Her Unbridled Cowboy (Harland County Series) (11 page)

Everyone laughed, including Kerri,
except hers had nothing to do with amusement, and everything to do with her
crappy luck.

Cole dropped an arm around Jordan’s shoulders and tugged her sister close. “You’re both just jealous because I had a
reason to be late.”

“Yes, a very good reason. Me.”

Jordan released Kerri’s arm then
snuggled into her fiancé.

The smug cowboys shook their heads,
but Kerri knew they felt the same pang of envy tightening her chest. How could
they not? The couple was so much in love it made you long for the same.

“Seriously, though, Kerri,” Jordan turned to her and took her hand once more. “We wanted to talk to you.”

Okay. So, it couldn’t be too bad if
they were willing to talk to her in front of Kevin and Connor.
Right?

“Why don’t we sit down?”

Shoot. Scratch that.
Had to
be bad if they needed to sit down. Now her legs were starting to shake.

“Okay,” she said and followed them
to the table.

Kevin and Connor remained where
they were, looking curious.

“Do you want us to leave?” Connor
asked.

Yes, yes I do
, Kerri longed
to say, but kept her mouth shut. Besides, she couldn’t talk. Apprehension had
dried her dang throat.

“No, that won’t be necessary,” her
sister replied.

Kerri wanted to punch her.

“We just wanted to get Kerri’s
opinion about possibly opening a restaurant, here in Harland County.”

A
restaurant?

Kerri blinked at her sister, then
glanced at Cole. The pair sat in complete silence, warmth and hope mirrored in
their expressions.

“I—a restaurant?” was all she could
manage. Never, had she thought opening a restaurant was what they’d wanted to
talk about.

“Yes.” Jordan nodded, reaching
across the table to squeeze Kerri’s clenched hands. “I know you were hoping
we’d open Comets back up, and we still can, if you want to, but I’d also like
to open one up here.”

A restaurant in Texas. She let out
a breath. “H-how? We haven’t gotten our insurance money yet.”

“Me,” Cole said. “I’m giving you
the money.”

“
Loaning
the money,” Jordan corrected, softening her words with a smile at her fiancé before turning back to
face her. “Cole graciously agreed to spot us the money we need, and we can pay
him back in installments.”

Kerri’s apprehension eased a
little. “Wow, Cole, that’s awfully nice of you.”

Her soon-to-be brother-in-law
smiled broadly. “I’m a nice guy.”

The cowboys by the island snorted
in tandem.

“And the biggest bullshitter, ever,”
Kevin mumbled.

“Yeah,” Connor agreed. “He’s so
full of shit his eyes are brown.”

Cole chuckled. “So are yours, bro.”

Now Kerri and Jordan were laughing.
If you asked her, Connor owned that distinction. He could sweet-talk a child
into giving up their lollipop and make them think it was their idea. A trait,
according to her parents, he’d inherited from his grandfather.

“You’d better not try to say the
same about me and Kerri just because our eyes are brown.” Jordan gave each man a pointed stare.

Kerri watched and waited, a little
shaft of expectation upping her pulse.

Cole spoke first. “No, never.” He
pulled Jordan close to kiss her quick on the lips. “You two have brown eyes
from all the chocolate you consume.”

A murmur of agreement echoed around
the room. No one would argue that point. She definitely loved her chocolate
dessert, and everyone knew Jordan had a huge soft spot for chocolate chip
cookies.

“Well, if there was a strawberry
eye color, then Kerri would have it,” Kevin said, leaning against the counter.
“Because she sure tastes like them, doesn’t she, Connor?”

Heat rushed into her face so fast,
she was betting her body didn’t have time to adjust and turned straight to
crimson. Darn it. If ever the floor needed to open and swallow her, it was now.
Please.

With everyone’s gazes on her, Kerri
suddenly became acutely aware of her
killer
black dress and how it
dipped low enough in the front for the girls to make an appearance, and down
the back to just above the bra. And it clung, too. She didn’t do clingy. That’s
why she’d bought it. To force herself to step out of the norm, and surprisingly
had no problem with it tonight…until now. Until a certain cowboy’s gaze
lingered on her chest, making her tips tingle and reach out for his touch. Darn
them…and him.

Connor cleared his throat. “Chocolate
and strawberry,” the cowboy replied evenly, although when she chanced a peek,
he looked ready to strangle someone. Namely Kevin.

“Not that it isn’t interesting to
hear you two handsome cowboys discussing what my little sister tastes like,” Jordan said with a grin. “But I think we need to get back on track and talk about the
restaurant.”

Kerri could’ve kissed her sister
right then and there. She tipped her chin instead. “We couldn’t have the same
menu.” A Texas palate was very different than a Californian.

“I know,” Jordan agreed, an excited smile spreading across her face. “It would be more steak, chili, barbeque
and Mexican.”

A slew of dishes flashed through
Kerri’s mind in an instant slideshow. She’d longed to tweak some age old
recipes, and try her latest barbeque concoction. Not something she could do in California.

Now that she’d opened up that door,
dang it, ideas and recipes flooded her mind. She glanced at her still smiling
sister. Oh, she was good. So very, very good. The bugger.

“I thought we’d put in a pit where
you could cook steaks over an open flame right in front of the customers.”

It was official. Her sister was a
bitch.

“You”—Kerri pointed to Jordan and narrowed her eyes—“you, my sister…you play dirty.”

“No.” Jordan sat back, smug expression,
eyes sparkling. “I play smart. I play to win.”

Cole leaned forward and grabbed Kerri’s
hand, his expression as light as his touch. “I’m living proof of that. What
about you? Did she win?”

Win? God, she didn’t know. Kerri
wanted to reopen the restaurant, very much. The image of cooking for a crowd of
eager people filled her with joy. Immense joy. Yes, she wanted to open a
restaurant with her sister.

But not here.

“I—I don’t know,” she stammered. “That
would mean I’d have to stay in Texas after the wedding.”

“Yes.” Jordan nodded, face devoid
of any sparkle or mischief. Her sister really was serious. “I’d like your help
with this, Kerri. To get it started, create a fixed menu, routine. The works.
Once it takes off and has found its own momentum, if you still want to open up
Comets, I promise I’ll go to the coast and help you the same way.”

She’d come to the coast…

Breathing instantly became easier. Kerri
wasn’t sentenced to stay in Texas. She could still go home. That actually made
a difference. A big difference.

“Leave the permits and legalities
to me. I’ll take care of all that.” Cole squeezed the hand he still held. “So,
what do you say? Are you going to stick around to help my fiancée open up the
best damn steak and rib joint in Texas?”

Oh, ribs.
She’d forgotten
about them. There was a recipe she’d started to fool with on her laptop…

“Yeah, Kerri,” Kevin spoke up. “Come
on. Lord knows Harland County could use one. Hell, every last one of those
steak things you brought tonight are all gone.”

“Really?” She turned to study him.

He smiled. “Really.”

“But…I made over five dozen.”

“I know, and they’re all gone.
Everyone loves your cooking. Take pity on us,” Kevin pleaded, blue eyes rounded.
“Harland County needs you.”

She snickered. Another
bull-shitter. Jeez, the man should run for office. Between his incredible looks
and smooth tongue, he’d be a shoe-in. No matter the position.

Her gaze shifted to the silent
cowboy at his side. Connor just stared at her, jaw working, mouth shut, gaze
neutral except for what could almost be mistaken for…fear? No, couldn’t be.
See, now her anxiety was making her see things again. Connor McCall scared? 
That was laughable.

So she did. She laughed, then
turned to her sister and Cole. “Okay,” she said, squeezing her future brother-in-law’s
hand, her gaze bouncing between the happy couple. “I’ll help you open a
restaurant here, then you can help me re-open Comets.”

“Deal.” Jordan stood and pulled
Kerri to her feet so they could hug. “Thank you.”

Kerri drew back and smiled at her grinning
sister. “No, thank
you
.”

“You’re already going through
recipes in your mind, aren’t you?”

“Yes, you bitch.”

They were still laughing when Cole
shoved a glass of champagne into their hands. Where in the world that came
from, she had no idea.

“I’d say a toast is in order.” He
lifted his glass, and Kevin and Connor drew near, holding up their beer as well.
“To Harland County. Future home to the best steak and ribs Texas will ever
see.”

They toasted and drank, and Kerri
refused to dwell on the fact she’d just committed herself to staying in Texas a
good half a year—if not full year—longer than planned.
Crud. Nope, not
thinking about that
...or the great smelling cowboy standing so close behind
her she could feel his intoxicating heat.

“So, when do we start looking?” she
asked, slowly moving toward the door and away from Connor.

Jordan laughed. “In a hurry, are
you?”

Kerri wasn’t sure if her sister was
referring to the restaurant or the cowboy. Either way, the answer was the same.

“Well, yeah.” She smiled. No reason
to lie. About the restaurant, anyway. They all knew her stay was temporary.
Besides, she was actually starting to get excited.

“I’ll have Stella find you a good
realtor so you can start scouting locations this week,” Cole said.

Cole’s secretary was a shrewd one.
The woman would find them a top-notch company, Kerri had no doubt. She and
Jordan both nodded before they all rejoined the party.

An hour later, with only mere
minutes left until the end of the year, all the party goers crowded into the Dalton’s living room to watch the live action from Time Square on TV. The ball would soon
drop. And the crowd was breaking into couples, no doubt getting ready to ring
in the New Year with a kiss.

Kevin had two beauties under his
arm. Jordan and Cole were cuddling in the corner. Jen and her husband Brock
held a bright-eyed Cody, smiles on all their faces.

And Kerri had never felt so darn alone.

Intent on escaping to the porch,
she made her way through the crowd, but couldn’t get to the door thanks to the
multitude of bodies blocking the path. So she did the next best thing—snuck
into the Dalton’s laundry room.

Another year alone.

She leaned up against a wall and
sighed. But at least she wasn’t being hurt or cheated on. The truth eased some
of the ache from her chest.

Kerri started to feel a little
better, until the door opened and Connor walked in, sucking all the air from
the darkened room. Oh, wait, that was her. She’d inhaled and pressed her back
against the wall, hoping he wouldn’t see her in the dark.

“Are you all right?” He stepped right
to her.

Bugger. What does he have, night
vision? Friggin’ cat’s eyes? Jeez.
She’d forgotten he never needed a
flashlight when they’d played flashlight tag.
Bugger.

“Yeah. I’m fine.” She sighed,
trying not to notice the great scent of his aftershave. Fail. Or the heat from
his hot body. Fail. Or the fact he now stood directly in front of her. She
cleared her throat and grabbed at the first random thought to enter her mind.
“Do you think I was just duped?”

Moonlight filtered in through a
small window on their right, illuminating his face enough for her to see his
expression. Contemplative. He removed his hat, set it on the washer to her left
then ran a hand through his hair.

“I’m not sure,” he said after
several beats. “Jordan did appear sincere, but well, let’s face it. Your
sister’s good.”

Kerri smacked her head back against
the wall a few times, closed her eyes and groaned. “I know. That’s the
problem.”

Smack
. What if this was all
a ruse to get her to stay in Texas?
Smack.

“Hey.”

She reopened her eyes only to
discover she had a bigger, sexier problem standing so close, she couldn’t
think, couldn’t breathe, could only feel. The big, hot, sexually potent man
crowded her space and she liked it. A lot. But he made her body consider
things, want things, needy things she had no idea what to do about.

Smack
.

Then the bugger stepped closer
still, easing his hand between her head and the wall, being sweet again. Making
her heart melt. His other large, strong hand settled ever so lightly on her
hip.

“Easy there, darlin’.” His voice
was soft and low, their gazes only inches apart in height thanks to her high
heels. “It’s not worth hurting yourself over.”

Hurting myself?
No. Hitting
her head off the wall was meant to knock sense into her, not hurt. But the need
and want and hunger suddenly raging inside, that sure as heck hurt. In a fierce
way. If she had any sense, she’d run out of the room and not stop until she was
miles from this man who could sometimes be so sweet, he had her chest aching
with a longing that scared her witless.

She swallowed and opened her mouth,
intending to tell him God knows what
,
when they heard the crowd in the
other room start to count backwards from ten.

The New Year was upon them.

With each number called out, his
face drew closer, his breath warm on her skin, her heart pounding louder and
louder. Three. Two.
One.
Connor’s hold on the back of her head tightened,
and his other hand lifted to gently brush his thumb across her jaw.