Second Song Cowboy (Second Chance) (3 page)

“I should be asking you that question
.” The Texas twang had gown thicker over the last fifteen years, but the familiar warmth puddled in her veins and her stomach dropped to her bare feet, making her angry. How could he still make her feel like she was a teen with stars in her eyes? “I believe you said good riddance to Texas.”

She
’d known Dante back when she was a naive girl who’d rushed into things before weighing the consequences. Falling head over heels for him, she hadn’t cared about anything, not even her music career. They’d shared something magical, a connection she hadn’t found with anyone since. Her skin warmed when remembering how he’d made her feel alive and on top of the world. She’d given him everything…until the argument that had ended it all.

Molten lava
spilled into every curve of her body. She wanted to regret her moments with Dante. She wanted to hate him, to despise how he’d ended their relationship. But truth was, she had no right to point fingers or blame. Even as a teenager, if she’d wanted something, she’d set out to snag it, and Dante had been the target of her strongest craving. Innocent, he’d taught her everything she knew about making love. Once their bodies entwined, the scorching heat had burned every part of her, ruining her for all men. They couldn’t get enough of one another back when things were easy.

Her disastrous relationships since
that summer, although few, were a good example of her incapability to forget Dante.

Her core quivered with muscle memory.

“
I think I was angry when I told you I’d never return.” She took a leisurely trip from black cowboy hat to the tips of his worn boots. Texas was known for everything being oversized, and she knew the man standing before her didn’t disappoint. At six-foot-two with a strapping body, the tight T-shirt and jeans emphasized the fact that he was a rancher who worked hard. Some men had a distinguishing magnetism and, no doubt, Dante had more than his fair share. Her fingers itched to explore every inch, every coiled bend.

A tattoo
on his right arm dipped below one sleeve, curving over his bicep. She had a strong desire to move closer, examine the ink, but then she’d have to touch and all hell would break loose. Rolling her bottom lip between her teeth, she gently nibbled to keep a moan from escaping. A man like Dante made her fully aware of how long it’d been since she’d gotten up close and personal with a stud.

“I enjoyed the show,” he said.

He spoke.
What did he say?
She emptied her naughty thoughts. “Huh?”

“T
he show, I like seeing you on stage.” He chuckled as his gaze did a quick drop over her and she swallowed back a groan.

Resisting the need to squirm, she cleared her throat and hoped her voice wouldn’t fail her.
“Glad you could come. Hope it was worth the drive.”

“Ma’
am, are you ready to leave? Your driver is waiting.” A beefy man in a black asked as he examined Dante closely. She recognized the man in the hall as the hired security.

Her driver didn’t have good timing skills.
“Give me just a minute,” April said over Dante’s shoulder. The man nodded, hesitated for a long second and finally stepped back into hiding.

“I guess you have no worries with a wreckin
g ball that size.” Dante nodded in the direction of the man. “But I’m afraid he’s a bit late. I had no problem getting back here.”

April guessed no one had reason to question Dante.
He’d always had the confidence of several men combined. Not even a brawny giant of a bodyguard could unease Dante. Instead of feeling repulsed by his oversized ego, she wanted to examine other areas to see if they still measured in on the side of large.

Not going to happen.

She didn’t roll into town to snatch up a cowboy, even if he looked like he belonged in her bed. What they shared was history, and some things were best left as memories. So why didn’t she say goodbye and head back into her life? A good night’s sleep before tomorrow was required.

“You need a ride? I can take you wherever
you need to go,” he offered.

“I don’t think you’re going my way,” she said.

“I’m going exactly where you need me.” His words held undeniable innuendo and her body sparked in places she’d forgotten. “I’ve come all this way. It wouldn’t hurt for two people to catch up on old times, would it?”

Yes!

But
why deny herself some friendly company? She was an adult with the freedom of choice.

Searching her mind for a reason to say no
, she came up empty and she didn’t plan to fight it. What was wrong with a ride—uhh—to her hotel room? Then she’d send him on his way with a ‘see you again someday.’

Grabbi
ng her personal items and throwing them into her purse, she told security to tell her driver he was free and fifteen minutes later, she was in the passenger side of Dante’s monster truck. She couldn’t think of anything about him that was undersized.

She watched his
big, strong, powerful hands—probably callused from ranch work and riding. Gramps had told her that after she’d left Texas he’d quit college and joined the rodeo. A man who could wrestle a cow and ride a bull would have no problem throwing her back onto the bed, kissing her breathless and riding her curves. He never had any problems in that area years ago, and he certainly didn’t appear incapable now.

Wowza
!
Heat spread through her. The thought of having his hands on her naked body did amazing things to her flesh. The searing temperature in her core made her insides quiver and crave dirty talk. Man, she wanted a cowboy—but not just any ol’ cowboy would do. Knowing how much pleasure she’d experienced underneath Dante definitely charged every muscle in her southern region.

Don’t be foolish, girl.

Dante had come to catch up all right, and she was sure he didn’t mean a chat over coffee.

And what the hell
?
She found it flattering that he’d come knocking for a booty call.

Stop right there!

She
didn’t know for sure what his intentions were. Maybe he just wanted to say hello and ponder over teenage memories. No harm in reconnecting.

“H
ow’s everything back home?” she asked.

“Peachy.
How’s life for you?” He glanced across the seat.

“It has its ups and downs, but I can’t complain. I’ve gotten what I’ve always w
anted. A music career and the money to buy the best cowboy boots ever made.” She lifted her feet and kicked her worn boots together.

He turned his attention back to the street.
“The girl I remember hated money and what it stood for.”

“There’s not much room for anything else.” She dropped her feet and stared out the window at the bright lights of a gas station and
restaurant. “I hated that my mom and dad had money. It gave them too many opportunities to stay away from home and hire nannies.” She hadn’t talked about her mother and father with anyone in years.

“Have you seen them lately?”

“They divorced a few years back and Mom moved to Paris. Dad is dating a woman half his age. They’re both busy reliving their youth.”

“I’m sorry.” He gave her a sidelong glance.

“Whatever for? I’m all grown up now. It doesn’t bother me nearly as bad as it once did.”

“
I see the diamond is missing. I’m assuming you’re not married. How about a boyfriend?”

“You must not read the papers,” she said
, half-jokingly.

“
I don’t follow the tabloids and celebrity news.”

Her gaze dropped to her
bare left hand. “You must have seen the ring at the funeral.”

“I imagine everyone with
in a mile range could see it.” He chuckled.

He was fishing
for her relationship status, which solidified that he’d come sniffing around for a tumble in the sack. She should be repulsed, but she wasn’t. “No boyfriend and certainly no prospects. The road is a lonely place to be, but that’s the way I like life. Easy and no strings attached. Beats having to worry about who you’ve left behind for days, weeks, months on end. How about you? I don’t see a gold band. No girlfriend either.”

“How’d you know?” he asked.

“If I was your girl I wouldn’t want you catching up on old times with a long lost flame.”

He shrugged. “
I’m as free as a bird.”

Hmm…that sent him up a notch or two on the ladder of interest.

“Who got you the missing ice rink?” His gaze dropped to her hand.

“My ex-husband.”
Her thoughts meandered to JJ. He’d opened for her at a concert in Ohio and they’d hit it off, or so she’d thought. “Three months into our marriage, I caught him cheating with a platinum blond who was as thick as my pinky and had breasts that fit in two counties at once.” When she’d walked in and found the groupie straddling her husband, her double Ds bouncing like two pigs under a blanket and her bony ass bopping, April realized that she’d never loved him anyway. Emotions involved or not, the image of him with the drunken girl had stuck in April’s mind, a reminder that she couldn’t trust another living soul.

She couldn’t deny that
, at the time, catching her husband cheating, while they were still newlyweds, hadn’t hurt her as much as it should, and yet it hadn’t polished her ego either.  The media had torn the story to shreds, making April appear as a cold-hearted wife who never put out. Poor JJ had to step outside of the marriage for affection.
Bull shit!

“His loss,
” Dante’s smooth voice made the fine hairs at her nape lift.

“That was years ago. It’s all good now.” Two days before the divorce was final, JJ had begged to come home, but
April had only felt disgust. He’d never change.

April wasn’t
insecure, and though she wasn’t pencil thin and sporting falsies, she’d always liked her soft curves. Giving up long ago on dieting down to a size two to look better on an album cover, she’d thrown all of the food regimes out the window and accepted her swollen bends and bows, and she’d felt better.

The hotel’s neon sign
blinked up ahead. “That’s where I’m staying.”

Dante pul
led the truck into the lot and parked between two other oversized vehicles. “Doesn’t anyone around here think of the human footprint?”

“Coming from the woman who is carted around by limousines and once wore a ring that could have fed a thousand hungry kids.”

“Touché.” She placed her fingers on the door handle. “Thank you for the ride.” 

“I’ll walk you to the door.
Never know who’s prowling in the shadows. A beautiful woman like you probably draws them from every nook and cranny.”

Usually, she didn’t fall for charm, but Dante had a unique way of getting under her skin and seeping into her bones
, just like the olden days. “Thank you.” She flashed him her sweetest smile and slid out of the truck. Giving her strawberry blonde curls a tuck back into the bun, she led the way, fully aware that he watched her walk. She put more sway to her hips than usual, and hoped the effort wasn’t too much. When he whispered a curse, she knew she’d hit the spot.

Hell, didn’t ev
ery woman flirt now and then?

Once upon a time, she loved making Dante take notice
. She could show a little skin, or sweep her tongue across her lips and he’d start sweating. Thinking back, she realized he was the only man she’d ever used her womanly assets to tease.

Dante passed her and opened the entrance door. She rewarded him with another smile, liking the fact that he was
still a gentleman. She missed many things in Texas, and this was definitely one.

Her room was located at the end of the hall and she unlocked the door with the key card. Turning to him,
ready to give him a quick goodbye speech, she found that her brain went empty.

He leaned against the door, his hat sat low on his forehead, shadowing his eyes.
“It was nice seeing you again, April. Maybe the next time we can throw in a glass of wine or dinner.” He prepared to leave and disappointment crawled down her spine.

April’s
sex-deprived loins urged her to invite him in as her logical reasoning told her to slam the door and use the battery-operated life-sized vibrator to ease away any need.

For some odd reason, she didn’t want to be alone right now.

“If you have time, we can order from room service and raid the mini bar.” The words fell from her mouth before she could debate the danger of the invitation. He dragged his hat from his head. His coal black hair looked like satin, and her fingers ached to touch.

“Sure. I
have no plans.”

Too late to renege.

Stepping back to let him pass, she shut the door with her foot, and followed him with her gaze. The jeans fit his butt in a way that made her want to squeeze. If she was a betting woman, she’d wager her eye teeth that his ass cheeks were as hard as steel.