Kansas Nights [Kansas Heat 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (12 page)

“Don’t be more of a smartass than you have to, Mandy,” Kathy shot back, reaching for the cookies herself. “You know that’s not what I meant. I was talking about you being locked up in here. You’re pregnant, for God’s sake. You’re supposed to be shopping and picking out baby names, not worrying about whether or not you’ll be shot before you give birth!”

Kathy’s words agitated her more than Amanda, who blinked and shrugged. “Actually hadn’t been worried about that, but thanks.”

“Don’t play me, Amanda. I know you. You’re worried or you wouldn’t be letting Jack keep you locked up in this house.”

“It’s Jack now, is it?” Amanda lifted a brow at that. “Or did he make you call him
daddy
last night?”

“Amanda—”

“He looks like the type to call himself daddy, which is just so creepy on every level.”

“You can’t live—”

“I bet he likes to do it doggie style, rubbing your ass while he pants, ‘Oh yeah, baby. Give it to daddy.’”

“Amanda,
enough
! I’m trying to have a serious conversation here.”

“No, you’re not.” Amanda shook her head at Kathy as she shot to the edge of her seat. “You’re about to try and convince me that something has to be done, but,
of course
, because men don’t listen and cops are always stupid, it has to be
you
who handles it.”

“That shows how much you know,” Kathy shot back. “I was going to say it had to be me because
nobody talks
to cops…and men are stupid.”

“Tony told you to stay the hell out of it, and now
I’m
telling you. Stay out of it.”

“It won’t do no good.” Jack grunted from the back door, startling both women with his sudden interruption. “It’s clear the woman doesn’t listen worth a
damn
.”

Jack forced the air filling his lungs to escape at a slow and steady pace. The fingers that itched to curl into tight fists stayed relaxed and at his side as he studied the two shocked expressions in front of him. It wasn’t enough. Hell, it wasn’t even
close
to being enough considering what he’d had to endure for the past half hour.

This had to be one of the worst days on record, and Jack knew who to thank for that. Sitting not fifteen feet from him, Kathy didn’t look the least bit concerned with her impending fate. If only she could have read the thoughts floating through his mind, then Jack would get to enjoy watching her squirm. Soon, very, very soon, she’d learn.

“Well, if it isn’t Captain Crankyass.” Amanda drew his attention as she straightened up in her seat to shoot him an obnoxious salute. “What’s wrong? The ship going down?”

“Mine isn’t.” Jack stepped out of the way to let Cody Reese in through the door. “But yours might be.”

“Hey, honey—
is that coffee
?”

Jack enjoyed watching Amanda’s smug expression drain along with all the color in her cheeks. The best part, though, came when Cody lit into her, distracting both of them with their long-running argument over just what she could and couldn’t do in her “delicate” state.

Not only did Jack manage to get his revenge on Amanda, but as a consolation prize, he got Kathy all to himself. She didn’t appear too concerned about that fact, but met his glare with amused anticipation twinkling in her eyes. Damnit, that should be him. He was the puppet master, or at least, he should be, but from the very beginning he’d been falling for every one of Kathy’s traps.

She’d baited him good by calling Amanda to tell her how she needed to talk to her today and then letting it spill that she knew how much money was missing. It was very little consolation that both the sheriff and Amanda came down on Jack’s side given he knew Kathy wouldn’t listen to any of them.

The woman was bound and determined to get into as much trouble as possible. Well, now she’d done it. Jack could tell the woman had never planned to blab his secrets. Kathy had been testing him, measuring his response, and now the little vixen knew how desperate he was to keep his secrets hidden.

Worse, she knew his secrets. That fact alone had Jack nervous and itchy, an unfamiliar condition that left him uncertain of what to do. Tying her up and tucking her away someplace safe came to mind, and Jack considered it. Then he could relax. Hell, then he could have his fun, take his time and enjoy teaching her who really had all the authority. He could see her already, bent over, her ass stretched wide over a plug while he paddled it until the pleasure blew out her resistance and left her putty in his hands.

“Well, Miss Coben?” Realizing he’d been staring again, Jack jerked forward with a sudden rush to cover his lapse. “Did you get what you came for?”

“Not yet.” Kathy’s lips curved up in a knowing smirk.

The satisfied smile had him stumbling over his feet as one of the foggy fragments filling his head sharpened into a clear memory. She’d looked up at him just like that as she knelt between his legs. Then those full lips had parted over the head of his erection and sucked him into the best damn orgasm.

Kathy’s smile widened at the misstep, her tongue darting out to moisten her lips in a gesture so provocative she had Jack stumbling right into the edge of the counter. Sharp pain lanced up his side as the hard stone cut into his waist. His knee cracked so hard against the edge of the cabinet that the sound had Cody and Amanda breaking off their argument. Despite the throbbing that immediately pulsed up his leg, Jack was more sickened by the concerned looks everybody shot him.

“You all right, man?” Cody stepped over as if to offer assistance, but Jack’s snarl stopped him.

“I’m fine.”

Or he would be once he managed to get Kathy alone long enough to work out the real pain bothering him. Forcing himself to face the agony of straightening up when his hard cock had outgrown his pants, Jack tried to pretend like the boner denting his jeans wasn’t obvious to everybody in the room. In an attempt to hide his predicament, he tried to force everybody’s attention onto Kathy.

“But this one’s been here too long.”

“And that’s a problem?” Cody fell for Jack’s misdirection and glanced at Kathy in confusion.

“Close friends have a lot to talk about. That takes more time, and anybody watching the ranch will figure that out,” Jack explained as if he weren’t making it up as he went along. “You don’t want anybody watching to take much notice of Amanda’s friend and decide she might make good leverage.”

“No, we wouldn’t want that,” Amanda answered just as Kathy snorted.

“What a crock of shit.” Shooting Amanda a dirty look for agreeing with Jack, Kathy put her right on the spot with her next question. “Please tell me you don’t actually believe Captain Crankyass’s
crap
?”

“Captain…Amanda,
we
talked about that.” Cody turned on Amanda, clearly worn out of patience. “You promised not to make fun of the men in the security detail.”

“To their
faces
,” Amanda finished for him. “And I didn’t
call
him that. I
referred
to him as it.”

“This sounds like it should be a private discussion,” Jack commented as he stepped around Cody to latch onto Kathy’s arm. “How about I just take Amanda’s little friend here home?”

Before anybody could object or try to stop him, Jack yanked Kathy out of her chair and all but dragged her out of the kitchen. He had her halfway to the front door before she managed to latch onto the couch and swing him around to a stop.

“There’s no need to go to all that trouble.” Kathy’s voice showed the same strain as her features as she struggled against his superior strength. “I already have a ride coming.”

“Then call and tell them not to bother.”

Jack relaxed his grip long enough to throw her off guard and then jerked hard, making her stumble forward and right into his chest. For one searing moment, all of her lush curves flattened against his body in a sensual rub that ended too soon.

“You don’t have to bother, Jack.” Cody appeared in the kitchen doorway. “I can have one of the hands drive her.”

“They won’t know how to make sure she’s not followed.” Jack shot Cody a tight smile along with an excuse sure to guarantee Cody didn’t get in his way. Kathy on the other hand wasn’t so easily manageable.

Straightening up and shoving back, Kathy glared up at him. “I’m sure the captain has some dill-hole of a mate he can send instead. After all, I wouldn’t want to
distract
him from making sure Amanda and her baby are safe.”

“Trust me”—Jack tightened his grip in silent warning—“you’re the one in more danger right now. Amanda’s got a five-guard detail at all times, and you don’t have nobody but
me
.”

“I think you should listen to the captain.” Amanda shocked Jack as she came down in his favor, truly leaving Kathy with nobody to save her. “I don’t want to be the reason anything happens to you, Kathy. You wouldn’t want to worry a pregnant woman, now would you?”

There was more depth to Amanda’s tone than there should have been, a clear sign she wasn’t just talking about accepting a ride from Jack. He caught the mutinous look that flashed through Kathy’s eyes before she conceded defeat, for the moment at least. Of course, Kathy did defeat like it was victory.

“
Fine
.” Shaking free of Jack’s hold, she pushed past him to storm toward the front door. Pausing beside it, she snatched her purse off the entry table and shot Amanda a hard look. “I’ll go with him, but I’m calling you when I get there, and if you don’t hear from me in the next hour, you call Tony and tell him I’ve been kidnapped.”

Without waiting for Amanda to agree, Kathy wrenched the door open and flounced out into the sunshine, leaving Jack staring after her. If her words hadn’t tightened his fingers into fists, the fact that the woman had managed to force him to follow after her
again
would have. Having no choice but to do just that, Jack tossed a nod toward Cody and stormed after Kathy.

She was still wearing the same skirt from this morning, making him wonder if she’d put on a new pair of panties. His eyes strained to study the pink-and-white floral pattern as it shifted and swayed over her luscious rump. The hypnotic sight lured him in closer, making him forget that he’d intended to snatch her off her dainty little feet and show her exactly who was in charge.

“I’ll talk to you later, Kat!” Amanda hollered from the top of the porch steps, breaking Jack’s trance and leaving him cussing.

“Damnit, Cody! Get her back into the house before somebody takes a lucky shot,” Jack snapped.

“I’ll call you in an hour!” Kathy stopped to wave back at Amanda so suddenly Jack almost plowed right through her. Shooting him a dirty look, Kathy turned back to holler an extra assurance that Jack felt certain was aimed at him. “And let you know if there is anything you should be worried about.”

“Let’s go,” Jack grunted, latching back on to Kathy’s arm.

“You know, I think a better name for you would be Mr. Bossy,” Kathy muttered as she stumbled along in his wake for the first time. “And I don’t need to be led around like a child, so just let—
what are you doing
?”

Kathy’s screech could probably be heard three states over. The high-pitched sound made Jack cringe but didn’t slow him down any more than her flailing limbs. Without breaking his stride, Jack turned his shoulder right into her stomach and scooped the little woman clear off her feet. Treating her like a heavy bag of feed, he settled her over his shoulder, using one hand on her ass to pin her in place.

“Put me down right this instant, you barbaric mutant! What were you? Born in a barn?”

“Actually it was New Jersey.” Jack managed to keep the pain of having his stomach pummeled by her toes out of his tone. “And what tribe of banshees birthed you?”

Kathy didn’t waste her energy exchanging insults with him, but jumped right to the threatening. “If you don’t put me down this instant, I’m going to tell every woman in this town you have a hairy ass.”

“Be better than you telling them I like to be called
daddy
when I’m getting my dick pumped. Ow!” The crazy woman had pinched him, making him flinch enough for her weight to shift precariously for the moment. Not that Kathy appeared aware of how close she came to being dropped.

“I never said that!”

“You didn’t exactly defend me either, did you?” Jack shot back, flushing with renewed embarrassment.

“Oh, don’t tell me you care what Amanda thinks…or are you worried I might agree?”

It wasn’t the insinuation that finally broke Jack’s patience. It was the laughter. Kathy sounded too smugly superior for Jack’s temper to stand. The time for games had come to an end. The woman needed to understand that there would be repercussions for her actions.

“That’s one, Kathy.”

“What’s one?”

“Actually, that’s one hundred and one,” Jack corrected himself, sure that if he thought about it he could find
at least
a hundred transgressions Kathy had committed that deserved punishment.

“I don’t know what you’re babbling on about.” Kathy dismissed his warning without any concern. “But I do know that a man who passes out before everybody at the party is happy is not one worthy of defense. Now put me down before I tell everybody you like to arrive
early
!”

“That’s one hundred and two.” Hell, he should make that two hundred and one because Jack knew for a fact that he had taken very good care of Kathy last night, even if his memories were fuzzy. The woman was lying, and he didn’t stand for liars in his bed.