Czytaj książkę: «That Night With The Rich Rancher»

With many thanks to Stacy Boyd, Senior Editor

Contents

Cover

Introduction

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

One

Two

Three

Four

Five

Six

Seven

Eight

Nine

Ten

Eleven

Extract

Copyright

One

Tony Milan felt ridiculous. Standing in the wings of the wide stage of the elegant Dallas country club ballroom, he promised himself that next time, he would be more careful making bets with his oldest brother. Losing at saddle bronc riding in a rodeo last April had put him backstage tonight at this gala charity event, which included a dinner dance as well as an auction. One that would auction him off. At least it was all for a good cause, he reminded himself. The funds raised would go to Parkinson’s disease research.

As he’d made his way to the stage earlier, he had seen some of the attendees: beautiful women dressed in designer gowns accompanied by men in tailored tuxedos. The highest bidders would win a night with “Texas’s most desirable bachelors,” according to the brochure that had been mailed to a select group wealthy enough to afford the event. He couldn’t imagine any woman bidding much for an evening out with a guy she won in an auction, but after the opening bid, he realized he was wrong. The Texas ranchers who’d gone before him had stirred up high prices.

Looking out at the latest bachelor who now pranced offstage, Tony could not recall ever feeling more out of place. And then he heard his name called.

Taking a deep breath and forcing himself to smile broadly, he stepped forward, striding out of the darkened shadows into the blinding spotlights in front of a glittering audience. Applause was loud as he waved at the audience, most of which he could no longer clearly see because of the spotlights shining in his eyes.

After a spiel about his bachelor status, the master of ceremonies opened up the bidding. Tony was startled by the number of women who jumped into the bidding, but as the amount climbed, first one and then another dropped out until only three women were left.

Shocked yet pleased by the amount he was going to draw, he grinned and walked around the stage as the bidding climbed.

When a woman in a front table bid, he glanced down and saw it was an ex-girlfriend. He hoped she didn’t win. As far as he was concerned, he’d said a final goodbye to her when she’d started getting serious. No long-term relationships for Tony Milan. He liked to flirt, play the field, just have a good time with no strings attached. Thankfully, after a flurry of bidding, his ex-girlfriend dropped out and only two women were left.

Tony couldn’t see either one of the women, hidden by the blinding lights, but he heard their competitive bids. They were calling outrageous sums of money—all for an evening with him. When one graciously dropped out, the MC brought down the gavel.

“We have a winner,” he said, not able to hide his outright glee at the final amount for the charity. “Would our lucky woman please come up onto the stage?”

Tony couldn’t contain his curiosity. He scanned the audience for a glimpse at her, and then a spotlight found her at a table off to the right. His pulse jumped when a stunning blonde stood up. Her hair was piled atop her head with a few spiral curls falling about her face, and she wore a fiery red dress as she threaded her way to the stage. Even from a distance he could see the dress clung to a breathtaking figure. Jeweled straps glittered on her slender shoulders and her full breasts pillowed above the low-cut neckline.

One of the auction’s ushers took her hand as she climbed the steps to the stage and Tony’s gaze finally swept over her from head to toe, taking in her long, shapely legs revealed by a high slit in the skirt. Instantly Tony began to feel immensely better about the entire auction and the upcoming evening.

As the blonde crossed the stage, his gaze swept over her features. She wasn’t a local resident, he thought, because he didn’t recognize her. But then as she neared center stage to give the MC her name, he had a niggling feeling that he did indeed know her. He looked at her again. Something about her features seemed familiar. Perhaps... There was a faint resemblance to a local—his neighbor and lifetime enemy, Lindsay Calhoun.

He shrugged away that notion. The woman talking to the MC could not be Lindsay Calhoun. For one brief moment, a memory flashed through his mind of Lindsay dressed in skintight jeans and driving her muddy pickup, her long sandy braid bouncing beneath her floppy old hat. That was followed by another memory—Lindsay wagging her finger at him and accusing him of taking her ranch’s water—something unethical he would never do to any neighbor, even Lindsay. She was mule stubborn, never took his advice and wouldn’t agree with him if he said the sun set in the west.

Most of all, she was serious in every way, all business all the time. With their many confrontations, he had wondered if she’d ever had any fun in her life. So there was no way on earth that the vision who had won an evening with him was Lindsay.

Curiosity ran rampant as the MC took the mystery woman’s hand and she turned to the audience, shooting a quick glance at Tony and then smiling at the audience while the MC held her hand high like a boxer at a heavyweight fight.

“Our winner—a beautiful Texan, Miss Lindsay Calhoun!”

Tony was stunned. His gaze raked over her again. Why had she done this? Their families had maintained a perpetual feud since the first generation of Milans and Calhouns had settled in Texas, and he and Lindsay kept that feud alive. Besides, she didn’t even date. Nor would she spend a dime for an evening with him. She never even spoke to him unless she was accusing him of something.

He squeezed his eyes shut as if to clear them, and then looked at her again. Actually, he stared, transfixed. Not one inch of her looked like his neighbor.

She turned as another man in a black tux came forward to escort her toward Tony while the MC began to talk about the next bachelor.

“Lindsay?” Tony’s voice came out a croak. The woman he faced was breathtaking. He wouldn’t have guessed all the makeup in Texas could have made such a transformation.

Her huge blue eyes twinkled and she leaned close, giving him a whiff of an exotic perfume—another shock.

“Close your mouth, Tony,” she whispered so only he could hear. “And stop staring.”

The tuxedo-clad man stepped forward. “Lindsay, it seems you’ve already met your bachelor, Tony Milan. Tony, this is Lindsay Calhoun.”

“We know each other.” Tony hoped he said it out loud. His brain felt all jumbled and he couldn’t force his gaze from Lindsay. He still couldn’t believe what he was seeing. He had known her all his life. Not once had she even caused him to take a second glance. Nor had he ever seen her as anything except a colossal pest. Saying she wasn’t his type was an understatement.

But was there another side to her? Why was Lindsay here? Why had she bid a small fortune to get the evening with him? No doubt she wanted something from him— and wanted it badly.

Would she go to this length to get water? He ruled that out instantly, remembering her fury and harsh words when she had accused him of buying bigger pumps for his wells to take more groundwater from the aquifer they shared. He had told her what she should do—dig her wells deeper. She had charged right back, saying she wouldn’t have to go to the added expense if he wasn’t depleting her water with bigger pumps. And there it went. Once again her usual stubborn self refused to take his advice or believe him.

Then she had started calling him devious, a snake and much worse. She pushed him to the edge and he knew he had to just walk away, which he did while she hurled more names at him.

That was the Lindsay Calhoun he knew. This Lindsay tonight had to be up to something, too. Surprisingly, though, he couldn’t bring himself to care much. Thoughts of ranching and feuding fled from his mind. He was too busy enjoying looking at one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen.

How could she possibly look so good? They were being given the details of their evening, beginning with a limousine waiting at the country club entrance to take them to the airport where a private jet would fly them to Houston for dinner. He barely registered a word said to him; he couldn’t focus on anything but the sight of her.

“Excuse me a moment. I’ll be right back,” their host said, leaving them alone momentarily.

“You’ve got to give me a moment to come out of my shock,” Tony said with a shake of his head.

“You take all the time you want. I’ve been waiting for this,” she drawled. “If necessary, I would have paid a lot more to get this night with you.”

“If you’d come over to the ranch dressed the way you are now and just knocked on the door, you could have had my full attention for an evening without paying a nickel, but this is for a good cause.”

“It’s for two good causes,” she said in a sultry voice, and his heartbeat quickened. He still couldn’t quite believe what was happening. Before tonight, he would have bet the ranch he could never be dazzled or even take a second look, let alone willingly go out with his stubborn neighbor.

“Lindsay, I’ve never fainted in my life, but I might in the next thirty seconds, except I don’t want to stop looking at you for anything.”

“When you saw I had won, I was afraid you’d turn down this evening.”

“I wouldn’t turn down tonight if I had to pay twice what you did,” he said without thinking, and her smile widened, a dazzling smile he had never seen in his life.

“If you two will follow me, I can show you to the front entrance,” their host said, returning to join them. “First, Miss Calhoun, you need to step to the desk to make arrangements about payment.”

“Certainly,” she answered. “See you in a few minutes, Tony,” she added in a soft, breathless voice.

Where had that sexy tone come from? He recalled times when he had heard her shout instructions to hands on her ranch. She had a voice that could be heard a long stretch away and an authoritative note that got what she wanted done. As he watched her, she turned to look at him. She smiled at him, another dazzling, knee-weakening smile, and he couldn’t breathe again.

Holy saints, where had Lindsay gotten that enticing smile? It muddled his thoughts, sent his temperature soaring and made him want to please her enough to get another big smile.

He had seen her stomping around horses, yelling instructions and swearing like one of the men, the sandy braid flopping with her steps. He had faced her when she had yelled furious accusations at him about dumping fertilizer. How could that be the breathtaking woman walking away from him? His gaze ran down her bare back to her tiny waist, down over her flared hips that shifted slightly in a provocative walk.

With the tight dress clinging to her every curve, he caught a flash of long legs when she turned and the slit in her skirt parted. That’s when he noticed the stiletto heels. He would have sworn she had never worn heels in her life, yet she moved as gracefully as a dancer. He wiped his heated brow. This was rapidly turning into the most impossible night of his life.

Befuddled, totally dazzled by her, he tried to remind himself she was Lindsay, and he should pull his wits together. That might not be so easy. He would never again view her in the same manner.

Why hadn’t he ever really looked at her before? He knew full well the answer to his question. He had been blinded by their fights over every little thing, from her tree falling on his truck to his fence on her property line. Not to mention her usual raggedy appearance when she worked.

If she had gone to such lengths tonight to wring something she wanted out of him, he had better get a grip, because it was going to be all but impossible to say no to the fantastic woman in red standing only yards away and writing a check for thousands of dollars for an evening with him. Not even a night— just a dinner date and maybe some dancing.

But Lindsay Calhoun wasn’t interested in dinner dates and ballroom dancing, boot scooting or even barn dances. He eyed her skeptically. To what lengths was she prepared to go tonight to get what she wanted?

He gave up trying to figure her out.

Still, he couldn’t take his eyes off her. The skintight red dress left little to the imagination. Why had she hidden her gorgeous figure all these years? Why had she always pulled her hair back in a braid or ponytail? He looked at the beautiful silky blond hair arranged on her head, some strands falling loosely in back. He had never seen her hair falling freely around her face—would he before this night was over?

She looked seductive, like pure temptation, and he knew he should be on his guard, but there was no way he could be defensive with the woman standing only yards away. He wanted her in his arms. He wanted to kiss her. And, if he was truthful with himself, he wanted to make love to her.

When she finished writing and handing over her check, their host led them to a garden, where they had pictures taken together. As he slipped his arm around her tiny waist while they posed for the camera, the physical contact sizzled. He was so heated he thought he would go up in flames.

He made a mental note to get a picture. His brother-in-law and sister were in the audience, so they had seen her tonight. So was his oldest brother, Wyatt. He was certain Jake Calhoun had seen his sister look this way before, but Wyatt was probably as shocked as he had been.

Talking constantly, their host escorted Lindsay and Tony through the wide front doors of the country club, where a long white limousine waited.

As soon as the door closed on the limo, they were alone, except for the driver on the other side of a partition.

“Maybe you’ve been using the wrong approach,” Tony remarked.

She smiled another full smile that revealed even, white teeth that made him inclined to agree with whatever she said.

“That’s what I decided. So we’ll see how it helps letting my hair down, getting out of my jeans and into a dress, smiling and being friendly. So far, it seems to be working rather well, don’t you think?”

“Absolutely. I don’t know why you waited this long. I keep reminding myself not to give you the deed to my ranch tonight.”

She laughed with a dazzling, irresistible smile on her lips. “The other way is a more direct approach. You know where you stand.”

“And this is a sugarcoated enticement to get what you want?”

“Oh, my, yes. I’m just getting started. When I walked up on stage, I’m sure you wanted to refuse keeping your part of the bargain.”

“You’re wrong. Not the way you look tonight,” he said in a husky voice. “With you in that red dress, there’s nothing that would cause me to turn down an evening with you.”

When had he reacted like this to a woman? He escorted beautiful women, was friends with them, had them continually around in his life and yet never had he been dazzled senseless as he was tonight. He wouldn’t ever have guessed Lindsay could generate such attraction and make him overlook all their battles.

It had to be the shock of who she was that was setting him ablaze. He’d better get a grip on reality and see her as the person he knew her to be. But that wasn’t going to happen tonight. His thought processes worked clearly enough to know that.

She smiled sweetly. “Penny for your thoughts.”

“I’m wondering why I haven’t ever heard from anyone about how gorgeous you can be.”

“I suppose because I rarely go out on dates and never with anyone in these parts.”

“Why not?”

She shrugged. “I’ve just never met anyone around here I wanted to go out with very much. And there’s nowhere close by here to go dressed up.”

“There’s Dallas.”

With a twinkle in her blue eyes, she answered, “In Dallas, our paths probably wouldn’t cross.”

“I’ve known you all my life and I know your family well. Tonight I feel as if I’m spending the evening with a complete stranger I’ve just met.”

She looked amused. “In some ways, Tony, we are strangers. There’s a lot you don’t know about me,” she said in the breathless, sultry voice that made the temperature in the limo climb again.

“I should have asked you out long ago,” he said.

“You know how likely that was to have happened, and what my response would have been.”

He nodded. “Our past is better left alone and forgotten tonight.”

“We fully agree on that one,” she answered as the limo slowed. “Tonight is filled with illusions.”

“The way you look is no illusion. You’re gorgeous,” he said, and was rewarded with another coaxing smile.

The limo turned into the airport and in minutes they slowed to a stop. While the chauffeur held the door, Tony took her arm to escort her to the waiting private jet. The moment he touched her, awareness burned in a fiery current. Her arm was warm, her skin silky smooth. He caught another whiff of her exotic perfume, and he couldn’t wait to get her to their destination so he could ask her to dance and have an excuse to hold her in his arms.

In the plane he was aware of how close she sat. It was difficult to keep from staring because her red dress had fallen open, revealing those beautiful, long shapely legs. He took a deep breath.

“I need to keep pinching myself to make sure this is actually happening,” he said. “And I keep reminding myself you’re the same neighbor I see across the fence with your horses.”

“I love my horses. You should come visit and really look at them sometime. I have some fine horses.”

“I’ve seen them across the fence. Everyone in the county knows you have some of the finest horses.”

“They’re working horses or horses for my riding. I like to ride.”

“We have that in common, Lindsay.”

“I’ve never seen you riding just for pleasure.”

“If it’s for pleasure, I don’t ride in the direction of your ranch.” He smiled sheepishly. “I figure we’re both better off that way.”

“We’re in agreement there, too,” she remarked in a tone that was light and held no rancor.

“Have you attended one of these charity bachelor auctions before?”

“Sure, because it’s a good cause.” She held up a hand but stopped before it touched his arm. “I don’t need to ask, I know you haven’t. What prompted you to agree to participate in the auction tonight? You seem to be more the type to just donate the money.”

“I lost a bet with Wyatt over bronc riding in an Abilene rodeo.”

She laughed. “So because of your brother you’re trapped into a night with me now.”

“I was filled with thoughts of revenge until you stood up to walk to the stage. Since then, this night has taken the best possible turn.”

She smiled. “I must admit I’m pleasantly surprised by your reaction. I never, ever thought I’d hear you say that. But you know, underneath this red dress, I’m still me.”

He inhaled deeply, his temperature spiking at her mention of what was beneath the red dress, even though she had intended a different meaning.

He cleared his throat. “I have a feeling I better not say anything about what’s underneath your red dress.”

She looked as if she held back a laugh. “I knew there had to be another side to you besides the one I always see. I’ve wondered how the evening would go and so far, so good. I think, Tony, we’ve set a record already for the length of time we’ve been civil to each other.”

“I intend to be more than ‘civil to each other.’ We’re just getting started,” he said. “Frankly, Lindsay, it’s damn difficult to remember that you’re the same woman whose ranch adjoins mine. I feel as if I’m with a beautiful woman I’ve just met,” he said softly, taking her hand in his and rubbing her knuckles lightly with his thumb. His brows arched and he turned her hand over to open her palm, looking up at her.

“You have soft hands. I know how you work with the cowboys. You should have hands like mine—with scars, calluses and crooked bones from breaks. How did you get these?” he asked, running his thumb lightly over her palm.

“I wear gloves most of the time,” she said. “And I haven’t been out working quite as much for the past two weeks because I was shopping for a dress and getting ready for tonight.”

Her voice had changed, becoming throaty, losing the humor, and he wondered if she had a reaction to his touch. That idea made the temperature in the limo climb again. He gazed into her big blue eyes. “I hope tonight will be far better than you dreamed possible and worth all the effort you put into it,” he said softly, and raised her hand to brush her palm with his lips.

His thumb brushed across her wrist and he felt her racing pulse, making his own pulse jump again in response. As he looked into Lindsay’s eyes, he wanted to pull her close and kiss her. He couldn’t help the thought that came to mind. How much was this night going to complicate his life?

He couldn’t answer his question, but he was glad for the auction and thankful she hoped to win him over with sweet talk. It was a dazzling prospect.

He tried to pour on the charm and avoid any topics about the ranch, their relationship or their families. The feud between their families had been far stronger when they had been children and their grandparents had influenced the families. As a small child, Tony was taught to avoid speaking to any Calhoun, and she’d been taught the same about the Milans. In fact, they hadn’t spoken to each other until they became neighboring ranchers and had their first dispute over her tree falling on his fence and hitting his truck.

The plane ride seemed to take mere minutes. Before he knew it, they touched down in Houston and were ushered to another waiting limo. A short while later, they pulled into a circular drive lined by manicured shrubs strung with tiny white lights and stopped in front of a sprawling stone building he recognized as an exclusive club.

When they stepped out of the limo, Tony took her arm to walk through the canopied entrance. Inside, when he told the maître d’ they were from the Dallas auction, they were welcomed and led to a linen-covered table by a window overlooking the wide patio that held hundreds more twinkling lights and a splashing water fountain.

A piano player sang as he played a familiar old ballad and several couples danced on a small dance floor.

In minutes they were presented a bottle of Dom Pérignon champagne. As soon as they were alone with drinks poured, Tony raised his glass in a toast. “Here’s to the most beautiful woman in Texas.”

She smiled. “A very nice exaggeration, Tony,” she said, touching his glass lightly with hers and taking a sip. “Actually, you look rather handsome yourself.”

He smiled and wondered if she felt any real attraction. “Lindsay, I can’t imagine why you’ve been hiding that beauty all these years.”

She laughed. “Not so many years, Tony. And thank you. I’m far from the most beautiful woman in Texas, but it’s nice to hear.”

“You could have had most of the single guys in the county asking you out if you’d wanted,” he said.

“Actually, that’s not my aim in life,” she remarked. “And I do get asked out.”

“To talk about someone’s horses. If they could see you tonight, though, horses wouldn’t come up in the conversation.” He waited a second and then asked the question that flitted into his mind. “Speaking of which, Lindsay, will you go to dinner with me next Friday night?”

She grinned at him. “Aren’t you jumping the gun? You don’t know if we can make it through tonight and get along the entire time.”

He leaned across the table to take her hand again. “I promise you, we’re going to get along tonight,” he said, his tone lowering as it did when he was aroused. “A lot of people saw you at the auction tonight. I think you’ll be inundated with invitations from guys when you get home. I want you to myself,” he added softly, and something flickered in the depths of her eyes as her smile vanished and she gazed at him solemnly. Electricity flashed between them, and he wanted to be alone with her and kiss her more than ever.

As their waiter appeared, Tony released her hand and leaned back in his chair, listening to a menu recited by the waiter. When they were alone again, Tony raised his flute of champagne. “Here’s to a fabulous evening that we’ll both remember and want to repeat.”

With a seductive smile, she touched his glass with hers lightly, causing a faint clink, and sipped again, watching him the whole time with a look that made him want to forget dinner and find somewhere to be alone with her.

“I’m beginning to see that you have a sensual side you’ve kept well hidden.”

“Well, yes, Tony. I’ve kept it hidden from you,” she said with good humor, and he laughed.

“I suppose I brought that on,” he said, wondering whom she had allowed to see this aspect of herself. He sat back to study her. “As well as I know your family, I really don’t know much about you. You went to Texas Tech, didn’t you? And you were an agriculture major?”

“Yes, with a minor in business. I knew I’d come home to run a ranch.”

“Good background. Do you ever feel overwhelmed with the ranch?”

“Sometimes the problems seem a little overwhelming, but I love the ranch too much to feel at odds with it. It’s my life.”

“I agree, but it’s different for you. Don’t you want a family someday?”

“Owning the ranch doesn’t mean I can’t have a family,” she retorted.

“I suppose.” He nodded as he considered her remark. “Everyone in the county knows you work as hard as the guys who work for you. It’s difficult to look at you now and remember how tough and resilient you are.”

“Did you know my big brother came out to the ranch, sat me down and lectured me to try to get me to be nicer to you?”

“The hell you say. Is that why you’re here tonight?” he asked. Still, he couldn’t believe that the gorgeous creature flirting with him now was only here to make nice.

She leaned over the table, reaching out to take his hand in hers, and his heart jumped again. Every touch, her flirting, the looks she was giving him, all stirred responses that shocked him. No other woman had ever had the same instant effect on him from the slightest contact.

“No,” she replied, her voice lowering. “Before the night is over, you’ll know this was all my idea and not one of my brothers had anything to do with my plans for tonight.”

Her plans? His mind began to race with the possibilities and they were all X-rated. His blood pulsed hot through his veins. “I’m beginning to wish we were alone right now.”

With a satisfied expression, she sat back. “Mike and Josh weren’t at the auction and I haven’t talked to them lately. They have no idea what I’m doing tonight. Jake was in the audience, with Madison, but across the room from me. Otherwise, I’m sure he would have tried to stop my bidding because he would have suspected my motives. But he more than any of my brothers should know you can take care of yourself.”

Tony nodded. “I’ll bet it was Jake who tried to talk you into being nicer. Mike has had his own problems with losing his first wife, caring for four-year-old Scotty and getting married to Savannah. And Josh is too busy making money with his hotels.”

“You’re right about all three.” She glanced down to their joined hands. “Although I don’t think this was exactly what Jake had in mind when he told me to be civil to you.”