Best of Cowboys Bundle

by Vicki Lewis Thompson, Barbara White Daille, Judy Christenberry, Christine Wenger, Shirley Rogers, Crystal Green, Nina Bruhns, Candance Schuler, Carole Mortimer

  “Good idea,” Jared said, getting up, too. “Better work off some of it before the dance starts.”

  They were heading in to town for the New Year’s Eve festivities.

  “You coming, boss?” Eddie asked.

  Gabe saw Marissa turn to shoot him a look.

  “Nope.” He smiled slowly for her benefit. “My bride and I will be celebrating alone.”

  The boys made fast work of the drying, then went back to the bunkhouse to get ready.

  Warren took his seat opposite Gabe again, setting down a plate of Marissa’s pumpkin pie. Over his friend’s shoulder, Gabe could see her puttering around at the sink.

  After a good long while, she put the last dry dish away and moved to stand beside Warren. “You’re sure you don’t want to come in and watch the New Year’s specials with us?”

  Gabe glared, willing her to look him in the eye.

  “No, thanks, Marissa,” Warren said. “Haven’t rung in the New Year’s in a long time, and I’m too old to be thinking about it now. Besides, I’ll appreciate the quiet with the boys all gone.” He chuckled. “And I can sneak back in here for another piece of this pumpkin pie.”

  She smiled. “I left an extra slice on the counter just for you. Well.” She paused, then finally met Gabe’s eyes. “I’ll see you over at the house.”

  “Sure enough.” He gave her another slow smile and watched until she’d left the room. To her credit, she’d kept up pretenses in front of Warren. Later, he’d find some special way of thanking her for that.

  “Hey, boss, sure you don’t want to be heading out, too?”

  The older man looked worried.

  “You seem anxious to get rid of me, Warren.”

  “Heck, no, but the missus already left.”

  “She’ll keep.” Only eight o’clock. She sure wouldn’t go off to bed at this early hour. “You know women,” he added, “always wanting to get fancied up for a big event.” He chuckled.

  “Might not want to wait too long, boss.”

  Damn, first Doc and now Warren, both giving him advice—and neither of them even married.

  He’d taken more than any man could stand with this arrangement with Marissa, and then some.

  “You sure everything’s okay?”

  “Things’re just fine, Warren.” And they would be. Starting tonight.

  Hell, they were legally married and living together, and now even sharing that big old bed. They might as well enjoy the benefits. He would take care of Marissa, could satisfy her and himself both, while keeping his heart intact.

  No way, no how, would she make it to the bed before him tonight.

  That’s what he kept telling himself a while later, all the way across the yard to the house and up the stairs to the bedroom. He threw open the door and came to a dead halt in the doorway, staring in stunned disbelief.

  Moonlight streaked through a crack between the curtains, illuminating Marissa on the bed with her eyes closed. The covers were bunched up under her chin, and the blanket rose and fell with her slow, steady breaths. She was asleep already.

  Or playing possum.

  He’d soon find out. He crossed the room and plopped onto the mattress.

  She didn’t blink an eye.

  “Marissa?”

  No answer. He swore under his breath and rested a hand on her shoulder.

  “Sweetheart?”

  Silence. He sighed. And reconsidered.

  There was only one way out of this particular predicament.

  He’d have to get her to feeling as eager as he was.

  “WELL, THAT WAS one huge success, thanks to you.” Sarah banged the cash-register drawer shut. “This was the busiest Saturday I’ve had in a long time.”

  Marissa laughed. Her cooking demonstration had gone very well, but she hadn’t sold those books. “You’re the saleswoman, Sarah.”

  “I’ve had those cookbooks for the past three years, and no one saw fit to buy them. Until today.” She leaned against the counter. “Guess we’ll be having another party here soon, won’t we? A baby shower. Everyone’s just tickled pink about the news. Or maybe tickled blue, since you don’t know which yet.” She laughed.

  Marissa’s heart gave a little lurch. “I’m really not that close to anyone here.”

  “You’re Gabe’s wife. That’s good enough for Dillon. Marrying him makes you one of our own.”

  Marissa felt tears welling. How often had she dreamed about living in a community like this one?

  How much longer would she be here?

  Sarah peered at her. “All right, little mama. It’s been a long day. Kick your feet up, and I’ll go make tea.”

  Without protest, Marissa settled herself in one of the comfortable armchairs in Sarah’s cozy reading nook.

  All the while she’d been talking with Sarah, she had struggled to hold back a yawn. She was paying the price for the recent string of sleepless nights and early mornings.

  She was paying the price of her deception.

  By now, she had lost track of how many nights Doc’s guests, a sweet older couple, had spent under their roof. Marissa barely knew the Josephsons were there. They had refused even to have a meal at the ranch.

  “Oh, no,” Mrs. Josephson had said gently. “We appreciate your putting us up and will only come back to sleep at night. We won’t give you a bit of trouble.”

  Marissa could have groaned. Sweet Mrs. Josephson had no idea how much trouble they were causing her during the long, tension-filled nights they occupied her former bedroom, leaving her to share Gabe’s room. And Gabe’s bed.

  Thank heaven, every night since their guests had arrived, her luck had held out. She had escaped to the bedroom before Gabe, then lain curled up under the covers when he arrived. Lord knows how she managed to keep up a calm, steady breathing when he entered the room. When he climbed into bed beside her. When, instead of pretending to be asleep, she yearned to move into his arms and nestle against his warmth.

  Only, it wouldn’t stop at that. She wouldn’t be able to resist the sexual attraction she felt whenever he was near. The attraction that would draw her even closer.

  The situation had led to nothing but agony and frustration—for both of them, she suspected.

  She longed to turn back the clock and pretend none of this had happened.

  Not the baby, of course. Never the baby.

  She rested her hand on her stomach.

  Overnight, it seemed, her body had changed. She wasn’t yet ready for maternity clothes. Still, she could feel a tightness in her waistbands and, now, a gentle rounding beneath her hand.

  She would never wish away this child she and Gabe had made.

  She wanted only to wish away her guilt.

  Miserable as she felt, she buried the fleeting thought about leaving the ranch, about leaving her troubles behind. Only a coward would run. Besides, she had to stay. She still had something to prove.

  “You okay?”

  She jumped. The sound of Gabe’s deep drawl sent a rush of heat through her body. She had dreamed of him during the recent too-long nights. Had thought of him every waking moment. And now, apparently, had developed the ability to conjure him out of thin air.

  Getting a grip on her emotions, she opened her eyes.

  He perched on the edge of a flowered armchair opposite her, his feet planted wide and his elbows on his knees. He was focused on the hand she still had resting on her stomach.

  “Yes, I’m fine,” she said at last. “Just a little tired. What are you doing here?”

  He shrugged. “Ran in for some extra twine. Thought I’d see how the talk went and make sure you got home okay.”

  The hardware store, yet again. “The demonstration went very well,” she told him.

  “Sure did.”

  Sarah had returned to the reading area, a cup and saucer in each hand.

  “Tea, Gabe? That’s the strongest I’ve got.”

  He shook his head.

  “You should’ve strolled
in a little bit ago. Marissa impressed every woman in the place. And their husbands will sure be happy when they get to taste some of the treats she shared.”

  “There are already a lot of happy husbands in Dillon, thanks to that candy-making lesson a week and a half ago.”

  “Including you, Miller?” Sarah demanded.

  “Sure enough,” he replied, meeting Marissa’s gaze. “I’m the happiest husband of them all.”

  Marissa’s breath caught.

  It was different this time. He truly said the words as though he meant them. He hadn’t added a fake endearment or tried to touch her, the way he usually did when he wanted to drive home the fact of their happy marriage. Could he really feel that way?

  Her heart chose to believe his compliment was real.

  And so was his concern, though he usually tried hard to hide it. He had come to town to escort her home. He’d said so.

  She smiled at him.

  No one had ever really cared for her, about her safety, this way. Of course, he could be worried because she was carrying his child. And she loved him for that. But she would allow herself to believe his attention meant he cared for her, too. He was making progress.

  There was hope.

  GABE FOLLOWED Marissa up the steps of Sarah’s bookstore. Her Mustang sat parked right outside the door, his pickup pulled up tight behind it.

  He’d felt good earlier, when he’d found the car sitting there. Truth be told, maybe he hadn’t needed that twine from the hardware store just yet. And maybe he hadn’t needed to head back to the ranch by way of the bookstore. But, as long as he’d been so close, it hadn’t hurt to stop by. To offer to see Marissa home.

  She stopped beside the Mustang and turned to look up at him, her eyes glowing. One long strand of hair trailed down the front of her coat. He couldn’t keep from reaching out to touch it. For once, she didn’t back away.

  “Glad everything went okay,” he muttered, wanting to keep her there so he could stare for a few more minutes.

  “The group was wonderful,” she told him. “In fact, everyone in town has been nice about welcoming me here.”

  “Yeah. Now you’ve had some time to adjust, get to know people, you fit right in here in Dillon.”

  She did, too. Just as she fit right into his life. The thought both surprised and stunned him.

  “Maybe,” she said softly, “if I had met some of them the first time I was here, it would have made things a bit easier.”

  He frowned. “What was so hard about it?”

  “It was…difficult, Gabe, with you out at work on the ranch all day. I mean, I knew that would happen, knew you wouldn’t sit around holding my hand.” She flushed and looked away. “I just didn’t expect to be alone all day, with no one to talk with and nothing to do and to see you only for a couple hours a day. If I’d met more of the people from town the first time I lived on the ranch, I might not have felt so lonely.”

  “Lonely?”

  “Well, of course. You were out of the house from before the sun rose until after it set. Mary kept to herself and refused to let me help with the cooking or cleaning. With my car still in Chicago, I had no way of getting in to town and nowhere to go when I got there.”

  She opened the car door and slid into the front seat.

  He stared at her. For the second time, he felt stunned.

  Maybe he was partly to blame. Coming from the big city, how could she have known what to expect from ranch life?

  And maybe he’d made things worse by going back to his regular chores right after they’d got home from the honeymoon. Yet, to his mind, he’d put in the long hours, worked twice as hard in an effort to provide for her.

  Only she hadn’t seen it that way.

  He reached down and touched her chin, turned her face to his. “Things are different this time around.”

  “Yes,” she whispered. “Everything’s different now.”

  And everything was.

  He bent to wrap her coat around her. To protect her from the cold. But as he tucked the collar up under her chin, his hand brushed her cheek. Soft. Smooth.

  Close.

  He couldn’t help himself. He had to lean toward her, had to touch her mouth with his. He did, and she responded.

  It was over faster than blinking.

  A moment later, he was closing the door, keeping her safe, climbing into his pickup to follow her home.

  And thinking about that kiss. Light and sweet and very short-lived. But still downright erotic.

  Maybe, for him and Marissa, it couldn’t be any other way.

  He wanted the chance to find out. Yet he couldn’t risk giving his heart to her. Trusting her not to run off with it.

  And in a sudden rush of understanding, he knew he wanted her happy. He wanted things to work out. Not just so the baby could inherit his ranch. Not only for someone to share his bed.

  But because he wanted her to stay.

  THE HOUSE SEEMED quieter than normal as Marissa finished brushing her teeth. She looked in the mirror, saw the dark rings beneath her eyes and grimaced.

  Though she had been going to bed earlier each night mostly to avoid Gabe, she had been even more tired than usual lately. Last night, she had wanted to stay awake long enough to talk to him. To continue the feeling of closeness that had begun outside The Book Cellar. She curled up on the living-room couch, waiting—and had awoken this morning, swaddled in a soft blue blanket.

  Gabe, when pressed, admitted he had come in from the bunkhouse, found her fast asleep and tucked her in.

  She sighed. Maybe she actually needed that extra sleep. But it was a missed opportunity to talk with him.

  And today, they hadn’t had a moment alone.

  How ironic—all those days she’d wanted to avoid Gabe, and now the one time she wanted him to herself, she hadn’t a chance.

  Even tonight, after they finished supper in the bunkhouse, she had hoped he would return to the main house with her. Instead, he settled down with Warren and a stack of catalogs on cattle care. Not the cozy, private talk she had looked forward to after their mutual understanding the day before.

  She lingered. Stalled. And finally asked Gabe outright if he planned to return to the house with her.

  “You go ahead, honey,” he said. “Warren and I’ve got some business to take care of.”

  “Boss, it can wait—” Warren began.

  “That’s all right.” Gabe smiled at her.

  So, considering she couldn’t add much to the topic of cattle disease, she left.

  An hour passed, then two. When even a second cup of tea couldn’t stop her eyelids from drooping, she had headed upstairs, leaving on the light above the kitchen sink for Gabe.

  And taking with her a guilty secret.

  Earlier that afternoon, the Josephsons had left, after thanking Marissa for her hospitality. And when Gabe came home, she didn’t tell him.

  The guest bedroom was empty. She could move back downstairs again. But—another irony—just as she hadn’t been ready to share a room with Gabe, now she wasn’t ready to leave.

  In the bathroom mirror, she saw her cheeks flame.

  She wanted the sweetness of their kiss again. And yet she feared the sizzle beneath it.

  Instead, she would settle for just one more night beside him, just one more morning of waking before he did, of seeing his dark hair against the pillow and his face softened in sleep.

  Was that too much to ask?

  Afraid of what her own answer might be, she hung her robe on the bathroom door, flipped off the light switch and escaped.

  With a sigh, she entered the bedroom. The dresser lamp she had left on low gave her plenty of light.

  More than enough to see Gabe, propped up on one elbow on his side of the bed.

  “Gabe.” She gulped and clutched at her nightgown, wishing now she hadn’t removed the robe. “I didn’t know you were here.”

  “Came in quiet, in case you were sleeping.”

  “Oh…” She
had wanted the chance to talk with him tonight. She just hadn’t expected their conversation to take place in the bedroom. Hadn’t expected to share a bed with him at a time she couldn’t pretend to be asleep.

  Gabe relaxed in slumber was one thing; Gabe awake beside her was too dangerous to contemplate.

  Frantically, she searched for a graceful way to leave. For a logical excuse to return downstairs. For anything that would get her—or him—out of the room.

  “Um…the bathroom’s all yours.”

  “Showered up in the bunkhouse. All ready for bed?” He tapped her side of the mattress. “Got it all toasty for you.”

  She hesitated.

  “C’mon, Marissa. You must be tired, all that extra cooking you’ve been doing over the holidays.”

  “No, not really.”

  “Well, c’mon, anyway. I won’t bite.” He chuckled. “Ate so much Sunday supper, I won’t be looking for food for a while.”

  If the way to a man’s heart was through his stomach, then maybe she’d had the key to unlock Gabe’s emotions all along. Too bad she couldn’t whip out a tempting treat right now to distract him.

  Steps dragging, she approached the bed. Gabe watched her every move.

  Fingers trembling, she plucked at the plaid comforter, barely making a ripple in the fabric. Gabe swept his arm across the bed, pulling the comforter and sheet back invitingly.

  She caught her breath at the sight his movement exposed. Hunter-green flannel pajama bottoms, cupped low around his hips. Dark hair that started as a narrow column near his waist, then widened as it rose to feather across his muscled chest. Heat radiated from the bed. She could almost feel it reaching out to her and ached to let the warmth pull her in.

  “C’mon,” he said again. “It’s about time we got this new year off to the right start.”

  In spite of her longing, his words made her stiffen. Sex wasn’t what she wanted or needed from Gabe right now.

  He saw her reaction and frowned. “I’m talking about sleeping together, that’s all. Sharing a bed. You wanted to be partners, didn’t you?”

  “Yes,” she whispered. Reluctantly.

  “Then, come to bed. Let’s just talk.”