Drawn to a Cowboy (Brother Duet #1) (15 page)

“So now that we have that all figured out, what the fuck is up with you? You have never been so agreeable to my ideas. I thought for sure you would give me shit about including a bleu cheese to our meat selection. I imagined hearing, ‘too fussy,’ I’m a little disappointed.”

“Really? You want to argue over cheese?” I shook my head in disbelief.

“I want to argue with someone, yes. I want interaction with someone.”

“Oh, aren’t we pathetic? Still having your own woman problems?” I asked, he nodded.

“You too?” My head moved in the same motion for more than just my problems with a curvy, red head. Yes, Jade fueled my long face, but the fucking twins threatened to break my heart in two completely. I couldn’t lose the ranch and I couldn’t tell Spencer, not when I had him about to invest his expertise and his portion of our trust fund. Right or wrong, I let him think that my shitty mood was all because of pussy, scared of one and being one. And prayed that I never had to tell him about the bastards.

“We can’t talk about this woman shit, we’ll lose our masculinity club cards.”

“Life was easier when we were kids.” I watched him take a big gulp of amber liquid from his pint size, pub glass.

“Was it?”
I couldn’t wait to grow up and runaway.

“Hell, yes. Playing cowboys and Indians. Now, you’re making me into a cowboy. You’re like the rest of the country pushing the Indians out.” I laughed like crazy, he joined in.

“I needed a good chuckle, thanks.”

We spent the rest of the evening chugging locally brewed ales, talking about the good parts of life in the city, then stumbled home. Up early, my head throbbed. Not a good way to be when we had shopping and packing to get done back at the ranch for our trial
gourmet chuck wagon
trip, as we had coined that as we were bellied up to the bar the night before.

Driving up to the lodge with supplies, Norma and Clay stood greeting our newest group of visitors. With the help of the kitchen staff and two of Spencer’s chefs, we unloaded and they began brainstorming while I checked in with Norma.

“She’s not here, she’s gone.”

“What do you mean she’s gone?” My heart raced as my chest tightened.

“Relax, not gone for good. Although, that will be coming soon enough. Nothing to keep her here once she’s done.”

“Where did she go?”

“Well, that part I can’t tell you because I don’t know exactly. But she didn’t go off alone, she’s in safe hands.”
Safe hands. Who the hell’s hands was she in?
I stared daggers into her. “Oh. That got to you. Good to see.”

“Stop playing games with me.” I knew she was playing with me, I hated it.

“A friend of hers named Lark flew in and they took off for a girly trip. She should be back by the time you come down from the mountain. You didn’t bother to tell her you were running off. She’s a good person. If I was her, I would’ve thrown the paintings on
your sacred front porch,
and hightailed it out of here.” Her remarks told me that Jade gave her the lowdown. “But she’s a better person. Loyal. Don’t think that she blabbed to me. I heard her ask you about the porch. I also saw you slam your door in her face.”

“I didn’t!”

“Figuratively, you shut down. Closed yourself off.”

“I get it. I’ll talk to her when I get back.” Hopefully, I would know what to say by then. At that moment, I had no idea.

Gone, I had no distractions. Equal parts of me were battling. It scared me that I was possibly seeing our future—the lack of a future. Did I want a future with her? On the flip-side, it was a blessing to be focused on getting two chefs acclimated to riding a horse. We also had to sort out using saddlebags for cooking materials and the food. Along with Spencer, his two guys and three of mine, we had four ranch-hands from the cattle ranch that was supplying us with livestock to move. Our route was from their main corral to a pasture above and beyond our meadows.

At one time, the property was more of a dude ranch and had more animals aside from our large array of horses and mules: cattle, chickens, roosters and some goats. Moving more into resort mode, Hank sold off everything except for the pack animals and a few chickens and roosters. Horseback riding is our biggest draw, our guests and ones from other vacation facilities come to saddle up. Every day throughout the summer we are booked with riders. Other times of the year, we get hunters and other adventure seekers using our horses and guides to take them out into the wilderness.

Bright and sunny on the morning of our departure, we outfitted all of the horses with saddlebags and took off up the mountain. Crossing the meadow, before heading down into the next valley to get the cattle, I was hit with memories of Jade. Our tent, the Columbine… Fairy flowers… I could see her lying beneath me. My lips tingled as a breeze whipped across my face, it was like I could feel her mouth on mine. My pants got snug as I thought about sliding inside of her warmth. We were just starting out, I had to focus on tasks at hand. I certainly didn’t need to fall off my horse, I would’ve been the laughing-stock of the bunch. Giving my horse a little nudge, we moved quicker through the area.

The rest of the trip was eventful, never a free minute except when we slept: From arriving at the cattle ranch where the guests were instructed about what was going to happen and what they would each be doing on the drive until we moved out. These excursions were not for anyone that wanted to laze about—there was always something to do. There were times that rain and wind elements made the rides not so enjoyable and there was even more work to be done. Luckily, we had amazing weather the whole time.

Spencer and his cook staff fared well on the journey and the food they prepared was outstanding. Of course, there were a few trials and tribulations to deal with, but nothing catastrophic, overall everything went smoothly. The things that didn’t work so well, were added to a do not repeat list.

We did as planned and delivered the cattle to their designated grazing spot. They were to remain there until another group of city cowboys and cowgirls would arrive to round them up. Like our group, they would wrangle them back to the Big Q Ranch where we had started our ride. Successfully finished with our three-day cattle drive, we were guided swiftly by our horses back to the stables. It had always amazed me how they always knew which way to go, and that it was time. When they were ready, it was hard to get them to pull back. Funny, I was feeling like the horses, I couldn’t wait to get back to the barn myself.

Dismounted, with everything put away, I didn’t see the pretty sight or smell the distinct fragrance that usually made me dizzy with want. I wondered, had she not returned or had she done as Norma said she would do if she were in her shoes? I hoped not. And then I received my answer as I went to join a few of the guys from the trip in the dining room, and heard one of them whistle. Turning around as I was walking up the front steps of the lodge to go inside, I saw Jade with a woman—that I imagined was Lark—walking with a stack of pizza boxes and a case of beer into the barn. They were hard to miss, both of them beautiful.

“Check out those ladies!”

“Damn! I don’t know about you, but that fiery red head is fine!”

“She looks like that Jessica bunny chick.”

“I’d fuck her like a jackrabbit!”

Suddenly, I was happy that she wasn’t coming to eat dinner with us. That she was safe from these savages with my guys.
She was safe with my guys, wasn’t she?
They would never put their hands on her inappropriately. I hoped!

Jade

O
ur girl getaway to a luxury resort and spa three hours north of the ranch was delightful. So beautiful, and yet, we really didn’t pay much attention to our surroundings, it was just a great time away from men, relaxing and receiving much needed pampering. That last item was checked off our list as we dedicated one day for a bevy of girly spa services: facials, waxing, pedicures and manicures. The other two days were spent lounging by the swimming pool with drinks, mocktails for me. The smell of alcohol had been turning my stomach for the last couple weeks, but I was all in for the good food and company. Both of which were outstanding.

“How is it being back in LA?”

“I’m loving it. The fashion stuff, anyway. The track shit, not so much. Thank God for the charity event, and then again, damn the event. If not for the distraction, I would go crazy. However if there wasn’t the big hoopla for me to oversee, I wouldn’t have to set foot on the grounds.”

“You would no matter what, it’s in your blood. Besides, if you want to see your father ever, you have to visit Santa Anita.”

“He’s actually slowing down a bit. He brought in a new guy. Hot guy! Damn, he is a fine looking slab of meat.” She laughed as she fanned herself.

“Oh really!? Enough that you’d be willing to shovel that shithead to the road apple pile where he belongs?” Wrong words, I realized as her face dropped from playful to sullen. Regroup! Regroup! “How is the famous Scott Lovingier?”

“He’s training the wickedly, hot stud, Cahill, to one day take over, or at least help him out. Not sure how that’s going to work out. This guy is so fucking cocky, he makes Drayden look like Mister Charming. And we both know that’s not true.”

Lark and Drayden, their drama had been going on long before I met them down at the Del Mar race track. Every summer, July to September, the race horses were in town. When I was a teenager, my grandfather and a couple of his cowpoke friends decided to buy a horse which turned into five or so over the years under the name Cowboy-unga Ranch. Living not far from the track, many race families rented or owned a house near ours.

During the summer of my grandfather’s first year as a horse owner, I was thrown into teaching fellow race track teens how to surf since Jinxie was off on one of her big adventures. Skylar (as she was originally introduced to me), Drayden and Reese were part of the group. Drayden was too cool to learn from a girl. He even laughed right in my face as he sized me up. I didn’t understand how Lark found him so dreamy, nightmarish was a better word for him. But I could see it in her eyes from day one, that girl was a goner for him—hook, line and sinker, she was caught up in his evil net, and he knew it. Or so I thought, he did seem to be a bit jealous of
her
pal, more than his, Reese.

The stellar opposite of his longtime track friend, I was sure they couldn’t be friends off-track, Reese was so nice and polite. He was quite eager to learn from me. I may have forgotten to mention he was so cute! He proved to be a good source of learning for me, as well. He was the guy that topped me on a lifeguard tower one summer. A first for both of us, it was quite awkward. We laughed a lot as we fumbled to the end of a non-orgasmic session for me. We agreed that teaching me to French kiss was a bigger success.

I thought about that first kiss the other night when Sage and I had stumbled onto a game of spin the bottle going on with some of the teen guests at the ranch. That happened to be how each of us had had our first boy-girl kisses.

If only life was so simple and innocent like that first romantic encounter. Men problems, a little more grown up, were more complicated. Real feelings seemed to get in the way and hinder romance. Young, you jumped right into a thrilling embrace with no thoughts of tomorrow, yesterday or beyond that moment. Older, the brain fucked everything up.

Lark and I were the perfect example, moping over men. I enjoyed every minute of our days together. Knowing you weren’t alone in the shit pool of men trouble was comforting. Unfortunately, we both had to go back to our own source of grief. Mine would come sooner than hers as she was going to stay a couple more days at the ranch with me.

Lark fit in just fine with the crew, better than I had expected. Waking up alone the morning before she was to leave, I heard a commotion… a lot of motion. I kept expecting Lark to shout “Yee haw” while they were going at it. Groans in the next room along with a headboard hitting against the wall were my cue to get up and out. Dressed quickly, I shook my head at the laughter I heard in the middle of moaning as I walked down the hall to the stairway. Going down the stairs I started laughing, away from the noisy coupling, until I saw a certain heart-pounding cowboy retreating from my direction.

“Hey, where are you running off to? You look mad.” I walked faster to catch up with him and then it hit me. “Oh, not me. If you head back up the stairs you’ll hear the action is still in full swing. My friend is attempting to exorcise a demon from her heart. Besides those cowboys are like brothers to me and I’m not into incest.” I moved closer and poked him in the chest with my finger. “You seem a little bit jealous.” I smirked at him.

He didn’t seem to find any humor in my playfulness, as he charged forward, eliminating any gap between us. With one bright red ponytail wrapped around one strong hand, he captured my mouth. I moaned. Absence had definitely made my aching heart grow fonder as I realized what I had missed.

Missed kissing.

Missed fucking.

Missed cuddling.

Missed it all!