Military Romance Collection: Contemporary Soldier Alpha Male Romance (10 page)

“Amy delegates.” Matthew sneered the last word, squeezing every possible ounce of contempt out of the three syllables. “She lets me know how much is supposed to be in the account, and it’s my job to check and make sure she’s right.”

“She is going to flip her shit,” Charlie said.

“I know,” Matthew replied. “You’d better save me a room on that ranch. I’m going to need it.”

In the days that followed, Matthew did send along a check for two thousand. He didn’t, however, answer any of Charlie’s calls or texts.

Charlie put the check in the bank and tried not to think about what his brother’s radio silence might mean. He spent the rest of his time trying to raise some cash. A neighbor gave him a few hundred dollars for Uncle Chuck’s old patio furniture, but other than that, he didn’t have much luck. There was less than 48 hours to go when someone responded to the online ad he’d placed trying to sell his truck – but that guy wasn’t able to even come out and see the truck, much less hand over any money, until next weekend.

“I’ll have to get back to you,” Charlie had told the guy. “I might be living in that truck by next weekend.”

After that, Charlie went and stood out by the fence, watching the horses graze. Bad Ass’ pen was still empty; it looked especially empty without Horace in there, but the little pony had protested so much as his companion’s departure that Charlie had felt obligated to let him go.

Charlie laughed. Horses were funny. He hadn’t spent nearly enough time with the herd to know them all well yet, but some of the mares had definitely personalities. MissyLou, whom he hoped was pregnant with Bad Ass’ baby, was a love bug. She’d walk right up to you and demand attention, nuzzling her nose right into your chest. Blackberry, on the other hand, had to be sweet talked into even noticing you. And Cadence was a little pig: Charlie had had to chase her out of the grain bin more than once.

He was going to miss them. He was really going to miss seeing all the babies being born. Seeing the mares going around with their sides all swollen out was exciting. Charlie enjoyed imagining what each foal would look like, based on the mare’s coloring and Bad Ass’ charcoal coat. Would Blackberry’s colt be ebony colored, like her, or gray like his father?

Now, Charlie sighed, he was never going to know. The sun was going down over the west Texas hills; he squinted against it and pretended that he couldn’t feel the tears running down his cheeks. Things were going to be fine. He’d give Matthew and David back their money, let the IRS take the ranch, and take his truck for a cross-country drive. Maybe he’d head to Charleston.

Of course, Ada probably wouldn’t want to see him. A situation like this – taking a person’s property away from them – was a pretty big deal. Building a relationship after that had happened? Charlie shook his head. She couldn’t be blamed for thinking he’d always resent that, even if he said he didn’t. As nice as it would have been, a relationship with the pretty little blonde was likely not going to happen.

This just keeps getting better and better, Charlie thought. Then he heard the sound of tires crunching on his driveway gravel. He turned around just in time to see an unfamiliar car pulling in. Behind the wheel was Ada.

She got out of the car wearing a cautious smile. “Hey.”

“Hey,” Charlie said, walking toward her with his arms opened wide for a hug. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but aren’t you coming tomorrow?”

“Officially, yeah.” Ada stepped into Charlie’s embrace and let her arms sneak up around his neck. “But I couldn’t wait to see you.”

This time, their kiss was longer and more intense. Charlie loved the taste of her; the way her body felt in his arms. After their kiss, he smiled. “Well, that’s nice. I can’t say I’m complaining.” He bent his head and kissed her again. “Let’s hear it for unofficial visits.”

She laughed, stepping back out of Charlie’s embrace and taking him by the hand. “Let’s get the elephant out of the room first before things go too far. Because unofficially? I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you since I left.”

“And officially?”

“I don’t know how things stand,” Ada said. “You’re going to have to tell me that.”

“Well,” Charlie said, letting go of her hand. “You see Bad Ass isn’t here.”

“Oh, Charlie.” Ada moved as if she was going to grab his hand and again, but she stopped herself at the last moment. “I’m sorry. And he was such a big part of your plan. With the stud fees and everything.”

“Well, yeah.” Wyatt had been kind enough to let Charlie stock his freezer with enough samples from Bad Ass to breed a few dozen more mares, but now wasn’t really the time to mention that. “It doesn’t matter, really. I went to my family, I went to the bank, I sold everything I could realistically sell, and it just isn’t going to be enough.”

Ada took a deep breath. “How much are you short?”

Charlie hung his head and spoke to his boots. “Ten thousand dollars.”

He was astonished when Ada burst out laughing. “Ten grand? That’s it? You raised $90,000?” She launched herself into Charlie’s arms and kissed him squarely on the lips. “You wonderful, wonderful man!”

“You can get the debt reduced?” Charlie stammered, trying to work out why she was so excited. “We’ll be able to keep the ranch?”

“No,” Ada said, “and yes, you’ll be able to keep the ranch.” She smiled at him. “It’s so simple. I’ll just loan you the money!”

“You’re going to loan me ten thousand dollars,” Charlie said, speaking slowly.

She nodded. “Yup.”

“And why are you going to do that?”

“Because I had a dream that I should,” Ada explained. “Right after I got back to Charleston. I couldn’t sleep for like a week. Tossing and turning every night. My mind was racing, thinking about how it was just wrong that you were going to lose your farm when you legitimately did not know about your Grandfather’s debt.”

“I did find that PO Box we talked about,” Charlie said. “And the letters you sent Grandpa, right up until the end.”

“There should have been some letters for you too,” Ada said. “Or more correctly, his executor.”

Charlie nodded. “I found two.”

“But you didn’t find them until after I brought the situation to your attention,” Ada said. “To me, that makes all the difference in the world.” She shrugged. “And then one night, the solution came to me as clear as a bell. ‘Loan Charlie the money’. Ada cocked her head and looked at Charlie. “Which sounds really nuts, right?”

“Yeah, it kind of does,” Charlie agreed. “I’m not sure I’d be willing to do something like that for someone I don’t really know.”

“You risked your life for some kid in a bar,” Ada countered. “And you don’t even know his name.”

“How did you know about that?” Charlie said. “You were long gone before anything even happened.”

“Dude,” Ada replied. “We weren’t even all the way out the door before you went after that big guy. You know he weighs like two hundred pounds more than you do.”

“The bigger they are…” Charlie said, smiling when he saw the corner of Ada’s mouth quirking upward, “The more it hurts when you run into them.”

She burst out laughing. “Well, I think any guy that’s willing to take a chance like that deserves a shot at making his dreams come true.” She reached out and took Charlie by the hand. “And thankfully you raised enough that I can cover the rest.”

Charlie wanted to wrap his arms around Ada and enthusiastically accept her offer. But he knew he owed it to the beautiful blonde to be aboveboard and honest with her. “It’s going to take me a while to pay you back,” he said. “Maybe quite a while.”

She nodded. “I know. The way I figure that you can pay me back out of what that baby horse is going to make,” she said, pointing at one obviously pregnant mare and then another. “And out of what that baby horse is going to make.”

“After I pay taxes on their earnings, of course,” Charlie said with a smile.

“Of course.” Ada stepped closer to Charlie, so close that his nose filled up with her delicious scent. “You wouldn’t want to get tangled up with the IRS. Those people are ruthless.”

“I’ve heard that,” Charlie said. “They won’t stop until they get what they want.”

“And sometimes?” Ada said, pulling Charlie’s head down for a kiss. “They don’t even stop then.”

Charlie had spent quite a bit of time thinking about what it would be like to make love to Ada. The reality put all of his imaginings to shame. Simply kissing her was enough to make his heart stop beating in his chest – only for a moment, to be sure, after which it restarted with a fierce intensity that made his ribs ache.

Her skin was so soft; he kissed her forehead, her cheek, her neck, delighted to find each and every inch silken smooth, even compared to itself. At the nape of her neck was a small tattoo; two horseshoes, one large and one small, linked together.

“What’s this about?” he murmured, lips from her flesh.

“My little sister and me. We may not have much in common,” Ada said. “But we both could use all the luck we can get.”

“I feel like I’m the lucky one right now,” Charlie said, kissing the tattoo again. “The luckiest man in the world.”

“I don’t know,” Ada said. “I just saw you that night in the bar and it was clear, all of a sudden. Him. He’s the one for me.” She shed her shirt in one smooth motion, sending the cotton garment fluttering to the floor. She had a pale blue bra on, just large enough to contain her firm, round breasts.

“Oh,” Charlie said. “May I?”

She smiled and guided his hands to the small clasp holding her bra cups together. “Please do.” It wasn’t the smoothest motion Charlie had ever made, but it was definitely one of the most sincere. His moan of appreciation on seeing Ada’s breasts freed was absolutely genuine.

She loved his kisses. Each one was greeted by a little sound of pleasure, a small mewing sound at first that steadily grew and merged into a throaty moan. She started tugging at Charlie’s t-shirt. “Get this off,” she said. “I want to see you too.”

Charlie tugged his t-shirt off, hoping Ada would like what she saw. The nearly four months he’d spent doing ranch chores had definitely helped him get in shape. He saw an appreciative glint in her eyes as she ran her fingertips over his chest and back.

“You’re amazing,” he breathed.

“You’re not so bad either,” she laughed, pulling Charlie close for another kiss. “Let’s do what we’ve been wanting to do.” She ground her hips up against Charlie, crushing her desire against his growing need. “We’ve waited more than long enough.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Charlie said. He swept Ada up in his arms and headed for the bedroom. “Your wish is my command.”

The sun picked that morning to rise extra early, with unusual brightness and intensity. Charlie blinked and rubbed his eyes, smiling when he saw that Ada was still in his bed.

“Oh, good,” he said. “I thought that all was a wonderful dream and that when you woke up, I’d be gone.”

“Even worse,” Ada laughed. “I’m still here.” She held up her hands with her fingers spread like fangs. “This is the terrifying reality.”

Charlie laughed. “I like being scared.” He reached for her and pulled her close for another kiss. Her golden curls fell down around their faces, providing an intimate curtain in an already private room. “I like being scared a whole lot.”

Ada kissed him. “Brave man.” She put her hand on his chest and pushed herself to a seated position. “Now, do you have any coffee in this place?”

“In the kitchen,” Charlie said. “The coffee’s in the freezer.”

“Good man,” Ada said. “You pay attention to details.”

“I try,” he said.

They enjoyed the coffee at Charlie’s kitchen table. Ada had slipped back into her jeans, but hadn’t bothered with a shirt. It was a look Charlie found incredibly distracting.

“Okay, here’s what we’ve got to accomplish today,” Ada said, “in order to remove the tax lien from your property and stop the seizure proceedings…”

“If you don’t put some clothes on, darling,” Charlie said, “I’m going to have a seizure proceeding all by myself over here.”

Ada laughed, but didn’t move.

“I’m serious,” Charlie protested. “You’re so beautiful and there’s no way I’m not completely distracted right now.”

Ada blushed. “You are so sweet,” she said, standing up and retreating into Charlie’s bedroom. When she emerged, she was fully dressed. “I am absolutely going to have to remember how this works when we have our first fight.”

“Okay,” Charlie said. “Can we have that fight now?”

Ada laughed. “Hold on, cowboy. You don’t want to fight with me if you don’t have to.”

“I hear that those IRS agents are ruthless,” Charlie agreed.

“It’s worse than you even imagined,” Ada said. “We’re absolutely heartless.”

“Well, I doubt that,” Charlie said. He reached out and took her hand across the table. “Realistically, are you sure you want to loan me that kind of money?”

“I figure you’re good for it,” Ada said. “Besides, my Dad convinced me it was the right decision.”

“Your Dad, the logical Vulcan guy,” Charlie said, searching his memory for everything Ada had told him about her family, “told you to lend ten grand to some guy you hardly know based on a dream you had?”