Breaking the Bad Boy Page 4

  “I’m not going to kiss you,” she said when he climbed in the other side.

  “Sure you are, Duchess, you can barely keep your hands off me. I’ll wait for you, for a little bit,” he said and started the truck. She hadn’t touched him at all, what was he saying?

  “You won’t have to wait long, I won’t be around long enough to warrant a long, excruciating waiting period. You’ll be out of your misery soon enough.” He laughed.

  “That could be taken either way, Duchess,” he grinned. “I know how I chose to hear what you said.” He grinned in the green light of the dash. She rolled her eyes and leaned back into the seat.

  He didn’t take her to the ATM; instead they drove home in almost complete silence again. It wasn’t until the truck stopped that she realized she had fallen asleep. She was completely disoriented, and she came awake with a start, wondering if she was the one driving. Her heart rate soared, and it took her a whole minute to calm herself with one hand on the dash, another one on her chest. Buck was enjoying himself far too much.

  “Thanks for the lift, and thanks for dinner. Again, I’m sorry I didn’t have any money,” she said and he waved his hand.

  “Don’t worry about it, Duchess, I planned it that way,” he said getting out of the truck. She got out of her side and walked to the house. He stood behind her as she opened the door and she turned around and put a hand on his chest to stop his coming any closer. His chest was rock hard under the soft fabric of his shirt.

  “I’m safely to my door, thank you,” she said. He burst out laughing. “And what is so funny?”

  “Do you think I’m aiming for a goodnight kiss? Maybe payment for dinner?” She gasped slightly, that was exactly what she thought. “I live here, Duchess, let me in.” Her mouth fell open and he looked at it with unambiguous desire. She snapped it shut.

  “You do?”

  “Yep, so you’d better lock your door tonight,” he said gruffly. He reached out for the lapel of his jacket that she was wearing and he slowly reached his hand into the inside pocket. She inhaled sharply but he didn’t touch her. Instead he slowly pulled something from it while maintaining eye contact with her and handed it to her. She looked down and saw it was a toothbrush, and she looked back at him, suddenly confused about how he was making her feel. He swooped down and kissed her quickly; just a tantalizing press of his lips against her lips, and pushed past her to his side of the ranch house.

  She locked her door, but it didn’t keep her from thinking about him and his easy smile and the light brush of his lips on hers all night. She barely had the chance to worry about Brent.

  Chapter Two

  Mornings were early at the ranch. Joss got up long before the sun and ran up the drive and down the road and back. The morning was cool and perfect running weather. She saw a fox and quite a few mule deer that couldn’t be bothered by her presence to get out of her way. She didn’t make it as far as her rental car, but ran for a few miles and turned back. She stopped running halfway down the drive and walked a bit until she wasn’t breathing hard and stretched at the foot of the porch steps. Content, she showered and dressed.

  When she got back to the kitchen the coffee was made and she helped herself to a large mug and went to the front porch to enjoy the sunrise in the quiet cool of the morning. Buck was once again in her favorite seat, with those long legs stretched out in front of him, a coffee cup in his hand.

  “You slept in,” he said not even looking up. Slept in? She chuckled. Joss sat and put her own feet up.

  “Good morning,” she said with a sigh that turned into a yawn. Tonight she was not going to be kept awake by thoughts of this man, she was going to sleep.

  “Not a morning person, are you?” He asked.

  “Nope, are you?”

  “Not really, but you get used to it, and after a while it’s second nature,” he said.

  “Did the military drill that into you?” She asked waiting for his reaction. He didn’t really have a physical one, but he was definitely touchy about it. He turned and looked at her.

  “So, you got a thing for military personnel? Guys with badges? Is it the uniform? Or is it just the gun? Tell me what exactly what your kinky craving is and I’ll find something on eBay. We can go act out any sexual fantasy you want, Duchess, I am all yours,” he watched her closely and she considered him.

  When she asked him something he wasn’t interested in answering he behaved badly, and the subject was changed. He was training her to stay away from it, thinking that it was embarrassing her to hear him go on about sexual fantasy. This, of course, only made her more curious about why he was so disinclined to talk about it.

  “Interesting. Do you play poker?” She asked, thinking she could clean him out at this rate. He inhaled deeply and blew the breath out. It did something odd to her insides.

  “I only play strip poker with gorgeous leggy blondes,” he grinned at her. “You think you got something on me, but you’re wrong, Duchess, you are far too easy to read; I’d have you naked in a heartbeat.”

  You wouldn’t even need a deck of cards, she thought.

  “What’s your position, here?” She asked him, wondering what Brent paid this man to do, and why did he live in the main house? No one had lived in the main house since she was very young.

  “I’m partial to all the positions; I haven’t had any named after me, if that’s what you mean? Not yet, at least. Did you mean my favorite position?” He asked.

  “What is your job here at the ranch? Is it all sexual innuendo for you?” She said looking off into the mountains to the west. The sun had come up and it was shining on the peaks to the west making long shadows and accentuating every shape on the hills. She wished she hadn’t missed half of it, this guy was holding her hostage. She felt the heat on her face and wondered why she stopped him; she suddenly wanted desperately to know his favorite position.

  “I do everything. I’m your dad’s right hand man.”

  “How long have you worked for Brent?” She asked.

  “About six months,” he said. A gray tabby cat came around the corner and stopped dead when he saw them on the porch.

  “Hello, puss,” Joss said and the tabby approached cautiously.

  “He’s not friendly,” Buck warned.

  The cat rubbed his face on Joss’s pant leg and began purring loudly. He suddenly launched himself into her lap and curled up happily. Joss scratched him absentmindedly. Buck stared at the cat and then at Joss.

  “Huh,” he said and went back to his coffee.

  “Cats like me,” she said and he had a very curious look on his face. “Why are you living in the house?” She asked. He took another deep breath.

  “Twenty questions, huh? I’ll tell you, but then it’s my turn,” he said. She nodded. “Someone broke in a few months ago, and your dad asked me to move in. Apparently Belle thought it was a good idea,” he said.

  “Belle trusts you?” She asked surprised.

  “Don’t sound so flabbergasted, I’m trust worthy,” she rolled her eyes. “My turn, Duchess. Which side of the bed do you sleep on?” He grinned widely.

  “That’s the question you’re asking? I was so hoping you were going to ask me what my favorite color was,” he laughed.

  “I’m coming to that,” he said.

  “Don’t waste your question, I could never pick just one, I like them all.”

  “You’re changing the subject, Duchess,” he was playful Buck, now.

  “I would have thought that was something you’d want to learn for yourself instead of being told,” she grinned at the look of shock that rolled over his face. It quickly morphed back into his smile.

  “I’m considering that an invitation.”

  “It’s not one.”

  “A challenge, then,” he grinned. “I do love a challenge, Duchess.”

  “Oh good,” she said.

  “Damn,” he said and looked down at his boots shaking his head.

  “Will you tell me how you
came to learn Thai?” She asked. He looked up at her once again.

  “I traveled a lot when I was younger, I picked it up along the way,” he said trying to sound casual. Joss chuckled. It seemed unlikely that he simply “picked it up,” but she didn’t say anything, it was none of her business, but he was a puzzle.

  “How did you know I lived in Denver?” He eyed her.

  “From the message you left on the answering machine yesterday,” he said and looked at the cat. She tried to remember what she had said on the machine, but she had been a little side tracked at the time.

  “Where’s Fernando?”

  “I expect him to show up in the next twenty minutes or so with several hands. There was a breach in the southernmost pasture; we have some cows to find, and a fence to mend.” She nodded. “Do you want me to have someone to take care of your rental car?”

  “No, thank you, the rental company is coming to get it and take it away. But thanks,” she said. “I’m going into town, do you need anything?”

  “I’m thinking I might need condoms,” he said grinning. “Maybe you should tell me his name,” he said.

  “The cat’s name?” She asked. He shook his head. “The texter?” He laughed.

  “There are so many names, but I meant your high school classmate, the bad boy.” He said.

  “Why on earth would you want to know his name?”

  “It’s a small town, I’d hate for you to be uncomfortable should you bump into him,” he said and she laughed.

  “Everything you do is in an effort to make me uncomfortable,” she laughed slightly and he thought she was a smart kid. “Don’t worry about it; I’m not concerned about bumping into any former lovers. And he wasn’t my classmate, he was two years older,” she picked up the cat and stood, putting him back on her warmed chair. He curled back up contentedly, and Buck watched her ass as she walked into the house with her empty mug.

  Two years older? She must have been something else in high school, though he could well believe it; she was something else now, especially in those low rise jeans that hugged her impeccable ass. He had spent a good portion of the night thinking about that ass, and how much he’d like to get better acquainted with it, and with the rest of her, he’d start with the lips, he thought, and move to her breasts. No, he might have to start with the breasts, he’d postpone the lips, but not for long, no, after that enticing taste of her lips last night, he’d like a little more. He’d start with the lips, who was he kidding? Christ, he was a kid in a candy store.

  Watching her run down the drive in those Lycra pants was just about the end of him, and the sports bra, utilitarian, but on her it was very nice. She hadn’t noticed him standing quietly in the kitchen when she came back from her run, and he smiled thinking about it. He was less than a foot from her in the predawn light as she picked the towel up from the table and wiped the sweat from her face with it. He could smell her earthy scent and he was alarmingly aroused by it. He’d gone too long without; it was time to rectify that. His Duchess was all pink and sweaty, and he wanted her pink and sweaty in his arms, there was simply no way around it.

  Buck stood up and reached to scratch the cat under his chin and the cat bit him hard enough to draw blood.

  “You tolerate her, but not me? I’m the good guy, here,” he said putting his finger in his mouth. “She is definitely bad.” He looked at the door where she vanished. “And dangerous.”

  ***

  Joss drove her dad’s Land Rover into town and stopped first at the bank for cash. Once funded, she went on to the hospital.

  At the nurse’s station she was stopped and introduced to Brent’s doctor. She was a small dark haired woman who looked even more tired than Joss felt. Joss shook her hand.

  “Your father is doing very well, I’ve taken him off the respirator and he’s breathing on his own,” she smiled at Joss.

  “So he can talk now?”

  “Oh yes, and boy, has he got a few things to say,” Dr Hastings laughed. “Why don’t you go in to see him? Don’t tire him out, okay? The nurses are going to get him up and moving in about half an hour.”

  “I won’t, thank you,” Joss said.

  “You’re very welcome,” the doctor walked back to the nurse’s station and handed them a chart. Joss turned and looked at the door.

  When she opened the door she saw her dad and Belle lying together in the snug hospital bed, her father was running his fingers through Belle’s thick black hair. It seemed an intimate scene to barge in on and she stepped back but they both must have heard something because their eyes opened at the same time.

  “Hello, Joss,” Brent said. His voice was hoarse and his lips were dry.

  “Hi, Dad. Do you need a drink, you look pretty dry?” She said and went to get the cup with the bendy straw. He fumbled with it and drank deeply.

  “I’m so glad you’re here, Joss,” he said a tear coming to his eye.

  “Of course I’m here,” she said.

  “It must be bad.”

  “I just talked with your doctor; she says you’re fine, she doesn’t know what the fuss was about. I was planning a trip up here anyway; I just moved it forward a little.”

  Belle struggled to get out of the bed to let Joss have her time with her father.

  “Where are you going?” He said holding on to her.

  “I’m just going to shower and change while you fill Joss in. I won’t be long,” she said smiling sweetly at him. As he watched her take the overnight bag into the bathroom, Joss felt something close to envy tugging at her heart.

  “We need to talk about the ranch, Joss,” Brent said as soon as Belle was in the other room.

  “We can talk about the ranch later, Buck’s got that under control, so don’t worry your pretty little head about it. I can only be here another few minutes, and then they kick me out,” she said. “They said something about calisthenics.”

  “Then let me talk. There’s trouble, honey. Someone is trying to do something on our land, drugs or something, and you got to stop them,” he was gripping her hand hard enough to make it hurt.

  “Anyone we know? Do you suspect someone in particular, Brent?” He looked funny, but shook his head. He was lying to her. “Have you mentioned it to the sheriff?” He shook his head again.

  “Fernando is a good man, you can trust him. And Buck came after the problems started, but that might not mean anything. But for some reason I trust him. Probably because Belle trusts him, and she doesn’t trust anybody.”

  “What problems?” Brent exhaled and shook his head. He looked even worse than when she came in. “I’ll ask Belle, she knows, right?” He nodded. “Get some rest, Dad, we’ll talk later today.” She kissed him on the forehead. “I love you.” She said.

  “Joss, I’m so glad you’re here. Please be careful,” he said and she smiled at him.

  “I’m glad I’m here, too, Dad,” and she walked to the door.

  “Thanks, honey.” Joss nodded, smiled and walked out.

  Joss went straight home and crawled back into bed and slept hard for two hours. When she woke up she had no idea where she was for a long moment and when she remembered her gut was filled with butterflies at the thought of seeing Buck. This bothered her more than she wanted it to. Rolling out of bed she made her way to the kitchen and looked around for food. She ate a banana and a Diet Coke and began her list for shopping.

  As she stood in the kitchen she saw a few men ride up from the south. Buck was among them on a black gelding with a white blaze. She didn’t recognize the horse, it must be his. He sat very tall in the saddle, and his hips rolled beautifully as the horse cantered in. He saw the Land Rover and smiled, and then looked at the kitchen window, catching her watching him. He gave her the teasing smile and she rolled her eyes at him and continued making her list, but she felt the heat of his gaze and found herself losing focus. She leaned across the sink to look out the window again, but he was already gone, Fernando was pulling the saddle off his horse. She leaned
back into a hard chest and squeaked.

  “Looking for me, Duchess?” He asked and she jumped. Busted.

  Joss turned around and looked him in the eye. He was very close, too close, and he was delighted that he’d sneaked up on her. She stepped back and her butt came up to the counter. He put an arm to each side of her on the counter and brought his mouth inches from her mouth.

  “Your horse has a stone in his front left foot, he’s favoring it.” Buck’s eyes got big and he straightened up.

  “His gait was odd, I should have noticed. So you’re not just a pretty face, are you, Duchess?” He had taken his hat off when he came in the house and he put it back on then and walked swiftly back out to see to his horse with those long legs eating up the distance. She was glad he didn’t put it off; it meant he cared about the horse. She smiled briefly and went back to compiling her list, willing her heart rate to slow.

  By the time she finished her banana a delivery truck pulled up to the yard and Buck strode out of the barn. The driver and he exchanged a few words and he signed something. He then went to the back of the truck and pulled out a dozen lemon yellow roses in a vase handed them to Buck and left. Buck brought them inside and put them on the table next to her. She looked up at him.

  “Roses seem a little inappropriate for get well flowers,” she said thoughtfully. “But they’re lovely.”

  “They’re not for Brent, Duchess, they’re for you,” Buck said. She met his gaze with a questioning look of her own. “I wish they were from me, but I would have sent red ones, for passion, not yellow, for cowardice.” Joss laughed.

  Buck handed her the small envelope affixed by a plastic trident. She read the enclosed card.

  Joss~ If nothing else, I hope these lift your spirits in difficult times. I am thinking of you. ~Peter.

  She looked at the note and thought for a moment. Buck cocked his head to the side looking at her.

  “The texter,” he said. She looked at him and stood.