Second Chance Cowboy (17 page)

Leslie’s eyes narrowed. “Not
Jake?”

Carly looked up at the taller woman
with curious eyes. She heard a dash of mockery in Leslie’s tone.
“Not Jake. I’ll be handling many of the responsibilities.” Carly
would have easily allowed Jake, and Chance for that matter, to
handle the horses’ care, but she needed to remain in control. She
had the capability to do well. “Chance will also be helping make
executive decisions.”

Leslie nodded. “Chance is
very
capable.”

Carly dropped her arms to her sides.
Okay, now she had reason not to like her.

She knew when a woman overstepped her
boundaries, and without a sliver of doubt, this woman had
intentionally ruffled her feathers. “Yes, I know how capable he
is,” Carly shot back. “It’s the reason I married him.” She could
have patted herself on the back.

Chance was her cowboy.

Leslie froze. “Yes, you two are
married.” A smile slowly curved her lips, but didn’t reach her
eyes.

Carly wondered if she needed to remind
Leslie who signed her paycheck.

She watched Leslie’s eyes slide past
her shoulder and brighten. Carly turned to see Chance stroll into
the barn.

He wore a scowl.

“
Is everything taken care
of?” Carly asked.

He nodded. “Jake will be
fine.”

“
Leslie and I were just...”
She stopped.
Verbally dueling.
“We were discussing the
horses.”

“
I planned to head out to
the Swift Wind after I finished up here.” Leslie picked up her
leather bag and snapped it shut. “Will you be there,
Chance?”

“
I’ll be here for awhile.
Duke can handle anything you need.” Chance’s tone remained
steady.

Leslie started toward the barn door,
pausing at the threshold. “There is some information I’d like to
run by you, Chance. Can I call you later?”

Carly braced her fists at her sides.
Did she imagine things or had Leslie Bakerfield made a play for her
husband?

“
Duke can handle it,
whatever it is.” His words hit target, no room for
misunderstanding.

Leslie nodded and left.

But why didn’t Carly feel any
better?

Chapter
Sixteen

CHANCE LEANED HIS large body into the chair and looked across his
desk at one very brave—or very stupid—Martin Kincaid. Usually fired
employees didn’t show up and ask to speak to the boss.

When the younger man called and said
it was important, Chance agreed to meet with him. He had a gut
feeling he needed to hear what the man had to say.

Chance stared at the other man.
Kincaid’s left eyebrow twitched every few seconds, a sign of raw
nerves. The man gave the impression of a dirty scoundrel or a snake
in the grass. How could he have missed it before? Usually his
instincts were right on.

“
You have only a few
minutes to tell me why you needed to see me. I’m a very busy
man.”

Kincaid ran his palm down dirty jeans,
and then scratched his stubble of reddish-brown beard, stalling. “I
came to ask for my job back.”

Chance wanted to laugh at the man’s
words but he kept a poker face. Did Kincaid actually believe he
would consider doing something so ludicrous?

“
Apparently I didn’t make
myself clear when I fired you. I can’t have anyone working for me
who can’t follow simple rules, and on top of this, you put my horse
at risk.” Chance’s voice broke through tight lips, low and
unyielding.

“
I had a feeling you’d say
no.”

“
And you still
came?”

“
Had to give it a
shot.”

Chance slid his shoulders forward and
placed his elbows on the surface of his desk. “You did, now it’s
time to leave.” His blood began to simmer.

“
I’m not finished.” The
young man seemed to age by twenty years. Deep lines appeared around
his eyes and his mouth. His brow moistened with sweat.

Chance only had so much patience. The
heat turned up in a notch in his gut because of the asshole sitting
across from him. “You’re finished.” Part way out of the chair, the
other man’s words stopped him.

“
I’ve only
started.”

“
Excuse me, what did you
say?”

“
You’re not the one who has
the power in this situation, Taylor,” Kincaid said without an ounce
of humiliation.

Chance sat down easily. “You’ve got
bigger balls than I would have guessed, but balls don’t account for
brain substance, that’s apparent.” He rocked back into his seat.
“I’m gathering by the sweat on your brow and the quiver in your jaw
that you have something to say. I hope you spit it out before you
piss your pants and get it on my floor.”

“
You’re a lucky guy, Chance
Taylor. You have a nice home, a lucrative ranch, and a fucking hot
wife. Oh, but that’s right, she’s not your wife.”

Chance jumped up and the force sent
the chair rearing back, striking the wall in a loud thump. He came
around the corner of his desk in two quick strides and had the
collar of Kincaid’s shirt in his tight grip. He jerked the smaller
man out of the chair and onto his feet. “Shall I throw you out or
would you like to save some dignity and walk out?”

Chance let go of his shirt and watched
Kincaid’s thin frame plunge backward. The man saved himself from
falling with a flapping of skinny arms. He wasn’t finished. He
straightened his shirt and cocked his chin. His eyes glossed
over.

“
Do you want to listen to
what I have to say or should I go straight to Carly McAllister and
explain it to her?”

Something snapped and it bled all the
way to Chance’s core. He knew, whether he liked it or not, he’d
have to tolerate this bastard another few minutes. “You have two
minutes and time starts now.” Chance shoved his fists into his
pockets, anything to keep from busting Kincaid’s chops.

“
I know the story, Taylor.
Your wife took a topple, woke up, and didn’t remember that she got
rid of you a long time ago. I bet she’d be pissed if she got wind
that good ol’ perfect Chance Taylor lied to keep her pussy in his
bed.” Kincaid sniffed arrogantly. “Hey, I didn’t say I blame you.
Who could? If she screws like she looks and walks I’d lie too.”
Kincaid laughed at his own repulsive joke.

Chance repeated a silent mantra,
demanding the tight muscles in his body to relax. He needed to
remember Kincaid was nothing more than a piece of shit looking to
get a rise. Chance wouldn’t give the slime the satisfaction. He
knew how to deal with the likes of trash like Kincaid. “How much do
you want?”

“
I like the sound of those
words.” Kincaid didn’t even have the decency to act surprised by
the question.

“
Time is running out,”
Chance stated on a sneer.

Kincaid took the warning to heart. He
wasted no time. “I did some calculating and came up with a fair
price. My annual salary doubled sounds reasonable.” He didn’t even
appear to be slightly ashamed.

Chance didn’t hesitate. He moved
behind his desk, pulled out the company checks, and wrote an
amount. He ripped it from the book and tossed it across his desk,
sending the piece of paper floating to the floor. Kincaid wasted no
time grabbing it up with greedy hands.

“
Nice doing business with
you, Taylor,” Kincaid said through a wide smile. “It’s not true
what they say about you. You are very sensible.”

“
Listen and listen well.”
Chance pressed his palms onto the top of the desk, leaning forward.
“There is no more where that came from. You come near Carly or the
ranch again I’ll see that your ass is behind bars for extortion.
Nothing would make me happier.”

Kincaid gave him a mock salute before
quickly exiting the office.

* * * *

Carly inhaled the pungent smell of
straw that drifted on the breeze as she walked toward the barn. The
musical clip-clopping of a horse’s hooves brought her attention
across the distance of the lush field. Chance rode his horse in her
direction. The smooth rhythm of his body straddling Devil made
Carly appreciate how sexy, masculine, and handsome her husband
was.

He slid off the horse, handed the
reins over to one of the hands, and headed toward Carly by the
fence. “Hi, beautiful.” He kissed her fully on the lips.

“
Did you have a nice
ride?”

“
I did. I wish you would
have come along.”

“
I must have a virus.” She
swept a hand through her hair. “My stomach’s still
queasy.”

“
You look good enough to
eat.” His eyes slid over her in admiration. “I’m glad to see you
smiling again.”

How could she not smile when looking
at her wonderful, caring husband? Carly reached out and grasped his
shirt, tugging him closer. Breathing in his outdoorsy, musk scent,
the smell titillated her every sense. He rewarded her with a tilted
smile and pressed her back into the wooden fence. “Can we stay in
this spot forever?”

“
Fine with me. We’ll have
the boys build a shelter over our heads and we’ll be set.” He bent
his head to kiss her neck.

Dropping her head back onto one
shoulder, she relished his contact with the sensitive skin of her
collarbone and throat. She dug her fingers into his chest, through
the material of his shirt, letting the feeling of the moment take
control.

He laid his hand on her lower back and
his warmth spread like honey through her T-shirt. With the other
hand, he trailed a finger along the bold lettering across the
front. “Is that right?”

She laughed. Her shirt read,
I
Belong to a Cowboy.
“You betcha.”

Sweeping his fingers through her hair,
he gently brought her in for a kiss hot enough to boil water. When
he lifted his head, she stared up at him, breathless.

“
I know there must have
been a reason why I waited here for you, besides your kiss and
touch.” She wriggled her eyebrows suggestively. “You’ve made me
forget.”

“
Admit it, Carly, you came
out here to tease me with that knockout body and helluva smile.” He
slid his hand down her spine and attached his palm to her backside
encased in worn jeans.

“
I remember now.” She
pulled back. “My cellphone isn’t working.”

“
It’s not?”

“
I’m not sure how long it’s
been on the fritz. Since the accident, I haven’t been thinking much
of anything. I found it in my purse and charged the battery, but
it’s still dead.”

“
I’ll get you another.
Promise.”

“
I guess it’s no hurry.
It’s nice keeping the world outside of our bubble a bit longer.”
When he started kissing her neck again, she gently pushed him
backward. “Slow down there, cowboy. I promised Thelma I’d help her
make lunch for the crew. If I don’t show up, she’ll send a posse
after me. She’s so protective these days.”

“
Thelma can manage. She’s
used to not having help.”

Carly blinked and stepped out of his
reach. “What are you saying, Chance?”

“
I wasn’t saying anything.”
He scrubbed the dusting of beard on his chin.

“
Remember when we had this
discussion before?”

“
No.”

“
I warned you before we got
married that I couldn’t cook, and I didn’t like to. People can’t
change overnight, but at least I’m making progress.”

He ran a hand through his hair. “And I
meant it when I said I didn’t care if you ever stepped foot in the
kitchen. Have I ever complained before?”

“
You haven’t.” She stepped
forward and laid her palm against his warm cheek. “I’m on edge
lately. When will you be in?”

“
Give me an hour. I’ve got
to talk to Duke.”

“
Don’t take too long.” She
walked away, but stopped and turned back to him. “I thought a nice
bubble bath—” She saw his brow shoot up and she quivered. “—for
two.”

“
How do you expect me to
concentrate after that?”

She shot him a smile. “You’ll
manage.”

* * * *

Chance watched her walk back toward
the house and his heart slammed into the pit of his stomach. He
didn’t like lying and he certainly didn’t like playing
charades.

“
You look like the boy who
lost his puppy dog.”

Chance didn’t remove his gaze from
Carly until she disappeared through the front door of the house. He
turned toward Duke with a frown. “Worse. I’m a man who’s swimming
upstream without a life jacket.”

Duke leaned against the wooden fence.
“You knew this wasn’t going to be easy, pal.” He rubbed his chin.
“It never is where women are concerned.”

Chance looked out into the pasture
where the horses grazed. “I have to tell her the truth,
Duke.”

“
Nothin’ wrong with
following your instinct, I suppose,” Duke stated.

“
Yeah, I guess not.” He
sighed. “How do you tell a woman that everything she thinks is fact
isn’t?”