Dallas at Midnight [Midnight in Montana 1] (Siren Publishing Classic)

by Bella Settarra

  “Here.” Shane was soon back, offering her a glass of water. “It’s OK, he’s gone.”

  She nodded and took a drink as he sat on the bed.

  “Did you know this Farrell guy?”

  “Yeah. He was real nice to me.” Dallas fidgeted with her fingers as he put the glass back on the night stand.

  “Well, you can give him a call later if you want to.”

  “Thanks.”

  There followed an awkward silence. Dallas knew he wanted to know what was going on, but getting him involved might just make things worse, especially for him. And there was no way she wanted him getting hurt—especially now that she realized that she was already falling in love with him.

  Chapter 7

  Dallas sat back in the bed and sighed. Her pussy was a little sore—she’d never had a man as big as Shane before and he’d certainly stretched her insides—but it had felt good and she was determined not to let the events which followed it ruin that wonderful memory.

  “You know you’re gonna have to tell me sooner or later, don’t you?” Shane’s voice was deep and quiet.

  She looked into his gorgeous face and wanted to cry. “I don’t want you to get involved.” She choked back the lump which had formed in her throat.

  Shane sighed and shifted on the bed so that he was sitting next to her, leaning his back against the headboard. She put her head on his chest and listened to his heart beating steadily. She wished she was as calm as him.

  “I haven’t done anything wrong. Well…I did steal a car…but I left it where it could easily be found and besides, I think it had a tracker anyway.” The words tumbled out of her mouth like someone opening an over-stuffed cupboard.

  “Why did you steal a car?” His voice was calm and soft, as he stroked her hair.

  “I had to get away quick. They were all drunk—I knew they couldn’t come after me if I drove. I only went as far as the train station, then I left it in the parking lot. I threw the keys down a drain—Ed’s got a spare set anyway.” She was still talking quickly, trying to explain, although she was sure she wasn’t making a lot of sense.

  Shane listened patiently.

  “Who’s Ed?”

  “Ed Powell. He’s the guy I was living with—only…”

  “Go on, sweetheart.”

  “Well. When we first met he was different. Kind, loving, you know? But after he got me to move in with him and give up my job he changed.” While tears streamed down her face Dallas explained the whole story, right up to where she arrived at the barn. “I know he’ll be real pissed with me. He’ll want revenge—I know him. He’ll be coming after me, or he’ll send someone else. Either way, he’ll get me back for disgracing him in front of his rich friends.”

  She buried her head in his warm chest and sobbed as he held her. Somehow, now that she had told the story out loud, she actually felt a little better, especially in the arms of Shane Patrick. She felt safe here.

  “Why did you think the sheriff was after you?” he asked quietly when she’d finished and wiped her face.

  “Ed’s got friends everywhere. He’s a real big shot, you know? He’s got money, loads of it. He’s got contacts in all sorts of companies, and the police department. If one of his cop friends calls around asking for me someone’s bound to tell them if they’ve seen me. They’re a tight-knit bunch, the cops.” She sniffed.

  “I’d be surprised if John Brooker had any crooked friends in the police department.” Shane shook his head. “That guy’s as straight as an arrow. And you know he checked out that truck driver before he even passed the message on to you. I don’t reckon he’d tell anyone anything unless he was sure they were who they said that were, and that their questions were valid.”

  Dallas looked up at Shane with wide eyes. She loved being in his arms. He was so confident and calm. She couldn’t help feeling better just for being with him.

  What kind of business is Powell in? How did he make his money?” Shane frowned.

  Dallas thought for a moment. “He said he had his fingers in a lot of pies, if you catch my drift. I’m not sure what sort of companies he had, but they sure were paying well. He’s not exactly a billionaire, but he’s not far off. He’s got loads of cars and three houses. Walks around with his cell phone strapped to his ear the whole time though, and sometimes he gets real angry with people—he started to really frighten me toward the end.”

  She snuggled back into his comfort and Shane tightened his grip on her, kissing the top of her head. They sat in companionable silence for a short while.

  “I think we should tell the sheriff,” Shane announced at last.

  Dallas’s head shot up and she stared at him. “We can’t. He’ll arrest me for taking the car.”

  Shane shook his head. “You didn’t steal it, you just borrowed it for a while. No, I reckon John might be able to look into this guy and find out what he’s up to. And if anyone starts sniffing around it’s best that he’s pre-warned.”

  Dallas swallowed hard. Her mind was in a whirl. She felt relieved and scared at the same time. Her emotions were in complete flux, what with the events of the morning and all.

  Shane kissed the tears from her eyes. “It’ll be all right,” he assured her. “John Brooker’s a good man and a darn good sheriff. No one’s going to let an asshole like that get anywhere near you, trust me.”

  Dallas gazed into his gorgeous face. She did trust him. She realized that she had every faith in this man. The man who had taken her in and cared for her. The hunk she had made love to just a few short hours ago. She felt a burn in her stomach as she suddenly remembered the way he had made her feel. She had trusted him with her body and now it was time to trust him with the rest of her.

  “OK.” She nodded, staring into those stunning blue eyes of his, and was rewarded with an expression she would never forget. Was it satisfaction, or gratitude—or something else? Could it be…? No, she daren’t even think it, even though she was burning up on the inside and got the impression he was too. Slowly his mouth came down to meet hers and he engulfed her in the most sensual kiss. His lips were soft and moist, and his hot tongue poked into her mouth, teasing her and exploring. She could taste his delicious flavor as her tongue danced with his and her hands toyed with the black waves of his tousled hair. The heat between them could have fried doughnuts, and she melted in his embrace. In his arms she felt invincible. This guy wouldn’t let any harm come to her, she just knew it.

  The sound of the telephone ringing caused them to slowly back away, and Shane winked at her as he got up and left the room to answer it. After hearing him talk for a few minutes, curiosity got the better of her and she followed him. She walked down the hall to the kitchen and saw him opening some mail as he spoke. He sounded a little surprised and then happy. He put down the phone with a smile and then read the letter in his hand.

  “Damn!” He stuffed the letter into a drawer and then looked up to see her standing by the door jam.

  She couldn’t help noticing a tic appear in his neck and his jaw stiffened.

  “What is it?” She took a step closer.

  He nodded to the phone on the table. “That was Caleb. He wants to come and stay for a couple of days. He’s a journalist. Says he’s got business up here and wants to take the opportunity to make amends and introduce me to his new wife.”

  “And the letter?” She stood by his side now, staring at him warily.

  He shook his head. “Just another bill.”

  She looked around the kitchen and spotted the peeling paintwork and the hole in the ceiling. “You having problems?”

  Shane sighed, running a hand through his hair. “The spread’s not doing so well if that’s what you mean.” He gave a mirthless laugh. “OK, so maybe that’s the understatement of the year. I’m struggling to keep my head above water, to be honest. And I know this isn’t what Caleb wants to see when he gets here. He’ll think I’ve run the place into the ground to make a point.”

  She wrapped her ar
ms around his waist. It was horrid to see him looking so worried. He had been so confident, so self-assured up until now. It unnerved her a little to see him disconcerted and vulnerable.

  “Caleb will just see it how it is and he’ll have to suck it up,” she said. “He’s your brother, Shane. If he can’t accept the way things are that’s his problem.”

  She felt his warm hand around her and the other ran gently through her hair.

  “They’ll be here tonight,” he said as he squeezed her. “Do you mind sharing with me for a while? There’s only beds in two of the rooms. I had to sell the rest of them.”

  Dallas felt a lurch inside her. She had been a little disappointed that the euphoria of their shower had been dampened by the doctor’s visit, and his revelation, but the hope of spending another night with him, in his bed, made up for it. “Of course. I’ll give you a hand to get the room ready for them.” She smiled up at him.

  “Great. And now I think I’d best get John Brooker back up here.”

  She swallowed hard.

  As if reading her thoughts his hand came down and stroked her cheek. “It’s gonna be all right,” he whispered.

  * * * *

  Sheriff Brooker joined them for lunch and they told him the whole story. He didn’t seem too surprised—it turned out he had suspected there was something she wasn’t telling him earlier, but figured that she would talk in her own good time.

  “I’ll make a few discreet enquiries,” he promised with a reassuring smile. “I’ve got an ex-colleague over in Wyoming who would know if the guy’s come under their radar at all. And if he or any of his cronies turns up here they’ll soon regret it. Don’t you worry, ma’am.” He shook Shane’s hand and sped off back to town.

  Dallas helped Shane make the bed and get the guest room ready for their visitors. After that he insisted she got some rest and showed her into the massive master bedroom. The room was bright and airy and offered a magnificent view of the back of the ranch. Dallas gaped as she stared out of the window. Someone was training a magnificent horse in one of the fields, while another held about fifty head of cattle. Up in the distance she could see two men mending a wooden fence. Shane came and stood behind her as she watched, wrapping his arms around her waist.

  “Bit different to what you’re used to, I guess?”

  She looked up at him. He seemed a little sad. “It’s beautiful.”

  He spun her around to face him. “You really think so? I thought with your rich guy and all you’d find all this a little plebeian.”

  She shook her head. “Ed Powell wasn’t the guy I thought he was—and it wasn’t his money that interested me. I was impressed by him, sure—who wouldn’t be? But it was the other stuff I found so appealing, how he liked the same things I did—country music, long walks, normal stuff. I believed everything he told me. He said money wasn’t important to him, he was just lucky that business was doing so well, that’s all. I didn’t realize until I’d given everything up just how rich and powerful he was. I moved into his apartment in town to start with, then he moved me over to the mansion afterward. I know now that it was just to get me away from my friends, so I was wholly dependent on him. I was so stupid.”

  “Nah, he was just clever and manipulative.” Shane held her close and she relished his comfort. “Come on, you’d best get to bed. Caleb and his girl should be here in a couple of hours.”

  Dallas clambered into the huge bed, which smelled deliciously of Shane. She cuddled one of the pillows as he pulled the curtains and she heard him puttering about until she fell asleep.

  When she opened her eyes it was getting dark and she could smell something scrumptious from the kitchen. She used the en suite bathroom, and found a large, blue towelling robe hanging on the back of the door. Hauling it around herself she followed the smell of food and found Shane sitting at the kitchen table surrounded by letters and bills.

  “Hey, sleepyhead.” He grinned and stood up as she came into the room. “Had a good rest?”

  “Yeah. You should have woken me. What time are they due?” She pulled out a chair and sat at the table.

  “Shouldn’t be long, now,” he said, glancing at the wall clock as he poured some coffee.

  “Something smells good.”

  “It’s just a pie. It was one of my momma’s recipes.” He shrugged, taking his seat again.

  Dallas had picked up one of the bills in front of her. “Wow. Hope this is for the year,” she said, eyeing the cost of the feed.

  “I wish!” He took it from her and tossed it back on the table. “That’s just last month. Costs a fortune to keep the livestock well fed, you know.”

  She whistled. “No wonder you’re worried.”

  “Well, it’s nothing for you to worry about, darlin’.” He took her hand and kissed it.

  She frowned at him.

  “We should talk—about this morning, I mean,” he said. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

  Dallas flushed. This morning was wonderful, but it seemed a million miles away from where they were now. She shook her head with a coy smile. “It was perfect,” she whispered.

  As he leaned in for a kiss they heard a car pull up outside.

  “Shit!” Shane quickly leaped to his feet and scooped up all the papers in front of them. He stuffed them back into the drawer just as they heard voices on the front porch.

  Dallas couldn’t help noticing that tic on his neck again as he took a deep breath and went to greet his guests. She stood up, pulling the robe even tighter around her, as she heard excited voices in the hallway.

  “This is Dallas,” Shane said, gesturing toward her. “Dallas, this is my brother, Caleb, and his new wife, Kerry-Leigh.”

  “Hey.” Caleb was almost as handsome as his big brother, and had the same stocky build. He had dark brown hair and brown eyes, but his chin was just as determined and he had a twinkle in his eye which was identical to Shane’s. He walked over to her and gave her a friendly hug.

  “Dallas—is that ’cos you’re from Dallas?” Kerry-Leigh was a large girl with an even larger smile. Her straight, blonde hair was fastened in a messy bun and her eyes shone a pale azure-blue. She was instantly likeable and came over to give her a big squeeze.

  “Hi. No, but my granddaddy was from Texas,” Dallas told her with a grin.

  Kerry-Leigh let out a loud laugh. “My daddy was from Anaconda, Idaho. Momma had the devil’s own job to persuade him not to call me that. He thought I could be known as Ana for short.” She shook her head. “I think men ain’t got a clue when it comes to names, don’t you?” Her jovial face suddenly fell as she obviously realized how that might have sounded. “Oh, not that there’s anything wrong with Dallas. That’s a great name. I love it—I didn’t mean…”

  “It’s OK,” Dallas assured her with a smile. “I’d still take Dallas over Anaconda any day.”

  Kerry-Leigh let out a relieved laugh, giving Dallas another hug. “Oops—think I’d best find the bathroom,” she said, patting her stomach. “Resting on my bladder,” she whispered.

  Dallas stared at her stomach, suddenly realizing what she meant. “Congratulations,” she said excitedly.

  “Thanks honey. Tell you what, if it’s like this the whole nine months I’ll never be able to leave the house. Had to stop five times in the past hour. We thought we’d never get here.”

  “This way,” Caleb said, with a roll of his eyes. He ushered his pretty wife down the hall and then came back, smiling. “Well, that’s the surprise out of the bag. We wanted to tell you in person.”

  “I’m real happy for you, bro.” Shane smiled as he patted him on the back.

  “Thanks…and…you know…all that stuff…” Caleb struggled a little.

  “Forgotten,” Shane assured him with a hug.

  “Thanks, bro. I wanted to get that out of the way before Kerry-Leigh got back—else I wouldn’t have got a word in edgeways.” Caleb chuckled.

  “Just what’s that you’re saying about me?” Kerry-Leigh su
ddenly appeared in the doorway, grinning.

  “Nothing, dear.” Caleb grimaced.

  Shane and Dallas laughed.

  “Hmm.” Kerry-Leigh narrowed her eyes, teasing her husband. “I see. Dallas, how about you come help me unpack, honey? We’ll let the boys talk about boring stuff on their own.”

  Dallas followed her down the hallway. Their cases had been left by the door of the guestroom and the girls dragged them in. Dallas was delighted to see that Caleb had brought a guitar, as it was the only thing she missed from home—if you could call it that. She took the instrument and one of the cases into the bedroom. The case was really heavy and she had to heave it over the doorway.

  “Hey, are you OK with that, hun? I just can’t seem to get the hang of this whole travelling light business. Seems to me if I ain’t got something with me that’s the one thing I’m gonna need. Best just to chuck it all in and be prepared, I say.”

  Dallas laughed as she unzipped the large case on the floor. “Well, I’ve got nothing with me.” She giggled.

  “Hmm, I did wonder why you were wearing a robe,” Kerry-Leigh grinned. “Well, you’re welcome to borrow any of my clothes—hell, they might be a bit big but it’s gotta be better than wearing the guy’s stuff—especially if Shane’s of the same mind as his brother in the underwear department. They sure make ’em huge in this family, don’t they?”

  They laughed at the innuendo.

  “Dang potent, too. Hope you’re on some hefty birth control, honey. They sure teach ’em to swim well, if you catch my drift. I only missed a couple of days and now look at me!” Kerry-Leigh patted her stomach and laughed. Dallas just gaped.

  Shit! It suddenly dawned on her that birth control pills were one thing she hadn’t given a thought to. She always kept them in her purse so she’d never be without them—but this was the one time she’d left it behind. In the heat of the moment she hadn’t even considered asking Shane to use a condom, and he knew she’d been in a relationship with Ed so he would have assumed she was covered.