Peace River (Rockland Ranch Series) (19 page)

             
She actually did end up using her expertise learned on the track in conditioning horses to help keep Slade’s and Rossen’s horses in top form, and occasionally, she worked on Rossen’s strains and sprains too.

                                                        ****

              They were three weeks into the month of July and rodeo life was a whirlwind of roping, riding, bulldogging, and driving.  Isabel had seen more of the country in the last month than she’d seen in the first twenty years of her life combined.  Much of their driving had been done at night, but still, she’d been places she’d never dreamed of six months ago.  In all this time she had only been recognized once in the rodeo crowd.  Apparently the blueblood race crowd and the rodeo types didn't have many people in common.  The one guy who had known her didn't seem to realize she'd been missing from the race scene, so the encounter had actually been reassuring. 

             
Dante had returned home from the hospital and was almost back to normal, and things in California were quiet, at least for now.  Judd and Deek hadn’t been seen and the police were still trying to find them.  Several of the Wind Dance Farms racers had won significant races and news from home left her feeling she was right to stay where she was.   

             
They were in Cheyenne, Wyoming for the Frontier Days Rodeo, one of the biggest in the country, and although they were only six hours from their homes in the western part of the state, there would be only a short time to visit enroute to their next stop.

             
She and Slade and Rossen had settled into a comfortable system of working and living together that made for success in the arena.  Isabel’s spare horse had come in very handy on two occasions, and Slade and Rossen were winning good money consistently.

             
Downtime lazing in the old lounge chairs had become a rarity, and they were making the most of it one warm July afternoon.  Slade and Isabel were mildly surprised when Rossen quickly got up and headed into the trailer, saying, “I'm officially napping, and don’t you dare let her into this trailer!”  Isabel laughed out loud when she heard him lock the door from inside. 

             
Within seconds they heard what had sent him packing.  Isabel laughed again when she realized it was a double whammy.  Not only could she hear the voice of Angelique headed their direction, but she heard Jesse with her.

             
Slade suddenly looked like a deer in the headlights, and when Isabel got up from her chair and quickly stepped across to sit on his lounger with him, his eyes widened even further and she laughed once more.  The reaction of both of these grown, responsible, adult men to these two floozy cowgirls had entertained her from the start, but boy did they make these guys uncomfortable. 

Isabel
was enjoying her role immensely as she leaned into Slade just as the two girls rounded the corner of the trailer. 

             
Jesse pulled up short.  “Isabel!  What are you doing?”  Isabel looked around innocently at Jesse’s demanding question. 

             
“Just having an ice cream.”  She smiled as she teasingly reached up to wipe a little off Slade’s upper lip, and then turned and leaned back against him comfortably.  “What are you two up to?”  Thinking that Slade had incredibly nice lips, Isabel nonchalantly laid her hand on his thigh next to her hip and added, “I’d offer you one, but Rossen ate them all before he went in to nap.”

             
Angelique, her clothes scanty, as opposed to Jesse’s tight ones, had been looking around and said, “I was wondering where he was.”  Jesse hadn’t been looking around.  She was looking straight at Slade and Isabel.  The jealousy on her face almost made Isabel feel guilty until she remembered how this woman had tormented them.    

             
“He’s just tired.  We’re out here so we don’t disturb him.”  Isabel got goose bumps as Slade wrapped his arm loosely around her waist.  She slid her small hand into his larger one and entwined their fingers. 

             
The conversation slowed right down.  The two cowgirls were speechless and Isabel lost all coherent thought.  Slade saved them by offering some mindless small talk and eventually they walked back the way they’d come.

             
Once they were good and gone, Rossen popped right back out of the trailer with a huge grin on his face as Isabel laughingly switched back to her own chair and proceeded to finish her ice cream. Slade smiled at her and said, “Dang, for once I wish the girls had stayed longer.”

             
Isabel licked her Popsicle stick and laughed.  “It seemed to work.”  Not to mention the fact that it had been heavenly to snuggle against Slade—even if it did make her heart rate increase markedly. 

              Later that afternoon her heart rate went even higher. Slade was grooming his horses when Isabel saw Jesse headed their way through the trailer kitchen window.  She slipped out the door and hurried to the horse barn, came down the row and slipped into the stall with Slade.  Walking right up to him, she put her hand on his waist, looked up into his face and whispered, “Kiss me.  Hurry.” 

H
er request seemed to surprise the heck out of him, but she didn’t have to ask twice.  His back was to the stall door, but he hugged her and whispered back right against her lips, “I assume this sudden need for affection is the result of the imminent arrival of Jesse again.  Right?”

She didn’t have time to ans
wer before he began kissing her.  Her mouth was busy anyway.  His suspicions were confirmed a minute or two later.  Surprisingly, he seemed to be enjoying that minute immensely.  His mouth was firm and warm, and at the moment remarkably willing.  Not that she would complain.  She’d dreamed about this. 

She’d tried
not to, but from that first meeting, he was just so marvelously attractive that she hadn’t been able to help it.  Plus, she knew she wasn’t the only one who felt the attraction between them.  He’d noticed it.  At times it had been like electricity sparking across the trailer. Still, she hadn’t really expected him to be this cooperative about kissing her.

They ha
d both completely forgotten about anyone else when Jesse’s voice brought them back to reality.  “Slade, I . . . Slade!  What are you doing?” 

             
He hesitated and then sighing reluctantly, raised his head and swore under his breath. Isabel felt like doing the same exact thing.  She knew Jesse was none too bright, but really. 

With a disgusted tone,
Slade said, “I’m kissing a girl, Jesse.  What does it look like?  Or I was.”

             
Isabel didn’t even have the strength left in her bones to act her part.  She was a little dazed.  She’d forgotten about Jesse. Actually, she’d forgotten about everything.  If she’d known kissing him would be like that she’d have taken up their charade when he’d first mentioned it.

             
Jesse’s voice was eminently accusing. “I thought you said she was your cook, or your secretary or something.”

             
With one arm still around Isabel, Slade said, “She is or something, why?  Have you got a problem with it?” 

             
Jesse stuck out her bottom lip in a pout.  “Yes, of course I do.  You’re not supposed to kiss your secretary.  It’s, it’s . . . it’s unethical.”

             
Pulling Isabel more snuggly against him, Slade looked down at her and said in a velvet voice that made her stomach do a somersault, “Well, I like it.  A lot.  So would you go away, so I can do it some more?  Please.”  With that he turned his back on Jesse and went back to kissing Isabel.  Neither one of them heard her leave. 

             
A few minutes later Isabel tentatively pushed him away and said somewhat breathlessly, “I . . . I’m sure we convinced her you’re romantically involved.”  She looked up at him with a smile that was a little shy.

             
He smiled back and said softly, “We certainly convinced me.”  

Isabel laughed softly and said, “That was a terrible line.”

“Sorry, your mouth short-circuited my brain.  That’s all it could come up with with you this close.  And it fits.” 

He still held her shoulders and she asked hesitantly,
“What do you mean?” 

             
Moving a hand from her shoulder to her cheek, he looked at her mouth as he said, “Mmm, I mean that I
am
romantically involved.”  Her eyes flew to his and he softly admitted, “Man, I’ve wanted to do that for the longest time, Isabel.  I’ve wanted to see if I’d enjoy kissing you as much as I thought I would.”  He bent and kissed her again and then pulled away.

             
She gave him a small hesitant smile. “And?”

             
He put a finger tenderly on her lower lip.  It made her knees weak as he gave a lazy smile and said in that same velvet voice, “I’m not entirely sure.  I need to continue my research.”  He bent his head to kiss her again, this time more softly, his touch infinitely gentle.  He was slow to pull away and then hugged her and leaned his cheek on her hair and said, “It was even better than I’d hoped.”

             
Completely unsure of herself, she couldn’t think of anything to say, and finally, simply said, “That’s good.  Isn’t it?”

He chuckled
, kissed her once more, hugged her close, and said huskily.  “Better than good, girl.”  They stood there like that for a long moment while his horse went on eating, completely unaware that Isabel’s world had miniature fireworks going off in it.

             
Finally, Slade broke the silence.  “Um . . . Isabel.  This is not exactly that professional relationship I promised.  My only excuse is you walked in here and asked.  I’m weak, I know.  But I am only human.  So, do you think you could release me from that promise soon?  ‘Cause I’d really like to do it again sometime.”

             
She hid her face against his chest and he said, “Hey.” His voice was gentle as he lifted her chin.  “Are you okay?”  She nodded.  “With this, I mean?” 

             
She gave him a shy smile. “I don’t know what I am.  I mean.  I didn’t really do this to put you on the spot.  I mean it’s great!  It’s what I’ve wanted.  I just didn’t know you did, too.”

He looked into her eyes and
quietly said, “You did too.”

Nodding tentative
ly, she said, “Okay.  You’re right, but . . .  This is probably not very well thought out, but I loved it anyway.”

             
“So can I be released from my promise?”  His brilliant green eyes searched hers.

             
Her heart was pounding so hard she thought he could see it.  She asked, “We’re living so closely.  Do you think that’s wise?”

             
He nodded and said without hesitating, “Absolutely.”

             
She swallowed hard and said, “I’ll, uh, I’ll just trust your judgment.” 

As his head slowly came back down to hers, he mumbled, “
We’re gonna need more research.”

              Sometime later, from what seemed like a distance, she heard, “Hey, why do I get the impression I’ve missed something?”  Rossen’s cheerful face appeared outside the stall.

             
Isabel reluctantly pulled away from Slade’s mouth and laughed softly and said, “We were just trying to convince Jesse that Slade is romantically involved.”

             
“I see.”  Rossen looked up and down the empty alleyway and laughed as well.  “Well, yeah.  Not a sign of Jesse anywhere.  It must have worked, huh?”

             
Slade opened the stall door for Isabel, smiled at her and said, “Like a charm.”  He took her hand and they stepped out into the alleyway of the barn.

             
Seeing their linked hands, Rossen said, “So. . .  About that promise that we’d keep it completely professional.”

             
Slade elbowed him and said, “Already dealt with.  I’m officially exempt from that promise.”

             
Rossen grinned.  “What about me?”

             
Isabel laughed and Slade elbowed Rossen again and said, “You’re still under oath, dude.  Permanently.  And you’re still in the dog house for horsing around with her that day with the zerbits.  So don’t get any ideas.” 

             
As the three of them fell into step beside each other on the way out of the barn, Rossen said, “Hey, as I recall, you were the hesitant one about bringing her that day we met.  I had to kind of nudge you along.  I should have some kind of clout here.”

“You have tons of clout.  Just keep away from my girl or
I breaka you head.”

             
Rossen grinned again and said, “I could take you.” 

Slade
only shook his head, and chuckled and Rossen went on.  “However, I am far too much of a gentleman.  I’ll concede.  But I get the next bored college student we adopt.  Deal?”