by Soraya Lane
She stood and followed him, taking the glass that he’d offered before and pouring herself a generous whiskey. Faith wasn’t one for drinking straight spirits, but she did it anyway, closing her eyes as they watered from the burn.
“I’ve loved being with you, Nate.”
He grimaced. “Why does this sound like good-bye all of a sudden?”
She smiled and finished her drink, throat on fire as she walked around his desk, discarding her glass and slipping her arms around him. “It’s not good-bye; it’s just us reminding ourselves that this is a finite thing,” she said, tipping back to look up at him. “How about we stop talking about how screwed up we both are about commitment and just keep having fun a bit longer?”
He grunted as she nipped his jawline, playfully biting him. “Be careful, little wolf.”
Faith laughed. “Said the big bad one?”
Nate’s mouth closed over hers, his kisses just what she needed. They didn’t need to ruin things by talking about what they couldn’t have, and she didn’t need to admit to herself that the past month had been one of the happiest of her life. This was Nate. Her brother’s best friend, the guy who never settled down, the man she’d lusted after for so long and had just wanted to have filthy dirty sex with. She’d never meant to fall in love with him. She’d never meant to think about a future with him.
Nate’s kisses became more insistent, his mouth hot and heavy as his hands ran up and down her body, fingers suddenly working on the zip at the back of her skirt, pushing her back onto his desk.
“Nate!” she moaned.
“Fancy being my naughty secretary?” he asked, eyes shining with heat as he stared down at her.
“Nate, you in here?”
Faith jumped at the sound of a female voice in the house, way too close for comfort. She wriggled off the desk, struggling as Nate tried to manhandle her back onto it.
“Nate!”
“It’s just Hope,” Nate whispered in her ear.
Faith glared at him. “I don’t need your sister-in-law seeing you molest me!” she muttered.
She quickly righted herself, kicking Nate’s leg with the point of her stiletto on her way back off the desk.
“In here!” Nate called out, winking at Faith and making a grab for her again.
“Oh, sorry, am I interrupting?” Hope asked, eyes wide as she saw Nate standing with his hands spread, palm down on the desk, and Faith trying to tuck her blouse back into her skirt.
“Yes,” Nate drawled.
“No!” Faith shot daggers at him. “No, you’re not interrupting anything.”
Hope smiled, glancing between the two of them as if she knew exactly what they’d been up to. “It was you I was looking for anyway,” she said, ignoring Nate. “Chloe and I are going out for a few drinks. The boys are having a meeting at our place, so we’ve told them they can put the kids to bed and have a few quiet beers while we go out and have some fun for once. Wanna come?”
Faith glanced at Nate and he shot her a smile. “I was about to tell you that I was heading over to have a beer with the guys, before you went and distracted me.”
She blushed, the heat rising into her cheeks. “I’d love to join you. Do I have time to freshen up?”
“You sure do.” Hope grinned. “And it’s about time we all had some fun together, instead of Nate keeping you tucked away all to himself.”
“So half an hour? An hour?” Faith asked, refusing to look over at Nate again for fear of seeing the familiar glint in his eye that told her exactly what he wanted to do to her.
“No rush. We have to get the kids dinner and I’ll take Harrison over to Chloe’s. He can go down there. Then I want to get ready.” Hope grinned. “Between being a mom and a vet, I don’t exactly get the chance to get all dolled up very often.”
“I’ll come over with Nate, then?” Faith asked.
“Perfect, see you soon.”
Hope left and Faith turned back to Nate, backing away when he stalked toward her. “No,” she insisted, shaking her head.
Nate pounced, launching forward and grabbing for her. Faith spun around and tried to run, but he had her, throwing her down on the sofa and slamming his hard body down on top of hers.
“You’re not going anywhere yet,” he mumbled against her lips.
“I have to go get ready,” she protested, trying to wiggle away from him and not even moving an inch.
“Just let me get to second base then,” he whispered. “We don’t need to go all the way.”
She laughed at his old-fashioned terminology, deciding to just give in to him, because resisting him was futile when he was so strong and determined, especially when her body was betraying her by wanting to grind into him. She could pretend all she liked, but she didn’t really ever want to turn him down. “I don’t even know what second base is these days.”
“Then just lie back and let me show you.”
Faith should have said no, pushed him away. She loved that Nate was big and strong, that his body was heavy over hers, that he could lift her as if she were no more than a featherweight. He might be holding her down, but if she told him to let go he would do so immediately. But what were a few minutes of play before she headed upstairs to change? If they were only on limited time together, she needed to make the most of every second.
* * *
“I can’t believe we’re the ones at home looking after the kids and they’re out on the town,” Ryder grumbled.
Nate laughed. “Missing the single life?”
Ryder shot him a filthy look. “Let me think. Do I wish I was still partying all the time instead of coming home every day to the most beautiful goddamn woman in the world? Not to mention a kid who melts my heart every time I look at her? Ah, that would be a definite ‘no.’”
“Yet you want to moan about being the one to stay home tonight?” Nate said dryly.
“He’s just scared shitless that Chloe’s out on the town without him and other guys could be hitting on her,” Chase said. “They all looked smokin’ hot tonight.”
Ryder downed his beer and stood up. “That’s it; I’m going. They shouldn’t be out on their own.”
“They’re grown women, Ryder, not little girls in need of a big bad guy to protect them,” Nate said, flipping the top on his beer and sitting down at the table across from Chase. “Besides, it’s nice to just hang out, the three of us. Like old times.”
“You’ve got no idea, Nate,” Ryder growled out. “One day when you finally get rid of the rocks in your head and actually let someone crack open that rock-solid heart of yours, you’ll get it.”
“What, so suddenly because I’m not married means I don’t know how to protect a woman or want to care for her?”
“Well, do you?” Ryder asked. “Because you’ve got a pretty awesome fricking woman living under your roof, right now and you’re still giving us that bullshit about not wanting to commit.”
“Easy,” Nate warned, leaning deeper into the chair and trying to keep his cool. He’d thought coming here would mean some time not thinking about Faith.
“What, I can’t bring up Faith? She’s been living on the ranch for the better part of a month now, Nate, and she’s out with our wives tonight.” Ryder shrugged. “Seems pretty stupid that we have to act like she doesn’t exist.”
“I said back off, Ryder,” Nate growled.
“Knock it off, you two,” Chase interrupted, standing up and giving them a sharp stare. “You okay, sweetie?”
All the anger Nate had been feeling toward Ryder disappeared the moment he turned around and saw Harrison standing there with his worn rabbit hanging from his hand.
“Daddy, can you come cuddle me?”
Chase was already around the table and bending to scoop his boy up. It still amazed Nate that his brother had taken to parenting so readily. He hadn’t even known he had a son until almost a year ago, and now he was married and in full-on daddy mode. They’d bonded immediately and Chase loved hanging out with
his son, spending as much time as he could showing his son the ropes around the ranch, how to ride, just enjoying being a father.
“You guys kiss and make up. No fists flying while I’m gone,” Chase warned, carrying Harrison back to bed. He had his legs and arms looped around Chase, eyes already shut now, his head against his dad’s chest. Harrison looked almost too big to be cuddled like that, but for his sake Nate hoped he didn’t realize it for a long time yet.
“Sorry,” Ryder said, holding his beer up to clink against Nate’s.
“Yeah, me too,” Nate said, touching bottles. “I can’t help it.”
“I get it,” his brother said. “How about we just let you simmer about Faith and agree not to talk about the girls tonight?”
“Sounds good to me.”
Ryder jumped up and grabbed a bag of potato chips, ripping them open and pouring them into a bowl before heading back to the table.
“Fancy.” Nate chuckled. “Don’t think I’ve ever seen you use a dish before. You were always more of an eat from the bag and guzzle milk from a carton kind of guy PC.”
“What?” Ryder asked, mouth full of chips.
“Pre-Chloe.”
He laughed. “First of all, I thought we weren’t talking about the girls. And second.” He got up and grabbed the still half-full bag of potato chips. “She’s fucking whipped me, hasn’t she?”
They both laughed and Ryder kept munching from the bag just to make his point that he hadn’t been pussy whipped.
“Like you said, she’s worth it. What you have is worth being told that you need to not behave like a sloth,” Nate said.
“Damn right. Now tell me about this oil business. You gonna make us all even richer now they’ve struck the black gold?”
Nate grinned. “Hell yes. I just wish I could get confirmation before Granddad…”
Ryder nodded a few times. “You can say it. Before he kicks the bucket. There’s no way to lessen the blow, so we may as well just talk about it.”
“I want him to know he was right, that it was there just like he said and that we’re gonna make millions from it.”
“What did I miss?” Chase asked as he walked back in. He picked up his beer, took a swig, and made a face. “You guys want a cold one?”
They both nodded. “The oil. We’re looking like it’s all go.”
“Good. That what you wanted to talk about tonight?”
“Yeah,” Nate said. “I just wanted to get a handle on what you both want long-term, make sure we’re still all on the same page. If we’re all gonna live here on the one ranch, I don’t want any shit getting between us and ruining what we have.”
They might each own a third of what had once been a single ranch, but they ranched it like it was still one piece of land. And they all treated King Ranch as if nothing had changed, except for the fact that each had his own home now.
“I just wanna be a rancher,” Chase said, reaching for the chips. “The organic beef is starting to do well, we’re making a name for ourselves now we have the new branding, and the PR we’ve had recently means we’ve got a waiting list longer than we’ll ever be able to fill. Despite all that shit with the insemination, it all turned out for the best. We’re fielding plenty of calls about our young bulls now, too.”
Nate nodded. “Last time I was in New York I got one hell of a kick seeing our name on the menu beside the beef fillet. You’ve done well, Chase. Granddad’s damn proud that you’ve been able to keep the cattle ranching profitable by diversifying when so many others are struggling.”
Chase smiled, but it was a sad kind of smile. They all felt it, the weight of knowing that the man they had looked up to all their lives was so close to passing.
“And those bulls are coming along well, Nate,” Chase said, talking about Ryder’s new endeavor. They’d covered it the other night, but Nate wanted them both to know that he actually gave a damn about what they were doing on the ground. “Ryder’s done a damn fine job of making a heck of a lot of money from a small amount of space on the ranch.”
Nate grinned. “Now that we’ve all learned to stay clear of Bruce, right?”
Chase glared at Nate, but Ryder burst out laughing, tears streaming down his cheeks as they reminisced about the time Chase had been attacked.
“I still don’t get how that fucking bull could let me stand there talking to him one minute, and then charge me down like I had a goddamn red flag attached to me the next.”
Nate laughed so hard his cheeks ached, unable to look at Ryder without cracking up again.
“He could have killed me, Nate. You hear me?” Chase was furious, slamming his hand down on the table, then shoving Nate hard.
He fell sideways, landing on the floor alongside his chair. “Come on; seeing you fly through the air when he hooked you was pretty funny.”
“Oh yeah, funny, ha-ha,” Chase grumbled. “My ass hurt so bad I couldn’t sit for a week, and I broke my bloody arm.”
They settled down and Nate reached for his beer. “Heads up on the oil, just so you know. The whole area’s going to be permanently reserved now, looks like it’s finally all go.”
“No problem,” Chase said. “You handle the signage and fencing to keep it safe?”
“Sure will.” Nate settled back into his chair. “Now that that’s all settled, wanna play poker?”
“While the cat’s away the mice will play,” said Ryder with a mischievous grin.
“Oh yeah, we’re so bad these days,” Chase groaned.
Nate laughed, pleased that his brothers were happy. Compared to the havoc they used to wreak as a trio out on the town, they’d virtually turned into a bunch of old men. But Nate didn’t mind. When he hung out with his brothers now it was as family men, on the ranch or out for a few quiet beers, and it suited him just fine. When he traveled he partied, dined at the best restaurants, flew on their private jet. He had the best of both worlds. Just because he’d settled into something comfortable with Faith didn’t mean he wanted what his brothers had. He never had and nothing had changed.
Except Faith. Faith had changed him. He was lying if he tried to pretend that he didn’t care for her. But he couldn’t let her get closer to him, couldn’t crave the kind of home life that his brothers had, because that would be admitting that he could fall for her. And he wasn’t going to fall in love with anyone, couldn’t go through losing a woman he loved.
He gritted his teeth. Because what if he did and they had children and then he lost her? What if he turned into the same man his father had when he’d lost his wife? To hell with the fact that Nate didn’t think he was anything like him, because they were blood and he could end up repeating the same pattern that he’d suffered through himself. That wasn’t going to happen, which meant he had to keep Faith at arm’s length. Stop pretending like what they had could just keep on going like they were.
“Nate?”
He looked up, realized he’d shredded the label off his beer bottle. “Sorry, I was a million miles away.”
Chase chuckled. “Come on; stop thinking about the femme fatale living with you and get your head into the card game.”
Nate went to say something smart back, then shut his mouth. His brothers were only having fun with him; the last thing they needed was for him to snap their heads off just because he was all fucked up over Faith. Instead he downed his beer and reached for the cards he’d been dealt.
“I think we should switch to whiskey,” he said.
Chase shrugged. “You guys do what you like. I’m just having a few beers in case the kids need us. One of us needs to stay sober.”
Ryder nodded and Nate rose to find the Jack Daniel’s. “Nice to have a night just the three of us without Chloe here to kick our butts at poker.”
“I’d tell you off for talking smack about my wife, except for the fact you’re abso-fucking-lutely right.”
They all settled down around the table to play.
“Let’s go, boys,” Nate muttered. “Fast game’s
a good game.” And it was also the only way he was going to be able to keep his mind off Faith.
Chapter 12
“THIS is amazing,” Chloe said, dropping into the booth seat and grinning. “I can’t believe we’re actually doing something without children attached to us. Or the guys for that matter.”
Faith smiled at Chloe’s enthusiasm, taking a sip of her vodka, lemon, and lime. “Sorry we couldn’t go to Joe’s.”
“Ugh, Joe’s isn’t that great,” Chloe said. “Seriously, I worked there long enough not to need to go back for a very long time.”
“You mentioned the other day that you met Ryder there. Was it love at first sight?”
“Ha-ha, yes and no.” Chloe sipped her drink. “I was working there to save up for my college tuition and I ended up making a bet with Ryder. Funnily enough, it was one bet I’ve never regretted.”
They all laughed.
“Once you’ve fallen for a King you never go back,” Hope added, grinning.
“So this ex of yours, I never said anything before, but he took over as manager just before I left,” Chloe said. “He was fine to me, but I never liked the guy.”
“Funnily enough, my friend said the same thing,” Faith admitted. “I’m starting to wonder if he just laid on the charm when I was around, did it to impress me, and I just never saw the true him until it was too late.”
Chloe patted her hand. “It’s all right; you have Nate now.”
“Yeah, and he’s smitten,” Hope chimed in. “I still remember that time when we saw you at Joe’s and he just froze. We gave him so much shit.”
Faith had frozen, looking between the two woman seated across from her. “You’re kidding, right?” That was almost the same thing Chloe had told her that first time they’d met at Nate’s house.
“Honey, he’s definitely smitten,” Chloe told her. “I’ve only known him a couple of years, but I’ve never seen him like his. Surely you’ve known him long enough to know he’s not usually like this.”