The Bridal Path: Sara (7 page)

Jake loved this room even more than his boss’s larger office. Panelled in rich, dark wood, one wall was filled with bookcases, another with a huge painting of a rodeo rider that managed to capture every bit of the agony and joy of the sport. That painting reminded Jake of the difficult path he’d chosen and the rewards that were finally within reach.

The scarred desk and ancient leather chair had the look of well-used heirlooms, something that had been in short supply in Jake’s life. When Trent had offered to replace both with something newer and fancier, Jake had declined.

He loved rubbing his fingers over the nicks and scratches in the desk and thinking of the men who’d used it before him. When he sank into the chair, he couldn’t help thinking of its history and wondering if Trent Wilde’s ancestors would have been proud to claim a man like him, as his own father wasn’t.

Frank Dawson had never even bothered to come to the rodeo to see him ride. And if he had, Jake conceded ruefully, he probably would have been blind drunk anyway.

This room, which had once been used for little more than storage for the bigger office beyond, suited him. Amidst its very masculine, solid decor, he could make believe that he was a man of substance, a man without pretense, when the exact opposite was true. Here he could achieve some vague sense of what it might have been like to have a proud history. Trent might dismiss the furnishings as little more than old junk, but Jake thought otherwise.

The only modern concession in the room was the computer. That was where he expected to find Sara, her brow furrowed in concentration, the tip of her tongue caught between her teeth as she studied the screen.

Instead, she was curled up in the matching leather chair by the fire, her eyes closed. The image brought a smile to his lips. Finding Sara snuggled into one of his chairs was getting to be a habit, one he could get used to, he feared.

Drawn despite himself, he crossed the room silently and stood over her. She’d showered and changed since he’d seen her. Her cheek was flushed where it rested against her arms. Her hair, that glorious tangle of fire, was dangerously beguiling. Her lashes feathered against her cheeks in dark smudges that seemed tipped in gold.

Something hard and cold inside him melted at the sight. The sensation shook him as nothing else in his life ever had. This thing with Sara was a familiar game, nothing more, he vowed silently.

To prove it, he moved to his desk and focused on the computer screen, pretending she wasn’t even in the room.

Within minutes, he knew it was no use. He was aware of her with every fiber of his being. Much later, he knew the precise instant when she stirred.

Glancing sideways he saw her eyelids flutter, then open. A vision of her in bed, coming sleepily, sexily awake in his arms ripped through him. It was so vivid, so real that his blood heated and surged through him, leaving him aching in a way that would, no doubt, keep him awake half the night.

He shifted uncomfortably and drew her startled gaze.

“Oh, my,” she murmured sleepily. “I must have fallen asleep. When did you get here?”

“A couple of hours ago,” Jake said, concentrating very hard on calming his rampaging hormones.

“And you just let me sleep?”

“It seemed like the gentlemanly thing to do.”

Her lips curved. “I’m disappointed, Jake. I was so certain you were no gentleman.”

The taunting remark stirred his passion and his temper in equal measure. “You’re doing it again,” he said, gritting his teeth.

“Doing what?”

“Trying to provoke me.”

She blinked, her expression so innocent he could almost believe it wasn’t an act.

“How?” she asked.

“By throwing all those innuendoes and subtle dares in my face. I’m warning you, you’re flirting with disaster, sweetheart.”

Her grin then was slow and deliberate and very definitely provocative. “Oh, dear, and here I thought I was flirting with you.”

The taunt made Jake’s head spin. He was on his feet in a heartbeat, across the room in two.

And then Sara was in his arms, her body crushed against his as his mouth plundered hers. She might have been exhausted. Hell, she might have been half asleep, but she came fully awake at once.

Jake’s intentions might have been to shock and take, but he was the one who wound up surprised. Sara gave everything to that kiss, willingly, eagerly.

They were both breathing hard when Jake finally pulled away and shook his head to clear it. He gazed into green eyes that sparked with passion and questions.

Questions he couldn’t—or wouldn’t—answer.

“It would be a disaster,” he muttered, half to himself.

“What would be?”

“You and me.”

To his amazement once more, she smiled knowingly. “You were the one who made marriage part of the deal, Jake. Isn’t it nice to know that we won’t be bored in bed?”

Before he could form a coherent response to that, she was gone. And he was left to another restless, lonely night.

Chapter Five

K
issing Sara Wilde could get to be habit-forming, Jake concluded during a long and very restless night. He was relieved that he’d be heading out first thing this morning for a two-day check of the fence lines. Time and distance would surely cure him of this unwanted fascination with the boss’s daughter. Women rarely tangled up his emotions for more than forty-eight hours at a stretch, especially when he gave his common sense time to kick into gear.

Just to be sure there would be no last-minute temptations, he avoided the dining room, grabbed a bowl of oatmeal in the kitchen and settled down to eat it under Annie’s watchful eye. That was almost more disconcerting than dealing with Sara.

“You seem to be in some sort of hurry this morning,” Annie observed.

“I’ve got miles of fence to check. It’s going to be a long day.”

The corners of the woman’s mouth twitched with some private amusement. “Must be quite a project. You’re the second person to tell me that this morning.”

Jake paused, a spoonful of oatmeal halfway to his mouth. “And the other one was…?” he asked unnecessarily. Trent Wilde hadn’t mended a fence line himself in years.

“Sara,” Annie said, confirming his worst fears. “She was up with the chickens. Bolted her food down, too.”

Jake carefully set the spoon back down and eyed the housekeeper warily. “Sara said something about checking fences?”

“Sure did. She said you wanted to get an early start. She’s already out in the barn saddling up. I sent the packs of food along with her.”

“What the devil…?” Jake pushed away from the table, grabbed his Stetson and headed for the door.

“Jake Dawson, you can’t work all morning on half a bowl of cereal,” Annie called after him.

“I’ll eat Sara’s share of the food you packed for a midmorning snack,” he retorted. There was no way in hell she was going to need it.

Sure enough, though, Sara was in the barn. She greeted him with a cheerful smile that almost melted his grim determination to set her straight about going along on this two-day trip with him.

“What are you up to?” he inquired.

“What does it look like?” she asked as she cinched the saddle securely. “We have a fence line to check. I saw the note on your calendar. You must have forgotten to mention it last night.”

“
I
have a fence line to check,” he corrected.

“We’ve been through this before. It’s my ranch. I should see firsthand what repairs are needed.”

“It is not your ranch,” Jake retorted grimly. “Besides, I thought you had a lesson with Zeke today.”

“I called and postponed it until tomorrow evening.”

“I’ll bet he loved that.”

Sara shrugged. “He understood that chores come first on a ranch. If I neglect the fences, we could lose cattle.”

Jake clung to his patience by a thread. “The fence won’t be neglected. I’ll be checking it.”

“We’ll get done that much faster if we both do it,” she said cheerfully. “I’m ready whenever you are.”

Jake muttered a curse under his breath and stalked to the stall where his own horse was waiting impatiently. He couldn’t order Sara not to come. In truth, it wouldn’t be the first time they had shared a chore like this.

But it would be the first time since he’d discovered that she was capable of tormenting his senses. He suspected that she was well aware of the impact she had on him and had deliberately forced the issue just to make him crazy. He doubted she had any idea, though, just how dangerous a game she was playing. Last time he’d checked, he’d been a long way off from sainthood. The kisses they’d shared should have told her that, too.

“Suit yourself,” he said finally.

“I always do.”

“I’m just surprised that you’re taking time off from training already,” he said slyly. “Was the first day too much for you, after all?”

Sara scowled at him. “I explained that chores come first.”

“I know that’s what you said,” he agreed.

“Meaning?”

“That it looks an awful lot to me as if you’re chickening out on our bet. Looks to me like you latched on to the first excuse that came along to avoid getting back on that bronco. Which one did Zeke put you on? Lightning or Jezebel?”

“Diablo,” she said.

“A misnomer, if ever there was one. That horse can barely kick up its hind legs anymore.”

“Tell that to my butt,” she retorted. “Now back off. The training can wait another day.”

“I’m not letting you drag this out forever,” he warned her.

“Don’t worry about it.” She drew a deep breath, then blurted, “If not knowing when we’re competing bothers you, I’ll set a date. How’s the first Saturday after Memorial Day?”

Jake regarded her with astonishment. He wasn’t sure which of them was more stunned by the impulsive announcement. “That’s less than a month away,” he protested.

She gave him one of her saucy grins that had his stomach clenching and his blood pumping harder. “Then I say you’d better start practicing,” she retorted. “After all, you haven’t been tossed around by any bulls lately.”

“That was not what I meant.”

“I’ll be ready,” she vowed.

“We’re not competing until Zeke clears you,” Jake countered. “I will not be responsible for you breaking your neck just because you’re too stubborn to back down.”

“If you’d just sign the ranch over to me, we wouldn’t have to compete at all.”

“No way, sweetheart.”

She shrugged. “Suit yourself,” she said, echoing his earlier remark.

Jake smiled grimly. “I always do.”

Of course, what would suit him right now would be to throttle Miss Sara Wilde and there was no way in hell he could do that without putting everything he’d worked for at risk. Trent might recognize what a handful his daughter was, but he wouldn’t appreciate another man calling her on her behavior.

Unless, of course, that man happened to be married to her.

* * *

Two hours into the icy silence that had fallen between her and Jake, Sara realized that she actually enjoyed driving him to distraction. In fact, she’d found the whole morning downright amusing. The frustrated look on Jake’s face when he’d realized he couldn’t talk her out of coming along had been priceless. He’d appeared cornered, maybe even a little desperate.

That expression confirmed what she’d guessed the night before. He was susceptible to her and he wasn’t happy about it. Which meant there might be more than one way to land Three-Stars for herself.

Despite her brave comments on her ability to win their bet, Sara knew that her chances of outlasting Jake on a bronco were slim at best. She needed a backup plan and it appeared that seduction might be its cornerstone. If she could keep Jake off guard and rattled, he might make a mistake that would give her the edge she needed in their competition.

She cast a cautious glance sideways at his harsh profile. With his Stetson settled low on his forehead and his mouth narrowed to a thin line, there was no question about his mood. He was definitely not a happy camper.

Since he’d never reacted so negatively to her presence before, she could only conclude that he suddenly didn’t trust himself to be alone with her. That conclusion did wonders for her relatively untested feminine ego.

“Jake?”

“What?”

“Could we call a truce? We are pretty much stuck with each other for the next day or so. We might as well try to be pleasant.”

“If you wanted chitchat, you should have gone into town for a visit with your sister.”

Sara wasn’t about to be put off so easily. “I was just wondering what it was like on the rodeo circuit.”

He glanced over at her. “Thinking of taking it up full time?”

She scowled at him. “Hardly. I was just curious.”

“I thought I satisfied your curiosity on this particular subject years ago. You pestered me about it enough when I first came to the ranch.”

She grinned at him. “I do recall something about ending up polishing your championship buckles.”

The hard line of his mouth softened just a fraction. “You were an easy mark.”

“I suppose I had a bit of a crush on you back then,” she admitted, not sure why she was willing to share such a secret now. Maybe because she’d always thought of Jake as a trusted friend, right up until the moment she’d realized he intended to take what she so desperately wanted.

“I would have done anything to please you,” she recalled with a wry smile. “You never took advantage of that, though.”

“Except to get you to polish those buckles for me.”

She met his gaze. “You know what I meant.”

Jake didn’t pretend not to understand a second time. “You were a girl, Sara. I may be a low-down skunk when it comes to women, but you were off-limits.”

“I’m all grown up now,” she pointed out daringly.

He grinned at that. “And more trouble than I can cope with,” he told her. “Don’t play with fire, Sara. You’re liable to get burned.”

“That’s an odd warning coming from a man who figures on winning a bet that includes me among the prizes.”

He shrugged. “I probably should have mentioned the warning before we made the bet. You might not have been so quick to take me up on it. Being married to a man like me wouldn’t be any bed of roses. I’m not going to settle down like some docile lapdog, Sara. You ought to keep that in mind.”