Caught in the Act: Book Two: Independence Falls (13 page)

Chapter 18

L
IAM WOKE TO
the smell of coffee and a beautiful naked woman standing beside him. “Hey.”

“Morning.” She smiled down at him, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “You phone has been ringing on and off for a while. I think you overslept.”

“Shit. What time is it?”

“Eight.”

“Yeah, I need to get going.” Liam pushed back the covers and retrieved his cell from his pants pocket. Glancing at the screen, he saw half a dozen messages from Craig, one of Moore Timber’s crew chiefs.

“There’s a problem at one of the harvest sites,” he said, pulling on his pants. Buttoning his shirt, he looked up at her. She’d dressed and stood sipping a cup of coffee. “I hate to run, but this is important. The mechanical harvester isn’t working and if that’s not running, we’ll fall behind.”

“And time is money in timber,” she said. “I know. Go. I’ll see you later. At the meeting. You’ll be there?”

“I’ll try,” he said. He walked over and gave her a quick kiss. “This isn’t good-bye.”

She nodded, but didn’t say anything. Part of him wanted to stay and draw a promise out of her that whatever happened, this wasn’t the end. But his phone buzzed with another text and he knew he needed to leave.

In his truck, Liam pulled out his cell and dialed as he buckled his seat belt. A minute later, he steered his truck down the Summers driveway with his phone pressed to his ear. He sped past Chad’s truck, pulling up the drive, and offered a wave.

“Hello?” his best friend said after three rings.

“You can’t make this deal contingent on Katie.” Liam turned onto the main road headed out of town. “I won’t be at the meeting this morning. There’s a problem at the harvest. But I’m telling you, restructure the offer. I told Katie about it last night. I couldn’t keep it from her.”

“When I heard you two had run off to a remote cabin for the weekend, I had a feeling that might happen,” Eric said. In the background, Liam heard his friend’s nephew trying to trade a toy dinosaur for a second serving of maple syrup. “She didn’t go for it.”

Eric sighed. “I can’t just give them millions of dollars without some promise that Katie will stay and help us at least transition her relationships. I can give her options. But Liam, she might not like them.”

“She’s not going to agree to stay, man, I’m telling you.” Liam said, slowing down, knowing he would lose cell service soon.

“I thought you were going to work your magic,” Eric said. “Convince her to be your girl.”

“It didn’t work that way.” Liam tightened his grip on the wheel. “I swear, man, Katie fucking owns me, body, heart, and soul—the whole deal.”

“Ah, hell,” Eric said. In the background, Georgia admonished him for swearing.

“At least I have another reason to hire her,” Eric added. “She can boss you around.”

K
ATIE SMOOTHED HER
knee-length black pencil skirt as she followed Brody and Chad into the Moore Timber conference room. She’d paired it with a white button-down shirt and a low heel that felt foreign on her feet. She stumbled, but regained her balance before falling onto the carpeted floor.

Chad smirked at her. “Tired from another late night?”

“Not at all.” She pulled out a chair at the large oval table and sat.

Chad selected the seat beside her and leaned close. “Liam was pulling out of the drive when I got home.”

“You’re not the only one who can use the apartment over the barn,” she said, turning away from her brother to face her friend’s fiancé. Seeing Eric at the head of the table in a three-piece suit left her fidgeting in her seat.

“Josh won’t be joining us today,” Brody said from his position at the opposite end of the oval table. “One of our drivers called in sick, and he agreed to fill in for him.”

Eric nodded. “Then let’s get started.”

Katie drew a deep breath, interlacing her fingers in her lap. She’d debated telling her brothers what Liam had shared with her last night, but they’d both been away from the house this morning. Brody had been out fixing a truck and Chad was just returning from his latest fling.

And part of her wasn’t sure what to say. She still hadn’t decided what to do.

“Liam was called away too, but I spoke with him this morning. We would like to offer you three million for Summers Family Trucking.”

Beside her, Chad let out a low whistle.

Eric smiled. “As part of the deal, we’ll keep your drivers at their current rates.”

“Thank you,” Brody said gruffly.

“Brody—” Katie said.

“I’d like to hear him out, Katie,” Brody said.

“We’d like you all to become part of the Moore Timber family. Brody, we’d like you to manage the day-to-day,” Eric said, and her oldest brother nodded. Eric turned his attention to her and Chad. Katie tensed, but Georgia’s fiancé wasn’t looking at her. Yet.

“Chad, Liam told me about your interest in helicopter logging,” Eric continued. “Moore Timber has been looking to invest in a chopper. We’d be willing to work out a deal on the start-up cost and hire you.”

“Wow,” Chad said. “That would be . . . thanks. That would be great.”

One look at her brothers’ expressions—even Brody was lit up as if proud of the number Eric had assigned to the business he’d worked so hard to build and maintain—and Katie knew she couldn’t walk away from this deal. Life had not handed the Summers family much. But Eric Moore was offering to unlock the doors to her brothers’ dreams.

“Josh has already been picking up shifts with us,” Eric said, turning his attention back to Brody. “We’re happy to hire him on full-time.”

“We appreciate your generous offer,” her oldest brother said, and she could tell by his tone that Brody was waiting for the catch.

Eric’s smile faded. “For the three-million-dollar price tag, we would need to include a contract for your biggest asset.”

“Sure,” Chad volunteered.

“We would need Katie to commit to two years, with the potential to extend,” Eric said.

Katie released the breath she’d been holding while Eric explained why her relationships and the contract she’d negotiated—the one her brothers had dismissed—made Summers Family Trucking worth millions.

“And if she says no?” Chad asked, his smile slipping away.

“If Katie is not interested, well, I’m afraid our offer drops.” He turned to her. “I strongly feel that without Katie the Black Hills contract will disappear and the relationships will deteriorate. I’m not exactly the go-to guy in the biomass arena.”

“I’m surprised you’re interested in it now,” Brody said, the brief hint of excitement that fate might finally rule in their favor erased from his expression.

“I still believe it is best for the forest floor to let the branches decompose. It keeps the soil healthy for the next crop of trees,” Eric said. “But I also think it pays to be forward thinking. Biomass has the potential to replace coal as a form of energy to a certain extent. Overseas we’re already starting to see this happen. I think it could be good for the timber industry at home too.”

“And you need Katie for this?” Brody asked.

“Those relationships are in their infancy,” Eric said. “You purchased the trucks to haul the wood product a month ago based on your financials. So yes, we do.”

“We’ll take the deal,” she said.

Her brothers had given up a lot for her. It was her turn now. She couldn’t walk away from three million dollars just because it was not part of her dreams. If this is what they wanted, what Brody felt was the right next step . . . Her family came first.

“Wait a minute, Katie,” Brody said. “You were planning to leave. Move to Montana. Start a new job. Run your own sanctuary.”

“I can still go,” she said, forcing a smile, telling herself this was her choice. “In two years.”

Brody frowned. They both knew barns filled with needy animals wouldn’t wait. Carol Lewis would hire someone else to replace her as the head of the Montana Safe Haven.

“We’ll talk it over.” Brody pushed back from the table and everyone else followed his lead. “And have an answer to you in the morning. I’d also like to review those contracts.”

Eric walked around the table and handed her brother a stack of papers. Then he turned to her and held out his hand. “Welcome to the team. I hope.”

The door opened and Liam stepped in. She felt his gaze taking in her fitted skirt and button-down shirt. He stared at her hand clasped in Eric’s and his expression darkened. She bit her lip, wishing they could return to the moments last night when the outside world hadn’t mattered.

“What did I miss?” Liam demanded.

“I said yes,” she said. “It’s done.”

Liam’s jaw tightened. “Katie, can I have a word with you?”

She nodded, fighting to keep her polite smile in place as she followed him down the short hall to his office. Apart from a desk and two chairs, one covered with chainsaw safety gear, the space was empty, as if he hadn’t bothered to move in yet.

She glanced out the window. Liam had a view of the parking lot. As an equity partner, if that’s what he got, she had a feeling her office would stare a wall.

Liam closed the door. “Katie, are you sure about this? It kills me to think you felt trapped, that you had to take his offer.”

She did, but not by him. “You know, the funny thing is, before you came over last night, I thought I’d solved my problems. I thought that I’d found a way to make my dreams come true and still have you in my life. I was going to ask you to come with me. To leave behind your job and Georgia—”

“Yes.”

She shook her head. “I made my choice.”

“You haven’t signed the contracts,” he pointed out.

“We will,” she said. “We will.”

He heard the hint of sadness in her voice. It was as if the spark that burned bright inside her had been extinguished. And God, it was killing him that he’d had a hand in stealing away her dreams.

“You shouldn’t have to sacrifice your plans for your brothers,” he said.

“They’ve given up a lot for me,” she said. “And no one walks away from three million dollars, especially when someone is offering them everything else they want. Even Brody can’t say no to the deal Eric offered.”

Liam waved his hand toward the closed door. “Do you think they are still here?”

She nodded. “They’ll wait for me. Chad is probably hitting on your receptionist. Now that he officially works for Moore Timber, you better warn your female staff. He is Mr. One-Night Stand.”

“If they’re still here, go get those contracts and tear them up.” He closed the space between them, looping one arm around her waist and drawing her close. “Take the job in Montana. I’ll go with you. Together, we’ll save horses, goats, whatever you want.”

“I can’t,” she said. “You didn’t see their expressions when Eric said the number, or when he agreed to help Chad buy a helicopter and outfit it for logging. If my dad were alive, he’d be so proud. And wait until Josh finds out he finished his last haul. He hates driving trucks. Now he can go back to school, work for Moore Timber, whatever he wants.”

“Did you even try to negotiate with Eric?” Liam demanded.

“No. At the end of the day, family is more important. And who knows, in a few years, I’ll probably be glad I’m not living in some unfamiliar town, responsible for hundreds of animals no one wants to adopt.” She offered a forced smile. “Not all dreams come true.”

“No, Katie,” he murmured lacing his fingers through her hair, running his thumb down her cheek. “Don’t say that.”

He wanted her to live her life unguarded, going after what she wanted, finding happiness, one lonely and abandoned animal at a time. She wasn’t his to keep. He knew that now. He’d betrayed her trust twice, and still she continued to believe in him. She’d blown him away last night when she’d taken him at his word, trusting that he hadn’t tried to set her up. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t put her first.

A plan formed in his mind. It might backfire or fall apart. Hell, maybe he was crazy. But he had to try. For too long, he’d been so afraid of failing—Eric, the company, his sister, Katie—that he hadn’t stopped to think that letting this deal crash and burn might be part of loving Katie.

“I’m not going to let you give up,” he said. “I love you, Katie. I want to be the guy who makes your dreams come true, not the one who shuts them down.”

He lowered his lips to hers, kissing her, quickly deepening the connection. She moaned against his mouth and he drew her flush up against his body. He knew what she liked; the places to touch that would leave her screaming his name. With one palm pressed against her back, he ran his free hand down her neck. With his fingertips, he gently traced the V-shaped neckline of her button-down shirt.

He wanted to dip low between her breasts and undo the buttons. But that wasn’t part of his plan. And he didn’t have much time. Leah, their receptionist, would only entertain Chad Summers for so long.

Moving his hand over her shirt, he held on to her hip as his mouth kissed a path over her jaw, down her neck. Her moans grew louder without his lips covering hers. Katie pulled at his flannel shirt, freeing it from his jeans. But when her fingers began to toy with the buttons, he stepped back, capturing her wrists in his hands.

“You’re so damn beautiful. I want you so fucking much.” He looked into her green eyes, burning bright with desire as her lips formed a sweet smile. One look and he knew this was worth a shot.

Holding her wrists with one hand, he touched her cheek with the other. He drank in the sight, memorizing it, knowing that in a moment, it would break apart.

Liam claimed her mouth, his kiss hard and demanding. His free hand roamed over her curves. She struggled against his hold, but he held tight. He deepened the kiss, savoring the taste and feel of her, the way her body pressed up against him.

Katie moaned as he trailed kisses over her jaw, down her neck.

“More, Liam,” she begged. “Please.”

Using his body, he guided her back until her thighs pressed against the edge of his desk. “I wish I could bend you over my desk and lift your skirts.”

“Liam.” She arched, trying to press up against him even though he still held her wrists tightly between them. “
Please.
Don’t hold back.”