Learning the Ropes (25 page)

“I figured we might as well advertise when we head to Reno.”

She tucked her hands into her pockets and sighed. “About that.”

He cocked his head toward her. “Don’t say it, Ali. You can’t skip out. Reno has a big purse.”

“I know it does, but . . .” She tried to interrupt but he wasn’t about to let her get started.

He tucked his index fingers into her belt loops and pulled her toward him. He had to be careful how intimate he was with her these days. Too much and she’d bolt like a scared rabbit. “How are we ever supposed to see if this partnership works if you keep avoiding me?”

She placed her hands against the wall of his chest, refusing to let him pull her any closer. “Maybe if I thought our
partnership
was the reason you wanted me to go, I would think about it.”

Chris curled his hands around her hips but let her keep her distance. Her hands against his chest sent warmth coursing through every inch of him, desire curling and twisting in him. “I swear.” He held up three fingers. “Scout’s honor.”

She reached up, tucking one finger back into his fist and gave him a disapproving look. “It doesn’t count if you were never a Scout, cowboy. It’s two fingers.”

Chris sighed at her continued stalling. “Come here,” he ordered, grasping her hand and pulling her toward the living quarters of the trailer. “See, two beds, plenty of closet space, a kitchen, and a bathroom. That means you don’t have to stop at any hotels or board your horses. I have the panels we can set up and we’ll stop by Syd’s on the way.”

She dropped her head back and groaned. Chris knew he was swaying her. “I just don’t think it’s a good . . .”

He stepped behind her and circled her waist with his hands and leaned down to whisper in her ear. “I promise I’ll be on my best behavior,
if
that’s what you want.”

She glared at him over her shoulder but he could see the humor in her eyes. He didn’t miss the desire darkening them. “Sure you will.” She shook her head. “You have to take the top bunk.” Chris couldn’t help the smirk that curved over his lips. “And, if we hear back from Tim about the property before we leave, I’m staying here.”

“Deal.” She scooted out of his arms and held out her hand to him.

Chris wasn’t about to miss this chance. Grasping her hand, he pulled her toward him, catching her in his arms and planting a kiss on her unsuspecting lips. He caught her soft sigh and swept his tongue against hers, nibbling on her lower lip. She melted against him, soft and warm, her lips pliable under his. She might be trying to ignore the desire between them, to pretend that there was nothing more than a friendship between them, but her body responded differently as her hands fisted in the front of his shirt. Chris’s hands splayed around her waist, drawing her closer. He felt his erection straining against his jeans and knew if he didn’t stop now, he would lose control completely. That was something he refused to do. He wanted her to admit her longing for him, not be forced into it. That was going to take time and patience, but he would coax it from her if it was the last thing he did.

Chris drew back from her and saw the regret color her eyes. “That’s not behaving yourself,” she pointed out.

“Don’t let those wheels start turning,” he warned. “It was a harmless kiss.” It didn’t feel harmless, it was exciting and stimulating and he wanted to do it again but he wasn’t about to tell her that. He exited the trailer and held a hand out to help her down. “If you go back on your word now, I might have to doubt you as a partner.” She frowned at him and he winked playfully.

“Have you told David yet?”

Chris had been avoiding David because he wasn’t sure what to say or how to broach the subject. He settled back against the well of the trailer and pulled Ali between his thighs. Her hands rested against his abdomen and he felt himself stir again.

Down boy.
He took a deep breath, trying to control his body, but it only made him inhale the scent of strawberries.
Well, that backfired.

“You mean, about us being partners?” She nodded. “No,” he admitted. “And since you keep lying to yourself that this is a
business
relationship only, there’s really nothing to tell him, is there?” He didn’t mean to sound irritable but, damn it, how long was she going to keep fighting him?

David probably wouldn’t even be surprised to find out about their relationship. He’d already accused Chris of having feelings for her but David had no idea the two of them moved forward with plans for the rodeo school without him or that they’d put in an offer on his father’s ranch. It wasn’t intentional but the longer he kept it a secret, the more it would look like they were hiding the information from him. David was going to be hurt enough when he found out about Ali; the news about the ranch would devastate him.

“I meant about starting the school and you know it.” She shoved against his shoulder. “And, I don’t think anything more than a
business
relationship is a good idea. I’d like us to be able to stay friends when this is over.”

She kept telling him it wasn’t a good idea for them to be together but he noticed she didn’t move out of his arms. He wondered if she knew what she really wanted, what her eyes and body told him she wanted. He doubted it. He definitely didn’t like her confidence when she talked about them being “over.” Chris didn’t see an end and he was bound to make sure she didn’t either.

He wanted her to see exactly what he felt for her, to make it visible in his eyes, to chase away any doubts she had at that moment, and leaned closer to her, nudging her jaw with his lips. “Ali, we could be friends and lovers,” he countered, whispering against her neck.

She pulled away and he berated himself for pushing her too far. When he saw the blush color her cheeks, he grinned wickedly, knowing he wasn’t the only one thinking about the last time they were together. Chris wondered how many times he could make her blush this weekend. If he had his way, he would see that blush cover her entire body.

“I
T’S ABOUT TIME
you got here!” Sydney hurried down the porch steps as Chris parked the truck by the corral. Before Alicia could even shut the door, her friend enveloped her in a bear hug. “It seems like it’s been forever instead of a couple weeks.”

“Long enough that you’re starting to show.” Alicia put her hand on the slight baby bump Sydney was sporting. “How are you feeling?”

Sydney waved off her concern. “I’m fine. I don’t know why so many people make a big deal about pregnancy.” She pointedly looked at her husband as he came out of the barn.

He circled his wife’s shoulder with an arm and pressed a kiss to her temple. “Sue me for wanting to keep my wife safe and off these animals while she’s carrying my child.”

Sydney shook her head. “Not going to happen.”

Alicia laughed as Chris made his way around the trailer. “Has she always been this stubborn?” Scott asked.

“Yes,” Chris assured him as he gave his sister a hug before jerking a thumb at Alicia. “But I think this one has her beat. She keeps turning me down and breaking my heart.”

Alicia’s eyes grew wide as Sydney and Scott both looked at her expectantly. She tried to recover her composure and rolled her eyes at him dramatically. “Please, he’s just looking for one more warm body in his harem.”

She shoved past Chris but not before they all saw the blush burning her cheeks, turning her face crimson. She went to unlock the back of the trailer, hoping to avoid any more embarrassment.

“What’s this?” Scott asked, pointing at the newly painted logo.

“Our rodeo school.”

“Our?” Sydney picked up on the term quickly and eyed Alicia, suspiciously.

“Yep,” Chris jumped into the back of the trailer and led Beast out, handing the lead rope to Alicia and returning for his gelding. “Ali and I are the proud founders of AC Rodeo School, specializing in roping and barrel racing.”

“Really?” Her head pivoted from Chris to Alicia, like she was watching a tennis match. “When did that happen?”

He grinned at his sister before his eyes touched on Ali standing beside her. “Fairly recently.” Chris winked at Alicia and handed his sister Jaeger’s lead rope.

“Just this past week,” Alicia clarified, seeing that he was being deliberately subtle, making it look like there was more to their situation than a business partnership. “We are still waiting to hear if our offer was accepted on a piece of property.”

“Wait a minute!” Sydney laughed and shook her head. “Let me get this straight. You two bought a piece of property
and
you’re in business together?” She looked from Alicia to Chris in elated surprise. “So, you’re going to live together?”

Alicia’s eyes shifted to Chris. They hadn’t even discussed the living arrangements, especially considering that when they made the offer, they both expected Alicia’s parents to move into the house with her. Now that wasn’t going to happen and it looked like they had a few arrangements still to discuss.

Alicia had been too upset after finding out her parents didn’t want any part of the new venture to contemplate the details. Chris was wonderful, trying his best to cheer her up, which had led to his suggestion that they leave early and spend a few days with Sydney before heading down to Reno for the rodeo. He’d even offered to go with her to talk to Bradley to tell him she’d changed her mind about the job offer but she’d insisted on going alone. If she was going to be a business owner, she had to face uncomfortable situations head-on, without Chris holding her hand for every one of them.

By the time she’d returned, Chris arrived with the trailer and began packing her gear inside. Bradley Langdon hadn’t been too happy about her change of heart so she hadn’t been in any frame of mind to talk about their living arrangements. Luckily, Chris kept her talking about various people they knew from high school and rodeos, keeping light conversation about who was married, who was winning and losing, and who had up and moved. In all of their conversation during the trip to the Sydney’s, living arrangements had never come up and just the thought was enough to send her spiraling into a tailspin of panic.

Chris laughed at her expression. “Thanks, Sis, as if her brain isn’t already working overtime.”

He led her buckskin gelding from the trailer and walked with them toward the corral, turning all three horses into the pen, watching them stretch their legs as they ran around the corral.

He nudged Ali’s arm. “I know we haven’t talked about it but there’s a guest house on the property, so quit worrying.”

Alicia’s shoulders immediately relaxed. He was right. There were several options if they got the ranch. “I’m not worrying,” she lied.

“Sure, you’re not.” He laughed. “Besides, the house is plenty big enough for both of us. Since it’s likely we’ll be having guests staying in the house until we can get cabins up, you should probably get used to having other people around.”

Chris laughed at her, his hands settling on her shoulders. “Besides, Ali. If I’m going to take advantage of you, it’s gonna be this weekend when I have you alone to myself.”

Alicia’s stomach swirled in a storm of yearning mixed with fear. Sydney’s mouth fell open and she stared at her brother as he headed back for the trailer and his last horse.

“Did he just say what I think he did?” Sydney asked. Alicia couldn’t help the blush that burned her cheeks again as she refused to look at her friend. “Are you two—”

“No!” Alicia’s voice was tenser than she meant and she sighed. “I mean, not really.”

Sydney grabbed at her upper arm. “What do you mean, ‘not really’? Either you are or you aren’t, and it sounds like you are. Why didn’t you call me?”

Alicia saw Chris grinning like an overconfident, cock-sure ass as he walked his gelding toward them, and she knew he’d deliberately done this. Sydney was over-the-moon excited. How was she supposed to explain why this couldn’t happen?

“We’ll talk later,” she muttered.

Sydney frowned, obviously unhappy with being put off, but would have to wait, albeit impatiently. “Fine.” She sighed dramatically. “Then come inside and get some lunch. Silvie’s been in that kitchen all day cooking up everything she thinks you might like. I don’t think we’ll ever eat all that food.”

A
LICIA SAT ON
the porch with Sydney watching Scott and Derek working with a four-year-old gelding in the round pen. Scott had mentioned a few horses were ready to sell and when Chris realized they were from Valentino, Sydney’s stud who’d been killed a few years earlier, he wanted to see if they might be right for their new business. Kassie was curled against Ali’s chest with her thumb tucked into her mouth, dozing slightly.

“Think you might make
me
an aunt soon?” Sydney laughed as Alicia’s mouth dropped open. “Oh, don’t you give me that shocked face. From the looks of things—”

Alicia shook her head. “Don’t be fooled by the way things
look,
Sydney. I’m not.”

“Well, I don’t know what you did to change his mind so quickly from being a confirmed bachelor to marriage material but my hat’s off to you.”

“I didn’t
do
anything.” Sydney snorted skeptically. “Don’t kid yourself. Chris is just being the same flirt he always is.”

Sydney reached for her glass of iced tea and tipped it toward Alicia. “Who’s kidding themselves now? I know my brother and this isn’t him flirting.” She took a long sip and Alicia wondered if it was to see what she might say. As the silence stretched between them, Sydney finally spoke again. “He’s got it bad for you, Ali, and you have it bad for him, or you wouldn’t have joined him in this
partnership.
” She held her fingers up for air quotes.

Alicia watched the men in the round pen. Chris rode the gelding, taking him through each gait, swinging a rope from the animal’s back. The late afternoon sun began its descent behind him, shadowing his lean frame so that she couldn’t see his face. But he could’ve been surrounded by cowboys and she knew she could’ve picked him from the crowd. She knew his every movement, mannerism, and quirk. The way he rested his reins on his thigh when he was thinking. The slim hips that never seemed to move in the saddle, as if he and the horse were two parts of a cohesive unit. The way his square jaw tipped when he was trying to figure out a problem. She could watch him forever and never become bored.