Newmar, Lola - Rhett's Branding [Scarlett Rose and the Seven Longhorns 3] (Siren Publishing LoveXtreme Forever) (10 page)

Before he knew it, Scarlett was suddenly pulling back from him with an amused smile on her face. “Rhett, the music stopped.”

He pulled her back to him, and she gasped in surprise as he whispered in her ear, “What music, darlin’?”

* * * *

“Oh, Rhett,” she whispered as he broke their kiss to work his way down. She opened her eyes, smiling when she noticed how fogged the truck windows had become since sneaking off from the hoedown for some much-needed relief.

She moaned when she felt the tip of his tongue run down the base of her neck.

“Just like sugar,” he murmured before coming back up to reclaim her lips.

Scarlett lay on her back in the long bench seat of the truck, Rhett pressed firmly between her legs. She pulled him down further into their kiss then reached down to gather the hem of her dress. She wanted to feel him on her pussy as soon as he could take his jeans off.

That dance had been magical, seeming to open Rhett’s heart, and it was exactly what Scarlett had needed from him. The dance had proven to be some sort of aphrodisiac to her pussy, feeding her lust and love for him.

“Take them off,” she demanded as she fumbled with his zipper.

But to her surprise, he grabbed her hand to stop her. “Wait, baby.” He panted heavily as he looked down on her. She didn’t miss the brief glow of orange his eyes took on as he looked down on her, her dress lifted high for him to perfectly view her sheer lace thong, now soaked with her arousal. “I have a better idea of where I want to fuck that sweet pussy.”

She smiled up at him. “Anything, Rhett.”

“This is kinda embarrassing,” he began as he averted his eyes.

Rhett embarrassed?
Oh, she just couldn’t wait to hear this one.

His blue eyes looked up with shame. “I’m kind of in the mood to fuck you in the hotel bed then order room service after.”

Chapter 7

The next morning, all eyes seemed to be on Rhett when he walked through the glass doors of the big-city skyscraper. Everyone in the building wore suits or security guard uniforms. In his tight jeans, boots, brown Western shirt, and his red cowboy hat, he might as well have been wearing a huge, blinking caution sign on his forehead.

Right in the center of the large, open lobby was a wide desk with a chubby, nervous receptionist behind it.

Jackpot.

Adjusting his waistband and straightening his shirt, Rhett swaggered over to the curly-head woman with glasses with all the Southern seduction he could muster. He smiled when the redhead nervously fumbled with the supplies on her desk as though she were trying to look busy. By the time he was leaning over the desk and smiling down at her, her cheeks looked as red as a tomato. It seemed she was deathly afraid to look him in the eyes, and she reached up with a manicured hand to loosen the collar around her dark green, floral-printed blouse. He noticed several framed photos of different cats adorned her work space.

“Howdy, ma’am,” he drawled, and he could have swore it looked like she held her breath.

“G-Good morning, sir.” She took a breath and seemed to force herself to look up into his eyes. Her red-rimmed glasses were so thick he could hardly tell what color eyes she had. “How can I assist you?”

Rhett did his best to put on the manipulation theatrics and tried to put on a sad face. “Well”—he looked at her name tag—“Shannon, I'm afraid I have a really upsetting problem. You see, I am on my way to a Miss Scarlett Rose’s house to deliver a package, but it seems I have accidentally misplaced her address. But see, I’m already in hot water with my boss because I rescued a box of abandoned kittens from the side of the road yesterday morning, and I ended up late to work because I had to take them to the vet. So now, if I tell me boss I lost this address, then I’m afraid I just might end up on the streets.”

Shannon gasped loudly and clasped the green beads around her neck. “Oh my!” She frowned deeply and cocked her head to the side as if finding pity in his words.

Rhett clasped his hands together and looked up to the heavens for effect. “You know, as much as my logic tries to tell me I shouldn't have saved those kittens, my heart just won't allow me to regret it.”

Shannon grabbed the Rolodex by her computer screen then flipped open the top. “Well, perhaps I can—”

Something seemed to occur to her, and she paused and looked up at him. “Forgive me, sir, but you don’t really seem like you’re even dressed to deliver anything.”

Rhett looked to his left then right before leaning down low and whispering, “I believe
I'm
supposed to be the package, if you know what I mean.” When Shannon’s mouth dropped open, he continued, “I’ve been sent straight from Let Them Eat Beefcake, the male strip club over by the Galleria. We were told Miss Rose has a thing for cowboys.”

Shannon looked a little surprised by that. “Hmm, judging from the dates she brings to all the functions, I thought she was more into the preppy type of guy.”

The mere mention of another man on Scarlett’s arm made Rhett want to rip the top of her desk clean off its hedges. And what the hell was she even talking about? Scarlett and a prep? He could hardly imagine a man who wore loafers and a popped collared shirt being his little candy pants’ type. But he successfully kept his cool instead of giving in to his ignited rage.

“You ever been with a cowboy, Shannon?” he asked in a deep voice, leaning just a little closer to the shy, older woman.

She visibly struggled to form a coherent answer, her mouth opening and closing several times before she said, “No.”

“I thought so. Because if you had been, you’d wonder why any woman ever even looked at a prep in the first place.”

Shannon visibly swallowed, her hand trembling as she reached for a pen and pad to jot down Scarlett’s address.

* * * *

Scarlett watched from inside the locked truck as Rhett sauntered out of the building with a big smile on his face, and she hoped it was a good indication that he’d found some useful information.

“Got an address for you,” he said when he opened the driver-side door, holding a scrap of paper out to her.

“Do I even want to know how you got this?” she asked as she looked it over.

“I just politely asked the receptionist for it.”

Knowing how much of a ruthless flirt he could be, she wanted to roll her eyes at his response.

The address led them to a large condo not five minutes from her work building. Of course, the door was locked when they got there, so they made their way to the leasing office.

“Hello, Miss Rose,” a pretty brunette greeted her right as they walked in. Scarlett thought she looked vaguely familiar. “It’s been a while. How can I help you?”

“I lost my key to my apartment. Are there any spares?”

“Of course!” The woman stood from her desk and walked to the back room. Scarlett noticed the name plate on her desk indicated her name was Carla.

When Carla returned, she handed Scarlett a brand-new key. “Did you ever decide when you were going to end your lease here?”

“Excuse me?” This is the part Scarlett hated the most, trying her best to carry on a conversation with people she still couldn’t remember without coming off as a crazy person.

“Well, I saw the movers come get all your things a couple of days ago, but you never mentioned ending the lease. I assumed you were still trying to decide on when.”

“Yes, we’re still deciding,” Rhett butted in when Scarlett hesitated.

Carla perked up a little when he spoke and held out her hand to shake his. “And you are?”

“I’m—her life coach.”

What the fuck?

He crossed his arms arrogantly over his chest as if that was such a genius response.

The young woman giggled. “Her life coach? Are you serious?”

Rhett cleared his throat. “I’m dead serious, ma’am. And my first suggestion to Miss Rose was to immediately move her things to another apartment in order to reposition the energy flow of her
qi
.”

“Her
what
?” Carla looked as confused as ever.

“Her—oh, never mind.” Rhett waved a hand dismissively. “You couldn’t possibly understand unless you’ve attended my workshops.”

Oh, brother.

“Thank you for your help, Carla.” Scarlett grabbed Rhett’s arm, pulling him out the door with her. “I’ll let you know about that lease as soon as we figure it out.” She didn’t speak again until the door was shut and they began walking back to her unit. “Wow, Rhett. That’s seriously all I can say right now.”

“Make fun of me however much you want, but we don’t know who to trust and not to trust.”

All she could do was shake her head. When she opened her apartment door, Carla’s statements were confirmed. The entire place was wiped out.

“Goddamn it!” Scarlett punched the front door, the sharp pain making her cry out, which only infuriated her more, so she followed it with a good kick before plopping her ass down on the carpet and crying. “I’m so frustrated.”

Rhett knelt beside her and grabbed the hand she used to punch the door. Then he kissed her knuckles lightly. “We’re going to figure this out, darlin’. I promise.” He shook his head in disgust. “I hate seeing you like this, so upset. I’m going back to that building to get more information from the receptionist. I’m sure she knows plenty more—”

“Rhett, please, I just want to go home. It’s not safe to push that woman any further. She could go right back and tell whoever is looking for me what we’re up to.” She wiped her face and stood to her feet. “Besides, Leo and the rest of your brothers are waiting for us. Let’s just go back.”

When he didn’t answer, she looked up at him, only to stare at his back as he turned to walk out. “Rhett, Leo is only trying to be cautious. He’s probably just scared after I’d been poisoned the one time he did leave me alone. And I have to admit, I don’t really feel like being in that position again, either.”

He turned to her, and she felt her body tense as the fiery blaze in his eyes consumed their blue coloring. They sparked with an unfamiliar anger instead of the lust she usually saw in them. “Oh, so you agree that I can’t keep you safe,” he barked out.

She struggled to find something to say to calm him, but when she hesitated, he shook his head and walked back to the pickup.

Her heart about broke at his gesture toward her because she hadn’t meant to offend him. “Rhett, my intention wasn’t to make you feel incompetent,” she said when she followed him and climbed in.

“Please don’t talk to me right now.” He started the car and drove off in silence.

* * * *

In his heart, Rhett knew Scarlett didn’t deserve to be the target of his anger. He could feel her hurt in the air of the large pickup truck. When he briefly glanced at her from the side of his vision, he saw a single dried tear trail down the makeup on her cheek. She wasn’t crying anymore, but that little hint of emotion made him realize he’d really hurt her.

Releasing a long, drawn-out sigh of breath, he momentarily took off his cowboy hat to run a hand through his shaggy, messy hair. He was really,
really
not good at this kind of stuff. This emotional, comfort-the-wounded stuff.

Okay, Rhett, think. Let’s see, women like questions. I can start with that.

He cleared his throat before beginning, shifting in his seat to sit up a little straighter. “You okay there, darlin’?”

“What do you think?” she said softly, her head turned as she viewed the passing landscape out the window, but the sass in her tone was more than apparent.