“Your eyes are sad. Are you worried about your parents’ ranch?”
“Not with all the help we’ve gotten.” His other hand had slid sensuously down her arm. She could hardly breathe.
“Why are you trembling?” He glanced down at her terrycloth robe. “Surely you aren’t cold in that outfit.” A hint of laughter sparkled in his eyes. “It you are, I’ll start a fire in the fireplace in your bedroom.”
She pulled away from him and took a deep breath. “I’ll be fine under the covers.” She held her books close and walked around him and out of the room. She’d swear she heard a deep chuckle.
* * * *
After the game and after Andy had gone to bed, Todd sat in the dark, in his favorite chair, and put on the classical music he loved. Listening to it always helped him think clearer. He’d poured himself a tumbler of bourbon.
He’d deliberately let Sunn think they might have found another woman. He hoped she wouldn’t work so hard to keep her walls up if she thought they weren’t a threat. But he’d seen sadness in her eyes tonight. He didn’t want to hurt her. When Chandler got here, he’d discuss what had happened and whether they should clarify they wanted her for their wife.
Knowing she was in a bedroom in his house made it difficult not to get up and join her. His body ached with the tantalizing desire she provoked whenever she got near him. He smiled thinking about her reaction if he invaded her bedroom. Would she welcome him or scream for her father?
He’d told Andy that he and Chandler wanted to marry his daughter, but they had to regain her trust. Her father agreed to stay quiet for now. He’d said Sunn could be very stubborn if she dug in her heels.
Todd finished his bourbon and turned off the music. He needed to get to bed and at least try to sleep. He and Chandler weren’t going to have an easy job seducing her heart back to them, but they weren’t going to give up.
A slight noise had him turning his head toward the living room. The house was quiet and dark except for that little sound. Todd slipped out of his chair and backed further into a dark corner of the room.
The faint glow from the kitchen nightlight showed her pink housecoat as she tiptoed through the dining room. She must think I’ve gone to bed. Sunn walked into the kitchen, but didn’t turn on the overhead lights.
Todd crept to the door and watched as she got out milk and found peanut-butter cookies in his pantry. Then she sat at the small table across from the stove.
He studied her profile and watched as the light glistened off her golden hair. He’d never seen it all the way down. She usually wore it up or in a ponytail. She’d managed to keep them at arm’s length before, and maybe they didn’t push for more because subconsciously they weren’t ready to commit. But tonight it hung in waves down to her waist. Raw desire rushed through his body and his cock aroused and wanted to sink inside her pussy. He took several deep breaths before he knocked on the doorsill.
Her head jerked up and around. “You!”
“I’m sorry if I startled you. But I heard a noise.”
“I thought I’d been very quiet.”
“You were, but I was in the family room. I’d just turned off the music and planned to go to bed when I heard a sound. I gather you weren’t sleeping well.”
“It’s been quite some time since dinner. I was hungry for a snack.”
“Are cookies enough? I can make you a sandwich.”
“These are fine.”
She watched him intently when he came further in and walked to the table. “Do you mind if I join you?”
“It’s your house.”
“What’s really bothering you?” Todd asked.
“Well, since Sunday, I’ve been told one of my fathers is ill, a man tried to burn our barn down, and you came back and insisted we stay here with you.”
“I guess that is a lot to take in in a short time.”
Before she knew what Todd planned, he scooped her into his arms and sat in the chair with her on his lap.
“What are you doing? Put me back in my chair.”
“I will, but first I think you can use a little comforting.”
“You should be comforting your future wife.”
He’d planned to wait before admitting she was the one he and Chandler wanted, but he saw the distress in her eyes.
“I’m holding her,” he spoke softly and watched her expression.
She gasped and her eyes narrowed with suspicion. “You two left without an explanation. You obviously didn’t want to marry me then, and I don’t believe you do now. I won’t be taken in and hurt again.
His mouth thinned with a cynical twist to it. “We were stupid,” he said bluntly. “And we were scared.”
“Scared of what?”
“To be truthful, our reaction to you alarmed us. Neither of us wanted to settle down. We weren’t ready, and we realized you wanted a home and children and deserved them. We decided it was best to go back to Houston.”
“Without an explanation?”
“We were wrong, and we want to make it right. We’re both moving here to be close to you and to make a home with you and any children we might have.”
“Wow, you’re jumping ahead talking about children. It took me a long time, but I’m over you two.”
He rubbed the bridge of her small nose. “I’d hate to see this grow long because you told a lie.”
“I’m not lying.”
“Then we’ll just have to seduce you into loving us.”
“I won’t.”
He sat her back in her chair and tipped her chin up. Then he leaned down and brushed a kiss across her soft mouth.
“Enjoy your cookies. See you in the morning.” It took all his strength not to carry her to his bed and make her admit she loved them. Instead, he straightened, said good night, and left the kitchen.
* * * *
Sunn heard Todd’s footsteps going down the hall. His scent of cedar and musk lingered in the air.
What was she going to do? She didn’t want to love them, but she was afraid he was right.
Oh hell, admit it. I never stopped loving them. I tried, but no one else has appealed to me in the same way. I kept telling myself I was over them like a mantra that would make me believe my words.
And he comes home and my body betrays me. My heart beats rapidly whenever he’s around, and I wanted to cuddle against his body and cry about all the emotions whirling inside me, my fears regarding my dad and about them toying with me. How can I believe what he says?
Back in the bedroom she was using, Sunn stared out the glass doors at the moonlight. On her parents’ ranch, the men were patrolling the perimeter trying to catch the man she ran off and his group.
She wouldn’t have slept well in their ranch house worried about what the men might try next. And here she couldn’t sleep wondering what Todd would do to try and win her back. She’d have to battle her sensual responses to him when just being in the same room aroused her desire.
I want to go home and snuggle in my own bed. I want my life to be calm and settled as it was before Dad got sick and Todd returned. But wishing won’t make it happen.
She walked to the bed and lay down. If she didn’t sleep, she wouldn’t be able to resist Todd at all.
* * * *
Flint Kyne and Rook Dylis tied their horses securely to an oak tree in the middle of a large stand of trees. They blinked, changing into large black panthers. Putting their nose to the ground, they began to search for human scent.
They roamed wooded areas and in the open stayed close to the ground. But there were no humans detected except for one scent Rook had picked up. Toward morning they returned to their horses and switched back to human form.
“These guys are too smart to try anything right after the fiasco in the barn,” Flint said to his best friend, Rook.
“Yeah, but the boss didn’t want to take a chance. I’m hungry and tired. Our replacements should be here soon. Let’s ride back to the ranch house.”
�
�I’m with you. We’ll eat, and then sleep a few hours before we help move the cattle to another field.”
“Tomorrow night we’ll check out the place where I picked up the scent of a human. If someone had been there it wasn’t recent.”
At the ranch they joined Bern’s two men. “I guess you didn’t see or hear anything,” Flint said.
“There wasn’t anyone about.”
“Same as with us. We didn’t find any clues to their whereabouts.” Rook got off his horse and sat on the porch step. “Here comes our ride and our replacements.”
The truck stopped in front of the ranch house and Lann swung out of the driver’s seat. Their replacements got out. One had been sitting in the front and three from the crowed back seat.
Rook reported to Lann and the others agreed that it had been a quiet night.
“You’ll be on tonight, so you’re off for the day. I’ll take you back to get some sleep.” Lann looked at the new group he’d brought. “Three of you ride around the perimeter, and one of you protects the ranch house.” Then Lann joined the men in the truck and they drove off.
* * * *
When Sunn got up, her father and Todd were finishing breakfast. Her father smiled and greeted her.
“This young man cooks good bacon and eggs. Maybe you should think about marrying him. A man who can work in the kitchen can’t be all bad,” her dad said in a teasing tone.
Sunn flushed and sat by her dad. “I can cook for myself. A man needs more than good cooking to turn my head.”
Todd put on more bacon and placed toast in the toaster. “Do you still like your eggs over medium?” he asked Sunn.
“I’m surprised you remember. But don’t bother. Since you’re here with Dad, I’m going into town.”
“I’m driving to the ranch house,” her father said.
“And I need to speak with Lann. Why don’t you ride with me? Afterward we’ll stop in town for whatever you want,” Todd suggested.
“Go with him, Sunn. I’d feel better about your safety.”
“Surely no one in town will bother me, Dad, and what about you?”
“There’s a guard at the house. Lann called earlier and said three were riding the perimeters and one was at the homestead.” Todd smiled at her and continued cooking.
Darn him, every way I try to escape his presence, he circles around from another direction. She tossed her hair over her shoulders and glared at him. Pride kept her from arguing.
“Eat. We’ll leave in about thirty minutes. Andy, please use my truck.” Todd handed him his keys. “They’ll think it’s me if they see you coming. I’ll drive your truck.”
“Thanks, I will.”
Her dad and Todd left the kitchen. Sunn didn’t want to admit she enjoyed the food. He did cook well. The second cup of coffee had her awake and ready to tackle the day and Mr. Todd Carrigan. She planned to put him in his place.
After breakfast, she joined him and her dad on the front porch. The morning air was crisp and cool with a light-blue sky and fluffy clouds overhead. She got into her dad’s truck and waved at her dad as he drove toward his home in Todd’s.
“Do you know much about Lann Quinlain?” Sunn asked.
“I was his contractor. I have a business offer for him.”
“You seriously plan to stay in Saddlespurs?”
“We do. Chandler and I both are going to do most of our business from here. Occasionally, I’ll have to go to Houston or some other places to check on my various enterprises. Chandler plans to spend two days a week in Houston. But he’ll also open an office here in town.”
“Why bother? You aren’t serious about me. You never were, and I’m not going to marry you or Chandler.”
“We don’t want you to marry one of us. We want a threesome marriage like your parents have.”
“What about your parents?” Sunn persisted.
Todd glanced her way as he turned into Lann’s driveway. “I thought you knew. I was a foster child. I don’t know who my parents were, nor do I care since they gave me up when I was three.”
She heard the bravado in his voice, but she guessed he cared more than he’d ever admit.
Her sympathy for him came out in her tone. “How did you become so successful?”
“Don’t feel sorry for me,” he snapped. “A man can do whatever he wants when he’s determined. I promised myself I’d make enough money to never have to rely on anyone.”
“In marriage people depend on each other.”
He didn’t respond. Todd parked the truck and opened her door. Lann had come out on his porch.
“You have a beautiful home,” Sunn said.
“I do, thanks to the man standing beside you. He and Harrison did a great job.”
“Come in and we’ll talk in my office. Sunn can visit with Bliss. She’s in the kitchen helping our cook, Aulay Mac Fie. They like working together when she’s home from the shop.”
Sunn noticed the glow of happiness on Lann’s face when he talked about her friend, Bliss. If she saw such an endearing expression on a man’s face, she might believe he cared.
Chapter Four
Todd followed Lann into his study. “Nice room. I like how it looks furnished.”
“My decorators did a good job. How can I help you?” Lann asked after they were seated.
“I don’t know if you’ve heard, but Chandler Larsson and I are moving back to town and plan on doing most of our business from here.”
“How will Chandler work from Saddlespurs? He’s a well-known specialist.”
“He’ll go to Houston two days a week and open an office here. He hopes to work with the local hospital. A lot of his patients fly into Houston to see him. He can see most of them here just as well. But he’ll have appointments with the others in the city.”
“It seems like you two are going to a lot of trouble to move to a small town that doesn’t fully fit your needs.” Lann grinned. “A woman must be involved.”
“Is it that obvious?”
“There’s no other explanation I can think of to explain your sudden move.”
“We want to convince Sunn to marry us.”
“From the little Bliss has said, I’d guess you’ll have to fight for her.”
“She has her walls up. I can’t blame her. We were assholes before, but we’re sure about what we want now.”
“Then good luck. Bern and I couldn’t be happier since Bliss came into our lives. What’s the business you wanted to discuss? I’m always open to new ventures.”
“I have a plane in Houston and a pilot’s license to fly it. I’ve flown Chandler to see special patients. I can build a landing strip on my property, but since you and Bern both have one, I thought I might pay you to use them. For payment, I’ll construct a hangar. We can all use it for our planes.”
“What a coincidence. I planned to ask you to build one for us. A hangar for the three of us will work fine. I have an offer for you. Bern has a pilot we both use for trips. We need another person to fill in when our pilot can’t do a trip for us or he wants time off. Would you consider taking a part-time job?” Lann leaned back in his chair. “We pay well.”
“It’d be difficult for me to commit myself to an ongoing job even part-time. I have too many other businesses to keep track of, but I’ll fill in until you find someone else.”
“I accept. I know you’re a busy man. You can use my runway and Bern and I will use the hangar you’re going to build. I think it comes out fair both ways.” He reached out and shook Lann’s hand.
Todd felt a spark and knew from Lann’s reaction he’d felt it also. “There must be static electricity in this room,” Todd said.
“Perhaps, but it’s never happened before.” Lann walked around his desk. “I smell a cake. Let’s go have the ladies feed us a snack.”
“I can always eat. Thank goodness, I never get fat.”
“Me either.” Lann gave him a searching look.
“What?” Todd asked.
“Yo
u remind me of someone back home. I’ll introduce you when he comes to visit.” Lann led the way to the kitchen.
Todd was happy with the results of their meeting, but he wondered about the look Lann gave him. Lann would have no way of knowing anything about Todd or his family. Hell, when given the chance to try and find them, Todd had refused. Yet, occasionally he wondered what kind of mother would have given him up. After burying his thoughts deep inside him, he entered the kitchen and smiled seeing Sunn with flour on her hands and a smudge on her nose.
Lann introduced his cook, and then Todd walked to Sunn’s side. He wiped the flour off her nose and kissed the spot. Sunn stepped back and her forehead wrinkled.
“I couldn’t resist,” he whispered in her ear.
“Please have a seat, Todd,” Bliss said. “Aulay taught me how to cook this delicious coconut cake. You must have some and coffee while Sunn helps finish this batch of cookies.”
Todd sat across from Lann. They watched the two women. Well, Todd watched Sunn and visualized her in his kitchen.
“Your hunger is showing,” Lann said softly and grinned at Todd.
“This cake will take care of any hunger,” Bliss said. She placed a plate holding a large piece of cake in front of Todd. Then she came back with coffee for him. “I’ll get yours, Lann.” She leaned down and kissed his lips.
“You won’t satisfy his hunger with the cake, love.” Lann glanced at Todd and Sunn.
“Ah, so that’s the way of it.”
“Bliss, he’s wrong. As I told you, Todd and Chandler are under the mistaken notion that they can snap their fingers and I’ll care for them. You and I know they’re wrong.”
“Enjoy your cake, Todd.” Bliss grinned. “When you finish, can I get a ride into town with you and Sunn? I’m working half days until this little one gets here.” She rubbed her tummy.
“It’s only for a few more weeks, then she’s going to stay home the last six weeks of her pregnancy. It’s a compromise she made with Bern and I.”
Seducing Our Lady's Heart [Commando Cowboys and Renegade Texans Unite 2] (Siren Publishing Everlasting Polyromance) Page 3