“No, I’m calling this act you’re doing foolish. You don’t love me, any more than I love you.”
“How can you say that?”
“By moving my lips.” Russell ran his hand through his hair and cursed the fates for his stupidity. What on earth had he ever seen in her? “You need to leave.”
“You’ll have to throw me out.”
“You’re being overly dramatic.” That was putting it mildly. “I know you have more pride than this. Act like it.”
“You can’t seriously tell me you want her instead of me.”
“Should I try jokingly, then, because it’s obvious the way I’m doing it isn’t getting through to you. I’m with Tamara. I care for Tamara.” Maybe if he spelled it out for her she’d finally understand.
“Oh for goodness’ sake.” Russell grabbed her hands and yanked her to feet. The swift movement sent her sprawling against his chest as a cheerful voice called out, “I’m back. Russell, where—”
“Fuck.” Russell cursed under his breath. With a disgusted sigh, he pushed Sandra away from him and looked at Tamara who was standing in the doorway with a surprised look on her face.
Her confused gaze ran from Sandra, then back to Russell. “Am I interrupting?”
“Yes, you are,” Sandra said triumphantly as he shook his head.
“No, you aren’t.” Today was definitely not going the way he planned. “As trite as it sounds, this isn’t the way it seems.”
“Isn’t it?” Sandra interrupted. “I think she can see for herself what’s really going on here.”
“You’re right, I can.” Then to his surprise, Tamara looked at him and smiled. “I have an answer to your question, Russell.”
“You do?” He had no idea what she was talking about, but she didn’t look pissed off. That had to be a good thing.
“The situation is reversed, and I absolutely trust you.”
“You do?”
“Yes. I’m going to put the groceries up and let you two get back to your conversation.”
Russell watched in amazement as Tamara calmly walked from the room. He’d been expecting…hell, a reaction like one he’d get from Sandra, screaming and tears or running away. He should have known better. Tamara was so far away from Sandra, it was as if they were night and day.
If he’d been surprised, Sandra was completely flabbergasted. But she didn’t stay down for long. Turning on her heel, she marched after Tamara. As much as he wanted to go defend his woman, he knew better. She didn’t need him to fight her battles; she was more than capable of taking care of herself, but that didn’t mean he didn’t want to watch her do it.
Chapter Fourteen
Tamara was very proud of herself. Despite what she saw, she hadn’t lost her mind. She didn’t go crazy or ghetto and go off on a Jerry Springer-like tirade on Sandra. Instead she looked with more than her eyes. She looked with her heart, and saw the truth. Russell didn’t want Sandra, he wanted her, and Tamara would be all kinds of stupid to allow the other woman’s pathetic ploy to get to her. She knew better. Hell, she
was
better than that.
Energized and confident, she walked into the kitchen to begin to putting away the groceries she’d bought. Tonight, she was going to put Russell’s new kitchen to good use and make him an old-fashioned southern recipe. Her mother would be so proud, she thought with a grin, of her newfound domestic streak.
But before she could even get the first bag unpacked, Sandra stormed into the kitchen. Gone was the classy, well-put-together woman she’d met not so long ago, and in her place was someone who looked a bit deranged.
“Are you really that naive?” Sandra’s eyes were filled with fury. “Don’t you see what’s going on before your very eyes?”
“I do.” Despite what the other woman was attempting to do, Tamara couldn’t find it in herself to work up even the slightest bit of rage. She was too filled with pity to do that. “You’ll find someone else one day.”
“One day.” Sandra was apparently not a woman used to being pitied. “I have someone now. It’s you who’s the outsider. In more than one way, I’d like to add.”
The pity began to diminish a bit. “Are you seriously going to try to play the race card? Come on. Aren’t we both a little too old for childish games like that? This is the new millennium, honey. You’re going to have to come up with something a bit more original than that to get me upset.”
“I’m not trying to upset you. Just trying to save you from yourself. Girls like you always end up getting hurt. Russell’s out of your league, sugar. I think you’d be happier with someone more your style.”
“Funny thing is, Russell is my type. Who would have thunk it, right? Besides, Sandra, the truth of the matter is, you don’t know me. Not at all, especially if you think your pathetic little play of power is going to send me running for the hills. I’m not some weak-willed female who is easily spooked. I’m. Not. Going. Anywhere.”
Tamara could see from the surprised look in the other woman’s eyes that this was exactly what she’d thought would happen.
Good Lord, does she think this is some cheesy Regency romance novel
? Still she had to admire the other woman’s determination; even now she wouldn’t back down. “I may not know you, but I know men.”
“And?” Tamara asked a bit intrigued where Sandra was going with this new line of attack. Because Lord knew, she didn’t know a thing about men.
“And I know Russell will never be happy with”—she ran her heated gaze over Tamara—“someone like you.”
“He already is.”
“But for how long? Do you really think you’ll be able to help him in business? Be the perfect hostess he needs at dinner parties, the beauty on his arm at meetings.”
Tamara couldn’t help but smile. Sandra was just regurgitating a revamped hostile version of the same exact thing Tamara had said to Charlotte. It was amusing, now that the shoe was on the other foot, how stupid that speech was. Listening to Sandra say it only made Tamara realize how unimportant those things were. “I think Russell can handle the running of his own business. He doesn’t need me for that.”
“He doesn’t need you for anything.”
“Yes, he does.” And she was finally getting it. “To make him happy.”
“He was happy before. With me.”
“Honey”—Tamara tilted her head and shook it sadly—“he was never with you.”
“Is that what he told you? Because if so, he lied. We had sex countless times.”
“Yes, but you probably never made love.”
“How would you know?”
“Because if you had, he wouldn’t be with me.” It was that simple as far as Tamara was concerned.
“It won’t last. This infatuation of his. He’s always done everything Ty’s done. He’ll get over that.”
“But he’ll never get over me.” She’d tried to be nice, but it just wasn’t working. “Look, Sandra, you’re fighting a losing battle with an unmotivated opponent. I’m not threatened by you or by what you think you used to have with Russell. Whatever it
was
is of no importance to me, because it’s his past. And I’m his future.”
“So you finally figured that out, did you?” Russell spoke from behind them, drawing both women’s attention in his direction.
Tamara wasn’t sure how long he’d been standing there, and it didn’t matter. She would have said what she had whether he’d been in the room or not. Now there was only one more thing he needed to hear. And that was a little bit of down-home honesty. “I’m a bit slow, at times.”
His lips twitched. “I’d say.” Russell walked around the island until he was standing beside her and slipped his arm around her waist, before turning his attention toward their unwanted visitor. “Sandra, I think it’s time you left.”
“Long past.” Fury radiated from the other woman in waves. “When you’re ready for a real woman, Russell, you’ll know where to find me.”
“Like I told you already, Sandra, I have one.”
Russell was disappointed it had to end this way. He’d always been very clear that his and Sandra’s was a mutually beneficial relationship only, with no strings attached. And for a while, it seemed to work for both of them. But he was no longer that man, not since he’d gotten together with Tamara. And by the look on her face, Sandra had expectations he’d never known.
The sound of the front door slamming echoed throughout the room and signaled not only Sandra leaving, but hopefully the start of a whole new chapter in Russell’s life, with Tamara being the central character of each chapter.
He looked down at the woman in his arms, grateful more and more each day that he’d taken a chance on her and she on him. Sighing, Tamara rested her head on Russell’s shoulder and snuggled close. “Talk about someone being ad-dick-ted.”
“I wish I could take credit for her bizarre behavior, but I sincerely doubt it has anything to do with my prowess in the bedroom.”
“What do you think it is?”
“Probably a combination of a lot things. Sandra isn’t one to give up on something when she’s set her mind to it. Plus, I heard a rumor a few weeks back about her father making a couple of bad investments. He tied up the bulk of their money into some real estate that, thanks to the economy right now, is taking a big nosedive.”
“You think the fear of having to paint her own toenails now is what has her marching in the loony parade?”
Russell shrugged. “It might. Mr. Malt is a smart man, though. I’m sure he’ll rebound soon. Sandra probably just wanted to hedge her bets.”
Tamara pulled back, her eyebrow arched. “Well, people in hell want ice water. Doesn’t mean they’re going to get it.”
“If I didn’t know better, Tamara, I’d think you’d fight for me or something.” If this is what it took to get her to finally admit her feelings for him, he could only thank Sandra.
“If it came down to a battle of the babes, which team would you have rooted for?”
As if she had to ask
. “I’m not dumb, I know a ringer when I see one.”
“You know, from the way you were speaking to her when I arrived, well, it might give someone the wrong impressions about your feelings for me.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, someone might think you were in serious like with me.”
Serious like? Okay, he could play this game. “Then maybe I should clear it up so
someone
doesn’t get the wrong idea. I’m in deep, serious, heart-aching, cock-hardening, head-in-the-clouds, cheesy-eighties-power-ballads
like
with you.”
“Damn, you had to break out the power ballads.”
“I only speak from the heart, baby.”
“That’s some kind of
like
.”
“I think so. And since we’re putting this all out there, the way you proudly declared yourself my woman might make a different someone think you maybe like me back.”
“Declared myself? I don’t recall all that.”
“I recall it enough for the both of us.”
“Then, cowboy counselor, I can’t argue with that or dispute that I am in some serious, doodling your name on paper, sighing when I hear the old Jets jams on the radio station because their songs make me think of you,
like
with you as well.”
His woman had a way with words. “Your paper doodling
like
trumps my power ballads like.”
“Then we’re agreed. We’re in
like
with one another.”
“Yes.” Russell nodded. “We’re also in love with another, but we have time to get into that later.”
“We have plenty of time for that,” she agreed with a soft smile.
“Speaking of being addicted. I think I feel the shakes coming on.”
Tamara’s eyes sparkled with laughter as she shook her head and made a
tsk, tsk
noise. “Not again.”
“Oh yeah. It’s been like ten hours since my last fix. I need a taste.” Russell picked Tamara up and sat her on the kitchen island. “I need a taste. Bad.”
Tamara wrapped her hands around his neck and toyed with the back of his hair. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“You did.” She just hadn’t warned him it would be a lifelong addiction he’d never want to be free of.
“The power of the black vagina strikes again.”
“I think it’s white man’s kryptonite. Able to bring a cowboy to his knees with a single thrust.”
“Think we should alert the media?”
“Nah, let them find out on their own.” He pushed her legs apart and stepped between them, bringing him closer to the object of his desire. “So is there a cure for this?”
“Yes, and if you’re lucky, I just might give it to you in forty or fifty years.”
“You thinking long-term here?” Because he certainly was.
“Maybe.”
“I like maybes.” He was sure he’d be able to turn that maybe into a definitely with no problem.
“By the way, I got a call the other day. My temp job is officially over.”
“It is?”
“Yes.”
“Any ideas to what you might want to do next?” He had a few suggestions if need be.
“I was thinking of taking a break from temping and trying the photography thing full time for a bit.”
“That’s wonderful.” And more than coincided with what he had in mind.
“Yeah. Thought I might possibly rope a cowboy into marriage—in a few years, mind you—and maybe even shoot out a few kids or so.”
“Shoot ’em out?”
“Yeah. If Charlotte can do it in four hours, then I can do it in three. I’m thinking twins. You know—bam, bam. Get ’em in and get ’em out.”
Russell’s lip twitched as he tried to hold back his amusement. “Twins.”
“Yes. You know how competitive I am.”
“Yes, I do. But twins?”
“It’s negotiable.”
“Good to know.” His hands grasped her hips, pulling her forward until the seam of her jeans was pressed against him. “Any particular cowboy in mind?”
“I was thinking I’d see if Christian had any plans for the fall.” Russell snorted in lieu of commenting. “But then I thought, if he was busy, I’d give you a go.”
“Well, I do have room to build a darkroom out here. It would be a shame if I just allowed the space to go to waste.” He’d built this ranch to be the start of his legacy. He couldn’t think of anything better than to have Tamara with him along for the ride.
“Waste not, want not. That’s what I always say.” She wrapped her legs around his waist.
Russell tightened his hold on her and picked her up. “You know I’m going to tell our kids you proposed to me, right?”
“Just like you know I’ll deny it.”
“Who do you think they’ll believe?” he asked as he headed toward the stairs. If they were going to be negotiating babies, he knew the perfect place for the talks to take place.
“I guess we’ll just have to find out.”
He was looking forward to it.
THE END