Midnight Ride (18 page)

“To warn us if someone drives in while we’re having sex in the kitchen.”

She laughed. “We’re not having sex in the kitchen.”

“Sure we are.” He snaked his hand down the front of her shorts. “No underwear. Nice.”

She didn’t have time to explain she’d been planning to get dressed for the day later. His finger had already zeroed right in on her center and had begun to work her.

“Tyler . . .”

“Mmm-hmm.” His other had moved up to settle on the back of her neck. He pulled her down to kiss him. He always was good at ending a conversation he didn’t want to have.

She pulled back from his lips. “We shouldn’t do this here.”

“I disagree.” He wrapped his hands around her and stood, lifting her with him, before he put her feet down on the ground. He spun her to face the table, and standing behind her, pulled her shorts down her legs.

“Oh, my God. We really shouldn’t do this here.”

“That’s what will make it all the more fun.” The metallic click of him unfastening his belt buckle told her what was happening behind her, even before she felt him nudging between her legs. “I put a condom in my pocket, just in case.”

Good thing he’d thought about their current lack of birth control, because she hadn’t even considered it.

There were some forces of nature impossible to fight. For Janie, sex with Tyler was one of those things. Kicking the shorts off one foot, she gave up fighting and widened her stance.

As she braced her palms flat on the table, his empty plate between them, he pushed inside her with a groan. Arms wrapped around her, he plunged inside her, sending the coffee sloshing inside the mugs.

Some time soon, she was going to have to sit down and think on this, all of it, before she lived to regret it. But not right now.

“I’m competing in a rodeo tomorrow afternoon. Come watch me.” He never missed a stroke as he issued that invitation, his mouth close to her ear, his breath warm against her.

“What?” She was more surprised at his timing than confused by the question.

“It’s a local event. I want you there.” He began to sound out of breath. “Just think about it.”

It was a good thing he left it at that, because he reached around and began to work her with his hand even as he hit the sweet spot inside her from behind. Elbows bent, Janie leaned lower over the table, closed her eyes, and let him make her feel things she’d never thought she’d ever feel—at least not inside her kitchen.

Unbelievably, considering everything, she felt the orgasm build and break over her, right there while she was bent over the kitchen table. She heard him groan behind her.

Tyler pulled out and grabbed for the paper napkin next to her. He tossed the napkin and the used condom in the trash before he braced one arm against the table and leaned against her back, panting. “So, will you come watch me?”

A laugh burst from her. This competition was obviously still uppermost in his mind if he continued to talk about it through all they’d just done. “Okay.”

“You will?” Tyler took a step back and spun her to face him, leaving his hands on her waist. She could see the excitement in his expression.

“Yeah, if you really want me to, then I’ll come.”

“Thank you.” Looking as excited as a kid on Christmas morning, he pulled her close and planted a big kiss on her mouth.

She’d promised herself she wouldn’t let it happen. Yet here she was, standing in her kitchen in nothing but a T-shirt, letting herself get in deeper and deeper with a man who’d move on one day and break her heart.

He leaned his forehead against hers and sighed. “I want nothing more than to stay, but I need to get moving. I have to clean up breakfast and get to work.”

“I’ll clean up. You go before you’re late.”

He glanced at the clock. “Already too late to worry about that.”

“Tyler!” She frowned. “Why didn’t you leave before?”

“Janie, do you really need to ask me that?” He pulled her tight against him and grinned.

“Please, go now so I don’t have to feel any more guilty that you’ll get in trouble. I’ll see you later.”

“That’s the thing. I can’t come over later. I’ve got something I have to do, so I won’t be able to see you until tomorrow.”

And there they were. The doubts she’d managed to hold at bay while she and Tyler were together began to rise to the surface and make her imagine what—or who—Tyler would be occupied with later that he wouldn’t be able to come over to see her.

A guy like Tyler, as nice and sweet as he was, wouldn’t be satisfied killing time with her for long. Maybe not today, or tomorrow, but one day, he’d meet a girl his own age. They’d fall in love. He’d want to get married and have babies and grow old with her. It was inevitable, a natural course of events that she couldn’t fight.

She held her insecurities in check long enough to say, “Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”

“A’ight. I gotta run upstairs and grab my stuff.”

She nodded and forced a fake smile as the small bit of breakfast she’d eaten sat like a lead weight in her stomach.

Chapter Twenty-Six

“Wow, look at that. Quitting time and you actually stayed and worked for the full day. That’s a nice change.”

Justin smirked at Colton’s smart-ass comment, while Tyler shook his head. “Ha ha. I finished mowing the last of the hay yesterday.”

“Yeah, but you’ll have to go back and rake it, and then bale it all. There’s still lots of time left for you to put in over at the Smithwick place.” Justin shot Tyler a knowing look.

The innuendo pissed him off, just as he was sure Justin had intended, but he couldn’t let himself rise to the goading. “Yup. Lots more to do.”

Colton shook his head. “You’re nicer than me, man. I mean, I know she’s a widow and all, but that’s a hell of a lot of work. What’s she paying you?”

He hated to say it because it was sure to raise questions, but Tyler couldn’t lie. “Nothing. I’m doing her a favor.”

“Jesus, Tyler. You’re nuts. Hell, even if she was paying top dollar, I’m not sure I’d wanna spend all day here and then go work until dark there.”

“Some things are more important than money, Colton . . . like being neighborly. Right, Ty?” Justin grinned as Tyler shot him a look that clearly said
shut the hell up
.

“Yup.” He gritted the one word out between clenched teeth and willed Justin to quit talking.

Colton might not be as observant as Justin, but he wasn’t stupid. If Justin kept hinting, Colton was going to guess something was up. The last thing Tyler needed was anyone else getting too interested in what was going on at Janie Smithwick’s place after the haying was done for the day.

“So you wanna go out tonight? It’s ladies’ night at the Two-Step again. It should be exciting.” Colton grinned wide.

Judging by Justin’s snort of a laugh, he’d already been clued in about the last fateful time Tyler had set foot in the front door of the Two-Step.

“Yeah, no thanks. I’ve got work tonight anyway.”

“What the hell? You just said you were done with the mowing.” Sometimes Colton could whine like a little girl.

Tyler shook his head. “Not at Janie’s. I’m working at the Hunts’ store tonight.”

“You’re still doing that shit?” Colton asked. “I thought Mr. Hunt had recovered.”

“He’s better, but not back to 100 percent. I try to work one night a week to give him a break.” Tyler shrugged. “It isn’t so bad.”

Justin’s brows rose. “More charity work. Damn, boy. You’re gonna be up for freaking sainthood, you keep at it.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Tyler rolled his eyes at his friend’s teasing. “When my neighbor had the stroke, I promised I’d help out at his shop. Besides, I’m not working totally for free. I get a kick-ass discount on anything I buy at the store and he lets me sell my leatherwork there. Half the time I can work on my own stuff in the back. I only come out if there’s a customer.”

“Tyler Jenkins. A damn shopkeeper.” Justin swung his head from side to side. “Never thought I’d see that day.”

It seemed Justin was on a roll today. He was enjoying having so much fodder to tease Tyler with.

“Yup.” Tyler nodded, humoring him. “It’s real hard work, too, let me tell you. A few weeks ago these two girls came in and I had to give them my opinion on which jeans made their butts look better. Tough job, that was.”

Colton laughed. “In that case, maybe I’ll stop by for a visit.”

“You do that.” Tyler reached up to tilt his own hat a bit farther down over his brow. “A’ight, boys. It’s been fun, but I gotta get going.”

He’d had enough sparring for one afternoon. There were places to go. People to see. Leather to emboss. And somewhere in there, he wanted to look into getting a puppy as a gift for Janie.

Just imagining the look on her face when he handed it to her put a smile on his. Tyler’s good mood continued as he walked into Hunt’s for his shift and found Logan and the baby there.

“Logan. Good to see you, bro.” Tyler slapped his friend and neighbor on the back and reached a finger out to tickle the baby’s cheek. “And how are you, little man?”

“He’s still not sleeping through the night, but that seems to be harder on me and Emma than on this little guy here.”

“That’s not a surprise. Old folks like you need their sleep.” Tyler laughed off the look Logan leveled at him for the
old
comment and asked, “Where is the little woman, anyway?”

“She’s shopping with Becca. They’re looking for a christening outfit for the baby, so I offered to take him. Bad enough the poor kid has to wear whatever they come up with, and look at pictures of it for the rest of his life. I didn’t want him to have to get dragged through Lord knows how many stores looking for it. I figured we could come down here and hang out with Dad for a little bit.”

He glanced around the shop but didn’t see Logan’s father. “Is your dad here?”

“Nah. I told him to take off about half an hour ago and that I’d wait for you. He gets tired so easily still.”

Guilt hit him. He’d been shooting the shit with the guys at Rohn’s. Then he’d stopped at home to shower, change, and eat—all while Mr. Hunt was exhausted from trying to hold down the fort at the shop and recuperate from the stroke that had nearly killed him last summer.

Pissed at his own selfish behavior, Tyler dropped his chin. “I’m sorry. I’ll get here earlier from now on.”

Logan waved off the apology. “No, Tyler. We’re grateful enough you help out after working a full day at the ranch. Besides, Dad will never admit to you he gets tired. He’ll tell you he’s fine, but I see it in him.”

“Yeah, your dad’s a stubborn one when he wants to be.”

“No kidding.” Logan sighed.

Tyler had had to physically wrestle a box way too heavy for him out of the man’s hands one day. Then there was the time he’d caught him standing on a step stool, struggling to get a saddle up on the wall display.

He kept all that to himself. It would do Logan no good to know it. Not while he still lived in Stillwater for his job and could only visit on occasion. Tyler knew this family well. He had for his whole life, and he knew Logan was already torn between work and family. Until Logan could resolve that issue, Tyler had no problem helping out.

“I’ll keep an eye on him for you.”

“Thanks, Ty.”

“My pleasure. You’ve got enough to keep you busy with this little guy.”

Logan blew out a burst of a laugh. “Very true. I’m told once the colic stops, the teething starts. That should be fun.”

Tyler couldn’t help but laugh. “God bless ya, but better you than me.”

“Oh, come on, Ty. Don’t you want a little guy of your own running around one day?” Logan set the three-month-old on top of a saddle display, supporting him with his hands.

Like he was born to be there, the baby kicked his feet and grabbed onto the saddle horn with both hands . . . and then leaned down and tried to suck on it. Tyler cringed, but Logan was on top of things. He pulled the baby upright before he had a chance to slobber on the leather, not to mention get a mouthful of probably toxic leather polish at the same time.

“A’ight, I’ll admit it. He is cute as a button. But, dude, who’d he get this red hair from? I mean, you’re dark haired. Emma’s blond.” Tyler let the implications hang in the air.

Logan shot Tyler a warning glance. “First off, stop with the insinuations before I hit you. Second, my great-grandmother was born with bright red hair, and every once in a while, someone in my family pops out a redhead, right out of the blue.”

Tyler squatted down to be eye level with the baby and ruffled his ginger-colored downy tufts. “Well, I like it. I’m gonna call you Red. Red Hunt. That name will look real good up on the leader boards.”

Logan shook his head. “I hesitate to say this because I bet Emma will hate it, but I kinda like the name Red for him. It’ll be less confusing when both he and my dad are in the room.”

“See, I can be helpful sometimes. I’m going to enjoy teaching him to ride and to rope. And who’s gonna put you on top of your first sheep, Red? That’ll be your Uncle Tyler.” He glanced over the baby’s head at Logan. “Yes, I know. Technically, I’m not his uncle, but I don’t care. I want the title, and Tuck and Becca don’t seem to be cooperating and giving it to me legitimately.”

Logan laughed. “Give them some time. Until then, I’m happy for you to be an honorary uncle. The mutton bustin’, though, we might have to discuss.”

Tyler frowned. “That city girl wife of yours is going to fight me on it, isn’t she?”

“Good chance.” Logan dipped his head in a nod.

“Humph. We’ll see. Won’t we?” The baby laughed at the face Tyler made at him. Maybe he wouldn’t mind having one of these of his own. It would sure be fun working to make one. Remembering that morning in the kitchen, he glanced at Logan. “Hey, did your dad leave today’s newspaper around? I needed to look at the classifieds.”

“I think it’s in back.” Logan frowned. “What are you looking for in the classifieds? You moving out of your parents’ house?”

“No. Not as long as I’m living with Mom and Dad rent free, I’m not. I’m looking for a puppy.”

“For you?” Logan’s brows shot up high. “You better talk to your parents about that first, or you
will
be looking for an apartment to rent.”

“The dog’s not for me. It’s for a friend.”

“A female friend?” Logan asked.

“Yes.” And hopefully, his soon-to-be girlfriend.

“Really? You’re serious enough about a girl that you’re ready to be a doggy daddy?” Logan looked surprised by that.

Tyler laughed. “I guess I am.”