Falling For A Cowboy (22 page)

Jesse leaned forward,
his arms folded on the table
.
“
He did say it was just a good
time right
?
No commitments or anything?
”

“
Dusty, don
’
t believe anything he sa
ys
.
He
’
s just goofing on you.
”
Clay
’
s
voice
was hard as steel
. Something was
very
wrong here.

“
Don
’
t
suppose
I can blame him for not
‘
fessing
up. Clay
wouldn
’
t
want to ruin a good thing—and I
’
m sure you
’
re all that.
”
Jesse gave her a look up and down
.

“
Jesse, I
’
m warning you
,
”
Clay bellowed.

“
No
.
I want to hear what he has to say. What bet?
”
Dusty
’
s
stomach suddenly felt like it had been hollowed out, along with her heart.

Th
at
t
ight
-lipped smile
cl
ung
to
Jesse
’
s face
.
“
We bet a hundred dollars
as to which one of us
you
’
d cho
o
se to have a good time with
.
I tend to fall in love pretty easily and Clay never does
,
so he made it a condition we couldn
’
t propose to you or suggest it was anything more than a good time.
”
Jesse
’
s gaze bore into her like a dentist drilling a cavity
. Only
no Novocain
was going to b
lunt the pain
.
“
He didn
’
t say it was more than a good time
, did he
?
”

Her heart seized up, her palms went sweaty
,
and
the
pounding in her head told her to flee.

“
Jesse, you asshole.
Dusty, Dusty
,
look at me.
”

Clay
’
s voice sounded like he was in a tunnel somewhere
.
She felt the pressure of his
fingers circling
her
wrist
.
She wrenched free and stood
.
She had to get out of there
.
Fast
.

“
Dusty, it
’
s not like that and you damn well know it.
”

“
You can
’
t say I
’
m
lying,
Clay
.
Hey if it was just a good time what is everyone so upset about
?
”

She
barely
heard Jesse
’
s words
as she stumbled away from the table.
The sounds of
spurs jangling and
boots hitting dirt came from behind her.

“
Dusty,
”
Clay
grasped
her wrist
;
this time his grip was tighter
.

“
Let me be.
”
Dusty heard the
shrill
in her
voice
.
S
everal faces turn
ed
in her direction. She didn
’
t care.
Tears welled in her eyes.
“
Don
’
t ever touch me again, Clay Tanner.
Don
’
t come near me again.
Ever.
”

Her
legs
were moving, fast
.
Across the hard-packed earth, toward her
truck
.
Toward home.
Alone.

* * *

“
I should kick your ass all the way back to the ranch,
”
Clay hollered
.
Feeling his blood pressure rising, h
e stood by the old pick-up
parked in the lot
, clench
ing his fists to keep from using them
,
and
glared at
Jesse
’
s expressionless face.
He wanted to knock those sunglasses right off of him.
Instead he tossed
his
saddle into the truck bed.

“
Don
’
t tak
e
your anger out on me, cowboy
.
You should have told me.
”

On that score and only that score, Jesse was right
.
Clay had
mentioned he
’
d been courting Dusty and Jesse had been none too happy. In fact,
Jesse had
insisted on coming today even though he was still in no condition to ride.
Clay hadn
’
t gone into the particulars of just what courting meant
,
but Jesse had to
guess
.

“
You should have known.
”
Clay
held himself rigid to contain the
fury
that threatened to shake
his body.
He
fought for control because he
was about ready to haul off and punch his best friend.
The only explanation for Jesse
’
s coming was
that
he wanted Dusty to know about the bet.
But why?

“
No, you should have told me not to say anything
.
You should have told me that you lied to her to get her in bed.
”
Now Jesse sounded angry and that was just plain ridiculous.

Clay threw
up
his hands in frustration and leaned
back
against the door of the cab
.
Several people had already given them interested stares
.
They were putting on a show for everyone. He took a deep breath and tried to calm down
as he folded his arms across his chest
.
“
How do you know I lied
?
You don
’
t know what I said
.
You don
’
t know how I feel.
”
And that was the truth because Clay didn
’
t know
himself
.

Jesse
’
s eyes narrowed
.
“
I know you and Dusty doesn
’
t deserve your brand of romance, Clay
.
One look at her today and
it was obvious
.
She
’
s in love with you
.
She may not be feeling too good right now, but it
’
s better than she
’
d feel in a few weeks when she
was
hearing
wedding bells
, if she isn
’
t already
.
”

She was in love with him
?
Wedding bells
?
Moisture pooled under his arms.

“
Hell, I did you a favor
.
And Dusty
,
too.
”
Jesse slapped at his denim-clad thigh as if he was trying to rid it of some imaginary dirt.
“
You
’
ve
got
no business toying with that girl
.
I told you before she
’
s made for marrying not dallying
.
Girls like that don
’
t understand your kind of fun
.
They get hurt. Badly hurt. The scarred
-
for
-
life kind of hurt and then guys like me—decent guys who want to get married and settle down—don
’
t have a chance because they won
’
t trust anyone.
”

What the hell was Jesse saying
?
The s
cary thing was he was making some kind of sense. But how
come
Jesse
was
the good guy and Clay was coming out
as
the bad guy?

“
She thinks she was part of bet,
G
od
damn
it.
”
How could that be good for anyone
?
“
I
’
d forgotten all about the damn bet
.
You know I didn
’
t go after her for your hundred dollars.
”

Jesse
shoved his hands in his pockets
.
“
Hell, every time you see a pretty girl, you make a bet with yourself
.
It
’
s a challenge with you. You may not be playing for the hundred dollars but you sure as hell were playing.
”

Is that what he
’
d been doing
?
Betting with
himself
?
Was that what it had been with Dusty
?
A challenge
?
She had been challenging, for sure
.
He
’
d never met a woman more reluctant to go to bed with him
.
That had hurt his ego
.
No doubt about it
.
But loving her had been one of the most beautiful things he
’
d ever experienced
.
He
’
d felt honored, like it had been a great gift, not a mark on his belt. She
’
d called up feelings he didn
’
t know he had.
Protective feelings, tender feelings, sensitive feelings.
Feelings.

He hadn
’
t been able to think about anyone or anything but her
.
That curvy redhead had called several times and he
’
d absolutely no desire for her size D fundamentals
.
His mind had been occupied by a size A with a sweet smile and a sassy line
.
A little spitfire that lit
him up
every time.

“
What if I wasn
’
t?
”
Clay ground out
.
“
What the hell if I wasn
’
t
?
What if I actually love her, Jesse
?
”

Jesse
’
s face paled
.
“
You serious?
”

Clay closed his eyes
.
All he saw was Dusty
.
With
tears
streaming
down her face
. How the hell was he going to right this one?

Whitey jumped from the bed and started to bark.

“
It
’
s me
,
Dusty, open the door.
”
Tara
Lynn
’
s voice carried through the sealed off room
.
“
Your
mom
’
s
worried about you
.
Let me in. Please.
”

Dusty barely stirred from under the covers of her bed
.
It felt like a 200 pound anvil was sitting on her chest, the pain
was
just as intense
.
“
Go away.
”
The words came out in a strangled gasp.

“
No
.
I
’
m not going away
.
So open the
darn
door.
”

Dusty pulled her body upright in a slow jerky movement. She swung her legs over the side
,
flung back the covers
,
and stood
.
The c
ool
air of the
air-condition
ing
chilled her
skin
.
Passing the mirror, s
he
caught sight of the
lace bra and panties
she was wearing
and the necklace around her neck
. Tears burned her eyes. How could she have been so stupid
?
How could he have been so calculating
?

“
Dusty, open this door.
Your mama is worried.
”

With robotic movement
,
Dusty made it to the door,
threw
the latch
,
and cracked it open
.
“
I
’
m alive. Now go away.
”

The door slammed into Dusty
. With a yelp
,
she
stagger
ed
back and
Tara
Lynn
stepped into the room
.
Whitey
did a jig
around her feet
.
Hands on hips,
pursed lips
,
Tara
Lynn
looked as angry as Dusty felt
.
No it wasn
’
t anger
Dusty felt
.
It was more defeat, closer to self-loathing
.
How come she
had
n
’
t listen
ed
to her brain?
Why had she let a smooth-talking
cowboy
get past her defenses
?
Why had she been so needy
?

Dusty
shoved
the door close
d
and padded back to her bed.
Her bed, where Clay had made love to her too many times to
count
.
No.
Correction
.
He
’
d had sex
.
Filled an elemental need
.
Had a
good time.

Tears clogged her eyes
. She climbed in, the soft bedding still warm from her body
,
and
pulled the covers over her head. Whitey followed and snuggled close.

“
Oh Dusty.
”
Tara
Lynn
’
s voice had softened
.
“
Look at you
.
You
’
re a mess.
”

“
Tell me something I don
’
t know.
”

The bed shifted as
Tara
Lynn
sat down
.
“
Okay
.
Clay Tanner loves you.
”

Cruel
.
She was deliberately being cruel
.
“
Tell me something
true
that I don
’
t know.
”

“
He
’
s all torn up
.
He
’
s been trying to call you.
Did you know that he came here?
Your mother wouldn
’
t let him in.
”

No, she didn
’
t
know
.
She
’
d been in bed with the pillow over her ears wondering how long she could stay in her room without having to use the bathroom
.
But what did it matter
?
Nothing he could say
w
ould change the facts
.
He
’
d bet on bedding her
.
Had lied to her about his intentions
.
Had never cared for her beyond a good time.

Tara
Lynn
shook
Dusty
’
s
legs
.
“
Did you hear me?
”

“
Yes. Now go away,
Tara
Lynn
. I just want to be left alone.
”

“
I believe him
.
I think he does love you.
”

She did not want to have this conversation.
“
I don
’
t love him so what does it matter.
”

Tara
Lynn
let out a deep sigh.
“
Yes
,
you do
or you wouldn
’
t be so broken up
.
Look, he was just doing what guys do—before he fell in love with you.
”

Dusty shot up in bed so fast the room swam in front of her.
She held her head until
Tara
Lynn
’
s face came into focus.
“
Doing what guys do
?
Making a bet with another guy as to who could get in my pants first?
”

“
Shush
.
Your mother will hear.
”
Tara
Lynn
had the nerve to giggle
.
Giggle!

“
What kind of man is he
?
He knew I wasn
’
t interested in a one-night stand
.
He knew
I
…
H
e took advantage of me
.
Plain and simple.
”

“
Does he look like a guy who needs a hundred dollars from his best friend
?
”

Dusty folded her arms over her chest and felt her temper flare hot.
“
Yes
.
He said he needed money. Riding horses and
betting on
women
are
obviously his way to get it.
”
She couldn
’
t hold the tears back anymore
.
They ran down her face like a g
usher
had just
come in
.

“
Won
’
t you even listen to him
?
He
’
s planning to leave
for home.
I asked him to give me an hour to see if I couldn
’
t talk some sense into you.
”

Her best
friend was working for the enemy.
“
Absolutely not.
There is nothing
he can
say.
”
She
struggled
to contain the sobs that were choking her throat.

“
Ah, how about
I
’
m sorr
y,
f
orgive me
,
I
love you
.
I think he has a lot to say to you.
”

Dusty
swiped
the back of her hand
at the wetness
covering her cheek
.
“
Look, why would I want some guy who even considered betting on such a thing—even if he did care for me—which he doesn
’
t
.
What
kind of egomaniac is he
?
What decent guy would bet on such a thing
?
What kind of guy would lure a woman into believing there was more just to win a bet
?
That will teach me.
Because no
gorgeous hunk of a guy would want scrawny little me
.
Only if he could win a hundred dollars.
”
Her body shook as the emotions she
’
d
held
inside released like a dam breaking
.
“
Oh
Tara
Lynn
, I
’
ve been a fool.
”
The sobs broke free as she felt the stab in her heart.

Tara
Lynn
shifte
d close
r
and Dusty felt her friend
’
s arms around her
.
Never again.

* * *

“
This better work,
”
Clay said
to Jesse
as he climbed into the announcer
’
s booth
.
It was Saturday at the
Lone Star Arena
and he and Jesse had come back, not to ride
,
but to see if he could
make
one
last bid for
Dusty
’
s
forgiveness.

He
’
d screwed up
.
B
ig time
.
Seven bouquets of flowers delivered, o
ver
25
phone calls unanswered
,
and more than double that amount of
text messages
sent
over the last week
.
If it wasn
’
t for
Tara
Lynn
keeping him informed, he
’
d have gone plum
b
crazy.
He finally understood the whole
“
absence makes the heart grow fonder
”
thing
.
He
’
d didn
’
t need any more time away from her to know she was the one for him
.
When he fell, he apparently fell
hard
,
and this time right on his head
.
She just had to forgive him
.

Tara
Lynn
had said
Dusty
didn
’
t believe him and no longer trusted him
.
Okay
.
He deserved all that
, if he looked
at it
from
Dusty
’
s
p
oint
of view
.
But he had to get her to see things differently
.
She thought he
’
d used her to win a bet
.
She didn
’
t think he was serious
.
He was out to prove just how serious
he really was
.