have a boyfriend.”

  Her client smirked. “Sure you do. You’re just in denial. It’s okay. My sister and I went through the same phase. It’ll pass,” the woman stated with a wave of her hand. “And Kevin is the one who created this rendering program.”

  Information overload. Brandi didn’t know what to address first. Jordan’s misconception that she had a boyfriend, or the fact that the good-looking, flirtatious, blue-eyed cowboy was a genius.

  The ding alerting her of a Skype message saved her from answering. “Sorry, it’s one of my brothers. I’ll just let him know I’m busy.”

  “No, don’t do that. Take the call. I’ll be here drooling over my soon-to-be master suite,” Jordan said, staring at the tablet.

  “Okay, I won’t be long.” She clicked the window and her brother’s face appeared. “Hi, Ben. Is something wrong?” Her second oldest brother rarely Skyped and was the reason she bothered to answer in the first place. Anyone else and she would’ve ignored the window and waited until later to call back.

  “You tell me, Brandi,” he said, green gaze regarding her with a shrewdness she could feel even through the screen. “I’ve had this feeling something was wrong for several days now. What gives?”

  Darn him and his sixth sense. Ever since she’d known her step-brother, Ben had had this weird ability to clue into people when they were injured or in trouble. She knew better than to deny it—that would only put his ass on a plane, and he’d be knocking on her door in a matter of hours. Besides, it was no big deal.

  “Oh, sorry.” She shrugged, doing her best to play off the accident as minor. It was to her. “You’re probably referring to last Thursday. I swerved to miss a horse and clipped a tree.”

  “What?” He sat up and moved closer to the screen. “Are you all right?”

  This was the reason she hadn’t told anyone back home. It was no big deal, but they’d treat it otherwise.

  “Yes, just a little bump on the head and a few stitches in my arm.” Okay, the cut wasn’t from the accident, but he did not need to know about her fence incident. She’d had enough embarrassment for one week.

  “All right.” He blew out a breath. “As long as you’re okay,” he said, settling back in his chair, arms crossed over his broad chest.

  All four of her good-looking brothers were tall, ripped, and blessed with gorgeous dark hair, but Ben was the only one who didn’t inherit his dad’s brown eyes. Apparently, he had his mother’s green eyes.

  “I am,” she reassured with a smile.

  A knowing gleam came into those eyes, and he cocked his head. “So then, who’s the guy?”

  Chapter Six

  Great. Brandi resisted another forehead palming and played dumb, instead. “Excuse me? What guy?”

  “That’s what I’d like to know,” he replied, eyebrow raised. “The one responsible for the sparkle in your eyes.”

  “His name is Kade.” Jordan spoke up.

  Brandi jumped, having forgotten the woman was there. Shoot. Now her client got up and came around to her stool.

  “He’s the local sheriff, First Sergeant in the Guard, and co-owner of a horse ranch here in Harland County.”

  Her eyelids fluttered a few times. Really? How in the world did they know? Did she have a sign on her face saying Kade Dalton kissed her to within an inch of her life and now she was confused as hell? And what was with her client spouting Kade’s resume?

  “Well, hello there.” Ben sat up, arms dropping to his sides as he stared open-mouthed at Jordan.

  “Hi, yourself.” Her friend smiled.

  Brandi snickered and waved a finger at her brother. “Don’t even think about it, Casanova. Jordan’s married.”

  His face fell. “Why is it all the good ones are taken?”

  “And why is it they’re the only ones you look for,” she countered. It would truly be wonderful if her brother stopped avoiding meaningful relationships. “Could it be you’re too afraid of commitment?”

  “Oh, look at the time.” He pretended to glance at an invisible watch on his wrist. “Got to go. Nice meeting you, Jordan. Good talking to you, Brandi. First Sergeant, huh? Wow. Glad to hear you’re willing to take a chance with another soldier. Good for you. Oh, and give Dad a call. I know he’d love to hear from you. Bye.”

  The screen went dead.

  Brandi smiled. Worked every time. One mention of commitment and her brothers ran away like little girls.

  “Oh, you’re good.” Her friend snickered, holding her hand up for a high-five. “Nicely played.”

  “Thanks.” She smacked Jordan’s hand. “I had to learn a trick or two over the years to survive.”

  “How many siblings do you have?”

  “Four older brothers.”

  Her friend’s eyes widened as she dropped back onto her stool. “Oh, hun. That had to be brutal during your teenage years.”

  Brandi nodded. “You’ve no idea.”

  Kade was damn happy to be busy. It was late Wednesday, and between his duties at work and the Guard, he’d hardly even thought about the designer and her talented lips, hot taste, soft, supple curves, need-quivering body…

  Bullshit. He hadn’t stopped thinking about Brandi all
week. Whoever coined the phrase ‘out of sight, out of mind’ never met the Yankee bombshell.

  “Sorry to be such a burden, Mr. Sheriff, sir?”

  Donny’s voice snapped Kade’s mind back to the present and the call he’d received that sent him to assist the kid. He glanced from the deputy, holding his hat in his hand, to the rear end of the squad car somehow hung up on a section of guardrail. “So, tell me again exactly how this happened?”

  The deputy cleared his throat, hat practically spiraling out of his fingers. “Well, Sheriff Dalton, sir, it...it’s not my fault.”

  Of course not.

  “I’d just picked up our supper from the Texas-Pub that Ms. Masters was kind enough to make, and was backing out of the parking lot when a pig came out of nowhere.”

  “Pig?”

  “Yeah, well, wild hog, sir.”

  He nodded. Although rare, the critters did tend to show up in town once in a while. “Still doesn’t explain how your rear end contacted the guardrail…in the adjacent lot.”

  “Oh, well that was because of the cat, sir.”

  Kade glanced around the deserted lot. “Cat? What cat?”

  “The one chasing the wild hog.”

  Scrubbing a palm over his face did little to clarify the situation, but just to be sure, Kade did it twice.

  “You look like you could use some help, buddy.”

  Connor’s amused drawl hit his ears, and he turned to see his friend ambling over from the restaurant parking lot, a lop-sided grin on his face.

  “Do I want to know how this happened, Skippy?” His friend stared at the squad car, confusion clouding his gaze.

  “It’s Donny,” the deputy corrected. “And all I did was swerve to miss the wild hog.”

  Connor’s brow rose.

  “Don’t forget about the cat,” Kade reminded.

  Now both his friend’s brows disappeared behind his Stetson. “Cat?”

  “Yeah.” He nodded. “The one chasing the hog.”

  Connor’s jaw worked as he blinked. “I’m beginning to understand your face palm.”

  “Thought you might.” Kade knelt down to inspect under the car. Not as bad as he’d thought. He rose, brushing his hands on his pants, his heart doing that stupid rib-kicking when he noticed a certain designer getting out of her car at the restaurant.