Homecoming Ranch (19 page)

Madeline nodded. She looked out the window for a long moment, then suddenly twisted around, so she was facing him. One button of her blouse had come undone, he noticed, giving him a peek of that lacy blue bra. “Okay, look,” she said. “It’s true that I have a lot of work waiting for me. But the beauty of being self-employed is I can take a few days off if I need to, right? I can stick around and do the research on value. It won’t take me long.”

“How long?” he asked.

“A few days,” Madeline said. “A week, tops.”

Luke nodded. His gaze skimmed over her breasts. “So are you saying that now you’re willing to stick around a few days and help figure out things?”

Madeline looked as if she had swallowed a lump of peanut butter. “Yeah. I guess I am,” she said, and as if to convince herself, she gave him an adamant little nod. “But what about Libby?”

“I think if she wants to handle the reunion, she should do it,” Luke said, his gaze wandering lower, to her waist. “As far as the reunion goes, I’ll even help her. I just don’t want her to get the idea that it’s a done deal, because I am going to do everything I can to get the ranch back.”

“What about
your
job?”

“I can do a lot from here and head over to Denver when I need to. After all, we’re just talking a few days, right?”

“Right,” she said carefully. Her gaze moved to his chest again, and Luke wished she wouldn’t look at him like that. It was too damn
tempting.
“Just a few days,” she repeated softly, and lifted her gaze to his.

The rain, the chill in the air was everywhere around them but in that truck. Luke could feel nothing but a smoldering fire between the two of them.

“In fact,” he said, “I’ll probably drive over to Denver on Monday to check on things.” He shifted in his seat, too, moving closer. He casually pushed a wet strand of hair from her face, then another from her neck, letting his fingers graze her skin.

Madeline shivered slightly at his touch. “Okay, Luke, I’ll help,” she said. “But I’m watching you. This feels too convenient and tidy after yesterday.”

“I thought that’s the way you liked things,” he muttered, shifting closer, his face near her hair. It smelled sweet. “Tidy. Uncomplicated. To the point.”

Madeline turned her head slightly and looked at him sidelong. “You’re right. The tidier, the better for me. I don’t like to invite chaos into my life by taking little detours.”

He grazed her temple with his mouth; Madeline gasped softly. “Sometimes the detours are the best part of life,” he murmured.

“Are you trying to kiss me?” she asked, her voice a little breathless.

“Yes.”

“I just
met
you,” she said reprovingly, but she didn’t move away.

“That is not true. You met me two days ago on the side of the road,” he said, and kissed her temple. “And then again at Jackson’s,” he added before kissing her cheek. “At the ranch,” he said, and kissed the bridge of her nose, “and in town.” He kissed her brow. “And now, on this mountain, in this rainstorm, in my truck. We’re practically an item.”

“You’re outrageous,” she whispered, but she did not turn her head when he kissed her lips.

Her response was restrained, funny, we-shouldn’t-be-doing-this kiss, but yet one that felt electric to Luke. She angled her head and kissed him back, her lips, butter soft against his, her skin silken beneath his fingers. It was simple, so simple, but the promise of something far greater was there, and his body was responding rapidly. Too rapidly. He felt himself tumbling hard and fast down a path of desire, and lifted his head, his eyes on Madeline.

She looked alluring with her tousled hair and wet lips. She also looked stunned. Luke thought to apologize. But before he could form a thought, Madeline suddenly lunged forward, grabbing the collar of his shirt and kissed him back. She kissed him so ardently that he fell back against the seat, and Madeline came over the console with him. He caught her up with one arm, pressed his palm against her cheek and temple. Madeline nipped at his lips, swept her tongue into his mouth, shoved her fingers into his hair.

Good God, but that kiss was hot and dangerously arousing. His body was hardening with that uncontrolled kiss, that passionate, fervent, surprising kiss. He slipped his hand inside the jacket, and pressed against the side of her breast.

Madeline made a soft little moaning sound into his mouth, and that was it. Luke lifted up, determined to take them both to the backseat, when a crash startled them.

Madeline gasped and lifted her head, planting her hands against his chest and looking wildly about. Luke looked around her mess of dark hair out the front window and saw half a dead aspen lying across the lower branches of two pines just to the right of the Bronco. He also noticed that the rain had begun to let up. He looked at Madeline; she had already faded back away from him, and was looking at him now as if she wasn’t certain what had just happened.

She wiped the pad of her thumb across her lower lip. Her chest lifted with a deep breath. “Sorry,” she said breathlessly. “I don’t know what got into me.” But she didn’t look sorry, not the least bit. She looked like a woman who could rip his clothes off of him then and there.

“I’m not,” he said. He was downright confused, yes—but not sorry. Whatever had just happened, it felt strong and real. And wholly incautious. “I think we can start down now,” he said, and turned the ignition. “Hold on.”

But Madeline was already gripping the dash and the handle above the window, and honestly, Luke wasn’t certain if he hadn’t just said that to himself.

She was such an
idiot!
Madeline slammed the car door and stomped in her wet pumps into the lobby of Grizzly Lodge.
Why
did she agree to stay? A
week
? Who had a week? She had clients and listings.…

Okay. Maybe, just maybe, she was more intrigued with Luke Kendrick than she would ever admit to anyone, and especially
not
Trudi, who was guaranteed to make a colossally big deal out of it. But man, sitting in that truck, under the blanket with a guy as good-lookng as Luke, she let her mind wander to other things. White-hot things. She couldn’t believe he’d kissed her. But she really couldn’t believe that she had kissed him
back.
She didn’t think she had ever in her life kissed anyone like that. It wasn’t like her at all, so reckless, so out of control. And Madeline couldn’t even say why she’d done it, other than she was up on that mountain in the rain, under a blanket, and with Luke, handsome, sturdy Luke, and something just began to thrum in her. She’d felt a little outside of herself.

She was still shocked and excited and
shocked.
But, Lord help her, she’d enjoyed that kiss, more than any other kiss in her life.

Crazy, crazy!
It was the chaos around her, that was it. She was still wearing his jacket! She had completely forgotten it when they’d come back down to the ranch.…

Well. Maybe she hadn’t
completely
forgotten it, but he apparently had—he did not ask for it back. It smelled like him. All salty and sexy and—

Madeline, what the hell?

Okay, logically, she’d had no choice but to stay. Luke had been so quick to jump to the conclusion that they ought to get Danny the I’m Fairly Certain He Maybe Has Internet to take a look at the property. What was it about men that they immediately assumed a man, no matter who the hell he was, was better suited than a woman for a job?

Madeline had seen red, she’d really seen red, red, red, and the next thing she knew, she’d opened her mouth and said she’d stay.

“Goodness gracious, you look like a cat caught out in the rain!” Dani said as Madeline marched into the foyer, ready to kill and maim someone with her bare hands.

“I am. I was. Dani, a couple of things have come up.” She slapped her purse down on the counter top. “I’ll have to stay for a week or so.”

“Well that’s great news!” Dani said, smiling brightly. “I
knew
you’d fall in love with Pine River.”

“I didn’t—”

“Now maybe you can pick up a few things that aren’t quite as businesslike,” she said eagerly, eyeing Madeline’s clothes.

What was up with all the sartorial scrutiny in Pine River? Madeline glanced down at herself—in addition to the smear across her blouse, her slacks were a silk blend, and she could see the water spots on them.

“So where will you be staying?”

That brought Madeline’s head up. “What? Here!”

“Oh no, sweetie. I’d love to have you, I would, but, remember, I’ve got that busload of snowbirds coming up from New Mexico on Monday. Want me to call and see if the motel on the Aspen Highway can take you?”

Madeline suppressed a shudder. She’d driven by that hotel on her way out of town this morning when she’d been momentarily turned around and headed in the wrong direction. There were several big,
muddy trucks parked outside the rooms, a sign displaying the S
UPER
L
OW
R
ATE OF $19.99 A NIGHT
and the
L
in the word “motel” was half gone. “Umm, no thanks. I’ll figure something out.”

“Why don’t you give Jackson a call?” Dani suggested. “He might have an idea. He’s so smart.”

Smart
was not the word Madeline thought of when it came to Jackson. She looked longingly down the hall to her room. She was getting used to her little cub room and was reluctant to leave it. “When do I have to be out?”

“Tomorrow afternoon. I can give you till four if that helps.”

Great. Twenty-four hours to dig herself out of the latest round of chaos. In the meantime, Madeline had a more pressing issue. She was not going back up to the ranch in these shoes, or anywhere for that matter. “Is there a store around where I could pick up a few things?” she asked.

“Walmart out on the Old Aspen Highway, of course. I get these shirts there,” Dani said proudly, gesturing to a blue Guayabera shirt. “Fifteen ninety-nine, you can’t beat that. But if you want something a little more suited for the mountains, you can go down to Tag’s Outfitter.”

Madeline’s phone was beeping at her. She rummaged around in her bag for it. “Tag’s Outfitter?” she repeated as she pulled her phone from the bag.
Stephen
.

“Just down the street, catawampus from the Stakeout.”

“Outfitter,” Madeline said again as she muted the ringing of her phone.

“Outfitter,” Dani reiterated carefully. “You can get your camping gear there, too.”

“Camping!”

“It’s an option. I mean, if you don’t want to stay out on the highway.”

Madeline almost choked. “I’m not that desperate.”

Dani chuckled. “Don’t be too sure,” she said. “You might be camping before you know it. The mountains have a certain pull to them. You’ll be feeling it in a couple of days.”

Madeline picked up her purse. “Actually, I think I’m more of a beach girl.”

“Well at least go check out the clothes there. Because you can’t keep going up to Homecoming Ranch like that.” Dani winked at Madeline. “How’s your head, anyway?” she asked as Madeline started for the door.

“Better,” Madeline said. “Thanks. The aspirin really worked.”

“Sure it did. Keep them with you. This altitude does all kinds of crazy things to a person.”

Apparently that was true, because Madeline had just broken every rule she had about following all of her rules.

She headed toward the Stakeout, scanning the street for whatever Dani might consider to be “catawampus.” She was fairly certain she had spotted it—a low-slung adobe building with miles and miles of brightly colored ceramic pots in front of it, as well as a crop of big iron chickens on springs. Every breeze made them dip toward the ground and up again. Above the chickens hung a large sun bursting with big orange rays and the words “Tag’s Outfitter.”

Madeline was so wary of the place and the type of clothes they might carry that she didn’t exactly register the ringing of her phone and answered without thinking.

“Hey! It’s Stephen.”

Madeline stopped walking. “Hi, Stephen.” She banged her fist against her thigh for being so incautious. She didn’t need any more detours in her day.

“So how do you like Colorado? Pretty state, isn’t it?” he asked.

“It is,” she said. “Beautiful. Lots of pines and… trees.”

“Whereabouts in Colorado are you?”

“A little town called Pine River.”

“I know that town. Near Silverton, right? I used to ski in Silverton. So listen, I talked to my friend in Denver. The news is good. Without any written agreements or liens that haven’t yet turned up, the property is yours, free and clear. Better yet, he said he has a buddy who is a broker who specializes in ranch lands. He said not only could he help you out with that, he’s probably got some buyers who’d be interested in talking. I’ve got his number. I can text it to you.”

“That would be great,” Madeline said. “Thank you.”

“So when are you going to be back?” he asked.

“Umm—I’m not sure yet. Indefinite right now.”

“Indefinite,” he repeated.

“There’s a lot more to be done than I realized.”

“So what are we talking, a week? A month?”

“A few days, anyway,” Madeline said.

“Okay,” Stephen said. “So listen, Madeline,” he said. “There’s something I’d like to say—”

“Stephen, now isn’t really—”

“I like you,” he said, cutting her off before she could stop him from saying anything. “I like you a lot. You’re pretty and you’re different, and I know you don’t want to get into anything, but I’d like to date you. You know, you and me. I promise I won’t push you, because I get that you’re skittish about guys or whatever, but really, that’s okay. I’d just like to see you and see where it goes. No pressure.”

Madeline sagged against the outside wall of the Squeaky Clean Laundromat, where she happened to be standing. Stephen was a great guy, and any woman would be crazy not to be into him. But Madeline wasn’t. This is what she always did. She would go out with a guy a few times and then disappear. The one time she hadn’t done that, the one time she’d tried to be a “girlfriend” to a guy named Trystan, he’d dumped her. He’d said he wasn’t feeling it, whatever that meant. Madeline hadn’t felt as devastated by that as she’d felt validated in what she believed about men.