Texas Hustle (21 page)

Anxiety flooded Porchia at the thought of talking to her father. She’d seen them last month over the Labor Day holiday. No bad news nor harsh words had been exchanged, but the visit had still been stiff and uncomfortable.

She sequestered herself in the cabin as soon as breakfast was over. Her father would be at work. Her mother was probably dressing for a luncheon at the club. But her father was the one she had to talk to. Her mother always deferred to him.

For a long time, Porchia stared at her phone, trying to get what she wanted to say straight in her head. The conversation could go in a number of directions. Her father could be sympathetic to her concerns about Slade ruining her life in Whispering Springs. He could be angry at Slade, and at her, for making him relive the whole debacle. Or he could react anyway in between.

Her finger shook a little as she hit send on his office number.

“Judge Randolph’s office.”

“This is his daughter, Katherine. Is he available please?”

There was a noticeable pause before his secretary said, “I’ll see if he’s available.”

The wait for him to pick up seemed to be forever. She was beginning to wonder if he would. Then again, maybe Slade had already made good on his threat and contacted her parents and her father was seriously angry.

“Katherine.” Paul Randolph’s voice was as formal as a judge, which was appropriate. “What seems to be the problem now?”

Porchia flinched as if each of his words was a direct blow to her gut. “Can’t I just call and ask how you’re doing?”

“Of course. But since you never have, it would raise suspicions.”

“Well, that’s true, I guess.”

“I hate to hurry you, but I’ve got a case starting soon. What can I do for you?”

“Slade Madden is out of prison. Did you know?”

“Actually, I did. I was notified when his full sentence was served.”

“Has he called you?”

“No. Why would he? We have nothing to discuss.”

Porchia chewed on her lip. “He’s called me. He wants money.”

“Don’t we all,” her father said. “Of course you didn’t give him any.”

“No, but…” She took a drink of water to put a little moisture in her mouth. “I know you and Mom didn’t approve when I decided to stay in Texas instead of returning to Georgia, but I have a good life here. I want to keep it.”

“I see. I’m still not sure what you need from me or your mother this time.”

“Slade is threatening to ruin me if I don’t give him hush money. And if I don’t, he said he’d be contacting you.”

“Not that I have any intention of giving that degenerate money, but what did he ask for?”

“A million.”

Her father burst out laughing. “Degenerate and deranged. Well, there’s nothing he can threaten me with that would make me part with a penny. Frankly, I’m surprised you have given him a minute of your time. Ignore him. He’ll go away.”

“No, I don’t think so. He’s pretty determined.”

“Has he threatened you physically?”

“Well, no. Not really. Just verbal harassment mostly.”

“Then contact your local police or sheriff’s department. Let them handle it. That’s what we pay taxes for. I’m sorry, but I must go now. The court is waiting on me.”

“Sure, Dad. Thanks.”

“Anytime. We’ll see you at Thanksgiving next month. Your mother misses you.”

“I’ll try.”

She hung up, her breathing constricted by the large boulder setting on her chest. Her
mother
missed her but he didn’t? He still hadn’t really forgiven her for almost wrecking his appointment to the bench.

She pounded her fist on the sofa cushion. She had screwed up, big time. And, yes, it would have been totally her fault if her father had been passed over for his judgeship. Her and her stupid idea to show her parents they weren’t the boss of her. Right. That had worked so well, hadn’t it?

The phone buzzed in her hand. She startled and almost dropped her cell. A quick glance at the calling number had her heart crawling up her throat. Mallory James, her nighttime employee, never, ever called her.

“Hello?”

“Porchia? It’s Mallory. Mallory James.”

“Hi, Mallory. Is everything okay?”

“I’m not sure. I could be overreacting. On second thought, it’s probably nothing. I’m sorry I bothered you.”

“No! Wait. What’s going on? And you don’t ever overreact, so talk to me.”

“Last Saturday when I came in, there was an old beater truck sitting out front of the bakery.”

“Beater truck?”

“Looked worse than my Jeep, and, yes, I know how bad Mabel looks.”

Mabel was Mallory’s beloved, but old and rusted, Jeep Wrangler.

“Okay. Why did this truck bother you? We live in a small ranching community. All the guys have a crappy truck in the barn. Was it still there when you left?”

“No, but I’ve seen it near the bakery a number of times. I ran by on Sunday to make a list of supplies I was going to need for a new cake order we got, and the truck was in our parking lot.”

The hair on Porchia’s neck stood on end. A chill ran down her back.

“Yeah, that’s strange. I hope you didn’t get out of your car.”

“No, I kept going. I can protect myself okay. The military taught me that, but the whole situation felt wrong. When I got here about midnight to start work, it was gone. But when I left Monday morning, it was parked in front of the store again.”

“Did you see who was driving it?”

“Not very well. It was a guy. Cropped short blond hair. I think he might have had a tat on his neck. I couldn’t be sure. The driver’s window was cracked so I got a little view of him.”

“Did he say anything to you? Or threaten anyone else?”

“Not that I know of. He looks out of place, if you know what I mean. Like bad news looking for a place to land. I know Tina has seen him too. She mentioned that she had some new boyfriend that’d been meeting her and walking her to the bank for the deposits because she was nervous of the strange guy.”

Slade Madden. There was no one else it could be. He wanted her to know that he was watching and waiting. If he was making Mallory and Tina feel spooked, it wouldn’t be long before other women were nervous to come in her bakery. This would not do. Not at all.

“Maybe I should cut this trip short and head on back.”

“No, no. Don’t do that. I’m sure it’s nothing, but I thought you’d want to know.”

“Have you spoken with anyone from the sheriff’s department?”

“No.” Her reply was a little too short, too firm. The suggestion seemed to rattle Mallory. “Why would I? What would I say? It’s an ugly truck and makes the front of the store look bad? It’s a public street. I know he’s not doing anything illegal, but it just doesn’t pass the smell test.”

“Okay, but if this person threatens you or does anything other than park his truck in the area, call Sheriff Singer immediately.”

“Will do.”

Damn him. Mallory was right. If it was Slade, parking on a public street wasn’t illegal or even threatening. And even if she did decide to talk with the sheriff about it, it’s not as if Slade’s text messages had been more than demands for money. A case might be made for harassment, but she doubted it.

Later that day, she was finally able to get Tina on the phone. Yes, Tina agreed the guy was creepy and that he had black tats on his neck. But she also agreed that he’d done nothing other than park his truck and stare at the store. He’d never spoken a word to her, nor to any of the bakery employees that she knew of. No one was complaining about him, but Porchia’s employees had talked among themselves and decided that no one would be in the bakery alone until Porchia got back. There was just something about the guy that seemed sinister.

It was only when she heard the roar of four-wheelers that Porchia realized the entire morning had passed. She hurried to the bathroom to check her hair and brush her teeth before Darren got back. She didn’t want to meet him with a face full of worry and concern. Damn man could read her like a book.

“Hey! You here?”

Darren’s shout had her doing a quick rinse of the toothpaste from her mouth.

“Bathroom. Be right there,” she called back.

Her first sight of him made her groan and laugh simultaneously. He was covered from head to toe in dirt and mud, and the grin on his face reminded her of a kid with a new toy.

“Looks like you had fun,” she said, rolling her eyes at the mess.

“Damn Reno. He rooster-tailed me.”

“Excuse me?” She covered her mouth to contain her laugh.

“Sprayed me with his back tire,” he explained.

“Because?”

He shrugged. “Maybe I might have thrown a little dirt his way.”

She shook her head but couldn’t contain her laughter. She’d never had a sibling, but if she had, she’d have wanted to be as close to that sister or brother as Darren and Reno were.

“Don’t come in,” she warned. “You’ll have mud everywhere.”

“You want me to strip on the porch?” He pumped his eyebrows. “You know all the other women will never be satisfied with their men once they get a look at me.”

Her mouth ached from her wide grin. “Yes, I can see how that would be a problem. Leave your boots on the porch and head for the shower. And don’t you dare hug me.”

After toeing off his mud-caked boots, he walked toward her, the glint in his eyes warning her that he would, without fail, hug her.

“Don’t,” she warned and danced backward.

“Oh, come on, honey. Give me a kiss.” He smacked his lips and moved closer.

“Darren, I swear…”

But that’s all she got out before he caught her in a tight bear hug and gave her a kiss that tasted like dirt and sweat and Darren. The kiss should have been offensive, but it was Darren, and to her, nothing he did seemed offensive.

She pushed him away with a chuckle. “You. Shower. Please.”

“Going,” he said.

“Porchia,” he called from the shower. “I can’t reach a spot on my back. I could use a hand.”

Her momma didn’t raise no fool. There was nothing wrong with his back, but what the heck? She’d play along.

She stepped in, shut the door and leaned on the counter. “What’s the problem, stud boy?”

“I might need a little help reaching all the muddy areas.” The teasing tone totally blew his lie.

“I see,” she replied in a serious tone. She quickly stripped off her clothes, which were dirty anyway from his hug. Now that she thought about it, this had probably been his plan all along. “Now, where’s the problem?” she asked after opening the shower door.

Darren pulled her under the warm spray and pressed her against his granite chest, slick with water. He kissed her, slipping his tongue into her mouth with practiced ease, touching and tasting her exactly how she loved it.

“Okay, I’m here. Show me the problem.”

She slid her hands down his wet, slippery back, appreciating the tone and muscular development formed by daily hard labor. She worked her hands down to his ass until she could grab his cheeks in the palms of her hands. Then she pulled him tight against her.

This was not like her. She wasn’t a take-charge woman when it came to sex. But Darren brought out a side of her she hadn’t known existed, and it might be hard to get the genie back in the bottle after this week was over.

“You’re getting close,” he whispered in her ear, making goose bumps pop up on her arms.

She released him and grabbed the bottle of liquid soap. “Turn around,” she ordered, and to her surprise, he did. He turned and stretched out his arms, bracing himself on the shower wall. She swallowed…hard. He looked like pure sex standing there.

After lathering up her hands, she worked them down his back, over the rigid muscles and into the valleys between. The dip at his waist and narrow hips sent her heart dropping to her knees. The muscles in his ass tightened as her fingers worked them. Having this powerful man under her control made her head spin and the embers of lust in her gut flare to life.

She squirted more soap, rubbed her hands together and slid them around his hips until she felt the crinkle of his pubic hair. He drew in a breath and held it. When she wrapped her fingers around his granite shaft, he groaned and let his head drop to the wall between his hands.

Slowly, she massaged up and down his cock with a gentle twist of her hands. She dipped down to his sac and rolled the soft flesh between her fingertips. He stiffened at the first brush of her fingers on that delicate area but didn’t say anything.

Pulling her hands back around him, she stroked down his legs, enthralled with the strength she found there.

With knees bent, she rested her ass on her heels. “Turn around.”

There was a moment of hesitation and then he turned. His face was serious, his eyes dark with passion. His gaze dropped to her sitting at his feet.

She ran her palms over his feet and up his shins, rising up on her knees with the movement.

His velvety cock strained upright on his abdomen and appeared to become even more impossibly hard when she licked her tongue up the inside of his thigh.