Chapter 8
Kit brushed hair behind her ear in a nervous gesture as Carter studied her. She looked tired but still beautiful as hell. The sexual tension between them ramped up even higher now that they were alone.
She leaned back against a counter, clearly in an attempt to appear casual. “I’ve been so busy all day I haven’t thought about where I’m supposed to sleep.”
The thought of her in bed shot erotic images through his mind. He forced away pictures of her, beautiful and naked in his own bed.
A blush formed on her cheeks.
Does she know?
He shook his head, trying to force the thoughts out. He knew he couldn’t get her into his bed. Not yet anyway.
That thought had him on edge. What happened to not dating an employee?
Once he managed to put the slideshow in his head to sleep, he cleared his throat. “I’ll show you where you’ll be staying.”
The thought of her quitting and driving away flashed through his mind. He didn’t even want to think about her leaving the ranch. Even though he barely knew her, he felt a pull like nothing he’d ever experienced before. It was…magic.
Shit. What the hell am I thinking?
She pushed away from the counter. “Everything I have is still out in my SUV.” The way her hips swayed with the movement made his breath catch. He couldn’t drag his eyes away from her.
“I’ll help you with your belongings.” He walked toward the hat rack and he noticed the purse she’d taken with her to the grocery store. He glanced back to her. “I’ll grab your bag.”
“Great. My keys are inside.” She waited as he retrieved the purse from the hat rack and he handed it to her. The keys jangled as she dug them out of the leather bag. “I saw two smaller houses.” She looked up at him. “Am I rooming in one of them?”
“Better yet,” he said, “I have a guest house in the back that you’ll have all to yourself. Belle prepared it for you this morning. It’s about the size of a small apartment and includes a kitchen, bedroom, living room. Lots of privacy with the hedges and trees that surround it.”
“Sounds fantastic to me.” Her shoulders visibly relaxed. “I thought I would be rooming with other on-site employees.”
“Don’t think you want to room with the boys.” He shook his head.
“What about the girls?” She tipped her head to the side.
“They like to have a bit more privacy than the boys.” He smiled. “Figured it’d be easier for you to settle in the guest house.”
“Thanks.”
“Just doing my job.” He shrugged. “City girl like you is probably used to having some space of her own.”
She laughed. “I spent enough time with roommates before I could afford my own place, so I appreciate a place all to my own.”
Her laugh caught in his brain, making him want to stop her right there and turn her around. He couldn’t find the words to respond to her laugh and started to leave the kitchen.
He gestured for her to precede him then fell into step beside her as they headed to the front door which he opened for her. His mama had taught him to be a gentleman, and it was second nature to him. Women deserved respect, and he liked putting a woman before himself.
He walked beside her into the night. Landscape lights illuminated their way as they strolled down the path to the Lexus, and a new moon rose above the horizon.
“I can drive the SUV to your new parking space,” he said.
She nodded as she used the fob to unlock the SUV’s doors and handed him the keys.
Their fingers brushed as he took them. The connection was nothing short of electric—like the air before a storm started and lightning struck. He heard her sharp inhale and his heart thumped hard against his breastbone.
She tore her gaze from his and hurried to the passenger side. He beat her to the door and opened it. Another zinging sensation passed between them as he helped her into the vehicle.
After he shut the door behind her, his mind spun as he strode to the driver’s side.
What the hell was going on? He’d felt strong attraction to women, but nothing like this. This woman just seemed to exude pure sex. And he wanted to taste every bit of it she had to offer.
She was looking at him. Her eyes roaming over his face. He could feel it as he tried to focus on anything else to control the growing hardness in his jeans. No matter how he had tried, it was obviously coming back.
There had to be a better way to handle this.
To handle her.
What she did to him.
Without looking at her, he started the Lexus. He inhaled deeply through his nose, her soft, floral scent filling him. What kind of perfume did she wear? Whatever it was had his full attention. He wanted to smell it against her hot skin.
Get it together, McLeod.
Gravel crunched beneath the Lexus as the vehicle ate up the short distance to the back of the house. It traveled smoothly—compared to the work trucks—over the uneven ground. He glanced at her. “Nice ride.”
She looked tired and relaxed in the passenger seat and all together beautiful. “This SUV and I have been through a lot together.” She ran her hand over the dashboard, a loving caress that he wished was over his skin. What would it be like for her to touch him like that? He practically groaned as the image flashed into his head.
He thought about asking her what she had been through with the Lexus. She didn’t offer and it seemed it might be too personal a question to ask when they barely knew each other. The way she had reacted to personal questions at dinner told him she didn’t have an easy time answering them. Or just plain didn’t want to.
The headlights bounced on the dirt road that went to the back of the property. The guest house was a fair distance from the house to give the resident privacy, and was usually reserved for family. However, when he’d hired Kit, Carter had decided to let her live in it for the time being because she had taken such a drastic pay cut to work for him.
He’d thought it would only be for as long as she lasted, which could be days or months. He’d hoped they would at least have time to find another cook.
Now, after one day, he didn’t want her going anywhere.
He pulled up to the small white cottage-like house surrounded by hedges and shade trees fighting each other to reach the sky.
When he parked the car and killed the engine, he turned his full attention on her. She had her hand on the door handle, like she was ready to bolt the moment she could get out.
He rested his hand on her forearm and tried to ignore the softness of her skin and the hitch in her breathing. “Let me get the door.” He said his best country good ol’ boy voice, “If you don’t, my mama’s gonna tan my hide.”
Her expression turned from wary to amused, and she laughed. “We can’t have that.”
For one moment, he just looked at her in the dim light of the cabin porch and landscape lights before he climbed out of the driver’s seat. What was that thud in his chest again?
Don’t scare her away.
He didn’t have to ask himself why he was so worried about scaring her.