Chapter 4
CHAPTER FOUR
“Somebody flattened your back tires,” Sully said to the gorgeous girl, whose slender arms circled his waist, as Storm trotted into the porch light of the Triple C Ranch-South cabin.
“Oh my gosh!” Charley gasped, leaning around Sully’s left side.
“Hang on,” he said and placed a hand to her knee, not wanting her to fall off the horse. Sully reined Storm in between the car and cabin and helped Charley safely slide to the ground.
“Who would do such a thing?” Charley asked, and then before he could answer she said, “Rod Vaughn.”
“That’d be my guess.” Dismounting his horse, Sully wondered if seeing them together on Storm had resulted in the flat tires.
“For the record, Rod has no claim on me,” Charley said, walking around her car.
From the front of the vehicle, she told him, “Not just the back tires. All four tires are flat! I’ll call someone to come and put air in them.
” Charley pulled out her phone and started scrolling.
With a pang in her voice, she looked up from her cell and asked, “Who do I call?”
“Nobody. I’m guessing air won’t fix the problem.”
She tilted her pretty head and asked him, “What do you mean?”
“My bet is that this is a slash and dash.”
“He slashed my tires?” Charley’s shoulders momentarily sagged, and then she lifted her chin. “I’ll need a tow truck.”
“It’s dark outside and you don’t have to do this tonight.” Sully walked to where she stood at the front of her car. “I can take you to Cash’s house.
“No, I don’t want to bother Cash at night, especially with Tracy being pregnant. And he mentioned the Lodge being full. I’ll stay here at the cabin.”
“What if Vaughn comes back tonight, Charley?”
“I don’t know.” She grimaced. “Maybe he won’t.”
“Let’s ride to my ranch.”
“How far away is your ranch?”
“On the path through the pine trees, ten minutes.”
“Do you have a car?”
“Yes.” He chuckled. “I have a truck and a Jeep.”
“Can you give me a ride into town?”
“Absolutely. Do you have a way back out here in the morning?”
“Well…no.” She let out a frustrated hiss. “But I can call an Uber or a cab.”
“We can figure it out at my ranch.” Sully turned and gave her a wave. “Come on.” He mounted Storm and then took his foot out of the stirrup. “Saddle up, city slicker.”
“I don’t see how this is saddling up when I don’t have a saddle.” But with a playful huff, Charley slipped her foot into the stirrup, caught hold of his hand, and with a hop was behind him on Storm.
“We’ll have to get you one.” Not only did Sully like the feel of her arms sliding around him, he liked her soft breasts pressing against his back.
“One what?”
“A saddle.” Sully nudged Storm, and the stallion headed for home.
“I don’t have a horse.”
“You’ll need one out here.”
“I don’t know how to take care of a horse, and where would I keep it? In the barn next to the cabin?”
“Or a stable.”
“A stable like my cousin Cash has?”
“Not as big, since he has thirty-some dude ranch horses, but yes.”
They rode in silence, and Sully figured she was pondering the slashed tires, the cabin, and having her own horse.
Ten minutes later, light flickered across the trail and Storm had them at Sully’s stables.
With the floodlight shining over the top of the stable doors, Sully let Charley dismount and then slid off Storm behind her.
He opened a door, flipped on the inside lights, and led Storm into the stable.
Taking Storm toward his stall, he noticed Charley looking around.
“How many horses do you have?” she asked.
“Half dozen,” he replied just as the backdoor opened. “Randy Custis, come meet our new neighbor, Charley Cooper.”
“Hello,” Randy said with a nod and a smile. He was thirty and a great friend in addition to being a cousin. Sully noted the appreciation for Charley’s beauty and her figure in his eyes. Giving Storm’s hindquarters a pat, Randy said, “Nice to meet you, Charley.”
“Hi, Randy. It’s nice to meet you too.”
“My cousins, Randy and his older brother, Roy, both work for me and live in the bunkhouse beside the stables,” Sully told her.
“For now.” With a nod at Sully, Randy explained to Charley, “Roy just got engaged and will eventually move in with Mindy, his fiancée. But he’ll still work with us.” With a clap to Sully’s shoulder, he said, “Roy and I wrangled good deals when Sully hired us.”
“I’m the one who got a good deal,” Sully said. “You guys are the best.”
Randy grinned and shrugged. “Oh, I almost forgot. Trish Potter was here looking for you earlier, Sully.” With that, Randy took Storm off his hands.
“Okay,” Sully replied patting the stallion’s mane. He’d silenced Trish’s texts but had noticed all three at the Lodge. “Thanks, Randy. See you tomorrow.”
“Yup, you got it.” Randy tipped his hat at them. “See you tomorrow.”
Sully steered Charley out of the stables. “Let’s go inside, get something to drink, and figure out what to do about your car,” he suggested.
“Great, and if it wouldn’t be too much trouble, I need to use your bathroom.”
“Sure thing. Follow me.”
Sully led the way past the corral he and his dad had built.
Passing a three-car garage, to the rear of the house, took them to the side door of the home.
Opening the door, he let Charley step into the softly lit mudroom ahead of him.
His eyes dipped to her fanny. It was round and sexy as hell.
He could still feel her legs touching his when she’d been behind him on Storm. She stopped after entering the kitchen.
“Which way?” Charley asked.
“Through the kitchen and down the hall, on the left,” Sully replied and pointed. “What would you like to drink?”
“Whatcha got?”
“Beer, bottled water…beer,” he said with a grin and a shrug. “I’m gonna have a beer.”
“Okay. I’ll have one too.”
Sully didn’t answer the texts from Trish asking if he was home.
Between the sink and white cabinets on one side and an island with a quartz countertop and four barstools on the other, he walked through the large, rectangular kitchen to the stainless-steel refrigerator.
Not a minute after Charley had closed the bathroom door, the side door to the mudroom opened.
“Sully?” came Trish Potter’s voice.
Hell. Trish’s dad had retired from the post office and lived on a patch of land a few miles away.
After her first divorce, Trish had moved in with her father.
Sully had initially met her a couple of years prior at one of the Coopers’ summertime barbecues.
She’d propositioned him and he’d taken her up on it.
She’d disappeared for a while and was back again after divorce number two and the passing of her father.
Sully had slept with her for the second and final time about six months ago.
That was more than enough. He was done and had politely but firmly told Trish so.
However, Trish, five years his senior, was aggressively persistent and not taking no for an answer.
“What are you doing here, Trish?” Sully asked, standing in front of the fridge.
With black hair swinging around her shoulders and wearing a dress that barely covered her backside, she slinked to him and clutched his right arm. “I’m here to invite you to Chloe Cooper Brevard’s Halloween party.”
“Chloe already invited me.”
“Great! Let’s go togeth—” She halted and stared.
“Sorry to interrupt,” Charley said from the arched doorway to the hall.
Damn, Charley was beautiful. Sully was partial to long brown hair and hers was particularly eye-catching.
Charley had a fresh and innocent look about her and Sully figured she was a few years younger than he was.
Her royal-blue eyes blinked, and she pulled her full lower lip between straight white teeth.
“You’re not interrupting,” Sully said, freeing his arm from Trish.
He took two beers out of the fridge, opened them, and walked toward Charley.
This situation was uncomfortable, and he resented Trish’s intrusion more for Charley’s sake than his own.
Handing Charley one of the bottles, he winked at her and said, “Here you go.”
“Last time I saw you, Sully, you said it was approaching your busy time of year and you weren’t dating,” Trish remarked pointedly, giving Charley the onceover.
Sully didn’t feel he owed Trish an explanation. “Charley Cooper, this is Trish Potter.”
Charley smiled and said politely, “Nice to meet you.”
“Buh-bye, Sully,” Trish spat, ignoring Charley. Trish turned on her heel and headed out the door, letting it slam shut.
Charley asked, “A night for dealing with exes?”
“Yeah,” Sully agreed. “Sorry about that.” Then, giving Charley a smile, he said, “I have a den right down the hall. Let’s go figure out your next move.”
Sully led the way past his office, with photos and products of his business. After what happened, you should know I detest guns. Charley had stated that to Rod Vaughn. Vaughn had indicated Sully could be a strangler. Sully had an idea why she hated guns. But what else had she been through?
“What do you do for a living, Sully?”