Broken Road (9 page)

   “…no…father. I will not let you hurt me ever again,” she sobbed quietly.

   Winthrop tightened his arms around her.

   She wasn’t as strong as she thought and he had an idea of just what she was talking about in her sleep. He now knew in his heart with Judd had told him was true. He father had been abusive.

   Somehow he didn’t find being so close to this kid to be disturbing like he did any other woman which startled him to no end. But the thing that scared him was the fact that he liked her there in his arms. It felt right. It felt like forever.

Devil woke feeling stiff with cold and rolled onto her back to open her sleep dusted eyes to a sight she didn’t want to see.

   A fully dressed Mr. Canter was leaning against the windowsill looking out over his ranch below with a grim face that looked as if it had been carved of stone. When he heard her move on the bed he turned that same stony grim expression to her.

   It hit her like a ton of brick over the head would have.

   His unnerving silver blue eyes focused on her face.

   “Morning, kid. Mind telling me what the hell happened here last night?”

   Leave it to a man to get straight to the point and make it hurt as if he were going to rake your body over glass.

   Devil would have taken the glass and did it with a smile and a cheerful tune over what she was about to do.

   Devil carefully covered her bared chest pulling up her knees, resting her chin on them, and picking at the edge of the blanket. When she was sure she could look him in the face she did just that.

   “It’s simple really. You were drunk and I helped you to your room,” she said trying to sound normal and giving a half shrug with one slim shoulder.

   He smiled without humor. “You know that’s not what I meant. What I wanna know is why I woke up with you in my bed.” His eyes took in her carefully hidden body with an expert glance and he raised an eyebrow.

   Devil colored at the accusing look and coiled ready to strike. “If you must know it was your entire fault,” she retorted.

   The other eyebrow joined its brother in the middle of his proud forehead. “Oh really?”

   “Yes, really. I tired to help you yet when it was time for me to go you wouldn’t let me. One could even say in my place that it was rather disappointing when you took what you wanted and fell asleep,” Devil said tartly with a bitter smile.

   At that Winthrop felt his jaw slide south about a hundred miles per minute. That was the last thing he had expected out of her mouth and damn it if he wasn’t feeling guilty as sin now thanks to her.

    Had he really taken something from her while he was
out of it? He had never been
good with holding his alcohol which was one of the reasons he never drank, yet he had this time and he couldn’t remember a damn thing of the night before.

   Winthrop felt himself flush with guilt and embarrassment. He had been a fucking idiot and the girl might pay for his mistake now.

   “I’m sorry,” he began reaching out a hand towards her only to realize he was still leaning up against the room’s only window. He got up and slowly came over to the bed. He knelt beside the bed and put a hand on Devil’s small hand clutching the bed’s blanket.

   Her hand was cold and he felt another stab of guilt for not having thought to cover her with another blanket after he had left.

   The girl snatched her hand from under his as if he were going to burn her. Then he noticed it had been her injured hand.

   “I’m sorry,” he repeated looking up into her icy blue eyes. The mirrored pain in them shattered his soul until he couldn’t look in them anymore. “I am sorry for whatever I did last night, but I’m even sorrier that I can’t remember what I did to you.” He turned his head away and looked at the ground, shame overcoming him. “Please tell me what I did to you. I swear I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

   Winthrop took hold of her upper arm and gave in a squeeze.

   Devil stared down at the man before him and thought of her father who she had never been sorry for a single thing he did, even the ones he didn’t remember, yet she couldn’t shake her fear of this man that still lay deep in her heart.

   She shook her head looking away from him and trying to free her arm from his gripping fingers.

   “I will not repeat things that are already part of the past. Let go of me. I’m going to check on Lilla.” How she hated how her voice shook!

    She was shaking and it was his entire fault. He knew she had been scared of him before yet somehow it hurt even worse for he knew this time it was his fault. She wasn’t scared of him now, but terrified he would bet. So he let her go.

   Devil was quick in snatching her shirt and making a beeline for the door. Before she closed it she said, “Please never drink while we’re here again.” Then she was gone.

   Winthrop slid down the wall with a humorless laugh. His head bumped the bed and he rubbed the sore spot.

    “You can bet on it, little lady. Never again,” he muttered with a curse.

   He was never gonna forget her with liquor. Not a chance. He couldn’t take a chance like that again. Winthrop knew that he was going to have to do something about what he did last night, he didn’t know what he had done, but he had a good idea of what that something was.

…

Screw this,
Devil thought as she tried to make her bed with one hand, since her injured hands was burning with a fury for having pulled at the new stitches. She flung the covers a final time and forgot about what she was trying to do. This morning with Mr. Canter hadn’t helped either. He was saying one thing and doing another and so was she.

   She wanted the man and she was damn well sure he wanted her too. So what in the hell was their problem? She had less then a month to be selfish and she had to quit being scared of the past and put herself out there to enjoy life for once.

   She laughed a little at her thought ‘putting herself out there’. If being a country singer and a model wasn’t ‘putting it out there’ then she didn’t know what it was.

   She looked to Lilla who was asleep in the crib in her room, had been for little over half an hour, and decided that she would sleep for a while longer. Maybe long enough for Devil to do something about Mr. Canter.

   Devil grinned as a plan began to form in her mind. Oh yes, she was going to have some fun.

   Bending over to give Lilla a quick kiss she made way for Mr. Canter’s room on the top floor of the house. He had come back inside an hour after lunch and had locked himself inside since.

   The stairs never even squeaked once and Devil had to admit she was surprise the house was in that good of shape since it was old.

   She gave a brief pause before she pushed the door open and looked in. No one was in the house besides them so she wouldn’t have to worry about anyone walking on them. She took a step into the room and looked around for the man who she was seeking.

   Mr. Canter sat at a big oak desk against the wall facing away from her and she saw that he was looking at something.

   Tiptoeing forward she looked over his shoulder as saw that he was staring at a picture of a pretty white woman with bright red hair and a pretty smile, but the thing that threw Devil off was the woman’s eyes. They were a light green, but they seemed to be cruel and icy. It didn’t suit such a pretty lady.

   Devil knew she should have cared who the lady was but at the moment she couldn’t care more.

  Taking a deep breath for courage, she slipped her slender hands over Mr. Canter’s eyes and leaned over his shoulder to kiss his lips lightly with her
’s
as he stiffened.

   “We have much to talk about, yet I find it can wait till later. I think there is something we have to get over with first,” Devil breathed into his ear, “don’t you agree?”

   Winthrop’s heart kicked into gear the moment her lips touched his and he had to stop himself from pulling the kid on his lap right then and there to teach her a lesson. When her words registered in his brain his palm began to itch in anticipation of what she would do next. But instead of waiting or answering he swung out of the chair and swung her up in his arms.

   Unceremoniously he dropped her onto the bed and followed her down.

    Finding Lisa
’s picture had put his in a foul mood and his anger had been swift and deep in return to the woman who had left him for his only cousin. He was calm and he needed this kid in his arms so bad it hurt.

   “You better get ready then, kid. I’m not going to play around anymore. This isn’t going to be anything like last night I can promise you,” he growled and then attacked her mouth with a hard kiss that hurt.

   Devil saw the furious look in his eyes and hoped she knew what she was going herself into.

  
I hope I know what the hell I was thinking
, she prayed and then grinned at the man.

   “Do your worst,” she challenged.

   His answering grin left her quivering. “You can bet on your sweet little backside.”

    The things the man could do with in only a few seconds! Devil found herself without a shirt on and her chest pressed against Mr. Canter’s very bare and very sexy chest. His smoldering eyes glared down into her’s for a long second before he set himself to working her body into a quivering pile of mush with his mouth and hands.

   Devil’s mind clouded over with passion and she dug her nails into his heavily muscled shoulders as he kissed his way down her stomach roughly, leaving behind little fires that threat to engulf her in flames.

   “…Canter…” she sobbed hoarsely.

   “Ssshhh…” he whispered with a chuckle, “all in good time, kid. I’ll have to teach you a few new things before we do anything else. You game?” He went back to work.

  
“Yes!” Devil hissed as she felt
her inner muscles flutter and coiled with tense. Just before she could feel the freeing tense disappear he stopped and sudden rolled them so she was on top of him.

   Devil blinked down at him.

   “I want you to take charge,” Winthrop said huskily. He had never before asked that of a woman. Not only did it surprise the hell out of him, but it turned him on liking nothing else.

   There was just something about this woman being in charge. His mind went blink as she started to move on his lap trying to find a comfortable place to sit up on.

   He bit his lip and held back his groan.

   “I’m not hurting you,” she whispered.

   “No,” he groaned, “If anything you are doing everything perfectly, but you might not want to move so much. It’ll end before it even begins.”

   “Oh, sorry,” Devil said softly, embarrassed.

   His deep rich laugh made her beat quicken.

   “Not at all.”

   A smile curved her lips and she gave her bottom an experimental wiggle and grinned at his loud groan. She attacked his mouth
with all the skill that she had, sad little bit it was, and moved in a way that had both on them panting in minutes.

   “Why don’t we get out of some of these clothes?” she suggested. “It feels to hot.”

   Just as Winthrop opened his mouth to answer his little Devil the door bell rang. No one ever rang the door bell.

   “Shit,” he ground out harshly. It had to be an emergency from town or one of his army boys.

   Devil stared at him in confusion.

  
Why had he stopped?

   Winthrop tried to calm his harsh breath and looked to Devil. She was staring at him with growing parts confusing and hurt.

   Damn it! He had been so close!

   He put his hands on her shoulders. “I have to go answer that. I’m sorry. I swear if I knew this would have happening I would have told you before. I didn’t mean to start this like this-”

  
Ding-dong! Ding-dong!

   “Fuck,” he ground under his breath. “Hold on a second. I’ll take care of this and be back in a second. Don’t you dare leave me now.”

   Winthrop stomped out of the room and down the stair
s
no
t
having a care how he looked or to put on a shirt. Damn any man who would stop him from-

   He swung to door out to see his uncle’s best friend
,
the sheriff. And he didn’t look to be in the mood for from some light talk either. In fact he looked down right ready to lay six feet under.

   “Hoss,” Winthrop said slowly, “what the hell happened?”

    The older man looked up at him with sharp grey eyes that had seen any and everything and felt the pain of it all. “There’s been a murder connected to your brother and I believe you can give me some of the answers I need.”