Against the Odds: A Love Story (7 page)

I finally got a hold of myself and wiped my eyes. I turned to him and pressed a hand to his face, caressing his beard. “You never had anything to worry about. Though I wasn't willing to admit it to myself, I was yours even then. There's not another man in this world like you, Hayden McKade.”

“And there ain't another woman like you.”

I smiled, still not able to believe this was happening, that he actually felt more for me than friendship. To be with him this way was amazing, and more wonderful than I ever dreamed. I pressed my face against his chest. “Well, at least I know there's nothing wrong with me now.”

“Now why would you think there was something wrong with you?”

For the first time since the divorce, I opened my mind and seriously pondered that question, and I was amazed to have the answer come so quickly. “I guess after giving and giving in my marriage just so Jerome could keep cheating, I started doubting myself. I started to feel like I wasn't good enough. I thought once the divorce was final I would be over it, but every now and then the feeling comes back.”

He released a sigh and I heard the slight sadness in his next words. “And I guess my not letting you know how I felt about you didn't help matters.” When I said nothing, he gently took my chin in his hand, urging me to look at him. “Let me tell you something, Raine. There ain't a thing wrong with you. It sounds like that mule's hind end you married had the problem. He didn't know what he had when he had you. And if he really loved you, he wouldn't have been chasing behind some other skirt.” He caressed my face. “I promise I will never hurt you, Raine. You're a beautiful and incredible woman, and you're more than enough woman for me.”

I grinned and raised up to kiss him again. He rolled and turned me onto my back. Then his mouth descended upon mine with a heat that I felt all over. I literally saw stars and I felt a tidal wave of emotion washing over my entire being. His kisses were completely rapturous. They left me breathless and completely filled at the same time.

“I can't get enough of you, baby,” he whispered against my mouth. “Which is why,” he added, suddenly sitting up and pulling me up with him, “we had better get out of here before we get into some serious trouble.” He grinned and began picking straw from my hair. I was sure it would be an all day job. “After all,” he continued, “a man can only be so strong, and when it comes to you, I can see now that my defenses are shot all to hell. I have no resistance whatsoever.”

I smiled warmly, taking the front of his shirt in my hands. “I feel the same about you.”

He sat staring at me for a moment and pressed a gentle hand to my cheek, brushing a thumb across my lips. I silently met his adamant gaze with my own and wondered what he was thinking. He quickly pulled me to him for one more hot, enrapturing kiss that I wanted to go on and on. Growling softly, he abruptly parted his lips from mine and stood.

“We have
got
to get out of here,” he said with a grin. I grinned back and leaned forward, not able to resist kissing him once more. He helped me up, and we left the stable and headed up to the house.

As we entered the kitchen, Caroline looked up and grinned in surprise. I knew we both must have looked a sight. I was about to explain when she said, “My, my. It looks like you two had a nice roll in the hay.”

My mouth immediately dropped open and she laughed out loud. Hayden chuckled and came to my defense.

“You're a bad girl,” he said to his smiling sister-in-law as he wrapped his arms around me and pressed me back against him. “Now you know Raine here ain't that kind of girl.”

“Glad to hear it,” she said, winking at me, her eyes twinkling with pleasure.

“Well,” Hayden said as he released me, “I guess I had better get out there and get some work done.” He looked down at me. “You wanna walk me back down?”

“Sure,” I said, smiling up into his handsome face.

“She'll be back later.” He took my hand in his.

We both chuckled when we heard Caroline's laughed filled voice call after us, “You two just make sure and stay away from the horse stable!”

Oh, the joy of new love!

Nine

D
uring the next couple of weeks, Hayden and I stayed pretty busy around the ranch during the day. With summer officially here and new calves and colts to keep up with, there was always something to do. Even still, one of us usually managed to get away from our work  for a few minutes to see the other. Occasionally, we even managed to sneak away for a few moments to be alone. Now that we were officially together, we couldn't seem to stay away from each other. And we were frequently kidded by Tom and the other hands. They jokingly accused us of slacking on the job.

Once when I was out walking, Hayden emerged from the barn and quickly pulled me in and shut the door. He pinned me against the wall, and for five minutes we practically devoured each other. There was so much heat generated between us, I'm surprised the barn didn't go up in flames. When we finally came back out, Ted was standing by the door waiting with a big grin on his face. He said he didn't want to interrupt, so he waited. Normally, I would have been completely embarrassed, but as I looked up into Hayden's eyes and saw the emotion burning in them as he gazed at me, I wasn't embarrassed a bit.

I lived for breakfast, lunch, and dinner time, but not because of hunger. I usually sat staring at Hayden more than I ate, which he finally commented on one day by saying, “I told you darlin', if you're not careful, you're gonna disappear.” I laughed and forced myself to finish my meal. But I did tell him it was definitely his fault that I didn't feel like eating. He quickly kissed me and told me he was sorry.

Never in my life had I ever felt so emotionally connected to someone. I couldn't even be near Hayden without touching him, without having him touch me. He was on my mind almost every minute of the day. I missed him when he worked and he told me he ached to be with me as well. So, I went from one moment to the next, anticipating the time when I would finally get to be with him again.

And so went our days. But our evenings were spent in each other's arms. I loved evenings.

On one particular day, Hayden had been out all day on another part of the property repairing some fence lines. When he made his rounds to check the animals that morning, he found that a couple of cows had gotten out. After bringing them in, stitching up a few cuts, and administering antibiotic shots, he went back out. So I didn't get to see him at breakfast. He hadn't even come back for lunch, and I missed him terribly.

When he finally came through the door for dinner, I was so happy to see him, I immediately ran to him and jumped into his arms. He lifted me up off the floor, holding me against him. He was dirty and sweaty, but I didn't care. I was with him again and nothing else mattered.

He pulled back a little and pressed a salty kiss to my lips. “Missed me, huh?” he said, a tired grin on his face.

“Missed you is an understatement,” Caroline said as she set another plate on the table.

“Well, I was having some Raine withdrawals myself,” he said, kissing me again.

Caroline grinned. “Oh, I think we are way passed withdrawals here.”

“Poor thing didn't know what to do with herself,” David added with a wide smile.

“All right, you two. I haven't been that bad,” I shot back with feigned annoyance.

“Whatever you say, darlin',” David said, trying to keep a straight face.

Hayden chuckled. “Well, if you two don't mind,” he drawled, grinning down at me, “I think I'll take my dinner back to the house. I'm starving.” He glanced at the table and added, “Oh, and I'll take some food, too.”

David hooted out loud and I softly punched Hayden. He just laughed and kissed me.

“Did you get the fence fixed?” Dave asked Hayden as I moved to the table and dished up a couple of plates of food for us.

“For the most part. It'll hold for the time being.”

Caroline took a wooden tray from the bottom cupboard and I placed the plastic covered plates on it, along with a couple of pieces of pie.

I could feel Hayden's gaze following me as I moved around the kitchen, and the look in his eyes warmed me almost as much as his touch. Indeed, his look at that moment
was
like a touch. He had no idea how much his very presence affected me. Then again, maybe he did. I met his adoring gaze with my own and determined that there was enough electricity between us to light up the whole state of New Mexico.

I held the tray on my lap in the truck as Hayden drove to his place. As soon as we got in the house I took the food to the kitchen and reheated it while he took a quick shower. Ten minutes later, he entered the kitchen wearing clean jeans, no shirt, and barefoot. Just seeing him this way did heady things to my emotions.

“Come here, baby,” he said in that low drawl of his.

I immediately stood and went into his warm embrace. Standing on my tip-toes, I pressed my face against his neck and breathed in the intoxicating and familiar scent of him. Tangling my fingers in his damp hair, I sighed.

“I missed you, Raine,” he breathed, burying his face in my hair. He pulled back a little and looked down at me, his sensuous mouth curving up in a smile. “Let's hurry and eat.” He pressed a work-roughened hand to my face, caressing it softly. “I've got some plans for you.”

“Oh, really?”  I comically arched an eyebrow, making him laugh. “Then by all means, let's hurry.”

Hayden and I sat snuggled together on the porch swing with a quilt wrapped around us. A couple of mugs of hot chocolate sat on a white iron table. A large citronella candle burned brightly on another table. The night was cool, the sky was dark, and the stars were out. It was beautiful.

We quietly listened to the peaceful sounds that filled the night. A slight breeze rustled the leaves on the tall trees and the soft serenade of the crickets was soothing to our ears. The light of the full moon made the small grove of trees look magical, providing the perfect ambiance for us.