A Little Surprise For The Boss
Elizabeth Lane
The rich rancher’s irresistible offer… Only from USA TODAY bestselling author Sara Orwig!From the moment they met, their intense attraction has been off the charts. And It’s rendered Blake Callahan’s judgment inoperative. Because the billionaire rancher has offered millions to lure Sierra Benson away from her charity organization to work for him. The offer’s just too good for the former designer to refuse.Working together at Blake’s ranch, there’s no escaping the powerful desire that draws them closer. But Blake’s driven by his need for revenge against his father, while Sierra is all about helping those in need. So how will they bridge their differences when Sierra discovers she’s pregnant?
“Dance with me,” he said.
Buck faced Terri and held out his hand.
Her lips parted, but she didn’t speak as he drew her into his arms. She was a little stiff and self-conscious at first—Buck guessed she hadn’t danced in a while. But as he pulled her close enough to be guided by his body, she softened against him, slipping into the beat of the music.
Her satiny cheek rested against his. He breathed her in, filling his senses with her sexy-clean, womanly aroma. Her curves skimmed his body, the contact hardening his arousal. There was no way she couldn’t be feeling it. But she didn’t pull away.
He’d made love to this woman, Buck reminded himself. He’d been inside her—and, damn it all, he ached to be there again. But that was the least of what he was feeling now.
How could he let her go after tonight? How could he watch her walk away, knowing that even if he saw her again, she would no longer be part of his life?
A Little Surprise
for the Boss
Elizabeth Lane
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
ELIZABETH LANE has lived and traveled in many parts of the world, including Europe, Latin America and the Far East, but her heart remains in the American West, where she was born and raised. Her idea of heaven is hiking a mountain trail on a clear autumn day. She also enjoys music, animals and dancing. You can learn more about Elizabeth by visiting her website at www.elizabethlaneauthor.com (http://www.elizabethlaneauthor.com).
Contents
Cover (#u3f7df30f-aa4f-5973-a714-4b7abeec9fb7)
Introduction (#ud44770c9-8fc8-5541-b9cb-9b2a675a1bf7)
Title Page (#u5776aab3-069d-5b30-831e-d6d9255d81e8)
About the Author (#u2fcfd97e-b5b4-56a2-9da1-51c1b9b51e45)
One (#u18c84913-bb84-5b39-a8b0-0dfa0202a9a3)
Two (#u20fb7748-312a-56cf-be0c-7384c316b2d5)
Three (#u20d9fa9c-ed1a-5df0-8904-1cf8e76c6bee)
Four (#litres_trial_promo)
Five (#litres_trial_promo)
Six (#litres_trial_promo)
Seven (#litres_trial_promo)
Eight (#litres_trial_promo)
Nine (#litres_trial_promo)
Ten (#litres_trial_promo)
Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)
Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)
Extract (#litres_trial_promo)
Copyright (#litres_trial_promo)
One (#ulink_19b1bbca-3b90-5a11-bd62-58484bf524e3)
Porter Hollow, Utah
Mid-June
Terri Hammond dumped two aspirin into her palm and washed them down with the lukewarm coffee in her mug. The hand-thrown mug, a costly item that bore the inscription My Right-Hand Woman, had been a Christmas gift the previous December from her boss of ten years, Buck Morgan, CEO of Bucket List Enterprises. Its message, meant as a compliment, was a galling reminder of the way Buck treated her—as something that simply did whatever he asked, without requiring attention or praise. Something to be taken for granted.
To Buck’s credit, he’d also given her a generous bonus. But right now, it was all Terri could do to keep from flinging the mug against the sandstone wall of her office with all her strength.
No wonder she had a headache. It was nine forty-five, the day was already turning into the Monday from hell, and Buck was nowhere to be found.
The morning had started with a voice mail from Jay Mickleson, the instructor for the resort’s scheduled afternoon skydive. He’d thrown out his back over the weekend and couldn’t show up for the jump that had been booked. If Terri couldn’t raise one of the other instructors or find Buck, she’d have to do the job herself. She was licensed and certified, but it was just one more thing to add to an already hectic day—a day that was just getting started.
As Terri was about to check her email, a call had come from the nursing supervisor at Canyon Shadows Assisted Living. Terri’s ninety-one-year-old grandmother was refusing to eat again. When the aide had tried to feed her, the old woman swore at the poor girl, knocked the plate to the floor, and demanded that somebody be called to come and drive her home.
The incident would blow over just as they always had in the past, Terri knew. But she felt duty bound to show up. It was nobody’s fault that the sweet, patient woman who’d raised her after her parents died had become erratic and miserable in her old age and dementia. Her grandmother still deserved—and needed—love and attention.
While she was waiting for Bob, her young assistant, to show up and cover the calls, the phone rang again. Terri’s nerves clenched as she recognized the voice of Diane, Buck’s ex-wife, who, thanks to a smart divorce lawyer, owned a 20 percent share of Bucket List Enterprises.
“Terri? Put Buck on.” In Terri’s experience, the word please had never escaped the woman’s collagen-enhanced lips. Neither had thank you.
“Sorry, Diane, he’s not here.”
“Well, where is he? He’s not answering his cell.”
“I know. I’ve tried to reach him. He’s not answering his landline at home, either. Can I help you with something?”
“Well...” Her tongue made a little click. “You can pass this on. I can’t drive Quinn up there this week because I’m hosting a spiritual cleansing retreat here in Sedona. If Buck wants his daughter for the summer, he’s going to have to send someone to get her or come himself.”
Terri bit back a snarky retort. “I’ll pass that on.”
“Fine. Do that.” The call ended. Terri sighed as she hung up the phone. Buck’s nine-year-old daughter was a little champ. But her parents relayed her back and forth like the shuttlecock in a badminton game. Neither of them seemed to have much time for the girl.
Getting Quinn here was Buck’s problem, not hers. But it was her job to let him know. She picked up the phone again and punched in his cell number. She heard the recorded answer in the deep, sexy drawl that, after all these years, still raised goose bumps on the back of her neck.
Hi. You’ve reached Buck Morgan. I’m not available right now. Leave a message and I’ll get back to you soon as I can.
Terri waited for the beep. “Blast it, Buck, where are you? Jay hurt his back. He’s probably out for the week. And you need to phone Diane about picking up Quinn in Sedona—she says she can’t drive her out. Call me.”
Five minutes later, Bob walked in, late as usual. Dark-haired and handsome at nineteen, he was sure of himself to the point of arrogance. But when it came to actual experience or know-how to back up his ego...he had a lot to learn. Especially when it came to running things at Bucket List Enterprises. After three weeks of struggling to train him, Terri had doubts about his willingness to learn any of it. But since his father was one of Buck’s partners, she was stuck with him. She sighed as he waved a greeting. What she wouldn’t give for some reliable help.
After telling him where she was going and leaving him with some brief instructions, she shoved on her sunglasses and dashed out through the rustic, open-beamed lobby of the luxury hotel that was the center of Buck’s business. Her vintage Jeep was parked in the employee row, next to Bob’s Corvette. Piling into the driver’s seat, she swung onto Porter Hollow’s main street and headed for the nursing home. Her long chestnut hair, caught back in a ponytail, waved behind her as she drove.
By the time she arrived, the crisis was over. “Harriet calmed down not long after we called you,” the nursing director told her. “She finally ate some breakfast and went to sleep in her lounge chair in front of the TV.”
“You’re not giving her anything to make her sleep, are you?” Terri demanded.
“Of course not, dear. She’s just old and tired. Any little thing wears her out these days.”
Terri took the stairs to the second floor, walked down the carpeted hallway and opened the door to her grandmother’s tiny studio apartment. The TV was blaring a popular game show, but the old woman wasn’t watching. She lay partway back in her old leather recliner, her head sagging to one side like a tired little sparrow’s as she slept. She looked so small and frail that Terri had to fight back tears.
After turning off the TV, Terri left without waking her. She would come back to visit tonight after dinner. Right now she needed to check on Buck.
Worry gnawed at her as she turned onto Main Street. Buck had worked hard to build his business, and he took a hands-on approach to running it. The other side of that was that he played as hard as he worked. Oversleeping after a wild night wasn’t unheard of. But it wasn’t like him to drop out of sight without telling her, or at least leaving his phone on so she could reach him. Something had to be wrong.
On this warm mid-June day, Main Street was crowded with tourists. Visitors roamed the boardwalks that lined the narrow roadway, browsing the expensive boutiques and art galleries, and eating brunch in the upscale gourmet restaurants.
For generations, Porter Hollow had been a sleepy little southern Utah town, nestled amid spectacular red rock scenery but largely undiscovered by the rest of the world. Buck, who’d grown up here, had come home from the army eleven years ago burning with ideas to bring the place to life and garner the town worldwide attention.
Starting small, he’d partnered with several outdoor-adventure companies to form Bucket List Enterprises. Within a few years the town had become a magnet for high-end adventure seekers. Porter Hollow offered access to four national parks, the vast waters of Lake Powell and the Tony Award–winning Utah Shakespeare Festival in nearby Cedar City. Buck’s clients could enjoy river rafting, sport fishing, hiking, biking, skydiving, four-wheeling and horseback trips into the nearby mountains. With the construction of a sprawling luxury hotel complex, featuring exclusive shops, five-star restaurants, a spa, a beauty salon and the booking office for Bucket List Adventures, Buck had forged a kingdom. As holder of a 70 percent company share, he was its absolute ruler. Even Terri could only guess how many millions of dollars he was worth.
From the main highway, Terri took a right turn onto the road that wound two miles up a vermilion-hued canyon to the gated property where Buck had built his home. She would check there first. If she failed to find him, she would start making phone calls. Buck Morgan wasn’t just her boss. The two of them went back a long way. She was genuinely concerned about him.
Growing up, Terri had known Buck as the best friend of her older brother, Steve. Buck and Steve had played football together, hunted and fished together, and double-dated the prettiest girls in school. After graduation, the two of them had joined the army and deployed in the same unit. Buck had survived Iraq and made it home without a scratch. Steve had been shot dead on patrol and come home to Porter Hollow in a flag-draped coffin. His death had devastated Terri. But Buck had tried to make sure she was all right. When, after two years of college, she’d returned home to care for her aging grandmother, he’d offered her a well-paying job as his assistant and office manager. Working side by side, her feelings for him had only grown—not that he’d ever seemed to notice. Buck had been a loyal friend to her, but it had always been clear that friendship was the only relationship he wanted with her, despite his affairs with an endless string of women.
Her grandmother’s declining health, and her loyalty to Buck, had kept Terri in Porter Hollow and with Bucket List Enterprises for the past ten years. But recently she’d begun to question her future. She was thirty years old. Did she really want to spend her life looking after a man with a weakness for sexy blondes—a man who never gave her a second look, except when he needed something done?
It wasn’t as if she didn’t have options. As Buck’s assistant, she’d gotten to know the owners of other resorts in the region. Several had expressed an interest in poaching her. Moving her grandmother shouldn’t be a problem. There had to be nice facilities in other towns—some of them better than Canyon Shadows.
She should give it some serious thought, Terri told herself as she drove up the canyon. A change of scene might be good for her. It might even help her get over the flaming crush she’d had on Buck Morgan since she was fourteen.
Pulling up to the wrought iron gate, Terri entered the code on the keypad. She felt a prickle of nervous apprehension. What would she find when she reached the house? What could explain Buck’s mysterious silence?
A symphony of stone, wood and glass, the house was set amid cliffs and massive boulders like part of the landscape. The interior featured soaring cathedral ceilings and a huge stone fireplace. Buck could easily have afforded servants, but he liked his privacy. He made do with a weekly cleaning crew from the hotel to keep the place spotless.
The place looked undisturbed. As Terri pulled into the driveway, she could see Murphy, Buck’s big rescue mutt, romping in the enclosed part of the yard. An imposing mix of rottweiler and pit bull, he was as playful and affectionate as he was scary-looking. He bounded up to the tall fence, tongue lolling and tail wagging, as she climbed out of the Jeep.
“Hello, boy.” Terri stuck her fingers through the chain links so the dog could slurp them. The dog didn’t seem upset—which he’d likely be if something was wrong. And Buck’s tan Hummer was parked outside the garage, which meant he was most likely here. But if he was here, why wasn’t he answering either of his phones?
The door swung open to a silent house. No TV. No sounds or smells from the kitchen. She checked the kitchen and dining room, the pantry, the den, and the downstairs bathroom. Aside from a single coffee cup and a spoon in the sink, there was no sign of life. The bedrooms, including Buck’s, were upstairs. Cringing inside, Terri crept up the open staircase. What if Buck was here and he had company? If she heard telltale noises coming from his bedroom, she’d be out of the house faster than a scared jackrabbit.
From the landing, she could see that the door to Buck’s room was partway open. Peeking around the door frame, she saw that the blinds were drawn, the room dim and quiet. Finally she could make out a solitary figure sprawled facedown in the rumpled king-size bed—sheets twisted around long, bare legs, a smudge of dark hair against the pillow. It was definitely Buck. But was he all right? It wasn’t like him to be in bed at this hour on a workday.
Shedding her sandals in the hall, she tiptoed into the room. She could hear the deep rasp of his breathing. At least he was alive. Edging closer, she could see his shoes and work clothes scattered on the sheepskin rug, as if he’d just peeled everything off and collapsed into bed. He wasn’t even wearing...
Heat rushed to Terri’s face as her gaze fixed on the twin moons of his rump, nicely framed by a fold of the twisted sheet. The man wasn’t wearing a stitch. What she could see of him looked damned good.
But this was no time to ogle her boss’s scrumptious body. Something here wasn’t right. He was either sick or drugged, maybe both.
His cell phone was on the nightstand, switched off. She also noticed an empty water glass and two plastic prescription bottles. Holding them to the light from the hall, she inspected the labels. One she recognized as a heavy-duty analgesic Buck took for his occasional migraines. The other was unfamiliar. But if Buck had taken them in combination, the side effects could have knocked him out—or worse.
She was no doctor. But one thing was certain. She couldn’t just walk away and leave him like this. She needed to wake him up and make sure he was all right.
Reluctant to startle him, she nudged his bare shoulder. “Buck, wake up,” she whispered.
A quiver passed through his body. He groaned, the sound muffled by the pillow.
“Wake up, Buck! Open your eyes!” She shook his shoulder again, harder this time. He moaned, twitched and rolled over onto his back. His stunning cobalt eyes were open, but they had a glazed, drowsy look.
“Hullo, pretty lady,” he muttered. “You showed up just in time.”
“In time for what?” Terri asked. Buck appeared to be half-asleep. He didn’t even seem to recognize her. “Pretty lady” was his usual term of endearment for his conquests—he’d never called her that before.
“For this.” He clasped her wrist and trailed her hand down his belly under the tangled sheet. Gently but firmly he folded her fingers around a stallion-sized erection.
Terri’s heart lurched. She was no virgin—she’d had a couple of relationships in college and a short-lived fling on a trip to Hawaii. But that had been a long time ago, and this was Buck, not only her boss, but her friend—and the man she’d secretly pined over for years.
Clearly he wasn’t in his right mind. If she was smart, she’d slap him back to his senses and leave. But the heat was already pounding through her body. Even after he released her wrist, she couldn’t make her fingers let go of that warm, silky, amazing hardness.
Heaven help her, she wanted him.
“C’mere, you...” he said, while she was still trying to convince herself that she should, she must leave. Hand catching the back of her head, he pulled her down for a rough, possessive kiss that pushed every sensible logical thought out of her mind. His tongue invaded her mouth, stroking and teasing the sensitive surfaces. Desire blazed through her like the flame of a blowtorch. She could feel the wetness as her body prepared to welcome him. Common sense took flight. She wanted him so much. And it felt so incredible to believe, in this moment, that he wanted her, too.
His hands, deft and practiced, unfastened her khakis and slid them down her legs, along with her panties. Shifting on the bed, he encouraged her to straddle him, positioning her body on top of his. He slid his hand between her legs, and she could feel his grin against her lips at the wetness he found.
She leaned over him, clasped his hips with her knees and eased herself down onto his shaft. Her eyes closed as he slid upward, completely filling her. He groaned in satisfaction as her lips parted, her breath sucked inward. This was Buck inside her—the man she’d wanted from the time she’d learned what sex was all about. Even the thought was enough to trigger the delicious little spasm of her first climax.
She began to move, taking the time at first to feel every inch of him gliding in and out of her. Then, for both of them, urgency took over. His breath deepened, hips arching to meet her as she pushed harder, faster, until with a groan he rolled her onto her back, moved on top of her and took charge.
Her legs wound around his hips as he thrust into her, driving like a bull, until she burst with him, clenching around him in a climax that fulfilled fifteen years of fantasies.
With a grunt of satisfaction, he rolled off her and lay back on the pillow. For a few seconds Terri was still, basking in the afterglow. Then reality fell on her with a crash. She’d just had mindless, gasket-blowing sex with her boss. Nothing would ever be the same between them again.
Sitting up, she gazed down at him. Buck’s eyes were closed, his breathing deep and even. His face wore a contented little smirk.
The man had gone back to sleep—if he’d ever actually been fully awake.
Her face burned as the truth sank home. The earth might have moved for her. But what about him? He’d roused to find a woman in his bedroom and simply reacted. She could have been anyone. When he woke up later, the odds were he’d only barely remember this encounter. She wasn’t at all sure he’d remember that the woman had been her.
That would be for the best, Terri told herself as she slipped off the bed and gathered her clothes without disturbing him. If Buck didn’t remember the identity of his mystery lover, there’d be no awkwardness, no embarrassing confrontations—and of course, she’d never tell him. They could go on as before, as if nothing had happened.
Or...could this be the thing she’d been looking for, to shake up her life from the rut it was in?
Dare she hope that this would change things between them? That he would look at her and see the warm, loving—and sexy, damn it—woman behind the loyal assistant who’d been at his side like a faithful hound for the past ten years?
If not, maybe it really was time to move on.
Before leaving the room, she switched on his cell phone and turned the ring volume all the way up. If Diane had something to discuss, or if there was an emergency at work, he was damned well fit to answer the call.
In the hallway, she scrambled into her clothes, cramming her shirttail into her khakis and hooking the belt with shaking hands. The memory of her time in Buck’s bed already felt like some kind of crazy dream. It would be up to Buck to decide whether or not to make it real.
Downstairs, she fed the dog and changed his water. Then she left. She was no longer worried about Buck’s condition. He’d given her ample proof that he was going to be fine. She would go back to work and let him sleep off whatever was in his system. Meanwhile, there were plenty of other things to demand her attention.
Twenty minutes after leaving Buck’s place, she pulled into the hotel parking lot, switched off the Jeep’s ignition and took a moment to compose herself. Her pulse was still racing at the memory of the time she’d spent in his bed. When she’d driven to his canyon home, the last thing she’d expected was to sleep with the man. Getting back to normal was going to be a challenge. And she couldn’t repress the surge of excitement at the thought that they might be on the verge of a new normal.
But until then, she had to pull herself together. Glancing down, she smoothed her khaki shirt with the Bucket List logo on the front pocket, then climbed out of the vehicle and strode across the parking lot to the hotel entrance.
The hotel lobby was a showplace. Built in rustic style, like the lodges at the nearby Grand Canyon, it featured walls of red sandstone slabs, massive open-beam construction and a slate floor. At the far end, a stone fireplace rose to the ceiling. Between the entrance and the front desk, a waterfall cascaded down a face of natural rock. Exquisite Navajo rugs hung on the walls, and the gift shops sold real Native American textiles, jewelry and pottery. There was no tourist junk. Buck had insisted that everything sold here be not only authentic but of gallery quality.
Terri smiled a greeting to the clerks as she passed the front desk, then darted down a hallway to the women employees’ restroom. When she checked herself in the mirror, she expected to see her usual ordinary features—the copper-flecked brown eyes and no-nonsense brows, the square chin, the straight nose sprinkled with freckles, all arranged into the businesslike expression she wore at work. But the face gazing back at her was almost a stranger’s—cheeks flushed, moist lips swollen, eyes large and bright in a surprisingly sensual face. Nobody who saw her could help but notice the difference.
Good grief! Why not simply hang a sign around her neck reading I Just Had Hot Sex with the Boss?
With a shake of her head, she turned on the cold water, splashed her face and blotted it dry with a paper towel. Slicking her lips with the colored gloss she carried in her purse and smoothing her hair back with her damp hands, she called it good. Duty awaited.
The booking and management office for Bucket List Adventures was down the hall in its own wing of the hotel complex. It consisted of an open area for the staff, break and conference rooms, restrooms, a modest office for Terri, and a spacious office for Buck.
Terri breezed in from the covered hallway that connected with the hotel, trying to look as if nothing had happened. She found Bob in her office, sitting back in her chair with his boots on her desk and spilled coffee leaving a trail across the mahogany surface. A spark of annoyance flared. But she bit back a sharp comment. She’d asked the boy to cover the phones. He probably didn’t know how to transfer the calls to his own desk.
“So catch me up,” she said. “What’s happening?”
Making no move to get out of her chair, though he did at least have the grace to drop his feet off the desk and look a bit embarrassed, he picked up a yellow notepad. At least he knew enough to write down messages. “The skydive’s covered,” he said. “Jay called another instructor who was willing to take it.”
“That’s a relief.” And it was. After this morning, she was in no condition to parachute out of a plane with the seventy-year-old woman who was jumping to celebrate her birthday. “Anything else?” she asked.
“Diane called again. She wanted to know where Buck was. I told her you’d gone to look for him.” He glanced up at her. “Did you have any luck?”
Terri willed her expression to freeze. “Buck isn’t feeling well. He’d turned off his phone so he could get some rest, that’s all.”
“Well, I guess I should give you your desk back.” He stood then, a gangly figure who towered over Terri by a head. “Hey, did you lose your earring?” he asked.
“Oh!” Terri’s hands went to her earlobes. One earring was in place. The other was missing.
The little turquoise-inlaid silver earrings in the shape of Kokopelli, the Native American flute-playing deity, were her favorite pair. She’d received a lot of compliments on them. Even Buck had noticed them.
The missing earring could have fallen off anywhere. But it hadn’t. Terri’s gut feeling told her exactly how and where she’d lost it.
Buck would be sure to recognize it. And that meant that he’d have to acknowledge what had occurred between them. Her stomach roiled in fear and anticipation. This could be a disaster...or it could be the start of something amazing. And she had no way of knowing which until Buck finally arrived.
Two (#ulink_ffdbba7f-342d-5d35-b3c8-84a320bbca64)
Buck’s ringing cell phone blasted him out of a sound sleep. Cursing, he fumbled for the device on the nightstand and sent it clattering to the floor.
Damn! He could’ve sworn he’d turned that phone off before collapsing into bed last night. And he would never set the ringer up to its full, earsplitting volume. What the devil was going on?
Grabbing the phone from the floor, he pushed the answer button. “Hullo?” he mumbled.
“Where’ve you been, Buck?” As always, Diane’s voice scraped his nerves like fingernails on a chalkboard. The worst of it was, between the daughter they shared and the chunk of his company she owned, he’d likely be hearing that shrill voice for the rest of his life.
“Sick.” He forced the word through a throat that felt as if he’d swallowed glue.
“Well, get unsick. It’s almost noon. Did you get my voice-mail messages? I must’ve left you three or four.”
“Haven’t checked.”
“I’ll save you the trouble—I need you to pick up Quinn.”
His daughter’s name jarred him to alertness. “Weren’t you supposed to bring her here?”
“I’ve got people coming for a retreat. I could bring her up next week, but she’s all packed and ready to go. If she has to wait, she’ll be so disappointed.”
“Fine. I’ll send Evie Redfeather down in the jet to pick her up.” Evie was his personal pilot. Quinn knew and liked her.
“You can’t come yourself?”
“Like you, I have other commitments. Tell her Evie’s coming. She’ll be fine with that.” Buck ended the call before Diane could think of some other way to pull his strings. This last-minute change of plans was typical. Diane would have known about her retreat for weeks and could have made arrangements for Quinn earlier. But why do that when she could create a little drama?
Diane had been a Vegas showgirl when he’d met her ten years ago. After a hot weekend in her bed, he’d flown home without giving her a second thought. But then she’d shown up pregnant on his doorstep, and he’d done the honorable thing. For a while they’d tried to make the marriage work, but it had been doomed from the first “I do.” After a nightmare divorce settlement, she’d moved to Sedona, Arizona, and opened her own new age ashram.
The experience had left Buck with a bitter taste when it came to marriage. But at least he had Quinn. Quinn had been worth it all.
The phone shrilled again. Knowing it was Diane, Buck turned it off and lay back on the pillow. He’d come home last night with a pounding migraine. Feeling like roadkill, he’d taken some pills, undressed and fallen into bed, hoping to sleep through the pain. It had worked. He felt better today.
Especially after that crazy, sexy dream he’d had.
Closing his eyes, he tried to recall it in detail. He’d had erotic dreams before, plenty of them, but this one had been different. It had seemed so...real. The warm silkiness of skin against his body. The taste of that luscious mouth. Even the sexy aroma of her skin. He could remember everything about the woman—except her face.
Damn! He’d gulp down a whole bottle of those blasted pills if it could bring the dream back. His climax had been an explosion of sheer sensual pleasure, so powerful he’d probably drenched the bedding underneath him.
He frowned, struck by an odd notion. He should be lying in a damp spot now. But the sheet beneath him felt perfectly clean and dry.
Perplexed, he sat up, moved to one side and ran his hand across the mattress. Nothing. He shook his head, as if trying to clear out the cobwebs. What in blazes had happened here?
That was when he noticed something else—a subtle fragrance rising from the bottom sheet. Pressing his face to the fabric, he inhaled the sweet, clean aroma, trying to identify it. This wasn’t the softener the hotel laundry used. And it wasn’t one of the expensive perfumes his sexual partners tended to drench themselves in. It was something else, something fresh but somehow familiar. It was her scent, exactly as he remembered it.
There could be only one conclusion—the dream had been real. There’d been a woman in his bed, and he’d made love to her.
But how could that be? There’d been no one here when he’d gone to bed last night. The gate to the property had been locked. The house had been locked. And if the dog had barked at an intruder, he hadn’t heard it.
Was he losing his mind?
He sat up. The room looked the same as usual. Nothing appeared to have been touched except—
His gaze fell on the phone.
Now that his head was clearing, he distinctly recalled turning it off before he went to sleep. But someone had not only turned it on again but adjusted the ring volume loud enough to raise the dead.
Who would play such a dirty trick on him?
Maybe he was still dreaming.
Sliding his legs off the bed, he pushed to his feet and stood on the sheepskin rug. His legs felt as shaky as Jell-O, probably because the pills hadn’t worn off. Maybe if he went downstairs and got some coffee in his system, he’d be able to think straight.
His robe was draped over the foot of the bed. He took a step toward it, then jerked back with a grunt of pain. His bare foot had come down on something sharp—some object caught in the thick wool of the rug.
Bending over, he found it with his fingers, picked it up and held it to the light. It was a small silver earring, inlaid with turquoise and fashioned in the shape of Kokopelli, the humpbacked Native American flute player. He stared at it, recognition slamming him like a mule kick.
Terri’s earring.
Buck sank onto the edge of the bed. Lord, could he have had mind-blowing sex with Terri, who’d always been like a kid sister to him? Terri, that miracle of patience and efficiency who kept the hectic world of Bucket List Enterprises running like well-oiled clockwork?
No, it was unbelievable. But it was the only possible answer. Terri would have the gate code and the security combination for the front door. The dog, who’d bark at any stranger, knew her well. Glancing at the clock, he saw how late he’d slept. That made sense, too—Terri must have come to check on him when he hadn’t shown up at work.
And only Terri would have turned on his cell phone when she left and set the ringer loud enough to wake him. Knowing her, she probably would’ve fed the dog, too. He would remember to check when he went downstairs.
But if Terri was the answer, he still had plenty of questions. Had he really had sex with her? But the dream, which seemed less and less dreamlike the more he thought of it, left little doubt of that. He remembered waking up to a woman leaning over him, remembered pulling her into bed. Remembered her response, and the way she’d made him feel... He’d initiated the encounter, but she’d come willingly.
No way would she have joined him in that bed...unless she’d wanted to.
Holding that thought, Buck showered in the bathroom, finger-raked his hair, and pulled on sweatpants and a T-shirt. He was wide-awake now, but going back to work today wouldn’t be a great idea, especially since Terri would be there. Sooner or later he’d have to face her. But before that happened, he had some serious thinking to do.
He took a minute to phone Evie Redfeather and arrange for her to pick up Quinn in Sedona. Evie, a retired air force fighter pilot, had made the short flight before and said she didn’t mind going again. That taken care of, he went downstairs in his bare feet to make coffee.
With cup in hand he wandered out onto the redwood deck and leaned on the railing. His eyes traced the passing flight of a golden eagle, its wings casting a brief shadow against the sunset-hued cliffs. A downward glance into the yard confirmed that Murphy’s food dish was full of kibble, his water bowl freshly filled. Terri had been here, all right. No one else would think to take care of his dog while he was sick.
But what was he going to do about her? Terri was his right-hand woman, the person he depended on for everything from booking tours and flights to hiring and firing employees to fending off Diane. But sleeping with her would change the dynamics of what had been a perfect relationship—a relationship he couldn’t afford to lose. He could get a bed partner anytime he wanted one. But, damn it, Terri was irreplaceable.
Buck sipped his coffee and thought hard. This misstep would have to be dealt with. The question was, how?
He could call her into his office—no, maybe take her out to dinner, apologize profusely and promise it would never happen again. But how might Terri respond to that? At best it would create an awkward situation between them. Or she could be hurt. She could feel rejected, even angry. She could even—God forbid—quit her job and leave.
There had to be a way to put this behind them without harming their relationship.
Buck gazed down at the cooled dregs of the coffee in his cup, thinking hard. What if he were to behave as if the whole thing had never happened? After all, he’d been half-asleep. Surely Terri wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t remember. She might even be relieved.
The more he thought about the idea the better it sounded. Nothing would have to change—no expectations, no awkwardness. Terri could go on working for him as always. Even if she suspected him of knowing, she’d have no proof.
His white lie would save face for both of them.
But it didn’t make him feel any better about what had happened. Sex with Terri had been sensational. With any other woman, he would have been lobbying for a return engagement. But Terri was off-limits. Not only was she his employee but she was Steve’s kid sister, the girl he’d promised to look after when Steve didn’t make it home from Iraq.
And having half-drugged sex with her wasn’t part of that promise.
At the moment Buck didn’t like himself much. Between now and the next time he saw her, he had some soul-searching to do.
* * *
By the time Terri had finished her last task for the day—posting tomorrow’s schedule online—it was an hour past closing time. Bob and the summer temps had gone, leaving her there alone to close up. She was about to lock the door when Quinn, trailed by Evie Redfeather, came bounding across the parking lot.
“Hi, Terri!” Blond ponytail flying, Quinn collided with Terri in an exuberant hug.
Terri hugged her back. She adored Buck’s daughter. “How’s my favorite girl?” she asked, meaning it.
“Great!” Quinn’s blue eyes, so like her father’s, sparkled.
“You’re taller,” Terri said.
“I know. Mom says I’m having a growth spurt. The clothes I left here won’t fit. We’ll have to go shopping for new ones.”
Evie Redfeather had come up behind her. In her early fifties, she was a handsome, broad-faced Navajo woman. “Buck asked me to drop her off at his house, but we were two hours late getting out of Sedona.” She shook her head. “That woman! Always with the drama!”
Terri didn’t have to ask Evie who she meant.
“I saw your Jeep in the parking lot and realized you must still be here,” Evie said. “I hope you won’t mind running Quinn home. Bert and I are expecting friends for dinner. I need to get going.”
“Sure.” Terri stifled a groan. The last thing she wanted was to show up at Buck’s house with Quinn. The conversation they needed to have couldn’t happen with little ears present. “Go on, Evie. Thanks for picking her up.”
“No problem. Here, I’ve got her bag. I’ll put it in your Jeep.”
Terri felt Quinn’s hand slip into hers as they followed Evie’s long strides to the Jeep. She fought back a rising attack of nerves. How would Buck react to what had happened? Would he treat her any differently because of it? Would he be embarrassed? Aloof? Indifferent?
But this wasn’t about her and Buck, Terri reminded herself. It was about Quinn, and making the little girl’s homecoming a happy occasion. She could only hope Buck would be out of bed and fit to welcome his daughter.
“Up you go.” She boosted Quinn into the high seat of the Jeep. “Hang on, we’ll have you there in a jiffy.”
“What’s a jiffy?” Quinn asked as Terri climbed into the Jeep. “You use the funniest words, Terri.”
“A jiffy is a very short bit of time. I learned lots of old-fashioned words from my grandma. Maybe I should’ve said we’d be there in the flick of a lamb’s tail. Would you have liked that better?”
Quinn giggled. Terri had kept her distance during the short duration of Buck’s marriage. But after the divorce, once Quinn became old enough to spend time in Utah with her father, she’d become attached to the little girl. Maybe too attached. What if Buck were to remarry? Could she back off and let Quinn go?
But she wouldn’t think about that now. Things were already complicated enough.
“Can we go out for pizza tonight?” Quinn asked. “I want lots of pepperoni on mine. Mom’s vegan now, so she won’t let me eat meat. She didn’t even give me a choice.”
“Don’t they make vegan pepperoni?”
“It’s yucky. So’s the cheese. Has Dad got a new girlfriend yet? I didn’t like the last one. She was scared of bugs and she was always fixing her makeup.”
“I don’t know,” Terri said. “You’ll have to ask him. And you can ask him about the pizza, too. He’s your parent. I’m not.”
“You sound mad. Are you mad, Terri?”
“At you? No way!” Terri reached across the seat and squeezed the girl’s shoulder. She’d have to watch herself around Quinn. The perceptive child was wise beyond her years. If she sensed any tension where Buck was concerned, she was apt to ask awkward questions.
They’d turned off the main road and were headed up the canyon. Terri felt the knot tighten in the pit of her stomach as she realized she was still wearing her single Kokopelli earring. Had Buck found its mate in his bedroom? Or had he not yet left the bed where she’d left him, after the most explosive sexual experience of her life?
They swung up the private road to the gate, and Terri punched in the code. Buck would surely know his daughter was coming. At least he’d been awake enough to have Evie fly down and pick her up. But just to avoid an unpleasant surprise, she pushed the intercom button.
“Hi.” His deep baritone went through her with the shock of memory. It made her shiver to realize she now knew exactly how that voice sounded sex-drenched and husky.
“It’s me.” The words emerged as nervous squeaks. “I’m bringing Quinn.”
“Great. Come on up.” His voice betrayed nothing. Either he was a good actor or he wasn’t ready to talk about what had happened in his bedroom.
Or he didn’t care. Knowing Buck, that was possible, too.
* * *
Buck stood on the front porch watching the Jeep come up the drive. Seeing Terri was a surprise. He’d asked Evie to bring Quinn here. But there must’ve been a change of plans.
Things could be awkward with Terri. He didn’t quite know what to expect from her. But Quinn would be with them. That would make things all right—for now, at least.
The Jeep pulled up next to his Hummer and stopped. Throwing off her seat belt, Quinn bounded out of the passenger seat and raced up the steps to give him a hug. As he swung her off her feet, he could tell she’d grown since Christmas break. With her in Sedona most of the year, he was missing so much of her life. Maybe this summer he could find a way to spend more time with her.
“Hi, Daddy,” she said. “I missed you.”
“Me, too.” He lowered her to the ground. “Are you hungry?”
“Starved.”
“She told me she wanted pizza.” Terri had come up the steps with Quinn’s suitcase. Buck looked at her and forced a smile. Terri smiled back at him, but her eyes held a flicker of uncertainty. She was wearing one of her Kokopelli earrings. Her other earlobe was bare.
That clinched it. If Buck had had any doubt about her being in his bed this morning, it was totally gone.
He was still dealing with the reality of it. Terri was an attractive woman—beautiful in an unassuming way. But he’d always made it a rule to keep his hands off his best friend’s sister. Steve had been gone for a dozen years now, but that rule hadn’t changed. Until now, he’d assumed she had the same rule. But this morning had thrown the rule book out the window, for both of them.
He forced himself to speak up. “Pizza it is. How about Giovanni’s?”
“Yes!” Quinn grinned. “Their pizza’s the yummiest! Can Terri come with us?”
“Terri?” He looked at her, half hoping she’d make an excuse not to come along. Terri’s presence was rousing his memory and putting lustful thoughts into his head—the last thing he needed right now. Their interlude this morning had been incredible...but it could never be repeated.
“I’d better not,” she said, avoiding his eyes. “I promised my grandmother I’d come and visit her tonight.”
“Please, Terri!” Quinn begged. “If we go now you’ll still have time to see your grandma.”
“Come on, Terri.” Buck remembered his resolve to act as if nothing had happened. “It won’t be a party without you.”
She hesitated, then sighed. “All right. I am getting hungry. But let me follow you in the Jeep. That way, when we’re finished, I can just go from Giovanni’s to Canyon Shadows.”
“Okay. Let’s get going.” Buck put Quinn’s bag inside the house and helped her into the passenger seat of the Hummer. He had to believe that in time, if he kept up the act, things would go back to normal. But right now, with the memory of Terri’s lithe, lush body fresh in his mind, it was like walking a tightrope over a volcano. One slip and he’d be in big trouble.
* * *
Terri waited until the Hummer had backed down the steep driveway. Then she turned the Jeep around and followed the hulking vehicle down to the road. It wasn’t too late to head off in a different direction. She could always make an excuse, call Buck’s cell, apologize and say that she’d remembered an important errand. But Quinn would be disappointed if she didn’t show up to share a pizza. Buck, on the other hand, didn’t seem to care either way—about sharing a pizza with her now, or about sharing a bed with her this morning.
Part of her wanted to believe that this morning would make a difference, that Buck would look at her and see a warm, desirable woman. But clearly that hadn’t happened. It was time for her to face the truth. No matter what happened, Buck was never going to see her the way she wanted to be seen. There was only one question left: What was she going to do about it?
Twilight was settling over the town and over the sandstone cliffs that ringed it like the setting of a jewel. Main Street glittered with streams of traffic. Shoppers and diners strolled the boardwalks. Music drifted from cafés and taverns.
This was Buck’s town, but that didn’t mean she had to stay here forever. She had the qualifications and the experience to get a job anywhere in the tourist industry. She’d be a fool to let loyalty keep her in a situation where she felt like a piece of furniture.
Giovanni’s Pizzeria was at the far end of Main Street. When the Hummer’s taillights turned into the parking lot, Terri followed and pulled into the next space. Buck and Quinn were waiting for her when she climbed out of the Jeep. “Let’s go!” Quinn seized her hand and pulled her toward the entrance. “Extralarge pepperoni and giant root beer, here I come!”
Buck chuckled as he caught up with Terri. “Quinn tells me her mother’s had her on nothing but wheatgrass juice and tofu,” he said. “She’s probably exaggerating, but it’ll be a pleasure to see her enjoy real food.”
Terri forced a little laugh. The hostess showed them to a booth with a traditional red-checked tablecloth and a candle melting down the outside of an empty wine bottle. They slid into the seats, Terri and Quinn on one side, Buck on the other. Their waitress came right over to take their order. The pretty blonde was a stranger to Terri, but she seemed to know Buck.
“So this is your little girl!” She flashed a toothpaste-ad smile. “What’s her name?”
Buck, all charm, made the introductions. “Jennifer, this is Quinn. And this lady—” He gave Terri a nod. “This is Terri, my right-hand woman.”
Terri forced a friendly smile. Inside, she was seething. Why couldn’t Buck have used her job title, or just her name? Didn’t he know how demeaning right-hand woman sounded? Obviously not, unless it was meant as hidden message to the waitress—don’t worry, she’s not my girlfriend.
Meanwhile, the waitress was looking at Buck as if she wanted to eat him alive. No doubt she’d be happy to sleep with him, if she hadn’t already.
Terri brought herself up with a mental slap. Good Lord, she couldn’t be jealous! Buck had never tried to hide his love life from her. She’d always accepted his shenanigans with a sisterly shrug, burying any hurt bone-deep. Even his shotgun marriage hadn’t shaken her unconditional affection for the man. And she certainly hadn’t expected for Buck to promise her fidelity and exclusivity after one romp in the bedroom together. But to see him now, just hours after their encounter, flirting with another woman while treating her with his usual indifference, she felt a senseless urge to leap across the table and smack Buck’s handsome face.
Grow up and get over it! she told herself as the petite blonde walked away from the table with their order. Even the sway of her jeans-clad hips held an invitation. The art of seduction was one Terri had never mastered. And suddenly she felt very insecure about her performance that morning. She was hardly the alluring, experienced type of woman he usually chose as a bedmate. The sex had seemed fantastic to her...but had it been merely forgettable to him?
She had to forget what had happened. That would be the only way to survive life in Buck’s magnetic aura. That—or leave.
Quinn’s happy chatter was enough to fill the awkward silence while they waited for their order. Lost in her own thoughts, Terri was startled when Buck reached across the table and nudged her arm. “Hey,” he said, “where have you gone to?”
She blinked herself back to the present. “Did you need something?” she asked.
He gave a shake of his head. “You’re not at work now, Terri. I don’t need anything. I just asked you a question. Did you know one of your earrings was missing?”
“Oh, yes.” Reflexively, she brushed a hand to her bare earlobe. Was it an innocent question, or was he testing her? “Bob noticed it was gone earlier today. I’m still hoping it’ll turn up somewhere.”
“Too bad. I know you liked that pair.” His expression was all innocence.
“Yes, I did.” Terri scrambled to change the subject. “Quinn was telling me she’s growing out of her clothes. I think she needs a shopping trip.”
“I’ll let you off early tomorrow to take her,” he said. “Take my credit card and get her anything she wants.”
“Can I have an iguana?” Quinn asked.
Buck raised an eyebrow. “Now where did that come from?”
“My friend has one. It’s really cool. I’d take care of it. Iguanas are easy. They just eat lettuce and stuff.”
“Think about it a minute,” Buck said. “If it eats, it poops. You’d have to clean its cage every day. Could you do that?”
“Sure. That stuff doesn’t bother me.”
“But what would you do with it at the end of the summer?” Terri put in. “You can’t just walk away from an animal and leave it here. You’d have to take it home with you. Would your mother let you keep it?”
“If I ask her and she says yes, can I have one?”
“Ask her first. Then we’ll talk about it.” Buck cast Terri a grateful glance. He ran Bucket List with an iron hand, but his daughter could talk him into anything—whether it was a good idea or not.
What the little girl really wanted was his time. But it was easier for him to flash his credit card and get her whatever caught her eye. By now Terri knew the pattern. Now that she had arrived for the summer, Buck would welcome Quinn with open arms—he did love his child. But as business issues pulled him away, she’d be shunted off to riding and swimming lessons, turned over to Terri, or left to read books or play video games on her own. Maybe this summer, Terri could help her find some friends her own age in the area.
The subject of the iguana was tabled when the pizza and drinks arrived. Terri tried to ignore the way Jennifer’s hip brushed Buck’s shoulder as she set their order on the table. Was the woman angling for a big tip or something else? But what did it matter to her? Why should she even care?
They were all hungry. Conversation dwindled as they wolfed down the pizza. Buck had just paid the bill when Terri glanced at her watch. It was almost eight o’clock. The aides at Canyon Shadows usually came in around eight thirty to shower the residents and get them ready for bed by nine. With the facility at the far end of town from the restaurant, she would barely have time to make the promised visit to her grandmother.
She stood up, brushing the crumbs off her lap. “I’ve got to get going, or I won’t make it.”
Buck rose. “We’re ready to go, too. We’ll walk you out.”
They trailed outside. At this hour the summer twilight was still fading. Mourning doves called from the old cottonwoods that overhung the parking lot.
“Thanks. See you tomorrow.” Terri strode ahead to her Jeep, then halted with a groan. She wasn’t going anywhere. The Jeep’s rear tire was flat to the rim.
Three (#ulink_8af1c870-6231-55f1-89a4-e9201c3a9556)
Terri was staring at her Jeep when Buck caught up with her. “Too bad,” he said. “I told you those old tires of yours needed replacing.”
“Well, I can’t do much about that now, can I?” Terri shook her head. Even if she left her vehicle and walked to Canyon Shadows, there was no way she’d get there in time to visit her grandmother. “Go on and take Quinn home. I know how to change a tire.”
“Well, you’re not doing it tonight. I’ve got people for that job.” He whipped out his cell and, before Terri could stop him, typed out a text message before he pocketed the phone again. “Quinn and I will take you to see your grandma. I remember Harriet from the old days. She was quite the spunky little lady. I’d enjoy visiting her, too.”
If Buck hadn’t seen Harriet since the old days, he was in for a shock, Terri thought. Her grandmother was a different person now. “Thanks, I’d appreciate that,” she said. “But you won’t need to come inside. Just let me off and go. When I’m through visiting, I can walk back here and change the tire.”
“You heard me—the tire will be taken care of. It’s arranged. Come on.” He guided her toward the Hummer with a light hand on the small of her back. The warm pressure of his palm triggered a tingle of memory that raced like flame along a fuse through her body. The feeling was sweet torture. If only she could forget what had happened between them, or at least dismiss it—as, it seemed, Buck had. But Quinn was with them now, Terri reminded herself. She wouldn’t know for sure whether he was going to bring up what had happened between them until she was alone with him.
He opened the passenger door for her and helped Quinn into the backseat. The drive to Canyon Shadows took only a few minutes. “You don’t have to stay—I really don’t mind walking back to Giovanni’s,” Terri said as the Hummer pulled into the parking lot.
“Will you stop arguing with me, Terri?” Buck’s voice carried a hint of reined impatience. “I told you, I’d be glad to come in and say hello to your grandmother. And Quinn won’t mind coming in, either.”
“I know that,” Terri said. “It’s just that my grandma has changed a lot since you knew her. She’s ninety-one and not doing very well. She has her good days and bad. I’ve learned not to expect too much, but I worry that seeing her might upset Quinn.”
He stopped the vehicle and laid a hand on her shoulder. “Let me be the judge of that, Terri,” he said.
* * *
Buck had never been beyond the front doorway of Canyon Shadows. The rambling two-story stuccoed building was decent for a nursing home, with manicured grounds and a covered walkway leading to the front doors. Bouquets of silk roses and framed landscape prints cheered the lobby, but an air of gloom still hung over the place. Maybe that was inevitable when nobody who lived here wanted to be here.
He let Terri lead the way as they signed in at the front desk and continued on to the elevator and up to the second floor. In all the busy years she’d worked for him, he could barely recall asking her how her grandmother was doing. What had brought on this sudden interest in her life outside work?
But he knew the answer to that question, and it didn’t make him feel proud of himself.
Eleven years ago, in an army medical tent, he’d knelt next to Steve’s bed and promised his dying friend that he’d look after his kid sister. Buck had viewed giving Terri a job as the first step in keeping that promise. But over the years, as the pressures of building his business had closed in, she’d proven so capable and so willing that the focus had shifted. Instead of what he could do for her, it had become what she could do for him.
But that had never included her sharing his bed.
After finding her earring in his rug, his first thought had been how to avoid losing her help. But as the afternoon had worn on, his musings had deepened. He’d taken a long look at himself in the mirror and seen a first-class jerk looking back at him.
Steve, if he’d been here, would have punched him black and blue.
Somehow, he had to do a better job of keeping his promise. And he absolutely had to forget about taking her to bed again. As wonderful as it had been, he knew that a romantic relationship with Terri could never work. She was the kind of woman who would demand full honesty from her lover...and that was something he couldn’t offer. Not with the secret he’d kept from her all this time.
If she knew the truth about what happened with Steve, she’d never let him touch her again—not even as a friend.
Her friendship was something he had to keep, not just for Steve’s sake but for his own, too. She meant far too much to him for him to be willing to let her slip away. So that meant finding a way to make amends, to show her how much she meant to him—in a purely platonic way. But with a strong, independent woman like Terri, knowing where to start with winning her over wouldn’t be easy—especially after what had happened this morning.
“Come on, Daddy!” Quinn tugged at him, and he realized he’d fallen behind. Terri had already opened a door partway down the long corridor and stepped into the room. Still holding Quinn’s hand, he reached the doorway and paused on the threshold.
In the light of a single table lamp, the woman in the worn leather recliner looked as if a strong breath could blow out her life like a candle flame. Her face was as wrinkled as a walnut, her hair like white spider webbing on her ancient head. He would never have recognized feisty Harriet Cooper, Steve and Terri’s maternal grandmother, who’d raised them after their parents died. Remorse crept over him. How many times in the old days had he been in her home and eaten at her table? And now—damn it all, he’d barely been aware that she was here. He certainly hadn’t taken the time to visit.
“Hello, Grandma.” Terri knelt next to the chair, the lamplight falling on her face. “I came by this morning but you were asleep,” she said.
The old woman huffed, refusing to look at her.
“I’m sorry,” Terri said. “I came as soon as I could.”
“Sorry, are you?” Harriet snapped in a papery voice that sounded so different from the warm, maternal tones he remembered. “Then take me home. They steal things here. My wedding ring—”
Terri took one bony hand and lifted it to the light. “Look, Grandma. Your ring is right here on your finger. Nobody stole it.”
“Liar! That old thing isn’t my ring!” The old woman snatched her hand away. “Where’s Steve? He never lied to me! I want him to come and take me home!”
Still standing in the doorway, Buck felt the painful tightening in his gut. It hurt for him to watch this. But how much worse would it be for Terri, dealing with this poor woman every day?
And why couldn’t Steve have been here? Why had Steve been the one to die, when it should have been him?
“Look, Grandma.” Terri drew her attention toward the doorway. “You’ve got visitors.”
“Oh?” Harriet perked up. “Who is it? Is it Steve?”
“No, it’s Steve’s friend Buck. And he brought his little girl. Her name’s Quinn.” She beckoned them over.
Quinn gripped her father’s hand. Maybe Terri had been right about this experience being too much for her. But it was too late to back out now.
“Hello, Mrs. Cooper.” He offered her his free hand.
Her dim eyes brightened. “Steve! It’s really you! Did you come to take me home?”
Buck steeled his emotions. “I’m Buck, Mrs. Cooper. I used to come to your house with Steve.”
Her grip on his hand was surprisingly strong. “You were always my favorite, Steve. More than your sister. Why’d you stay away such a long time?”
He cast a helpless glance at Terri. She was doing her best to remain smiling and composed. “This is Buck, Grandma,” she said. “And here’s his little girl.”
“Steve’s little girl.” She reached out and touched Quinn’s cheek. “My, but you’re a pretty thing. Come give your great-grandma a kiss.”
Buck could feel Quinn trembling next to him. But she stepped forward and feathered a kiss on the wrinkled cheek. Buck had never been more proud of his daughter.
The old woman fixed her cataract-blurred gaze on him. “So, why are you just standing there? Get me up and take me home.”
“Grandma—” Terri began, but she was interrupted by a polite tap on the already-open door. The aides, thank heaven, had arrived to get Harriet ready for bed.
“No—I’m going home!” the old woman protested as one of the young women started unbuttoning her sweater.
“It’ll be all right, Grandma. I’ll see you tomorrow. We’ll talk then.” Terri kissed her grandmother, and the three of them made their exit down the hallway to the elevator.
“I’m sorry about the mix-up,” Terri said as they walked out the front door. “She does have good days...but I’m afraid the bad ones have become a lot more common. Lately, every time I come here, she breaks my heart.”
“But at least you keep coming. I’ve got to hand it to you, Terri. I had no idea she was so bad. Is there anything I can do to help?”
Terri shook her head. “All she wants is to go home. One of these days she will.”
Quinn, usually so chatty, had fallen silent. Buck hoped he could get her to talk on the way home. She needed to process what she’d seen and heard. But meanwhile, he needed to stall Terri a little longer so she wouldn’t interrupt the first part of his campaign to show her how valuable she was to him.
“Hey, how about ice cream sundaes?” he said. “The best ice cream parlor in town is right across the street!”
Quinn brightened. “Sounds yummy!”
“I really need to get back to my Jeep,” Terri said, moving on. “You two go ahead and get your sundaes. It’s a nice evening, and I could use the exercise of the walk back.”
“Oh, come on.” Buck caught her arm, his grip hard enough to stop her in her tracks. “Quinn’s here. Doesn’t that call for a party? We can drop you off when we’re finished.”
She sighed. “Okay. Ice cream does sound good.”
They entered the ice cream parlor, ordered hot fudge sundaes at the counter and found a booth. The place was done in pink-and-black ’50s decor with vintage rock and roll playing in the background. An elderly couple was holding hands at a corner table. The man was laughing, the woman tapping her toe to the beat. Quinn watched them a moment before she spoke.
“Do I have a grandma?” She showered her sundae with sprinkles from a canister on the table.
“Your mother’s mother lives in Florida,” Buck said. “She’s your grandma.”
“She doesn’t count. She and Mom are mad at each other. They don’t even send each other Christmas cards. What about your mother? How come I don’t know her?”
Buck had known that sooner or later she was bound to ask. But he’d never looked forward to answering. “She died when I was in the army, before I married your mother. She had lung cancer—from smoking.”
“What about your dad? He’d be my grandpa.”
“I never knew him. He went away before I was born.”
“And he never came back?”
“He never did. My mother raised me on her own. She was a waitress at the old truck stop out by the main highway. We were so poor we lived on the leftover food she brought home.” Buck didn’t tell her his parents had never married, or that his mother had done more than wait tables at that truck stop. Some truths were better kept in silence.
“If you were so poor, how did you get rich, Daddy?”
“Smart thinking, lots of hard work—and good helpers like Terri.”
“Is Terri rich, too?”
Buck glanced across the table at Terri. She was nibbling her sundae, avoiding his gaze. He paid her a good salary, but after what he’d seen tonight, he was pretty sure she spent most of her money on her grandmother’s care. When she didn’t answer Quinn’s question, he answered for her. “Terri’s not nearly as rich as she deserves to be.”
Guilt chewed at him, drawing blood. The old woman was Steve’s grandmother, too. If Steve had lived, Terri wouldn’t have had to shoulder the burden of her care alone. Nursing homes weren’t cheap, but for Buck the money would be pocket change. He’d call Canyon Shadows tomorrow and make some arrangements. Or maybe he ought to just buy the place. It was decently maintained and would likely be a good investment.
But what was he thinking? After a day like today, he was in no frame of mind for business decisions.
His gaze wandered back to Terri. She looked irresistible, with tendrils of windblown hair framing her face and a little smear of chocolate fudge on her upper lip. If they’d been alone he’d have been tempted to lean over and lick it off. He’d never had thoughts like this about her before—had always viewed her strictly as a friend. But now that he knew how good it could be between them...
The memory slammed him—Terri leaning over him, straddling his hips as he thrust deep. And this time he could visualize her face, eyes closed, lips sensually parted.
Damn!
The lady was off-limits for so many reasons. And she was driving him crazy.
* * *
After the ice cream sundaes, Terri had finally managed to convince Buck that she wanted to walk back to her Jeep. The distance wasn’t far—only about seven blocks—and she truly needed to clear her head. As the Hummer drove away, she blew a last kiss to Quinn and set out.
By now it was nearly dark, but Main Street was still busy, the shops and cafés doing a bustling business. The tiny white lights that adorned the sycamores along the boardwalk had come on, their glitter creating a festive atmosphere. But Terri’s mood was far from festive. From beginning to end, this had been the most emotional day in recent memory.
Quinn’s presence tonight had been a godsend. She had no idea what she’d have said to Buck, or what he might have said to her, if they’d found themselves alone together. From his flirting with the waitress at dinner, it was clear that he wasn’t interested in pursuing anything with Terri. She’d been foolish to even consider the possibility. Maybe she should just forget it had ever happened. Expect nothing—that was the only way to survive life with Buck.
Her thoughts shifted to their visit with her grandmother. Had it upset Buck to be mistaken for Steve? The two had been like brothers all their lives. Buck had been there in Iraq with their combat unit when Steve died. He’d never talked about it, and she’d never asked him, but Terri knew her brother’s death had affected him as deeply as it had her.
She could understand why he’d insisted on ice cream tonight. He’d wanted to blur the memory and end the evening on a happy note. But the conversation with Quinn had only opened more dark windows on the past.
Terri knew about Buck’s troubled childhood. And she knew how far his mother, a desperate but kindhearted woman, had gone to provide for her boy. Terri could only hope he had forgiven her.
Terri’s long legs covered the seven blocks back to Giovanni’s at a brisk pace. Through the deepening twilight, she could make out her Jeep at the far end of the parking lot. She felt for the keys, pulled them out of her purse and strode toward the vehicle.
Had Buck’s crew fixed her flat tire, or would she have to haul out the jack and the lug wrench and do it herself? No big deal—she’d changed tires before. And at least that way, she wouldn’t feel beholden to Buck. After this morning, she never wanted to feel obligated to him again. To use the old-fashioned expression, it would be too much like being paid for her favors.
She was a few yards away from the Jeep when the parking lot’s overhead lights flashed on. In the sudden glare Terri saw what the shadows had hidden.
The flat tire hadn’t just been changed. It had been replaced, along with the other three. Her ancient Jeep was now sporting four brand-new, top-of-the-line tires.
Terri stared at Buck’s gift. What had the man been thinking? He could certainly afford to replace her tires. But why had he done it, especially without asking her? Did he think he owed her some kind of reward for her...services? Or had he done it out of some twisted sense of guilt for taking her to bed in the first place?
Either way, she wasn’t going to let this stand.
* * *
“Daddy, why did Terri’s grandma call you Steve?”
Quinn had been silent most of the way home. When she finally spoke, her question, coming out of the cab’s darkness, caught Buck off guard.
“She’s old,” he said. “She can’t see very well, and sometimes her thoughts get confused. It’s sad, but it happens to some old people. That’s why she’s at Canyon Shadows, so the nurses can take care of her.”
“But who’s Steve?” Quinn persisted. “Is he somebody who looks like you?”
Buck tapped the brake as a mule deer bounded through the headlights and vanished into the brush on the far side of the road.
“Steve was Terri’s brother and my best friend. He died in the war. It was a long time ago, before you were born. But his grandmother doesn’t remember that.”
“How did he die?”
“He was a soldier. He got shot.” Buck struggled to block the images that flashed through his mind. He wished his daughter would talk about something else.
“That’s sad.” Quinn’s profile was a dark silhouette against the side window. “Where did they bury him?”
“Right here in Porter Hollow. His grave is in the cemetery.” Buck pressed the remote button to open the wrought iron gate to his property. “What would you like to do tomorrow, besides clothes shopping with Terri?”
“I want to go to the cemetery.”
“What on earth for?” Buck bit back a curse as he gunned the Hummer up the steep driveway to the house. He knew Quinn was curious. But there was nothing in the cemetery he cared to show her, let alone see again himself.
“I’ve never been to a cemetery. I want to see what it’s like. I want to see your mother’s grave—she’d be my grandma if she was alive. And I want to see where Steve is buried.”
“Maybe Terri can take you after you go shopping.” It was the coward’s way out to dump this on Terri, but Buck really couldn’t go himself. He had some wealthy clients from Dubai coming in this afternoon to raft the Grand Canyon. He wanted to greet them personally and make sure everything was up to their standard of luxury. He’d been weighing the idea of building a second resort in the southeast corner of the state, near Moab, with access to Arches and Monument Valley. So far it was just a dream, but if he decided to go ahead, a hefty infusion of Dubai cash could make it happen sooner.
If nothing else came of it, at least he’d have an excuse not to visit the cemetery and relive the past with Quinn.
“What else would you like to do?” he asked his daughter. “I can have Terri line up anything you’d like. Oh, and I’ve asked Mrs. Calloway to be on hand while you’re here. She can take you if you want to go somewhere.”
“Daddy, I’m nine years old!” Quinn stormed. “I’m not a baby, and I don’t need a babysitter.”
“Well, you do need to eat, and Mrs. Calloway’s a good cook.”
“That still doesn’t mean I have to be babysat. Mrs. Calloway won’t let me out of her sight. She’s a nice lady, but she drives me crazy. She even sits right by the pool when I’m in the water. Last year I asked her if she could swim. She shook her head. If she had to rescue me, she’d probably drown.”
“Mrs. Calloway is just doing her job,” Buck said. “The agreement I have with your mother says that while you’re here you have to be supervised.”
“Why can’t I just hang out with Terri?”
Buck ignored the slight jolt triggered by the mention of Terri’s name. He wondered what she’d thought when she’d discovered the new tires on her Jeep. He’d done it in the spirit of helping her out, but would she see it that way? Maybe he should have left well enough alone.
“Terri has to work,” he said. “I need her help in the office.”
“Then why can’t I hang out with you?” Quinn asked. “You’re the boss. Nobody tells you when you have to work.”
“The boss has to work the hardest of all. That’s why he’s the boss. I’ll be busy all day tomorrow. But Terri will pick you up in the afternoon. You’ll be fine.”
“Sure.” Quinn sighed like a deflating balloon and slumped in the seat. She was silent till the Hummer pulled into the driveway and stopped. Buck had barely switched off the engine when she opened the door, piled out of the vehicle and ran to the fence, where Murphy was waiting to welcome her with barks and whimpers of joy.
“Hi, Murphy!” She reached her small hands through the chain links to pet the huge dog, whose wagging tail could have felled a forest of small trees. “How’ve you been, boy? Hey, I can hang out with you, can’t I? At least somebody’s got time for me!”
Giving Buck a meaningful scowl, she stalked onto the porch and waited for her father to unlock the front door.
* * *
The next morning Terri came in early, opened the door to Buck’s private office and left something on his desk. He wouldn’t be happy when he found it, but she was braced for the storm. If the boss man didn’t like it, he could fire her.
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