Pressure Rising (Rhinestone Cowgirls Book 2) (3 page)

At the mention of the ‘law’ Pearl had a feeling that she was going to vomit the bagel she had eaten earlier. Although the incident was an accident, things could have been far worse. And although she did hate DJ with a passion, she didn’t want to see him dead.

“So, Jeb and I have come up with a solution.” Relief spread over Joshua’s weathered face.

“I agree.” Pearl didn’t wait to hear the suggestion, but felt some tension leave her muscles. “We should pay for a nurse to take care of him and we can hire a ranch hand to temporarily take his place at the R&R until he’s back on his feet.” She smiled in resolution.

Joshua shook his head. “No.”

Her smile fizzled. “No?”

“DJ won’t need a nurse. You’ll stay with him at the R&R and treat him as you would one of your sisters if they were to suffer this same tragedy. You’ll also help out on the land, as needed.”

Pearl couldn’t breathe. The overhead lights brightened and sweat beaded between her breasts. Em’s gasp cracked the air, mimicking what Pearl was feeling on the inside. “I won’t do this,” Pearl whispered.

“Yes you will, otherwise, I wouldn’t be surprised if DJ doesn’t file a complaint. And you need to think of the repercussions if that should happen.” The area around Joshua’s mouth turned white.

“Why would I want to stay there? Why would DJ even agree to such a ludicrous agreement?”

“At this point, neither of you have a choice in the matter. Jeb and I are tired of these foolish stunts between you and his son. Maybe if the two of you are forced to tolerate each other, you’ll drop all of this nonsense, once and for all.”

“But, Dad, do you realize what you’re asking of me?” Tears blurred her vision.

His jaw softened. He laid his hands, callused and wrinkled from years of hard work in the sun, on her shoulders. “Listen, Pearl. I’m not doing this because I don’t love you, but quite the contrary. If the shenanigans don’t stop, someone’s going to get seriously hurt. I understand you’ve had a beef with this boy for years now. I don’t know what sparked it, and I also realize he isn’t innocent in all of these events, but you’re my daughter and I want you to do the right thing. You’ve made a mistake and now fix it.” He dropped his hands, the hard lines back on his expression.

“Dad, this is crazy. You can’t expect her to stay with a stranger, let alone a stranger she can’t stand. They could kill each other being all alone,” Em interjected.

“Then so be it because I’m washing my hands of it.” Joshua turned and marched back toward the direction he came from.

“He can’t force you to do this.” Em gave a saucy flip of her long hair.

“With any luck, I can persuade DJ that he would do better with a nurse helping him and not me. There is no way he wants this any more than I do.” At least Pearl hoped.

Chapter Two

“I refuse to do this.” DJ held the phone wedged between his cheek and shoulder as he wobbled to the couch and plopped into the cushion. His backside stung. He was about due for another pain pill and he didn’t feel like talking to his dad about Pearl of all people. “I don’t want her near me. I’m a grown man and can take care of myself.”

His father’s sigh rattled the phone. “Joshua and I have made the agreement. It’s done,” Jeb stated.

“And you made this agreement without thinking to ask me first? I already said I wasn’t pressing charges.” DJ rubbed his forehead as the ache behind his eyes turned into a deep throbbing.

“Look, son, I agree that you’re a grown man, and it’s time you take responsibility for your actions. Pugly got out of the fence again and he ended up with her horse that she has plans to breed. I don’t know why you even keep that damned donkey!”

“He’s a hit with visitors. We can’t fault Pugly for having good tastes, now can we?”

“Haven’t you boys learned your lesson not to mess with the Stone girls? Anyway, this isn’t only a hobby for Pearl, this is her business, raising horses. What if someone threw a stake into your plans? Imagine if the tables were turned.”

“Point taken.” He hated when his dad was right, which happened ninety-nine percent of the time.

“I don’t want the drama between our families. You know Joshua and I have been talking about that acreage he has closest to our property.”

“The damned donkey loves that horse of hers. I’ve built that fence three times now. The frisky fellow finds a way out every time—and every time he ends up in that damned horse’s stall.” DJ grabbed his medicine bottle from the table, unscrewed the lid, popped one of the tiny white pills into his mouth and swallowed.

“And if Pugly has bred with the horse, you’re going to  compensate for the damages. Do you want a couple thousand dollars coming out of that bank account of yours? I’m not paying. You boys are old enough to stand on your own two feet.”

“No one touches my savings. I have plans for that money.”

“Isn’t it time you boys started looking for women to marry, have a family? Give this old man some grandchildren.” Jeb groaned.

DJ’s chest tightened. He’d been saving for years and had almost raised enough that he could start building his home on the north side of the ranch. It’d been a dream for a long time now, and it was so close he could taste the freedom of having his own place. Maybe even meet a woman and have a family like his dad suggested. Dating had never been easy when he still lived at home and shared the place with his burping, farting, cavemen brothers. Letting go of one cent of his hard-earned cash only made him sick. And he could see Pearl taking him to court over a damn mule born of that precious horse of hers.

He shook his head. He was penned between a rock and a hurricane, Pearl being the latter.

As crazy as Pearl was, he knew she didn’t mean to shoot him. Callie had knocked her over, the gun slipped and went off. Luckily, he was turned because it could have been a lot worse. He cringed.

Accidents happen.

When he and his brothers were little, DJ had accidently shot the youngest, Nash, in the foot with a BB gun. They laugh about the incident now, but at the time it wasn’t a laughing matter. DJ got a whoopin’ from his mom that stung like hell, and he’d hated that Nash had been hurt. However, he got DJ back a few years later. Nash was practicing swinging a bat and busted DJ in the back of the head.

Jobe, the middle child, had his fair share of injuries too.

Shit happens!
Unfortunately, he was on the smelly end right now.

A thought came to him. He did have the upper hand here. What better way to teach Pearl a lesson than making her suffer right beside him? If he had to sit around the house, shouldn’t she? He smiled and rubbed his chin.

“If she poisons me or smothers me in my sleep, I hope you’ll remember these words ‘I told you so.’” He hit end on his cell and dropped it on the coffee table.

This was another reason why DJ couldn’t wait to get out on his own. At thirty, he shouldn’t be told what he could or couldn’t do. He was a responsible man, running a business with his brothers, and worked his ass off every day on the land. If he needed a nurse, why couldn’t he be lucky enough to have one similar to the women he’d seen at the hospital. They had practically fallen over themselves to help him. He wouldn’t mind one of those pretty little ladies giving him a sponge bath, feeding him with a spoon, and cleaning his wound.  

Why didn’t he get a rise in his jeans?

An image of Pearl changing his bandage made his dick harder than a steel rod.

Fuck! He was losing his grip.

If having her here until he was back on his feet, a week at the most, meant they could bury the hatchet—the invisible one she had stuck where the sun doesn’t shine—he guessed it was worth a try. He didn’t know if he could manage to pull the hatchet out, but he could endure her for a short period time.

Ten minutes later, when he opened the door to Pearl standing on his doorstep with a big bag hanging from her shoulder and a frown marring her features, he changed his earlier thought. It might be impossible to tolerate the Wicked Witch of Rhinestone.

“Can I come in or are you going to just stand there brooding?”

He squeezed the doorknob, wishing he could slam the door.

Plastering on a smile, he took a step back so she could pass. She brushed by and he got a whiff of vanilla and brown sugar, reminding him of the oatmeal his mom used to make. It also did funny, evil things to his groin area. Was he in high school again? Shit!

He slammed the door and she jumped, eying him in her usual I-want-you-dead glare. Yeah, no doubt this would be a fun and entertaining few days. He might end up in the barn with Pugly.

“Let’s get something straight, Pearl. I’m not any happier about this than you are.”

“And that’s supposed to make me feel better how?” She rolled her eyes and dropped her bag to the floor.

“You’re not going to make this easy, are you?”

“My apologies. You’ll have to forgive my attitude. I should be happy that I had to come here and play nurse to a man I can’t tolerate. I don’t understand why that should put me in a pissed off mood. Shame on me.”

He smiled—couldn’t help himself. She was actually quite cute when in a foul mood—of course he hadn’t seen her in any other mood since—well—he couldn’t even remember. Her eyes were sparkling. Her cheeks were splashed with a hint of crimson and her bottom lip ever so slightly quivered. And heat rocketed to his balls.

Not good—not good at all.

He just had to get through the next few days. The sooner he was up and about, the quicker she’d be on her way. His focus had to be on the dollar signs. He couldn’t stand to lose a dime of his savings. He planned for construction to start on his house early next year, maybe sooner if luck was on his side. “I’m willing to do this to prove that we don’t have to be at each other’s throat any more. I’m not a bad guy and I’m sure—somewhere in that body of yours—you have a sweet side.” He had some charm he could use if he must.

“Well, rest assured, you’ll never know what sides I have in this body. We need to set some ground rules. Although I’ll be touching specific parts,” her gaze dropped below his waist, “it shouldn’t give you the impression that I’m doing it as a means of entertainment or attraction in no way shape or form.” Her pert nose wrinkled.

DJ frowned. “And do you think I’m amused at the thought of you touching me?” Damn! Why did his cock twitch?

One corner of her mouth lifted and her eyes dazzled. She could see straight through him. “Oh I think you’ll enjoy it alright. I see you as a man who gets his rocks off watching others in torment.”

“Wow…you have a whole bag of negative thoughts of me.” He wobbled past her and back to his seat on the couch. “So, any more rules you want to dish out, sweetheart, before I tell you a few of my own?” The pain pill was starting to take effect and his limbs were numb. He could no longer feel the pain in his cheek.

“Rule two. I’m not your sweetheart. I have a name. It’s Pearl. Use it.” Her displeasure rolled across her expression.

“Pearl.” He let it roll off the tip of his tongue. “A gem that occurs spontaneously in the wild—rare and smooth. Not a bad name at all.” Yeah, the meds were working just fine.

Her cheeks turned darker. “You know your gemstones. Congratulations.”

“The name doesn’t fit you at all, though.”

Her mouth fell open and she quickly slammed it shut. “What does DJ stand for? Devious Jerk?”

He laughed. “Good, but no. Dustin Jerod. After both of my grandfathers.”

“Rule three, let’s talk as little as possible, especially no sharing of stories or personal thoughts. That should about cover all of my rules.” She swiped her hands together in finality.

“My turn. One rule—be honest. Just so we’re on the same page, why do you hate me?”

She squinted. “I-I don’t really hate you.”

“You came here with a shotgun and I know it wasn’t for looks.”

“I overreacted.” She tangled her fingers in her hair.

“I’ve thought about that night when we were kids. From what I remember, I didn’t do anything except kiss you behind the barn—touched a few soft places. If memory serves me well, it was a pretty good kiss too. I think if the car lights didn’t flash and interrupt—”

“Stop right there! We’re not talking about this subject.” Her arms dropped to her sides.

“But wouldn’t it be nice to clear the air? We could even give it a try again…you know, kiss and see if there’s still a spark.”

Her cheeks turned a suspicious red color. “For me to answer your question, or kiss you, I’d have to break rule number three, and I never break the rules. If you’ll tell me what bedroom I’ll be staying in, I’ll freshen up and then fix you something to eat. It’s probably not a good idea to take any more pain pills on an empty stomach.”

****

Pearl walked down the hallway and stopped at the third door on the left. She opened it and bleakly stepped across the threshold, aware of the manly décor with a blast of cologne. Everything about the entire house dripped of bachelorhood. It could use a feminine touch—not that she cared—but as a woman she noticed.

Once inside with the door closed, Pearl dropped to the edge of the bed and started breathing evenly again. She might as well be in prison because being here, surrounded by DJ—his scent, his clothes, his aura—imprisoned her with an unexplainable fury.