Susan Mallery - Straight From The Hip

“What about the other days?” she asked. “You have facilities and beds. Why not do something with that? Get a manager in for a B and B. If you already own the buildings and the land, the marginal expense would be minimal. If nothing else, keep the rooms in use. Studies show an empty house actually breaks down faster than one used. You’d be protecting your investment while bringing in income.”

There was silence. She glanced between the two men but couldn’t see enough to know what they were thinking.

“What?” she asked.

“I guess you really are a Titan,” Nick said slowly.

“Like I was lying about my last name?” What did that have to do with anything?

“He means you have business sense in your blood,” Aaron told her. “You rattled all that off without thinking about it. Do you have a degree in business or something?”

“No. I’ve never been to college. It’s not a big deal. Everyone knows this kind of stuff. It’s common sense.”

“Not as common as you’d think,” Aaron told her. “Interesting.”

But Nick was quiet and Izzy wished she knew what he was thinking.

“Okay, enough about what Nick should do with the ranch,” Aaron said. “Everyone focus on me. Nick, you’ve worked out what you’ll be doing for the team-building?”

“Uh-huh. Same as the last two.”

“Good. Izzy will assist you. I’ll be in charge of standing around looking good.”

Izzy laughed. “I’m sure you’ll excel.”

“I always do.”

She turned to Nick. “How will I be helping?”

“I’m going to send you up the ropes first,” he said. “And across the bridge. When the guys see a girl doing it, they’ll be forced to participate.”

“Okay. Sure.” While she appreciated the psychology behind his plan, she was a little worried about the actual execution of the plan. “Will I, um, get to practice ahead of time?”

“If you want.”

“It’s probably for the best. So I know what I’m doing.”

“You two work this out among yourselves,” Aaron said, as he pushed back his chair. “I have calls to make.”

He left the room. Izzy turned to Nick. “What else happens at the retreats?”

“Nothing that interesting. The company human resource departments always have their own ideas about different activities. Holding hands and singing. That kind of crap.”

She chuckled. “Stop holding back. Tell me what you really think.”

“Yeah, I know. I’m sure it works fine for them. The rest of it is easy. Climb the tree. Cross the rope bridge. A little rappelling. Nothing too challenging. Every now and then someone wants a fire walk.”

She straightened. “Seriously? Walking on hot coals? Can we do that?”

“It’s not a big deal.”

“I’ve never done it. I’ve heard it’s actually pretty easy. I’d love to try.”

“Don’t get out the barbecue set. You need special coals and some training by someone who knows what he’s doing. Maybe next time.”

“I’m going to tell Aaron to book a retreat with a fire walk,” she said, wondering if not being able to see the coals would make it more or less scary.

“Just my luck. He’ll probably listen.”

“I hope so. And don’t sound so disgruntled. Aaron is an important part of your business.”

“I see he’s been talking about himself. His favorite topic.”

“Aaron is great and you know it.”

“Maybe.”

“You’d be lost without him.”

“Don’t make it more than it is.”

She heard the affection in his voice. “He says he’s responsible for growing your business to where it is today.”

“Of course he does.”

“How did you meet?”

She wasn’t sure why she asked the question. Aaron had told her the story, but she suddenly wanted to hear it from Nick’s point of view.

He hesitated. “In Dallas. He was in a bar.”

“You two went to the same bar? The same kind of bar? Gee, Nick, is there something you want to tell me?”

“It wasn’t a gay bar,” he growled. “It was a regular kind of place. I was with a friend.”

“Girl or guy.”

“Not the point.”

She couldn’t see for sure, but she would guess he’d clenched his teeth. Nick was amazingly easy to mess with. Which probably should have made her guilty for pushing his buttons, but it didn’t.

He sighed. “I went into the bar with a friend and Aaron was…” He hesitated again. “He stood out. I could see there was going to be trouble, so I got him out of there.”

Izzy frowned. “And then what?”

“We talked and he seemed like someone who knew what he was doing, so I invited him here to see what he could do with the business.”

The story was light-years away from what Aaron had told her. What about the part where he’d been beat up and Nick had saved his life? Someone wasn’t telling the truth.

She was about to say that, when another possibility occurred to her. Maybe Nick didn’t want to admit what had happened. Because he was embarrassed? No, that didn’t make sense. Guys loved to brag about how they saved the world. Or at least their little piece of it. Then what? Why wouldn’t he want her to know he’d been incredibly heroic? Was it just his style?

Once again not being able to see frustrated her because she had a feeling Nick’s eyes would give her plenty of hints. That she would be able to read the truth on his face. The disadvantage annoyed her. It was like the kiss. How was she supposed to know what he’d been thinking? Had he enjoyed himself or had it just been a mercy kiss?

“Izzy?”

It was her second impulsive act in five minutes, only this one wasn’t about speaking. She put one hand on the side of his face to guide her, the other on his shoulder, then leaned in and kissed him.

He wasn’t expecting the contact. She felt his surprise in the tension in his body. For a second he didn’t react, but she held her ground, moving her mouth against his. Teasing. Promising.

One heartbeat. Two.

He grabbed her arms with both hands and held on tight. At the same time his tongue pushed into her mouth, plunging and exploring with enough heat to set Texas on fire. She was instantly lost in erotic sensations as she strained to get closer, kiss deeper. To feel everything.

His mouth was hungry, giving and taking. She met him stroke for stroke. Every part of her body yelled for attention. Her breasts ached, her legs trembled and that place between her thighs clenched tightly.

Nick pulled back and stood. “What the hell is wrong with you?”

Izzy drew in a slow breath and smiled. Oh, yeah. That was good. There was no mercy kissing going on in this world. Nick wanted her as much as she wanted him. Maybe more.

She rose to her feet and felt like a cat in the sun. All languid and content. If she knew how to purr, she would have.

“Just checking,” she said. The confidence she’d been missing since the explosion all rushed back. “You’re good-looking, right? My sisters said you were hot, but they might have been saying that to be nice. Because of what you’re doing for me.”

“What?” He sounded both confused and outraged. “Your sisters?”

“I’m asking because I generally date good-looking guys. I know it’s shallow of me, but it’s a standard. Part of my charm, I guess.”

“We’re not dating.”

She held in a laugh. There it was. The clench-teeth voice she was growing to adore. If only she could see the look on his face. She would bet his eyes glowed with annoyed fire and that he had tightened his fists in frustration. It was good to be her.

“I know.” She reached up and patted his cheek. “I mean, we’re already living together. But we’re involved and I do have my reputation to think of. Don’t worry about it. I’ll ask Aaron. He’ll tell me the truth. Hmm, now that I think about it, Aaron’s always going on about how yummy you are, so never mind. I have my answer.”

“We are not involved.”

She tilted her head. “Silly man. You can’t kiss me like that and think there aren’t going to be consequences.”

He muttered something she couldn’t hear.

“Vowing never to kiss me again?” she asked with a smile. “We both know that’s not going to happen.” She moved closer, until they were touching everywhere and she could feel his arousal. “Want to test the theory?”

She expected him to cut and run. Instead he ran his fingers down the side of her face, then rubbed his thumb across her mouth.

“This is a mistake,” he said in a low voice that made her shiver. “All of it. I don’t get involved. Ever.”

Her mouth went dry. She had to clear her throat before she could speak. “Are you challenging me? I love a good challenge.”

“I’ll bet you do.”

He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her with a hungry passion that made her ache with longing. He claimed her with his mouth, even as his hands moved up and down her back.

She wanted to get closer to him, to crawl inside him. She wanted them both naked. She wanted to touch every inch of him, and have him touch her in return. She wanted breathless cries of surrender. She wanted him filling her, taking her, making her scream.

He pulled back. “I can’t do this.”

She stared at him, wishing she could see his face as more than blurry features she couldn’t make clear. “Why?”

“Because I can’t be what you need.”

“Cryptic guy statements never do it for me. Let’s talk about something else. Like how much you want me.”

“Wanting you isn’t the problem,” he said and abruptly left.

He was good at leaving, she thought. Too good. Which meant he did it a lot. Fine by her-she wasn’t looking for anything permanent. She wanted Nick and she would get him. In her bed…or his.

She laughed as she headed for the barn. For the first time since the explosion, she felt fully like herself again. Izzy was back and Nick had better watch out.

GARTH PARKED HIS CAR and reached for the grande latte from Starbucks. Extra foam, two sugars, just the way Kathy liked it. He tried to get over to Titanville every few days, but didn’t always make it. Sometimes he got busy, sometimes he couldn’t face Kathy’s happy smile and trusting expression.

He told himself she was fine. That she didn’t remember much about what she’d been like before. He told himself that she loved the pet store and that he should be relieved he was able to take care of her. Sometimes he nearly believed it. Most of the time he didn’t.

He’d bought the pet store for her about twelve years ago. He had a manager in place and plenty of employees. Kathy didn’t have any specific responsibilities. She mostly took care of the animals and decided which ones got adopted by whom. He’d heard she had a gift for matching the right person with the right pet. Not that he gave a damn. As long as she enjoyed her day, the rest of the world could go to hell.

He walked into the brightly lit store and nodded at the teenager behind the counter.

“Hi, Mr. Duncan,” she said.

“Morning, Luanne. How are things?”

Code for “How is Kathy today?”

“Good. She’s good.”

He tried to remember when his mother had changed to “Kathy.” Because that was how he thought of her now. He had for years. She didn’t mind. To her, their relationship was in the past tense, as if it were a story someone had told her. She used to have a son. He didn’t know what he was to her now or how she thought of him. She was always happy to see him, but she was happy to see everyone. It wasn’t personal.

He heard voices in the back of the store and walked toward them. He would guess that Kathy was interviewing someone to discover if they were worthy of a bird or a kitten. But when he stepped around a large display of cat litter, he saw a tall woman in a familiar uniform. She looked up at him, raised an eyebrow, then returned her attention to Kathy.

“You have a visitor,” Dana Birch, Titanville deputy, said.

Kathy turned toward him. Her whole face lit up as she smiled broadly. “You came to see me.”

She always sounded surprised, as if each visit were a treat.

“Hi, Kathy,” he said as he approached. He kissed her cheek, then handed her the coffee. “Just how you like it.”

Kathy took the container in both hands and sighed. “He always brings me coffee. Isn’t Garth nice?”

Dana eyed him with all the affection one would give a colony of ants at a picnic. “He’s just swell.” She nodded. “Garth.”

“Dana.”

She tapped the name tag on her dark blue shirt. “Deputy Birch.”

“But we’re so close now.”

He didn’t like that she was here. The need to protect his own made him want to lash out. He held back because this wasn’t the time.

While he and Dana had never been officially introduced, he knew who she was. She was more than one of the deputies in town, she was close friends with the Titan sisters. She knew all about his plan to take down the family and was determined to stop him. Objectively he knew that her perseverance and loyalty were a testament to her good character. But if she got in his way, he would crush her just like he planned to crush Jed Titan and his daughters.