Hot for You (12 page)

The movie was fun but at the end she found
herself sleepy. “Ready for bed?” he asked when she yawned.

“Sorry.” She held back another yawn. “I think
the day is getting to me.”

He shifted on the couch. “Do you have
everything you need in the guestroom?”

She nodded. “Now that I have my clothes and
toiletries, I’m all set. Tomorrow I should be okay to go back to
Leigh’s.”

His forehead wrinkled as he frowned. “I don’t
like the idea of you going back to Leigh’s after the place was just
ransacked, and when you’re getting threatening emails.”

“Maybe I’ll book a room in a hotel.” She
sighed. “I can’t just stay here with you. I think I’m wearing out
my welcome.”

He reached out and put his hand over hers.
His touch was warm, comforting. “Carilyn, you are welcome here as
long as you need. I’d rather see you here where I can keep an eye
on you. I have to admit I’d be damned worried if you were out there
alone.”

She smiled and surprised herself as she
turned her hand up and clasped his. “Don’t worry so much.”

“Can’t help it.” He studied her for a long
moment, looking as though he wanted to say something. Instead he
leaned closer and her belly flipped as she thought he was going to
kiss her, but he pressed his lips to her forehead then drew back.
“Now let’s get you to bed.”

***

Early the next morning, Monday, Cody headed
outside to take care of chores. He frowned as he thought about the
person who called himself Firebug, the threatening email to
Carilyn, and someone trashing Leigh’s house.

Dawn was just lifting the dark sky, graying
it out, the sun starting to peek over the horizon. It promised to
be a beautiful day, yet what had happened yesterday cast a shadow
over everything.

He fed the cattle and horses, checked the
water troughs, saw to the trees being irrigated around the ranch,
and generally made sure everything was running smoothly. When he
headed back into the house, the smell of coffee and sausages filled
the air and he heard the meat sizzling on the stovetop.

When he went to the entryway to the kitchen,
he leaned against the doorframe, watching Carilyn as she busied
herself. She hadn’t noticed him and he smiled to himself as he
thought about what it would be like to come in every day to find
her cooking breakfast for them. She looked cute in her jeans and
T-shirt, her feet bare, and her damp red hair pulled back in a
ponytail. From her wet hair, he guessed she’d just taken a
shower.

She glanced over her shoulder and smiled.
“Good morning.”

“Good morning to you, sunshine.” He pushed
away from the doorframe and walked closer to her. “Smells
great.”

“Coffee is ready.” She nodded toward the
coffee maker. “I’m just about to make omelets. Two eggs or three,
and what do you like on yours?”

He looked over the plate of grated cheddar
cheese, chopped onions, fresh tomatoes cut into small pieces, and
bell pepper sliced into small pieces, too. “Three eggs and I’ll
take everything on it,” he said.

“You’ve got it.” She beat eggs in a bowl with
a whisk. “They won’t be pretty but they’ll be edible.”

He laughed. “Edible is what counts.” He
studied her as she poured the egg into the nonstick pan. “How are
you feeling?”

“Better.” She glanced at him. “Still have a
headache and sometimes I’m a little unsteady on my feet, but I
think I’ll be fine to go back to Leigh’s later today or
tomorrow.”

“Don’t rush it, Carilyn,” he said as she put
cheese and veggies in the omelet. “There’s no hurry to leave and it
may not be safe to go to Leigh’s.”

She looked up from the omelet. “I don’t want
to be a burden.”

He tweaked her ponytail and caught a whiff of
the soap she’d used when she’d taken a shower. “And I told you that
you are not a burden.” He gave her a little grin. “Besides, what
cowboy doesn’t want to come in to a warm breakfast rather than
eating cold cereal on his own?”

“There is that,” she said with a smile.

While she made breakfast, he made himself a
cup of coffee, black. He set the table for two, including glasses
and a jug of orange juice. He also took a jar of salsa out of the
fridge along with a tub of sour cream, something he liked on his
omelets. When she was finished, she was right, they weren’t pretty,
but they smelled great and tasted even better.

Over breakfast they talked about her plans
for the day. “I need to start setting up my laptop as much as I can
without the software,” she said. “There are some things I can
download off the Internet.”

“I don’t think I’d be much of a help there,”
he said as he cut into his omelet with his fork. “I’m doing good to
utilize whatever software I need for work at the fire department or
here for the ranch.” He ate the bite of omelet. After he swallowed,
he said, “So you know how to track people down on the
Internet?”

She nodded. “Even people who try to cover up
their tracks. Eventually I will find them.”

“You must be good at what you do,” Cody
said.

With a shrug she said, “It’s what I was
trained to do and something I have a knack at doing.”

“How did you get in that line of work?” he
asked.

“I majored in computer science when I was in
college.” She smiled, finally deciding to tell him what she
actually did. “I did post-graduate work in programming and I got
involved with an elite group of programmers—hackers—who taught me a
whole lot about what I do now. You could say I have a gift for
it.”

Cody raised his brows. “You’re a hacker?”

She gave an impish grin. “For the good
guys.”

“That’s pretty cool.” Cody took a drink of
juice and set the glass down, thumping it on the tabletop. “So you
think you can find Firebug?”

“Eventually.” Her brow wrinkled. “Firebug did
a credible job covering his tracks, but I’ll be getting software
that will help me get to him.”

Cody gave a satisfied nod. “As soon as we
find him, I’m going after the bastard.”

Carilyn was taken aback and her eyes widened.
“You’re not going after Firebug on your own, are you?”

Cody looked like he was considering it. “I’ll
call Reese,” Cody finally said. “He’ll likely let me in on the
action—or at least watch it.” His gaze met Carilyn’s. “But if the
bastard tries to hurt you all bets are off.”

Again, he looked as if he wanted to say more,
but didn’t. Some kind of connection was between them and she knew
he felt it too.

After breakfast, they cleaned up together.
When they were finished, he put his arm around her shoulders and
gave her a little squeeze. “This afternoon, I have a few 4-H’ers
coming over to look at my calves. You’re welcome to join us and
meet the kids.”

“I might do that.” She smiled at him.

“Come on out if you decide you want to.” He
released her, headed to the front door, and took a beat-up
work-worn western hat off of the hat rack. He tugged the hat down
on his forehead and opened the door.

Carilyn watched Cody walk out of the house.
She never got tired of seeing his sexy backside. She also liked the
feeling of being in the same house as him, making him breakfast as
he came in from work. It was a homey, comfortable feeling.

She shook her head. This was exactly why it
wasn’t a good idea to stay at the ranch with Cody. Jeez, soon she’d
be heading back to Kansas and she could end up hurting both of them
if she wasn’t careful.

It took some time to install the basic
software on her new laptop, just to get it up and running. It was
frustrating not having the software to prepare to tackle her job,
but she’d just have to make up for lost time by working longer
hours after she received the software.

She downloaded tracing software that a fellow
hacker provided when she contacted him. Or her—it was virtually
impossible to tell from their names. This hacker was referred to as
Lord. His/her whole name was LordoftheFuneralPyre. It sounded
masculine to her, but who really knew? Carilyn went by WizardAsp as
her hacker name, which she figured was as androgynous as one could
get.

When she was finished setting up her laptop
the way she wanted it, she decided to head to the kitchen. She
poked around until she found an old recipe book with one page
marked. It was a recipe for chewy brownies. Despite the fact that
she wasn’t the best cook, she did know how to make brownies. As
long as she didn’t burn them, they should turn out fine.

First she checked to make sure Cody had all
the ingredients to make the brownies and was pleased when she found
everything. He was almost out of cocoa and flour, but there was
enough to get by. It didn’t take long until she had all of the
ingredients combined and was stirring the batter. She greased a pan
and spread the mixture into it before putting it into a preheated
oven.

While the brownies baked, she brought her
laptop into the kitchen and checked her email again, praying she
didn’t have one from Firebug. Thankfully she didn’t.

Just as she was going to close out the email
client, a new one popped into her inbox.
Sam Anthony.

“Sam?” she said as she straightened in her
chair. She hadn’t heard from him since he’d gone into the Peace
Corps.

She clicked on the email and read it
through.

Hi, Carilyn,

I just got back to the States yesterday and
I wanted to talk with you. I went to your apartment earlier today
but you weren’t there, and you didn’t answer your phone when I
called.

Carilyn paused to pull her phone out of her
pocket and saw that yes, she’d missed two calls from him. She
frowned but then saw that somehow her ringer had been turned off.
She went back to reading the email.

I wanted to tell you how much I’ve missed
you and that I’m back for good. Call me. I want to see you.

Love,

Sam

Carilyn blinked. Sam was back and he wanted
to see her? She bit her lower lip. In the past she might have been
excited to receive an email from him…but now?

She wondered, too, about him being back for
good. Didn’t they have to sign a contract or something, like they
did in the army? He hadn’t explained when he told her and she’d
been in too much shock to think to ask.

The smell of something burning caught her
attention. “Nooo,” she said as she jumped up from her seat, grabbed
a couple of potholders, and opened the oven door. She groaned when
she saw that the brownies were very dark and very overdone.

“Darn it.” She scowled. “These will be extra
chewy if they’re not as hard as bricks.”

She put the pan on a trivet to cool and went
back to her laptop. She wasn’t ready to respond to Sam, so she
closed the laptop lid and wandered to the front door.

She knew what she’d do. She’d try not to
think about Sam, the Firebug, or the burnt brownies and go outside
for some fresh air and to see what Cody was up to. When she stepped
out of the house, she saw him with a group of three kids and three
horses stood behind them. From a distance she couldn’t tell how old
the kids were.

With her hands in the back pockets of her
jeans, she strolled toward Cody and the kids. The four of them were
outside a corral with five calves in it.

“These heifers are the best of the herd,”
Cody was saying. “All come from champion stock.”

Carilyn watched as the two girls and one boy,
all of about eleven or twelve, talked with Cody. They discussed
growth rate, reproductive efficiency, conformation, skeletal
correctness, and disposition. She liked watching the way he
interacted with the kids, on their level. He didn’t talk down to
them. He engaged the 4-H’ers as adults, answering all of their
questions and comments.

Cody surprised Carilyn by drawing her into
the group and introducing her to the kids. “Everyone, this is
Carilyn,” he said. Then he gestured to each kid as he continued.
“Carilyn, meet Amanda, Cindy, and Garth Johnson.”

“I take it you’re all related.” She smiled
and shook each of their hands as they told her they were cousins.
“Have you picked out which calves you want?” she asked.

“This is my first time,” Cindy said. She
gestured to a heifer, the largest of the bunch. “She’s pretty and I
like her disposition.”

“Not me.” Amanda shook her head and pointed
to the one closest to them. “I think she has the best lines and
show quality.”

The boy picked his out of the remaining three
heifers and seemed satisfied with his choice. They discussed price
and Cody looked like he was holding back amusement and approval at
their attempts at haggling.

“You all drive a hard bargain.” He looked at
each one of them. “I’m going to give you an excellent price, and it
is the lowest I will go.”

When he gave them the price the kids chimed
in their agreement. He promised to keep the heifers for them until
they each returned later that evening with their parents. Looking
thoroughly excited, the 4-H’ers each mounted a horse and then took
off at a fast trot.

“You’re good with children,” Carilyn said as
they headed toward the ranch house.

“I like kids.” Cody smiled. “Want a few of my
own one day.”

Carilyn smiled, too. “So do I.”

As they walked, Cody put his arm around her
shoulders. It felt comfortable and natural, and she didn’t shy
away.

When they reached the house and walked
inside, Cody sniffed the air. “Do I smell brownies?”

She gave a little laugh. “Burnt
brownies.”

He looked at her and grinned. “My
favorite.”

“Uh-huh,” she said and shook her head, but he
grinned.

They walked inside and went into the kitchen.
They sat at the table, drank cold milk, and ate the burnt brownies.
She was surprised that he ate half the pan along with two tall
glasses of milk. She ate three brownies herself. They weren’t too
bad for being burnt.