Texas Hustle (6 page)

“Porchia’s the best baker in the world,” he said, draping his arm around Porchia’s shoulders. Beneath his arm, she straightened and grew stiff. What had he said wrong?

“I know,” Nadine said. “Jackie has told me about your wonderful treats. Maybe you could give me some tips while we’re here? I seem to have missed the baking gene.”

“I’d be honored.”

“Great. Come on in. Jackie assigned the cabins and I can’t remember where she put y’all.”

When they came out, keys to cabin five in hand, his dad and Uncle Lane came roaring up on two new, very muddy four-wheelers. His dad flew past the lodge, rounded the drive by cabin one and skidded to a stop. He stepped off his machine, pulled his helmet off his hair, laughing loudly and pointing at his brother, Lane.

“I win,” Clint shouted as Lane Montgomery came to an abrupt stop beside him.

Lane removed his helmet. “Enjoy your victory while you can. Tomorrow, you shall eat crow.”

“God. Those two idiots are going to kill themselves,” Nadine said.

“I don’t know about you, Nadine, but I made sure Lane’s life insurance was paid up.”

Darren looked over at his aunt who’d joined them on the porch and laughed. “I swear, Aunt Jackie. I don’t know if you’re kidding or not.”

“Not,” she deadpanned.

“I’m pretty sure you know Porchia Summers, right? Porchia. My Aunt Jackie.”

Jackie hugged her. “Of course I know Porchia. Why, at least ten of my pounds are totally her fault.”

Porchia laughed. “Sorry about that?”

“Don’t be. I enjoyed every delectable ounce.”

“If y’all will excuse us, we’ll get unpacked,” Darren said.

The two older women waved them off and headed over to where their husbands stood comparing their all-terrain vehicles.

“I bet those two were quite the handful growing up,” Porchia said. “Seems like they really enjoy each other.”

Darren grinned. “They do and they were. I understand why Dad moved to Florida to set up his ranch, but I also know he’s really missed Uncle Lane and living in Texas.”

They climbed back into the truck.

“I’m going to drop the trailer and ATVs before we unload. That work for you? Or do you need to, um, go inside first.”

This was pitiful. He was acting like a ninth grader on a first date with a senior.

“Do you mean do I need to pee?” Porchia grinned. “I’m fine. What can I do to help?”

“Not a thing. Sit tight.”

He followed the drive past cabin four, turned left toward Marc Singer’s fifth wheel, passed it and pulled to an open area where a couple of other trailers were parked. He whipped the truck and trailer around and backed them in.

Reno followed them down the trail and had the ramp on the trailer lowered and was on one of the new Hondas before Darren could get out of his truck. Reno revved the engine and then backed the machine off. Darren climbed onto the second one and followed Reno down the ramp. Once they had their new four-wheelers unloaded, Reno uncoupled the trailer from the truck and Darren pulled a couple of feet forward.

“Want to drive the ATV to our cabin?”

Porchia’s face reflected her surprise. “Really?”

“Sure. You ever been on one?”

“Not in years. Why don’t I drive the truck and you ride over?”

“If you’re sure?”

“I’m sure.”

Porchia slid into the driver’s seat. Darren got on his ATV, as did Reno. The guys headed back toward the main lodge with Porchia following.

Cabin five was directly across from the lodge, separated by the drive and the large fire-pit area.

Darren pulled into a dirt parking area and jumped from his machine. “Home sweet home for the next ten days.”

“This place is incredible.” Porchia hopped down from the truck. “Listen to how quiet it is.”

Wind rustled through the needles of the tall pines. Sunlight dappled on the ground. Somewhere in the distance, a bird trilled. Suddenly, the roar of an ATV broke the silence.

“Oh well. It was nice while it lasted,” she said.

The cabin was definitely a step up from Porchia’s expectations. When camping had first been mentioned, she’d envisioned tents, blow-up mattresses and hard ground. Then Darren had pointed out that they would have their own cabin.

Since the only camping in cabins she’d done was with her Brownie troop, she hadn’t been too excited at the prospect. At Brownie camp, a cabin had uncomfortable cots and communal bathrooms, not to mention the rats that had begged for food at night. She’d gotten used to the environment and loved being with her friends, but camping had never found its way into her favorite to-do list.

Cabin five was definitely not her Brownie cabin. The first clue was the cedar swing that hung from the rafters on the porch. Brownie cabins didn’t have swings, much less a nice porch.

When she opened the door, she didn’t need any more clues that this wasn’t Girl Scout camp. She walked into a small living room with hardwood floors covered with a large, geometrically designed area rug. A burgundy-colored leather sofa dominated the space. The sofa was angled to give a view of the flat-screen television and a large fireplace.

After walking through the living room, she took one step up into a small open kitchen equipped with a refrigerator, stovetop and microwave. The kitchen cabinets held dishes and glassware for four.

A short hall led to the single bedroom and bath. The king-sized bed swallowed most of the space in the small room. Also in the room was a tiny closet, a four-drawer dresser and fireplace. On the far wall, a door lead to a standard bathroom, if one considered multiple showerheads standard.

She dropped her bags on the bed and turned toward Darren who’d followed her journey through the cabin. She knew her mouth was hanging agape.

“You like?” he asked.

She got the impression he wasn’t kidding and that her reaction was important to him.

“I’m stunned. I’ll be honest. I wasn’t expecting anything this nice.”

A brief moment of relief shuttered across his face and then he smiled. “We have the newest cabin. I think Aunt Jackie was trying to impress you since there aren’t any two bedroom cabins. I think that living room sofa is a pull-out bed.”

“Impress me?” She frowned and then scoffed. “I’m nobody to impress. That’s for sure. Still, her intention or not, I’m blown away.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and brushed her mouth against his. “I love it.”

She’d kissed Darren before, but usually on the cheek or in completely different, non-romantic circumstances. This slight touch of lips ricocheted like a lightning bolt through her. She jerked her arms from around his neck, afraid to leave them there longer. She liked the feeling a little too much.

“Well, then,” she said on a long exhale. “I think I’ll get unpacked.”

Darren still stood where he’d been when she’d kissed him.

“You okay?” she asked.

He cleared his throat. “I’m fine. I’ll put my stuff in here. I’m sure there are some extra sheets for the couch.”

She cocked her hands on her hips. “Let’s talk about this, okay? We’re friends. Good friends. If you want to sleep on the sofa, or if you want me to sleep on it, fine. No problem.”

“Of course I don’t expect you to sleep on the sofa,” he said, a scowl darkening his expression. “What kind of man do you think I am?”

“I think you’re a wonderful man. Completely trustworthy. One who keeps his word once he gives it.” She swept her hand over the bed. “And this bed is huge. Can’t we share it? As friends. Neither of us should be subjected to sleeping on a sofa for two weeks. I promise to stay on my side and you on your side. Agreed?”

Her gut tugged at the thought of sharing a bed with Darren. She wasn’t a virgin. Hadn’t been in a long time, but on the other hand, she hadn’t shared her bed with a man in years either. She’d been telling the truth when she’d said she trusted him. It was her she was worried about.

Darren’s phone rang. Both of them looked at each other surprised.

“We have service,” he announced and then answered. “Hello. Sure. When? Okay. Heading out now.”

He click off his phone and shoved it in his pocket.

“That was my cousin, Travis. He needs help with something.”

She waved him away. “Go. I’m fine. I’ll finish unpacking and find something to do. We can finish discussing sleeping arrangements later.”

“Great.”

He stepped out of the bedroom and then came back. He caught her head between his hands and lowered his mouth to hers. She put her hands over his, loving how large and strong they felt under hers.

This wasn’t the simple brushing of mouths as before. His kiss was a full-on attack of lips and tongues. Wet and deep kisses that made her insides go soft and liquid. Kisses that had the power to make her forget all her objections to a romantic getaway with him.

When he bit gently on her bottom lip, she willingly allowed him to sweep his tongue in like an invading army. She sucked on his tongue, not wanting to let it go.

When he pulled back, she flicked her tongue out to taste the moisture he’d left behind.

His eyes were dilated and filled with lust. His breaths were ragged.

“Okay then” he said, dropping his hands and stepping back. “I’ll see you in a little bit.”

As soon as she heard the front door slam, she dropped onto the mattress. Holy Lord. That kiss had everything inside her melting, including every ounce of common sense. That man knew what to do with his mouth. She let out a long sigh.

And he was exactly the type of man her parents would hate. A cowboy. A man a little rough around the edges. Hard hands with calluses and bruises. A man who worked outside and sported a tan most of the year. A man who wasn’t afraid of manual labor, and did it every day, in fact. A man whose hair brushed along his collar because he’d been too busy to get a trim. She knew exactly how her parents would react to him if she were ever to bring him to Atlanta. They would waste no time in telling her he was totally wrong.

Expelling another sigh, she stood, determined to ignore her parents’ voices in her head about how she was wasting her life with her
little bakery
and needed to get serious about finding the right man to marry and producing the next generation.

Once she got her clothes hung up and stashed into drawers, she wandered onto the porch and took the swing. She bent her right knee and pulled her foot up onto the chair. With her left, she pushed off and set the swing in motion.

Darren had left ten minutes earlier when summoned to help Travis. She’d wondered what Travis was bringing that needed help.

Pretty soon, she didn’t have to wonder any longer.

A high-powered truck chugged into the drive towing an extended horse trailer. The truck and trailer pulled around the circle, turned by cabin four and followed the road that’d led to the field where Darren had stored his hauler.

Behind the truck, a white Cadillac Escalade SUV pulled up to the lodge steps and stopped. The back door flew open and a couple of boys around eight or nine spilled out, followed by a black and white dog. Olivia Montgomery Landry exited from the driver’s side.

“Adam. You and Norman get back here. Don’t let Daisy near that lake. Do you hear me?”

The boys didn’t return.

On the lodge porch, Olivia’s mother, Jackie, laughed, the sound carrying easily across the yard.

From the passenger side, Caroline Graham Montgomery, Olivia’s sister-in-law, stepped out, a broad grin also splitting her face.

Olivia threw her hands up in the air. “Fine,” she called. “Don’t come back. I’ll let your fathers handle this.”

That threat seemed to work, because both boys came running from behind the lodge, the dog still dry. They probably just hadn’t had time to make it all the way to the pond.

The sound of metal clanking and a ramp hitting the ground drew Porchia’s attention back to the long trailer. Darren walked a chestnut-colored horse out, followed by Travis with a black horse. A total of six horses were unloaded and released into the corral.

Once the horses were unloaded, Mitch Landry used two fingers to produce a sharp whistle. The two boys raced over and helped unload all the necessary tack.

Porchia rocked the porch swing in a gentle sway as she watched all the activity in the campground. Most of the other women were at the lodge. Isolating herself wasn’t a good way to start an extended vacation with people she would be interacting with every day.

She made her way over to the lodge and walked up the steps in time to hear Caroline say, “You know Travis. My husband is going to do what he wants. But this time, I think he’s right. Those horses needed some exercise, and with all the riders in this family, they’ll get what they need. Besides, this is a gorgeous place. Perfect for riding.” Her gaze met Porchia’s as she was gesturing to the area. “Porchia. What a nice surprise. I heard you were coming with Darren.”

The two women embraced. Porchia had supplied many a doughnut to Whispering Springs Medical Clinic where Caroline had a practice with Dr. Lydia Henson.

“You know everybody, right?”