Cowboy Country (10 page)

"What?"

"Nothin’. It’s one more piece of the puzzle."

"Puzzle?"

"The one called Jacie Margaret Hawkins."

* * * *

An hour later, the two of them waved goodbye to Marion and were on the road toward Amarillo. The sun had set, bathing the inside of her rig in darkness, but it didn’t stop the penetrating looks coming from Tucker. Anticipation rolled down her back, settling low in her belly. What would happen when they reached Vegas, she didn’t know and really didn’t want to think about right now.

Right now, she struggled with the need to kill him.

"You’re tailgating the other truck."

She grit her teeth.

"Slow down. You’re driving too fast."

She bit her lip.

"It’s snowing. Maybe we should put on the chains. You do have chains, right?"

Her eyes narrowed and she cussed under her breath.

The tires of the truck hit the rumble strip along the right side of the road.

"Stay on the road, Jacie."

All right! That’s it!

The next off ramp, she took it.

"What are we pulling off for?"

She didn’t answer. The shoulder of the road looked like a good spot to her. She slowed the truck to a stop, set the emergency brake and cut the engine. Without a word, she opened her door, climbed out and slammed it shut.

Don’t kill him. It’s fine. He’s has no idea…

"What the hell is your problem?" he snapped, stopping in front of her as she paced back and forth in front of the truck.

Darkness surrounded them except for one streetlight sitting several hundred feet down the off ramp. Huge snowflakes fell in a curtain of white, blanketing the ground and crunching under her feet.

"One, two, three, four, five." She stopped and put her hands on her hips. "I promised God not to hit you, but you are pushing your luck."

"I don’t understand."

She fished the keys to her truck out of her pocket, threw them at him and almost laughed as they hit him square in the chest, then dropped onto the ground at his feet.

"You drive."

"I can’t drive your truck."

"Well you sure as hell think you can."

"What?"

"You’ve done nothing but bitch about my driving since we left the diner. I’ve had it. If you think you can do better, do it, buddy. I’m not driving another mile."

Snow coated his hair and shoulders while they stood toe-to-toe, their warm breath puffing out in a white cloud between them.

After a couple of moments, she thought she heard a whispered apology, but she couldn’t be sure. "Excuse me? Are you driving because we need to get moving."

"I’m sorry, darlin’," he said, closing the small distance between them.

His hands cupped her face. The cold of his fingers felt frigid against her skin. The freezing chill of his lips brushed hers. He lifted his head and stared into her eyes.

"I’m used to being in control. A woman having power over my destiny is a little hard for me to swallow. Even a man in a position like that would drive me nuts, but I’m willing to bow to your expertise with the truck drivin’ thing," he said, dropping his hands.

"Do you promise to shut up and let me do my job?"

"I’ll work on it, but you have to promise me somethin’ too."

"What?"

"If I’m making you mad, tell me. I don’t want to fight with you the whole trip."

Okay. This is a bit weird. Never has a man wanted me to let him know if I’m pissed because something he’s done. Compromise?

"I trust you with my life and my prize possession," he murmured, then brushed his lips against hers again. "Now. Can we get back in the truck? Otherwise there won’t be anythin’ left to have sex with you because it’s all going to fall off."

"We aren't having sex, Tucker."

"A man can hope, can't he?" he asked with his charm-your-panties-off smile.

"Wimp. It’s not freezing out here."

"Easy for you to say. You've got a heavy coat on."

"We aren’t too far out of Amarillo. Maybe another hour."

"Thank God! A warm bed would be really nice right about now."

"Easy slugger." She scowled and cussed when she heard a loud bang come from the rear of her rig.

CHAPTER FIVE

"What the hell? If your damned bull is causing problems, I’m going to have issues."

The bang came again as they hurried to the back of the trailer to look inside. The bull banged his horns against the side of the trailer and her mare whinnied.

"Easy, girl," Jacie cooed, stroking the animal’s nose through the window in the side. "He’s being a typical male, I would think. Getting shit all riled up."

"He’ll be fine until we reach Amarillo. You said you knew somewhere we could stop to let them out?"

"Yeah. Once we get on the road, I’ll call and warn Phillip we’re coming."

"Phillip?" he asked and she raised an eyebrow at the catch in his voice. If she didn’t know better, she could swear a little jealousy tinged the one word.

"He’s an old friend."

"It’s none of my business."

"No, but I’m telling you anyway. I try to stop every time I come through here to see him anyway," she told him as she climbed into the cab. "I’ve known him since I started driving trucks. He used to drive this highway all the time too, but he’s retired now."

She picked up her cell to dial her friend’s number.

"Hey, Jacie. Are you in town?"

"Not yet, but soon. Mind if I drop in?"

"Of course not. You don’t have to ask. Your room is ready as always. When you going to be here?"

"An hour to ninety minutes. Leave it to me to be traveling during the one snow storm of the year in Amarillo."

His warm laughter could be heard on the other end.

"I have a couple of animals with me not including the one riding in the cab of my truck. Do you have room in the barn for tonight?"

Tucker gave her a warning glance.

"Of course, honey. I’ll make sure Juan has two spots cleaned out. Will that do?"

"Perfect. I’ll see you in a bit."

"Be careful, sweetheart. The roads might be slick."

"Yes, sir."

After clicking the phone shut, she set it on the center console. She could feel the looks and sly glances coming her way from Tucker's side of the truck. A sharp intake of breath here or a clutch of his hand on the armrest on his seat, gave away his uneasiness, but he didn't say a word. Silence enveloped them for the rest of the ride into Amarillo. He seemed lost in thought or he didn’t want to piss her off by saying anything about her driving.

The snow fell in a blanket of white, covering both sides of the highway. Slushy ruts gave her a path to follow while she kept her hands on the steering wheel and an eye on the trailer.
I’m praying they don’t close the highway.
It took a little more than an hour to get to Phil’s place with the snow falling, but as they rolled through the gates of his ranch, she knew she’d chosen wisely. Texas wasn’t known for snowfall, but it happened sometimes and when it did, it usually shut things down.

A single story white ranch house reflected the headlights of her truck as she pulled into the yard. The huge red barn sitting off to the rear of the house was her destination. The bull and her mare could romp and run in Phillip’s arena for the night.

"This place belongs to your friend?" Tucker asked, looking out the side window.

"Yep."

"Nice set up."

Once she parked the rig, they stepped out and walked to the back of the trailer.

"Hey, chica. Phillip said you were coming in."

"Gosh, it’s good to see you, Juan. How’s the family?" she asked, hugging the burly Mexican who had been with Phil since his accident.

"Good. Maria will be disappointed to have missed you. She is in Houston visiting her mama."

"It’s happens, I guess." With a tip of her head, she introduced Tucker. "Juan, this is Tucker Marshall. The bull in the trailer is his. I’m running him to Vegas."

The two men shook hands as she turned at the sound of squeaking wheels. Phillip rolled out from inside the barn with a huge smile of his face. Two years before, Phillip jackknifed his big rig in an attempt to avoid hitting a school bus full of kids. The driver of the bus had been drunk and went straight through a stop sign. Eighteen-wheelers can’t stop on a dime. The only way to keep from killing the kids on the bus was to crank the wheel hard. In the process, a spinal cord injury sustained in the accident paralyzed him from the waist down. He now only got around in a wheelchair.

"There’s my girl!"

She laughed and dropped into his lap. "You look great, Phil."

"Not as good as you, baby. Where you been?"

"All over hell and back. I got stuck in Oklahoma when I stopped for the night. Some asswipe slashed my tires because I wouldn’t hook up with him." After a quick kiss to Phillip’s cheek, she climbed to her feet and waved Tucker over. "Phillip Cushing, this is Tucker Marshall. Tucker, this is Phillip."

Once the two men shook hands, she could see the look in Tucker’s eyes that said he didn’t like Phillip. She wondered if it was a male thing or if something else might have caused the look.

"Tucker Marshall, huh. South Austin?" Phillip asked, his gaze raking Tucker from the top of his hat to the tips of his boots.

"Yeah. Problem?"

"No. I’ve heard of you. That’s all. Or should I say your reputation with bulls and the ladies."

Ladies? What the hell?

"Tucker helped me out in Oklahoma."

"Did he? Interesting." Phillip cocked an eyebrow and looked at her like he wanted to say something, but instead, he told her to situate the trailer up to the barn doors and they could unload the animals.

"Have you heard anything about the weather for tomorrow, Phillip?"

"The snow should move on by then and you should have clear sailing on into Sin City."

"Wonderful news. The quicker I get there, the better," she replied. "I’ll be back in a minute. You guys play nice."

One look over her shoulder told her the men would probably exchange words before she returned.

Within fifteen minutes, the animals were fed and bedded down for the night. The snow continued to fall, but in small popcorn kernel size. She hoped the temperature wouldn’t drop anymore. Driving on a sheet of ice sucked.

"I changed the sheets on the bed and there are clean towels in the bathroom," Phillip said with a questioning look in her direction. "You are welcome to the other spare room, Tucker."

She glanced at Tucker as one eyebrow arched over his left eye. Her original plans hadn’t included staying at Phillip’s, but keeping the animals locked up in the trailer overnight wasn’t a good idea. The rest of the trip might be trying for both animals, especially if they ran into bad weather.

"Thanks, Phillip. I’m sure we’ll appreciate the soft bed. The motel I stayed at in Oklahoma sucked. I don't know how good the bed in the trailer is."

"It's passable," Tucker replied. "I've slept in better, but it'll do in a pinch and it's queen-sized."

"Phillip already said you could use the other spare room in the house if you don't want to stay in the trailer tonight."

"I would appreciate it. The trailer is okay, but my propane tank is probably getting low. It's what heats the thing."

"It's settled then. You can have your room, Jacie. Tucker can have the room at the other end of the hall."

Way to be obvious. Apparently Phillip thinks Tucker and I are sleeping together.

The look he gave her told her he didn't approve of what he thought she was doing.

"Can I talk to you a minute?" she asked Phillip as she walked far enough away, she hoped Tucker wouldn't hear their conversation. "Is there a problem, Phil, because if there is, we can go somewhere else."

"Why do you ask? I'm not telling you who to be with."

"I'm sorry." She shrugged. "Maybe I'm jumping to conclusions here, but I get a distinctive chill between you and Tucker."

He stared off into the distance. "I don't want to see you get hurt, Jacie. He comes across as the type to love 'em and leave 'em."

"I don't want any kind of relationship, Phillip. I like the way my life is going right now."

"You like not having a permanent home? A home to raise your children? A husband to love you and take care of you?"

This conversation is getting a little weird.
"I don't need a husband and I'm not ready for kids." She narrowed her gaze on the man she'd called friend for a number of years. "What's with this the permanency talk?"

Phillip took her hand and kissed her fingers. "I care about you, Jacie. I always have."

She captured her bottom lip between her teeth as she pulled her hand from his grasp. "Phillip. You are a great friend and I care about you too, but—"

"But you aren't in love with me," he interrupted with a scowl.

"I'm sorry. No. When I do settle down it will be with the man who can take my breath away by coming into the room or smiling at me." Tucker stood off in the distance with his boot propped up on the trailer's rear fender. The heat in his eyes went straight to her belly. "The kind of man who makes my stomach quiver with desire so strong, I can't wait to get him alone. One who doesn't care about who my parents are and how much money I have in the bank."

With a tip of his head in Tucker's direction, Phillip asked, "Does he know?"

"Know what?"

"That your family owns the biggest Tennessee Walking Horse ranch in the South and you've got a multi-million dollar trust fund just waiting for you to settle down?"

"No, he doesn't and I'm not telling him. It doesn't matter anyway. Tucker and I are only traveling partners for the trip, nothing more. He has his life in Austin. I have mine on the road."

"If you wanted nothing more than to get laid, I would have taken care of you."

"Look, if this is going to get awkward, then we can move on. I don't want a physical relationship with you. You are my friend, but if it's going to get messy between us because I won't sleep with you, then we'll leave."