Cowboy After Dark (9 page)

Liam’s jaw tightened. “Did he hurt you?”

“Not physically, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

He was comforted, but not by much. “Words can leave scars, too. Is he in Cody?” If he could get a name, he just might pay the jerkwad a little visit.

“No. When we were together, we lived in Cheyenne. But he’s left the state, which is fine with me. He’s not worth worrying about.”

He is if he’s standing between us.
But Liam didn’t push for more information. He had a week to let her tell him what had happened. Unless she did, they’d never get past it.

She slipped her arms around his neck. “What I’m saying is that if you want to bring the lanterns into the stall tomorrow night, that would be more than okay.”

“I’d like that.” He shoved thoughts of her ex away so he could concentrate on the present and the bright promise of the woman he held in his arms. On Hope.

9

T
HE
BARN
BORE
no sign of their presence by the time Hope walked out into the night with Liam. They kissed once more but made themselves stop before heavy breathing set in. He headed toward the cabin he shared with Grady, and she mounted the steps to the ranch house’s front porch.

What a night. What a man. She did feel safe with him, partly because he was so kind, but mostly because he’d agreed that this affair would last only a week. She didn’t have to worry about things going bad. They wouldn’t have time to mess anything up.

As she crossed to the front door, she briefly wondered if she’d been locked out. Probably not. Rosie would have checked her room and discovered she wasn’t home yet. Judging from prior conversations, locking doors wasn’t a big priority around here, anyway.

She started to open the screen door just as a light came on inside the house. Her instant response—anxiety—passed quickly and left her laughing at herself. She was twenty-seven years old, and she wasn’t about to get in trouble for staying out too late.

But she’d feel guilty as hell if her host or hostess couldn’t sleep because they were worried about her. Opening the door, she called out a soft “Hello?” so she wouldn’t startle whoever had turned on that light, which she could now see came from the kitchen.

Rosie poked her head out from the kitchen doorway. “Hope!”

“Please tell me you aren’t up because you were worried about me.”

“Heavens, no. You were with Liam. He wouldn’t let anything happen to you.”

“That’s very true. So...a midnight snack?”

“Sort of. Herb’s snoring like a band saw, and I decided to come in here and have a little decaf laced with Baileys. After a couple of cups I can sleep through anything. You’re welcome to join me, but you probably want to turn in.”

“I’d love to join you. Let me make a quick trip to the bathroom first.”

“Okay! See you in a minute.” Rosie beamed at her, obviously pleased to have company.

Hurrying through the living room and down the darkened hall, Hope ducked into the bathroom that had been designated for her use. Fortunately she’d left her toiletries in there. One look in the mirror told her she’d made the right call. Bits of straw were stuck in her hair, her lipstick had been completely kissed away and her shirt was buttoned up wrong.

But Rosie might not have noticed, because the living room had been fairly dark. Either way, Hope began to reassess the plan to keep her involvement with Liam a secret, especially from Rosie. That seemed unfair to her hostess. Confessing the situation to Rosie would eliminate any worry about sneaking around.

Once she felt presentable, she returned to the kitchen, where the scent of brewing coffee reminded her of her parents’ house in Cheyenne. She’d had a few late-night chats with her mother over cups of decaf, but her mom hadn’t added Baileys to it. Hope had visited her parents a few times since leaving, but she’d avoided those late-night chats. She wasn’t ready to discuss why she and Tom broke up. She might never be ready.

“Did you have a nice ride?” Rosie took a couple of generously sized mugs from the cupboard. Her definition of a
cup of coffee
was probably more like three.

“We had a great time.” She debated how best to explain her situation. “Liam and I have discovered that we’re...that we have a lot in common, so we...”

“Sweetie, say no more.” Rosie turned toward her. “You have a little romance going on. Am I right?”

“Well, yes.” She wanted to be as truthful as possible. “Kind of. But we haven’t declared undying love for each other or anything. We’re just...”

“Physical attraction is nothing to be ashamed of.”

Hope laughed. “I can see why those boys all love you.”

“I was a lot tougher on them when they were teenagers. Didn’t want any unplanned babies showing up, but they took that lecture to heart, thank goodness. Now they’re healthy young men, so of course they like sex.”

“Um, yeah.” Hope’s cheeks warmed.

Rosie gazed at her and smiled. “Ah, I see how it is. But you don’t have a particularly great setup for spending time alone, do you?”

“Well, there’s the barn.” The minute she said it, she wished she hadn’t. Rosie didn’t need to know where they were getting it on. She had to be aware only that Hope would be leaving the ranch house in the wee hours to spend time with Liam...somewhere.

“That won’t do. That won’t do at all.”

“Please don’t worry about it. This is our problem, and we’ll figure it out.” And now she was probably beet red. Terrific. “It’s only a temporary inconvenience, anyway. After the wedding, I’ll be staying at Damon and Phil’s.”

“So you will.” Rosie seemed cheered by that thought. “And Liam’s staying on for a bit. Perfect. But I can understand why having him visit you here would be a little awkward.”

Hope groaned. “This is becoming way too embarrassing. I just wanted to alert you to the fact I’ll be slipping out of the house late at night.”

“And that’s very considerate of you.” Rosie poured the coffee and a considerable amount of Baileys into each mug. She handed one to Hope. “Drink up. It’s easier to have this kind of discussion if you’re slightly toasted.”

“Makes sense.” She took a sip, and then another. “This is delicious.”

“Glad you think so. Not everyone is enamored of my favorite drink. Finn’s special lady, Chelsea, loves it. Others may be pretending enthusiasm to please me.”

“I’m not faking it, Rosie. This hits the spot.” She took another long swallow.

“Shall we go out on the porch? It’s kind of fun to be out there all by ourselves. Us and the owls.”

“Sure, why not?”

“Hang on a sec. I’ll put the rest of the coffee in a carafe. You take the bottle of Baileys.”

“I’m in.” Moments later she was settled in a cozy chair on the porch with a comforting drink and a comforting friend. “I just have to say, I love this ranch.”

“So do I. Last summer I thought we’d lose it because we loaned money to a friend who couldn’t repay us. But my boys came to the rescue with moneymaking ideas, and here we are with a flourishing academy for teens who want to learn about horses.”

“That’s awesome, Rosie.” Hope sipped her coffee. “It would make a great story.”

“Want to write it? Phil told me you’re a writer.”

“
Was
a writer. I don’t do that anymore.” She took an extralarge gulp.

“Can you just give it up? I thought writing was something you were born to do.”

“Maybe for some. Not for me.” She finished off the contents of her mug and handed it to Rosie. “Hit me.”

“You’ve got it, girlfriend.” She poured more coffee into Hope’s mug and added enough Baileys to get a sailor drunk.

“You gave me too much.”

“You don’t have to finish it. The boys gifted me with a case of the stuff last summer when they thought I was gonna go toes up.”

“What? I didn’t hear about that!”

“I was stressed about losing the ranch, and everyone thought I’d had a heart attack. Turned out it was a reaction to the thought of giving up Thunder Mountain. I’m fine now, by the way.”

“Good.” Hope sighed and leaned back in her chair. “What a scary thing.”

“It’s called broken heart syndrome. Behaves exactly like a heart attack, but in most cases you make a full recovery in a matter of days.”

“Amazing.” She remembered having chest pains a year ago. She’d dismissed them. “Guess you need to hang on to this ranch, huh?”

Rosie nodded. “And not just for me, but for all the boys we took in. Herb and I thought we were providing a temporary home for them. Not so. They look to Thunder Mountain, and to us, for their security, their sense of self.”

“That’s quite a responsibility.”

“It is, but there are rewards, like watching Liam find someone like you. Which brings me back to the problem at hand. We have Grady and Liam in one cabin and Finn and Chelsea in another. The newest cabin will be the backdrop for the wedding since building it brought Damon and Phil together. That leaves one more. I’ll give you the key.”

“You really don’t have to do that.”

“It’s more civilized than the barn. The bunks are singles, so it’s not perfect, but pull a couple of mattresses down on the floor. That’ll work.”

“If I hadn’t ingested a fair amount of Baileys, I’d be horrified by this discussion.”

Rosie laughed. “But you have, so you’re not.”

“No, and since I’m fairly smashed, I’m going to tell you the truth about Liam and me, because you deserve to know. We’re not in it for the long haul, or I’m not, and he agreed. We’ll have fun this week. End of story.”

“Is that so?” Rosie didn’t sound particularly upset, maybe because she didn’t believe Hope.

“I mean it. After my last boyfriend, I vowed never to get serious about another guy.”

“I don’t blame you, honey. Most men are wonderful, but if you get a hold of a bad one, he can sour you on the whole lot. You have a good time this week.”

“If you think Liam’s going to change my mind, he won’t. Riding off into the sunset with the love of my life has been permanently scratched off my to-do list.”

“What a colorful way to put it! Are you sure you’re completely done with writing?”

“Done with writing, done with the happily-ever-after dream.”

“Hmm.” Rosie sipped her coffee.

“You don’t believe me.”

“What I believe or don’t believe isn’t important. But I’d feel better if you and Liam were tucked into a cabin instead of making out in the barn. That could get nasty.”

“Like straw in my hair?”

“I wasn’t going to mention it, but since you did...”

“All right. I’ll take the key. And thank you.”

* * *

H
OPE
SLEPT
LATER
than normal the next morning, but remarkably she didn’t feel any effect from the Baileys. When she walked into the kitchen, she found Rosie, Lexi and Phil’s stepmom, Edie, slicing, dicing and cooking food that was probably for the rehearsal dinner.

Rosie glanced up from a steaming pot and smiled. “Good morning, sunshine. Sleep well?”

“Too well and too late. What can I do to help?”

“We’ll put you to work in a little bit,” Edie said. “Grab some coffee and I’ll scramble up a couple of eggs if Rosie can spare me a burner.”

“You can tuck in right here.” Rosie moved over. “And there’s juice in the fridge, Hope. Help yourself.”

“I can scramble the eggs.”

“Nope, nope, we have a rhythm going.” Edie backed her off. “Get some coffee and juice. Shoo.”

Lexi stopped dicing ham and grinned at Hope. “Just do as you’re told. Life’s easier that way.”

“Now there’s a smart girl.” Edie scooped up a handful of ham chunks from the bowl beside Lexi and dropped them into her skillet. “Thanks. That’ll go nice with the eggs.”

While Edie joined Rosie at the stove, Hope hovered by the coffeepot. “I feel like a prima donna, but thank you.” Sipping coffee would give her an excuse to gaze out the window. But although she took her time pouring and spent a while sipping, she saw nobody.

They were probably down in the meadow, setting up for the rehearsal. Having a wedding in front of a log cabin hadn’t made any sense to Hope until Phil had explained it. Last summer when Thunder Mountain Academy was in the planning stages, the decision had been made to add a fourth cabin to the three that had housed all the foster brothers years ago. Phil and Damon had met while working on the new cabin, so it was significant to them.

“The guys and Phil are setting up the tent,” Rosie said. She’d obviously guessed why Hope had been staring out the window. “They all ate earlier.”

“Sorry I’m such a sleepyhead.”

“No problem,” Edie said. “Right, Rosie?”

“No problem at all. Hope kept me company last night. We had a little bit of coffee and Baileys.”

“Oh, did you, now?” Lexi raised her eyebrows. “Have you found a new convert for your favorite beverage?”

“She has,” Hope said. “I’m ready to join the coffee and Baileys club.”

“Have at it.” Lexi shook her head as she continued to dice up ham. “It’s not for me, but when Chelsea gets here, you’ll have a quorum.”

Hope gazed at her. “How can you not like it? It’s like coffee on steroids.”

“Believe me, I tried for Rosie’s sake. I know how she loves that concoction, but it doesn’t work for me.”

“For me, either.” Edie came over with a plate full of eggs and a fork. “But if you were up with Rosie drinking coffee and Baileys, you need this. Now sit.”

Hope decided to do as Lexi had advised and follow directions. She sat and began eating her delicious eggs.

“I’m glad Phil’s down there with the guys,” Lexi said. “I hope she keeps an eye on Cade.”

“Why?” Mention of Cade immediately made Hope think of the condom he’d left. She wondered if Lexi knew he’d done it. “Is he likely to pull a practical joke?”

“Oh, he’s capable of that, too, but mostly I hope he doesn’t accidentally compromise the tent setup. We don’t want it coming down in the middle of the ceremony.”

“He means well,” Rosie said.

“I know he does, but that cowboy’s about as handy with tools as his cat, Ringo.” Lexi turned toward the gray tabby curled in his bed in the corner of the kitchen. “I take that back, Ringo. You’re probably better at it than Cade. I love that man, but I swear he doesn’t know a hammer from a hockey stick.”

“I do so!” The screen door banged, and boots clomped across the living room floor. “I also heard you say you love me.” Smiling, Cade walked into the kitchen and straight over to Lexi. “And in front of witnesses, no less. Any day now you’ll get down on one knee and ask for my hand.”

Lexi chuckled. “You’ll make me do that, too, won’t you?”

“You bet I will. I want this proposal done right. Whatcha got there?”

He reached toward the bowl, and she smacked his hand. “Nothing for you. Did you have a reason for coming in to bother us, or did they banish you from the work site?”

“I’ll have you know I’m the official messenger from the tent crew. They’re about to set up that latticed arbor thing we talked about as a backdrop for the ceremony, and we’d like both moms to come give us an opinion. Some of the guys are worried it’ll blow over if we get a good wind.”