Midnight Heat

by Cat Johnson

  Bonnie frowned. “I hate that you have to leave so soon. You just got here.”

  “I know, but school’s starting soon, and as you know, the staff reports a couple of days before the students start class. I promise I’ll come back for a visit the next break we have.”

  “I hope you do. And next time you’re staying here with us. Not in some hotel. I insist.”

  “Okay.” Phoenix smiled at Rohn’s insistence, while loving the idea of staying at the ranch with Rohn and Bonnie. Of course, that would make it more difficult to spend time alone with Justin.

  They’d just have to figure something out. Hopefully, they’d have tonight together. They could talk about it then, after they did other things.

  Tammy—Phoenix’s very own grandmother as of a few hours ago—came through the doorway. “Ready for dessert? I’ve got my caramel apple sour cream cake on the dining room table.”

  “Yum.” Rohn couldn’t have stood any faster. “I’m ready.”

  “I know you are.” Laughing, Bonnie stood, too, though more slowly than her fiancé had. “And you should have called, Mom. I would have helped you.”

  Tammy waved off Bonnie. “You had more important things to be doing, like getting to know Phoenix.”

  The older woman’s smile was infectious. It had snuck inside and warmed Phoenix’s heart the first time she saw it that afternoon.

  Phoenix returned the smile now as she said, “I do have something I need to confess.”

  “What’s that, sweetie?” Tammy asked.

  “I can’t bake. I mean I’m terrible. Like seriously bad. I could probably poison someone with my homemade cake.” It was the craziest thing, because her mother was the best cook and a wonderful baker. She’d tried to teach Phoenix, but it just hadn’t stuck.

  Tammy shrugged. “Then we’ll have to start you on something simple and go from there. No one can mess up a pie.”

  Phoenix raised one brow. “You might be surprised.”

  Bonnie leaned close as they all moved toward the dining room across the hall. “The good news is that after being a bachelor for the past five years, Rohn will eat pretty much anything and enjoy it, so don’t worry.”

  Phoenix smiled. She loved her new family.

  That thought brought to the surface the guilt she felt regarding her old family. She needed to get home to clean up her mess. Then maybe she’d be able to fully enjoy this amazing time in her life, surrounded by all the people who loved her, both old parents and new. And, with any luck, maybe even one hot cowboy.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Hey. You awake?

  The text came through as Justin was watching television with his mother.

  It was from Phoenix. He glanced at the time. It was only a little after eight, but he supposed it was a fair question. They’d both missed out on some sleep the night before.

  As it was, he had his boots off and his feet kicked up on the coffee table. Settled in as he was against the sofa cushions, he wasn’t far from dozing off. If the plot of the show he was watching didn’t pick up, it would surely put him to sleep soon.

  Yes. Dinner over?

  He punched in his reply and hit Send.

  Yes. At the hotel again. Want to come over?

  Her question had him glancing at his mother. The answer was hell yes. He wanted to go to Phoenix’s hotel, but he didn’t want to leave his mother alone again.

  He hesitated long enough with the phone in his hand, unsure of how to respond, that his mother noticed.

  She glanced over. “Everything okay?”

  “Oh, yeah. Just a friend asking if I wanted to come over.”

  “So go.”

  “I left you to go out last night . . .”

  “And I was very happy watching my shows without you. Justin, go.”

  Damn, it was tempting to believe her. He really wanted to. “You sure?”

  She widened her eyes, reinforcing the point. “Yes.”

  “Okay. But I won’t be out late.”

  “Whatever you want to do.”

  “A’ight. Thanks, Mom.” Justin only took long enough to text that he’d be right over before he reached for his boots. After pulling them on, he jumped up from the sofa and shoved the cell in his pocket. Leaning down, he dropped a quick kiss on his mother’s cheek. “See you later.”

  “Okay. Have fun.”

  “I will.” He had no doubt of that. As long as he wasn’t pulled over for speeding while trying to get to Phoenix faster.

  Justin made it to the hotel without incident and pulled into the lot, but what he found sucked the fun out of his safe arrival. There was a Double L Ranch truck he would have recognized as Rohn’s even without the name and address painted on the door. One glance told him that his own truck wasn’t in the lot.

  What the hell? He strode to the door and knocked hard.

  When she opened it, he didn’t even give her a chance to say hello before he asked, “Where’s my truck?”

  Despite his worry about the current state and location of the vehicle he’d loaned her, he still had to admit she looked adorable as she planted both hands on her hips.

  Eyes narrowed, she glared up at him. “Your truck is fine. It’s at the ranch, where Rohn told me to leave it when he gave me his truck, so you can take it home with you tomorrow. And hello to you, too.”

  Letting out a breath of relief coupled with shame, Justin dropped his chin to his chest. “I’m sorry. It was just a surprise. I wasn’t expecting it.”

  She put on a pretty pout. “I might be able to forgive you. Think you’re persuasive enough to make me forget that you assumed I wrecked your truck?”

  “Yeah, I think I might be able to manage it.” He smiled while backing her up as he moved into the room.

  Pushing the door shut with one hand, he left the outside world and all its concerns behind him. He hoisted her up. She wrapped her arms and legs around him. Kissing her, he closed the final distance to the bed. They tumbled to the mattress as one.

  “Don’t you want to hear about dinner?”

  “Sure.” He did, but he wanted her naked, too. Of course there was nothing that said they couldn’t do both at the same time. He reached for the button on the waist of her jeans. “Tell me all about it.”

  “Tammy and Bonnie and Rohn are so great. And can you believe that Rohn is my birth father?”

  That put a halt to Justin’s motion, just as he was about to push her jeans down over the curves of her hips.

  “Yeah, that was a bit of a shock today. Y’all talk about that?” Justin stopped stripping her long enough to wait for the answer.

  “A little, but not too much. They were eighteen. Both of them were on their way to start college. Rohn had a scholarship. Her father didn’t approve, I guess, so she gave me up.” Phoenix shrugged, but he didn’t buy her nonchalance.

  “You okay?” He knew her whole life would have been different if Bonnie had decided to keep her baby.

  “Yeah, I’m fine. I don’t blame Bonnie for the choice she made.” She looked lost in thought for a second before she tore herself out of it. A sly look crossed her face. “I thought you were supposed to be distracting me.”

  “You’re the one who wanted to talk about dinner before I got to the distracting.”

  “I know. Sorry. I’m done now. You have to make me forget I’m leaving tomorrow.”

  “Tomorrow?” Now he was distracted, and not in a good way, like he’d planned to distract her.

  “I really have to get home. I’m still lying to my parents about where I am.”

  His eyes widened. “Phoenix—”

  “I know. I’ve already been reprimanded once for that today. That’s why I have to go home.”

  “You could call them.” And stay here. He left the rest of his thought unspoken.

  “I think this is something I should tell them in person.”

  “Okay. I guess I can appreciate that.” Even if he didn’t like how little time they had left together.

&n
bsp; With that in mind, he decided the moment for talking was over. They could discuss all she wanted later, but now he had other plans.

  He glanced down at her below him. The bulb of the light on the wall cast a soft glow over her features as she gazed up at him.

  “God, you’re beautiful.”

  Justin watched her react to the statement. A crinkle formed between her brows and she pressed her lips together until he feared she was getting ready to cry. All over one little compliment.

  He hadn’t meant it as flattery. It was simply something he felt, so he’d said it, without thought, but if she got so few compliments that one could almost bring her to tears, he might have to make a point of saying nice things to her more often.

  Except that as of tomorrow, anything he said would have to be by long distance. He cupped her face with his palm and leaned low to press his lips to hers.

  If she really did have to leave tomorrow, he’d make sure she felt special tonight.

  Lying over her, he braced his weight on his elbows and plunged his hands into her hair. With her head cradled in his palms, he leaned low and kissed her gently.

  Her lips, so warm and soft, yielded to his kiss.

  There were times when a man just wanted to get to business. There were other instances when a man might want to prolong things. Justin was torn between the two.

  Phoenix would be gone soon, so he should savor every moment. On the other hand, the temptation to possess her completely grew with every moment. Her kisses were an event in themselves, but they were also a prelude to so much more.

  Lying on her, tasting her sweet mouth, hearing her sigh, was amazing, but it wasn’t going to be enough. There was no fighting that fact. He already felt the near painful pressure behind the zipper of his jeans.

  The promise of what was to come won out. He wanted her naked. Wanted them skin to skin with nothing between them.

  Intent on finishing the job he’d started before he’d gotten distracted by conversation and then her kisses, he gripped the waist of her jeans with both hands and worked them down her legs.

  He tossed her pants onto the floor. The rest of her clothes and his joined them there shortly, but only after he’d grabbed the condom from his pocket first.

  Her gaze held his and he fought back the regret that this time tomorrow she’d be gone. She was there now and that was all that mattered. He kept that in mind as he plunged inside her.

  When she came around him, he couldn’t think about anything at all. He only felt.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Justin arrived home at just about eleven o’clock. He’d hated to do it, but he’d had to drag himself away from Phoenix’s bed. He’d promised his mother he’d be home early, and last time he was with Phoenix, he’d ended up staying until morning.

  As he walked into the back door, he was glad he was home. All the lights in the house were on. His mother was never one to leave lights burning for no reason. Their bills were too high and money too tight for that.

  For her to have the whole house lit up this late at night, something must be wrong.

  “Momma?” Justin walked through the kitchen, half-hoping to find her cooking.

  She wasn’t there. He moved on to the living room. The television was on, but she wasn’t there. He went toward her bedroom.

  The door was ajar. He pushed it open, holding his breath, but she wasn’t in bed. Her bathroom door was open and the room dark. She wasn’t in there either.

  Frowning, he moved back out into the hallway. Where could she be? Her car was in the driveway, so she hadn’t driven anywhere.

  “Mom?”

  Maybe his aunt had picked her up and they’d gone out together. He’d love to think that she would actually go out on the spur of the moment just because someone asked, but he knew better than that.

  Besides, if she had gone out, she would have texted or left him a note. And even if she had left a few lights on so the house wouldn’t be dark when she got home, she would have shut the television off.

  Starting to panic, he was about to pull out his phone and call her cell when he heard a noise. The sound came from the direction of Jeremy’s room.

  Frowning, he moved down the hall and slowly pushed open the door.

  She sat on the floor in front of the dresser with the drawers pulled open and half of the contents spilled out. She had one of Jeremy’s Army T-shirts pressed to her face as she rocked back and forth.

  “Mom.” He had trouble getting the one word out. The scene was so heartbreaking.

  “Momma. What are you doing?” He kept his voice low and steady in an attempt to hide how upset he was at finding her like this.

  This was worse than usual. She wasn’t hiding in her room or wanting to be alone. This was the behavior she’d displayed in the days just after they were told Jeremy was killed in action.

  Something had set her off and he hadn’t been here to prevent it. He’d been buried deep inside Phoenix without a care in the world while his mother was alone having a breakdown. The guilt was like a knife to his heart.

  She’d been fine when he’d left. For days now she’d been good. It had been wishful thinking on his part that they were on the road back to normalcy.

  He knew he shouldn’t be shocked. It wouldn’t be the first time she’d had a couple of good days before crashing. But this seemed worse than just another pendulum swing from good to bad.

  “He loved this T-shirt.” She didn’t look at him as she spoke but kept facing the pile of clothes. “He wore it all the time. Everywhere.”

  “Yeah, I remember.” He moved farther into the room.

  What had been the trigger this time? He knew it could be anything. A soldier in a television commercial could remind her of Jeremy.

  So could any number of things, completely unrelated.

  Maybe this was just a reaction to the upcoming anniversary of his death and he didn’t need to panic that she was in a full-blown relapse.

  Sighing, Justin kneeled down next to her. “I also remember he had like half a dozen of them, so even if they were in the wash, he still had one to wear.”

  She nodded but didn’t comment.

  He drew in a breath. “Mom, are you sure this is healthy? Maybe it’s time we took all of this stuff—”

  Her head whipped around as she glared at him. “No!”

  “But—”

  “Everyone made me get rid of your father’s things. I don’t even have one damn shirt left of his. I won’t let you do it again.” Judging by the panic in her voice, she was nearing hysteria.

  “Okay, Mom. We won’t touch Jeremy’s room.”

  Justin had been a teenager when his father had passed. Even at that young age, he’d realized well how his aunt had taken control of the chaos.

  She’d come to the house two weeks after the funeral and insisted she was doing them all a favor by cleaning all of his father’s stuff out. She said it was the healthiest thing to do.

  There’d been piles of clothes to donate to the church and another pile of things to toss.

  His father had been a pack rat when it came to anything he might be able to use in the future, even if it was broken. So there were trash bins filled with broken tools or parts of things that didn’t go with anything else. Instruction manuals for old appliances they no longer owned. Empty boxes and jars he thought he might find useful one day for something.

  There had been things to pass on to relatives and friends, too. Jeremy had gotten their father’s .22 rifle. Justin had gotten the shotgun. Neither of them wanted or needed the golf clubs, so they’d given those to one of the neighbors.

  His father’s tools still remained in the garage where they’d both used them, Jeremy during the times he had been home and was working on his truck or helping make repairs around the house.

  Of course the family photos were still in the albums, but he supposed that wasn’t the same as his father’s favorite flannel shirt. Or the T-shirt he wore every time OSU played a game.
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  They had kind of bowled her over after his father died. His aunt, his parents’ friends, even the people from church, had pretty much taken over.

  There had been a steady stream of cooked meals delivered. The neighbors had even cut their grass for a month. And his aunt had orchestrated Justin and Jeremy in the cleanout of his dad’s things. She’d been like a general going into battle.

  Aunt Phoebe had a firm plan, no questions asked, all while his mother sat by in a shocked daze.

  They’d all thought they’d done his mother a favor by telling her they’d handle everything. That there was no need for her to help. To just take care of herself.

  He saw now that maybe they hadn’t done her any favors.

  No wonder she had dug her heels in so deep every time anyone even suggested cleaning out Jeremy’s room or getting rid of any of his stuff. But leaving his brother’s things where they were was one thing. Sitting on the floor crying and rocking while surrounded by his T-shirts was another.

  And Justin had gone and left her alone with his aunt for company, once again thinking he was doing the right thing. She was probably the last person he should have left with his mother. With her presence probably came lots of memories from times that weren’t so good.

  Had his aunt said something about Jeremy’s stuff while she’d been here? Even if she hadn’t, just the memory of that last great purge of her treasures might have been enough to set his mother off.

  The amazing part was that it had taken this long for her to end up on the floor because of it.

  Sometimes it was easiest just to go along with her. Justin knew that by now. Besides, how could he fault her for wanting to surround herself with Jeremy’s things when he’d pretty much done the same thing with his truck?

  Justin drove his brother’s vehicle because he felt closer to him in it. How could he not understand his mother wanting to cling to some T-shirts that held so many memories for her? He couldn’t even bring himself to change the damn radio station in the truck or throw away an old tin of chewing tobacco.