King Creek Cowboys Box Set 1

Chapter 15

“Damn it.” Carter gritted his teeth from the pain and raised his thumb to see the bruising starting to form. Thanks to not paying attention, he’d slammed his thumb in the truck door, and he’d slammed it good. That was what he got for letting thoughts of Kit distract him.

It hadn’t been a long trip, but his sister had been giving him looks the entire time. And then there were the little jabs his direction, like she knew what was going on. She couldn’t know, but still she teased him.

On top of that, he had been nothing but distracted. He wanted to be back near Kit, even if they tried to keep it on the low down. He wanted to see her again, the reason he’d rushed the trip as much as he could.

He scowled at the red that was already turning to purple then slammed his other hand against the door of the truck.

Haylee looked on with a grin. “What’s got you all wound up?”

How much did she actually know and how much did she suspect?

Carter gave a quick, “Nothing.”

He knew he was going to have to say something someday, but today just wasn’t the right one.

She would have poked him had she been within arm’s reach. It was the way that she operated. “Just like you. Get all quiet when you should be talking.”

Just like me. He wasn’t going to try to explain it away.

“It’s her isn’t it?” Haylee was grinning. “Kit. It’s gotta be Kit.”

“It’s not her.”

It was one hell of a lie.

Haylee’s questions only put him in a worse mood. He didn’t know how to answer them. He didn’t like lying about Kit. Hell, if it wasn’t for the fact she was his employee, a new one at that, it wouldn’t be a problem. But he and Kit had agreed to wait before making anything public—she’d insisted on it.

For now. Carter didn’t know how long he could take keeping their relationship a secret.

Haylee could read the lie all over his face. And she was smiling about it. He vaguely wondered if he could slam another finger in the door of the truck to distract Haylee and keep her from her damned questions and her I-know-you’re-lying expression.

No, slamming another finger in the truck door was not a real smart idea.

Damn it.

He shook his hand as the bruise started to grow darker and the pain sharpened.

“You’ve got your eye on her. Don’t lie about it.” Haylee had that stupid McLeod smirk on her face. It was the same one he had been accused of having on his plenty of times. “You’re distracted. Walking around in a daze.”

How had he been acting? Since the ride and the picnic, he hadn’t been able to focus very long on anything but Kit. They had been finding ways to see each other, away from gossip central. Between the ranch hands and the office staff, it was hard keeping anything secret.

Damn, but he hated sneaking around.

He turned and noticed Kit’s SUV parked in front of the guest house. He smiled before he could suppress it.

“She seems nice.” His sister didn’t press further, instead she walked toward the barn, not waiting for an answer.

Finally, a damned reprieve. He’d gotten off easier than he’d thought he would when his sister finally confronted him about Kit.

Carter doubted Kit was in the little guest house, where he could have shared a few moments with her. Nope, she’d be in the kitchen as usual, getting lunch prepared. He headed inside, feeling a lightness in spirit that hadn’t been there moments before.

Empty. Perfect. It meant no one would be asking him questions as he headed to the kitchen. No one would see him talk with Kit.

God, but he needed to be near her.

Kit stood in front of the sink, warm sunlight coming in through the window and lightening her hair. Snug blue jeans hugged her cute little butt as she tackled a stack of pots and pans. No doubt she was behind schedule thanks to him having made her late for cooking breakfast this morning. He hadn’t been able to apologize enough for making her late to work.

Especially since they were still figuring out how to tell everyone. Or even if they were going to tell anyone.

Or what they actually were to each other. It was a conversation that was going to have to come eventually.

He quietly set his Stetson on one of the tables, then came up behind her and placed his hands on her hips.

She startled at his touch. “Carter.”

“Hey, Kit.” He grinned as he turned her to face him. He couldn’t help it. It was adorable when she jumped like that.

“Weren’t you heading out with your sister?” She looked up at him, wrinkling her nose.

The sight could have killed him. He couldn’t tear his gaze from the woman. Not that he really wanted to.

“We’re already back.” He glanced over his shoulder—no one in sight.

“It didn’t take as long as I thought it would,” she said. “You’ll be here in time for lunch.” She placed her hand on his, brushing over his bruise.

He winced.

Kit looked down at his hand. “What happened?” She lightly ran one finger over his injured thumb. The skin was already dark purple, staining the nail with the bruise.

“Just slammed it in the truck door.” He pulled her closer to him, sliding the injured hand out of sight. “What are you doing today?”

“Trying to get caught up on the dishes. Then I need to go shopping.” She looked up at him. “I want to pick up a few things for the guest house.”

He didn’t miss a beat. “Want me to go with you?”

She gave him a teasing smile. “Don’t you have work to do?”

“I can miss it for a day.” He pulled her in for another breathtaking kiss. Her body grew warmer beneath his touch.

No doubt she could feel the same heat radiating from him.

“I can handle it.” She smiled. “There’ll be plenty of talk if you keep coming with me every time I need to buy something at the store.”

He brushed her hair out of her face. “I want to spend time with you.”

She glanced over his shoulder then pulled away. “What would Grace think?”

He still couldn’t think straight around her. “About what?”

She sighed. “About us.”

He didn’t want to think about that. He didn’t want to think about anything but them. But she was right. Grace definitely wouldn’t approve. She might be his employee, but she managed the staff, including Kit. Grace knowing about the two of them would make things awkward for Kit.

He sighed. “I don’t know.”

“I think we both know.” She turned back to the dishes.

He placed a hand on her hip. “It’ll be fine. I’ll handle it.”

She shook her head. “I’m not ready for that, Carter.”

Ah, hell. She was right. Too damned soon.

Kit was amazing. Strong and beautiful. Nothing but pure perfection.

She grabbed a cloth and headed to the stove, then started wiping it down. He followed, needing to be close to her.

Her brow wrinkled when she turned to face him. “Don’t you ever worry about what people are going to think about us?”

“I guess I do.” Carter brushed the hair from her face and slid his fingers into the silky mass as he pressed himself against her. “Then I think about you.”

The sound of a throat clearing interrupted them. They both jumped and Carter cut his gaze toward the door.

Grace, with disappointment written all over her expression.

Busted.

He didn’t know what to say. Kit fidgeted behind him.

Nobody said anything for a long moment as Carter met Grace’s narrowed eyes. “What can I help you with, Grace?”

“I need to speak with you.” The look in her eyes told him she wanted to talk to him without Kit around.

Carter didn’t need the conversation in front of Kit, regardless. No telling how badly it might go.

He gave Kit a quick apologetic smile before making his way to the small office with Grace.

Carter frowned. “Something wrong here at the house?”

Grace closed the door before she said a word. “You’ve been helping Kit a lot in the kitchen.”

Carter studied her. “And?”

“What are you doing?” She turned her face away, like she didn’t know how to have this conversation.

“About what?” He knew what the answer would be, but he couldn’t just admit it.

Grace met his gaze again as she put her hands up in the air in a clear sign of frustration. “She works for you.”

“It’s fine. We’re fine.” He frowned, sitting in one of the chairs and leaning back.

“It’s not fine,” Grace snapped. “You can’t just hit on an employee like that.”

Doesn’t she have anything else to worry about? He refused to listen to those thoughts or it would just make him piss off Grace more. And she was good at what she did.

“We have it figured out,” he grumbled. It wasn’t a good day for this at all.

“You have it figured out?” She looked at him with incredulity. “So, there’s more to it than you making passes at an employee?”

Carter nearly groaned out loud. He rubbed his temples. “Don’t make this out to be more than it is, Grace.”

“If you’re going to figure it out, then do a better job of it.” She shook her head. “Your employees can’t see you staring at each other the way you’ve been, or catch you too close to her like I just did.”

“Got it,” he said, reining in a sharp retort to remind her who was the employer and who was the employee.

“It’s affecting her job performance.” Grace looked like she was trying to find the right way to get more words out that she needed to say. “Breakfast was late today.”

“I’ll handle it.” Carter spoke carefully. How could he explain to her that he’d been the cause? That he’d kept her in bed late this morning? That would just make it worse on Kit.

Grace folded her arms across her chest. “Late meals can’t happen again.”

His jaw muscle tensed. “I said I’ll handle it.”

The scowl didn’t leave her features.

“Need anything else?” He eased to his feet. “I’ve got work to do.”

She shook her head. “That is all I wanted to speak with you about.”

He turned and walked out of the office and had the sudden urge to bash his head into a wall. “Wrong move, Carter.”

“What was that?” Grace said from behind him. He hadn’t noticed she had followed him out of the office.

He didn’t know where his brain was these days. No, that was a lie. He knew exactly where it was. He held in a sigh and faced her. “Nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

“Sure.” Grace turned away and headed out of the house, her spine ramrod straight.

Carter strode into the kitchen and saw Kit staring out the window. “You all right?” he asked.

She faced him as he came closer and gave a small smile. “Yeah. I’m fine.”

Their gazes caught and held. It was almost like they hadn’t been interrupted at all.

He wanted to pull her in again, and he could tell from her face that she wanted it, too.

“I should go.” He picked his hat up off the table he’d left it on.

She didn’t respond right away, just held his gaze. It took a few moments for her to speak. “And I’d better get back to this kitchen.”

Damn but he wanted to kiss her.

Instead, he headed out of the house to start working alongside the men. For some damned reason, his heart kept thudding.

It was nice and quiet out here. Plenty of time to think as he watched the men get their work done. Eventually he stepped in to handle the horses.

His heart calmed, but one beautiful face was in the forefront of his mind.

Kit.

The name rang in his ears, even if it hadn’t been spoken out loud.

He shook his head at Bucky, the gelding he was working with. “Women,” he said to horse. “What the hell do you do with them?” He sighed. “What the hell do you do without them?”

Bucky snorted.

He saddled Bucky, then swung up onto the big horse’s back. A good morning for a ride.

He took Bucky out at a trot, away from the house. He worked harder than his men most days. Right now, the day was working him.

Sundown couldn’t come soon enough, but he first he had to get through lunch, watching Kit without everyone knowing that was what he was doing. He couldn’t stop watching her every time he was near her.

It’s gonna be a long day.

Kit rang the triangular dinner bell, telling everyone it was noon and time for lunch. He headed in to join everyone for whatever wonderful grub Kit had cooked up.

“Kit.” He walked up to her, wanting to wrap her arms around her.

She ducked, pointedly looking at the tables.

He grunted in response and walked to the table where all the women sat. He liked to vary where he went to keep a good relationship with all his employees. He took a place on the bench next to Grace, and she scooted over to give him more room.

The temperature dropped ten degrees just sitting next to his office manager. She was not one damned bit happy with him.

Kit served the men and women, but Carter wasn’t paying attention to what he put in his mouth. He was too busy noticing how close she was to him as she leaned past him to set a bowl of fresh corn on the cob on the table. His groin tightened as her breast brushed his upper arm.

Not close enough by a long shot.

Grace looked up from her plate, glaring between Kit and Carter as she ate.

“Something wrong, Grace?”

She leaned into him and kept her voice low. “Doesn’t look like you took our earlier discussion to heart.”

He watched her scowl at Kit, like she had been the worst thing to happen to the ranch.

A sudden concern that Grace might make Kit’s life more difficult crossed his mind. He pushed it out of his thoughts. Grace was a good woman even if she didn’t agree with his romance with an employee.

Lunch didn’t end soon enough. He’d been stuck with an awkward silence between him and Grace the entire time.

He waited for everyone to get back to work so that he could talk with Kit, but Grace hung around, clearly wanting him to leave while she had a word with Kit.

Damn, but he didn’t know how to handle this. Was she having the same talk with Kit that she’d had with him?

Hell. He was the employer. Right now he felt like a junior employee.

Carter groaned internally and headed out of the house. He’d deal with Grace.

Tonight, he’d see Kit as soon as he could. He hadn’t had a chance to take her out for dinner. Tomorrow was Friday, and whisking her away after work to a nice restaurant sounded perfect.