Part 3 (1/2)

The song ended and lights came up, and the band announced theyad be taking a break. Jake made his way through the crowd, searching for the leggy redhead, but couldnat find her or Grand anywhere. He went back to where shead left her purse and jacketa”but both were gone, along with Dee.

Grand was nowhere to be seen, either.

Knives of anger stabbed Jakeas gut as he picked up his Stetson and crammed it on his head. aI canat believe she left with that arrogant, no good son-of-a-b.i.t.c.h.a

Chapter Four.

aThanks for the dance,a Dee said to Kev as soon as the song ended, and then she bolted out of his arms.

aDean, wait,a Kev called.

But she pretended not to hear and concentrated on flowing with the crowd leaving the dance floor, and avoiding Jake. If she didnat, she might end up home in bed with him. After the way he dumped her, there was no way she was going to oblige hima”no matter how badly she wanted to.

Vibrator, vibrator, vibrator!

The crush of people, along with the sour smell of beer and cigarettes, was enough to make Dee claustrophobic. Her pulse quickened as she glimpsed Jake walking toward the dance floor, his gaze searching the crowd. She skirted the throng, hurrying to where shead left her jacket and purse, hoping Jake wouldnat spot her. She didnat even stop to put on the jacket, just grabbed her belongings and practically flew toward the doorway.

The memory of Jakeas hard body was still imprinted along her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, her stomach, her thighs. If it hadnat have been for Kev, Jake wouldave kissed her and she wouldave been all over the man and willing to go anywhere and do anything with him. Probably would have f.u.c.ked him in the back of his truck, outside the fairgrounds.

While she strode to the parking lot, Dee thrust one arm through the sleeve of her jacket and then the other. Darkness closed in on her, the lights from the midway and the occasional floodlight barely enough to see where she was going. Her high heels wobbled as she walked across the rocky lot, and then she stepped into a good-sized pothole.

Dee stumbled and barely managed to keep from landing on her backside. But the twist of her ankle and the immediate, shooting pain of her injury was unmistakable.

Great. Her eyes watered from pain as she wrenched off the sandals and then carried them by the straps as she limped toward the Rover. Rocks p.r.i.c.ked her feet, and by the time she reached her SUV, her nylons were shredded, and her thong underwear was riding up her b.u.t.t and driving her crazy. The comb was slipping from her hair, too, and she yanked it out so that the whole mess tumbled to her shoulders.

aJust peachy.a Dee shoved her hand into her purse and dug out her keys. Just as she unlocked the door of her Rover, a male voice spoke behind her.

aDean.a Dee yelped and whirled around to face Kev Grand, almost pa.s.sing out from the shooting pain in her ankle.

Holding her hand to her pounding heart, and leaning against the truck, she said, aDammit, Kev. Donat sneak up on me like that.a aSorry, hon.a Kev' looked her up and down, from her wild hair to her stocking feet. aYou okay?a aIam not your hon, and Iam fine.a Dee shoved her hair out of her face and glared up at him.

Kev stepped closer and put his hands on her shoulders. aWe need to talk about us.a Dee blinked. aWhat us?a His tone softened and his mustache twitched as he smiled. aYou know I care about you. I always have.a aSure, weave dated a few times.a Dee shook her head. aBut thereas never been anything serious between us.a aIave always been serious about you.a He moved so close she could smell the musky scent of his strong aftershave. aI think itas time we did something about it.a aLet go, Kev.a Dee pushed her wayward hair out of her face. aThis isnat a good time.a Kev moved his mouth toward hers as though he intended to kiss her. Just as she was about to wallop him a good one, a male voice cut into the night.

aThe lady said to let her go.a Kevas head snapped up. Deeas cheeks grew hot as she turned to see Jake, his hands in the front pockets of his jeans, and his stance loose-limbed and relaxed. But she knew him well enough to realize he was anything but relaxeda”inside he was coiled as tight as a spring, just waiting for Kev to make a move.

Kev lessened his hold on Dee. aMind your own business, Reynolds.a Jake took a step forward so that he was only a couple of feet from Kev. aDee is my business.a Dee moved between the two men, her hands on her hips. Shead had it with their testosterone laden he-man routines, and the way her ankle was feeling right now, she just needed to get home. aIam none of your businessa”neither of you.a She glared from one man to the other. aIall thank you both to leave me alone and to stop acting like a couple of jerks. Get on out of here and go home.a With as much dignity as she could muster, Dee whirled, her sprain screaming with pain. It was all she could do to yank open the Rover door and climb in without them seeing how badly shead injured her ankle.

She threw her belongings onto the pa.s.senger seat and settled herself behind the steering wheel. Her hand on the door, she turned to glare one last time at the two men, and saw them both staring at her.

No, not at her.

At her legs.

Dee glanced down to see her skirt hiked up to her hip, her garters exposed, almost all the way up to her waist.

Heat flushed through her as she slammed the door shut and stuffed the keys into the ignition. The engine roared to life and she threw the Rover into reverse, but stepped on the gas a little too hard. Tires spun in the graveled lot as her vehicle shot back.

And struck something with a sickening crunch.

For a second Dee just sat there, unable to move. Then she put the Rover into park and leaned back and groaned. She had just smashed into someoneas car in front of Jake and Kev.

Great.

When she finally looked out her window, Dee saw Jake by her door, and from the quirk of his mouth, she had the suspicion he was doing his best not to laugh. Trying to maintain her composure, she buzzed down the window.

aHow bad is it?a she asked Jake with a sigh.

He pushed up the brim of his Stetson and glanced at the rear of the Rover and then back to her. aItas, ah, pretty bad.a aBoth vehicles?a aYeah.a With a small groan, she leaned over and started digging through the glove compartment for a pen and paper, but could find neither. Her ankle throbbed, she was tired and all she wanted to do was get home.

Dee turned to Jake. aI donat suppose you have a pen and something to write on so I can leave a note for the owner?a A hint of a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. He ran his hand over the scar on his cheek. aIave got your phone number and I know where you live.a She frowned. aWhat difference does that make? I need to leave a note.a Laughter glinted in Jakeas eyes and she curled her hand into a fist. aItas my truck you hit,a he said.

Rolling her eyes to the ceiling of her Rover, Dee sagged back against her seat. Perfect. Just perfect.

Jake studied Dee, watching her hand go to her throat as she absorbed what head told her. With her auburn hair in a wild riot around her face, she looked like an angel.

A rather wicked, naughty angel that he wanted to scoop up in his arms and f.u.c.k.

Repeatedly.

The sound of a throat clearing reminded Jake that Kev Grand was still behind him, but he ignored the man.

aSweetheart,a Jake murmured to Dee. aWhy donat you go on home now and weall worry about this later?a Another sigh escaped Dee and looked back to Jake. aIall give you my insurance info tomorrow. But I need your home number.a aIall call you.a Her mouth quirked into a tired smile. aAll right.a The desire to smooth Deeas hair from her face and hold her close overwhelmed Jake, and it was all he could do to keep his hands to himself.

Instead he put his hands on the door of her vehicle. aAre you okay to drive yourself home? We could always leave your Rover here overnight and I can take you.a That familiar spark came back to Deeas eyes. aIam fine.a Despite himself, Jake grinned. aIall talk to you tomorrow.a Without another word, she buzzed up the window and put her Rover into gear. Jake stepped out of the way as she eased forward, the metal on her rear b.u.mper and the front of his truck grinding as they separated.

Grand came up and stood beside Jake as they watched Deeas Rover disappear, minus one taillight.

ah.e.l.luva woman,a Grand said.

aHope she doesnat get stopped for that missing taillight.a Jake shook his head and grinned. aThat would really make her night.a aUh-huh.a Shoving his hands in his pockets, Grand turned and strode into the darkness.

Just as Jake was about to head to his truck, he noticed the dim lights of the midway glinting off an object on the ground where Deeas Rover had been parked. He walked over to it, knelt down and picked up one of her dainty sandals. Chuckling, he took the sandal with him to his truck It looks like Cinderella lost one of her slippers after fleeing the ball.

The next day, Dee eased back in the living room rocking chair, an icepack surrounding her throbbing ankle, and propped her foot on a ha.s.sock as she got ready to mend a couple of things. Sewing was definitely not her forte, and the last thing on Earth she wanted to be doing.

Being cooped up inside was a slow form of torture as far as she was concerned. She wanted nothing better than to be out in the barn working with that devil-calf, Imp, or riding Shadow, her gelding, or any number of things that didnat involve domestic ch.o.r.es like mending underwear.

A knock sounded, and Dee shouted, aCome on in.a Her foreman pushed opened the front door. aGot a minute, Dean?a After she motioned Jess in, he closed the door behind him as he said, aJarrod Savage, the new Sheriff, says heas personally gonna help us track down those rustlers.a Jess held his Stetson in one hand while raking the fingers of his other hand through his sweat-dampened hair. aThought Iad let you know that Kev Grand reported missing a couple dozen head of cattle, too.a Dee leaned forward to adjust the icepack on her ankle. aSo, what did the sheriff have to say?a When she looked up, she caught Jess staring at her chest. She was braless and wearing a thin white T-s.h.i.+rt, and he could probably see her nipples beneath the fabric.

He cleared his throat and met her amused gaze. aSavage and his deputy figure itas a group out of Mexico. Thinks theyare rounding up the cattle late at night and taking them back across the border. That or theyave found some place to stash them.a aFor what? Money? Food?a Jess shrugged. aWe didnat get that far.a d.a.m.n. If they donat have a guess at motive, theyare not likely to catch these creeps any time soon. Dee eased back in her rocking chair and sighed. aAnything else?a aNah, thatas it.a He started to turn, then added, aNo one can get near that pain-in-the-a.s.s calf of yours. John tried and liked to have gotten the s.h.i.+t kicked out of him.a Smiling, Dee shook her head. aDonat worry about Imp. Iall be ready to tackle working with him in a day or two.a Jess raised an eyebrow. aYou sure?a With a wave of her hand toward the door, Dee laughed. aIam the boss, right? So get on out of here and let me get this done.a aYesam.a Her foreman smiled and clapped his hat on his head and let himself back out the front door.

What a fine looking cowboy that man was. Yet now that Jake was back, she no longer felt any interest in her foreman whatsoever. Besides, Catie was so hot for Jess that Dee wasnat about to get in her friendas way.