by Platt, MJ
He pulled up a chair and sat beside her. Watching her long fingers tapping out instructions on the keyboard, he wondered how they would feel wrapped around him. His soft groan drew a glance from Sage. He had to rearrange his thoughts. Get his mind back on business.
He picked up the survival camp folder and started to go over the schedule line by line. Without warning, the scent of roses drifted across to him. He could picture Sage in the shower, her face turned up to the spray as she rinsed the shampoo from her hair, the bubbles sliding down her back to caress the firm globes of her buttocks. Not now! Wrong business, Idiot. Get back on track or you won’t be able to walk out of here. He laid the folder in his lap to cover the twitching below his belt line. Then he turned to Sage, an idea taking precedence that did not include the two of them naked.
“One request. As much as I like hearing you call me Callum, to everyone else I’m known as Mac. Could you switch to Mac when anyone else is around?”
“I think so. And while strangers are here, I’m going to be Susan Brown from Seattle. You have that lawyer from San Francisco in this bunch.”
“Never thought of that. I’ll clue in Two Feathers and Little Mouse. They’re going to be super vigilant anyway. Although, these men were all booked before you arrived.”
He didn’t tell her about the email he received from Stew. Time for that after this week is over. He had printed it out and deleted it. No chance of her discovering it if she had to open his emails for any reason. Usually she didn’t touch them. But he wasn’t taking any chances. It had included a picture of Diego, a copy of which he had in his pocket to drop off to Dante on his way to the airport.
“Nothing has happened. I’m beginning to feel safe here. I don’t want to leave. But the first inkling of any danger, I’m out of here. I can’t have anything happen to you or your family.”
His heart soared at her declaration of staying, and then hit bottom at what she would do if any danger. He would have to convince her that was not an option, but now was not the time. He had business to attend to.
“No chance of that today. I’ve got to head out. Wouldn’t look right if I were late to pick them up.” He tipped up her chin on the ends of his fingers and brushed a kiss across her lips. “I’ll be back shortly. Be careful going down to the cabins.” He saw desire in her eyes and a flicker of something else he wished he had the time to dwell on. It was with a lighter step that he left the room.
* * * *
Sage sat back and stared after him. What was that all about? When she first arrived, he kept his distance, like he was afraid to touch her. Now he not only wanted to touch her, but kiss her, too.
She looked back on that night when she was sixteen and relived her embarrassment. She had thrown herself at him, begged for him to love her. His kisses had sent her soaring. As he deepened the kiss, his hands caressed her body, pulled her closer so she felt his hard erection. She had wiggled against him, wanting to take it to the next step. Suddenly he had pushed her away and stomped from the room. The hate in his eyes had stopped her cold.
He had taught her to love, but also how love could hurt. She visited the time she had spent under the elms by the creek where she had run to. He was her first love, would always be first in her heart. But never again would she seek him out. When she flew out after camp was over, he had not come around to say goodbye. Two Feathers and Little Mouse had hugged her and given her a silver necklace with a cougar on it. Mac’s parents had hugged her, and questions had lingered in his mother’s eyes.
Later, whenever she visited the ranch, she made sure he wouldn’t be there. It was the only way she had of being close to him, knowing he was safe, even in that God forsaken area where he was fighting.
Now he said he was home on leave. For how long? Would she be able to watch him walk out of her life again? Could she swallow her pride and tell him how she truly felt? No. She wouldn’t be able to endure his rejection. Again. Enough of these questions. What she needed now was to stay busy so she wouldn’t think about her past and so she could get stronger. Just in case she needed to leave.
A few minutes later, Sage was in the kitchen helping Little Mouse prepare lunch when the front door opened and they could hear multiple men’s voices. Mac entered the kitchen, followed by four men.
“Something sure smells good,” stated a short, husky man with glasses. “If that’s a sample of the meals we’ll have, I’m really going to enjoy this camp.”
“If I’d known the scenery was going to be this beautiful,” said the tall, brawny male with the looks of a Hollywood star, ogling her, “I’d have signed on sooner.”
“Gentlemen, meet Little Mouse,” Mac said. “She does most of the cooking. But don’t get used to it. You’ll be making the majority of your meals. The other lady is Sa—Susan Brown, a friend of mine.”
At that point, Two Feathers entered the back door. The men gaped at the tall, muscular Native American with the no-nonsense expression. “And this is Two Feathers. He’ll be helping me keep you too busy trying to survive to think of anything else.”
“I thought there were five coming,” said Sage.
“Oh, Swindon will be along shortly. He wanted his own car. And boy, does he have a surprise for you!” said Hollywood, looking at Mac with a gleeful grin.
Sage looked at Mac and shrugged. It couldn’t be too bad. The men were all smiling. “Mac, why don’t you take them into the living room? I’ll bring in the coffee. They can sit and relax until the last guy gets here.”
They were all standing around watching Mac stoking the fireplace when she entered the room a few minutes later. Sage set the tray on the coffee table as one of the men approached her.
“Hi. I’m David Saunders. A ranger at Yellowstone,” he offered, holding his hand out to her. She put her hand in his and he shook it gently, not holding it overly long. “We have some winter training, since we inevitably have a few snow rescues. They sent me here to find out about this training. It came highly recommended. If it’s what we need, next winter, budget permitting, we’ll want Mac to come to Yellowstone to train all of us.”
“That’s a mighty tall order,” said Sage, glancing at Mac.
“Well, if we do hire him, one stipulation will be that he has to bring you with him.”
Dave gave her a gotcha grin and turned the same look on Mac. He didn’t seem the least bit daunted by the scar on her face.
“I’m Alan Carr,” said the chubby fellow wearing glasses. He didn’t offer to shake hands as he glanced warily at Mac. “My friends and I like to hike in the mountains. I’d like to be prepared if we should get caught in snow. I’ve never done anything like this.”
“Mac and Two Feathers will be sure you’re safe while you learn,” she assured him.
“And I’m Buck Carson,” said Hollywood, stepping close and clasping her hand. “Actually, my family named me Kit. But since that got me into a lot of fights at school, they started calling me Buck and it stuck. So that’s what I answer to the quickest.”
He didn’t seem inclined to release her hand even as she tried to discreetly disengage it.
“Being from Florida, you’re probably wondering why I need winter survival skills. My buddies and I like to do extreme sports and we have a couple winter trips planned for next year. I tried to talk them into coming, too, but they didn’t think it was necessary.”
“Well, if you spend as much time honing your survival skills as you do playing the ladies’ man,” said Mac, moving forward, “you just might be able to rescue their foolish hides. You don’t underestimate Mother Nature and what she can throw at you.”
“I guess, Ms. Susan, that leaves just me,” said the fourth man, stepping into the breach and removing Sage’s hand from Buck’s. “I’m James Riddle. I’ll answer to Jim or Rooster. I’m a long haul trucker and my CB handle is the Bionic Rooster.”
“Hey, you ever been down in the Keys?” jumped in Buck. “Some of the ladies have mentioned someone called the Bionic Rooster with the six million dollar pec�
�”
Jim clapped his hand over Buck’s mouth. “Watch your mouth, son,” he warned quietly. “There’s a lady present. You can’t be much of a bartender. You do more yapping than listening.”
Sage studied this soft-spoken man. He had to stand at least six foot two with muscular arms and chest, narrow waist and hips, and long, muscular legs. He emitted muted strength. He gave the impression he was a man you didn’t want to mess with, but if he chose to be your friend, you couldn’t ask for a better one.
A car pulling up front had them all turning toward the large window. Out stepped a man dressed as though going to a board meeting. He walked around the car, opened the rear door, and assisted out two small children. Taking each one by the hand, he strode for the front door.
“Surprise!” announced Buck, slapping Mac on the back. That seemed to snap him out of his momentary stupor.
“What in Holy Ned,” snarled Mac, yanking open the front door. At the look of fright on the children’s faces, he stepped back and waved them inside. “I don’t take children this young for any camps. You never said anything about bringing them with you.”
“Sorry about that,” the man offered. “My au pair up and quit on me when she found out we were going into snow country. Even the added benefits,” he said with a lascivious smirk, “weren’t enough to entice her. There must be someone around I can hire to watch them while I’m here. Since their mother died, I take them with me whenever I have to be out of town for any substantial amount of time.”
Sage watched the little girl remove her hat and coat and drop them on the floor behind her. The bigger child, a boy, seemed reticent to follow suit.
“What happen to you?” asked the girl, staring at Sage.
“A…an accident,” whispered Sage, throwing a help me look at Mac.
The answer didn’t seem to phase the little girl, but the boy cringed and looked like he wanted to run. The man grabbed his son’s hand. Before he could catch his daughter’s, she marched up to Sage and raised her arms. Sage picked the child up. The little girl placed her two little hands on Sage’s face and turned it so the scar was prominently exposed to everyone’s view.
“You gots a big boo-boo,” stated the girl. Before anyone could discern what she was about to do, she leaned forward and placed a smacking kiss on Sage’s cheek. “There. I kiss it all better,” she announced, grinning at Sage. Sage looked at Mac, speechless.
“There goes your theory out the window,” he murmured, smiling at her as he took the child from her arms.
“I GG. I four,” she told Mac, “and that JJ, he’s six,” she continued, pointing her finger at her brother.
“Very pleased to meet you, GG,” said Mac, setting the child down. “Welcome, JJ,” he added, holding his hand out to the boy who cringed away from him.
“JJ does that with everyone,” said his father. “His mother died in an accident six months ago. The child psychologist said he connects the word with death and each time he hears it he thinks someone else will be taken away from him. She said eventually he’ll overcome it when he realizes there are different degrees of them and not everyone dies. In the meantime, we try to keep the word out of our vocabulary.”
“How’d it happen?” asked Buck, ever the nosy bartender.
“She was texting on her cell phone, doing fifty-five miles per hour, and didn’t see the stopped trailer truck, evidently, until it was too late. They said she died on impact. I just thank God she didn’t have the kids with her.”
Sage watched his face while he relayed the incident. He didn’t seem upset she was gone. Maybe all was not well in paradise. The children seemed more important to him. Then there was the remark he made about the au pair. She frowned at Mac and he shrugged it away.
“That won’t make him friendly toward me,” murmured Jim. At the father’s quizzical look he added, “I drive a big rig.”
“You don’t have it here and he hasn’t seen you with one. Shouldn’t make a difference. By the way, I’m Graham Swindon and this is my son, Jarrett, and my daughter, Gina, the chatterbox and social butterfly.”
“JJ and GG,” corrected his daughter.
Sage smiled at the little girl, wondering what it would be like to spend time with the children. They were so opposite in their personalities and their response to the tragedy in their young lives.
“I could watch them for you,” she spoke up, before she could change her mind.
Mac threw her a worried look. “You sure you’ll have time?”
“I don’t have that much to do and we can entertain each other.”
“Who are you?” asked Graham. “You look familiar.”
“Susan Brown.”
“A friend of mine from Seattle,” added Mac.
“You like kids?” asked GG.
“Yes,” answered Sage. “I work with children at home.”
“She’ll do,” GG informed her father. That appeared to settle the question for everyone.
Chapter Eight
At lunch, GG insisted on sitting next to Sage. Max occupied the head of the table with Sage on his right. Two Feathers sat at the other end. The rest were spread evenly on both sides.
“After lunch, you can get settled into your cabins,” said Mac. “Take a walk around, if you’re so inclined. Just don’t wander too far. Keep the main buildings in sight. I don’t want to have to instigate a man hunt before the camp even starts. Be sure to dress appropriately. We’ll meet back here at six for supper, after which we’ll sit down with the lists I sent you to make sure you have everything necessary.”
“All the cabins have radiant floor heating,” added Two Feathers. “Each one also has a fireplace. In case you southern boys need a little extra heat. If you don’t know how to use one, ask. We’ll be glad to help you. Don’t need any ac—er, cause to call the fire department.” He shot a quick glance at JJ, but the boy was happily spooning up his stew.
“This stew is great and the biscuits are heavenly,” stated Alan.
“Thank you,” said Little Mouse. “Fresh herbs make a big difference. And it’s probably different than what you’re used to. This is elk stew. Dinner tonight will be roast venison.”
“Will we be cooking meals like this?” asked Buck.
“No. You will be doing trail meals. If you were out hiking, you wouldn’t have room in your backpacks to tote fresh meat and vegetables safely. Although, you will be taught how to garner fresh meat if necessary for survival,” answered Mac. “And Graham, if you take the children for a walk, keep them with you. Don’t let them wander off. This is a working ranch. There are large animals and machinery in use.”
“I see horsies?” asked GG, looking expectantly at Mac.
“Only if an adult is with you,” said Mac.
“I ride? I ride?” she squeaked, her eyes twinkling with anticipation, bouncing in her chair.
“Maybe,” answered Mac, smiling. “If you are good for Miss Susan.”
GG nodded her head enthusiastically, a grin from ear to ear. “I be bestest!” she vowed, leaning into Sage.
“What about you, JJ? Would you like to ride, too?” asked Mac. The boy looked at him warily, shrugged his shoulders and turned his eyes back to his plate.
“He’s not as venturesome,” spoke up Graham. “Not since—you know.”
“Okay, if we’re done here, I’ll take you to your cabins. Settle in. Relax. It will be a busy week,” said Mac. “Susan, may I see you in the office for a minute before I go?” She followed him out and down the hall. When they entered the office, he closed the door.
“What’s wrong?” she asked. His worried look bothered her.
“You going to be able to handle those two young’uns? GG’s a live wire. She’ll be a handful. And JJ? I just don’t know about him.”
“Don’t worry about them or me. We’ll get along fine,” she said, laying a hand on his chest. The sizzle she felt almost made her yank it away. She steeled herself to let it remain. “As for JJ, we’ll see. I had to take
a couple psychology classes in college and you know the type of kids I’ve been working with. He’s out of his comfort zone. He’s scared.”
“Don’t take any chances with them. If necessary, keep them in the house.”
“We’ll be fine.” she stated. “You worry about the men you have out there. Don’t lose one of them. I think you might need to keep a closer eye on Hollywood.”
“Hollywood?”
“Buck. I named him that because he acts like he’s the star of the show. Reckless. More brass than brains. Thinks his good looks will get him anything he wants.”
“Will it?” asked Mac, his hands at her waist. “He’s been very attentive to you.”
“No!” she scoffed. Her now-who’s-being-stupid look had him pulling her to him for a brief, but reassuring, kiss. Under her hand, she felt his heartbeat increase in sync with her own. When he lifted his head, she was looking into eyes, the brown of aged whiskey, which contained questions she couldn’t answer.
He turned and left without a word. She stood there in the middle of the room, her fingertips to her lips, analyzing Mac’s actions. Did he want her to admit she loved him? She couldn’t.
* * * *
Once he had deposited the men at their cabins, Mac felt the necessity to work off the excess energy. He always developed hypersensitivity just prior to starting one of the camps. This time it seemed tenfold. Maybe it was having Sage there again, although she wasn’t taking part. She would be working behind the scenes. Was her knee healed well enough to be chasing after two small children?
He made for the stable and saddled the young leopard stallion that showed great promise. He had high hopes for the animal and the advancement of their breeding program. This was the one he had been striving for, the culmination of selective breeding, the one in a million that showed all the ideal characteristics of the Appaloosa breed. Mac was justly proud of the four year old and continued to bring him along slowly.
As he led him into the arena, the stallion moved calmly, yet with eyes alert, showing the white sclera, ears forward, head up, eager to begin. His muscles rippled under the white coat with the black spots, the mottled skin evident. The striped hooves moved steadily forward, making no attempts to kick or stomp. He was a gentle creature with an unexcitable nature.