Lydia's Twin Temptation (10 page)

Downstairs, the pot of water on the stove was just coming to a boil, and she went back to chopping vegetables for a salad and doing the prep work for garlic bread. It wasn’t a complicated meal, but it would satisfy them and help her get acclimated to working in the big kitchen.

While she worked, her mind dwelt on how she would reorganize everything and what duties she would allow her helper to handle. For now, the house was in need of a thorough dusting and cleaning and supplies and tools would have to be ordered.

It was easier to think about the next concrete step than it was to consider Clayton’s words upstairs. She wished she could see into his mind.

The back screen door banged shut, and she heard the sound of footsteps on the screened-in back porch. The back door opened, and she looked up at a very tall, dark-headed cowboy. Surprise showed in his deep green eyes when he turned as he closed the door and caught sight of her.

“Oh! I’m sorry, ma’am. I hope I didn’t scare you.”

He was positively enormous, but he had a gentle quality to the way he spoke and she was put at ease by his good manners. He seemed vaguely familiar, and she wondered if he’d come with Chance on one of his stops at the café.

“Not at all. I’m Lydia. I think we may have met before.” She held out her hand and smiled as he looked at his dusty hand then rubbed it against his jeans before offering it to her.

“Yes, ma’am. You worked at the Oasis Café in Fort Stockton. I remember you. It’s nice to see you again. I’m Gil James.”

“Pleased to meet you. Was there something you needed, Gil? Maybe I can help.”

“I’ve got a headache and we’re out of Tylenol at the house. I was wondering if Chance and Clayton had anything I could take to get rid of it.”

Eyeing him critically, Lydia went to the cabinet by the sink and got down the Tylenol she’d seen in there earlier. Judging by the way his brows were knit together, the headache must be pretty fierce, and the heat no doubt made it even worse. She opened the bottle and handed him three then gave him a full glass of water.

Following her gut instinct, she went to work finding what she needed while he took the tablets. “Gil, you live here, right?”

After gulping the water, he nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

She found a travel cup and filled it with ice, took down a big coffee mug and poured that morning’s leftover coffee in it then stuck it in the microwave for a minute.

“Can you tell me what you and the other guys ate this week? I’m just curious.” He looked as though he felt like hell, and she wondered if his diet didn’t have something to do with his headache as well.

“Well, a lot of us run into town for meals.”

“Restaurants or fast-food drive-thrus?”

“Both, but mostly drive-thrus, I think. A lot of hamburgers, sandwiches, and tacos. We eat a lot of frozen food, too. Canned chili and soup. There used to be a guy working here that liked to cook but when he moved on from the area nobody took over the job. None of us is much good in the kitchen.”

The microwave dinged, and she asked, “How do you take your coffee?”

He looked at her in confusion but replied, “Black with a spoonful of sugar, why?”

“I’m fixing you a headache remedy,” she said with a small smile. “Will you do me a favor?” She found the sugar bowl and put two big spoons full of sugar in the steaming mug and stirred it.

“Sure.”

She didn’t bother trying to explain her presence there on the ranch because she didn’t know what Clayton had already told them and wasn’t quite sure how the brothers planned to explain her presence. Gil seemed well enough mannered to not ask.

“I’m going to be cooking a big meal tomorrow night for all the men here on the ranch. Would you spread the word for me, please? Tomorrow night at seven o’clock.”

Gil got a big smile on his face and asked, “What are you going to cook?”

Lydia smiled at she dumped the strong, hot, sweetened coffee over the crackling ice in the travel mug, put the lid on, and shook it gently. “I haven’t decided, but it will not be frozen and it won’t be takeout food. Why? Did you want to make a request?”

“Are you kidding? If it’s home cooked I’ll eat it. What’s this for?” he asked as she handed him the travel mug.

“It’s old, strong coffee over ice. It should help your head.”

He grinned and replied, “I hope that was this morning’s coffee and not yesterday’s.”

Lydia burst into giggles and said, “For your sake, I hope it is, too. I hope it helps.”

Gil held up the mug and said, “Thanks, ma’am! I’ll bring the cup back later and spread the word for you.”

“Call me Lydia!” she hollered as he made his exit.

From the screened porch she heard him call, “Yes, ma’am!”

Soon, the vegetables were all chopped and combined into a salad and the sauce and pasta were simmering on the stove.

She sneered at the loaf of frozen Italian bread she’d found in the freezer, wondering just how old it was. She didn’t mind using spaghetti sauce out of a jar tonight because she could doctor it up with ingredients she found in the pantry to make it special. The bread was another story.

Opening it, she promised herself that the next time she served garlic bread it would be made fresh. She scraped the ice crystals off, applied the garlic spread she’d made, wrapped it in foil and hoped for the best as she placed it in the oven. That’s where she was when Chance walked in the kitchen.

He rubbed his belly and groaned in delight. “What have you been up to, baby? And what is that delicious aroma?”

“Supper,” she said with a giggle. She didn’t hesitate when he offered her a hug. Chance closed his strong arms around her, and she breathed in the manly scent of his clean, honest sweat combined with leather.

“You’ll be happy to know that Gunther is at Divine Auto Repair in town and that the mechanic thinks he can fix it. He’s going to give it a thorough going-over and see what all needs to be done. We trust him to do a good job on it.”

She sighed in relief and replied, “That’s good news. I really didn’t want that shady relative of Mr. Cortez’s working on it. I’m so glad I didn’t have to take Gunther to him.”

“Me, too, baby. Can I have a kiss?”

His sexily voiced request drew a chuckle from her. “Of course.”

All of her worries faded away when his lips pressed against hers, and she gave herself to the kiss entirely. Groaning softly, Chance wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her from the floor as she put her arms around his neck. Returning his kiss was a pleasure, and she shuddered when his big hands slid down to cradle her hips against him.

It felt like the most natural thing in the world for her to do when she wrapped her legs around his waist and hooked her ankles together. As she did so, his hands slid down to grip her ass. Gasping for breath, she released his lips and laid her head against his shoulder.

“It feels good to have you right here, baby.” He squeezed her and pressed his warm lips against the side of her neck. “I could eat you up.
Mmm
!”

Lydia closed her eyes and smiled at his hearty declaration and let him hold her for as long as he wanted to. They stayed like that, and she realized he was rocking her from side to side in a gentle swaying motion. She’d never felt so comforted in her entire adult life.

That was how Clayton found them a few moments later. He hung his keys on one of the hooks by the back door, and Lydia realized she hadn’t even heard him come in.

Clayton hung his hat up as well, and his gaze rested on them. She wasn’t able to interpret the look in his eyes before he turned to get a bottle of beer from the refrigerator. In a neutral tone, he said, “Something smells really good in here.”

“Thank you. Supper will be ready soon.”

Lydia wasn’t ready to leave the circle of Chance’s arms but didn’t want to make Clayton uncomfortable. She looked up at Chance, and he smiled reassuringly at her as he set her back on her feet.

Clayton took a seat at the table in the breakfast nook, twisted the top off the bottle, and pitched it into the trash. “I just checked in with Gil. The guys sound excited about supper tomorrow night.”

“Oh, yeah? Wow, that was fast. I just met Gil earlier.”

Chance seemed surprised. “You did?”

“He needed Tylenol and I made him a headache remedy. I talked to him for a minute. I told him that I’m going to cook a big meal for all of you tomorrow night. If what he said is true, it’s a wonder you’re not all sick.”

Clayton said, “Gil asked me to tell you the remedy worked wonders. He gets migraine headaches but won’t take prescription medication for them.”

Lydia got them occasionally and could commiserate with Gil. “I’m glad it helped. I’ve had migraines before so I know how they feel.”

Chance asked, “Baby, are you sure you wouldn’t rather take a few days to get up to speed before you jump into cooking for everybody?”

Lydia smiled and happily replied, “No. I’m dying to get started actually.”

Chance said, “Okay. I just don’t want you to think that’s the primary reason we wanted you to come here. It’s been a rough few months for you and a hard day, yesterday.”

“I’ll go to bed early tonight, but I feel ready to get started. I plan to inventory the kitchen in the morning.”

With their help, she washed and dried the few pots and pans she’d used to make supper and then set the table. Both men ate with gusto, praising her culinary skills.

“Lydi, this is delicious,” Clayton announced. Lydia smiled at his shortening her name into an endearment. Nobody had ever called her that before, and she found that she liked it very much.

“Thank you. Is there anything in particular that either of you would like me to cook for tomorrow night?”

Both men shook their heads, and Clayton replied, “I can take you to the grocery store in Divine tomorrow after lunch.”

Chance said, “It doesn’t matter to me what you cook. I’ll eat anything you serve me.”

Her mind went straight into the gutter with that comment, and it must have showed in her heated cheeks because the men chuckled but said nothing else. The bread was a disappointment, but the men seemed to enjoy it. She grinned thinking she would knock their socks off the following night. Chance and Clayton helped her clear the table after they were done eating and assisted with the cleaning duties as well.

It was only eight o’clock and still relatively early, but she wanted to get unpacked and have time to wind down before going to sleep.

After everything was back in its place, she said, “Guys, if you don’t mind, I’m going to make an early night of it tonight. I have a big day tomorrow.”

Chance hung the damp dish cloth on the oven handle and then turned to her. “Totally understandable, baby. Is there anything you need up there?”

For some reason, her dilemma of the night before, closing herself in the bathroom without clothes to change into, came to mind. The memory of what had happened next caused heat to creep into her cheeks. She shook her head and resisted the urge to press her hand to her injured nipple, which still ached and throbbed a little.

“I think I have everything I need.”

Chance reached for her as naturally as if he’d hugged her a million times, and she went to him easily. “Pleasant dreams then, baby.”

“You still need towels,” Clayton said. “I brought down all the laundry and meant to put some more in the cabinet and forgot. I’ll bring them up in just a minute.”

“Okay. I’m going to go unpack.”

She turned back to Chance and looked up into his eyes, and he gave her a good-night kiss that ended way too soon. “Good night, baby.”

Clayton said, “I’ll be up in just a minute, Lydi.”

Chance released her, and she felt as if she was floating as she left the kitchen and went upstairs. She was in the bathroom, putting up her toiletries, when she heard a light tap on the door.

“Knock, knock.”

“I’m in here, Clayton,” she said, recognizing his voice. A moment later he peeked in, and she smiled at his handsome reflection in the mirror. She used to think they were impossible to tell apart, but gazing at him now she found that she could make out the difference. Besides being more serious, she could spot Clayton based on how he held his mouth. Chance could hardly keep a smile off his face, especially when he looked her way.

“Here are your towels. I brought you hand towels and washcloths, too.”

She sat on the edge of the big bathtub, and he pointed at it as he put the towels in the linen closet. “A nice, hot soak would probably feel good after all you’ve been through the last couple of days.”

Sighing in pleasure at the thought, she replied, “I might just do that.”

He hooked his thumbs in his jeans pockets, seeming to not know what to do with his hands and said, “I want you to feel comfortable here. Lydi. This is your home now. I know it must feel kind of strange right now, but…”

Following her instinct, Lydia went to him and put her arms around his waist. She couldn’t pinpoint the reason for his hesitancy but recognized that he wanted her to feel comfortable with him. She pressed her cheek against his chest and smiled as his steady heartbeat sped up.