“That’s not part of the job.”
“Then it should be.”
He hadn’t thought of it that way. “Maybe you’re right.”
She touched her chest. “Be still, my heart.”
* * *
PHOEBE FELT LIKE a character in a musical. Everything in her day made her want to break into song. Zane liked her. At least Chase thought he did, and she was gone enough on the man to be willing to accept the gospel truth from a seventeen-year-old.
That being the case, when she walked into the clearing before dinner and saw Zane sitting in a camp chair with an empty seat so conveniently next to him, she gathered her courage and walked straight toward it.
“Hi,” she said as she sat next to him.
Zane nodded.
Trying not to be discouraged—just because she knew he liked her didn’t mean that he knew she knew—she offered a bright smile.
“Things went well today.”
“Uh-huh.”
Okay, so maybe Chase was right. Maybe Zane wasn’t that great around women. Maybe he was shy.
She squirmed slightly, not sure she could reconcile “shy” with the intense passion she’d felt during their kisses. But if not shy, then what?
Uninterested in her was the most logical explanation, but she didn’t want to go there.
She nodded toward the small group by the campfire. “I’ve noticed C.J. spending more time with Lucy and Tommy. At first I thought she didn’t really like kids, which is weird for someone who’s a foster parent. But I guess strange things like that happen. Anyway, it’s better now, don’t you think?”
Zane pulled off his hat and ran his fingers through his thick, dark hair. Then he stared at her.
“C.J. braided Lucy’s hair this morning.”
Phoebe beamed. “I noticed that, too. Didn’t it just give you a lump in your throat?” She fingered her own hair. “When I was little, I would have loved a braid like that. With a ribbon on the end.” She stared at the fire. “A green ribbon.”
But ribbons and braids hadn’t been a part of her life, and now that she could do that sort of thing herself, it wasn’t that important. But the memory would have been nice.
She leaned close to Zane. “Martin ate chicken at lunch. When Andrea went off to chant to the trees or something, he took a piece of fried chicken. I was so proud.”
“Andrea can’t be an easy woman to live with.”
Phoebe glanced at the woman in question. She was hovering by Cookie, no doubt asking questions about the meal.
Zane followed her gaze and sighed. “I’d best take care of that before the old man gets violent.”
With that he rose and crossed to the cook fire.
Phoebe watched him go. Once she was able to pull her attention away from the fine shape of his butt and his long-legged walk, she sagged back in her chair.
They’d been talking. Sort of. Zane had actually been chatty, in his taciturn, cowboy kind of way. But she hadn’t been able to figure out what he was thinking. Did he really like her, or was Chase just saying what she wanted to hear? If only she could get someone else’s opinion on that.
She thought of Maya, but dismissed the idea immediately. Her friend was already suspicious, and confirming her affection for Zane would mean opening herself up to friendly teasing for the rest of the trip. She loved Maya and normally wouldn’t have minded, but her feelings for him were too tender to appreciate mocking, however gently meant. She only knew one other source of information.
The cattle had stopped in an open field for the night. Phoebe found Manny right away and crossed to stand next to him.
He acknowledged her with a soft head bump, followed by a brush with his shoulder. Unfortunately the latter sent her staggering back a couple of feet, but she knew he meant well. She scratched his ears.
“It’s Zane,” she said softly, knowing her voice could carry in the early evening. “Chase said he likes me, but I’m not sure. What do you think?”
Manny raised his head and gazed at her soulfully.
Phoebe bit her lower lip. “Okay. Was that a yes or a no?” She sighed. “Wait. Don’t tell me. I don’t want to get my hopes up. It’s just...” She paused, not sure how to explain her feelings to herself, let alone a steer.
“Something happens when we’re together. I like how I feel when I’m around him. He’s so tough and strong and together, and yet I feel there’s something underneath all that I connect with. Is that too crazy?”
She smiled, knowing Maya would point out it wasn’t much stranger than talking to a steer in the first place.
“The thing is, everyone else belongs. Martin and Andrea, C.J. and Thad. The kids have each other, Maya has Chase. Eddie and Gladys are almost like family to each other.” She glanced around at the herd. “You have your friends here. Sometimes I don’t feel like I have anyone. And I know this is really weird, but I sense the same thing about Zane. Sure, he’s got the ranch and everything, but that’s not always enough. It’s like there’s this empty place inside, and when I’m with him, it gets filled up.”
She leaned against Manny and rested her head on his back. He was warm, if a little dusty, and she could hear the faint beating of his heart.
“You’re a great listener,” she murmured.
Manny munched on grass while she contemplated her next move.
“So what are the odds of you letting me ride you?” she asked.
“I wouldn’t try it,” Zane said.
She jumped and screamed, then turned and saw him standing right behind her.
“I didn’t hear you,” she said, wondering how foolish she’d looked draped across the steer.
“I didn’t want to interrupt your bonding.”
She squinted, trying to tell if he was teasing or making fun of her.
“Manny and I like hanging out,” she said, tucking her hands into her back pockets. “So I was wondering. You said that each of the members of the herd has his own place and that if they get sick and fall back, they’ll return to it when they’re better.”
Zane looked more than a little cautious. “Right.”
“What happens if Manny gets sick? Who takes his place? Do you have a leader in training?”
“We make do until Manny’s better. If he weren’t a part of the herd, another steer would take his place.”
She considered that and had a bad feeling that “not part of the herd” meant something really permanent, like death. Better to not go there.
“Cookie’s about ready with dinner,” he said.
“That’s subtle,” she told him and gave Manny a last pat before heading for the campsite. “See you in the morning,” she told the steer.
Zane fell into step beside her. After a couple of seconds he said, “You know Manny can’t actually understand what you’re saying, don’t you?”
She grinned. “I have an active imagination, but I’m not an idiot. Yes, I know that.”
Zane looked relieved. “I’m sure he likes you and all...” His voice trailed off as if he’d just realized what he’d admitted.
“I like him, too,” she said, keeping her expression serious. “We’re friends.”
Zane muttered something under his breath, then turned to her. “I can’t figure you out. You’re not crazy, but sometimes you’re strange.” He shrugged. “I don’t get it. Or you.”
“I like to connect with people or animals. So I talk to them. Sometimes they talk back.”
“The people, right?”
“Sometimes the animals whisper me a secret or two.”
One corner of his mouth curved up, then the other. When Zane smiled, her entire body felt lighter. Almost as if she was filled with helium and could float.
“I’ve never met anyone like you,” he admitted.
“Is that good or bad?”
His dark gaze zeroed in on her mouth. “Good. Definitely good.”
Her throat twisted up tight, and her skin tingled all over. “Even though you think I could bond w
ith a rock?”
“Rocks need friends, too. You have the biggest heart of anyone I know.”
She figured that had to be a compliment. After all, being told she had a big heart was nothing like hearing she had a big butt.
She thought of Chase’s words, that Zane liked her. Maybe, just maybe, it was true. Wouldn’t that be the coolest thing ever? Because she sure liked him. More than a little. And she wasn’t just talking about the tingles, either.
Phoebe took a step toward him. At that same second, there was a noise in the bushes next to them. Off balance, she started to turn and found herself falling over a partially covered log. She fell at an awkward angle and landed directly on her back. All the air rushed out of her. She couldn’t speak, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t do anything but lie there gasping.
Zane bent toward her just as Chase burst through the bushes. He took in the scene and lunged for his brother.
“What did you do to her?” he demanded, grabbing Zane by his shirtfront. “What is wrong with you?”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
PHOEBE FELT AS if Manny had plopped down on her chest. After a couple of seconds of ineffectual gasping, she managed to draw air into her lungs. When she was breathing regularly, she realized that Zane and Chase were scrambling around together. On the ground!
Maya rushed over with Thad right behind her. Cookie followed. Seconds later, Zane had Chase pinned. Both brothers were breathing hard, glaring at each other.
“What the hell?” Maya demanded.
Cookie threatened both of them with a frying pan to the head if they didn’t stop. Phoebe still couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Nor did she understand what was happening or why.
“Do it,” Chase taunted from his place flat on the ground. “Hit me. You know you want to.”
Zane’s tight expression was unreadable. Tension crackled in the air.
“Dammit all to hell, hit me!”
Zane released his brother and stood up. Then without saying anything, he stalked away. Maya dropped to her knees next to her stepbrother.
“What’s going on? Why are you two fighting?”
Chase pointed at Phoebe. “Ask her.”
Everyone turned to stare. Phoebe scrambled to her feet and brushed off her fanny. “Me? I didn’t do anything.” She pointed at the log. “Okay, I tripped and fell and got the wind knocked out of me. What does that have to do with anything?”
Chase’s mouth dropped open. “You tripped?”
Phoebe sighed. “So I’m not the most graceful person here. Why is that such a big deal?”
Maya stood and put her hands on her hips. “Kid, you just screwed up big-time.”
Chase groaned and flopped back on the ground. “No. I thought... She was on her back and upset and he was bending over her.”
Thad and Cookie backed away from the scene. Phoebe looked from them to Chase as all the pieces fell into place.
“You thought he’d hurt me? Zane? Your brother? Has he ever once in his entire life touched a woman?”
Maya shook her head. “Not in a bad way. According to Sally, he was pretty decent in—”
Phoebe held up her hand. She did not want to hear about Zane’s lovemaking skills through the grapevine.
She turned back to Chase. “You’re always complaining that Zane doesn’t see the good in you, but you’re just as guilty. Why would you assume something like that about him? He’s your brother. You should know he’d never hurt a woman.”
Chase sat up and dropped his head to his chest. “I do. It’s just—I can’t explain it. You were on the ground, and Zane looked, I don’t know. Different. Furious.”
“He’s not the only one,” Phoebe told him, before heading off. “You owe your brother an apology.”
She crashed through the bushes, hoping Zane hadn’t suddenly changed direction. If he had, she would get lost before finding him. On the bright side, maybe she would stumble upon the raccoon thieves and be able to bargain for the release of her pen.
* * *
ZANE HEARD THE thrashing long before anyone appeared in the clearing. After a couple of minutes he figured out who it was by the soft bits of conversation during which Phoebe apologized to the trees and bushes she trampled.
“Over here,” he called, taking pity on her. And maybe himself. For once he didn’t want to be alone.
He still couldn’t believe Chase had come after him like that. He’d known what his brother was thinking the second he saw his face. That shocked him. Did Chase really think he was such a monster?
Phoebe broke through the underbrush and stepped into the clearing. Twigs and leaves stuck in her hair and on her shirt. She came to a stop when she saw him and began brushing off her clothes.
“I wanted to make sure you were okay,” she said.
Zane offered a humorous smile. “He didn’t get a shot.”
Phoebe crossed to the log and sat next to him. “I’m more concerned about your emotional spirit than whether you were hit.”
He looked at her face—at the big eyes and full lips, at the concern. In his world of ranching and outdoor life, Phoebe was useless if decorative. From what he could tell, she hadn’t been very monetarily successful in her career, and according to Maya, she was a disaster at relationships.
But to him, she was probably the strongest person he’d ever known. She led with her heart, coming back again and again, regardless of how the organ got bruised. She had a well of courage that left him in awe.
“Nobody worries about me,” he told her.
“I do.” She took one of his hands in hers. “You’d never hurt me, or any woman. I don’t know why Chase jumped to that conclusion.”
Zane did his best to ignore the heat pouring into him. Just the light touch of her small fingers was enough to get him hard. He had to get this under control.
“You were on the ground and hurt. I was just standing there. It looked bad.”
She dismissed his statement. “I don’t care how it looked. I care about how it was.”
“Thanks.” He squeezed her fingers, then pulled free before he did something stupid like ripping off her jeans and making love to her right there on the ground.
“Oh, Zane.”
Phoebe sighed his name in a way that made him want to spill all the dark secrets of his soul. While he couldn’t risk that, he was willing to bring one to the light of day.
“If he’d been anyone else, I would have taken him on.”
She looked at him. “You would have fought him?”
He nodded. “Right now I could use a good fight.”
He expected her to bolt for safety or at least disapprove. Instead she leaned against him, resting her head on his upper arm.
“It’s the stress, isn’t it?” she asked softly. “You have all of us to worry about. I know why you wanted to teach Chase a lesson, but once you saw everyone and realized all the stuff that could go wrong, I’m sure you figured grounding him for ten years would have been a better option.”
He nodded slowly. “Yeah. I don’t want anyone to get hurt.”
She raised her head and smiled at him. “We’re doing okay, and for what it’s worth, I think everyone is having a really good time.”
“I worry about Chase, too.”
He couldn’t believe he’d said that. What was wrong with him? But there was something about being around Phoebe. Something that made him relax inside.
“I know he makes mistakes, but basically he’s a good kid,” she told him. “Trust him, and trust yourself.”
She looked so earnest, he thought, as aroused as he was amused.
“You’re the one who shouldn’t be trusting me,” he told her, right before he kissed her.
As he lowered his mouth to hers, he wrapped his arms around her and drew her close. She leaned into him, her slender body warm and supple in his embrace. Her lips clung, then parted. When he swept inside, she was hot, sweet and more than willing to take him on.
The second his tongue touched hers,
she moaned. Her fingers dug into his shoulders, and he felt a shudder ripple through her body. He went from hard to ready to explode in two seconds.
The way they were next to each other on a log didn’t allow him to explore her the way he wanted, so he broke the kiss and pulled her to her feet.
Phoebe went willingly, if a little unsteadily. When they were both standing, he pressed his mouth to her jaw before sliding to her neck.
She moaned and leaned back her head. Their lower bodies brushed against each other. When her belly came in contact with his erection, it was his turn to groan.
He slid one hand from her waist up to her breast and cupped the feminine curve. Even through the layers of her shirt and bra, he could feel her tight nipple. One sweep of his thumb against it had her gasping.
She touched his head and guided his mouth back to hers. This time when he entered her, she closed her lips around his tongue and sucked. He dropped his free hand to the small of her back, holding her in place so he could rub against her.
The thick ropes of his control began to unravel. When she curled both arms around his neck, it seemed natural to place his around her waist and pick her up. She wrapped her legs around his hips, bringing herself in direct contact with his hard-on.
It was paradise. It was pure torture.
He swore. She broke the kiss and smiled at him.
“So you find me annoying, but you still want me,” she whispered.
“I don’t find you annoying.” He pushed against her crotch.
“I don’t find you annoying, either.”
He read the passion in her eyes and knew she was more than willing to take things to the next level.
He glanced around, searching for a soft, private spot, only to realize they were out in the open and likely to be discovered any second. It wasn’t romantic, it wasn’t smart, and he didn’t have a condom with him. Phoebe deserved a whole lot better.
“I want you,” he told her.
She tightened her legs around him. “Me, too.” Color stained her cheeks. “I’ve never said that to a man before.”
Zane realized he hadn’t told a woman, either. He’d shown her, but he’d never actually spoken the words. Phoebe was changing him in all kinds of ways.
Kiss Me (Fool's Gold series) Page 20