01 Winters Thaw (7 page)

Sienna’s phone beeped. Glancing at the screen, she stood. “Speak of the devil.” Daniel caught sight of Josh’s smiling face as she clicked on the screen. “Hi, Josh,” she said, her voice lighter and breezier than Daniel had ever heard it.

Then Daniel heard Josh’s reply and was forced to acknowledge he sounded like a nice guy.

Hey, beautiful. Damn, you’re a sight for sore eyes.

“Sweet talker,” Sienna teased as she left the room.

Seth’s attention returned to the game. Daniel tried to concentrate on the TV, but he found himself straining to hear Sienna’s voice. She’d only walked to the hallway. While he could hear her tone, he couldn’t make out the words she was saying. Everything seemed fine for a few minutes and then he heard her say something louder, with definite anger.

“What do you mean it’s too late?” she asked.

Her voice drowned out the TV. Seth glanced toward the hallway. He sighed heavily, allowing Daniel to see that he wasn’t exactly pleased with his daughter’s boyfriend.

“Sounds like the asshole screwed up again,” Seth muttered.

“Is this a pattern?” Daniel asked.

“It is lately. I’m not sure what’s gotten into the kid. Josh always had his head screwed on straight, and he was good to Sienna. Then, last year, out of the blue, something snapped. He decided to change majors and his grades started slipping. More often than not, they end up fighting whenever he calls. He’s coming home next week for Thanksgiving. I’m going to have a word with him. This shit’s not going to fly for much longer. I don’t like him upsetting Sienna all the time.”

Daniel was glad to hear Seth had plans to talk to Josh. He’d been wondering lately if there was a way he could warn the man off, but considering Daniel had only known Sienna a month, it really wasn’t his place.

Given the dark expression on Seth’s face, Daniel was grateful he wasn’t going to be the recipient of that little talk. Seth, a peaceful, fair man, had a protective streak a mile wide when it came to his kids.

Daniel noticed it went quiet in the hallway. Then he heard the front door open and close. Worried about Sienna, he stood. “I think I’ll take a rain check on that pie. I’m still full from supper.” It was cold as blue blazes outside. Clearly, Sienna was upset if she’d decided to brave the elements rather than return to the warmth of the family room. He needed to make sure she was okay.

Seth’s gaze drifted from Daniel to the doorway. Daniel tried to ignore the way his boss’s eyes narrowed slightly. “It’s pretty dark out there. Be careful.”

The last two words, though innocent enough, seemed to hold a deeper warning. Shit. He was falling for the boss’s daughter.

The first time he’d laid eyes on her, Daniel had felt too strong a pull to the pretty, though far-too-serious woman. In the past, he’d chosen women who preferred a fun time over commitment, a few quick tumbles in the hayloft versus a long, drawn-out wooing.

Sienna was the complete opposite of his type. She was a nice girl, but it didn’t matter. He ached to drag her to the dark side with him, to draw out some of the wickedness he sensed lurking beneath the surface. And maybe, just maybe in the midst of all that hot sex, she’d find a way to bring some sort of order to his own fucked-up life.

“I’ll be fine, Seth. Good night,” he said.

James and Doug waved goodbye absentmindedly, their gazes never leaving the television. Seth, however, watched him depart, suspicion written on his face. Something told him he was going to wind up getting one of Seth’s little talks after all.

As he stepped onto the front porch, he paused to let his eyes adjust to the darkness. He scanned the yard, seeking Sienna, and caught sight of her heading down a narrow path that led to the creek.

He pulled his coat around him and cursed the cold. Then he followed her direction, his speed and long legs cutting the distance between them quickly. When he got within earshot, he called out her name.

“Sienna.”

She stopped walking and turned, waiting until he caught up.

“What are you doing out here?” she asked.

He tried to play it casual. “I was heading back to my trailer. Isn’t it a little cold for a stroll in the moonlight?”

She shrugged. “I needed to cool off.”

“Trouble with Josh?”

“He’s failing business calc.”

Daniel paused, pleased that she’d answered his question. In the past few weeks, he’d felt a friendship building between them. Unfortunately, he wasn’t going to be happy just being her pal. “Isn’t the end of the semester coming up?”

“Yeah. It is. He has less than a month to bring up a very low grade. If he doesn’t manage that, then he’ll have to stay at college this summer to make up the course.”

He could understand her frustration. Sienna had been ready to start her new life as an adult when she graduated last spring. Now she was putting her future on hold while Josh played catch-up. “Can’t he get a tutor or something?”

She nodded. “He could. If he would. I made that suggestion a month ago, when things were still salvageable, and he didn’t bother. Now he seems to think it’s too late.”

“Does Josh
want
to graduate from college?”

Sienna laughed. Her expression instantly morphed from pissed off to unadulterated humor. The sound had an unexpected effect on him as his cock began to thicken. He needed to get laid or else he’d do something very stupid, like make a play for the boss’s unavailable daughter. “I’m starting to think he doesn’t. Josh seems very resistant to entering the real world.”

“And that’s funny?” He couldn’t understand why she was laughing about the situation.

“Nope. It’s annoying, frustrating, maddening. But if I don’t laugh, I’ll cry, and there’s no way I’m going to shed any more tears over Josh’s stupidity.”

He knew it. Her fucking boyfriend had been making her cry. Daniel’s hand balled into a fist. His decision was made. Seth wasn’t the only man on the ranch who’d be having a little talk with Josh next week.

He took a deep breath and tried to calm down. “Seth said he’s coming home for Thanksgiving.”

“He is. And he and I are going to have a come to Jesus meeting.”

Daniel hoped she was going to direct her immature boyfriend to the nearest exit, but he didn’t think she would. “Meaning?”

“It’s time for Josh to grow up. His parents aren’t going to keep footing the bill for him if he fails course after course.”

“It’s not just his parents who are being inconvenienced. What about you?”

She glanced up at the moon, then she sighed. “I’m in this for the long haul. He probably sounds like an idiot to you, but that’s because you’ve never met him. Josh is actually very sweet. I really think he’s just going through a phase right now. We’ll have a long talk over Thanksgiving and everything will be fine.”

Daniel didn’t think so, but he wasn’t sure how to argue with her. He
didn’t
know Josh. Regardless, he was damn sure the guy didn’t deserve Sienna.

Her face cleared. “Thanks for talking things out with me, Daniel. I feel better now.” She rubbed her gloved hands together for heat. “I think I might head back to the house for some coffee and pie. Are you sure you don’t want some?”

He shook his head. “No. It’s getting late. I’m going to turn in early.”

“Good night,” she said.

“Night, See.” He watched her walk back to the main house, but he made no effort to return to his trailer. She’d been right about one thing. The cool air helped him think too.

As for the rest…

Well, she’d been wrong about all of it. Regardless of how sweet Josh was, he was wrong for Sienna Compton. The asshole was stifling her, holding her back from her true potential.

Daniel smiled. It was time for a new plan.

Chapter Four

“That was a damn fine meal.” Daniel rubbed his too-full stomach as he walked into the Comptons’ family room, surprised to find Sienna alone. Josh had arrived earlier this morning. Daniel thought he’d sensed some tension between Josh and Sienna, but he chalked it up to wishful thinking on his part. Much as it pained him to admit, Josh seemed like a nice guy.

Loud conversations from the dining room carried to them. The house was jam-packed with Sienna’s family celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday. He’d gotten to know all of her aunts, uncles and cousins over the past month, but now his head was reeling as he tried to remember the names of all the close family friends who were visiting.

“The Mothers can cook.” Sienna stressed the word
mothers
.

“Mothers?”

Sienna laughed. “It’s a nickname Jade gave to my mom, Leah, Lucy and Cindi. When they come together, it’s like they morph into this huge giant force that takes out everything in its path. There’s pretty much nothing that goes on in the family that isn’t discussed at length by all of them every Sunday afternoon at
teatime
.” Sienna used air quotes around teatime.

Daniel was confused by her gesture. “What’s wrong with
teatime
?”

“I’ve never seen one of them drink a cup of tea. They usually make a pitcher of margaritas or split a bottle of wine.”

He chuckled. “Your family is hilarious. Never seen a family who gets along like this one, never fighting, always having fun.”

“You say that now, but you better hope you never fall into the Mothers’ sights. There’s no subject they don’t consider themselves authorities on, and once they’ve discussed your so-called problem at length, they’ll offer endless advice. They’ve rearranged the furniture in every house on this ranch, helped plan more parties than I can count and set up way too many blind dates.”

“Wow. And I assume this drives everyone crazy.”

Sienna shook her head. “Nope. That’s the most annoying part of it. They have amazing decorating taste, create menus to die for and, while I won’t say their matchmaking record is perfect, it’s pretty damn close. Don’t get me wrong, I love my mom and aunts to death. It’s just that sometimes it’s hard to accept their advice, even if you think it may be right.”

Sienna didn’t have to explain. Daniel assumed her strained relationship with Josh hadn’t just caught Seth’s attention. The Mothers would have noticed as well.

“What did they tell you to do about Josh?”

Her eyes narrowed. “How did you know that’s what I was talking about?”

He grinned. “Not that hard to figure out.”

She sighed. “It’s been suggested that I have a conversation with Josh about his intentions for the future while he’s home this weekend. They think it’s time we nailed down some particulars. And Aunt Leah is also concerned about my all work, no play lifestyle. I’m sure I have Jade to thank for getting Leah riled up about that.”

“So are you going to talk to him?”

Sienna didn’t have a chance to respond before Vicky entered the room. “There you are, Sienna. Have you seen my red tablecloth? I’d planned to put it out on the dessert table.”

Sienna frowned. “Vivi, you asked me about that a few minutes ago. I told you we don’t have it anymore. It was ruined last Christmas when Doug spilled grape juice on it. We threw it out, remember?”

Vicky nodded. “Oh, that’s right. All this cooking has me worn out. It must have slipped my mind.” Though she played it off, Daniel saw the confusion on the older woman’s face as she left the room.

Sienna ran her hand through her hair anxiously. “Damn. She didn’t remember that first conversation at all.”

“No. I don’t think she did.”

“She’s forgetting a lot of things lately.”

Daniel shrugged. “Probably just a sign of age. Didn’t you tell me she was turning seventy this year?”

Sienna glanced at the doorway where her grandmother had just left, her face pensive. “Yeah, she is. But she’s been forgetting too much lately.”

“Alzheimer’s?”

She frowned. “God, I hope not. While there have been some advances made in terms of diagnosing and treating different types of dementia, there’s still a long way to go. If it’s that…” Her voice drifted away as if she was frightened by the possibility. “I’m going to talk her into getting a checkup. There are some tests I’d like the doctor to run on her.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” he said softly before her attention was captured by something else in the hallway. Daniel caught sight of Josh putting on his coat before going outside.

He glanced at Sienna’s face. She didn’t appear too anxious to follow her boyfriend. “Looks like the time might be right for your conversation.”

“Yeah. And here I thought the chances of me getting him alone today were slim to none.” Sienna made no move to leave.

Daniel reached out. Sienna’s brow crinkled, but she took his proffered hand. He grasped her cool fingers and gave them a reassuring squeeze. She was visibly nervous. “Things are never as bad as you fear.”

She didn’t try to release his hand. “Were you afraid when you got on that last bull?”

He nodded. “I was afraid every time.”

“Then why do it?”

He winked at her. “Why not?”

She laughed lightly. “God, there is something seriously twisted inside you.”

“Turns you on, doesn’t it?” He pulled her closer, leaning down until his face was level with hers. He couldn’t resist teasing her, trying to replace some of the anxiety he saw in her eyes with humor. “I told you, See, if you want me to kiss you again, all you have to do is ask.”