Behind Closed Doors

by Debbi Rawlins

Hell, if she was seeing Burnett, Nathan had no right to complain. Exclusivity wasn’t something he could expect. They weren’t in a relationship. Far from it. The polar opposite, now that he thought about it. Which sucked...the not being exclusive part anyway.

  “Hey,” she said. “Come here.” She took his hand and tugged him closer. “Feel this.”

  “What?”

  She pressed his palm against the wall. “This shouldn’t be there. You feel those bumps?”

  Hard to focus on anything but her pink lips and the sweet scent of her skin. But he managed to nod.

  “I mean, obviously I know the place is old and I want to maintain the historic feel. Maybe these small imperfections will help...” Her gaze faltered, and she lowered her hand from his.

  So it wasn’t just him. They were standing too close to each other. Her warm breath hit him where he’d left the top of his shirt unbuttoned. Her body heat seemed to be coming at him in waves, rolling over him, causing all kinds of havoc.

  Yet she hadn’t moved away. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could refrain from kissing her.

  Her shoulders lifted in a small shrug and she finally stepped back. “I’ll leave the bumps alone. If they bother me too much I’ll cover them with pictures.”

  Forcing his attention back to the wall, he followed the slight ridge with his thumb. He needed the time-out for his damn cock to settle down. “Are there many areas like this?”

  She shrugged again. “I noticed one earlier.”

  “Whoever worked on this should’ve told you.”

  “Ideally.” Beth sighed. “See, that’s the thing. I’m used to a certain level of professionalism that I haven’t found in Blackfoot Falls. Let me finish,” she said when he smiled. “I’m not being bitchy, really I’m not...”

  “I know.” He rubbed her arm, then urged her to keep walking farther away from the hammers. “I brought in a general contractor from Kalispell to build my house. Most of the people he subcontracted came with him. Guys around here can be hard workers. But they’re ranchers or cowboys. They have a plumbing problem or leaky roof, they patch things up without worrying about making it look pretty.”

  She stopped at the next room, peeked in and let out an exasperated sigh. Half the walls were covered with red flocked wallpaper. The rest had been stripped, revealing several small holes in the dingy plaster. Looked as if they might’ve come from bullets.

  “This has been my project. Removing wallpaper. I still have four rooms left.” She tilted her head to the side. “Maybe I should leave the rest. Just for flavor.”

  “No.” Nathan laughed. Even he knew that red wallpaper was nasty. “I’ll help, if you want.”

  She turned to him, blinking. Puzzled. As if she hadn’t understood. “Really? You’d do that?”

  “Yes.” And dammit, he’d done it again. Acted without thinking. Him helping her strip wallpaper? He could practically hear the gossip now.

  “That is so nice.” She glanced away before he could tell if the sheen in her eyes meant tears were close behind. “I would never take you up on the offer, so you can relax.”

  “As long as I’m not causing you grief with your family, I’ll be here anytime you need me.” He watched her swallow. Hard. As if she had a big lump blocking her throat. He wasn’t sure why, though. He wished he could offer more. Even if it meant everyone in two counties speculating about his life, he’d help her if he could. While he still had no desire to feed the local rumor mill, he couldn’t let that stop him from trying to make her life a little easier.

  He just hoped she wasn’t getting weepy.

  Anne had cried all the time. Mostly when she’d wanted something. Early on he’d figured out the tears were a form of manipulation. Knowing the cause hadn’t changed anything. Either he’d given in to her or walked out of the room, same as always. With Anne, the easy way had been good enough for him.

  Beth was different. She was strong and determined, and she stepped up when she was needed. It seemed she kept heaping on responsibility even when she was too weighted down as it was. Now, at least, he understood why. He’d met Candace earlier when she’d dropped off Liberty. It was hard to believe the two women were sisters.

  “Nope,” Beth said, continuing to walk. “As much as I appreciate you being such a sport, and God help me, I’ll probably have to kill myself for turning you down, but this project is completely on me.” She stopped again at the end of the hall and gestured through an open doorway. “This is my room.”

  He looked inside. And deflated like a popped balloon. He’d gotten excited thinking she’d meant a real room, with a real bed. The light green walls looked freshly painted. Modern-style blinds covered the small window. The oak floor was in good condition, but still needed to be refinished.

  Yeah, maybe Mike Burnett could take care of that for her.

  Like hell.

  Nathan’s mood started migrating south, but he had to admit, he might need to take a few steps back. Who Beth saw was none of Nathan’s business. But if he recalled correctly, Mike was that easygoing guy who’d played baseball in high school and had been popular with the girls. A couple of years younger than Nathan. And hadn’t he married Ellen, whose folks owned S & S Cattle Company?

  “Come on.” Beth was frowning at him. “It’s not that bad. Plus, I’m not finished with it.”

  “What?” He realized he’d been frowning. “No, it’s nice. Small, though.”

  She pointed at the wall. “I’m putting a door there and using the adjoining room as part of my living quarters.”

  “That’ll help.” He couldn’t see her being happy here in this tiny space with no view. But then he never would’ve pictured her living in her sister’s house. The night he’d dropped off Liberty had been a shocker in more ways than one. ’Course, that made more sense now, what with no beds at all in this place.

  “I found an area rug online that I want,” she said, smiling, her gaze sweeping over the room. “That’s why I went with green walls. I know I did things backward, but it’s my house. My room.”

  Her eyes met his. She seemed genuinely happy. What he’d initially mistaken for pride in her handiwork was simple joy. He smiled back and touched her flushed cheek.

  “With that mansion of yours, I know this doesn’t seem like much to you...”

  “No, that’s not—”

  She nipped his objection with a finger to his lips, her eyes bright with pleasure. “Run-down as it is, I own this place. It’s all mine. No one can take it away from me.” Her happiness dimmed, and embarrassment flickered across her face before she turned away. “Acting as my own general contractor is not a mistake I’ll be repeating. I had no idea how much work it would be.” She shrugged. “I probably shouldn’t admit that, since I have my sister and Lib fooled into thinking I’m the smart one in the family.”

  “Wait,” he said when she tried to steer them back toward her office. “I’m not done looking around.”

  She rolled her eyes, but let him draw her into the room.

  “Does the door lock?”

  “What?” She pulled her hand from his grasp. “No. Uh-uh. We’re not doing that with the guys still here.”

  “No, we aren’t doing that,” he agreed, and grinned at her glare. “Will we be able to hear someone come down the hall?”

  “Normally, yes. Those guys are never quiet. But now? We wouldn’t hear a peep because that’s the way my life has been going.” Her eyes narrowed. “Why?”

  He rested his hands on her waist, watched excitement flare in her hazel eyes, then pulled her against him as he lowered his head. Their lips touched. Hers softened under the pressure of his mouth, and she leaned into him, pressing her breasts against his chest.

  Too late it registered that he should’ve waited. A few more minutes and the workers would be gone. He knew he couldn’t trust himself around her. That was why he’d taken off on Monday for Butte. He could’ve seen Tim Wagner’s Arabians at the next auction. He’d ended up cutting the trip short b
ecause he’d been unable to stay away.

  She tasted every bit as sweet as he remembered. Some of it was the cinnamon glaze... The thought made him smile and he drew back to look at her.

  Her quiet whimper almost masked the sound of someone approaching.

  He released her, and motioned with his eyes toward the door, which they’d neglected to close. She froze, listened to the faint voices, then quickly moved around him to the window and fidgeted with the blinds.

  “I’m surprised you didn’t choose a room that would give you a view of the Rockies,” he said, then tried to clear the hoarseness from his throat.

  “I considered it.” Beth was quick on the uptake, responding casually. She’d turned in his direction but carefully avoided making eye contact. Her cheeks were still flushed. “I need paying customers more than I want a view. Anyway, I’ll be too busy to be hanging out in here much. The bed-and-breakfast concept literally means providing breakfast. Go figure.”

  “You look thrilled.”

  “Tickled pink.” She shrugged. “Put a gun to my head and I can cook. But baking? I’m hopeless. If Marge can supply enough muffins and rolls, I’ll buy them from her. Otherwise, I’ll hire someone to handle breakfast. Or maybe I should stick to making the place a no-frills inn. Any thoughts on that?”

  “Can’t help you there.”

  Beth glanced past him. “Done for the day?” she asked, and Nathan turned to see a short, stocky guy nod. The young man standing behind him avoided eye contact and stared at his boots.

  Nathan thought he recognized him. Earl’s son. The kid used to work at his dad’s filling station after school. Hard to forget the mop of red hair.

  “Have you got a minute?” the shorter one asked Beth, his hands jammed in his jeans’ pockets, his shoulders hunched.

  “Sure.” She studied the guy’s somber face. “I’m not going to like this, am I?”

  “Probably not.”

  Nathan had to give her credit. She stayed calm.

  “I assume this is a show-and-tell,” she said, and got a grim nod. “Let’s go.” She headed toward the door, then paused to look at Nathan. “Joe, do you know...”

  “Hi, Mr. Landers.” Joe moved back to give them room. The other kid had disappeared already. “You probably don’t remember me. My parents are Preston and Betty.”

  “Right.” The resemblance was there. Joe favored Preston. “Give your dad my best, will you?”

  “I’ll do that.” Joe stepped farther back to let Beth walk ahead of him, but she motioned for him to go first.

  She glanced at Nathan before trailing after Joe. If she’d meant to send him a message, Nathan didn’t get it. He followed her, trying to decide if he should wait in her office or take off. He’d asked Woody to call him before someone brought Liberty to town, so he wasn’t worried about her showing up unexpectedly. But he was uneasy about what might happen after the work crew cleared out.

  He couldn’t trust himself to keep his hands off Beth.

  The whole idea was ridiculous. It was a simple matter of willpower, which normally wasn’t a problem for him. If he set his mind on something, it was as good as done. But when it came to Beth, hell, she made everything go haywire. No matter what he did, he thought about her. He couldn’t remember ever being this foolish over a woman.

  With Anne it had been different. He’d set his sights on her, incorporated her into his life plan, endured a brief snag while he was away at school and then everything had fallen into place on schedule. Anne hadn’t been the type to surprise him. At least, not while she’d been alive.

  Beth had him so confused, half the time he couldn’t tell if he was coming or going.

  Like now.

  Nathan followed her all the way to the other end of the hall instead of deciding if it was safe to stay.

  He hung back, just outside the doorway, eavesdropping while Joe and the redheaded kid explained how the ladder had busted and why there was a hole in the new drywall. It took every bit of his sorry willpower not to jump in and take over for her. These kids might mean well, they might even be hard workers, but they didn’t know what the hell they were doing. Beth was clearly in over her head.

  She was great, though. She kept her cool, didn’t raise her voice, didn’t even reprimand them for being careless. He wouldn’t have been so understanding with his own men given the same circumstances.

  Earl’s boy seemed anxious to leave. Not surprising, since his clumsiness had turned out to be the main problem. He gave Nathan a brief, sheepish look as he hurried past him. Next came Joe, who looked depressed.

  He gave Nathan a wry smile. “Nice seeing you, Mr. Landers.”

  Nathan just nodded and watched him shuffle out. Joe had to be at least twenty-one by now, old enough not to be calling him Mr. Landers, but this wasn’t the time to mention it.

  “Get over it,” Beth said with a sigh.

  Nathan turned to find her watching him. “Get over what?”

  “Joe calling you Mr. Landers. Half these guys call me ma’am.” Squeezing her eyes shut, she rubbed her left temple. “It’s just plain disrespectful.” She looked at him again. “Ma’am? Please. I’m only twenty-nine.”

  He smiled. “Don’t buy another ladder. I’ll bring one tomorrow.”

  “Thanks, but that’s all right. I don’t need them breaking your things, too.” She shrugged. “It’s the cost of doing business, as they say.”

  That cost would soar if she continued to hire amateurs. His cell rang. Woody. Good timing. Nathan didn’t need to interfere with Beth’s business. He’d known she’d made an emotional decision to renovate the boardinghouse, and that was just one of the things that worried him about her.

  Or it would be if this thing between them amounted to anything more than sex.

  Speaking of sex...

  “You think you might be able to come by the ranch later?”

  The disappointment in her face told him straight away that she couldn’t. It all boiled down to her being too busy, but he cursed their luck and cursed the fact that she’d awakened the beast inside him. Being numb had been so much easier.

  13

  “WHERE ARE YOU?” Nathan asked when Beth answered her cell.

  The sound of his voice made her smile. It had been a whole week since they’d spent more than five minutes together. “I just got home,” she said, pulling the truck to a stop near the back door. The lights were on inside but her sister’s beat-up old Mustang was already gone. No surprise there.

  “Damn. I was hoping to catch you before you left town.”

  “Why?” She cut the engine and leaned back against the headrest. “What did you have in mind, cowboy?”

  “Meet me at the old line shack and I’ll show you.”

  Beth laughed. “I wish I could,” she said, sighing. “I really do.” She may not have been with him, but at least they’d started daily phone calls four nights ago.

  “I take it Candace isn’t there.”

  “Nope. Claims she had to go to work.”

  “Obviously you don’t believe her.”

  “She’s been acting weird. Well, weirder than usual.” Beth didn’t get it. Candace was never secretive about the men she was seeing, and in fact, tended to brag. Not this time, though. Probably because her man du jour wasn’t the same one paying her rent.

  “Have you thought any more about this weekend?”

  “Are you kidding? It’s the only thing that’s kept me sane. I told Candace that I’d be away on a shopping trip and she has to stay with Liberty.”

  “So we’re on?”

  “Yes, we are.” Beth didn’t mention her threat to throw out her sister’s supply of false eyelashes if she pulled a fast one. Candace might duck out for a few hours, but she wouldn’t be gone all night. “We can leave Friday afternoon if you’re free.”

  “What about Liberty? Will she still be working on her art project?”

  “She should be done...oh, right.” Beth hadn’t thought it through. Lib hadn’t
been to the ranch in two days because of schoolwork, but she’d expect to go there on Saturday. “I don’t want her to know we’re both out of town.”

  “I agree. I’ll have Woody tell her he’s busy this weekend.”

  “Thanks. For thinking of it.” Beth knew it was a mistake to consider Nathan an ally, someone willing to share her burdens. They’d become friends, loosely speaking, but it would be foolish to romanticize his motives.

  “You sound beat,” he said, his voice a low, soothing murmur that managed to make her feel warm and safe.

  “I am. Friday can’t come too soon.”

  “You sure you can’t sneak away for a few minutes?”

  She laughed. “Only a few, huh?”

  “I give a mean back rub.”

  Beth bit her lip. She knew he meant it. All she had to do was give the word and he’d show up to give her that massage and expect nothing in return. So, okay, he had become a friend. “Lib must’ve seen me out here, or I’d be tempted...”

  “Yeah, I know. It’s hard. Maybe I’ll stop by the boardinghouse tomorrow.”

  “Stop by?”

  “Yeah...on my way to the Food Mart.”

  They both laughed.

  “Oh, God.” Beth saw the front door open. “Here comes search and rescue.”

  Nathan chuckled. “Go.”

  She almost told him she missed him, but that seemed over-the-top so she disconnected instead. For a relationship that was supposed to be based on sex, they sure weren’t having much of it.

  * * *

  LATE FRIDAY, BETH peered through the parlor window, watching Joe and the new guy walk to their trucks. The plumber had already left, so she locked the front door. Old habit. She doubted anyone would break in and continue with the renovation.

  She hurried back to her office and checked her phone. No message from Candace, no missed calls. Good.

  Most of the day she’d been too busy to feel anxious. She’d even managed to make it through large blocks of time without remembering she was meeting Nathan at 6:00 p.m. But for the past hour she’d been nervous, her stomach jittery.

  A packed bag was locked in her truck. All she had to do was drive thirty miles east of town to where Nathan would be waiting. He had a place for her to leave her truck, an enclosed shed, which was perfect, but he hadn’t mentioned who owned it.