Saving the Cowboy’s Christmas (Rowdy Ranch #12)

Chapter 11

CHAPTER ELEVEN

R ance firmly believed he and Lani were right for each other, but he hadn’t figured on getting the sun, moon and stars on the first try. Might’ve been a fluke, but he didn’t think so.

Instead his fate was sealed. If he couldn’t be with Lani, and his chances were slim, he was destined to remain single for the rest of his life.

“You don’t look very happy for someone who recently sounded like he was living the dream.”

Opening his eyes, he gazed down at her flushed, beautiful face. “I’m happy.”

“Then why aren’t you smiling?”

“Why aren’t you smiling, good-time girl? You were whooping it up right along with me.”

“Of course I was. It was good.” She heaved a sigh. “Too good.”

“Exactly. Want to do it again?” He’d be a fool not to ask, since this might be the one and only time they’d be in this bedroom together.

“What if it’s even better? What then, smarty-pants?”

“I’ll take that chance, but first we have to regroup. Or I do. You can stay put.”

“I’m thirsty.”

“Me, too. It’s the champagne. But stay there.” He left the bed and headed for his bathroom. “I’ll take care of things and then get us some water.”

“Naked?”

“I’ll wrap a towel around me,” he called over his shoulder, “but I doubt it’s necessary. Granny doesn’t get up at night.”

“Are you sure about that? My grandma gets up several times a night.”

“Okay, maybe she does get up and I just haven’t noticed.” He stepped into the bathroom.

“She probably does, and unless you modified the floorplan like my folks did, the second bathroom is down the hall.”

“You’ve made your point. I’ll put on my jeans.”

“I’d offer to get us water, but if she doesn’t run into me, she never has to know I stayed.”

“She’ll know.”

“How?”

He finished washing up and walked out. “Because I’ll tell her.”

“Why do that?” In the interim she’d pulled back the covers and propped herself up with a pillow. She drilled him with a what-the-hell look.

“Guaranteed she’ll ask me, and I’m not gonna lie. I promise she won’t say anything to anyone. She passed that test by keeping my book a secret since October.”

“I guess it doesn’t matter if she knows. I’d just rather my family didn’t find out.”

Sounded like she’d be embarrassed, which nicked his pride. “Afraid your dad will come after me with a shotgun?”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“You’re right. He’s a peaceful sort. Your mom’s more the type to wave that double-barrel at me.”

That got her to smile. “She’d have to point it at me. I’m the holdout. You’d probably go along with a shotgun wedding.”

“Not if you don’t want me.” He pulled on his briefs and picked up his jeans.

“That’s the problem. I do.”

The knot in his chest loosened some. “Thank you for that.” He held her gaze. “It means a lot. But you’re in love with that publishing house and I refuse to break up a happy relationship.” Buttoning and zipping his jeans, he crossed to the door, opened it and stepped out. He almost ran into Granny. “Hey, there.”

“Rance! Jaysus! Nearly scared the life out of me, ya did.”

“Sorry.” He quickly closed the door behind him. “Just got up to fetch a glass of water.”

“What didja say?”

“I NEED A GLASS OF WATER!” Technically he needed two, but he chose not to be that specific.

“Ah. ’Tis what I’m after, too. My throat’s drier than Maeve O’Malley’s soda bread. Ya never tasted somethin’ that dry. Like chewin’ on a brick.” She tightened the sash on her robe as she walked toward the dark kitchen, her slippers whispering over the wooden floor. Whoops. They’d left the place a mess. “SORRY ABOUT THE DISHES!”

“Broke ’em in a fit of passion, didja?”

“WE LEFT WITHOUT CLEANING UP!”

“Well, good on ya. How’s it goin’, then?”

“GREAT!”

“Grand was it?” She paused and turned back to him. “Fer both a ya? Lani, too?”

His face heated. Good thing he was hidden by the shadows. “For both of us.”

“Ya hafta repeat that, lad. M’ears are in m’bedroom.”

Might as well cut to the chase. “SHE’S HAD TWO ORGASMS SO FAR!”

“Fair play, boyo! Had to check. Tis always grand fer the fella, y’know. Ya have ta give her a good time, too.”

“I PROMISE I WILL!”

“Good. Ya be needin’ ta stay hydrated, then.” She spun around and made for the kitchen.

When she flipped on the light she didn’t spare a glance for the dishes stacked on the counter. Taking three large glasses from the cupboard, she quickly filled them from the tap and handed him two.

“Thanks.” Even if she couldn’t hear that, she’d probably read his lips.

“You’re welcome.” She flapped her hands at him. “Go on, now. Keep it up.”

He choked back a laugh as he left the kitchen. She hadn’t meant it the way his lust-filled brain had heard it. Or maybe she had.

He'd worried that he’d shock her with the explicit sex scenes in his book. She might be more informed on the subject than he was.

Would Lani be mad at him for his detailed answer to Granny’s question? Clearly that was the info she’d been after. She should have given him more credit. Then again, she hadn’t read his book yet.

Lani greeted him with a big grin. Not mad at him.

“I’m glad you thought it was funny.”

“I just wish I hadn’t left my phone in my tote. I would have stood by the door and recorded it.”

“For what? Blackmail?” He passed over a glass of water and set his on the nightstand so he could shuck his jeans.

“No, just for me.”

“A souvenir? Something to remember me by in your twilight years?” He wanted to spend those years with her, which was probably why he’d said it, pressing on a tender place in his heart to see how bad it hurt. He climbed into bed.

“I won’t have any trouble remembering you.”

“I can’t tell if that’s a compliment or not.”

“It’s simply a fact. You’re not going anywhere and my whole family is here. We’ll see each other at least once a year, probably twice, for the rest of our lives.”

He stared at her. How had he managed to ignore that eventuality?”

“You haven’t thought about that, have you?”

“No, damn it. Have you?”

“Not until you said that thing about twilight years.” She held his gaze. “And guess what? I’ll probably spend mine right here.”

“In my bed?”

“This isn’t a joke. You know what I mean. Here. On Rowdy Ranch.”

“Aw, hell. Are you saying you’ll retire out here?”

“It’s logical. I don’t see Kieran and Sara going anywhere. My folks look healthier than they have in ages. They might still be around, too.”

“So I don’t stand a chance now, but in forty years, it’ll be clear sailing?”

“It’s not funny, damn it.”

“Ironic, though, if after all that time, we finally… well, unless you have a husband, in which case….” The nightmare scenario took a turn for the worse. “You’ll not only bring him when you retire, you’ll drag him to the ranch every blessed time you visit.”

“And even more fun, I’ll get to know whoever you’re with.”

Denial rose in his throat. He tried to swallow it, which resulted in a caveman grunt of dismissal. Not particularly attractive.

“I don’t like thinking about you with someone else, but I’d better get used to the idea. Some lucky lady will be enjoying all this.” She swept a hand around the room. “Your packed bookshelves, your cute little tree by the fireplace. Is it real?”

“The tree’s real. The fireplace is electric.” Leaning toward the nightstand, he opened the drawer.

Her breath hitched.

“I’m getting the remote for the fireplace.”

“Oh.”

“But I’d be happy to grab a condom while I’m at it.”

“Don’t let me stop you.”

He looked over his shoulder. “You could, you know. After what we just discussed, you’d be smart to cut your losses.”

“Do you want to?”

“No.”

“Neither do I.”

“Alrighty, then.” He tossed a condom on the nightstand and picked up the remote. “But first, some atmosphere. Do you like crackling logs, glowing embers or something in between?”

“Can I play with it?”

“You can play with anything in this room, including me.” He handed over the remote.

“I’ll keep that in mind.” She pointed the remote at the fireplace and went through the settings. “I’m in the mood for this one — gentle flames so you get a flicker but it’s not loud.”

“Good choice. Want music?”

She smiled. “You have a remote for that?”

“Yes, and before you ding me for my seductive setup?—”

“I wasn’t gonna.” She picked up her water and settled back against the pillows.

“But you were thinking it.”

“Maybe.”

“Ninety percent of the time I’m alone in here. Since February, it’s been a hundred percent. Just me and my laptop.”

“You write in here?”

“A lot, yeah. During the day I sometimes sit at my old rolltop desk. I have a great view of the Sapphires from that window.” He took several swallows of water.

“But there’s no door to close. And now you have Granny here.”

“That lady’s amazingly quiet. Never interrupts me, except for the time a bear strolled past the cabin two days after she moved in. But you make a good point. I sink into the story more when I’m in here with my music on and the door closed.”

“And surrounded by books. I think you have more than me.”

“That’s not even all of them. I enclosed my back porch for a workout room and I put up shelves in there to handle the overflow.”

She gave his chest the kind of appraisal guaranteed to get a rise out of him. “I figured you must work out.”

“Not as much as I used to. I’d rather write than sweat.”

“This is you on a reduced exercise regime?”

Evidently the muscles he had were enough. That was gratifying. “A year ago I could bench press two-twenty. Bulking up was my strategy for impressing women.”

“Did it work?”

“Like a charm. But I’ve switched strategies. Now I write books.”

“To impress women?”

“One woman.” Tilting back his head, he drank the rest of the water and set the glass on the nightstand.

Her gaze sharpened. “You said you didn’t write Tequila Shots for me.”

“I didn’t.” He picked up the condom, one more step down the path to nowhere. “I wrote it for us.”