Chapter 12
CHAPTER TWELVE
Gideon
I looked out the window and checked the temp on my phone. The weather outside was warmer than the frigid vibes Autumn was giving off. She had gone to work for the day, or so I assumed since she hadn’t said a word to me.
After I’d shut down her admonishments, she’d sat outside for another half hour, and when she’d come inside, she’d gotten ready for bed and read until she shut the lights off. I had taken the opportunity to catch up on work. The board was not happy I’d left on such short notice and I had to wonder how many of those anxious texts were fueled by Taya.
I had over five years of diligent service to Silver, along with months of unused vacation. They should know I wouldn’t have left without reason. Many of them had known me when I’d worked for other casinos in the Las Vegas area .
I had mollified them for now. Where was my wife? How upset was she? All she had asked me to do was talk to her.
She’d called me rude.
I’d heard myself described in various ways over the years. Hard. Uncompromising. Too demanding.
Not fucking rude. By a schoolteacher.
I let the blinds go. I went to the fridge and dug out the rest of the leftovers. One slab of ham and a bun was all that was left.
My stomach was waking up and my damn mouth was watering. The plate I’d heated for myself last night after Autumn had retreated to the bedroom had made me want to gobble everything up. There wasn’t enough remaining for another meal.
I’d seen Autumn packing some in an insulated bag with horses on it this morning. No one in Silver would be caught packing a lunch bag with horses on it for work. She’d probably left me scraps to make a point. She could be rude too. I ate the remnants.
I sat at the kitchen table and worked for a few hours, answering emails and conducting one phone meeting. For my dinner, I found a freezer full of beef besides the ice cream. I made eggs instead. Autumn had plenty of veggies around to make a decent omelet.
The groan that left my mouth when I tasted the farm-fresh eggs was shameful. I sounded like I was getting my dick sucked, which wasn’t going to happen after the way Autumn had shut down on me last night.
I scrubbed the dishes with more force than necessary. It didn’t matter if she kept her distance. It didn’t. Getting her pregnant in a month wouldn’t be enough time to change Dad’s mind. I just needed him to buy that we’d have kids in the near future.
But that wasn’t part of the deal.
A bead of sweat broke out on my forehead.
I abandoned the dishes in the drying rack and went back to work. I stayed at the computer until my shoulders ached and my back protested. I missed my ergonomic chair.
When I glanced at the time, I did a double take. It was after six?
Outside, the sun was dipping toward the horizon.
Where was my wife? School had let out hours ago.
When I peered outside, Deon rode by. He glanced at the house and waved at me. It took me a moment to remember I should wave back. These windows weren’t one-way glass, and I wasn’t high above the city.
He sped off after I returned his greeting.
Where the hell was my wife?
My stomach growled again. She’d only packed a lunch. What was she eating for dinner? Who was she eating with?
I went to grab my keys to leave, but damn. No keys. No car. I hadn’t even considered that when she’d left. If she’d thought of it, she’d left me hanging.
Because you deserved it.
Deep down, I knew that wasn’t her. She might’ve absconded with the food I didn’t deserve after my abrupt departure, but she wouldn’t leave me stranded intentionally.
I found my athletic shoes that I usually reserved for the gym and changed into jeans and a gray Silver hoodie gifted by the marketing department that I’d only worn once in the years I’d had it. Then I left the house and locked her door. A simple knob lock wouldn’t stop a soul, but I couldn’t flip a dead bolt without a key. I couldn’t wave a card and have it lock either.
Keep the windows and door open, Giddy. I love the fresh air. I shook off Mom’s voice, clearer now that I was in Montana, and set out for the school.
I navigated the town like I’d never left. Cars passed and people gawked, but I didn’t pay attention.
When I reached the flat, one-level brick school, the doors were locked. “Goddammit.” I could see classroom lights on. What the hell should I do? Knock on a window?
A couple of women were coming toward the door, chatting with each other. When they spotted me, they stopped and stared. I gestured to the door, not used to having to ask for permission for entry. I could go anywhere and everywhere in a casino that employed more people than lived in the city limits of Bourbon Canyon.
Finally, the woman with long, black hair pulled into a high ponytail opened the door a few inches. “Gideon?”
“Yes?” I didn’t recognize her. I had to be almost twice her age.
Her face lit up in a zealous way that had me taking a step back.
Her companion’s mouth fell open. “You’re Autumn’s—” A high-pitched squeal left her. “Oh my god. I can’t believe you two— I mean, it’s just...” They stared at me some more.
These must be two of the women who’d ditched my wife outside the club. “And you two left her alone in a giant city? ”
Their expressions fell at once and their guilt was identical.
“I really didn’t think they’d leave her outside the whole night,” the one with black hair said.
“She seemed like she wanted to go to the room from her texts,” the other said. “I should’ve seen through them.”
“Yes. You should’ve.”
They exchanged a look that shared blame but also What’s with this guy?
The first woman flipped her dark ponytail over her shoulder. “She’s in the gym helping with the set for the program on Thursday.”
Right. She’d mentioned evening work obligations to Dad. I’d been too wrapped up in my own drama. I could take a month off and work from home. Autumn’s work was different.
“Thanks,” I forced myself to say as I maneuvered around them.
“The gymnasium’s on the left,” one of them called after me, “then a right at the end of the hall.”
I didn’t bother telling them I’d gone to school here.
I felt like a giant walking past lines of coat hooks that were at chest level and cubbies that hardly reached my shoulders. I didn’t bother to look inside the classrooms.
I passed one room and pictured my mom, her hair as dark as the other woman’s, talking to a teacher of mine and smiling at me during parent-teacher conferences. When I got to the juncture where I turned right, I caught sight of the library on my left. It had been remodeled, but I could still remember towing my parents inside for the book fair .
My parents. Another memory of Dad had snuck in. I hadn’t had many before Mom died, but they were hitting me at the oddest moments.
Like entering the gymnasium and seeing the big stage at the end, the red curtains were open. I recalled standing in the middle, in the back row because I was a tall kid, and looking out to see Mom and Dad smiling at me.
I had been in middle school when Mom died. My chest grew tight. This building held nothing but good memories. The unwanted memories. Because they showed me how far Dad fell after that.
I swallowed the acid eating up my throat. Autumn circled a set of risers with two other people, a woman and a guy who looked to be over fifty. Was that fucking Mark?
Autumn’s hair was now back in a ponytail, her shiny, coppery strands reflecting the overhead lights. She wore the same clothing as this morning—a long striped top that was belted at the waist, brown leggings, and knee-high boots.
She glanced over and her eyes widened. “Gideon? What are you doing here?”
The other two stopped to stare at me like the first two women had.
The guy took a step forward. “Gideon James!” His laugh boomed across the gymnasium. Good acoustics. “I bet you don’t remember me.”
So . . . not Mark.
He looked like any other suburban dad who came to Vegas with his family for vacation.
“You guess correctly.” I walked toward the stage .
The other woman’s gaze was dancing between me and my stunned wife.
Only the man smiled. “I was the student teacher when you were in fifth grade. Mr. Ellison?”
I peered at him. Years of dust flaked off my memories, and yeah, I did remember a young guy helping my teacher that year. “You loved to play football at recess with the rest of us.”
“Heck yeah!” Joy danced across his face. He truly loved being recognized as my teacher. He held an arm out to the other woman. “This is my wife, Kerry. She’s the music teacher here. Kerry, as you heard, Gideon was one of my first students.” He looked at me. “I thought you were going to be the arm that helped us get to state, but you never played.”
The same excuse slipped out of my mouth that had decades ago. “The ranch needed me.”
He waved it off. I used to get pitying looks back then. People knew the story of my mom and my dad and knew why the ranch needed me.
“Eh, I realize now that’s a common story around here. Congrats on the wedding—uh, marriage.” He flashed an awkward smile. “It’s going to take some time to get used to changing from Miss K to Mrs. J.”
I dipped my head, unsure what to say when I was feeling like a goddamn fraud around people who sincerely wanted to wish us well.
“You here to help?” he asked.
I glanced at Autumn. She’d been watching the exchange, curiosity in her eyes. Now, there was challenge.
“You need a hand?” I aimed my question at her. Why hadn’t she asked me earlier? Or at all ?
“The kids wanted to do a Halloween-themed music program, but the school doesn’t have much for decorations. We bought some, but they don’t work with the high ceilings. No one can see them, even if we can get them up there in the first place.”
“The janitor found some old plywood and gave us her toolbox,” Mr. Ellison said.
“But she has bingo tonight,” Kerry added. “So, it’s us and some scrap two-by-fours.” She propped her hands on her hips. Like Autumn, she was dressed for teaching in knit leggings and a long shirt. “We still have the risers to place and the rest of the props to make.”
“Props?” In my day, we sang a few songs and went home.
“The kids turned this into more of a skit,” Autumn explained, her cheeks growing pink. “And they were actually getting excited. I couldn’t say no. I figured I’d just toss up a quick set.”
“It’s turned into a bigger production than any of us anticipated,” Mr. Ellison finished. He was still in slacks, but his polo shirt was half-untucked. None of them were prepared to build a set. “But we couldn’t leave Autumn here to work alone.”
They’d get it done, but it’d be late. I could leave, but I’d just wait up for her and get some more work done. I’d wonder how she was doing. How the set would look. My shoulders already ached at the thought of working at the table.
I could still swing a hammer.
I pushed my sleeves up. “Tell me what you need.”
Autumn
Kerry had gone and picked up pizza for us. Gideon had slipped her some money without telling us. Judging from all the pizza she’d brought, it had been a lot of cash.
I considered how thoughtful that was way too much. Almost as much as I watched him work. The way he bent and squatted, lining up boards and hammering nails. We didn’t have major power tools. Our tool was Gideon.
He’d had a couple slices of pizza, then gone back to work.
I was on my third slice. The ham sandwich and leftover macaroni salad had burned off hours ago, and I was starving. The heat kindling low in my belly said I was hungry for more.
“You have good taste,” Kerry murmured. Joseph Ellison was helping Gideon move the set into place so we could hang our decorations off it.
“Thanks. I think the mushrooms are best with black olives.”
She snorted and brushed a napkin over her lips when the guys glanced at us. “I wasn’t talking about the pizza toppings, Autumn.” She rolled her eyes. “I think the smoking-hot husband you brought back from Vegas is a sign of your good taste.”
“He used to be your husband’s student,” I whispered.
“He’s definitely not a kid anymore.”
“Nope.”
All day, I’d been smiling and nodding when coworkers congratulated me. They gushed over his looks and my ring. My hand had been yanked several times so the ring could be inspected. I’d had a minor heart attack when I’d gotten acrylic paint on the diamond.
The kids were the biggest relief to be around. After five minutes and a few questions, mostly about whether I’d won a ton of money in Vegas, my marriage was forgotten.
Now that husband was here. He hadn’t told me why, and I didn’t care. Seeing him in jeans and a hoodie was all my libido cared about. Waking up to him for the last three days was hell on my hormones.
Kerry gave me a sidelong look. “Is it weird for you? To suddenly be married? I thought you and Mark might have a thing.”
Mark—Mr. Knutson at work—had been overly formal with me, only brusquely telling me to give my documents to Kaitlyn.
“Yes.” The first honest thing I’d said all day—other than agreeing with Gideon’s looks. “It’s one thing to get caught up in the idea and another when he’s here. In my home. At my work.”
The guys were hauling the plywood wall next to the risers, otherwise I would’ve kept my mouth shut.
She patted my shoulder. “Well, it looks like you got a considerate one.”
“It’s also weird that people know him.” He was still a stranger to me.
“None of us know him.” She grabbed another slice of pizza. “We’ve just heard of him,” she said around a big mouthful.
Same.
Both guys turned and faced us. Joseph grinned. He didn’t have to say how delighted he was to be working with a former student. “Time to hang our colony of bats.”
I gathered the cutouts of bats the students had made. Kerry got the tacks and Joseph found some string.
Gideon appeared at my side. I was trying to get a bat toward the top. He slipped the decoration from my hands and stuck a tack in it toward the top. His chest was pressed to my back and his scent surrounded me.
“Thank you,” I murmured.
“No problem.”
We hadn’t had time to talk since he’d arrived. “Why did you come?”
“You weren’t home.” He said it so simply.
“Okay?”
This time, the line of his jaw hardened. “You didn’t tell me why.”
“I thought you heard me tell your dad.” When his right eye twitched—because he hadn’t been paying attention?—I continued. “I’ll go to the bar tomorrow after work, and the program is Thursday night. I’ll probably stay at school until it starts.”
He didn’t respond. But he did help put the unexpected set together.
Since I’d lectured him about being rude, I could be considerate. “Would you like to come?”
He blinked. “Sure. Why not?” He made it sound so casual I bit back a smile. I doubted he would’ve come without an invite, but he sounded like he had wanted to. “I might have to buy a car while I’m here.”
“Why?”
“I don’t have a vehicle when you’re at work.”
Oh. Wait— “You walked here?”
“Why wouldn’t I? ”
“How long did you wait on the curb before you realized a car wasn’t going to magically appear?”
His gaze intensified and then the corner of his mouth lifted. “I promise it wasn’t more than an hour.” He tipped his head. “Would it surprise you I didn’t have to ask for directions?”
I snorted. “I bet a lot of women stopped and gave them to you anyway.”
His laugh was deep.
I grinned. “I just have to put all my stuff away, and then I can give you a ride home.”
He came with me without asking. I loaded my empty buckets that had once held carefully crafted bats and pumpkins my students had worked on all afternoon. Another bucket of staplers, tape, string, and paints was next.
Gideon pushed the cart. In my classroom, I put everything away and he wandered around.
“Is it weird to work in the same place you went to school?” he asked.
“Yes and no. When I first started, it was intimidating to work with people like Joseph. He’s always excited when an old student starts working here though.”
He roamed through my class. I felt exposed, like I’d lifted my blouse and was flashing him as he strolled through my life’s work.
“Why elementary?” he asked.
“I’ve always liked kids. I watched Mama take care of them my entire life, and I guess I wanted to pay it forward. The high school can get crowded some years, you know, with the middle school stuffed into one wing.” Bourbon Canyon was too small for three separate buildings and infrastructure .
He approached. I’d already put my office supplies in their place, but I moved the stapler from one side of the computer to the other.
“That’s not the only reason.” He stopped at the edge of my desk. I tried to picture him as a little kid, saying Miss K at least three times while leaning over the papers I was grading to get my attention. My heart melted. The cowlick he kept brushed in place, trimmed at just the right length to weigh it down, had probably stood on end when he was young. “Let me rephrase my original question. Why teaching?”
How had he known I wasn’t telling him everything? I stabbed at the pens in my penholder until they all sat evenly on the bottom instead of sticking up at different heights. “I wanted something of my own.”
“You have something of your own though, don’t you?”
I chewed the inside of my cheek. “What do you mean?”
“Your dad gave you all a portion of the ranch.”
“Some land,” I clarified. “So yes, I get rent from letting my brothers use the pasture, but not much. Most of it isn’t fit for livestock.”
“You wanted more to call your own.”
I gnawed on the raw spot of my cheek. I released my flesh before I could bleed and pressed my fingers into the top of my desk. “I freely admit I suffered from middle-kid syndrome.”
He snorted. “There’re a lot of middle kids in your family.”
“True. But Summer’s the oldest of the girls. The guys deferred to her. ”
He cocked a brow. His expression was a few shades shy of arrogant. “Just because she’s the oldest?”
He knew to dig where it was most sensitive. “Yes and no. When we arrived at the Baileys’ after our parents’ accident, Summer and I were both recovering. I took longer with the broken bones, and I guess I always felt like I was the one they had to watch out for.”
I pushed my hands through my hair. Guilt ate at my insides. “I’m really useless to you. God, I should’ve been less evasive?—”
His sharp laugh echoed in the otherwise empty building. “You call the deal you made with me in my bed after our wedding evasive ?”
“You thought I had more authority over my family.”
He let out a long breath, his solid green gaze never leaving my face. “Perhaps we both hoped you did. It’s the marriage I need, Autumn. I can commiserate with not feeling heard when it comes to family.”
The lonely boy in him had never been louder. What his dad was doing had hurt him. “I wish I could help you more.”
“Likewise. The idea of kids...” There was a brief glimpse of stark fear.
The dream that I’d be a married mom with a good job took its last breath. I couldn’t do that to him. “Don’t worry. I’m not going to hold you to it.”
“Autumn—”
“No, it’s fine. Really. I don’t want to get so focused on having babies that I run over people. You’ve already said you wouldn’t ditch a kid, so we’d have to figure out custody. The thought obviously bothers you, so I’m not forcing your end of the deal. The thought gives me the ick. ”
His brow arched again. “The ick?”
“You’d be surprised how young kids are when they pick up slang. I’ve learned the floss and heard a kindergartner tell me I’m sus, no cap.”
“I have no idea what that last sentence meant.”
“The floss is a dance move that I can only do in slow motion before I pull a back muscle. Sus is suspicious. No cap means no lie.”
“Was she suspicious of your floss?”
“Basically, yes.”
A low chuckle came from him, and his smile would’ve incinerated my panties right off if it weren’t for the heavy topic we’d just discussed.
His grin faded. “Kids were always a thought for the future. And then you proposed the idea. I know I should jump on it, especially if Percival becomes mine.” He shrugged. “I don’t know a thing about kids.”
I held my hands up. “No need to explain. They can be scary. But they can be sweet, and smart, and smelly, but also so witty. Even at eight, they can tell jokes with timing professional comedians would be jealous of. And some of them try so hard to impress you— Anyway. I like my job. I love it. I love teaching in my hometown. I like working at the bar. I get to go home to the ranch and do chores whenever I want. I just have to suck up getting reminded about the touchy clutch in the old front-end loader, and the stubborn gate in the north pasture that has an extra latch, and to take bales from the north end of the stack, as if I hadn’t been doing all that since I was a kid too.” I shrugged. “It is what it is.”
“Which part of the Bailey property did you get?”
“It’s gorgeous—on the edge of the forest, and a creek runs through it, but there’s also a spring-fed pond, which is why the cattle graze there in the summer. Daddy found a spot that was accessible already and had a good view for each of us. When the sun’s setting, it’s just gorgeous.” I sucked in a breath. His family property would have the same traits. “I shouldn’t gush about it. That was callous.”
He sidled around the desk until he faced me. “I’d be a coldhearted bastard if I made you quit talking about something you so clearly love.”
“I know you’re not coldhearted,” I said, breathless. He was close. I tipped my head back to look at him.
“How do you know that?” he murmured.
I put my hand on his chest. His heart beat steady under my palm, the rate increasing. “You saved me from humiliation that night.” Only a few nights had passed, but it felt like months ago.
“Don’t overestimate my good intentions, and I didn’t save you.” His voice turned hard and displeasure rippled across his face.
“Don’t underestimate how much I enjoyed the talking-to you gave the bouncers.”
“Don’t underestimate how much I like watching you talk about something you’re passionate about.”
My hand was still on his chest. “And what’s that?”
“Your job, your land, your family.” He slid his fingers around my neck, and he traced my lower lip with his thumb. “The amber in your eyes gets brighter and outshines all the green. Your cheeks flush, and I start wondering if that’s how you look when you come.”
Did he just say what I thought?—
He dipped his head down and put his lips where his thumb was. The firm press of his mouth increased until his tongue danced at the seam of my lips. I let him in, garlic breath be damned. We’d both eaten the same thing. Probably the only time he and I were on even ground.
He growled and circled his hand behind my neck until he gave my ponytail a gentle tug. As my head dipped back, I opened up to him and he devoured me. Without the awkward angles in the car, we were perfectly lined up. My shorter height only made it possible for him to dominate me. All I knew was his tongue, his heat, his smell, his touch.
He shifted us until my back was to my desk and my ass hit the edge. He didn’t stop until I was perched on the edge of the desk. I wrapped my legs around him. The move was automatic, but damn. The impressive bulge that pressed against my center hit all the right spots. My need grew one thousand percent stronger. How had I slept beside this guy and not done anything?
Then he started rocking. If my eyes had been open, they would’ve rolled back and been lost forever. This guy could make me feel this desperate, this needy, this wanton, and we hadn’t removed a stitch of clothing?
The pleasure was already smothering me in the best way until he feathered a hand up my skirt. He stopped to cup my ass through my leggings, pulling me against him until he could rock against my core.
I let out a whimper and he worked his finger farther up. My nipples tingled, remembering everything about how he’d touched me in the car.
Yes .
A jingle of keys and a whistle sounded from outside my door.
I gasped, and Gideon stepped back so fast I teetered on the edge of the desk. He caught my hand and steadied me until I was back on my feet.
I spun toward the door just as Eleanor, the school’s janitor, arrived.
She grinned and gave a big pantomime wave when she saw us. “Mr. and Mrs. J , glad I caught you. This must be the mister? I see a little bit of that boy who used to run around here.”
Gideon didn’t step out from behind me. I could die in a puddle of cringe if I thought of why. But also... death by pride. He’d gotten hard for me.
I shook the thought from my head as I smoothed a hand over my ponytail. “Yes, this is Gideon. I was just going to lock up.” On a scale of one to ten, I sounded like a six on the guilty scale. Not bad after what Gideon had done to my body.
“No worries,” she said. “I saw the light on when I was heading home and thought I’d stop by and put my tools away.”
She was territorial over her things. She loaned them out, but she kept an eagle eye on them until they were returned. If it hadn’t been for bingo, she would’ve been directing us.
If it hadn’t been for bingo, I wouldn’t have seen Gideon out of his suit, working with his hands. If he put on boots and a cowboy hat, my ovaries would combust and the rest of me would turn to ash.
“Yes, we’re done.” My voice was steadier. “I think Joseph put most everything back in your room.”
“Thank you for the use of them,” Gideon tacked on.
Eleanor beamed. “Got your hands dirty, then, did ya? ”
“Been a while.” He was back to wielding his corporate charm. “I appreciate the chance.”
“You were always a hands-on kid. I’m not surprised to see you back.” She winked. “You two have a good night.” She disappeared from the doorway.
“She’s lightened up a bit,” Gideon said.
I couldn’t bring myself to turn around. I’d look at his lips, then his crotch, and I’d probably crawl back on the desk. “She’s a gem, but she’s only happy like this when she wins at bingo.”
His hand touched the small of my back. I jumped. An electric current ran up and down my spine.
“Let’s get home,” he said.