Almost a Cowboy (26 page)

He drew it to his lips, kissing her knuckles. When he lingered over her ring finger, she tugged her hand free.

Heart plummeting, he looked down at his feet immersed in water.

Caroline made a quiet noise and slid her right hand into his. “Let’s see if we can climb those rocks and get a better look.”

He nodded and they set off, close but so far apart. She didn’t want to marry him. Hell, she might want out of this relationship right now and not know how to go about it.

After they returned home, would he be able to let her go if that were her wishes?

No, he couldn’t. She didn’t truly want to escape him. Deep down, he knew it. Sometimes when she looked at him… He scuffed a hand over his face. She’d suffered in her past marriage and was afraid.

Slow and steady.

He dipped at the knees. She tossed him a terrified glance.

Scooping his hands in the water, he threw it at her.

Shock crossed her face as the cool water soaked her throat and breasts. Before she could recover, he smacked the water with the heels of his hands, creating a wall of water that drenched her top and part of her hair. The next splash got her in the face.

“Oh, you’re asking for it, Utah Davies.” She kicked a sheet of water at him with one bare foot. He turned away and took the hit square in the ass, soaking his jeans.

When he swung back toward her, he glared. “You’re going down, woman.”

Her mask cracked, and she laughed. Wet hair straggled across her face. Nudging it back, she inched away.

He advanced, heart lifting at the sight of her smile. “You can’t outrun me.”

“I’ll try!”

He had a feeling they weren’t only talking about the splash war. He lowered his face and centered his gaze on her. “You can try, but in the end, you know you just want to get soaking wet in this water.”

She dropped her gaze and then it shot right back to him. Without responding, she backed off, tanned legs moving through the swirling depths.

He lunged for her, and she skipped to the side. He pawed the water, sending a wave over her face again. Sputtering, she tried to retreat.

In two big steps he caught her. Yanking her against his body, he let her feel how much he wanted her. And when their gazes met, he allowed her to see how much he loved her.

Shaking her head, she tried to pull free.

He ripped her off her feet and let his legs buckle. They plunged into the knee-deep water. As they hit the shallow sandy bottom, he found her mouth. At one time she’d escaped his love, but not again. Never again.

Swirling his tongue against hers, he projected every ounce of emotion he felt for her into their kiss. Tomorrow, with any luck, they’d find Franklin and Alexandria. The next day might turn up the last four Davies children. But right now—and forever after—it would be Utah and Caroline, Caroline and Utah. No matter what way he packaged it, the result would be the same.

•●•

Caroline’s fingers flew over the keys. Images from the national forest flipped through her mind like snapshots. The beauty of the park had inspired her to write about how some of the national treasures might someday be lost to industry and the lack of funds.

As she described the scenic trails she and Utah had spent half of the evening hiking, it was impossible for his handsome face not to take up most of the mental photograph.

She shook herself and struck the keys more forcefully. He was sprawled face down on the hotel bed, asleep. The familiar soles of his bare feet made her belly warm with affection. And his bare backside… She stole a peek and shuddered.

As hastily as possible without giving herself whiplash, she jerked back around and typed faster.

The article was shaping up into something she might be able to hand in to her editor. When they’d stopped for the night, Caroline had listened to two voice mails from Katherine and Katherine’s assistant asking about her progress.

Why they were harassing her when she hadn’t even neared the deadline date yet irritated Caroline. Sure, she’d never taken this long, but weren’t deadlines put in place so the writer could actually complete the work in a timeframe that also fit with her life?

She slowed, her mind shifting to the good-bye between Jefferson and Utah. The men who looked like twins had hugged in such a genuine fashion, Caroline’s throat had closed. Their apparent tie would extend beyond this whirlwind meeting. When Jefferson came to the Davies family ranch, she imagined him and Utah sharing a six-pack and talking late into the night.

Utah had told Caroline about Jefferson’s ex-partner in the force. He was in love with her. What kind of woman was she? Since the men were so close in appearance and actions, did their tastes run the same in women?

Without consciously thinking, Caroline clicked open her file on the Davies and began to pound out today’s events.

Half an hour later, she glanced at the clock display on her laptop. She read over what she’d written, more proud of the emotion and skill poured into the work than almost anything else she’d written in her life.

What would tomorrow bring? They believed Franklin and Alexandria lived in Virginia. So far they’d been pretty lucky in their guesses. Only Jefferson had tripped them up, and only for a short time.

Caroline flipped to the Internet browser she kept open while writing for ease of access to research. For what had to be the fifth time, she typed “Franklin Davies” into the search engine. A host of results flashed onto the screen. She scrolled through a few pages before she found one she’d read before—a social media page for a man living in a small town.

He was a Civil War reenactor and a curator of a museum. Didn’t sound much like a Davies man—at least those she knew so far. But then again, Bennett didn’t fit the rough and rugged image, either.

Could this be their brother? She bookmarked the page and leafed through a few more results. One was a financial advisor and another a lawyer. Just what the Davies needed in the family, she mused. It would be a miracle if the fifteen siblings didn’t spill blood over the will.

Of course, Gunnison, Clinton, and Utah might.

Hays too. He seems volatile enough to use his fists instead of his words.

Caroline searched for Alexandria next. No one named Alexandria Davies was living in the state. But if they found Franklin, they’d probably find Alexandria.

Fatigue washed over Caroline. She twisted in her hard chair and stared at the man in bed. The planes of his back called to her. She ached to strip off her clothes and stretch atop him. The thought of feeling her breasts pressed to his heated muscles made her nipples pucker.

She rose from her chair and took three steps to the edge of the bed. If she undressed and slipped in beside him, he’d murmur in his sleep and lock her to his body. Safe and loved.

The inner battle against committing herself to him raged, though. She’d already given too much of her heart to this man. She’d never love anyone like she loved Utah.

His hair curled on his nape, too long. Sinking her fingers into her palms, she suppressed the urge to tangle her fingers there. In the past hours since he’d taken her body in every way possible that night in Louisville, she’d tried like crazy to disengage herself.

And today at the falls…it had been nearly impossible not to end up kissing him back with all the fervor she felt in her soul.

But then she’d retreated again behind her barricade. How long before she confused him too much to bother to pursue her?

Sighing, she undressed to her bra and panties and climbed into bed beside him. He faced away from her, still lying on his stomach. Waves of heat thrown from his body kissed her side. Try as she might to remain inches apart, she couldn’t do it. She slid across the hard mattress until she came against harder muscle.

As soon as their skin touched, Utah flipped. Without opening his eyes, he snuggled her against him, chin resting on top of her head.
Just for tonight. Tomorrow I’ll gain my distance again.

Even as she thought this, she knew it was a lost war. Her heart beat in time to his, and soon their breathing matched too. When he moved his jaw, the stubble there caught in her hair, trapping her more completely.

Franklin Davies dressed in fitted black pants and a white shirt rolled over his muscled forearms. His dark hair was worn slightly longer, closer to the Utah’s than the other brothers. If not for his black wire glasses, he’d look like Clinton.

When Utah and Caroline joined the museum tour, Franklin froze partway through his welcome to the guests taking the last tour of the evening.

He peered at Utah, tilting his head as if to get a different angle and hoping to find he didn’t look at all like their shared father.

Utah flexed his fingers around Caroline’s hand. She squeezed.

While he’d had no desire to meet Franklin this way—at his workplace—he’d found it impossible to catch the man on a break. Apparently Franklin was so dedicated to his job he worked from seven thirty in the morning to seven at night, running tours constantly, never stopping even for a lunch break. He was more than dedicated to his passion for history.

Utah and Caroline had waited the entire day to get him alone, but finally desperate to move forward, Caroline had suggested they join the last tour of the evening and get his attention.

The museum was a good size and boasted artifacts from the time period of Columbus. But the Civil War artifacts seemed to really get Franklin riled up, if the pitch of his voice revealed anything.

“Let’s hear where you’re from, folks,” Franklin projected his voice over the small crowd. He pointed to someone in the front but didn’t remove his gaze from Utah.

“Aberdeen, Mississippi.”

Franklin tipped his jaw toward a man and woman on the outskirt of the group. “You?”

“Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.”

Franklin ripped his attention from Utah. “Gettysburg! We’re going to have a real battle of North and South right here, folks.”

A small ripple of amusement spread through the crowd. Caroline extracted a tiny notepad from her purse and released Utah’s hand in order to ease the pen from the spiral binding.

She scribbled a few things and then shot Utah a guilty look.

Before he could wonder what was going on in that pretty little head of hers, Franklin stabbed a long, thick finger in Utah’s direction. “You, sir. Where are you from?”

His voice was more cultivated than Utah’s or the brothers he’d grown up with. But it held a Southern drawl too. As their gazes locked, Utah’s chest tightened another fraction.

“Utah.”

Something passed over the man’s face. Awareness? Did he know Hollis Davies had grown up in Utah?

Franklin gave a distracted nod and half turned away, breaking eye contact. “If y’all ready, we’re going to move to the next room. Here you’ll see…”

Utah listened to the knowledge spill from his brother. Guts and glory of the South, tools used, weapons. His lust for the topic oozed from his every word, even after giving the same tour every hour for the entire day.

Once in a while, Caroline would scrawl in her notebook, but when Utah tried to see what she was writing, she flipped the cover closed.

As the tour group entered another space filled with a mannequin sporting authentic officer uniforms from the Revolutionary, Civil, and both World Wars, Franklin drifted very close to Utah.

They stood three steps apart. Utah fell still as Franklin sized him up. His brother was lean and ropey, much like Utah had been in his youth. He might be fresh out of college.

Pride infused Utah for all of his brother’s knowledge. With a shock, he realized they did share more than DNA. Utah also loved history.

Someone asked a question during the lull in dialogue, and Franklin pinched the bridge of his nose before he replied.

Caroline clicked her pen and wrote two whole pages in her small notebook. That gesture had been an uncanny copy of Gunnison’s. Was she taking notes about this event?

For another forty-five minutes Franklin educated the masses about the land, war, and lives of the people. By the time the tour was wrapping up, Utah was tense with the need to just shout out his news.