Chapter 10
Javier woke with a start—his ears and eyes straining to hear and see what had ripped him from a deep sleep. A glance at the bedside clock told him it was a few minutes after one o’clock.
Someone was in the house. He was reaching for his gun when he heard soft footfalls. The long table in the hall scraped against the wall, followed by the sound of air being sucked in and a louder, pained grumbling. “Owwww … Dammit to hell!”
Memphis. How the fuck did she get in?
He had expected she would show—the sex was off the charts, and they had the beginnings of something real. But he gave up before midnight, locked the doors, and finally succumbed to sleep. An hour of shut-eye didn’t nearly qualify as rested. Javier placed his gun back in the nightstand drawer and slid out of bed wearing athletic shorts and padded silently to the hall where he leaned against the doorjamb, watching as she inched her way down the hall. It would have been amusing had he gotten more sleep and knew where they stood.
Shoeless and tiptoeing, she crept toward his room. Memphis was brave entering his home at this hour. He had said he’d see her soon. Four hours later isn’t soon. She didn’t notice or sense him. Not good, baby. You should always be aware. Closer now, the light combination of sandalwood, jasmine, and rose wafted around him. He loved how she smelled. Should I scare the living fuck out of her? Yes.
He jumped out when she was a body length away.
She flinched, screamed, and raised her hand high. Snikt.
He acted without thought, dodging the strike, then disarming and tackling her to the floor face down. The open switchblade skittered a distance on the hardwood floor, toward the kitchen. “Memphis!”
“You’re hurting me!”
“You came at me with a fucking knife.”
“You scared me. I was trying to defend myself.”
“This is my fucking home. You broke into it.”
“You said I could come. I was quiet. I didn’t want to alarm you. I left my shoes and purse in the kitchen.” Her chest heaved as she wrestled him like a wild animal. “Pops warned me to be cautious around you, said that you had a wild temper.” She snarled, flipped over, and faced him.
What did that mean?“What the fuck? STOP. I’ll let you go when you quit fighting me.”
She was strong, but no match for him. He kept her pinned to the floor until she stilled, then let go. “Why, Memphis? I locked up when you didn’t show. How did you get in? You could have called or texted first.”
Her eyes sparked with fury in the low light. “I thought you never lock your doors.”
“Most days I don’t. Nighttime, always. Answer my questions.” His long sigh conveyed frustration. In a softer tone, he said, “Please.”
“I’m sorry, Javier. I had a disturbing message followed by an unsettling phone call which had me not thinking so clearly. I couldn’t sleep. Not knowing what to do, I came here. I should have let you know I was coming.”
“You’re right. You should have.” He let her go, pushed to his feet, and went in search of the switchblade. “How did you get in?”
She scuttled into a seated position and rested against the wall behind her, watching him. “I picked the back lock.”
His voice rose with disbelief. “You picked it?” He shot the deadbolt but knew that any lock was pickable. “Where are your tools?” His hand closed around the switchblade handle. He didn’t have to see it to know the blade was forged by him and it was the first switchblade he had made.
“My purse. Pops taught me.” She countered proudly.
“What else did your father show you?”
“How to hot-wire. And tie an assload of knots.”
Of course. “Ransom shared his varied skillset with you.” He slid down the wall to a seated position mirroring her posture, sighed again, and raked his fingers through his hair. It was unbelievable that they were having this talk after one in the morning. After she had broken into his house. After he had disarmed her. “Pops said they were survival skills that would come in handy when I least expected.”
That was true enough. All of them, including Daphne, were well-versed in what Ransom had taught his daughter. Growing up and living in the Narrows of Torch River had been challenging at times.
“Why the switchblade? If I weren’t trained to disarm an attacker, you could have injured me or worse.” Javier kept an eye on his fingernail as he gently tapped the blade’s edge against it—from base to tip. It bit into his nail its entire length. As sharp as hell. Lethal, if it hit its mark. After thirty-some years, his stamp was easy to discern. His eyes flicked to hers after closing it. “Was that your intent?”
“No!” She said vehemently, shaking her head. “Never. Even though Torch River seems safe, it’s late. I needed to be prepared. I figured better safe than sorry. I usually carry my switchblade. It’s easy to conceal and comes in handy.”
“It makes sense, right up to until you weren’t prepared for me. Do you have anything else on you?”
“No. My gun’s at the inn. My rifle is at the ranch, of course. I take it riding with me as a precaution.”
His eyes traveled her body. He held up the knife. “I’ll hold on to this for a while.”
“It’s mine.”
“I understand, but you showing up with this and using it has me uncomfortable. I’ll give it back to you when you leave. It’s been well taken care of.”
“How would you know?”
“I made it. It was a gift to your father from me. Ransom’s first knife. My first switchblade. He was sixteen. The blade has my stamp on it.
“You made it?”
“I did. I made a number of knives for him; for all of us. They have my stamp.”
“I think he kept all of them and then bought others. He gave me this one when I turned sixteen. It’s my favorite.”
“Do you have other knives?”
“I think I have all of them. What Pops hadn’t given to me, I received when he died.”
“You mentioned a message. You received it last night? Is that what turned you ice-cold and had you changing your mind about spending the night with me?”
“I needed to think.
“And now you’re ready to talk after shutting our night down?”
“I have to address what I came here for. To do that, I need to end to whatever is going on between us.”
“That’s not going to happen, Memphis. We were just getting started and I’m certainly not ready to let us go. Getting back on track and denying us don’t have to be mutually exclusive. Look at it from my point of view. A gorgeous woman broke into my home, to talk. I’m pretty sure she wants more than that, given that she isn’t wearing a bra. Do you have panties on?” Unbothered by how she stared at him—clearly annoyed by the way her eyes narrowed, he went on. “She woke me from a sound sleep and has stirred me up by demonstrating how fucking fierce she is. I’m in a bad state because I crave you, like the oxygen I breathe.”
Memphis’s teasing lilt matched her naughty grin. “I could take off all of my clothes, you know, to show you that I’ve nothing on me.”
Hot damn. “Do it.”
“Here?” Her breathy words held a husky edge.
“Does it really matter where? I hear it in your voice. You want me as much as I want you. Let’s cut to the chase. Then, before you leave, we’ll have that talk you’ve come for. I promise.”
He was riveted as she pulled off the long-sleeve light top off and shucked her joggers. Naked as an unfledged bird. Javier groaned and pulled her closer, encouraging Memphis to lay on her back. His kiss was soft and lingering.
She parted her lips, her breath accelerating and catching, sighing into his mouth as the kiss deepened. Their tongues slide over each other’s—caressing and seeking.
“Open your legs, baby.” He murmured. “We going to be a while. I need to worship you.”
* * *
The sounds of chirping and the weight of Javier’s leg and arm caging her body woke Memphis. After extracting herself and easing from the bed without disturbing him, she seized the opportunity to study him in the dawning light.
He had the body of a man decades younger—a well-defined torso, powerful arms and shoulders, a beautiful firm ass, and strong legs. No flab anywhere. His dimples were more evident now, making a good-looking guy as hot as hell. With every smile, grin, and warm look, she melted more.
If she stayed any longer, she would give him more of her heart.
If she stayed any longer, Creed Ranch might cease to exist.
She needed to be on her way home before noon.
Memphis attended to her needs in the bathroom, including a good swishing of toothpaste and water, and padded to the kitchen, naked, stopping in the laundry room, where she grabbed a clean muscle tank of his that lay folded on the dryer. She slipped it on. It fell to mid-thigh and dwarfed her. In the kitchen, she made coffee and checked for anything to eat or to make. Javier had the right ingredients to create Pops’ biscuits and there were plenty of fresh eggs and vegetables to make a scramble. A hearty breakfast was called for. She had a long drive ahead of her.
She pulled her phone from her purse; the battery was low. She plugged it in and paired it with Javier’s Bluetooth speaker, choosing her light instrumental playlist, then turned on the oven and began making the biscuits.
She sensed him before he slid his arms around her and planted a lingering kiss on the back of her neck. “A sexy, beautiful woman is cooking. Worth the little sleep I got.” He mumbled in her ear. “What’s for breakfast? I’m famished.”
He felt like home. She wanted to be in his arms forever, but she had a job to do. “Biscuits and eggs. Coffee should be ready. I’m famished, too.”
“My tank looks good on you. I like how your body plays peek-a-boo in it,” he said, sliding his hands into the armholes and gently squeezing her breasts, which tightened at his touch. “I love how these overflow in my hands.” He groaned, gently kneading them, then removed his hands and moved to her ass, squeezing while also grinding himself against her. “Fuck, baby, you drive me wild.”
“I can’t cook while you’re doing that, sir.”
“You sure?”
“Yes. I need to make the eggs.”
“You called me sir. That stirs me up, had me aching for some carnal connection.”
His definition of sex had her giggling. Memphis turned and pressed her forehead into the warm skin of his broad chest, kissing it and inhaling his scent, unable to keep the grin off her face. She gazed up at him. “I think you were aching before I said that, but I’ll take you up on that carnal connection. Only if you lend a hand with breakfast afterward.”
“Agreed.” He guided one of her hands to grab his erection while sliding a hand up her inner thigh, lifting her at the same time and depositing her on the opposing counter. Their eyes were locked on each other as his fingers worked her channel and she stroked him.
She pulled the tank off.
He pulled a condom from his pocket, dispensed with the shorts, and kicked them away while covering himself. “Spread your legs for me, baby,” He murmured as he lifted her hips and pushed in.
Tingling and delicate tremors rushed through her system as they met each other. She was on fire and moaned.
“You’re heaven, baby.” Javier spoke, brushing her lobe with his lips and nibbling. “So fucking good.” He captured he mouth and began a gentle assault with his talented tongue.
She shattered. Longing and anxiety surfaced as she came back to normal. What happens after I leave? What happens if he does help? What happens afterward? Why are you worried? Because I want him. I think I want him forever.
* * *
At the table on the back deck, they watched a glorious sunrise while finishing biscuits and egg scramble.
Memphis set down her utensils, wiped her mouth, and pushed away the plate. “Eben is getting married next weekend. Why so suddenly is a mystery. They were looking at a date a year away.”
“Is she pregnant?”
She watched Javier slather the last biscuit in local honey. “I asked. Eben said she wasn’t, but also avoided answering whether there’s a prenup in place. He has to have one or this could turn ugly. Creed Ranch could be taken over by Trey Rooney and his family. I have such a bad feeling about all of this.”
“Walk me through it. I’ll interrupt if I have questions.”
“I’ve shared how Pops came to own Creed Ranch.”
“Right.”
“Next up, the trust. Pops had it drawn up, as well as his will after my grandparents died. They left the entirety of Fuller Ranch to him; my mom was an only child. He renamed it Creed Ranch.”
“When did your grandparents die?”
“I was eighteen, so I knew them well. We lived on the ranch with them, but in our house. They were amazing.”
“What was your dad’s relationship with them?”
“Very close. It was as if they were his parents. He adored Mamaw and had an incredible connection with Papaw.”
“I’m glad you had that time with them. I’m even happier that Ransom had those years with them and had a tight bond with a man who was a father figure to him.”
She detected a wistfulness in his voice. “You didn’t have a man in your life who was a mentor or stood in as a father?”
“Nope. We were Daphne’s kids. She never married.”
“Oh. I’m sorry.”
“No reason to be. She did a hell of a job with us. We’re all successful. Most of us did great in the relationship department.”
Except Javier. He was a bachelor, handsome and charming as hell, when he wanted to be, who avoided attachments except with Daphne and his circle of kin. She wanted to know what made her so different that Javier let her in? Was it because she was Ransom’s daughter? Daphne said no women slept over at his house, but Memphis had, several times.
“I see your gears working. I’m fine. I enjoy my life as it is, without attachments.”
“But—”
“I’m fine.”
“I want to share some things with you,” she said before going back into his house.
Memphis returned with more coffee, the photos, and the note. She kept the note and handed him the photos, staying quiet and sipping coffee while he took his time looking through them. It was interesting. His first pass was quick. His second pass crawled. A myriad of expressions flitted over his strong features as he examined the pictures.
Thoughtfulness.
A barely-there smile that carried into his eyes.
Sadness.
Fascination.
He rose and went to the rail and gazed at the river.
She waited.
Five minutes.
Fifteen minutes.
It was as if he had been transported somewhere else.
Her bladder whined from all the coffee. Memphis took a bathroom break. Javier was in the same spot upon her return. He was so still.
“Jav?” She approached slowly, sidling next to him and circled his waist with her arm.
“What’s the problem? Why do you want me to come to the ranch?” He didn’t glance at her and continued to stare off in a southern direction. “Is it the will? You had said the trust was ironclad.”
This wasn’t what she was expecting. Yes, she wanted him to come but she had hoped he would talk about the estrangement.
“There was no issue with the will. Pops went over it with Eben and me. We knew what to expect. The trust, too. As I said, the problem is that the wedding has been moved up by a year. There needs to be a prenup in place to protect the trust and the ranch.”
“I don’t understand where I come in or where the family might.”
“I need your support, even though I assume Pops felt he didn’t.”
“Ransom absolutely did need our support.”
They startled at the sound of Daphne’s voice. “Mom! Daphne!” They cried in unison.
“Coffee, Mom?”
What the hell? Memphis was not dressed to see anyone else. “Excuse me. I need to, uh, change. I’ll get you a cup, Daphne.” Her entire body blushed. She pulled at the hem of Javier’s tank, crossed her arms to lessen her exposure, and hurried indoors.