No One Needs to Know (10 page)

Abe, the owner of Abe’s Variety, and notorious for his unrequited crush on Sadie, walked in right ahead of Will Woodruff, who was pretty partial to Sadie himself. What they had in common did not bring the two men closer together, to say the least. Even though their scowls were a matched set.

In silence, they headed for the back room where Jesse was scrounging more chairs.

Cy Heber joined them, and he would always make Annie smile because he’d donated four acres to Safe Haven, bless him. He was an old cowboy who gave a damn, who wanted to leave something good behind, even though his own ranch was a shadow of its former self.

The door opened one more time, and Tucker Brennan walked in wearing a fine-looking Stetson along with dark pressed jeans, a pale blue Oxford shirt and a navy blazer. She bit her bottom lip, not because he filled the doors with his broad shoulders, but because of the smile that lit up his face the moment he saw her.

“Oh...okay,” Sadie murmured as she put four beers down on the table. “So they weren’t exaggerating.”

“Hush,” Annie whispered as she went to welcome him, trying her best not to mentally replay last night’s kisses.

It didn’t take long for everyone to take their seats and for Annie to make introductions. She sat Tucker at one end of the table, and she took her place at the other. Which might have been a mistake from the way she kept getting caught on his gaze.

But somehow she managed to begin the meeting in what was considered parliamentary procedure for Blackfoot Falls. Everybody raised and seconded everything. At least at the start.

Up until she called for new business. That’s when Tucker stood. Took off his hat. Reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a slip of paper.

“I’ve been spending some time at Safe Haven, and I’m very impressed with the operation. I’ve seen facilities with much more do a lot less. I applaud you all for doing your part for animals in need.” He paused, glanced around at everyone, but settled his gaze on Annie. “This is a check. It’s not from the Rocking B Foundation. I don’t make the call on who gets foundation funds. This is a personal check, one that I hope will help as you continue to develop the sanctuary. There are no strings attached―it’s to be spent at your discretion.”

He walked around the table and handed the check to Annie. When she looked at it, she gasped at the amount. Twenty thousand dollars. What she could do with twenty grand was more than she could comprehend. She blinked up at Tucker, then turned to the others. “We can get the engine. We can fix the tractor.” She looked again at the check to make sure she wasn’t crazy, then back at Tucker.

“I believe in what you’re doing,” he said. “I believe in you.”

Annie’s heart nearly stopped. His message was completely heartfelt in its honesty. She’d have been thrilled beyond measure if only he’d stopped with that first sentence. Because believing in her was believing a lie.

10

“W
ELL
, I
SAY
WE
USE
THE
REST
of the money to build a quarantine barn,” the gray-haired gent who owned the variety store said, his big hand almost dwarfing his beer mug.

Tucker spared him a glance, but only that. The same was true for the others. He only had eyes for one person, and it killed him that he’d had no choice but to return to his seat at the far end of the table. Since it would’ve been highly inappropriate to kiss her in the middle of the board meeting. He’d settle for staring into her gorgeous blue eyes.

“We should invest in some of them big internet sales things.” This from another old man, Cy Heber, who looked as worn as the creaking weather vane atop the Safe Haven barn. “Those ads just keep on popping up no matter what, so they’re bound to get folks’ attention.”

“Heber, that’s spam,” Jesse said, doing an admirable job of keeping a straight face. “Besides, we’re already doing two internet campaigns.”

Tucker watched as Annie finally put the check in her pocket and focused her entire attention on him. But instead of the heated glances from before, she seemed more confused than the money warranted. He would’ve liked her to smile at least, but he figured she was having mixed feelings.

He wanted her to know he was on her side. No matter what happened later with the information George gathered, where the chips fell, he needed Annie to believe that he had faith in her. That check meant something to him, as well. He never had been and never would be cavalier about his wealth, inherited or earned. Damn, he couldn’t wait until there were no more secrets between them. But for now, he hoped his gesture would ease her mind in some small way.

The older cowboy, Will, said, “I think we should hire someone who can be there for Annie so that she doesn’t have to work three hundred sixty-five days a year. A person needs to have some time off.”

That made Annie turn. “I don’t need any such thing.”

Everyone started talking at once, except for Shea, who just shook her head. In fact, she’d said very little since the meeting started forty minutes ago.

Sadie slammed her hands down on the table so hard and loud she brought the chatter to a halt. “Quiet, all of you. What we’re gonna do with that check is just what we’ve done with every other donation. Leave it to Annie. She knows better than all of us combined what Safe Haven needs. And if you don’t agree, I’m bringing this meeting to a close right this second, and you can all pay for your own damn beer.”

Finally, Tucker got his smile from Annie.

* * *

A
NNIE
WANTED
TO
HUG
S
ADIE
for stopping the free-for-all the board meeting had become. It was torture sitting with all these people. It was no picnic sitting across from Tucker, either.

The check and all it meant hadn’t truly hit yet. Big ideas like gratitude and what she could do with so much money were right beside the echo of his words, his belief in her that made her want to weep until next week.

If he knew the truth, would he have been so quick to give her anything? No, of course not. Who would? But then, his generosity hadn’t been toward Leanna Warner, and she couldn’t forget that. The whole point of staying in Safe Haven was to do everything in her power to help the cause. To hide her mistakes in a coffee can under her bed, and dedicate her days and hours to something worthwhile.

The smart thing would be to continue on as if nothing had changed. In truth, nothing had. Except for the extra-large infusion of guilt.

Oh, and wanting Tucker so badly she found it hard to breathe.

She’d agonized for hours last night and before the meeting, berating herself for kissing him when there was so much at stake. Intellectually she knew that Tucker wasn’t using his position to manipulate her, and she wasn’t trying to use their attraction for her own benefit. But the check and the confirmation that the foundation would make an independent decision took care of any lingering doubts.

Forcing herself to tie up the meeting, to actually speak to Will and Cy and the rest of the board and really listen, put more strain on her than she’d have guessed. Tucker was there, right there, and every step closer made her want him more.

Shea and Jesse lingered after the others had left, taking the time to thank Tucker and to ask him what kind of receipt he’d like for the donation.

Annie figured that would be it. Because she had a hell of a lot to do.

“You going back to Safe Haven?” Shea asked.

Annie shook her head. “I’d like to go to Kalispell and deposit the check. Tucker’s bank has a branch there. Maybe I can keep out enough money for the engine so we can order it today. Spring will be gone before we know it.”

Tucker, who’d been speaking to Jesse, joined Shea and Annie. “I could take you to the bank. Make sure you get whatever cash you need.”

“No, that’s okay,” Annie said, ordering herself not to be nervous just because he was a foot away. “I’ll have to get back to Safe Haven tonight, and you don’t want to make all those trips. Not if you’re leaving tomorrow.”

“I’m a damn good customer of that bank. If I’m with you, they’ll let you have the whole check in cash if you want.” He smiled, lifted his shoulder in a casual shrug. “And hey, maybe we could even splurge and get some dinner.”

Annie sighed, knowing it would be dangerous to go to Kalispell with Tucker. She’d already proven that she had no defense against this man, and God knew, she’d already broken almost every rule in her book. Still, the tractor had been sitting there for so long, and the kids had worked so hard on the project. She looked up at Shea. “Do you think you might be able to cover for me for a few hours?”

Shea smiled. “I know I can.”

Jesse moved next to her. “Me, too.” Then, weirdly, he nudged Shea in her side. He tried not to be obvious, but Annie saw it. Her pulse jumped when Jesse asked Tucker to join him outside.

“Maybe you should take a toothbrush with you,” Shea said.

“What!” Annie groaned. Dammit, someone must’ve seen the kiss last night. “Are you crazy?”

Despite the flush on her cheeks, Shea took a step closer to Annie and leaned in. “Maybe get some underwear. Abe’s Variety has both, you know. Then you wouldn’t have to drive back to Safe Haven.” Shea smiled. “Jesse and I can stay as long as you need us to. Honest.”

Annie could hardly believe Shea’s suggestion, and Jesse’s part in this little maneuver. She wished she’d never kissed Tucker. No. That he’d never kissed her. Did everyone in the county know about it? Could a rumor spread that fast?

What was she thinking? This was Blackfoot Falls. Of course it could. Even worse, the kiss wasn’t a rumor. It probably hadn’t helped that she and Tucker had been ogling each other during the meeting. Jeez, she’d never live this down. Never.

Luckily, what the people of this tiny town thought of her wasn’t high on her list of things she cared about. Tucker was. So was his imminent departure. God, why did she have to like him so much? Men simply did not make her heart pound anymore. Or send heat surging through her veins. But then she hadn’t met anyone like him before. In her experience, rich, powerful men didn’t give up their valuable time to help bring a foal into the world or get their hands dirty saving a helpless goat.

Even though she didn’t deserve to be with a man like him, the fact that this was it, that they’d never see each other again once he left, was eating at her resolve faster than the summer sun melted a Popsicle. Her priorities had shifted even as she tried to reason with herself. He’d already given her a check, no strings attached, and the foundation was a separate entity. One obstacle out of the way. Was that why he’d chosen the meeting to present the check? It didn’t matter. In her heart she knew... She needed tonight with Tucker as much as she needed the tractor to work.

Maybe more.

“You’re right, I should duck into Abe’s,” she said, having trouble meeting Shea’s gaze. “If you’re sure.”

“Please.” Shea rolled her eyes. “Even I could tell you guys wanted to crawl all over each other.”

Annie felt her own blush. “Oh.”

“Yeah. Hurry up. I’ll be talking to Tucker about when we should expect to hear from the foundation.”

Annie wanted to hug her, but instead she waved at Sadie across the room, then darted out the door, ready and willing to head into a night she’d never forget. And hang the consequences.

* * *

T
UCKER
WAS
ABOUT
AS
PLEASED
with himself as a man could be. He had an amazing woman sitting at his side and the promise of a perfect night of nothing but spoiling her rotten in every way he could think of. Mostly, he hoped, by giving her many, many orgasms.

He’d never have asked Annie to spend the night with him. At best, he’d hoped she might ask him into her cabin after the volunteers left in the evening. But then Shea and Jesse had offered their help, and Annie had disappeared into the variety store. There were enough clues in her body language to let him know she’d picked up a few essentials. When Shea said, “See you tomorrow,” the deal was sealed in his mind.

“I can’t begin to thank you for the generous check, Tucker,” Annie said as they merged onto the highway. “Your faith in Safe Haven won’t be misplaced, I swear.”

Tucker gave her a look that was a little too smug.

“I’m being sincere,” Annie said.

His expression softened at her offended tone, and he realized what she must think. “Sorry. I know you are. I meant no offense. It’s just...I’ve been caught up thinking about all the things I want to do after you take care of business. Things I want to do with you.” He reached across the SUV and took her hand. “For you.”

“Oh,” she said, after a few seconds. “Carry on, then.”

He laughed. “I intend to.” After a quick squeeze, he returned his hand to the wheel because he’d been waiting for a place to pull over. There was no traffic to speak of, and he had no trouble moving onto the shoulder.

“What’s wrong?” she asked. “Is it the car?”

“The SUV is fine,” he said, driving onto a patch of gravel and away from the two-lane road. “What’s wrong,” he said, killing the engine and turning to Annie, “is that I haven’t kissed you since last night.”

Undoing his seat belt, he leaned over, mentally cursing bucket seats and intrusive consoles, and slipped his hand behind Annie’s neck. He didn’t have to pull her close; she came eagerly to meet him in the middle.

She skipped tentative altogether and went straight for mind-blowing with a quick but insistent swipe of her tongue, vanquishing any doubts he’d had about the true purpose of this escape.

He couldn’t have stopped his groan if he’d tried. That he remembered her taste, that her scent had already become vital, made him glad he’d closed his eyes, because looking at her now would make him want far more than a kiss.

The moment her hand touched his chest, he gripped her more firmly, took over the kiss and slipped his tongue between her teeth. Her whimper excited his already stirring cock, and as they explored each other, the sounds of their desire filled the interior of the cab, making everything more intense.

Her roving hand reminded him that he could touch now, touch more than he’d dared last night. If the pull of actually getting her into bed hadn’t been so enticing, he might have listened to the voice in the back of his head reminding him the back of the Land Rover was roomy, and how no cars had driven by since he’d pulled over.

Instead, he cupped her breast with his left hand. Over her shirt, over her bra. And learned the shape of her, the feel of her against his palm. This wasn’t a grope and dash...it was a prelude, something to take the edge off until he could give her the perfect setting. Although his body wasn’t too thrilled with the decision.

She drew back just as he was marveling at how hard her nipple was through two layers. “We should probably go.”

Giving in, he opened his eyes, and dammit, the look of her lips, all moist and pink, was enough to make him hard. “You all right?”

“Better than all right. But I want—”

“Everything?”

She smiled, kissed him quickly on the lips, then sat back in her seat, pulling her seat belt across her chest. “Think we can do everything in one night?”

“We can sure as hell try,” he said, then he put the car in gear and turned back onto the freeway, the memory of her kisses lingering like the slow, pleasant burn of twenty-year-old Scotch.

* * *

“W
HEN
I
WAS
SEVEN
, I
WANTED
to be a fireman.”

Annie immediately pictured him in one of those sexy calendars, wearing all of his gear except for his shirt. He’d have made the cover for sure. “What happened to change your mind?”

“Batman.”

“Really? How’s that working out for you?”

He grinned. “Great. Although the commute to Gotham is killing me.”

She turned more toward him, feeling as if she were in a dream, because this was not her life. Every time she started to sink back to reality, the one she’d find soon enough in Blackfoot Falls, she snapped herself out of it. She’d have the rest of her life for regrets. But she wouldn’t begin now. “I hope you brought your alter ego with you, because I’m thinking you’d look seriously hot in tights.”

His laughter was deep and real and made her shiver. It also made her touch him. Her hand on his. Nothing major, no groping. The last thing she wanted was to distract him from getting them to the bank. And the hotel. She really wanted to be at that hotel.

“I can guarantee that you will never see me wearing tights. In fact, you need to stop thinking about it right now.”

“Hey, tights can be very manly. All the best superheroes wear them.”

Tucker looked at her. “No, some of them wear jeans and checkered blouses.”

Absurdly, she looked down, although she knew what she’d put on this afternoon. “Stop it,” she said, meaning it. The last thing she needed to do was get mired in her mistakes again. In fact, she wasn’t going to think about herself at all. “I want to know what happened after the Batman phase.”