Expecting a Lone Star Heir

by Sara Orwig

  “Scared to touch me, Mike? I don’t think Thane would mind. I think we would be more convincing to Clint that we’re interested in each other.”

  “We probably would convince Clint faster, but there are more reasons than just thinking about Thane,” he said, trying to keep his voice light. “For one, you’re my boss.”

  “Ah, the alpha male. I’ll bet almost a hundred percent of the Marines, the Airbornes, the US Rangers and all their ilk are alpha males. I guess it goes with the territory.”

  He smiled and relaxed a fraction as he danced her around. “It does go with the territory and so does flirting with beautiful women and dancing close and hot, steamy kisses. Watch out, boss. I might forget my place.”

  She laughed and the twinkle was still in her eyes.

  “Oh, the big strong, handsome man can be—What? Scary? No, I don’t think so. Thrilling? Ah, that’s the word.”

  This was a side to Vivian that Mike hadn’t yet seen—playful, teasing. Wanting. He wasn’t sure how to react to it. “Vivian, you’re asking for trouble.”

  “That means I don’t scare you,” she said in a sultry voice.

  “You scare the hell out of me because I shouldn’t like dancing with you. I shouldn’t like flirting with you. I shouldn’t want to kiss you. I shouldn’t feel anything when our fingers touch and neither should you.”

  “For a US Army Ranger, you’re a little stuffy.”

  He had to grin. “That’s a first in my life. I have never been told I’m stuffy. You’re going to goad me into doing something about that.” He caught her around the waist and took long steps, dancing in circles through the terrace doors and outside on to the patio where it was darker and cooler.

  “Try this for stuffy, darlin’.” He pulled her tightly against him and kissed her. He knew he shouldn’t, but he was having more fun with her than he could recall having had anywhere, anytime in the past three years when he was in the Army.

  When did his kiss change from all in fun to something deeper, he wondered. It was as if a golden chain was pulling him down into a raging fire of longing. The feel of her mouth on his was driving every thought out of his mind, burning away everything but desire. He hadn’t held a woman in a long time. He hadn’t held a woman like her in a lifetime. She was delectable, enticing, voluptuous, her soft curves pressing against him. She smelled wonderful and her skin was smooth, her hair silky.

  And she was off-limits.

  Yet he couldn’t stop kissing her. Kisses to die for. Kisses that burned, scalded and made him want more. She had teased, enticed and maneuvered him into kissing her and now he was going to pay for rising to the challenge.

  He swung her up and the look she gave him was serious.

  “Get Ben and Henry and let’s get out of here now,” she whispered.

  He didn’t ask why they had to rush out, but grabbed his phone and typed a brief text message as they left the patio. She grabbed her purse from the table and hurried out of the ballroom with him.

  Only when they were alone in the rotunda did she explain her abrupt action. “When we were...kissing, I saw Clint at the terrace door. He was looking at you and his expression was scary. His face was red and he seemed furious.”

  Mike let out his breath. “If that’s why you’re rushing out, relax. We’ll leave, but Clint isn’t going to do anything crazy to mess up his life. He’s got too much to lose. Besides, his anger is directed at only me, not you, I’m sure. I can deal with Clint. So can Henry and Ben. Don’t worry.” He slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her close against his side. “We have accomplished all you wanted to accomplish tonight. That’s what you set out to do—convince Clint there’s a man in your life now. I think you succeeded. So smile, Vivian.”

  “If you say so.” Yet no smile tugged at her lips. “I’ll text Ashlynn that we’re leaving so they don’t wonder where we are.”

  In minutes, he heard her phone and she looked at her message. “Ashlynn and Dan are headed to the front to get their car. They’re ready to go home, too.”

  As they walked to the front entrance, Mike looked down at her and she gazed up at him with a long, searching look. “You’re really not worried about Clint, are you?”

  “No, I’m not. He’s not the type for violence. That would destroy what he wants. He’s just angry because a guy beat him to winning you over—or so he thinks. You did exactly what you hoped to do tonight. And then some. But, Vivian, don’t pressure me into doing things I shouldn’t do.”

  Suddenly, she smiled and he thought it was like discovering a rainbow in a gray sky. Everything was bright and beautiful again.

  “If you think you shouldn’t have kissed me,” she said softly, “you’re wrong.”

  He dropped his arm from her waist. “You’re off-limits. Totally. For a moment, I forgot that.”

  She stepped closer and shook her head. “I’m not ‘off-limits,’ cowboy. I’m a lonely widow who hasn’t been out dancing in over a year. We kissed. One kiss. That’s not a life-changing big deal.”

  “Well, thank you, darlin’,” he said, unable to keep from laughing.

  “Aha, see! You know you’re being ridiculous. It was a fun moment and I have had damn few of them since my husband deployed.”

  He imagined she likely hadn’t. So he smiled at her and didn’t argue the point. He took her arm. “C’mon. Ben and Henry are going to come charging in here any minute now because of my terse message. They’ll think I’m getting beaten to a pulp or some such.”

  They stepped outside where they saw Henry and Ben standing by the limo.

  In seconds, they reached the limo. “We’re fine,” Mike said. “Just crossed signals. Hope we didn’t cut the night short for all of you.”

  “We’re here to serve,” Henry said lightly. “We’re fine. It’s a long drive back to the ranch anyway. If you don’t mind, Ben’s wife will ride up front with him.”

  He didn’t wait for Vivian’s opinion. “No, we don’t mind,” he answered for both of them. “You’ll be happy to know that I think we accomplished our purpose with Clint tonight, so it’s time to go.”

  Henry gave him a thumbs-up as Ben held open the limo door.

  Mike still left a lot of space between Vivian and him in the back seat.

  “Scared to sit close to me?” she asked.

  He looked up at her, able to see her clearly even in the dim interior lighting. He couldn’t stop the honesty in his response. “Yes. As I said, Vivian, you are off-limits.”

  He heard her long sigh. “Well, for a little while there, you were fun, and I had fun,” she said with a forlorn note in her voice.

  It tore at him. At this moment the one thing he wanted most in the world was to take her in his arms and kiss her for the next few hours. He scooted close and drew her against his side, slipping his arm around her and holding her. “Is that better?”

  “Yes, it is,” she answered and her voice sounded solemn.

  “I did have fun, Vivian,” he said in a somber tone. “But I wouldn’t be doing right by Thane if I came home and did anything to cause you harm. I also don’t want to lose a very good job. Surely you can understand that.” He said the words to Vivian but he wondered whether he was really trying to convince himself. One thing he was sure of—he wasn’t ever going to forget kissing her tonight. That had been the hottest, most luscious, exciting kiss of his life. Could he go home tonight and forget he kissed her? A bigger question—could he resist ever doing it again?

  * * *

  Henry dropped them off at Vivian’s where Mike had his pickup parked. As he walked across the porch seeing her to the door, she surprised him with an invitation. “Come in for a while, Mike. It’s still early in the evening.”

  He shook his head. “It’s been a fun, interesting night, Vivian, but I’m going home now before I do somethi
ng I shouldn’t.”

  “Is it because you still see me as Thane’s wife?”

  “That’s part of it,” he answered truthfully. Only a small part. He felt torn in two now because half of him wanted badly to stay, but the other half of him knew if he did, he wouldn’t be able to keep from kissing her again. It was safer, smarter, better to go back to his place.

  “So what’s the other part?”

  “I think we might complicate each other’s lives.”

  “You don’t want to come in because I’m your boss. That’s it, isn’t it?” she asked, sounding disapproving. “You’re incredibly old-fashioned.”

  “I might be,” he said, “but I’m not going to let you provoke me into losing my control for the second time tonight.” He backed up. “I’ll see you Monday morning.”

  He hadn’t taken two steps off the porch when he heard her again.

  “Mike, it was a terrific night and it was great to be able to forget heartache, loss and grief for a short time. Thanks.”

  He stood with his back to her, breathing deeply, torn between wanting to go back and kiss her or doing what he knew he should do and get in his pickup and go. He turned around to look at her. She stood in the light from the porch and she looked so forlorn, his heart actually ached for her. “Damn,” he whispered so softly she couldn’t possibly have heard him.

  He walked back to her, stopping about a foot away.

  “Vivian, I’m not going to come home and make love to my friend’s wife.”

  “Thane’s gone out of my life, Mike. And it was just a kiss. For a few minutes tonight, life was happy again.”

  He sighed and closed the distance between them, taking her in his arms and kissing her again. Once he made the decision, he threw aside his reluctance, his guilt, his good sense to keep his distance. He threw himself into another impassioned kiss, holding her tightly against him as he leaned over her while his tongue stroked hers.

  She wrapped her arms around him, her fingers winding in his short hair at the back of his head. He groaned. She was soft, passionate, sensuous, and she was making him hot and hard. More than anything he wanted to carry her off to bed—but that was a line he wouldn’t cross.

  He ran his hand down her back, over the fullness of her bottom, down to the split in her dress to push it open and caress her warm thigh. He was on fire, yet at the same time trembling while he hung on to his control to not go any further.

  He swung her up, gazing into her eyes. “You’re going to get yourself into trouble, Vivian.”

  “I feel as if you’re bringing me to life again, bringing me back into a world of passion and joy. I’ve had a wonderful time.”

  He released her and stepped back. “I’m glad, Vivian. But I have to go now.”

  “I’m glad you came back,” she said softly.

  “So am I,” he said, smiling at her. With an effort he turned away to walk to his pickup. He drove back to the guesthouse. Only when he saw in the rearview mirror that she had gone inside and closed the door did he fully let out his breath. He ached and he wanted her and he wondered if he would want her for the rest of his life.

  But Vivian Warner was off-limits to him. He didn’t want to be dazzled, set on fire with scorching desire by a woman who was his deceased buddy’s wife, a billion-dollar heiress and his boss to boot. But how was he going to resist such an incredibly sexy, desirable woman? How would he ever be able to forget her? The one thing he knew was that he better not ever fall in love with her, because they had no future and he would be miserable.

  He could never ever be happy married to her. He had old-fashioned ideas and he believed in them. In the first place, he didn’t want to return to Thane’s ranch and have an affair with Thane’s widow. That was breaking a deep, important trust that his best friend had in him. She was so off limits for him. In addition, he didn’t want to marry her and work for her and have her support him. That was ingrained in him by his dad since he was a kid. And after his dad died, by his oldest brother—the man earns the money and has the money. He does not take money from women. He would never be a billionaire, not in his wildest dreams, and he couldn’t cope with that.

  He entered the empty guesthouse and stood in the center of the living room. He looked around, not knowing what to do next. His thoughts were on Vivian. How was he going to be able to go out with her again next Friday night? It couldn’t take many times to convince Clint that she was interested in another man. But Mike couldn’t take many more nights like this one. He wanted to keep his promise, do what he should regarding Thane’s wife and his ranch, but temptation was monumental with Vivian.

  He couldn’t take kissing her again.

  * * *

  Vivian walked into the mansion without seeing her surroundings. Her lips still tingled and her breath still trembled. She’d had a wonderful time tonight. Mike was fun when he wasn’t being stodgy. She smiled when she remembered telling him he was stuffy. She had seen the surprised look on his face and then the determined look. The alpha male had risen to the bait.

  She’d wanted Mike to kiss her. Even now, the realization struck her like a lightning bolt as it had earlier tonight when they were dancing. Ever since Thane’s death, she’d been closed off, isolated both physically here on the ranch and emotionally. But tonight she had felt different. Ready to have fun, to live. For six months, people had been telling her that Thane would want her to go on with her life. Tonight, for the first time, she understood them. She was certain her one true love would want her to live, just as she was certain that if it was the other way around, she would want Thane to go on.

  Had Thane sent Mike to marry her?

  The thought pulled her up short, but she laughed. That hardheaded...

  She laughed. That hardheaded, old-fashioned man wouldn’t marry her even if he was wildly in love with her. She knew he felt honor bound to come home and take care of Thane’s ranch, but to keep his distance from her. And right now he wasn’t in love and neither was she.

  She looked around the room and her eyes lit on Thane’s picture on the mantel. She picked up the silver frame. “I love you,” she whispered to him, knowing he was never coming back to her. She sat down, holding the picture against her heart with one hand while the other hand wiped the tears that slid down her face. “Thane, I miss you,” she said softly as she sobbed. It hurt and she wondered if she would cry the rest of her life.

  After a time, she dried her tears, trying to focus on the present. For a little while tonight, she had had fun with Mike. He was exciting and his kisses made her hot, dizzy with longing. It had been exhilarating to flirt and dance and kiss him. Until she had looked up and seen Clint at the door to the patio. He’d watched Mike with such an enraged, hateful expression that in that moment she had been frightened. But Mike hadn’t been frightened at all and that had reassured her.

  Mike seemed so certain, so calm about Clint that it had eased her fears and actually made her forget all about her insidious neighbor.

  The delightful evening had been too brief. Mike had driven away her loneliness and grief for a little while and made her laugh and enjoy life again. Her lips still tingled and she wondered whether she would sleep at all tonight. Excitement still filled her and she felt as if she had swallowed bubbles that were dancing inside her. She could have danced until they closed the place, and next Friday, she intended to make a full evening of it.

  She knew she should be careful, because she didn’t want to fall in love with Mike. She could tease him into kissing her, but he wasn’t the man for her to fall in love with, because she had been through one giant heartache when she lost the love of her life. Mike had given her only three months and then he would possibly move on. She didn’t want another heartbreak. She hurt enough now. Besides, he was an outdated alpha male through and through who would hold to his backward ideas about women and life. He would neve
r be able to get past her income unless he won billions in the lottery that would put him on the same financial level with her inheritance.

  Reality took some shine off her excitement and she sighed. She shouldn’t want to go out with him as much as she did. Right now, she was too vulnerable. Mike Moretti would never be the man for her to fall in love with. He would be a heartbreaker.

  She sighed and tried to stop thinking about Mike. When she couldn’t sleep, she went to her studio and began to paint. The painting needed to be finished tomorrow to be shipped to Austin for a gallery showing on Thursday.

  Then the day after that she would go out with Mike again. Would that be the last time or would they have to keep going out for several more weekends? Maybe it was the novelty of being social again that was so great after such a long time without having an evening out with someone exciting. She told herself the novelty might wear off.

  “Right,” she said out loud.

  She picked up the brush and gave herself some much-needed advice as she applied the first stroke of paint.

  “Forget him, Vivian.” If she didn’t, he could walk away in three months and take her heart with him. She didn’t want to deal with another big heartbreak.

  If it was only that easy to do.

  * * *

  On Thursday afternoon, Mike was driving across the ranch in his pickup to meet Slade who was moving some cattle from one pasture to another when his phone buzzed. Seeing the call was from Vivian who was in Austin for her showing, so he stopped and answered.

  “Hi. How’s the gallery show going?” he asked, curious why she had time to call.

  “Mike, Clint has been in. He knew I was having a showing here and he wanted me to go to dinner with him. Of course, I’m not going.”

  Her pronouncement had his stomach in angry knots. The guy just didn’t give up.

  Vivian went on. “Ben drove me this morning, but I’m trying to get in touch with Henry. I’d like him to come to Austin and ride back with us. Clint made me nervous today. He was very persistent and I think he’ll be back. Can you find Henry? Get him to drive here and get one of the guys to ride with him and drive his car back. I’d feel better if Henry rode back with us.”