Yours for the Taking (17 page)

“So, you’re snowed in? Lucky you.”

“Yeah, Gina doesn’t see the upside yet, but I’m hoping that’ll change after a good breakfast.”

“So you have everything you need?”

“Who do you think you’re talking to? Of course I have everything… well, except a real leash. We’re making do with a rope.”

“That might come in handy with more than just the dog. I’m sorry I’ll miss it.”

“Very funny. There will be no unholy triangle with Gina. No way.”

“Aw come on, Ben. I was looking forward to it, as long as you follow the rules.”

“God, we were drunk. You still remember the rules?”

“What rules?”

Ben turned to find Gina standing right behind him. “Look, Trap. I gotta go. I’ll talk to you later.” Ben disconnected the call and cursed. He picked the worst time imaginable to forget how small the cabin was.

Gina’s eyes shone with interest. “Were you just talking about what I think you were talking about?”

Ben groaned and gathered the rest of the ingredients. “No, well, okay, yes, but Trap was just joking. Besides, I’m not into sharing. I want to keep you all to myself.” Forever, but he didn’t think she was ready to hear that yet. He really hoped that would change, even more than he hoped the subject would change.

“Have you ever—”

Ben shook his head. “No, we got drunk one night and ended up going after the same girl. A mistake she quickly corrected by leaving our sorry asses at Humpin’ Hannah’s.”

“But not before you discussed rules.”

“Actually, she left before we discussed rules, but then we were drunk.”

She jumped up to sit on the counter next to where he was working. “So, what are the rules?”

“It’s not going to happen, so what’s it matter?”

“I’m just curious, and it’s not as if we have anything better to talk about. I’ve always wondered what would possess two guys who were straight to go for one girl.”

“Probably the same thing that possesses two straight girls to go for one guy.”

She wrinkled her nose, which just made him want to kiss her. He had it bad.

“I never got that either.”

“I think the answer is mass quantities of alcohol.”

“Back to the rules. Spill. Inquiring minds want to know.”

Ben laughed. He so didn’t want to give her any ideas. “It’s never gonna happen.”

“Come on, Ben.” She rubbed her hands together. “Look at you, you’re turning red.”

“I am not.”

“There you go, lying again.” Gina grabbed his phone. “Either you tell me, or I’ll call Trapper. I’m sure he’d be more than happy to share.”

She was right, damn it. Trapper would just love that.

“You wouldn’t dare.”

“Oh wouldn’t I? Let me see, he’s the last person you called, right?”

He tried to grab the phone but she held it away from him. “Okay, you win. I’ll tell you about it after breakfast.”

Gina swung her feet. “You’re just hoping to get the phone away from me. No, either you tell me now or I hit redial.”

Ben measured the flour, part buckwheat and part white as Gina’s finger hovered over the redial button. He was so screwed. “Let me see. There were six. I can’t believe you’re making me do this.” He counted them off on his fingers.

“No belittling.

No sword fighting.

No eye contact.

No friendly fire.

No small talk.”

Gina laughed through the entire list. If she hadn’t been leaning against him, she’d have fallen over.

“And rock paper scissors to see who gets first pick of…”

“What?”

“Use your imagination.”

“Oh, I am. I could just picture you and Trapper—”

“Oh, no you don’t.” He picked her little butt off the counter and carried her toward their bedroom. “The only man I want you picturing making love to you is me.” And he was going to make sure that image was forever burned into her memory if it was the last thing he did.

She giggled and nipped his ear. “What about breakfast?”

“It’ll wait.”

***

The snow fell for the rest of the day. After making love and then breakfast, Gina and Ben laid on the couch reading with their legs entwined. He had a pretty good library for a guy. She picked up
Pride and Prejudice
. She’d heard so much about it but hadn’t read it because she’d never before had the time to read anything that wasn’t required for school or business. When she cracked the cover, she saw Ben’s mother’s name written in a bold hand. It had been hers. Gina moved to return it, feeling as if she were stepping on someone’s grave, but Ben stopped her.

“You don’t want to read it?”

“It was your mother’s, I wouldn’t feel right.”

“No, go ahead. It was her favorite book; she’d want you to read it. ”

She started to say no, but the way he looked at her made her stop. “Okay, if you’re sure.”

“Gina, I love you, and my mom would have loved you too.”

She tried to laugh it off, but he looked so serious, she couldn’t. Damn him. She opened up the book and did her best to ignore him and all his talk of love. Still, the way he said it made it almost impossible. Thank God the book was so good, she was swept into a world she’d never experienced before. Kind of like this one, only different.

A few hours into
Pride and Prejudice
, water began spurting out of every open faucet in the house. Ben jumped off the couch and almost fell on his face since his legs were still entwined with Gina’s. “We have working plumbing.”

“Oh, thank God. I have to use the bathroom. Check and see if the toilet is working.”

Ben ran from the kitchen sink to the bathroom and Gina heard the most lovely sound she could imagine—the toilet flushing. Ben came out with a triumphant smile. “Works like a charm.”

Gina ran to the bathroom and slammed the door in his face. The seat was still a little cold, but nothing like the wood one she’d sat on earlier. She took her time and then ran hot water in the tub, rinsing it before putting the stopper in.

“There’s room in there for two.”

Gina looked over her shoulder. “Don’t you knock?”

“Why should I? With all the splashing you were doing, I figured you weren’t playing in the toilet.”

Ben and Jasmine both looked at her expectantly. “Come on, I’ve been wanting to get you wet and naked since we left the country club yesterday.”

“That long, huh?”

She reached past him to get her toiletries. He took them and held them behind his back. “Let’s see if we can get through a bath together without you getting into a snit.”

Gina pulled the shirt she wore, one of Ben’s flannels, over her head. “Oh, yeah, like that’s going to help your chances.”

Ben unbuttoned the fly of his jeans. “And for the record, I’ve never made love in this bathtub.”

“If you keep traveling the road you’re on, you never will.” She lay back against Ben once he settled in the tub behind her. Jasmine jumped up, her paws clawing the side of the tub.

Ben pushed her down. “Oh no you don’t, Jasmine.”

When Jasmine barked, Gina shushed her. “Don’t worry, you can have your bath later.”

Jasmine lay beside the tub, crossed her front paws, and let out a whine that sounded like a pout as Gina soaped up a washcloth “What else is there to do around here besides enjoy water sports, freeze our asses off, and read?”

He took the washcloth from her and dragged it under her breasts. “There’s lots to do. We can go for a hike.”

“In the snow?” Ben surrounded her with his big body, which usually bothered her. She tended to feel claustrophobic, but not with him. He made her feel safe, which was something she really didn’t want to think about.

“The snow will melt by tomorrow. We can go fishing.”

“Fishing for what?”

“There are rainbow trout in the river. Bass in the lake. I’ll take you out to see the fort my dad and I built. We can take a picnic to the meadow and watch Jasmine run around the wildflowers.”

“The flowers are covered with snow.”

“They’re mountain wildflowers. They’re hardy, a little snow won’t hurt them. My mom always used to take me to play in the meadow. She’d sit there on a blanket and read while I ran around.”

“I’ll be wearing the blanket.”

“Just wait, you’ll see. It’s gonna warm up.”

Gina took the washcloth out of Ben’s hand and started washing her legs. This was probably a mistake because Ben began nibbling on her neck.

“Ben, did you come in here to get clean or to make love?”

“Can’t we do both?

***

After a few days at the cabin, Gina understood why he loved the place so much. He was as at home there as he was on the streets of New York. She, on the other hand, was not so comfortable, though things had vastly improved now that the indoor plumbing worked.

At first the utter quiet made her nervous. After a few days she got used to it, now she almost enjoyed it. They’d spend their nights reading by the fire, eating, and making love. Mornings were lazy and afternoons were experimental.

Before the snow melted, they built a snowman along with a snow dog for Jasmine. The snow was gone by the next day. They took a short hike in her new hiking boots. Heck, if she was going to ruin a pair of boots in the snow, it wasn’t going to be a pair she actually liked. Ben took her to the fort he and his dad had built when he was a kid. On the way back, Jasmine went nuts and Gina experienced her first wildlife sighting. At first she thought they were horses, until she saw the spikes coming out of their heads. Ben informed her they were elk, and it wasn’t spikes but antlers. Who knew antlers shed in the winter and then grew back? Okay, other than Ben? A small herd of elk watched them from a distance. Gina couldn’t get over how huge they were. The way they stared with those dark eyes of theirs gave Gina the willies. She walked a little closer to Ben until they were well away from where the wild things roamed.

Every day Ben had her try something new and massaged her aching calves every evening. One day she tried fly-fishing and caught a few, though even with Ben’s teasing, she refused to touch the fish. Ben did all the manly things like holding the flopping fish, removing the hook, cleaning, and cooking it. Gina had to admit she’d never had better fish in her life.

They spent time at the country club, had picnics in the meadow, and made love just about everywhere. Gina was disappointed when Ben told her he had to get back to town for a meeting.

They cleaned the cabin and Gina took Jasmine out while Ben packed the Land Rover. He shut the tailgate and lifted the puppy in before offering to help her. “Hold on, I just want to go through the cabin one last time in case I forgot something.”

The sun was shining in his hair and off the beard he’d been growing during their time there. He smiled and Gina was amazed at how, even after a week of almost non-stop sex, one look from him could elicit a physical reaction. He gave her a quick kiss, something he seemed to do often without thought, and climbed in the car. “I’ll wait out here.”

Gina knew she hadn’t left anything, but for some reason, she felt the need to take one last look. She took a mental picture to carry with her because she knew that once she left Boise, no matter how Ben thought he felt right now, or how she might feel about him, the real world would interfere and they’d live up to their commitment to divorce, and go their separate ways. She took one last look around and, for the first time in her life, left someplace wanting never to forget the time she’d spent there. As she closed and locked the door, she reminded herself she was good at leaving. This time it just seemed harder.

Ben waited for Gina to come back out of the cabin. He’d expected her to spend extra time in front of the mirror this morning putting on her makeup but she hadn’t. He’d wondered how long it would take her to remember she hadn’t worn any since the day they arrived, not that she needed it. The lack of makeup made her look softer, and she was, or at least she seemed to be with him.

He waited for her to transform herself to the street-smart woman he married, but when she returned sans makeup, she just looked melancholy. She silently climbed into the Land Rover, buckled up, and held Jasmine in her lap, watching the cabin disappear through the back window.

“We can come back any time you want.”

She nodded, but by the set of her jaw and the way her lips were drawn tight, Ben knew that for some reason she didn’t believe him.

The farther from the cabin they drove, the more distant Gina became. He tried talking but she didn’t add much. Finally, she fell asleep, a minor miracle considering how nervous she’d been on their drive up. A lot had changed in the week or so they’d been gone. The only thing he didn’t get is what had changed since they’d left the cabin that morning.

Ben pulled into the garage at Gramps’ and kissed Gina awake. He loved watching her mind start to work, from the uncensored smile that crossed her face and the light shining in her eyes when she first came awake to the cool control she slipped on like a mask. He bet he was the only person who saw the transformation. He was one sick puppy. He was the only man he knew who spent most of the night just watching his wife sleep. “We’re back to civilization.”

Gina wiped her face with her hands and yawned. “Great.”

“What’s the matter? I thought you’d be happy to be back to your cell phone, computer, and TV.”

“Nothing’s the matter. I was just thinking that since we’re back, I should probably get home myself.”

“You’re leaving?”

“I need to get back to work too. I’ve never been away from the office for this long.”

“We have plenty of time to talk about that later.” Or avoid talking about it. He definitely wasn’t ready to let her go yet, if ever. He got out of the car and opened the tailgate to unload it. He’d figure something out, even if it meant working from New York. It wasn’t as if there was a shortage of room in the brownstone. If he remembered correctly, there was office space on the lower level. The trick would be talking Gina into living together, not to mention staying married, and maybe having a kid or two. Hell, they already had a dog.

The door to the house opened and Kate came out followed by Joe. Jasmine practically jumped out of Gina’s arms and ran for them.

Joe pulled Gina into a hug and winked at Ben. “How was the trip to the ranch?” Jasmine jumped on his leg. “And who is this little bit?”

Ben tossed a bag over his shoulder. “That’s Jasmine, your new great-granddog. We found her on the logging road heading to the ranch.”

Joe picked up Jasmine. “Aren’t you a pretty little thing?” He put his arm around Gina. “Let’s let Ben unload the car while you ladies come with me.”

One look at Joe and Gina knew the old guy had something up his sleeve. She’d much rather unload the car than deal with Joe while she was still groggy from the trip. Gina was thankful Kate managed to hand her a cup of coffee before Joe led her out of the kitchen.

“So, how did you like the ranch?”

Gina followed him to his office, took a seat opposite his desk, and thought back to how hard it was to leave the cabin. “I liked it much more than I ever expected to, especially after the pipes thawed out. I don’t think I’ve ever spent so much time relaxing in all my life.”

“Good, good. That’s what I was waiting to hear.” Joe threw a manila envelope across the desk. “This is for you.”

“What is it?”

“Your wedding present. I thought I should do something special for my new granddaughter.”

He looked like a peacock she’d seen strutting around the zoo. Every warning signal she had went off as he watched. “Maybe we should wait for Ben.”

Joe waved his hand. “He’ll be along any moment. Go ahead.”

Gina unwound the string on the envelope before lifting the flap, almost afraid to open it. She couldn’t figure out what Joe was up to, but it was something.

Ben walked in. “Gina, we need to talk.”

Ben’s tone of voice sent a shiver through her. Why would he be angry?

He crossed his arms and the muscle in his jaw twitched. Oh, the only time she’d seen that was when they were at Shorty’s and he was pissed about Hairy. He glared at her and then at the envelope. “What’s that?”

Gina shrugged. “I’m not sure. Joe says it’s a wedding present.” She wanted to give it back; she had a bad feeling about this whole thing. Actually, it began when they’d left the cabin. Her chest tightened. She slid the document out of the envelope onto the desk. It looked official and she really didn’t want to touch it. She just wanted to go back to the cabin and get away from everyone except Ben.

Ben unfolded the bundle of papers and paged through it. “It’s the deed to the ranch.” He looked from his grandfather to her and back again.

She didn’t understand the weird vibes bouncing between the men. This is what Ben wanted, wasn’t it? Joe would sign the ranch over to him, and then they could get a divorce, and go back to their regularly scheduled lives. This in theory sounded a whole lot better to her than in actuality. She’d been right. When they left the cabin, the real world would interfere and things would never be like they were at the ranch. “That’s good, right? Isn’t that what you always wanted?” She hated herself for being happy that he looked so upset. Maybe this wasn’t the end. She wasn’t sure what it might be, and she was afraid to even think that far ahead, but then the thought of never seeing Ben again certainly didn’t sit well with her either. God, this was all so confusing. She was used to black and white, right or wrong, good or bad, but this emotional stuff was every shade of gray imaginable.

“This says…” Ben opened the document to the last page, “that you, Gina Reyez-Walsh, are the sole owner of the ranch at Three Whores Bend.”

“What?”

Ben glared at his grandfather and then turned that same look on her before he dropped the paper on the desk and walked out of the room.

Joe sat there looking smug. No doubt thinking he’d just won some battle of wills when in reality he may very well have driven the last nail in the coffin of her and Ben’s relationship. “Oh that’s really gonna help. Good going, Joe. From the look on Ben’s face, that might just be an end of a marriage present.”

Gina followed Ben out and slammed the door to Joe’s office behind her. She ran down the hall after him. “Ben, wait.”

Ben walked into the bedroom and spun around crowding her against the bed. “I guess you got everything you wanted, Gina. Congratulations. You planned this from the beginning, didn’t you? Well, I gotta hand it to you, you really had me snowed.”

She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She’d never expected Joe to pull this stunt no less planned it. How could she? “What are you talking about?”

“Give it up, Gina. I got the message loud and clear.”

Ben held up his satellite phone and hit a few buttons. A voice Gina recognized was on the speakerphone. “Gina, it’s Dick. I did a title search and traced the deed. I think we just struck gold. Give me a call. We need to talk about our next step.”

Ben clicked off the phone. “How long did it take that private investigator you hired to figure out how much the ranch was worth?”

“What?”

“Oh yeah, it’s worth a whole hell of a lot considering the mining rights, but then that’s no surprise to you, now is it? You lied to me, you played my grandfather, and now you’ve gotten everything you were after. ”

Gina sat on the edge of the bed stunned.

Ben was so mad he shook. A vein popped out of his forehead and he looked like he was about to throw an embolism. “I told you I loved you, and you used me. You told me not to trust you. You said everyone had an agenda. I should have taken your advice.” He tore his gaze away from her, almost as if he couldn’t stand to look at her. He turned and jerked on a jacket before storming out of the room and slamming the door behind him. He left her sitting on the bed trying to figure out what the hell had just happened. She didn’t understand any of it. Why was her private investigator researching titles? Why had Joe signed the ranch over to her, and how could Ben think she would ever do anything so awful?

The sound of the door slamming reverberated through her head and the look on Ben’s face filled with hate had her hugging herself. She should have known she couldn’t trust him, but over the last weeks, she’d let her guard down. She almost believed all those pretty words he said. Almost. God, she was so stupid. Tears streamed down her face and a sob escaped her closed throat. She wallowed in it for a minute, before she remembered who she was. Gina pulled herself up off the bed, then wiped the tears from her face on the sleeve of Ben’s flannel shirt before tossing it in the hamper and heading to the bathroom.

She shouldn’t have been surprised; she’d known all along it would end. She just never imagined it would end like this. Gina took a deep breath, which ended in a hiccup, grabbed her bag, and rummaged through her makeup. She needed to go home. Everything made sense there. Looking at her blotchy face and swollen eyes, she slapped on makeup until she recognized herself again. Once her control was firmly in place, she picked up her phone and called Dick. “Dick Sommers, please. It’s Gina Walsh.”

“Hi, Gina, did you get my message?”

“No, well, not all of it. What’s going on?”

“I think I found Rafael’s trail. I tracked down the lawyer who worked the sale; his secretary was willing to share some information for a fee. I’m not sure if I’ve found the right baby, but the timing works. If we have the right kid, Rafael went to a family out of California. The name on the check was Hutchins. I haven’t been able to trace them yet, but I found a piece of land purchased in Oregon in the name Michael R. Hutchins. I’m going to go and check it out.”

“So that’s why you were investigating titles?”

“Yeah, why else would I be sifting through all this crap?”

“Thanks, Dick. From now on, use my cell phone number only. Okay?”

“Will do. I’ll be in touch.”

“Good. I’m going to head back to New York today.” Gina ended the call and dragged her bags to the kitchen. Kate and Karma sat at the table with their heads together and stood as soon as she walked in.

Kate pulled Gina into a hug. “I’m sorry, sweetie. We weren’t listening but Ben has a big mouth. We couldn’t help but hear the whole thing.”

Gina couldn’t remember ever getting a hug like that from a woman. At first it was nice but she wasn’t letting Gina go.

“Ben’s a man. That Y chromosome makes them act like asses sometimes. He’ll come around.”

Gina shook her head and she blinked a few times, trying to hold back tears. It was one thing to cry when you didn’t have makeup on. Crying with makeup was a disaster. She stepped away from Kate. “I just need to go home.”

Karma pushed her mom out of the way and hugged Gina. God, all this sympathy was difficult to take.

“Tell us what you want to do, and we’ll help you.”

Gina patted Karma and stepped away. The two of them were definitely cut from the same cloth. She hugged her arms around herself trying to hold it together. “I just need to leave and I need to take Jasmine with me. Do busses accept dogs?” Great, now she was a single mother. She’d have to remember to feed and water Jasmine all on her own, not to mention walk her.

Karma shook her head. “I’m sure Grandpa Joe would fly you back in one of the corporate jets.”

Gina backed away. “I don’t want anything from him. I never have and I certainly don’t want to fly. I just need to get a bus. There is a bus station in town, right?”

Kate poured her a cup of coffee. “I think we can do better than that. Buck is on his way over before taking a load back east. You’re not afraid of trucks, are you, Gina?”

“No, I’m good with trucks, cars, trains, and buses.”

Karma smiled. “Uncle Buck is perfect. He might even teach you to drive.”

“Who is Buck?”

Karma flipped her hair over her shoulder and grabbed the phone. “He’s sweet on Mom. You’ll love him and I’m sure if Mom asked him real nice, he’d be happy to take you back to New York.”

Within an hour, a mountain of a man with red hair, mustache, and a beard walked in and poured himself coffee. He looked at Gina and smiled as a big gap peeked out between his front teeth. “So you’re the package I get to deliver to Brooklyn, huh?”

“I could really use a lift, if you wouldn’t mind. I’d be happy to pay you. Oh, and I have a puppy too.” She held up Jasmine to show him.

“Put your money away. I should be paying you. It’s not often I get to do a favor for Kate. She’s an independent one, my Katie is. Besides, you and that little pup will be good company. Are you packed to leave?”

“Yeah, I never unpacked.”

“Good, I’ll grab your gear and as soon as you ladies say your good-byes, we’ll hit the road.”

Gina nodded and looked at Karma and Kate. “Thanks for all your help.”

Kate shushed her. “Gina, I was so worried about Ben getting hurt. I never thought he’d hurt you. I was wrong. I’m sorry. I don’t know what got into him. I thought I’d raised him better than that.” She rubbed Gina’s arm. “You and Ben will work things out once he realizes what an ass he’s been. You can’t really hold it against him though. Look at his grandfather. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. He’s a good man. Just remember that when he comes crawling back to you.”

Gina’s arms were crossed and they were the only things keeping her from falling apart, which was just too embarrassing to even contemplate. “Kate, you can’t tell him where I’ve gone. Please just give me some time.”

Karma nodded. “Mom’s right. He’ll come around but after what he said to you, he deserves to stew in his own juices. Our lips are sealed.” Karma held up her hand to stall Gina’s escape. She ran out of the room and returned with the deed to the ranch. “Whatever happens, this is yours.” She stuffed the papers in Gina’s bag. “You’ll have plenty of time on the drive back to plan your next move. I wrote down both our numbers. Keep in touch. If you need anything just ask, and remember I’m happy to give you ideas on ways to torture Ben. It’s a hobby of mine.” She pulled Gina into yet another hug. “I’m just glad I finally have another girl in the family. With you and Jasmine, we’re almost even with the boys.”