Outfoxed (4 page)

Burke sighed. “If you’re done sulking, baby brother, can we please have some dessert?” He raised his voice. “And everyone knows pride leader gets the first piece. What is it with you people?”

Gabby laughed with the others, but her eyes kept straying to Grady’s empty chair.

Chapter Three

After putting in a full day teaching a camp full of grade school kids the art of fly fishing, Grady finished some paperwork in the office, then returned to Cougar Falls tired and worn down. He didn’t exactly look forward to returning home.

He hadn’t seen Gabby in two days. She’d been visiting a few of her fox friends and had stayed off the ranch. Miles and his family had decided to give it a good week before they made a decision about staying or going. So everywhere Grady walked, he found himself tripping over a Bermin. He hadn’t had a chance to “help” Miles with anything, either. So much for Rachel’s grand plan of getting everyone else gone while he and Gabby bonded. Although not putting his fist through Miles’s face should count for something. He thought he’d shown remarkable restraint.

Pulling his truck past the main house, he noted Burke’s, Rachel’s and Dean’s vehicles. Maggie and Joel were on vacation, and God knew where Monty had holed up on a Saturday night. Probably sniffing around that pretty she-wolf he’d taken a liking to. Grady continued down the winding dirt road over their land and passed several cabins now belonging to Monty, Ty’s brood and a few of their new guests. Most of the felines had chosen to remain in the big house, but Stacey and Miles preferred the cabins. No doubt they wanted to get away from the unsophisticated members of the Cougar Falls pride.

His attention lit on Gabby’s cabin. His heartbeat sped up when he noticed the lights on inside. Part of him wanted to drop by to see her, but he wasn’t in any condition for company just now. He needed a shower, some food and to get laid. Not necessarily in that order, but since the third option was out, a shower sounded doable.

Continuing not even a quarter mile down the dirt road to his place, he slowed when he saw Gabby approaching from the opposite direction. She must have been out for a walk. The direction from which she came was nothing but grassy fields and a stream that cut through the property. A few trees bordered the area, but the larger grouping of them sat behind Gabby’s cabin. He faced mountains when he looked out his back window. She saw trees.

Her attention seemed fixed on his cabin. Had she been going to meet him?

And then she saw him in the truck and hurried toward him. At the same time, his cell phone rang.

“Yeah?” he answered it and slowed the truck to a crawl.

Dean spoke in a rush, breathing hard. “Oh man. Look bro, you’ll thank me for this later. Just play along with whatever Gabby says, okay?”

“Huh?”

“Gotta go.” Dean hung up.

Grady disconnected and put the phone on the seat next to him. When he reached his cabin, he parked the truck. He took a step outside and had just slammed the door closed when Gabby plastered herself against his chest.

“Whoa.”

Her strong arms wrapped around his waist, and he felt every inch of her curves, from her full breasts to her long, toned legs. Good Christ, was he dreaming?

His erection rose and refused to quit.

She drew in a soft breath when she felt it but didn’t move. What to make of that?

“Not that this isn’t great, but Gabby? You okay, honey?”

She squeezed him hard once, then let him go. “Could you walk me home? There’s something I need to say to you, and it would be best away from here.”

Confused but knowing his idiot brother had something to do with this, he let Gabby lead him away from his cabin. She held his hand, her smaller, softer fingers entwined with his. Dope that he was, he felt waves of affection roll through his body. Her scent whispered to him of belonging, sex and hunger. He wanted to purr and had to forcibly concentrate to stop himself.

“What’s going on?” he asked when he could catch his breath. A loud moan and a male bellow of satisfaction broke the quiet around them.

He stopped in his tracks. The sound had come from
his
cabin.

“No, no. Come on.” Gabby increased her pace, all but dragging him with her as the moans continued—noises magnified by Ac-taw hearing. By the sound of her, the female making those sexy noises was having a damn fine time.

They reached Gabby’s cabin but didn’t stop there. She pulled him inside and closed the door behind them.

Curious as to the changes she’d made in the short time she’d been living there, he glanced around and smiled. “This place looks like you.” The comfortable, three-bedroom cabin had a generous bathroom, a small kitchen and a living room with a fireplace. Simple yet functional. But under Gabby’s hands, the place shone like a designer showplace. Light fabrics framed the two large windows in the front of the cabin. The kitchen had been done in white and apple green, which made the whole space look bigger. His own kitchen had dark, wooden cabinets and looked tiny.

Her living room had a few throw rugs, a comfy-looking couch and a small television. Neat and organized, the whole cabin even smelled fresh. Did the woman not know how to make a mess?

He turned to tell her how much he liked it when he noted her sober expression.

“What’s wrong? It’s okay, you can tell me.” He needed to ease her worry, to make everything better. She felt like his to protect, as if he’d already claimed her. Knowing something bothered her made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.

“Grady, I think we should sit.” She sat on the couch and patted the space next to her.

Not one to let an opportunity go by, he hurried to join her.

“There’s something you should know.” She paused and bit her lower lip. So fucking sexy, those lips. He’d seen them wrapped around his cock in dreams for months. “It’s about someone you care about.”

He wondered if she’d been with a lot of guys. To his shock, he didn’t care. So long as she was only with him now. No one else but him from here on out. His gaze fell to her breasts. Would her nipples be rosy or pale pink? Would she be sensitive there when he sucked her?

“It’s Joy. She’s found someone else.”

“Joy, right.” God, he could almost taste her. He imagined kissing those breasts, then licking the smooth skin down her belly to her pussy. Man, he’d—

“Grady, listen to me,” she snapped. “This isn’t easy, and I shouldn’t have to be the one to tell you this. But Joy isn’t yours anymore.”

“Not mine. What?” He stared at her, not sure what the hell she meant. “What are you saying?”

She blew out a breath. “I know you and Joy have real feelings for each other. That you were going to ask her to consider staying instead of moving on to Oregon.” She swallowed hard. “Dean told me all about it. But Grady, I think she’s found someone else.”

He wondered what the hell kind of story Dean had fabricated. And why.

Gabby patted his knees. Commiserating with him about Joy?

“So you’re saying Joy isn’t mine anymore. If she ever was,” he said slowly. She nodded. He started to piece the puzzle together. “That moaning I heard earlier, from my cabin.”

Gabby blinked and he saw the sheen of tears. “That was her. She was probably waiting to tell you herself, but then he came.”

“Who?”

She took his hand in hers and squeezed. “Just remember, family is what matters in the end.”

He suddenly understood. “Oh hell. Dean and
Joy
?” He could just imagine how Burke and Miles would feel knowing Dean was screwing Joy. The feisty little cat had made a few overtures toward him the last time she’d been in town, but as a joke. He’d never thought of her as anything other than a little sister, and she’d never treated him as anything more than a platonic friend. Trust Dean to hook up with her. And only a few days after the tourist in waders. His brother was turning into a whore.

“Are you okay?”

“I don’t know.” How the hell was Dean hooking up with Joy supposed to help him? Then again, Gabby was finally paying him real attention. Touching him, holding his hand. Okay, right. The sympathy card. It had worked for Dean before.

Maybe Dean wasn’t the dumbest one in the family after all.

He looked away, gently pulled his hand from hers and stood. Needing to show some reaction to the thought of his
beloved
Joy with his asshole brother, he paced away from her and stared out the window. He had to get the right balance of sadness and anger so as not to blow this. Then he had to beat feet and find Dean and Joy. What the hell were they thinking having sex? Or was this all an act for Gabby’s benefit?

He felt a small touch on his back, and his body flared to life once more.

“It’ll be okay, Grady. This happened to me once. It sucks, but you move on. I don’t think Joy and Dean meant to hurt you. Sometimes love just happens.”

He turned around and looked down at her. “You think?” Would that explain why he had trouble eating and sleeping? Why he couldn’t think about another woman, not when she was so close, yet so far from him? Why the sight of dark red hair turned him on like nobody’s business? “You ever been in love, Gabby?”

She shook her head, and he felt worlds better. “No, but it still hurt when the guy I was with found someone else. I found out the hard way, kind of like you just did.” He found the sudden flush on her cheeks entrancing. “Dean had told me they couldn’t meet in the main house, where he and Joy are staying. So they were going to use your place to talk.” She cleared her throat, obviously remembering the moaning they’d both heard. “He’s planning to tell you about them. He’s just trying to find the right words.”

Her sympathy made him feel like a real shit for lying to her, even though it hadn’t been his lie to start with. Then he remembered Miles leering at her, the foxes and other assholes in town constantly bothering her for dates.
All’s fair in love and war
, he told himself. Besides, the woman was part fox. They were just as shifty and tricky as coyotes. If he didn’t find a way to corner her and tie her down, he’d lose her for sure.

“Thanks for being here with me, Gabby.” He paused. Would he be pushing it? Hell, he didn’t care. He wanted to touch her again, so he reached for her hand. “I’d really appreciate it if you didn’t mention this to anyone. It’s kind of embarrassing.”

She clenched his hand tight, then let him go. “I swear, I won’t say a word. And since you and Joy were keeping it a secret anyway, no one will know she went with Dean after you.”

The little shit. “Right. Dean. He’s my brother, and I love him.”
But right now he’s making me look like an ass. Like he could steal a woman from
me
.

“But he hurt you. I get it. Well, not like that. Julia and Meghan and I never had the same taste in men. And now with both of them married, it’s just me.”

“Guess you’re not angling for Ty.”

She looked horrified.

He grinned, and she smiled with him. “It’s good you can laugh now. Trust me, the pain of this will go away.”

He smothered his laughter. “Right. I hope so.” He coughed and turned away, calling on his acting skills. He couldn’t dance worth shit, but he could lie like a champ. When he turned back to her, he had tears in his eyes. “Gabby? Does it make me a dumbass if I ask you for a hug?”

“You poor thing. Not at all.” She hugged him tight, and he sighed into her embrace. She fit him perfectly. It was heaven and hell at the same time.

When she withdrew, he wanted to cry for real. “Better?”

“I will be, I suppose.”

“Let me get you a beer. You look beat. You worked all day, didn’t you?”

He nodded.

“Go sit down and relax. I’ll be right there. And Grady? You can stay here tonight if you want. I don’t mind.”

He nodded. “Thanks. You’re the best, Gabby.” He turned and found the couch, a huge-ass smile on his face. He composed a mental note to thank Dean tomorrow and made himself comfortable.

Gabby stuck her head in the refrigerator, trying to cool off.
Offer comfort, idiot. Stop thinking about what his body feels like.
Easy to say, but not so easy to do. Her damn cat wanted to rub up against him, while her fox wanted to curl around him, as close as possible. All this while knowing he had a thing for another woman.

Feeling like a fool but a slave to her libido, she reminded herself Grady wasn’t to blame. The poor man had just learned the cat he’d had feelings for liked his brother better. He’d been hit harder than she had, when she’d walked in on her boyfriend of four months screwing his real estate agent against the wall. So much passion, but it had never been directed at her. She’d been more angry than hurt. And she’d gotten over him pretty fast.

But even then she’d known Clint would never be her mate. From what Dean had told her earlier today, Grady was attached to Joy. They’d spent summers together when they were younger, when the Bermins would visit the Catamount Pride, keeping in touch and making closer bonds. Even though time had passed and Joy didn’t often visit, she and Grady kept in touch. Apparently, so did Dean.

She couldn’t imagine how Grady must feel. She brought the beer to him and stopped in her tracks. He’d taken
go sit down and relax
to heart. He’d stripped off his boots, socks and shirt and sat back on her couch, his head thrown back, in nothing but jeans.