Chapter 6
Rory
The Contract
Okay, so maybe the color coding was a little much. But no one could deny Rafe’s office was infinitely more organized than when I had arrived. Most of his bills were up to date, though there were a few coming up soon that we needed to discuss. Specifically the property taxes.
Then there was the other pile I needed to talk to him about.
The one I didn’t want to discuss. Speaking to him about The Argent Group would mean discussing my past and what I was running from.
I didn’t for a moment believe Rafe would judge me.
At least, I didn’t think he would. He knew I had some baggage, but I kept the details to a minimum.
And the fact The Argent Group was after his land, put me closer to them, once more.
That, however, was a problem for another day. My current problems were a lot easier to fix. I had managed to talk most of the ranch’s suppliers into better deals, and contracts which would save the ranch money immediately and build sustainable relationships in the long run.
I only had one more email to send. Miller’s Feed and Seed would be the easy one.
He was local and the account made the least sense of all of Rafe’s suppliers.
The store had been charging Rafe a twenty-percent markup on the wholesale price.
Going with the supplier in the city would save him enough money to make a serious dent in those taxes.
After giving the email one more read through, I hit send and carried on with my morning.
I tried really hard not to think about my boss and the small glimpses of himself he had revealed the night of the harvest. It had been more than a week since that night, and while he remained grumpy, he was a lot more pleasant to be around.
He had starred in one or two of my night time fantasies and I found myself looking forward to seeing him around the ranch, or when he came into the office for some reason or another.
It didn’t escape my notice he had found more and more reasons to come inside either. Even when the heat wave had passed and we were back to the cool fall air, he still had his lunch at the house rather than with his men, as he did before.
My favorite part of working in Rafe’s office was the quiet.
I loved feeding the animals, and checking the ranch for handyman work that needed to be done, those goats and chickens made being outside better.
But being out of the elements and surrounded by numbers and spreadsheets and files brought me peace.
I was reminded how fragile my peace actually was when the slam of the front door jolted my attention away from the spreadsheet in front of me.
I checked the clock on the wall in front of me and frowned. It was a little early for lunch. The heavy stomp of his boots drew closer and I could tell by how they landed exactly how unhappy he was. I mean, he was rarely in a jovial mood, but those stomps did not bode well.
The door to the office opened with such force, it banged against the wall behind it. Rafe stood in the doorway with narrowed eyes and a scowl that would make a lesser man cower. But this was a normal weekday morning. Still, something was not quite right. He was pissed off at me?
He pulled his hat off and tossed it onto the filing cabinet at the door before he stepped into the office, smelling of leather and dust, and something uniquely Rafe.
I took a deep breath, resisting the urge to roll my eyes.
Whatever had him in a snit could range from me leaving the chicken coup open– something I had done often– to not pulling up the hand brake of his truck and it rolled off the cliff.
It had never actually happened since he still drove with me everywhere I went, but he lectured me about it all the time. Drama Queen.
I raised my brows and leaned my forearms on the desk. “Something the matter?”
“You cancelled the Miller contract.” He walked further into the offices stopping at the desk. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”
My brows creased. “Yes. I saved you a shit ton of money and I am building a relationship with a wholesaler. You were bleeding money on grain.”
“That contract is keeping his lights on.” He edged around the desk and I stood. “The same way he kept ours on when he fed my cows at cost when I was struggling. What is wrong with you?”
His voice had gotten louder, but I was not about to let myself be intimidated.
“I was thinking about keeping these lights on, Rafe. I was thinking that maybe it would be a good idea to keep this ranch. You have taxes to pay in a few months and the savings you’re making will go a long way towards it.
” I pointed to the other pile of paper. “Then we need to talk about that as well.”
Before I could go into detail, Rafe started up again. “Do you not understand loyalty? How the ecosystem of a small town works? How making sure Miller stays open helps the town? Or is everything only numbers and spreadsheets to you?”
His words hit hard. He made me sound cold and calculating. And maybe I was cold. But there was logic to my thinking. I straightened my features and dropped my voice. “And how does this town function if you have to sell this ranch?”
His jaw ticked, and he stalked a little closer.
“You let me worry about that.” His voice was loud as his steps continued around the desk. “You pay the accounts and do the filing. You do not undo the legacy my father and grandfather had built. I will not sacrifice my honor for profit.”
Really? That’s what he thought I was doing. “Honor doesn’t pay the fucking bills. It doesn’t put food on the table.”
“I hired you to help me. Cutting the throat of my neighbors doesn’t help anyone, especially me. That man won’t take help any other way.”
He was standing in front of me. Chest heaving.
I was breathing heavier as well. Still, I tried to remain calm. “Why does everything have to be a fight with you? The Miller contract makes no sense.”
“To you.” He shouted, frustration bleeding into every line around his eyes. “Why can you not understand this?”
I glared at him and raised my chin. “Why are you so infuriating?”
“Me? You’re the one who has no idea how small towns work.” He took that final step toward me, leaving no room between us. “You seem to be more interested in profit.”
My ass hit the edge of the desk as I tried to take a step back. “I am trying to help you, you damn stubborn man.”
“You are driving me crazy, is what you’re doing.” His breathing was fast as his chest heaved, brushing against mine.
I swallowed hard, willing my own breath to even out. “Right back at—”
I didn’t get to finish my sentence before his mouth was on mine. The moment our lips met all logic, reason, and sense left the room. His lips were soft, the kiss was firm, and my mouth opened without any coaxing from him.
Our teeth clashed and our tongues tangled. My hands fisted his shirt, he gripped my hair hard enough to sting. Everything I had going on in my life spilled over into the kiss. That kiss was the culmination of everything that had happened recently.
My fear and frustration was laid bare by the way I held on to his shirt. Like it was the only thing holding me up. The only thing keeping me sane. Like my job. Rafe. Like I was claiming the little sanity he said I was taking from him.
There was nothing soft or gentle about the kiss. I wanted him, and he wanted me. We both knew it. We’d been denying it, dancing around it. Pretending we could keep our hands off one another.
My hands released his shirt and moved around him.
His back was a brick wall beneath my hands, tense with the same frustration tainting the kiss.
Rafe angled my head how he wanted as he plundered my mouth.
Like everything else he did, the man kissed with everything he had.
Like there was only one way to do things — all in.
His other hand lowered to my ass, drawing me closer to him, letting me know exactly how turned on he was.
He wasn’t the only one. My panties were soaked and all we were doing was kissing.
What would happen if we went further? If he used his tongue in other places, those hands.
And that cock currently digging into my belly.
My body relaxed and I sank into his arms, losing myself in him and—
Rafe’s body tightened and his muscles flexed beneath my hands. He pulled his mouth away and stared at me. Our eyes locking, chests still heaving, arms holding onto one another like we were each other’s lifeline. And we were.
He made sure I was safe. And I would save his ranch… if he let me. “Rafe.”
My voice was nothing more than a whisper as I looked up into those slate gray eyes.
He took another step back, creating more distance between us. His thumb swiped at the corner of his mouth, then pushed the heel of his hands at his eyes for a few moments before focusing back on me.
“This was a mistake.” His arms fell to his side and he stepped away from me. “We shouldn’t have done it.”
I tried to take a step back, but there was no room for me. He had me against the desk with nowhere to go. “No, we shouldn’t have.”
I took a deep inhale, allowing my lungs to fill with air and my breath to even out.
“I’m your boss.” His hand raked through his hair, as he walked around the desk. “You have trouble chasing you. And as you no doubt have figured out, I have my own set of problems.”
He was right. The simmering heat between us needed to be ignored. There was nothing either could or should do about it. But I could solve some other problems. “Rafe about the—”
“No, Rory.” He picked up his hat off the filing cabinet and turned to face me.
“Send Miller another email and apologize for the misunderstanding. And if there are other contracts around town you’ve cancelled, fix that too.
There has to be other ways to save me money.
But don’t let me lose the trust of the town.
I may not have a lot, but I have that, and I will not lose it.
He turned and walked out. My hand shot to my mouth, the touch of his lips still tingled on mine.
How? How the fuck could I kiss my boss. I was not the kind of woman to be swept away so easily.
But Rafe made me crazy. And not just in the I want to throttle him with my bare hands kind of way.
No. He made me want to stop running. Was it even possible?