Santa Fe Fortune (15 page)

“Well, then,” she asserted brightly. “This is probably good news.”

“Better than good,” he assured her, “the very best.”

Gwen set a hand on her hip and gazed up at him, setting forth a challenge with her dark eyes. “And what, pray tell, do you plan to do with it?”

“Invite you to Paradise Ranch?” he said with a squeak.

Gwen glanced down at her suitcases. “It would have been good to have the invitation a day ago, or even two.”

“Be fair,” he said, beseeching. “Up until this morning, I thought I was…in a family way.”

She shifted on her feet, considering his proposition. Her jaw was set, but Dan could tell her resolve was crumbling. He gave her his best charming grin. “You can’t leave Santa Fe without seeing its most stellar attraction.”

“Does this mean there will be starlight involved?”

“It might.”

“But my plane reservation,” she said, indicating her bags.

“I’ll book you another.”

“You or Holbrook and Holstein?” she asked with a saucy tilt of her chin.

He stared into hypnotic brown eyes, wanting so badly to up and carry her away.

“Me, Gwen. Dan Holbrook. The invitation is not professional. It’s strictly personal.”

A beautiful smile broke across her sensuous lips. “Well, then,” she replied, handing him a bag. “It would be impolite of me to refuse it.”

Dan cranked the ignition and wheeled them out of the city, the adobe-toned town fading behind them. Rolling hills dotted with sage brush and pine peaked higher as narrow buttes towered toward the sky. They passed one spectacular mesa after the next, their magnificence lording over the twilight as the sun sank low behind the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.

“How far outside of the city are you?” she asked.

“About eighteen miles. We’ll be there any minute.”

Gwen was over the moon, a billion thoughts and feelings racing through her head and heart. Paradise Ranch! Dan’s private sanctuary. He was actually taking her there. And much better than that, oh, so much better, was the fact that he was totally free. Gwen didn’t know the details about what had transpired with Elena, and in many respects she didn’t want to. The idea of Dan being with another woman in the most intimate way was not a thought she wanted to entertain. Gwen wanted Dan to be hers and hers alone; she sensed that in her soul now more than ever. She thrilled at the thought that he might feel the same about her. Wasn’t his taking her to Paradise Ranch proof positive of things moving forward?

Gwen wasn’t sure how to phrase it, but she was dying to know more about the camp and the children who might be there. It was awkward, though, because Dan hadn’t yet said anything about it. Surely, it wasn’t some sort of secret. Dan’s philanthropic bent had been profiled in the media, for heaven’s sake. Should she tell him she’d read
Santa
Fean
magazine and that she knew all about him being the “Best Billionaire Catch in the West”?

“Will anyone else be joining us?” she finally asked.

He wrinkled his brow, appearing genuinely confused. “I’m sorry?”

“Out at the ranch. You know, the others… Little people?”

Dan released a belly laugh. “Are these like midgets or Lilliputians?”

“Dan! I’m asking about the kids!” she said in frustration.

He turned to look at her a prolonged moment, then centered his eyes on the road. His lips pulled into a hard line as he appeared to think this through. “So you know about the camp.”

“I didn’t think the information was classified,” she answered honestly. “It’s in prominent magazines, for heaven’s sake.” Gwen felt her cheeks flush. There, the truth was out.

Gwen cast her gaze on Dan, seeing he’d reddened from his open collar up. Even the tips of his ears were crimson. “You read the article?” he asked, giving her an embarrassed glance.

“In the
Santa
Fean
, yes.”

He firmly gripped the wheel. “Oh God.”

“I was very impressed,” she told him. “Seriously, Dan. I believe it’s a wonderful thing you do for those children. I don’t understand why you wouldn’t want me to know?”

 
“I did want you to know. In fact, I’d planned to tell you tonight.”

“Will I be meeting any of the campers?” she asked hopefully.

“I’m afraid not, Gwen. The camp runs in two sessions. Two weeks after school gets out in June, and then the first two weeks of August. With the timing of your trip, you’ve just missed it.”

Gwen felt the corners of her mouth take a downturn. She was genuinely disappointed. “That’s too bad. I’d really hoped… I mean, I thought it would be fun… What I’m trying to say is that I love being around children. I’d actually gotten myself geared up and was looking forward to it.”

Dan studied her with pleased surprise. “Were you really?”

“Why, yes. Yes, I was.”

“You’re very special Gwen. I’m sorry you missed this round of campers. I know the kids would have loved you too. Maybe we can see about it some other time?”

Some other time? Was Dan indicating a future, or merely being polite? “Yeah,” she said uncertainly. “That would be great.” Then the deeper part of the reality set in. No camp plus no campers meant that they would be alone. “So, nobody else will be there, then? Out there on Paradise Ranch?”

“Gwen, if you’re starting to change your mind…” he said kindly. “I honestly don’t mind driving you back.” He checked his BlackBerry. “If we rush, you can probably still make your plane.”

“No! It’s not that…” she started badly, then was totally unsure about how to finish. What could she say?
I don’t trust myself around you and that hot body, when you’re bound to also have a hot bed?
Her fantasies about becoming intimate with Dan had been so wonderful up until now, mostly because that was just what they were. Was Gwen really ready to face that reality? Her plump little…uh…large rear matched with his hard-toned thighs, nothing but skin between them?

Dan knitted his brow, looking gloomy. “It’s the money thing, isn’t it?”

“Money thing?”

“You read what those other women said about me. You probably think I’m some kind of playboy and don’t have intentions that are sincere.”

Actually, Gwen was more worried about herself than him. While his good looks and wealth might make him appear to be the playboy sort to the general public, Gwen had gotten to know Dan privately. She trusted her instincts when they said he was nothing of the sort. He wasn’t the type to take advantage of people. Everything she’d learned about Dan had shown him to be caring and kind. When she first met him, he’d also had a completely guarded heart. His heart seemed to be opening up just as much as hers. She could tell by the hurt in his voice and the pain in his gaze. He couldn’t stand for Gwen to think poorly of him, for whatever kind of reasons he might imagine.

“I don’t think that about you at all,” she assured him. “I may not know you as well as I’d like to, but I’ve definitely seen enough to have a sense of who you are.”

Relief washed across the lines of his handsome face. “Then, you haven’t changed your mind?”

Butterflies alighted in her stomach as her heart galloped into overdrive. “I’m yours for the night,” she said, smiling softly. The tips of Dan’s ears flushed crimson again, and she quickly turned away, directing her gaze at the stunning New Mexico landscape. “Or the rest of the afternoon,” she continued hastily. “Or until whenever you decide to book my new reservation.”

When she turned back toward him, he shot her a smile and a brief glance. “I should think you’ll have some say in the date of your return reservation as well.”

“Why, yes. Sure. Of course.” Gwen mentally kicked herself and vowed to quit babbling. Maybe if she sat extra still to enjoy the view, Dan would magically forget how moronic she’d sounded.

Dan kept his view on the road, not daring another glance at the sensuous woman beside him. Had she intimated what he’d thought? Was Gwen hinting that she’d sleep with him? It wasn’t like it hadn’t crossed his mind. From the moment he’d tasted Gwen’s ultra-hot lips, he’d known that kissing wouldn’t be enough. He longed to hold her and take her completely, losing himself to her feminine warmth. Dan couldn’t wait to get home and slip into a pair of jeans and a comfortable shirt. He tried not to envision Gwen taking them off slowly, disrobing him as he watched.

“Look out!” Gwen shrieked.

Tires squealed as Dan swerved to avoid a jackrabbit. “Sorry about that.” He grimaced, steering them back on the road. Gwen had her hands pressed to her heart like she thought he was about to drive them off a mountain. Maybe he was. Perhaps this whole thing was crazy. Him and Gwen alone on Paradise Ranch, his big bachelor bed just sitting there—empty, cold, and lonely. He’d be damned if he didn’t want to, but could he really do that to her? Gwen was so wholesome and trusting. He doubted she’d been with a man since her divorce. It wouldn’t be right of Dan to take advantage of that, with the future between them still so uncertain.

A lump welled in Dan’s throat as he thought the whole thing through. He couldn’t stand the thought of Gwen leaving and not coming back. Even if she came back, he wasn’t sure how he’d endure her absence in the interim. All Dan knew was that he needed to be with her, now and possibly long after that. The sun sank over the mountains, streaking the sky with a grenadine hue. It was a beautiful summer evening and would be a crystal-clear night. There would be over a billion stars around. Dan was going to make good on his promise to Gwen that she’d see them.

 
Dan turned off the main road and onto a gravel drive. He pulled up to a wooden gate and put the SUV in park.

“We’re here?” she asked, fine color gracing her cheeks and temples. She was beautiful this evening, more lovely than he’d ever seen her.

“Welcome to Paradise Ranch,” he said with a smile.

Dan rolled down his driver-side window and punched numbers into a keypad.

The enormous wooden frame of the gate swung open on giant hinges.

Gwen grinned as they passed under the stenciled wooden sign identifying Dan’s private sanctuary. While he’d had occasional women since his big breakup with Elena, he’d never brought any of them here.

“I love it!” Gwen’s face shone with delight as the winding gravel drive shaded by trees opened into the wide expanse of hills. High atop the highest one sat the rustic expanse of the main house. Other outbuildings dotted the surrounding area, including the camp dormitory, mess hall and barn, complete with a full-scale riding ring. At the edge of the pasture beyond, sat a low-roofed stable. “You can’t possibly keep all this up by yourself? Even when camp is out.”

“I’ve got some good hands around to help me,” he said with a wink. “Trustworthy folks who look after the horses and such but don’t sell my stories to the media.”

“Are any here tonight?”

“Some will be around. But they heard we were coming. They’ll keep their distance from the main house.”

Gwen blushed wildly like the blossoming red yucca hedging the drive. She was one hell of a good-looking woman, and she was looking better all the time.

Grocery sacks rustled in back as they climbed the steep hill to their destination.

“So what’s for dinner?” she asked sweetly.

“It’s a surprise.” Dan hoped that Gwen liked surprises and that she really liked spicy food as much as she claimed. He had a real treat in store, fresh from the land.

“I adore surprises,” she said with a big, lovely smile. “The hotter, the better!”

“I’m not going to ask how you did that,” he said, unnerved by her uncanny mental telepathy.

“I saw you eyeing those jalapeño plants,” she said with a laugh.

He repressed a grin, charmed by her. Dan hadn’t even realized he’d glanced at the side garden, mentally calculating how many peppers to bring in.

“You’re one smart woman,
Ms.
Gwendolyn Marsh.”

She squared her small shoulders and tilted up her lovely chin.

“Thanks! I appreciate you saying so.”

Dan led her in through the great room, a rustic common area with an ample stone hearth, hardwood floors, and exposed beams in the vaulted ceiling. Three-hundred-and-sixty-degree views of the surrounding mountains were afforded through enormous windows. Gwen caught her breath at the panorama’s beauty, as the grenadine sky faded to purple dusk.

Gwen shifted the purse on her shoulder. “It’s incredible!”

“Thanks. I like it.”

He carried her small overnight bag ahead of her, leading her past an open kitchen with a central island. Gwen was impressed to see a good arrangement of hanging pots and pans, and baskets brimming with fresh fruits and vegetables on the gleaming marble countertops.

“Who does your shopping?”

“I called ahead and made some arrangements.”

She stopped walking and set a hand on her curvy hip. “So you were quite certain I’d come, were you?”

“I spent the better part of my drive back from Albuquerque hoping,” he said with a grin.

Dan pushed back the door to a magnificent bedroom with views even more majestic than the ones from the great room. Gwen’s purse slid from her shoulder and hit the floor with a thud. “Wow.”