Summer's Desire (7 page)

Clearing the table and washing the dishes with
Holden watching unnerved her. She finished, turned around and there stood
Holden with her coat in his hand.

“Am I going somewhere?” She bit her sore bottom lip.

“I don’t have an office, I thought we could take a
walk together.”

Summer grabbed her coat and avoided his stare. “A
walk would be just fine.” A lump formed in her throat and she wondered if she
should have grabbed some tissues. She followed him outside.

Bright stars peeked out and the moon glowed. The
cooler air felt wonderful and the backdrop of the mountains made for a spectacular
view. They walked toward the open green pastures, side by side and the silence
made her feel awkward. Holden stopped finally and took her hand. “We need to
talk.”

“Yes, you mentioned that.” This was it. He was going
to ask her to leave. She didn’t want to go but she’d known all along it was
inevitable.

“Will you tell me about what was going on with the
sheriff?”

The fact that he asked her instead of demanding that
she explain helped her to breathe easier. She cleared her throat and looked out
toward the mountains. “It’s a complicated story. I grew up on a small ranch. I
lived there until my parents died. My dad loved to fish and my mother often
went along. We don’t know what happened but they drowned and their bodies were found
on the bank of the lake.” She drew her hand from his and clasped both her hands
together. “Ranch life, my home, it was all an illusion. We didn’t really own
anything but the clothes on our backs. I never knew. By the time everything was
auctioned and sold, I barely settled all the debt. Paul Gallagher, a friend of my
dad’s, offered me a job and gave me a place to live. He became like a father to
me. I bartended at his Bar and Grill and he taught me how to cook.”

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, grateful
that Holden hadn’t interrupted. “I worked for him for three years. I made
enough money to pay my bills. I didn’t really date much. My schedule wasn’t the
best for a relationship. Then one day a cowboy named Brent walked into the bar.
He seemed nice enough. He never got fresh, never started a fight. We’d talk. I
dated him for exactly one month but he had me fooled. Even when we broke up, I
still thought of him as a nice man.”

“Why’d you break up?”

“My schedule. You know how it is. He had to be up
with the sun and that was when I was going to bed. It wasn’t a bad break up, it
just was. I saw him around town and we were fine. It was just the timing. Two
months ago near closing time he came in to say hi. I hadn’t a clue that he was
evil. He was the last one in the bar so I walked with him to the door, keys in
hand ready to lock up. He slapped me across the face so hard that I fell and he
grabbed the keys and locked the door.”

“Summer, I’m so sorry.”

“Please, Holden, don’t say anything or I won’t be
able to get the story out.”

Holden nodded and quieted.

“Paul came from behind the bar with a baseball bat
in his hands and Brent pulled a gun on him, taking the bat from Paul. He had a
hold on the back of my hair and I couldn’t get free. He made us stand against
the wall while he ripped the phones out. I tried to run for the stairs and he
pistol whipped me in the face. He used the bat to viciously beat Paul. The
screams became groans, then nothing. Blood was everywhere and I could see that
Paul was dead. He had me open the safe and the cash register. He wanted to know
where the rest of the money was. I told him we go to the bank every morning.”

“You don’t have to tell me the rest.”

“No, I want you to hear my side of the whole story.
He dragged me upstairs and hit me a few more times. The next thing I knew the sheriff
was there and I was pretty much naked. He didn’t even cover me while he waited
for the ambulance. Creeps me out to know he was looking at me. They never
caught Brent but the sheriff was sure that I was involved. You know why? This
is the kicker. I was involved because I wasn’t raped. I was only beaten.”

Holden opened his big strong arms to her and she
gladly stepped into the comfort he offered. It had been so long since anyone
had believed her. He did believe her, didn’t he? The need to know outweighed
the comfort of his arms. Pulling back, she saw worry and compassion in his dark
eyes.

“You believe me?” Someone had told her once not to
ask questions you don’t want the answer to. Her body suddenly chilled and her
chin wobbled.

“Of course I believe you. You are a victim, Summer,
and I don’t understand how everyone knew all the details. There are privacy
laws now.”

“Not if your name is Beverly. I think the sheriff
has a thing for her. She is always bringing him cakes and pies.”

A smile crossed Holden’s face and he chuckled. “I know
it’s not funny but I can’t imagine those two together. The thought gives me
nightmares.” He pulled her back into his arms and cradled her head against his
chest with his palm. He kissed the top of her head.

Summer gazed up at him. His eyes glittered in the
moonlight. The desire she saw was unmistakable. Yearning surged through her.
The beating of her heart grew faster as his head inch down until his delectable
lips were against hers. She reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck as
he pulled her flush against him. The kiss grew bolder and she opened for him.
His kiss was powerful and she felt weak in the knees.

Suddenly, Holden stepped back and the words unfair
and wow came to mind.

“The door just slammed. One of my brothers is
around.”

She nodded and smiled at Holden’s shortness of
breath. She seemed to have the same effect on him.

Luke walked over toward them and Holden took a big
step away from her. “Hey, Luke. What’s up?” Holden gave his brother a smile.

Luke shrugged his shoulder and gave Summer a hard
look. “Matt’s asking for you both. Well, either one would probably do.”

“Is something wrong with him?” Guilt washed over
her. She should have been in the house taking care of him.

“Don’t rightly know.”

“Thanks for the walk, Holden. You’re right I do need
to take more walks.” Summer strode away and hurried to the house. What had she
been thinking? Good Lord, how dense could she get? Holden did not need to get
mixed up with the likes of her.

Chapter Four

The next morning Holden’s body wanted Summer while
his mind tried to deny the attraction.

He had Matt to consider. Last night when he walked
into the house Matt stared at him with disgust. He’d suspected that Matt had a
crush on Summer, but he didn’t realize how big of a crush.

It seemed as though there was always someone else to
consider. That’s what families did, but for once couldn’t it be his turn to be
selfish, his turn to love?

The heavenly scent of coffee wafted up the stairs.
Real coffee, not the instant stuff he usually made on the go.

Energized from a full night’s sleep, he got out of
bed looking forward to the day and quickly dressed.

He started downstairs and stopped on the bottom
step. Summer’s smile illuminated the whole kitchen. He could hear her soft
humming. Grinning, he walked to the kitchen and caught her gaze. There was definitely
something between them. Her eyes twinkled as she blushed and he felt like a
teenager again, an awkward one but somehow it was fine.

“Take a picture it lasts longer.” There was no
missing the sarcasm in Matt’s voice.

“Morning, Matt. How are you feeling today?” Holden
went over and ruffled his hair for which he got a glare. He sat in the leather
chair next to the couch.

“Coffee?” Summer asked from the kitchen.

Matt answered first. “That would be most kind of you,
Summer”

“Holden, I know you take yours black. Matt, how
about you?”

“As black as you can make it.”

Holden wanted to laugh. Matt always poured tons of
sugar in his and a big portion of milk. Matt’s scowl seemed permanent. In fact
he completely ignored Holden.

“Matt, how did you sleep?”

Matt stared at him. “I closed my eyes, you know the
usual way.”

“Any pain?” Holden took a deep breath and slowly let
it out.

“My ankle is busted. What do you think?” Matt turned
red when he noticed that Summer stood behind him listening.

“Here, Matt.” She handed him his coffee. “I get a
bit cranky before I’ve had my coffee too.” She handed Holden his mug and returned
to the kitchen. “I’ll have breakfast ready in a flash.”

Matt took a sip of his coffee and almost gagged. His
eyes flashed at Holden. “How do you drink it like this?”

“When I started drinking coffee, we rarely had sugar
in the house and never any milk.”

“When we lived with Mom?”

Holden nodded. “A long time ago.”

“Holden, why do you think she did it? Was she mad at
us? Did we make her life miserable?”

Holden’s heart twisted. He never asked about their
mother before. “No Matt. It wasn’t any of us. She loved us. When Dad left she
sank into a depression that she never got out of. She tried to raise us
herself. I don’t know who gave her the drugs she
ODed
on. I tried to find out but they were some really nasty people. Eventually I
had to quit looking.”

Matt nodded. “I wish we knew where Dad went.”

Holden shook his head. “We’re better off without
him. He used to hit Mom.”

Matt’s brows furrowed. “I never knew.”

“Don’t tell the others. I don’t want them to
remember how it was. I’m just glad I was old enough to be your guardian. They
would have split you up for sure.”

Matt didn’t scowl at him now. In fact he appeared
almost grateful.

The rest of the boys came clambering down the stairs
for breakfast making conversation impossible. Holden watched Summer as she
greeted each one and asked questions pertinent to each boy. Holden’s heart
grew, taking in each smile, each touch on the shoulder, and each laugh. It had
been a long time coming but maybe they found happiness.

Uprooting them from school and their friends had
been gut wrenchingly hard. It had been a long road after his mother died, but
watching the boys smiling made every sacrifice worth it.

“Holden, do you want to eat over there with Matt?” Summer
asked, her eyes sparkling.

“If it’s no trouble.”

“Not at all. Give me a minute to sort these young
men out and I’ll make us something.”

Holden saw Matt peering at him then at Summer. This
time there wasn’t a scowl. His brothers made quick work of breakfast, then Mark
led the charge outside with Luke and John right behind him.

“Stay away from Yukon!” Holden heard something about
stupid before they closed the door.

Summer carried over three plates piled high with
eggs, bacon and toast. She set them down before she went back to grab her
coffee, bringing the pot with her. “Refills?”

Matt’s eyes grew wide. “I usually only have one
cup.”

Holden suppressed the chuckled that was trying to
escape. “I’ll have more, thanks, Summer.”

“Is it a big secret or can you tell me what went on
yesterday?” Matt asked.

Summer turned an enticing shade of red and she gave
Holden a quick glance. Panic was written all over her face.

“Sure, you need to know.” Holden started.

“Holden—”

“It’s fine, Summer, Matt needs to know the situation
in case Brent comes around.”

Summer appeared doubtful but she nodded.

“Here it is in a nutshell. Summer dated some yahoo,
who after they broke up, robbed and killed the owner of the place Summer worked
at. She was beaten pretty badly and there are some people in town that think
that she had a part in it.”

Matt sat up, wincing. “There’s no way you’d be a
part of anything like that.”

Summer gave him a half smile. “Thanks for the vote
of confidence, Matt. Brent got away. I don’t expect him back. But you do need
to know that some people will not be friendly to you because of me.”

“We need to know what this ass looks like so we can
all be on the lookout. What happened in town yesterday?” Matt appeared more
than ready to take on the world.

“I went grocery shopping and when I checked out, the
cashier took the money your brother gave me and handed it to the manager who
called for the sheriff. Sheriff Brown was conveniently in the manager’s office.
They must have called him as soon as I set foot in the store. Anyway, I was
taken in for questioning. That sheriff is very nasty and wholly convinced I was
part of the murder and robbery. He went and verified my story with Holden.
Holden came and took me home.”

Matt whistled through his teeth. “Wow. I’m glad
you’re here. We can protect you.”

A warm glow flowed through Holden. Home, Summer had
called this place home. “Do you have a picture of Brent?”