And I've never felt more beautiful.
"Your desperation is embarrassing," I finally say, low and steady, not backing down when that evil gaze homes in on me.
I stand and step in front of Leighton when Jess moves forward. Her eyes track my movements like a predator hunting its prey. Before Clayton, I would've curled into myself and backed down instantly under the weight of her stare and impending confrontation. Now, though, I'm ready to take this horrible woman on, and there's no way in hell I'm letting her close enough to Leighton to have even a slight chance of harming her or the baby.
"How does it feel to have my sloppy seconds?" she mocks.
I roll my eyes. "Bless your heart, honey. You really believe that, don't you? Insinuatin' a man as incredible as Clayton Davis could ever be sloppy seconds to any woman is pathetic and insultin'. You might think what you had with my man is worthy of bein' some secondhand, used-goods kinda love, but that handsome cowboy has never loved another woman until me. You were just a way to pass time until we found our way to each other."
She moves closer, stepping on my sandal-covered feet with her boots and making a shooting pain jolt through my body when she rolls her weight onto my toes. I don't give her the pleasure of flinching, though. I hold myself strong and true, unwilling to give her the upper hand.
"I was pregnant with his baby," she hisses, thankfully low enough that the people eating farther away can't hear.
Again, I don't react. Not even when I hear Leighton gasp as the secret Clayton kept from his family unfolds. I see Lucy start to stand in my peripheral vision, but I wave her off.
I might not care what the gawkers around me think anymore, but I won't allow Jess to hurt Clayton by bringing something so painful to light.
Moving my face closer, I sneer at her. "Correction, bitch, you tricked him and then killed his baby. Even if you ever had a chance at experiencin' the beauty of his love, you were dead to him when you showed him how nasty he already knew you were by doin' that."
I can tell she hadn't planned on me knowing the truth, but when her hand comes out and cracks against my cheek, I lose the upper hand.
"That is enough!" I hear Jana bellow from behind the counter.
"I'm fine, Jana," I call in her direction, pressing my hand against my cheek and not looking away from Jess.
"I'm gonna kill her," Leighton grumbles, repeating her threat angrily behind me, but thankfully, she doesn't move. I feel her knees bouncing against the back of my legs, so I don't need to turn to make sure she's still sitting. I'm not going to have another pregnant woman go into labor because she got too excited at the crazy that keeps invading my life.
"You can have that hit, Jess. I'd be mad too if I lost someone as amazin' as Clayton, but honey, you never did deserve him. I want you to really listen now. I'm gonna marry that man. In fact, he can't wait to get his ring on my finger. I didn't have to trick him into wantin' that. When the day comes that I'm blessed enough to share somethin' as beautiful as a child we created with our love, I'll be thankin' my lucky stars to have a gift that incredible. And we'll have that baby, Jess. It will be one that we both enjoy the hell outta workin' to get--without tricks and lies. We're gonna raise a house full of babies on that ranch. Babies we would have tomorrow, we want that blessin' built from our love that bad. Both of us. And sweetheart, I'm gonna keep lovin' Clayton so hard he'll feel that long after we've both left this earth."
"You stupid bitch. Clay doesn't believe in marriage." She cackles, the sound evil and malevolent, either not hearing me or really believing, after years of not having him, that Clayton might be pining away for her.
I press my hand against her breastbone, pushing her out of my face. After I get her a step away from me, I pull my phone from my back pocket and bring up Clayton's name. I hold up a finger in Jess's face and wiggle it a little before pointing down at my phone and tapping the speakerphone button. Ringing fills the shocked silence at the PieHole and this time I don't care that our audience is making an attempt to get a little closer and hear us better.
"Hey darlin'," Clayton answers, his voice soft and happy. I picture him smiling that heart-pounding smile and my own grows.
"Honey," I answer lightly, not wanting him to hear just how tense I am, but I should've known he'd hear it anyway. My cowboy knows his woman.
"What's wrong, Linney?"
"Nothin' I can't handle. You have a second?"
I hear him speak to someone, hear him moving around a moment later before the click of a door shutting comes over the line. "Always got a second for you, baby."
"I don't want to keep you, I know you've got the doc out there checkin' on things."
"It's fine, Linney. Just finished with the last foal. I've got time before we move on to the fillies and colts."
"All right, honey." I pull the phone away and whisper to Jess. "Listen carefully." When her eyes flash, I pull the phone back up and address Clayton again. "You wanna get married, handsome?"
"You free in an hour, sweetness?" he answers immediately.
"I'm a little tied up right now, but I think an hour could be doable."
"I'll meet you at the courthouse then."
I laugh, feeling his love through the line wrapping me up in a cocoon of happiness. I don't even care if this didn't start out serious. I can't think of anything better than being his wife. I want this. As crazy fast as it is, I think I knew he was my forever the second he bought me a whiskey and promised to show me bad. "Only if you promise to start working on giving me those babies we both want right after our date at the courthouse."
The rumble of his deep chuckle comes through the line and I find my smile growing even bigger until my cheeks burn from the sheer insanity of my grin.
"My girl's got an itch to be bad?"
I hear Lucy and Leighton start snickering as heat crawls over my skin. I might be ready to ignore the busybodies and nosy old biddies, but I bet any woman would blush hearing Clayton Davis make an announcement like that to a roomful of people. Difference is, I don't even care anymore. Let them know how much I love being a bad girl.
"I like the way you think, honey," I say softly, my eyes on the red-faced woman a foot in front of me. "But I think I'll take lovin' you slow before you love me bad."
"I love you, Linney," he drawls slowly in the erotic way that only Clayton can achieve with the deep raspy tones of his voice.
"I love you, Clayton."
"Linney?" he calls before I have a chance to say good-bye.
"Yeah, honey?"
"You let Jess know if she ever comes near you again, not even my woman callin' and givin' me her sweetness will be enough to keep her safe from my anger."
The woman in question jerks her head and gapes at the phone in my hand. I'm not even surprised that he knew about her being here. There isn't anything that gets by him, especially when it comes to my well-being.
"There won't be a safe place left in Pine Oak for her if she pulls that shit again," he says, the fury in his words unmistakable.
"You're on speaker, Clayton," I tell him, not taking my eyes off Jess.
"Good, baby. Maybe she'll heed my words this time and not twist them up in her head to be whatever crazy shit she's convinced herself of this time. You enjoy your time with the girls, but when you finish you better get that sweet ass home so I can get my ring on your hand."
"What?" I gasp.
His deep, low laughter is the only answer I get before he disconnects the call with his parting shot still ringing in my ears. He doesn't just shock the nasty woman who interrupted my girl time though. He also floors me as well. I had been joking. I wanted to put his awful ex in her place, but the second the words left my mouth it became something else. I can't help but feel a little anxious over what will happen when I go home. I don't know if he's serious but hope he is, even if it makes us both crazy. When you know, you know. But the part of me that's completely owned by him can't stop the rush of pure pleasure I get when I think that he might have been pla
nning for this if he really does have a ring.
"Holy cow," Leighton gasps breathily.
"Oh my God!" Lucy screams.
"I knew that sexy brooder would be a scorcher!" Jana bellows from her position behind the pie displays. "Just knew he'd give it real good."
With a pounding heart that has nothing to do with the showdown I just went through, I give Jess one last arch of my brow and let my whiskey-filled teacup boil over one more time. "Get out of my face, Jess. Get out of Leighton's place. And learn something from today."
I turn, my ponytail slapping across her face, and return to my seat at the table I had been sitting at before she stormed into the PieHole and started throwing her crap all over the place.
Clapping my hands, I look between Leighton and Lucy. "So, where were we?"
20
CAROLINE
"No Matter Where You Are" by Us the Duo
When I pull into the drive to the ranch, butterflies erupt in my gut. It's still early in the afternoon, so I know Clayton isn't going to be in the house, but that doesn't ease my nerves, but with the size of the Davis ranch, finding him is going to be like hunting for a needle in a haystack. I pull my car into my spot next to Clayton's truck and lean back against the headrest, closing my eyes, thinking about what could be waiting for me. The steady breeze from my air-conditioning cools my overheated skin in the process.
As anxious as I feel, I'm not going to be shy and timid about it. Not anymore. Even if he was joking, I have no doubt it'll one day happen for us. I'd be lying, though, if I didn't admit that I'd be disappointed now that the thought is in my head.
I want to be his.
I want him to be mine.
In the forever way that binds us legally and in the eyes of God.
I want to spend the rest of my life with Clayton Davis while he gives me bad and gives me the power to find myself with the confidence his love provides me.
A loud pounding pulls me out of my thoughts with a scream. My knees slam against my steering column as I almost come out of my skin. My eyes snap open and my hand flies to my chest as I look out the driver's-side window. My heart is still thundering in my rib cage, the lingering rush of panic from being caught off guard while I daydreamed still making it hard to focus.
Clearly having had enough of my wide-eyed staring, Clayton thumps his cowboy hat brim as he studies me through the window. With his hat farther up on his head, I can see his face clearly without shadows. His brows are pulled tight in confusion, but a small smirk is curling his lips. He shakes his head a few times, that smirk turning into a full grin, before reaching out to pull open my door.
I still don't move. I can't even blame it on the fact that he scared the crap out of me while I had been in la-la land. Nope. I don't move because he's looking at me in a way that has sucked the air out of my body and melted all my bones.
"Linney, love," he rasps, "you look cute as hell right now, but I need you to stop lookin' like shock's got you trapped and get outta the car so I can get you in my arms."
"You scared me," I whisper, shaking my head in the smallest movements. So much for being a big brave girl. I was a fool to think I could handle a conversation of this magnitude without feeling a little trepidation.
"I noticed that, darlin'."
"You don't sound upset about it." I huff out a breath and cross my arms over my chest. Clayton's eyes move down and I follow his gaze to see that my flowy tank is giving him one heck of a show, the shirt's front now pulled low with my arms being crossed. The tops of my breasts and some of my white lace bra peek out of the wide scoop neck. I roll my eyes when he still doesn't look away, uncrossing my arms and pulling the material up. "A gentleman wouldn't have looked, Clayton."
"Sweetness, when it comes to you there isn't anything gentlemanly about the thoughts that constantly keep me company."
"Well . . ." I trail off, not having a good retort. "I didn't even show you much. You'd think I didn't keep you satisfied the way you're reactin' to a small glimpse of my boobs. Next time I'm tryin' to throw a fit, you could at least not be all swoon-worthy and distractin'."
"Linney, all it would take for me to react and be ready to feel your heat around my cock is you walking into a room. You don't need to give me a tease. But the lace was a bonus. . . ."
"You're incorrigible." I sigh with a smile, turning off my car and getting to my feet between the car and Clayton's body when he doesn't move to give me more space.
His hands come up, fingers brushing against my cheeks. I rest mine at his waist and tip my head up to study my dark cowboy as he gazes at me. His eyes devour me, his hands not idle as he drags his fingertips down the column of my neck and down my bare arms until he reaches my elbows. Then he repeats his trail back up until he's holding me with his palms right under my jaw. He pushes his fingers lightly into my hair as best as he can with it up in a ponytail, and his thumbs rub against my cheeks with slow glides that awaken every inch of me.
"Hey," he whispers in a bold tone that makes his already deep voice sound a few degrees deeper. Velvet and sandpaper.
"Hey," I parrot back, sounding like I just ran a marathon. The way he's looking at me right now, this is something I've never seen from him. This, right here, is my dark cowboy giving me everything silently. Himself, his love, our future. All of it is shining bright down on us. The warm buzz that travels over my skin has nothing to do with the summer Texas sun high in the sky.
My fingers flex, doing nothing more than move against his stone-like muscles, as I make no attempt to gain purchase on his skin. My feet shuffle forward until I feel the toes of his cowboy boots. My hands go behind his back as I press my body against his and tip my head up. His back flexes under my touch, but other than that, he doesn't move an inch. Just gazes down at me, holding me gently.
"I got a lot I want to say about your call earlier, Caroline," he tells me softly. "You've got my head all twisted up, though, and I can't figure out if now is the time to say even half of the shit that's rollin' around without freakin' you out. But you brought it up, and now I don't think I can sit on it any longer."
The rapid tattoo of my heart has my breathing speeding up, but with his bright green eyes showing me nothing but the enormity of his love, I feel it--the fearlessness that only Clayton brings out in me.
"It's time," I rush without hesitation.
His face gets soft and he bends slightly to press his lips lightly against mine. He doesn't deepen the kiss, just gives me a brief peck before lifting his head a degree as he keeps his eyes locked on mine. "Yeah?"
"Oh, yeah." My breathy affirmation is met with his eyes flashing with pleasure, the corners of his mouth tipping up, and the laugh lines around his eyes coming out. He adjusts his hold, his hands falling down a little until his palms are resting against either side of my neck.
"You . . . God, Linney," he drones, shaking his head but still smiling. "First, you're okay?"
Knowing instantly he's referring to the fact that I had words with his ex, I nod. "I'm fine, honey."
"When I got word that Jess was at the PieHole throwin' her shit around, it wasn't pretty. I almost took off Drew's head when he reminded me I couldn't do a single thing with the doc out lookin' over the horses and two buyers out from Montana. I didn't give one a damn about my responsibilities here when you are and will always be more important than anything else. If you hadn't called me when you did, I woulda been there in a second, not givin' one fuck about how much money I'd lose walkin' away from those Montana folks."
"I'm fine," I stress, hoping he understands that I mean it.
"I know. I just can't seem to help myself when it comes to you, darlin'. The thought of you feelin' anything other than happiness and love isn't somethin' I enjoy too much."
I tighten my arms around his body and lean up on my toes to attempt to get closer than our height differences allow, wanting him to really see me clearly.
"Clayton Davis, you've given me nothin' but happiness for over four months no
w, and I have no doubt you'll continue to do so for a long while, but there'll be times that even you can't control everything. Life might toss us some ugly. But I'm ready to take it on now if it does. Trust that I'm not goin' to break just because some of that ugly tries to creep around us."
"Trustin' you has nothin' to do with me wantin' to protect you and keep you safe from all of that, Linney."
"And that, honey, is what makes me feel like I'm strong enough to take on anything. Knowin' that you care that much, that you'll be there to keep me from trippin', gives me the confidence to finally live free of fear and worry. There isn't a dadgum thing on this green earth that has the power to douse that. Not anymore."
"You want the rest?" he asks after holding my gaze for a few minutes, the weight of my words rolling over us.
I nod, his thumbs rubbing against my jaw as I do.
He releases his hold on my neck, drags his work-roughened hands down my skin until he's got my wrists in his hold, and unwraps my arms from around his body. Silently, he places my palms on his shoulders and leans down. The brim of his hat drags over the top of my head while he continues to get so close I can feel the heat of his lips against mine.
"Hold on," he rasps, confusing me.
When he grabs me at the back of my thighs and lifts, I squeal out in shock before wrapping my arms around his neck and pressing my chest into his face in order to keep my balance. Miraculously, I manage to stop acting like a weirdo long enough to grab his hat as it's knocked off with the force of my freak-out. Keeping my legs tight, I lift my chest out of his face and release the arm holding his hat to place it back on his head. When the hat blocks my view, I pull it back off and plop it on my own head. Mindlessly, I use my free hand to run my fingers through his thick, unruly hair. His body moves as he laughs softly and my hand freezes in its third pass.