Beau (Remington Ranch Book 4) (7 page)

Damn! Beau hadn’t intended to scare her off.

“Don’t go yet!” said Shane. “It’s early! Susie will think you don’t trust her if you go back now!”

Corinne shook her head. “I’m sure she’ll understand a nervous momma.”

Summer nodded. “You go if you want to. There’ll be plenty of other times you can come for the whole evening.”

Corinne gave her a grateful smile. Beau had to wonder how it must feel to be her. He had no clue.

He went with the others as they all gathered in the hallway to say good-bye to her. He hung back as hugs and kisses were exchanged. He came to his senses when he watched her hug Carter. No way was he about to miss out on that. He stepped forward and held his arms open to her. “It was good to see you again.”

She froze as she stared up into his eyes. She looked like a rabbit caught in the headlights. He wasn’t going to let her escape though. He stepped forward. He felt a tremor run through her as she leaned in to hug him. It passed through her and made him shiver too. Whatever this current was that was running between them, it had him letting her go far more quickly than he’d planned—but only so that he didn’t make a fool of himself by giving in to the desire to kiss her—right there in front of everyone and to hell with it!

She looked stunned as she stepped back awkwardly. She backed into Mason and dropped her purse, sending its contents spilling all over the floor. She managed to push everything back inside, well, almost everything, Beau saw something she’d missed. She gave them all an embarrassed smile. “Well, now I really am going. Thanks for tonight this was great guys.”

As he watched the girls walk her down the steps and to her car, he wondered if he should go after her. He shook his head. He knew he should, but he’d wait a little while first. As the guys made their way back to the living room, he bent down and picked up her cell phone from where it had slid under the bench in the hallway. He wouldn’t leave it too long, he needed to follow her with it. He hated the thought of her driving alone with no phone if she needed it. He waited until she’d pulled away and the girls were making their way back up the steps.

He went out onto the front deck and held up the phone. “Look what she lost when she dropped her purse!”

“Oh, no!” Summer turned around to check but Corinne had already disappeared down the long driveway.

“We can drop it off to her on our way home,” said Gina.

Beau shook his head. “What if she has a problem on the way home? I’ll go take it to her.”

“Thanks, Beau!” Summer looked genuinely relieved.

“Are you coming back?” Cassidy looked skeptical.

He shook his head. “I was about ready to head home anyway.”

“Yeah, right!” Cassidy laughed. “Good luck. And you know, I’ve been with you on the whole Ruby thing, but if you think about her being just like you, only smaller. It gives you a whole different perspective.”

Beau stared at her. He didn’t know what to say. How did Cassidy even know that Ruby was a problem for him? Had Corinne told her? And if so, why?

She grinned at him. “Go give it a shot cowboy, we’re not stupid. We can see what’s going on, just think on before you screw either of them over, okay?”

He nodded. He didn’t know what else to say.

Summer gave him an encouraging smile and Gina patted his arm as he walked past them and down the steps to his truck. As he climbed in, the thought struck him that he never bothered to lock it out here. He shook his head and started it up. That was hardly a detail he needed to be focusing on at the moment. What he needed to do was figure out what he was going to say to Corinne when he got to the cabin. What he probably should be figuring out was why the hell he hadn’t told her about her phone before she left.

Corinne smiled to herself as she drove home. It had been a good evening. She’d enjoyed the company. When Carly had first told her about a possible job here in Montana she’d wondered what kind of people she might meet, whether she’d be able to make any friends in the back end of nowhere. Now she felt as though she couldn’t ask for a nicer group of people anywhere.

Even Beau.

Watching him laugh with his brothers, chat with the girls, he did seem like a nice guy. There was no denying the effect he had on her. All he’d needed to do was put his hand on the counter behind her when he’d given her that glass of wine, and she’d gone all swoony! Then when he’d moved in for a hug before she left! Wow! If she didn’t have Ruby to think about she would have been dragging him home with her! She chuckled at the thought. She wouldn’t, that had never been her style, but it had been a long time since she’d had sex. And Beau seemed to have awakened her desire.

He’d even apologized for what he’d said about Ruby. He hadn’t said he didn’t mean it, or that it wasn’t true, but he had at least apologized for saying it. She sighed. But what did it matter? Even if he was willing to give it a go, she couldn’t. She couldn’t do that to Ruby, couldn’t expose her to a guy she already liked, knowing that he didn’t like her. It wouldn’t be fair to her. She got attached to people.

As she drove back down East River Road she realized she was lost in her thoughts and missing the opportunity to just take in the beauty of the place. The sun was setting, touching the mountains with gold and the sky with crimson. It was absolutely beautiful. She decided to stop in the pull out by the river. She was going home very early and she deserved to take just five minutes to take this all in. She cut the engine and sat to watch the sky change color with a big smile on her face. This was the first time since they’d arrived that she’d taken a minute to just sit and be and appreciate where she was. This felt like a sign, an omen that she was in the right place and good things were to come. She rolled down the window to let in the cool air and breathe it all in.

A few moments later she looked up at the sound of a vehicle approaching. It was a big, dark blue pickup truck. It didn’t look like anything local though, it wasn’t old and dust covered, but new and still shiny. A momentary panic swept through her—and she was sitting out here in the middle of nowhere, all alone. What was she thinking?

She watched as it pulled in behind her. She was torn, part of her wanted to follow her instincts and flee. Another part of her thought she was being silly. She was in Montana, bad things didn’t happen here, people were friendly, they looked out for each other. It was probably someone stopping to see if she was okay. Not someone coming to murder her—she hoped. She put her hand on the key ready to start the car up and drive away in a hurry if she had to.

Her heart beat faster as she watched in the rearview mirror. The driver’s door of the truck opened and a man climbed out. A tall, dark, very good-looking man. Beau! She let out a slightly hysterical laugh. Thank goodness it was him. But what on earth was he doing here?

Her heart was still racing, though it wasn’t with fear anymore. She opened the door and got out as he approached.

“Are you all right?” he asked. His eyes were full of concern.

She nodded. “I am now I know it’s you. You had me scared silly for a moment there.”

“Did your car break down?”

“No. I’d just stopped to watch the sun go down.”

“I see. Well, I’m sorry I scared you, but you scared me, seeing your car sitting there like that. I wondered what had happened.”

She smiled. He really did seem relieved that she was okay. “I’m fine, like I said, I just stopped to take it all in for a few minutes. What are you doing out here anyway? I thought you lived up in town.”

“I do.” He looked shifty. “I came after you.”

“Oh.” She didn’t know what else to say to that. “Why?”

He dug in his pocket and held out her cell phone. “You missed this when your things fell out of your purse.”

“Oh, wow! Thank you! I didn’t even know I didn’t have it.”

“I’m glad. When I saw your car parked there, I was worried that you’d broken down. I was just praying that you were still in the car and hadn’t wandered off to find help since you didn’t have your phone.”

Corinne shuddered at the thought. It wasn’t too far back to the cabin, but it wasn’t a walk she liked the idea of taking at this time of night by herself.

He held out the phone and she took it from him. She looked up in surprise as their hands touched. She felt the same rush of heat, the same fluttering of her insides as she had every time he came close, but the touch of his hand intensified everything a hundred fold. Oh, he could be dangerous! Especially to a sex-starved woman living alone in the middle of nowhere!

From the look on his face he felt it, too. He smiled down at her. “I’m sorry we got off on the wrong foot.”

She nodded. So was she. Looking up into his big brown eyes, she wished he was the kind of guy who loved kids and would enjoy hanging out with Ruby.

“Maybe we could try again? Start over?”

She sucked in a deep breath as he stepped closer. What exactly did he have in mind? He put his hands on her shoulders and looked down into her eyes, leaving her incapable of words, incapable of doing anything other than lifting her lips to meet his. It was the briefest kiss, a mere touching of lips before he lifted his head, but it left her senseless. His closeness eclipsed common sense, any sense at all. She stood there, looking up into his eyes, wishing he’d do it again.

One corner of his mouth lifted in the hint of a smile. “So what do you say?”

“To what?” She couldn’t even remember what the question had been.

“To us starting afresh. To you forgetting what I said about Ruby.”

Oh, damn! If only he hadn’t mentioned Ruby! That had gone and broken the spell. She shook her head slowly.

“No?”

“There’s no point, Beau. I like you, you like me. That’s all well and good. However, I love Ruby and you can’t stand her. That’s not a recipe for anything good to happen, is it?”

“I’m not asking you to let me into your lives and become a permanent fixture or anything. I just thought we could see each other sometimes. Just you and me.”

She raised an eyebrow at him. Was he suggesting what she thought he was? And was her heart beating so fast because she hoped he was? “What are you saying?”

He shrugged. “That maybe you’d like a grown-up night now and again.”

She still wasn’t sure that he meant what she thought he did. There was only one way to find out. “Are you suggesting we just…”

He held a hand up before she could finish. “Stop.” His tone was so commanding that she did.

He stepped toward her and the look on his face made her take a step back. Now she was trapped between him and the car. He closed his arms around her and held her close to his chest. She wanted to moan and melt in his arms, his presence surrounded her, engulfed her. His lips came down on hers. There was nothing brief about this kiss, it was deep, and long and thorough as he tasted her and explored her. He pressed her back against the car and thrust his hips against hers. She did moan at the feel of his hard-on pushing between her legs. She couldn’t help it, she rubbed herself against him, wanting more. So, of course, he lifted his head and smirked at her.

“So now, before you ask if I’m possibly suggesting what you think I am, answer me this.”

“What?” she breathed.

“Can you honestly tell me you don’t want to?”

She stared at him. How could she deny it? How could she admit it?

He brought his hands up to cup her face and smiled. “Just think about it, beautiful.” He covered her mouth with his own and she clutched his shoulders, kissing him back hungrily, knowing it made her answer plain as day.

Then he stepped back. “I’ll be waiting.” He turned around and walked back to his truck. He didn’t pull away though. He waited while she got into her car and started it up.

She kept an eye on him in the mirror as she drove the last few miles home and he followed. Who the hell did he think he was? Who did he think she was? It seemed he had a pretty good idea who she was, actually. A sex-hungry woman in the middle of nowhere who didn’t have many options. She shook her head. That wasn’t fair. It was him. He made her feel that way. She hadn’t had sex in way too long, but it hadn’t bothered her until she met Beau! And it wasn’t that she wanted sex all of a sudden, it was that she wanted him!

~ ~ ~

Beau pulled over as she turned into the driveway at the ranch. She was home safe. It was crazy that he’d followed her the last couple of miles back here, but for some reason he’d had to. When he’d seen her car pulled over at the side of the road like that, all kinds of horrible scenarios had run through his head. He’d been worried sick until he’d seen her step out of the car. He wasn’t the kind of guy who went around worrying about people. Like Wanda said, they ceased to exist for him when he wasn’t around them. It wasn’t that he was cold or heartless, at least he didn’t think so, it was just that he was pretty much self-contained. People came into his world for a few minutes, or hours, then they were gone again, until the next time. Usually. Corinne was proving to be the exception. He hadn’t managed to get her out of his head since he’d first heard her in the wine store. And when he’d watched her drive away after he’d kissed her, he couldn’t stand the thought of not knowing that she’d made it home okay.

He turned the truck around. So, yeah. Now he knew she’d made it home. Home to Ruby! Life could be a bitch when it wanted to. Why couldn’t he just meet a gorgeous woman who didn’t have a kid? Or even one who had a sweet kid? He sighed as he headed back up to town. He had to wonder what she’d made of his offer, and whether she’d allow herself to take him up on it. He wasn’t stupid, he’d known his fair share of women. More than his share if he was honest. He knew when a woman was attracted to him. There was no doubt in the world that Corinne was. He knew from the way she’d kissed him back that at least some part of her would love to have a grown-up night with him now and then. He shifted in his seat as one part of him grew bigger and harder at the thought of such a night.

The idea had come to him while he was driving after her to give her phone back. He’d been trying to figure out what the hell he was playing at.  Why hadn’t he given her the phone before she left? Because he’d wanted to go after her, to see her away from the others. He was attracted to her, but didn’t want to get involved with her—because he didn’t want to get involved with a kid. So he’d decided he may as well go after what he did want and lay it out for her. He’d love to spend time with her, and he’d love to get to know her better—in every sense. He could only be honest about it, and if she was in, great. If not, tough luck.

It was dark by the time he arrived home. He unlocked the front door and went through to the kitchen to pour himself a glass of wine. He’d been back to Deb’s and bought another four bottles of the Cab. He needed to finish the one that was open.

His cell phone rang in his pocket and he pulled it out. Shane.

“What’s up?”

“Just making sure there’s nothing up with you.”

“What might possibly be up with me, oh littlest of the brothers?”

Shane laughed. “Umm, my new manager maybe? It was hard to miss the fireworks flying between the two of you. Then you shot out of Carter’s place to chase after her. Want to tell me what’s going down?”

“Nothing.”

Shane waited.

“Yet.”

“Yeah, that’s more like it. But how’s it going to work?”

Beau thought about it. He didn’t really want to tell Shane that he’d just made his newest employee an indecent proposal. He wasn’t sure what Shane would make of it. He wasn’t sure what he made of it himself really. “I don’t know yet. It might not even work at all, but there’s a spark there.”

“Jesus, Beau. That’s no spark, that’s a big-ass flame waiting to ignite a wildfire.”

Beau laughed.

“Seriously, bro. You’re getting into something big there.”

“You sound concerned.” Beau might have expected that from Carter, but not Shane. It seemed his littlest brother really was growing up. Or maybe it was just the love of a good woman that helped him see farther than jokes and sex.

“I am. I don’t see you taking on Ruby. And I don’t see Corinne being interested in a guy who doesn’t like her kid. I don’t want to see you screw yourself over.”

“And you don’t want to lose your new lodge manager?”

Shane laughed. “No, I don’t. Though I wouldn’t mind seeing her turn into my next sister-in-law. I mean, then we’d have a full set.”

Beau stared at the phone for a moment. “What the fuck, Shane? Have you lost it? This is me you’re talking to, remember? Even if I was looking to settle down, it sure as hell wouldn’t be with Ruby.”

“Yeah. I know. Just pulling your leg.” He didn’t sound as though he was.

“Okay, well is that all you wanted to know?”

“I guess. Will you be out to the ranch this weekend?”

“Yeah. I want to ride Troy again, and I need to see the oldies.”

“Uh-oh. Are you still on the warpath about the ranch?”