To Tempt a Wilde (13 page)

A
lthea spent the morning helping Lilly as she busily worked her kitchen with the precision of a military drill sergeant, calling out orders to both Althea and Joseph, the young ranch hand she'd roped into helping them, as they prepared the afternoon meal for the men.

Although she listened with one ear, glad for the work to help keep her thoughts away from Nate, if only temporarily,
her mind was a million miles away, filled with thoughts of him, the two of them, and her current situation. What to do…

From Lilly she'd learned more of what the men were facing, what was going on with the ranch. Nathan had already told her a lot about Rolling Hills Corporation and their ongoing fight to try and buy Wyoming Wilde, and the lengths the men believed they'd go to achieve that.

And although it seemed that somehow Rolling Hills
were the ones behind it all, as the men suspected, a part of Althea dreaded that Reggie was caught up in it somehow…that he'd found her and was out to sabotage her newfound happiness.

She mentally shook her head. No. It couldn't be, she thought, remembering the few times she'd thought she'd seen Reggie on the ranch, only to discover it wasn't him.

She was so used to looking over her shoulder, so used to never relaxing her guard, that her mind was playing tricks on her, making her see things that weren't there, giving him more power than he had.

She opened one of the commercial-size ovens before withdrawing the industrial-size pan of cornbread muffins she'd helped Lilly to make.

He couldn't be here, he couldn't have found me, she thought,
her mind circling around the puzzle. Please, not yet.

She wasn't ready to leave yet. This was all too new, life on the ranch was hard yet satisfying in ways Althea had never felt…discovering a passion she never thought she'd have, with a man who was one of the most amazing men she'd ever known. A man she loved.

Please, not yet, Althea thought, sending the quiet prayer upward.

She just needed
a little more time, time where she could capture each moment in her mind, like her own personal camcorder, to replay when she was again alone and on the road.

“Did you hear me, Althea?”

She turned away from the muffins, where she'd been
buttering the same one over and over for the last five minutes.

“I'm sorry, Ms. Lilly, I, I…” She stopped, shook her head. “Mind repeating what you said? My
mind was somewhere else,” she finished lamely, feeling off-kilter and uncomfortable as Lilly studied her intently from across the kitchen as though she was an object under a microscope, forcing a smile onto her face.

She stared at Althea a fraction longer before, with a sigh, she took off her oven mitts and turned to the young man helping them, instructing him to start loading up the food to
take over to the canteen.

After she finished with him, she turned back and faced Althea, placing her hands on her ample hips.

“Come here, girl. We need to talk. Food's all done. Joe can take it to the men,” she said, referring to the young ranch hand. “Want some?” she asked, referring to the tea she was in the process of pouring into a mug. Althea nodded her head, and after she poured her mug,
the two of them sat down at the table.

She waited for Lilly to speak, not knowing what the older woman would say, but for the first time since she was a child, she wanted…needed to unburden herself to another woman, one older and wiser, like a mother.

As she sat there stirring the honey into her mug she patiently waited for whatever sage words would come from Lilly, ready and willing to listen,
feeling as though whatever she would say would be exactly what she needed to hear.

“What in hell is wrong with you? Nate Wilde loves you. Really loves you. And here you are about to let it all go to hell in a handbasket!”

Startled, Althea's eyes flew to hers, nearly spitting the tea out of her mouth. “Wipe your mouth,” she said, handing Althea a napkin.

“Excuse me?” She finally sputtered the
words after wiping her mouth. Before she knew it a laugh tumbled past her lips, her laughter growing until she felt tears prickle her eyes.

The corners of Lilly's generous mouth twitched upward, and before long a husky laugh escaped. Within moments the two women were laughing together, the humor of the situation taking over.

Once their laughter had subsided, Althea leaned back, the grin still
on her face. “I needed that.”

Lilly reached across the table, took Althea's hand in hers, tilting her head to the side, again examining her, a small smile still in place.

Althea relaxed her guard. This time she didn't feel uncomfortable, she simply allowed the older woman to see the truth of what she was feeling.

The anxiety of Reggie haunting me, my growing yet confusing feelings for Nate…all
of it.

She ran a thumb over the back of Althea's hand.

“Baby, it's all going to be all right. I know you've got some things you're holding close. I bet you've been holding a lot of things close, for a long time. Felt you had to,” she said, and Althea looked away from her discerning eyes and glanced down into the dark amber tea.

“But it's time now.”

“Time?” she asked, still not looking into
her face as she stirred the contents of the tea, unnecessarily.

“Time to let some of it go. Time to believe that
someone loves you enough to help you. Time to stop running.”

Althea swallowed back the tears, glancing out of the large, kitchen window that overlooked the expanse of the southern pastures of the ranch.

She waited for her to continue, waited for her to say more, but that was all
she said.

It was enough.

“It…it's been a long time.” Althea stopped speaking. Drew in a deep breath. “A long time since I've been able to put my guard down. A long time since I've felt at ease enough to do that, I guess,” she finished, shrugging a shoulder.

Lilly continued to drink her tea, not looking Althea in the eyes, as though she knew how difficult it was for her.

“The man I became engaged
to killed my father.” The minute she uttered the words, actually spoke them out loud, she felt as though a life-size, heavy boulder of a burden had lifted from her shoulders.

Instantly, Lilly's hand tightened on hers. Again, she didn't say anything, simply waited for Althea to continue.

Althea worried her bottom lip with her teeth, debating how much to tell her, how much to share.

It had been
a long time since she'd trusted anyone enough to do that. Before Nate, she hadn't thought she'd ever trust anyone ever, again.

In the short time she'd been with him, loving him, he'd made her begin to believe that she could do that.

Love.

She bowed her head, fighting back the tears.

She loved him so much, loved him as she never had loved another person in her life. She laughed softly, the
sound painfully humorless.

Before she could speak, before she could make up her mind whether or not to open up to Lilly, unburden herself fully with the woman, Joe returned, coming into the kitchen ready to reload for the second trip.

It was enough to break the spell.

Enough to bring Althea back to reality.

She couldn't do it. She couldn't endanger Lilly…couldn't risk that Reggie would find
out and hurt the woman.

Lilly looked at her, not blinking, not moving, waiting.

After a short time, she nodded her head, squeezed Althea's hand one final time. Althea saw the effect of her words, caught the sheen of tears in her eyes, but when she rose, she looked down at her one final time.

“When you're ready, baby. When you're ready…”

Althea nodded, unable to say more.

A
s he and his brothers suspected, someone, more than likely Rolling Hills, was trying to set them up.

Dr. Crandall had met them at the south pasture and gone over the test results with the men carefully before they'd gone together to inspect the animals.

After that they'd checked on the animals' feeding area, as well as all the equipment used, carefully checking and rechecking,
pulling out their own testing equipment and making sure their livestock and equipment was clear.

It had taken the entire day, but by the end of the evening, all were assured that they were clear. Saying their goodbyes to Dr. Crandall, relieved that the ranch was clear, relief set in.

When his brothers had asked him to come out with them, share a beer at one of their favorite watering holes in
the local town, Nate had declined, eager to get back to Althea. Although he'd had his full concentration on
dealing with their situation, she had been on his mind nonstop throughout the entire day.

The drive back would have gone quickly, as he'd driven in his pickup and not gone by horse, had it not been for the weather. Although the day had started out fairly clear, as early evening set in,
storm clouds had set in along with it, and now, as he headed home, the rain was coming down in torrents, obscuring his vision so badly he'd had to lower his speed to a near crawl.

By the time he made it back, the rain was battering against his truck, and with relief he cut the engine and raced into the house, eager to see Althea.

Coming through the house by way of the kitchen, lest Lilly chew
him a new one for tracking her floors with rain and mud, he walked into the warmth of the kitchen. The house was quiet, the overhead light over the oven the only light in the large, open room. Not wanting to wake anyone, Lilly's bedroom on the main floor, he figured Althea had to be upstairs in his bedroom waiting for him.

The thought of her, in his bed, waiting for him to come home, sent a rush
of need through him, and the desire to see her, bury himself inside her warm, honeyed depths and make love to her until the early-morning sun peeked through the blinds, hurried his steps even more.

He wanted to forget, for a moment, the threat to the ranch. Wanted to think of nothing but Althea, the two of them together, lost in their own world.

Quickly shaking off the rain clinging to his jacket,
he shed it, tossed it on a chair and raced through the house,
taking the winding stairs that led to the bedrooms three at a time before he reached his bedroom.

Before he could open the door, his hands were already on the buttons of his shirt.

“Baby, I'm home,” he called out, striding into the bedroom and stopping.

The room was empty, the bed freshly made, with no indication she had lain in
it.

“Damn it,” he muttered taking off his Stetson and shaking it dry, briskly striding into his adjoining bathroom on the off chance that she was inside, taking a bath. His cock stirred at the thought, a grin beginning to tilt the corners of his lips, upward. If she was…

His brow furrowed when she wasn't there, a surge of anger going though him at the thought that she'd returned to her cottage.

“Althea's gone.”

He spun around, spying Lilly in the doorway, her face devoid of expression.

“Gone? When? Where? Back to her cottage?” he asked, slowly walking into the room, not liking the look of worry and fear etched into Lilly's dark brown face.

She shook her head, holding out her hand. In her palm was a folded piece of paper.

He took the note from Lilly, scanned it, and biting out an
expletive grabbed his Stetson from where he'd tossed it on the bed and slammed it on his head.

“When did she go?” he asked, the ends of his nostrils flared in anger, his mouth becoming a thin line as he clipped out the question.

“A couple of hours ago. But, Nate, the weather…it's getting worse—”

Nate wasted no time debating, wasted no more time with words. Weather be damned…he had to get his
woman back, now. The need to have her safely where she belonged, in his arms, outweighed anything else.

Lilly stopped him before he could leave, her arm going to his thick forearm, the muscles bunched. “You might be able to catch her. Joe called the ranch a bit ago. Said she came into the shop because one of her tires had blown,” she said, referring to the service station the young ranch hand
coowned with his brother.

“When did he call?” When he saw the nervous way she wrung her hands, something completely unlike Lilly, he forced himself to soften his voice.

“How long ago, Lilly?” he asked.

“Joe said she looked really upset; scared. When he asked her if she was okay, she tried to pretend like everything was okay, but he could tell it wasn't. He saw her things in the backseat, her
clothes and a box. Figured she was leaving the ranch. He asked her if she was and she didn't say anything, but he saw her eyes were red, and knew she'd been crying. He called here, looking for you. I told him to try and keep her there as long as possible until I could reach you.” When she finished Nate cursed.

He was never without his cell within range, in case of an emergency. It was when he'd
wanted to call Althea, let her know he was on his way home, that he realized the battery had died.

“That's when I went to the cottage. Everything is gone, Nate. And this note was left on the table for you,” she said, motioning to the note he held.

“I have to get to her before she leaves and I never find
her.” He knew the raw emotion beating down on him came through in his voice but didn't care.
The thought of not ever seeing Althea again, the thought of her coming to some kind of harm, had created a chasm so dark, so bleak, he felt his gut hollow out.

“The weather is still bad, and it may have taken a while for them to try and locate a tire for her, at that time of night. With any luck she might still be there, Nate.” Her voice was as grim as the situation.

 

After helping Lilly with
the evening meal and helping to restore order to the kitchen, Althea had been at loose ends and decided to go to her cottage and pick up a few things.

The thought of what he'd said before leaving her this morning was like the lyrics of a song she couldn't get out of her mind.

Thinking about it made her believe, if only for a short time, that she could have a life with him, learning more about
him…loving him.

Pick up the rest of your things from the cottage.

That's all he'd had to say and the idea had brought to mind images of the two of them doing the happily-ever-after thing. With two point two kids and a station wagon. Instead of the station wagon, knowing Nate it would be a couple of horses and a four-by-four…

She laughed at herself. He hadn't mentioned wanting it to be permanent,
hadn't even told her he loved her. But for here, now…it was good enough for her.

She shrugged a shoulder, pretending a nonchalance to herself that was ridiculous even in her own mind.

Going to the cottage, she'd slowly began to remove
her things, fingering her precious few items she'd brought along with her, items that reminded her of her father and her life before everything changed horribly.

As she'd begun to remove her items, she opened the drawer where she'd kept the little black dress, the one she'd worn at the last formal event she'd gone to with her father. Maybe one day she'd be able to wear it somewhere with Nate.

The thought brought a small smile to her face, which quickly eased away when the dress wasn't there. Her heart began to pound harshly against her chest when after
pulling out drawer after drawer, although she knew it wasn't there, she came up empty; the dress was missing.

Oh God oh God oh God…the litany went over and over in her mind, her heart now beating out of control. She went back to the drawer where she'd kept the dress and there, caught in the back, on the edge of the drawer, was a folded piece of paper.

With shaky fingers she eased it out and
opened it. She scanned the neat, almost formal handwriting that flowed across the top. Two sentences. Two sentences and her stomach hollowed, nausea welling up from her gut and almost strangling her.

One day soon, you'll wear this again. Just for me, baby—

Fingers of icy-cold dread had threaded through her spine until the note slipped from her nerveless fingers and floated to the floor. Covering
her mouth she ran, barely making it, to the bathroom.

Amidst tears of fear, rage and frustration all mingling into a crazy kaleidoscope of fear, her stomach bottomed
out, her back bowing and arching as she emptied it into the toilet.

Taking in deep, gasping breaths of air, thinking her nausea was over, again she began to retch until there was nothing left inside. Weak, trembling, she could only
lay her head down on top of the closed porcelain lid.

Within moments, adrenaline kicked in, forcing her off the floor. No time for self-pity, no time for debilitating fear…with speed born of desperation she ran through the small cottage, gathering and packing everything she could find, frantically double-checking her meager possessions to make sure she'd gathered them all.

Nathan…

She came
to a sudden halt, right there in the middle of the living room.

How could she leave him… Closing her eyes, she dropped her bag and stumbled before falling down on the sofa.

“I want your face to be the last one I see at night, and the first one I see in the morning…”

She shook away the words, the meaning, the thought of what they could be if only…

No, God no, she wouldn't, couldn't think of
him right now. She had to get away, had to go. Now. She'd come back when…
if
she could.

She swiftly stood, grabbed her things and left the cottage.

The rain, which had started moments ago, was now coming down in earnest, and squinting, covering her head with her jacket, she ran to the side of the cottage where she'd parked her car and quickly loaded it,
before jumping behind the wheel. The car
sputtered and coughed a few times until the engine kicked over.

Tears coming down in earnest, she drove as fast as she could away from Wyoming Wilde.