I Knew You Were Trouble: A Texas Kings Novel (3 page)

She turned to Nate, smiling straight back at him. “Oh, I’m sure. I fully intend on making everyone in my life proud one day, I’ve got big dreams, and I want to know that I stood on my own two feet to get there.”

“There’s just one condition, then,” Nate said.

“What’s that?” she asked.

She could see exactly how he managed to bed so many women—that dimple alone was probably enough to get some girls stripping their clothes off. If she didn’t know him so well, she’d have thought he was making a move just with his stare alone, the way he was sitting too close, hard thigh brushing hers. Or maybe he just didn’t know how to turn the sex appeal
off
.

“If my brother Chase so much as looks at you, feel free to give him a bloody nose. You’d be doing me a favor.”

Heat flooded her body, warmed every inch of her. Because for a moment there, she’d wondered if he was going to suggest an entirely different type of condition.

“Aren’t both your brothers married?”

“I still don’t trust them. Not one damn bit.”

Chapter 2

NATE signaled for his secretary to enter his office. He slid her a considering look. She was an attractive woman, no doubt about it. For weeks he’d been ignoring the way she fluttered her lashes at him, but now he was starting to wonder if she’d be a good distraction. He needed one.
Bad
. He didn’t usually like to mix business with pleasure, but he needed to do something about the hard-on he’d been fighting ever since he’d held Faith in his arms. The more he told himself she was off-limits, the more he seemed to want her in his bed, and now that she was staying in his house he wasn’t convinced his willpower alone was going to keep him from doing something he’d regret. Or at least he’d regret it if her brother ever found out.

“Any word on the Landcorp acquisition?” The company Nate was now CEO for had been in his family for three generations. The Kings were the biggest landowners in Texas, and since Nate had become more involved he’d expanded their commercial holdings in New York and Las Vegas.

Right now he was negotiating a big deal on a new acquisition, and he wanted it closed and done.

His assistant shook her head. “There were no calls while you were out, except for Alison Roberts, who asked—”

“Tell her I’m away on business.” It didn’t seem to matter how clear he made it that he was only interested in sex, not a relationship—women like Alison just kept on trying to talk him into something more serious. “And get Wilson at Landcorp on the phone.”

“Yes, Mr. King.”

He grimaced at the title—it was bittersweet. His grandfather was Mr. King, and now Nate was sitting in his granddad’s office and taking over the role he’d held for almost forty years while he battled for his life. Nate was proud that he believed in his eldest grandson enough to let him take the reins, but if it had meant keeping his grandfather at his side, Nate would have happily stayed second in command for a whole lot longer. They were a close family, and the thought of it being just the three of them without their granddad was a tough pill to swallow.

Nate’s direct line lit up red signaling his assistant had the Landcorp associate on the phone, and he picked up immediately.

“Do we have a deal yet?” he demanded.

“We’re close but—”

Fuck.
“Fifteen million, Wilson. It’s our final offer, take it or leave it. If you say no to me now I’m moving on to something else.”

There was silence at the other end and it made him smile. He fucking loved this. The land was worth at least a few million more, but he had them over a barrel and they knew it. He loved the adrenaline rush of closing a deal, the feel of his heart thumping hard, blood rushing through his body.

“Done.” Wilson sounded a bit strangled but said, “It’s a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. King.”

Nate grinned, knowing that the man hated dealing with him. He’d personally seen the look on Wilson’s face when he’d been in New York. “Send the documents over. I’ll have them signed as soon as they arrive and the funds will be deposited immediately.”

He hung up and reached for his iPhone, still smiling as he dialed a number that he’d hardly ever had need to look up, one his grandfather had always kept on file just in case they ever had a serious problem that needed to be dealt with. Nate flicked through a few papers that he almost knew from memory as he listened to the phone ring, poring over the oil-drilling information as he waited.

“Nathaniel?”

Nate dropped the papers, his focus shifting. “I have a situation that I need you to handle. You have someone for the job?”

“We talking a hit? ’Cause that ain’t something I can organize quickly.”

Nate leaned back in his chair, took a deep breath as he thought about the bruising on Faith’s otherwise flawless golden skin.
Tempting
. It would be all too easy to just have that asshole taken out, permanently, but Nate needed to keep his head. And besides, he never went for the easy option. If he was going to do something physical about her ex, Nate would be doing it with his bare hands, because he wanted to look him in the eye before he beat the shit out of him, and make sure he never touched Faith or any other woman ever again.

“I just want someone to tail the guy,” he said, keeping his voice low. “See what he’s up to, find out where he goes, what he does, if he’s been in trouble with the law before. I want to handle the rest of it myself.” Nate gave him the details of Faith’s ex. He knew where he worked, which meant it wouldn’t be hard to find out more.

“I’ll be in touch.”

Nate dropped his phone onto his desk and crossed the room to pour himself a whiskey. He looked out at the view and downed it. Sometimes he got so caught up in what he was doing that he didn’t take time to appreciate what he had and the role he’d stepped into. And besides, he needed to take a few minutes at this time of the day. Once he was done it was time for his daily visit with his granddad, and then Nate was going to have to practice that little thing that he’d been lacking since puberty called self-control.

*   *   *

Faith poured herself another glass of wine and turned up the music. She had the house to herself while Nate was at work, and she wanted to have something nice cooked for dinner when he returned. She hadn’t expected him to say yes to her staying so willingly, and she wasn’t going to give him an excuse to go back on his word. When she’d offered to be his housekeeper, it hadn’t been an empty promise—she was going to work hard to prove that she deserved the job, not to mention the roof over her head. Her dream wasn’t to be cleaning and cooking for someone else, but she hadn’t finished school yet, so it wasn’t like she could be picky.

She walked into the massive pantry behind the kitchen, flicking the light and looking around. It was bigger than most kitchens, but that was the only impressive thing about it. There was hardly anything in there, except for a heap of empty containers and some canned goods. Faith walked back out to the main kitchen, poking her head inside the fridge. It wasn’t much better in there—a lot of alcohol, some basics, and very little else.

Given the fact that she didn’t have a car, she was kind of stuck
. They were going to end up eating a couple of cans of baked beans if she didn’t figure out a way to come by some ingredients. She wondered if Nate would mind if she borrowed one of the cars to run to the store. There were several sets of keys on hooks beside the door in the kitchen, and she doubted he’d give a damn about her taking anything for a spin.

“I’m home!”

Faith grinned as Nate’s deep voice boomed down the hall.
Saved by the rancher
.

“When you said you urgently required a housekeeper, you weren’t kidding,” she said as she listened to his footfalls on the timber floor.

“Is the place that filthy?”

“No, it’s that empty,” she replied, her smile widening when she saw what he was carrying. “Pizza?”

He set the box on the counter. “Granddad was asleep when I went to the hospital to visit, so I decided to grab some dinner instead. You like pizza, right?”

“Is that even a real question?” Faith put down her wine and opened the fridge. “You want a beer?”

He nodded and sat down at the counter, opening the box and pulling out a slice of pepperoni. She glanced at him as he undid the top two buttons of his shirt, revealing tanned skin and a sprinkling of dark hair. She turned away. There was no doubting she’d always been attracted to Nate, but after what had happened she didn’t even want to think about being intimate with another man just yet.

“So when you said the place was empty…?” Nate asked.

Faith returned with a beer and leaned forward to take a slice. “I’m guessing you eat a lot of takeout, because there’s nothing in the fridge or pantry. How long has your housekeeper been gone?”

“She retired a couple of months ago. Mrs. T did all my cooking and cleaning for me, so I eat out a lot now. Or I order in. Either way, it doesn’t involve me in the kitchen.”

“Well, I wanted to cook something nice to say thank you, but when I couldn’t find enough ingredients for anything I was starting to contemplate taking a car and heading to the grocery store.” Faith took another bite of pizza as she watched Nate’s face, but he didn’t look surprised. “Am I right in thinking you wouldn’t have minded?” she asked when he didn’t say anything, guessing he couldn’t care less.

“Depends which one you’d taken,” he replied with a grin. “I’m kidding. They’re all insured, so help yourself. You want to head to the store tomorrow, take the Range Rover.”

Faith laughed. She was used to driving a beat-up truck—and still would be if it hadn’t just broken down on her—and tomorrow she’d be able to cruise around in a vehicle that probably cost more than the house she’d grown up in.

“Thanks for all this,” Faith said, reaching for her wine and toying with the stem of the glass. And it wasn’t just being able to stay that she was grateful for. Knowing that he was protecting her was comforting, and she liked how safe she felt at his house.

“It’s just pizza.”

His throaty laugh sent a chill down her spine and she couldn’t help but smile back at him.

“Look, I’ve known you since you were a little girl, and there’s nothing I wouldn’t do to help you or Sam,” Nate said. “I just don’t want to cause a rift, because we both know that your brother will flip when he finds you came to me instead of him. But I think of you as a sister, Faith. I always have.”

For years she’d tried to get Nate’s attention, and nothing had worked. When she’d been younger, it had upset her that a man with such a bad reputation where women were concerned wouldn’t so much as look at her, but she’d convinced herself that it was because he thought of her as a little girl instead of a young woman. Given their history, she doubted Sam would be
that
upset. Nate hadn’t stepped out of line once where she was concerned, no matter what she’d done to show him that she was all grown-up. She was the one who’d had a problem with the boundaries between them.

“You know he’s living at his girlfriend’s place, don’t you?” she asked Nate.

He took a sip of his beer and leaned over for another slice of pizza. “The cute blonde, right? He’s kept her kind of hidden away from me.”

“Ha-ha, I wonder why?”

Nate just winked at her, the tilt of his mouth in one corner telling her that he didn’t give a shit that even his best friend was worried he might steal his girl. Faith just shook her head, forcing herself not to laugh.
Arrogant son of a bitch.

“I’m sure she would have let his little sister stay,” Nate said, suddenly more serious. “If that’s what you were worried about?”

“He moved in with her less than a month ago. I’m not convinced she would have been happy with me landing on her doorstep so soon.”

“You moved in with your guy around the same time, right? I remember Sam telling me that you weren’t living at home anymore.”

She sighed, not wanting to go back to that place in her mind even for a second. Bad decisions weren’t something she was used to making, and she sure as hell wasn’t going to make the same kind of mistake ever again.

“Can we make a deal that we don’t talk about either of them again? My dad or my ex?”

Nate nodded, his eyes softening around the corners as he did so. He’d been sexy before,
tempting
before, but the way he was looking at her right now was something she could start to crave. Because now he wasn’t just turning on the sexual charm—now he was looking at her like he truly cared, and she liked it. Liked the feeling of being looked after right now without having to give anything of herself in return.

“Sure. But if you want to talk about it…”

“I won’t,” she insisted.

“That’s settled then. So I guess we should just eat pizza and get drunk?”

She groaned, pleased that he’d changed the subject. “Does that line work when you’re trying to get lucky and take a woman home with you?”

He shrugged, smiling before taking a bite of pizza. “Sugar, I never bring women back here.”

Faith burst out laughing before she realized he was being serious. He was staring back at her without that trademark grin. “You’re full of shit. You’re hardly chaste.”

He shrugged again, leaning forward slightly, his body coming into her space. Faith inhaled, loving the scent of his citrusy cologne, tempted to lean that bit farther toward him. But she didn’t.

Faith glanced from her glass of wine to his face, not wanting to stare at him. The truth was, she was jealous of the women he bedded—being the sole focus of Nate’s attention in the bedroom was something she’d fantasized about plenty in the past.

“Who said anything about being chaste? I don’t like sharing this place with just anyone, and it’s way easier to just rent a room if I need to, or use my apartment in town. I keep my private life separate from my…” He raised an eyebrow, reaching for his glass and taking a long, slow sip, leaving her staring at his mouth, waiting for him to finish his sentence. “Sex life.”

Okay, then.
Faith swallowed as a shiver ran through her body, not answering him straightaway. What she needed was to stop thinking about Nate naked, and talk like this wasn’t helping. Part of her still simmered for him, probably always would, but there was a difference between a fantasy and reality, and part of her was scared at the thought of being with any man, even Nate, right now.