Her Cowboy Distraction Read online

  It wasn’t long before the bar of soap glided across her bare skin. As he caressed it across her slender shoulders and down her breasts, he couldn’t think anymore. He could only experience the wonder of Lizzy.

  * * *

  When they had soaped and stroked and kissed every inch of each other, they finally rinsed off and Lizzy stepped out of the glass enclosure. She wrapped herself in one of the large towels and then handed him one as well. But, he didn’t take it from her. Instead he scooped her up in his arms and carried her out of the bathroom and to his king-size bed.

  He placed her gently in the center of the navy sheets that held his scent, as if she were the most precious bundle he’d ever carried.

  She thrilled, knowing that the best was yet to come. And she was ready for him…soft and yielding and hungry with need. The shower had been an intense form of foreplay, but now she wanted him to possess her completely.

  He joined her on the bed and peeled the towel back as if opening a gift to expose her to his hungry gaze. She shivered with emotion as his mouth captured hers again, his kiss holding what words could never say.

  As he kissed her, one of his hands explored first one of her breasts and then the other, his work-roughened palms erotic and causing her nipples to rise up to meet him.

  There was no question in her mind that this was the lover she would never forget. Daniel. His name sang through her head as his hands began to explore her naked body.

  When his mouth captured the tip of one of her breasts, she moaned with the sensation. He teased with his tongue, nibbled with his lips until she was half-mad with her desire.

  Each touch was fire, and she welcomed the heat that burned away any thoughts of attacks or murders or bucket lists. There was no place in her mind for any thoughts other than of him.

  She not only accepted his touch, but was an active participant, thrilling at the feel of his chest beneath her fingers, the sensual pleasure of his bare legs tangled with hers.

  It didn’t take long before she wanted him not just touching her, not just kissing her, but inside her. She’d been ready for him since they’d gotten out of the shower, and she didn’t want to wait another minute.

  “Daniel, I want you now,” she whispered softly. “I want you making love to me. I want you inside me.”

  She didn’t have to ask twice. His smoky eyes devoured her as he moved on top of her. She parted her legs to allow him between them.

  “This is crazy,” he murmured.

  She smiled up at him and grabbed his buttocks. “Yeah, crazy good.”

  His neck muscles were taut as he hovered over her, and there was no humor in the depths of his eyes as he slowly eased into her. A small gasp of pleasure escaped her lips, and he caught it with his, kissing her as he slid deeper into her.

  When they were fully interlocked, neither of them moved as his mouth trailed down the side of her throat, and she simply took in the sweet sensations shivering through her.

  She realized he would be the lover she never forgot because at some point in the past week he’d stolen a little piece of her heart, and when she left there she would feel the absence of that small piece for a long time to come.

  Then he moved his hips against hers and all thought fled from her mind. As he thrust into her, she was nothing but tingling sensations and breathless gasps.

  He was utterly in control, moving against her in a way to give her the most pleasure possible. He didn’t just stroke into her, but moved in circular motions that all too quickly had her spiraling up and up until there was no place else to go but climax and crash down with his name a cry of pleasure on her lips.

  It was as if her orgasm snapped something inside him. He began to move faster against her, pistoning his hips in a frenzy of driving need.

  She loved it, the wildness in him, the focused desire to finish what they had begun. And when he reached his own climax, he released a low, deep moan that resonated in her very soul.

  For long minutes they remained locked together. She could feel the pounding of his heart against her own. It was one of the sweetest sounds she’d heard in a very long time.

  He brushed a strand of hair away from her face. “I didn’t even think about protection.”

  “It’s okay. I’m on the pill.” She raised her head to gaze at him. “Although I haven’t been with anyone for years.”

  “And I haven’t been with anyone since my wife,” he replied.

  Just that quickly, it felt as if there were three people in the bed: he, she and the wife he’d never forget. Crowded. The bed suddenly felt crowded. She had no idea if he felt it, too. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and then rolled away from him and out of the bed.

  She had to get a little breathing room. It had all been too intense, far too wonderful, and she needed some time to gain some perspective.

  “I’ve got to get moving,” she said as she grabbed her pajamas and robe and left his bathroom.

  “Yeah, me, too. I’ll see you downstairs.”

  She left his room and went to the bathroom in the hallway. She took a quick second shower, hoping to wash away the scent of him, the very feel of his touch against her skin.

  She’d only borrowed him for a minute, that’s what she had to remember. Hopefully she’d be gone from there in the next couple of days and he would be a checkoff on her bucket list. He would definitely be a memory to carry with her, a memory that would last a very long time.

  By the time she had dressed and come down the stairs, Daniel was heading out to work in the barn. When he was gone, Lizzy puttered in the kitchen, where she made a tuna salad for their lunch and kept her head as emptied as possible of thoughts.

  Lunch talk consisted of ranch things. He told her about future plans to rebuild the barn, to add a stable. His eyes sparkled as he spoke, and Lizzy almost wished she’d be there to see all his plans come to fruition.

  But, she couldn’t think that way. She’d made her promise to her mother, and she was determined to carry it through. She had places to go and things to see, adventures to complete before she finally thought about settling down into one place.

  By one o’clock she was dressed in her Cowboy Café T-shirt and preparing to leave for work.

  “I’ll drive you to work,” Daniel said as he came into the kitchen.

  “That’s not necessary,” she protested. “I can drive myself there and home.” What she needed more than anything was some distance from him. He was already under her skin. She didn’t want him too deeply in her head, in her heart.

  He frowned. “I don’t like the idea of you leaving work at midnight and being on the road all alone to come back here.”

  “Daniel, I’m a big girl. I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time. It’s just a fifteen-minute drive. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

  “Yeah, and it was just a two-minute walk from the back door of the café to your cabin, and that didn’t work out very well for you.”

  “I’ll be fine,” she said curtly. Making love to him had been beyond wonderful, but it had also complicated things between them. She saw a new softness in his eyes that threatened to pull her in, and that hadn’t been part of the deal.

  She picked up her car keys. “You’ll probably be in bed when I get home. Would you mind giving me a house key so I can just let myself in when I get home?”

  She could tell she’d irritated him by insisting that she drive herself, but he pulled a ring of keys from his pocket and took one off to hand to her.

  She put it on her own key ring. “Guess I’ll head out. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  She walked out into the hot afternoon air and drew in a deep breath. She had to get Daniel out of her head, get the familiar scent of him out of her nose. Making love with him had made him dangerous to her, because she wanted to do it again…and again.

  It was time for her to leave. She hoped Sheriff Evans came in this afternoon and she could get the okay to leave town. She never liked staying anyplace where she might g
et involved with somebody, anyplace that might seduce her into making it a permanent home.

  She feared that Grady Gulch and Daniel were dancing a slow seduction around her, and that frightened her as much as Candy’s murderer and her unknown assailant.

  Chapter 8

  Daniel told himself at dinnertime that the only reason he wanted to head into the Cowboy Café was for dinner and to find out the latest news about Candy’s murder and whoever had attacked Lizzy.

  But, the truth of the matter was the house had grown quiet…dead without her energy, without her life force in it. If he were perfectly honest with himself, he’d admit that even though it had been only four hours since she’d left, he missed her.

  He was doomed, he thought as he got into his truck to make the drive into town. He had that helpless feeling of not her, not now. He was falling for Lizzy, and he knew in his heart she was the wrong woman at the wrong time.

  But, it felt so right when he was with her. She made him laugh and she made him think. When she looked at him, he wanted to be the man he saw reflected in her eyes. And it had definitely felt better than right when he’d had her in his bed, when he’d made love with her.

  She’d made him look outward again, when he’d been trapped looking inward and mired in his own guilt and feeling of responsibility for Janice’s and Cherry’s deaths. He still felt that when he had a moment of silence in his mind, but Lizzy was beginning to fill up those silences, and when she looked at him he felt as if he was a better man.

  But she didn’t know the truth of the night of Janice’s death. She didn’t know the agonizing details of the fight that had driven Janice out that night to meet her death.

  He shoved away these thoughts, not wanting to dwell on anything he couldn’t change. Instead he thought of seeing Lizzy again.

  It was crazy, how quickly she’d gotten to him, had opened up his heart in a way that made him both wary and exhilarated. He’d like to believe that any woman who had entered his life at this time would have had the same magic as Lizzy, but his heart told him otherwise.

  In the past eight months or so there had been several attractive single women who had made it clear they’d be interested in pursuing something with him. But none of them had been able to pierce through the shell of isolation he’d built around himself until Lizzy.

  He couldn’t help the smile that curved his lips as he found a parking place in the Cowboy Café lot. The smile wavered slightly as he saw Denver Walton’s pickup. If Denver was inside the restaurant then Maddy was probably with him, and there was nobody on earth who hated Daniel more than Maddy Billings.

  She would always believe he was responsible for Janice’s and Cherry’s deaths. The two had been on their way to pick her up, and it was only by the grace of God that the wreck had occurred before Maddy got into that car.

  As he walked in the door he noticed two things: Maddy and Denver were at a table on the far end of the room, and Lizzy was working the counter.

  She flashed him a surprised smile that warmed his heart more than it should. He hung his hat on a hook and then walked to an empty stool at the counter.

  “Hey, cowboy, what’s your pleasure?” she asked.

  He gave her a lazy grin. “I had my pleasure earlier this morning, so I guess I’ll just take whatever is on special for now.”

  Her cheeks pinkened as she charmed him with a blush. “The special is spaghetti and meatballs, and you’re a wicked man to talk about your conquests.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “As I recall, you had a conquest at the same time, and spaghetti and meatballs will be fine.”

  She wrote his order on her pad. “I’ll rustle that right up for you.” She turned to the pass window and then turned back around to face him.

  “So, what’s the news?” he asked.

  She frowned. “Nobody seems to know anything new. If Cameron has any leads, he’s keeping things close to his chest. I’ve heard that he’s not only questioned Rusty a couple of times, but also Junior.”

  “Junior?” Daniel looked at her in surprise. “I don’t want to sound offensive, but I wouldn’t think Junior was mentally capable to pull off a murder without leaving any evidence behind.”

  Lizzy nodded with a frown. “That’s true, but I know Candy didn’t hide the fact that she thought Junior was creepy and stupid. More than once she said ugly things to his face.”

  “Did you tell that to Cameron?” He could smell her familiar scent despite the savory odors of the café. Immediately he thought of nuzzling her neck, of getting up close and personal with the fragrance that drove him half-wild.

  “I told him, but like you he pretty much dismissed the idea that Junior is responsible.” She leaned closer to him. “You are thinking naughty thoughts. I can see it in your eyes.”

  He leaned back and laughed and then quickly sobered. “You have no idea how nice it is for me to have naughty thoughts. It’s been a very long time since I’ve indulged myself in any kind of pleasant thinking.”

  Her gaze softened and she lightly touched the back of his hand. “I’m so sorry that life hasn’t been kind to you.”

  At that moment all Daniel could think about was how unkind he’d been to Janice just before she’d stormed out of the house. Thankfully at that moment one of the customers at the other end of the counter called for her attention.

  He was falling for Lizzy, and even though he knew it would lead to nothing but more heartache, he seemed helpless to stop the tumble of emotions she stirred in him.

  He thought of what she’d told him about Cameron taking a second look at both Junior and Rusty. Although Rusty had been working for Mary for about three years, Daniel knew very little about the man other than he lived in one of the cabins out back and wasn’t prone to friendly small talk.

  It was difficult for him to consider anyone in his town capable of doing what had been done to Candy. It was just as difficult to try to comprehend why anyone would half strangle Lizzy and warn her to get out of town. Why? It just didn’t make any sense. She wasn’t a threat to anyone. She hadn’t been able to give the sheriff any information about anything concerning Candy’s murder.

  By the time she returned to deliver his meal, he couldn’t sustain any negative thoughts with her bright smile shining on him. She set his plate before him and then leaned toward him across the counter.

  “I think we should start our day tomorrow with a sunrise horse ride,” she said. “I’m missing Molly.”

  “She’s missing you, too. She told me so this afternoon after you left for work, and I think a sunrise ride sounds great. If you take her a couple of slices of apple she’ll be yours forever.”

  She gestured toward his plate. “You’d better eat before it gets cold.”

  “Who’s working the grill tonight?” he asked.

  “Rusty. Why?”

  “I just want you to be careful walking to your car. Until we know who is responsible for the crimes here, I worry about you taking more than two steps alone in the dark.”

  “I’ll be careful,” she replied, obviously touched by his concern. “Cameron usually shows up here around closing time. I’ll ask him to watch me walk to my car.” Then another customer needed something, and once again she moved away from him.

  He was halfway through his meal when Sam and Adam Benson came through the door. Adam took the empty stool next to Daniel and Sam sat on the other side of his brother.

  “How’s it going?” Adam asked.

  “Not bad. How about at your place? Things going well?”

  “Cattle are getting fat and the corn is almost knee-high.” Adam smiled at him. “What more could a rancher want?”

  Sam leaned forward to look at Daniel. “Heard any news about the mini-crime wave that’s struck the town?”

  “Nothing worth repeating,” Daniel replied as he cut through one of the large meatballs on his plate. “What about you two? Heard anything?”

  “We’ve heard that Kevin is still the number one suspect and Cameron
is trying to find a way to break his alibi. If he can find one person who saw Kevin out the night of the murder after ten o’clock, then the kid is busted.”

  “But that doesn’t explain who attacked Lizzy. Kevin would have no beef with her.” Daniel’s gaze shot down to where Lizzy was pouring a cup of coffee for Robert McKay, an old-timer who had lost his wife six months ago.

  “I think Cameron is looking at them as two unrelated incidences,” Adam replied.

  “Personally, I can’t figure out why anyone would want to hurt Lizzy, but I also don’t believe her attack had anything to do with Candy’s murder,” Sam said.

  Although the conversation had been easy, Daniel felt the sorrow that still simmered in the air among the three of them, all who had suffered the tragedy of that car accident almost two years before.

  At that moment the object of their conversation returned to take Adam’s and Sam’s orders. Lizzy was good at her job, friendly but not flirtatious, and she made each and every diner she served feel as if they were her number one priority.

  Why hadn’t she married? She was open and loving, fun and beautiful. Why hadn’t some lucky man snapped her up long before her mother had died and she’d made her bucket list?

  It was a question that he suddenly felt he needed answered. She was from Chicago, for God’s sake, a city with plenty of single men, and yet she’d told him she’d never been seriously involved with anyone.

  She was getting more and more tangled in his heart, and he was beginning to wonder if there was any way he could talk her out of leaving town, talk her into forgetting the rest of her bucket list.

  For the first time in a very long time, Daniel was looking for a future, and when he looked ahead he couldn’t imagine his days without Lizzy in them.

  This thought didn’t bring him joy but rather settled a shroud of faint depression across his shoulders. He had a feeling there was no happy ending for him and Lizzy, and if he were perfectly honest with himself he knew he didn’t deserve one.