Midnight Thunder(INCR) (13 page)

Because that was exactly what he'd done. He'd known from the moment he sent his friends off in his truck that he'd use the time to give her an orgasm. He'd never intended to stop with a kiss. In the back of her mind, she'd known that, and the knowledge had excited her.

She'd always loved his boldness. It was part of what drew her and made him the sexiest man she'd ever met. It was also why he'd so easily claimed her complete attention when they'd been younger. He'd given her pleasure that rivaled anything her romantic soul could imagine.

Like this. She'd been on her way out the door with not a single thought of sex on her mind. In nothing flat he'd ignited her passion and given her a climax. That was talent. Should she embrace it or run like the wind? The jury was still out.

Or maybe not. As she closed the front door and walked out on the porch, there was her cowboy leaning against the front fender of her truck looking adorably cocky. His hat shaded his eyes, but not his wide grin. He'd managed to provide her with a special moment this morning and obviously he was quite proud of himself.

She couldn't help laughing. “You think you're pretty clever, don't you?”

“Yes, ma'am.” He pushed away from the fender, opened the driver's-side door and offered his hand to help her in.

“Do you want to drive?” The minute the words were out of her mouth, she knew exactly where they'd come from—the woman she'd been five years ago.
Damn it.
There was the hidden danger of hanging out with Cade. She would
not
revert to the overly accommodating and dependent person she'd been five years ago, even if that meant pushing him away.

He gazed at her as if considering the question. “No, I don't.”

“Okay.” She thought about that as he helped her in. Then she tried to remember if she'd ever driven him anywhere. After they were on their way down the road, she asked him.

He shrugged. “I don't know. Probably.”

“I can't think of when it would have been. You always liked to take your truck.”

“Well, duh. You had that little car back then. Couldn't make out in that thing. And you didn't want to do it on the ground on account of snakes.”

His response was logical. Driving somewhere private had been a high priority. He'd lived at the ranch, and she'd lived with her folks. As for a blanket on the ground, the possibility of a snake arriving in the middle of the action did sort of freak her out. “I have a truck now.”

“I see that. Nice truck.”

“We could take it tonight.”

He hesitated. “You got blankets?”

“Of course! You don't go on the road in the winter without blankets, so I just leave them in here all the time.”

“Have you ever—”

“No. I've never had truck-bed sex with anyone but you.”

“Then how do you know if it's comfortable back there? Mine has a liner.”

“So does mine. And I don't know if it's comfortable to lie on or not, but maybe it's time to test it out.”

He laughed. “I'm thinking this is a test in more ways than one. You want to know if I can handle having you drive me out to our make-out spot and back in your vehicle or if that would somehow affect my manly pride.”

“Would it?”

“Lexi, if you're offering to use your truck and your gas to ferry me out into the boonies so I can give you a screaming orgasm, that's not an ego buster. It's an ego booster. In other words, I'd be honored.”

Damn, he was turning her on with that talk. “I don't scream.”

“It'll be a whole new venue. This time you just might.”

 

12

C
ADE
THOUGHT
THAT
had gone well. When she'd asked if he wanted to drive to the hospital, he'd been a whisker away from saying yes. Just in time he'd caught something in her expression that told him yes was not the right answer. But it was the perfect answer to her question about taking the truck tonight.

She was absolutely right that he'd never ridden with her. He'd tried to make it sound like he hadn't noticed one way or the other, but the minute he'd climbed into the passenger seat, he'd felt weird. Looking to his left to see her must be what tourists felt like when driving in England.

He wasn't that way with other people, though.
Other guys
, a little voice reminded him. Humbling though it was, he had to acknowledge that he had a hang-up about being driven by a woman. His jerk of a dad had always insisted on driving, and he'd taken the truck when he'd left. After that, Cade and his mom had depended on the kindness of neighbors when they'd needed to go somewhere.

Lexi had the pedal to the metal. He glanced at the speedometer and saw she was going about five miles over. “Trying to catch those old boys?”

“I wouldn't mind.” She glanced at him. “Do I make you nervous?”

He lied. “No.”

“I don't believe you. You have a death grip on your knees. You're denting the denim.”

Instantly he relaxed his hands. “This is embarrassing. I'm evolved. I support gender equality.”

“Except in a moving vehicle.” She sounded amused rather than ticked off.

“There, too! At least intellectually.”

“Then this is good practice for you. It'll allow your emotions to catch up with your brain.”

“Absolutely. I'll give up driving completely if you're willing to chauffeur me around.” Actually that didn't sound like a bad plan.

“Nice try, but I'm not that dedicated to your transformation.”

“It was just a thought.” As she passed a slow-moving RV, he caught himself gripping his knees again and dug his phone out of his pocket to distract himself. “I should probably text Molly back.”

“She texted you?”

“Yeah, this morning, asking if I'd be at the hospital because she wanted to bring me something.”

“She's a nice person.”

“Seems like it.” He sent the text saying he was heading there now and would be there a good part of the day.

“She got me a gig over at the Last Chance the middle of July.”

“Oh, yeah?” The reality of being connected to that family hadn't really sunk in. Lexi would be driving over to the ranch where three of his cousins lived.
Amazing.

“They have a summer program for disadvantaged boys, and they want me to give a riding clinic for them. Want to come along?”

His chest tightened. “Um, I don't know. I'm not sure what I'll be doing at that point.”

“I know, but it's only for a couple of days. You don't have to decide now, but I'm sure they'd love to meet you.”

“And I want to meet them, too. Eventually.” He thought some time should go by before he went charging over there. Maybe weeks, maybe months. The appropriate amount of time wasn't clear in his mind, but mid-July might be too soon.

“Okay.” She sounded a little deflated.

“Look, do you
want
me to come with you? For moral support?”

She hesitated. “Yes.”

“In that case, I'll go unless I have a job I can't leave or something critical comes up. Like I said, the future's kind of uncertain with the ranch in trouble.”

“I understand. But it'll be great if you can go.” Her voice had a happy little lilt to it.

Apparently she really had wanted him to go over to Jackson Hole with her. Maybe the Chances intimidated her, too.
Too?
Damn it, was
he
intimidated? The tension in his gut told him the answer.
Well, hell.

Coming back to Thunder Mountain Ranch was turning out to be an educational experience. In less than two days he'd learned that he was prejudiced against riding with a woman driver and that being instantly related to a powerful family made his stomach hurt. Finding out these things wasn't particularly pleasant, especially because he considered himself a guy who had his act together.

On the plus side, Lexi wanted to have sex with him as much, and maybe more, than she had before he'd left. He was fairly sure she still loved him, although she hadn't said it. He hadn't said it, either, but it was the only word to describe how he felt.

They were in early days. They'd get to the love talk, and then the marriage talk. He and Lexi needed to be married. He hadn't been ready to make that commitment before, but now he was and it would happen. That was something to hold on to as he dealt with everything else, including whatever happened with the ranch.

She glanced over at him. “You look as if you're relaxing a bit, cowboy.”

“I am.” Sure enough, he wasn't gripping his knees. His hands rested on his thighs and the tension had left his stomach. He wondered if she'd want to get married in a church or at Thunder Mountain. Better not ask that yet, since he hadn't even declared his love, let alone proposed.

If the ranch no longer belonged to the Padgetts when they were ready to get married, that would suck. “I guess we should be brainstorming this crowdfunding plan some more.”

“We should. Any ideas?”

“Not specifically, but the whole thing is brilliant—first to think of raising money that way, and second to figure out what would appeal to people so they'd donate to the cause. Do you suppose Finn came up with all of that by himself?”

“Maybe. He's pretty smart.”

“No doubt, but I didn't hear him throwing out concepts right and left for how we could use the idea to save the ranch.” He pulled out his phone. “I'm going to ask him.”

Finn answered immediately. “Let me guess. You're just now leaving the ranch.”

“Smart-ass. We might even beat you there. Listen, did you have anybody working with you on the crowdfunding campaign or was that all you?”

“You mean Chelsea?”

“Who's Chelsea?”

“Chelsea Trask. I met her in line at a coffee shop right after I got to Seattle.”

“Hang on a minute. Let me put you on speaker so Lexi can hear this.” He looked over at Lexi. “Chelsea Trask. Met her in a coffee shop. This could be the answer to all our problems.” Then he pushed the speaker icon. “Okay, go ahead.”

“Like I said, Chelsea suggested the crowdfunding idea and agreed to work with me for a percentage of the profits. She's the one who told me to buy the old building and appeal to people's nostalgia about saving it.”

“So is she making money from O'Roarke's, then?”

“Oh, yeah. She gets a check every month.”

“We need her.”

“You mean here in Sheridan? I don't know if that's—”

“She doesn't have to come here in person, but maybe a conference call, or Skype, something so we can lay out our situation and see if she has any ideas. If she'll take the same deal, a percentage of the profits, great. If she wants a fee, then we'll have to see what we can do.”

On the other end, Finn cleared his throat. “I guess she'd have to know I'm involved.”

“Hell, yes, she'd have to know. I thought you'd be the one to contact her.”

“Unfortunately, I'm not her favorite person.”

Cade exchanged a look with Lexi. “Why not?”

“Apparently she's always had feelings for me, so after the divorce, she was hoping we'd get together. But I said I needed to concentrate on the business, and she...told me off.”

“Oh.” Cade's shining hopes began to sink.

“That's why I didn't mention her before. You could try contacting her and pretend you've never heard of me, but she knows too much. That first meeting lasted a couple of hours, and I told her all about Thunder Mountain Ranch. I actually think that's one of the reasons she wanted to help me.”

Cade massaged the bridge of his nose. “Remind me how Alison fits into this scenario. I'm confused about the time frame.”

“I met her later on. It was lust at first sight, and we flew to Vegas and got married within two months of our first date. Two years later, she asked for a divorce.”

“I see this is complicated. We'll have to come up with a strategy. See you at the hospital, bro. Oh, wait. What's our story when we get there? Rosie knows that we know.”

Damon's voice came through the speaker. “We tell her that we promise not to put ourselves in jeopardy, but we're working on a solution. Which we are.”

“Sounds good. See you there.” Cade disconnected the call. “Damn. I thought we had a good resource. Why the hell didn't O'Roarke marry
her
?”

“Because he was thinking with his—”

“Don't say it.” Cade held up a hand. “We all do that. I do that. Who do you think's been in charge ever since I showed up at the ranch the other night? Not my logical brain, I can tell you that.”

She laughed. “Then you know why Finn married Alison instead of Chelsea.”

“Yes, but he had a second chance, and he blew that one, too!”

“Finn doesn't know what he wants.”

“That's obvious, but somehow we have to get Chelsea to help us, regardless of how O'Roarke has screwed up the dynamic.”

“I think she will,” Lexi said softly.

“You do?” Cade decided there were advantages to being the passenger. He didn't have to pay attention to the road, which left him free to admire the cute tilt of her nose and the graceful curve of her throat. “Why?”

“She loves him.”

“I'm not getting that. I think she's gone from loving to loathing without passing Go or collecting two hundred dollars.”

Lexi smiled, which created the small dimple he loved so much and which he didn't often get a chance to observe so well. He would kiss that dimple, but she might drive right off the road. “What's so funny?”

“Loving and loathing are two sides of the same coin,” she said. “If she cared enough to tell him off, she might still love him. And Finn desperately needs someone to love him.”

“Don't we all.”

She swallowed. “Yes, we do.”

His chest grew warm, and the words rose up, ready to be said. “Lexi, I—”

“Not now. Not when I'm driving in traffic and I can't look into your eyes.”

He was stunned into silence. His heart thumped heavily in his chest as he bit back what he'd been about to say. She was right, once again. This was not the time or place.

Even reaching for her hand was dicey because her truck was a stick shift, and the last thing he wanted was to distract her and cause a problem. But he'd get another chance. Unlike O'Roarke, he knew what he wanted.

They rode the rest of the way without talking, but her color was high and he had fun imagining her thoughts. He wondered what kind of ring she'd want. Unlike some guys, he didn't have an heirloom to pass down. He'd have to get something from a store or online.

He wasn't crazy about the online option, but if she wanted an antique, that might be the only way to find it. They'd never talked about rings because the minute he'd realized she wanted a proposal, he'd bolted. He was damned lucky that she hadn't ended up with some other guy.

His truck was in the hospital parking lot, and Lexi let out with a very unladylike swear word when she spotted it. “I was speeding, but Damon must have been
really
speeding.”

Cade widened his eyes in mock surprise. “You think?”

“I would have beaten him if I hadn't been worried about scaring you, this being your first trip with a lady driver and all.”

“Thanks for being gentle with me.” The charged moment when he'd been about to say the right thing at the wrong time had been replaced with their usual irreverent banter, which was fine with him.

“Oh, stuff it, Gallagher. Let's go see Rosie.”

Smiling, he walked beside her into the hospital. Life with Lexi would be a constant adventure. He was impatient to make their connection official, but that probably should wait until Rosie was home again and healthy. Then again, Rosie had always wanted them to end up together, and knowing they were engaged might very well speed her recovery.

The hallway outside Rosie's room was empty. Cade guessed that Herb had already let everyone know that Rosie hadn't had a heart attack. The only people in the room were Herb, Damon and Finn.

Herb looked a thousand times better. He'd shaved and changed clothes, plus the terror had faded from his eyes. Cade was glad of that. He wasn't ready for either one of these excellent people to go into a decline.

Rosie seemed much perkier, although he still didn't like seeing her lying in a hospital bed surrounded by machines. She beamed when Cade walked in with Lexi. “There you are! Damon and Finn seem to think you two are back together. Is that right?”

Lexi went over to the bed and perched on the edge while she leaned down and gave Rosie a kiss on the cheek. “I don't hate him, if that's what you mean.”

“And I consider that progress.” Cade hung back so Lexi could have her time with Rosie.

“Oh, it's progress, all right!” Rosie grinned at him. “You should have heard her curse your name five years ago. With the help of her girlfriends she cursed you in three languages.”

“Impressive.” After hearing Lexi say that love and hate were two sides of the same coin, that didn't bother him a bit. If she'd gone to all that trouble, deep love was there along with her understandable fury when he'd walked away.

“It was.” Rosie was quiet for a moment. Then she took a deep breath and surveyed the group. “I guess you all know about our financial issues.”

“We do,” Cade said gently. “Lexi explained it.”