Hunt, Sofia - Riding the Circuit [Rodeo Riders 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (9 page)

“No problem,
darlin
’.” Jonah rolled up the awning and secured it. “Wait for us until you pull out. We’ll be on your ass all the way.”

Much to his surprise, she didn’t bitch about their plans. She just nodded and looked away.

“Is there something you’re not telling me?” He touched her shoulder and half-expected to be reamed out. He wasn’t. She lifted her gaze to his. Her stricken expression started his heart racing.

“Did you hear from the stalker again?”

Mitzi looked away. Her teeth worried at her lower lip. He found the action enticing. “He saw us last night at the corrals.”

“Saw us? Doing what?” A sick feeling invaded Jonah’s stomach. He hoped he was wrong.

“What do you think? Even your little head
oughta
be able to figure that one out.”

“Oh, shit.” Jonah took off his hat and swept his fingers through his hair.

Mitzi pulled the crumpled note out of her jeans pocket and handed it to him. Jonah read it. “Damn. He’s pissed. Like he thinks he has a right to be.” Their indiscretion could set off an unstable mind, especially when the guy was operating under the delusion that Mitzi was his property.

“Do you know what this means?”

Jonah frowned, not sure what she was getting at. “That we have a problem?”

“A big one.” She blinked several times, her big brown eyes moist. With tears? Mitzi? He found that shocking. She rubbed her eyes. “It’s not my father doing this. He’d have come apart if he’d heard about us together. He wouldn’t have used an anonymous note to get his point across.”

No wonder she didn’t get into their bantering. She had bigger worries. Now, so did Riley and Jonah. He’d never seen her look so vulnerable, not ball-busting, heart-breaking Mitzi Garrison. Jonah’s protective instincts kicked up a notch, along with something more disturbing that felt a hell of a lot like tenderness.
Crap.
He was a tough guy, a cowboy, a smartass, a smooth talker, his own kind of heartbreaker. He did not get tender feelings about anyone, let alone women he slept with. Even worse, women whose fathers hired him to do a job.

Jonah didn’t trust relationships with women. He’d never seen a good one, except for Riley’s parents. He figured they were exceptions to the rule.

His immediate family was as dysfunctional as they came, a drifter father, an alcoholic mother, and three older sisters who were in trouble more than they were out of it. He’d been the forgotten child, left to fend for himself most of his growing-up life. He hadn’t seen his old man in ten years and his mother in five. He heard from the sisters when they wanted something, like being bailed out of jail. He kept his distance to save himself because God knew he couldn’t save any of them.

Now Mitzi looked at him like she considered him a man to depend on. A savior. That was so not him. Not at all. Sure, he’d do the job he’d been hired to do, maybe take her to bed a few more times, but it ended there. After the circuit, they parted their ways.

No ties, no mess, no hard feelings.

Looking into her eyes, he feared they’d crossed an invisible line he never crossed. Except this one time.

* * * *

Riley lay on his sleeping bag and mattress and stared at the aluminum ceiling of the trailer. Up in the gooseneck area, Jonah snored away. The man could sleep through a buffalo stampede. Riley envied his buddy’s talent for compartmentalizing his worries. Yet, he knew Jonah’s avoidance of his problems only compounded them in the end when he finally had no choice but to face them.

Riley preferred to tackle issues head-on, deal with them, control them to his advantage, and move on. Only his current problems weren’t that simple. Mitzi infuriated him, drew him in, and made him crazy.

He hated thinking of her and Jonah together, yet he fixated on sliding into her warm, willing pussy while she deep-throated Jonah. The visual conjured up powerful images of double-penetration, of not leaving one inch of her body untouched, of hot, wet, wild sex in every position imaginable.

Sitting up, Riley groaned. His cock throbbed like a son of a bitch, and the damn thing swelled to painful proportions. Standing, he decided a trip to the bathroom on the other side of the barn was in order, and then perhaps he’d pay Mitzi a late-night visit to refresh his memory.

* * * *

Mitzi tossed and turned in her bed. She checked the time on her alarm clock. 1:52 a.m. Damn. She couldn’t sleep. Her mind churned with fifty different conflicting thoughts. Sex with Jonah far exceeded her expectations. In fact, fucking him had rivaled fucking Riley, but it hadn’t driven Riley from her mind. If anything, she wanted him even more. In fact, wanted them both equally. Guilt overwhelmed her, as she struggled with the dilemma of being attracted to two men.

The only way she’d get any sleep tonight would be if she got some fresh air first.

Sitting up, she pulled on a spaghetti strap top, jeans, and a Windbreaker. Shoving some bills in her pocket, she exited the trailer. Just across from the rodeo grounds was a quick stop store. She’d grab a snack and hope the walk would clear her mind and let her sleep.

* * * *

It didn’t take Mitzi long before she regretted the reckless impulse which had driven her to sneak out of her trailer alone in the middle of the night.

She grasped the small grocery bag to her chest and darted across the street, trying to stay in the streetlights. Between the store and rodeo grounds stood several blocks of industrial buildings. Darkened, defunct businesses lined the strip of road.

She hadn’t banked on the nearest grocery store being closed, and the next one being so far away. Shivering in the cold evening air, she pulled her windbreaker tighter to her body. Her gaze darted to the shadows between each building and the darkened doorways. Mitzi felt like the stupid heroine in all those horror movies who walked right into the monster’s arms again and again.

She hurried her pace, wishing she’d at least remembered some kind of protection like mace or a baseball bat. She almost smiled at that visual.
Baseball-bat-wielding rodeo queen goes postal and assaults a suspicious-looking bush.

Something banged behind her, and she jumped out of her skin. Casting a look over her shoulder, she didn’t see anything. Her heart pounded against her rib cage while goose bumps spread across her skin. Chastising herself for being such a coward, she tilted her chin upward and projected an air of confidence. Even so, she listened and watched for any warning sign, anything out of place or suspect.

Footsteps sounded behind her.

Her heart slammed in her chest. Mitzi hurried faster, almost running now. She chanced another glance over her shoulder. A figure dressed in dark clothes strode about a half-block behind her. A sweatshirt hood was pulled over his face and concealed his features.

Oh, God. It was him. It had to be. He’d followed her from the trailers, and now he was following her back. She glanced about for a car or another person. There wasn’t a soul to be seen. Terror crawled through her belly, warning her to run while she still had a decent lead over the man. Adrenaline pumped through her, spurring her on.

She broke into a jog. His footsteps pounded on the sidewalk behind her, closing the gap between them. Gasping, she pushed herself a little faster, afraid to look back in fear he might be within a few steps. What she’d give right now for a passing car, or even better, a policeman.

Breaking into an all-out run, Mitzi sprinted across the street, adrenaline pumping and her body in full panic mode.

A tall figure stepped from the shadows into the streetlight several feet in front of her.

Riley.

Mitzi had never been so relieved to see someone in her life. She threw herself into his arms, sobbing and shaking. His big body enveloped hers in a dense fog of warmth and safety.

She never wanted to let this man go.

Riley held Mitzi tight as if any moment some monster might emerge from the bushes and wrench her from his arms. He didn’t know if the wild pounding in his chest was her heart thudding against his chest or his own wildly beating heart.

When he’d come back from the bathroom earlier, he planned to wake her up and do the things he’d been thinking of doing all night. He tried the door and found it unlocked, cursing her for her stupidity. When he didn’t find her inside, fear had consumed him as his mind played through the possible scenarios.

Frantic, he didn’t even take the time to wake Jonah, nor did he have his cell phone, so he couldn’t call for backup. Instead he ran to the barn but didn’t find her. Coming out of the barn, he spotted Jack Jameson walking a bay mare who had a bout of colic.

“Jack, have you seen Mitzi?” His breath came in short gasps, partially from running and partially from fear.

Jack studied him quizzically, shaking his head, as if he couldn’t imagine what had Riley so riled up. “Might have. I saw a tall gal with red hair over that way. She left the grounds and headed down the street.” Jack pointed in the general direction.

“Thanks, man. Hope your horse is okay.” Riley had patted him on the shoulder and jogged to the main road.

When he’d seen her running toward him like the very devil was chasing her, he’d broken into a sprint. She’d slammed into him so hard she’d almost leveled him. Now he held her and vacillated between wanting to comfort her and spank her for her foolishness.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you,” she cried into his broad shoulder. Her entire body shook from the trauma. He held her until she calmed down, and then he pushed her back a step. Fear mixed with anger, and his temper boiled.

“Are you so stubborn you’re stupid? What the fuck are you doing out here in this neighborhood at this time of night?” Riley’s body vibrated with conflicting emotions. She felt good in his arms, just where she belonged, even though she pissed him off like no other woman ever had.

“I couldn’t sleep. I needed a few things at the grocery store. I didn’t want to wake you guys.” The words tumbled from her mouth in a jumbled rush.

“So you went out by yourself at 2:00 a.m.?”

She nodded into his shirt, soaked with her tears. “I know. I’m sorry.”

“I should spank your little ass. Treat you like the child you are.”

Mitzi stared up at him, and his insides turned all gooey, and his anger melted in a puddle at her feet. He lifted his calloused hand and gently wiped the tears with the pad of his thumb. Their eyes met and held. Tenderness crawled through him, invaded his every cell, like a long-lost friend who’d shown up on his doorstep.

She broke off the contact first and glanced over her shoulder. “Did you see him?”

Riley frowned and tried to concentrate on her words, instead of looking at her full, red lips and imagining the feel of those very lips on his dick. “See who?”

“The guy. He was right behind me. The faster I walked, the faster he walked. When I started running, I think he did, too. I could hear the sound of his footsteps pounding on the pavement behind me.”

“I didn’t see anyone but you. Are you sure there was someone behind you?” Riley surveyed the area but didn’t see a soul. His instincts insisted she told the truth. No one ran with terror in their eyes like she did and was faking it.

“Positive.” She clung to him. Her fingernails dug into his back.

“Did you get a look at him?”

“Not at all. He stayed in the shadows. He was wearing a
hoodie
and dark clothes. I couldn’t see his face.”

“What about his build?”

“I don’t know. Maybe average height. Average build. I don’t know. He could have been taller.” She shook her head in frustration.

Riley sighed, feeling somewhat helpless and inadequate. Thank God, she didn’t see him that way. “Let’s get you back to your trailer.” He put his arm around her and pulled her close. When they walked back by the barn, Jack was gone.

Entering the trailer, Mitzi busied herself making a pot of coffee. Riley stood in the doorway, not wanting to leave her but not sure staying would be a good idea either.

“Would you like a cup of coffee? I don’t think I can sleep.”

“Fuck, I could use a whiskey.” Riley wouldn’t be able to sleep either. The pleading look in Mitzi’s eyes sealed the deal. He couldn’t leave her when she was so uncharacteristically vulnerable. A sassy, smart-mouthed Mitzi he could handle. This Mitzi brought out too many protective instincts in him.

He sat down at her little dinette and took the whiskey she offered him. She took a seat across from him. They sat in strained silence. The clock hanging on the wall ticked while in the distance a big truck rumbled down the nearby street. A horse whinnied, then silence except for the clock ticking. Ticking. Ticking. Ticking Riley’s life away, second by second. Ticking away lost opportunities not seized upon. Ticking away what might be the most important decision he’d ever make. The damn clock ticked like a time bomb, counting down the moments in his life. It taunted him, daring him to take the risk.

Mitzi glanced up at him. Her brown eyes met his. A wave of longing swept through him, more than mere lust, way beyond a craving for her body. Unwelcome tenderness wound its way around his heart and slipped into all those places he kept locked up tight. The fear he’d felt when he’d found her missing earlier shocked him into realizing how much she meant to him, how devastated he’d be if something happened to her.