Have Cowboy, Need Cupid (15 page)

He had no idea how, but he had to have her again. And again. And again.

And he did, during the night. Another time, long and slow and tender and sweet. Then another in the shower as they bathed each other. And then in the early hours of the morning, just before dawn broke the sky and the sun rose to tell them it was morning.

But the phone rang, destroying their solitude.

Suzanne curled against him, her eyelashes fluttering against cheeks pale from lack of sleep. Guilt threatened to surface, but he remembered how wild she had been in his arms and squashed it.

What if the phone call was the hospital?

He nudged her slightly, kissing her neck and blowing more kisses along her ear to wake her. The phone trilled twice more, and he finished off by blowing on her navel. She giggled and squirmed up, pushing hair from her eyes. But she was too late. The answering machine clicked on.

A man’s voice spoke. “Suzanne, this is James. I tried calling last night, and wondered if you’d gotten my message. You won’t believe this, but I just talked to the banker in Sugar Hill and he’s ready to foreclose on the McAllister property this week.”

Suzanne reached for the phone, her eyes panicked, but he grabbed her arm, their gazes locking while the man continued.

“Everything else is set. We’re getting pressure to close this deal before that little town goes crazy and has time to stage some moronic protest, so I say we move today. Call me and let me know if you’ve made any progress with McAllister.”

She tried to pull away, to stop the machine, but he shook his head.

Excitement built in the other man’s voice while dread and anguish throbbed in Rafe’s chest.

“Hell, it doesn’t matter. We’ve played our cards right on this one, baby. Now it’s time to swoop in for the kill.”

They
had played their cards right. Time to swoop in for the kill like the vultures they were.

Rafe released Suzanne’s arm, his throat burning with emotions. The stricken look on her face confirmed that his speculations were true.

She was working for Horton Developers, the company that wanted to buy his land out from under him. Worse, she had been sent there to get it.

He glanced at their sweat-soaked naked bodies, and bile rose in his throat. Obviously, she’d been instructed to do anything she had to do in order to convince him to sell.

Chapter Fourteen

Suzanne froze in horror as James said goodbye and the message machine clicked off.

So did her heart.

Raw pain riddled Rafe’s face. Suzanne had made the biggest mistake of her life by not telling him the truth from the beginning.

“Rafe, please—”

“Please what?” Anger hardened the husky voice that had only moments earlier murmured to her that she was molasses, the voice that had brought her to ecstasy by calling her name in the throes of his own release. “Please let you make a bigger fool out of me by sticking around.”

He got out of bed, jerked up his clothes and shoved his feet into his jeans, not bothering to button them as he yanked on his shirt and grabbed his boots.

Suzanne pulled the sheet off the bed, wrapped it around her and ran after him. “No, Rafe, it wasn’t like that. Please wait and let me explain.”

He spun around, fury tightening those high cheekbones, the rage in his eyes darkened by hurt. “You don’t have to explain. Your buddy made it pretty clear what you’re doing here.” His gaze flickered over her with undisguised disgust. She felt even more naked and exposed, as though he was literally stripping away the skin to smirk at the bare ugliness below.

“And it’s obvious you did everything in your power to lure me to your way of thinking. What was I? Another one of your charity cases?”

“Rafe, I never…” Her voice broke, laden with hurt at his crude insult. She cleared her throat, desperately searching for some way to make things right as he pulled on his boots. “Did I mention the land while we were in bed? Or while you were kissing me?”

His angry gaze shot back to her. “No, you didn’t.” He strode toward her, shoving his face so close she could see the vein jumping in his jaw.

She could also smell her lingering scent on his skin.

“Just when did you plan to drop that little bombshell into the conversation, Suzanne? In the middle of a bath together? Or were you going to wait until the next time when I was inside you? Or maybe you planned to wait until the town meeting?”

Her chin quivered, the need to touch him so strong she pried one hand loose from the sheet and reached out. But he jumped back, as if appalled by her.

“The game’s over,” he barked. “So you can tell your friend—”

“He’s my boss.” Lord, she didn’t have the heart to tell him James had actually proposed to her. That had been a lifetime ago. Before she’d come to Sugar Hill and met Rafe and his mother. Before she’d learned to care for him and love his land.

And before she’d fallen in love with him….

A pain crushed her windpipe as the magnitude of the situation hit her. He would never trust her again. And he would never believe that she had planned to refuse James’s proposal and look for an alternate piece of land for Horton Developers, only things had gone crazy tonight when her father had his heart attack—

“Tell your boss that my property is not for sale. Not now.” Rafe hesitated, one hand on the doorjamb. “Not ever. Especially to you and Horton Developers.”

His boots clicked harshly on the floor as he stalked out the door. Suzanne crumpled, certain he would never be back.

It was her fault that she had lost him.

R
AFE SPENT THE BETTER PART
of the next day doing as much hard labor as he could around the ranch. Anything to work off the anger from the night before.

Why hadn’t he realized what Suzanne was up to? Why hadn’t he followed all his instincts in the beginning and stayed clear of her?

Because she suckered you in with those brown eyes and that lush body. And then she had to go and be nice to your mother, as if she was really a decent girl.

Because you are a damn fool when it comes to women.

He pounded the last hammer into the wooden post, wiped sweat from his forehead and stepped back to survey the corral. At least he’d put his energy into something productive today.

Maybe he’d go out and check the herd.

“You driving like a demon today,” Bud said. “What’s got into you, boy?”

“Nothing, just trying to get this place back in shape,” Rafe said, gathering his tools.

“Stop in and see your mama a minute. She’s been wanting to talk to you all day.”

A moment of worry attacked him. “Is she all right?”

Bud patted his back. “Yeah, but be forewarned. She’s planning some kind of dinner party and wants to rope you into it.” He made a tsking sound with his teeth. “Women.”

“Yeah, women.”

Now, what did his mother have up her sleeve?

He walked toward the house, dread clenching his stomach as he stabbed a guess. Her sudden need to entertain most likely had something to do with Suzanne. How could he explain that his days spent with Suzanne Hartwell were over? That they had both been wrong about the woman?

That she was not the friend she pretended to be, but the enemy?

S
UZANNE HAD NEVER BEEN
so miserable in her life. She forced herself to visit her father that morning and found him irritable and ready to leave the hospital, so Eleanor had arranged his release and they were driving back to Atlanta. Not wanting to upset him or hear an I-told-you-so, he’s-all-wrong-for-you speech, she had avoided telling her father about her relationship with Rafe.

“Suzanne, wait.” Rebecca caught her in the hall. “What’s wrong?”

Suzanne shrugged off her concern and did what she did best—focused on business, which was what she should have done all along. “Nothing.”

But Rebecca didn’t buy it. She should have been a shrink. “Tell me, sis. It might help to talk.”

She doubted it. Still, moved by her sister’s concern, Suzanne spilled the entire story.

“Oh, my,” Rebecca said in a voice filled with such pity that a fresh well of tears exploded and overflowed down Suzanne’s cheeks. Once she’d opened the floodgates at the hospital, it seemed she couldn’t stop them.

Horrified at herself, Suzanne hugged Rebecca good-bye, then jogged down the hallway and outside to her car. Sunshine burned her neck, but it didn’t dry her tears.

Determined to regain her focus and devise a solution to all their problems, she spent the afternoon scouring the countryside, checking out property and searching for some way she might win Rafe back. If only she could figure out a way to help him keep his ranch. But he still had all that debt hanging over him. He didn’t want her working against him, but he sure as heck wouldn’t accept her help, either. Stubborn old cowboy.

Stubborn sexy cowboy.

Stubborn sexy cowboy that she loved.

Finally exhausted, she drove back to Rebecca’s apartment, but tears blurred her vision as she let herself inside, the heavy sense of loss and failure weighing on her. What was she going to do? Any way she handled the situation, someone would be upset with her.

If she and Rafe didn’t have a future, she needed to at least keep her job.

She glanced at the ring James had given her, the huge stone sitting like a boulder on her hand. Her heart sank even further in her chest. She couldn’t marry James. It wouldn’t be fair to either of them. After all, now she had experienced the true kind of passion and love in Rafe’s arms, how could she even think about being with another man? The hope chest mocked her from the corner, the cowboy bridal hat and boots blazing like a big neon sign, reminding her of Rafe and his mother.

A knock sounded at the door and she froze, wondering if Rafe might have changed his mind and returned to hear her out.

But the memory of the condemning look on Rafe’s face when he’d walked out the door flashed into her mind. No. The idea of Rafe forgiving her was a pipe dream.

The knock grew louder.

She tried to ignore it, but the door opened and Rebecca strode inside, Grammy Rose and her cousins close on her heels.

“Suzanne, honey, why aren’t you answering your door?” Grammy Rose asked in a worried voice.

“We brought you comfort food—café mochas and pecan pralines,” Rebecca said.

“And we brought extra brainpower,” Hannah said.

“And moral support,” Alison added.

“We can even give you sex tips on snaring that cowboy,” Mimi chimed.

Suzanne took one look at her loving family and realized in Atlanta she had no friends. Here, in Sugar Hill, she had family, people who loved her and…and a man she loved but had lost.

Grammy Rose held out her arms and a box of tissues, and Suzanne collapsed in her embrace. “Thanks, you guys, I could use all the moral support and brainpower I can get.”

“And don’t forget sex tips,” Mimi said with a wink. “After all, you aren’t going to give up on getting that cowboy back so quickly are you?”

“Of course she’s not.” Grammy Rose patted her back. “She’s a Hartwell girl, isn’t she? We always get our man.”

“H
OW ABOUT WE ASK HER
for dinner tomorrow night? I’ll invite Bud and we’ll have a foursome.” Rafe’s mother placed a fresh bouquet of daisies on the table. “Maria can throw together a salad and whip up some rice and gravy, and I’ll fry some country-fried steak and make one of my peach cobblers. Do you think Suzanne likes country-fried steak? Or maybe you should grill the steak outside, just in case she’s one of those health-conscious city girls.” She laughed and fluttered a hand. Her health had improved so drastically over the past few weeks that he hated to disappoint her. “Oh, never mind, it won’t hurt the girl to plump up those curves a bit, the more to love—”

“Mother, we’re not having Suzanne over to dinner tomorrow night.”

“Mercy. Well, of course a smart, beautiful girl like her probably has plans on such short notice. How about the night after?”

“Not then, either.”

“Oh, dear, maybe you should ask her when she’s free.” A look of concern tightened her brow. “You’d better jump on it, son, before some other man snatches her right out from under you.”

She was a smart girl all right. Smart and deceitful. “Mother, Suzanne is not coming any night.”

“What?” Her animated movements halted. “I know you’ve been ornery today, but you didn’t say something to upset her, did you? ’Cause if you did, go apologize. Take her flowers, women love flowers.”

His mother thought he had upset Suzanne? Oh, that was rich.

She pursed her lips. “I wonder if she likes daisies. Or you could take her roses. Roses are the best. I’ll let you pick some from the garden—”

“Mom, I am not taking Suzanne roses!”

She pressed a hand to her chest. “Well, you’re never going to get that girl if you don’t at least try to be a little romantic.”

Well, hell, just the mention of Suzanne Hartwell’s name was driving him crazy. He certainly didn’t intend to romance her, not after the way she’d used him.

“I’m sorry, Mom, but I’m not going to be seeing Suzanne again.” He spun on his heels and marched toward the door. He didn’t have it in him to break her heart and tell her the truth. Better she think he was a loser in the love department.

No, he’d forget Suzanne.

But he would talk to Landon and see if he could save his ranch. He’d rather rent the land to the man who had betrayed his father than let Suzanne and her company turn it into their development.

“A
LL RIGHT
, you want to help your cowboy save his ranch for his mama, right?” Grammy Rose said.

“He’s not my cowboy, Grammy. He hates me.”

“Psshaw. He doesn’t hate you. I saw the way he looked at you at the hospital.” She hugged Suzanne. “You’ve got your cowboy, you just need a little Cupid now.”

“I doubt Cupid will help,” Suzanne whispered miserably.

“Sure he will. You can get him back,” Mimi said, her smile radiating confidence. “Let me teach you how to belly dance. Seth loves it.”

Hannah rolled her eyes, one hand on her pregnant belly. “I wish I could belly dance right now.”

“Is that how you snared Seth?” Alison asked.

Mimi jumped up, tied her button-down shirt up to her waist to reveal her flat belly, then rotated her hips and gyrated her stomach. “It’s all in these—”

“Girls,” Grammy chided softly, peering over wire-rimmed spectacles. “I believe we’re getting off track.”

“Right,” Rebecca said. “Although maybe we could all take a belly-dancing lesson later.”

Mimi gave her a thumbs-up.

“Now, let’s get down to the nitty-gritty,” Grammy Rose said.

Rebecca spoke up. “You know I’m against the new mall development, too.”

“Me, too,” Mimi agreed. “I like high fashion, but I’d rather Sugar Hill get some trendy little boutiques. You know, the funky artsy kind.”

“Like the ones in Little Five Points in Atlanta,” Alison said.

“They have great art galleries there that showcase local artists, too,” Rebecca said.

“Pine Mountain has an entire section of antique stores, and little arts and crafts shops,” Grammy added. “Pearl and Wyline sell their needlepoint pillows there. And Junior displays his woodworking projects. He sold seventy-five wooden owls last year. Made enough to buy himself a new set of teeth.”

The girls giggled, and Suzanne wiped at her eyes, an idea beginning to take shape in her mind, “You might just have something there.”

Her cousins exchanged confused looks.

“You want Junior to sell his wooden owls down here in Sugar Hill?” Grammy asked.

Mimi clapped her hands. “And you want me to teach belly dancing?”

Suzanne laughed. “No, well, maybe.” She waved her hands and gathered her cousins and sister and grandmother together. “What do you think about this concept?”

She quickly pitched her idea, her excitement gaining momentum as they offered ideas of their own. “I’m going to call a town meeting for tomorrow tonight,” Suzanne said. “But first, I’ll put together a written plan to show everyone how my idea can work.”

“It’s perfect,” Hannah and Alison said.

“I might even show some of my art there,” Rebecca said, emerging from her shell even more.

“See,” Grammy Rose said. “I knew if the Hartwell girls put their heads together, they’d find the answers.”

Suzanne nodded. They had found a solution to the land development problem, and she had an alternate site in mind for the mall, so Rafe’s property wouldn’t need to be bought. But neither would pay his bills.