“I’m not afraid of you, Connor.” She slipped her fingers lower, inside his boxers, and his legs went weak. “Let me make you feel good.”
When she brushed against the tip of his erection, it was more than he could take. He grabbed hold of her arms and backed her against the nearest wall. The air wooshed from her lungs and her eyes went wide with surprise. Then he got in her face, so close their noses were almost touching.
“I’m going to warn you one last time,” he said, teeth clenched, jaw tight. “Do not mess with me or you will regret it.”
He let go and swiped her shirt from the floor, thrusting it at her. Then he turned and folded his arms across his chest, waiting for her to leave. He heard the rustle of fabric, then the door opened and snapped shut again.
He was almost afraid to turn around. Afraid he’d find her completely naked and undeterred, and this time he might not be able to hold back.
But when he turned, he found the room empty. It wasn’t until then that he realized he was shaking.
At 6:00 the following morning, Connor trudged down the stairs, feeling cranky and out of sorts. He’d slept like hell last night, guilt burning a hole in his gut every time he thought of how he’d treated Nita. But she hadn’t given him a choice. There hadn’t been any other way to get through to her.
He walked into the kitchen, expecting to find her there eating her breakfast, but the room was empty. He checked the office next, but she wasn’t there, either, and she wasn’t upstairs in her room.
Where the hell was she?
He took the stairs two at a time and headed out to the stable. The sun was a glowing orange shadow on the horizon and the air was chilly and scented with fresh hay.
No Nita, but he did find Jimmy.
“Have you seen Nita?” Connor asked him.
“She got up early this morning. A couple of the men thought they saw a light out in the west pasture last night. They took the truck out there but whoever it was musta heard ‘em and run off. Nita went to check it out.”
“Alone, in the dark?”
The old man shrugged. “Said she wanted to search the property for more holes before we set the horses out to pasture.”
Connor could hardly believe what he was hearing. “And you let her go?”
His look was solemn. “She is the boss, Connor. I’m in no position to be giving her orders.”
“You could have at least gone with her.”
“I offered, she said no thanks.”
Connor knew she was doing this to get back at him for last night. He cursed under his breath and headed for Goliath’s stall. He had him saddled and ready to go in three minutes. “She ever does this again, you come and find me right away.”
“I know you’re worried about her getting hurt, but she can handle herself,” Jimmy said as Connor walked Goliath out of the stable and mounted him.
“I know she’d like to believe that, but right now, she’s not safe anywhere by herself.” He drove his heels into the horse’s sides and took off in search of her.
Nita studied the tracks in the dirt. There was a single shovel mark in the ground, as if the digger had been interrupted. That must have been about the time the boys drove out to investigate.
She shook her head. Whoever was doing this, was certainly persistent, and not very intelligent if he thought she would fall for this old trick again. But if he’d set out to annoy her, he’d succeeded. She was going to have to have a talk with the men to see if anyone would be willing to patrol the property at night until the guilty party was caught. Maybe they could take three-or four-hour shifts. And if they were really lucky, maybe they would catch him in the act.
A smile curled her lips when she thought about what she would do if she caught him herself.
She heard the beat of a horse’s hooves and, looking at her watch, knew it was Connor. She didn’t have to turn and look at him to know he’d be angry she’d left without him.
She was hoping he would be, though it couldn’t begin to make up for the anger and humiliation she’d felt last night when he’d turned her down. And yes, she’d been hurt. She’d never misread a man as badly as she had Connor. She’d been sure he was as interested in her as she was in him.
Apparently not.
Although that didn’t explain the bulge in his jeans. He’d definitely been turned on, but he sure had freaked out when she’d touched him. Then it occurred to her, maybe by saying he was damaged, he’d meant he was physically disfigured somewhere down there. He had been in an explosion. What if his back wasn’t the only place he’d been burned. Maybe he was embarrassed to let her see him.
Oddly enough, the thought was almost comforting. He hadn’t actually rejected her. He was looking out for her welfare—protecting her from the gruesome truth. And he’d said that, hadn’t he? At the time she’d figured it was just some lame put-down line. Maybe he thought she’d be appalled by the way he looked.
Well, hell, he didn’t need to feel embarrassed. She didn’t care what it looked like, as long as the plumbing worked, and even if there were kinks to work out she would be okay with that, too. The more challenging, the more fun as far as she was concerned.
Maybe this wasn’t a lost cause after all.
Connor stopped a few feet from where she was crouched inspecting the ground. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
If he was going to go all macho on her, maybe she shouldn’t be so eager to let him off the hook. She slowly rose to her feet and turned to him, her face the picture of serenity. “Good morning to you, too.”
He jumped down from his horse. “Look, I know you’re probably upset about last night…”
Oh yeah, he was askin’ for it. “Don’t flatter yourself, cowboy. Men like you are a dime a dozen. It’s a shame though, we could have had fun.”
If she’d wounded his pride, he didn’t let it show. “Then why did you leave without me? Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
“I have a farm to run. If you can’t keep up with me, that’s not my problem.” She mounted her horse and headed for the stable, Connor riding close behind her, a silent sentinel. He didn’t say a word the entire ride, but she could feel his anger hovering over her like a heavy black storm cloud. And she was only slightly enjoying it.
Well, maybe more than slightly.
Jimmy was outside the stable waiting for them.
“Looks like our digger was back,” she told him. “I found more holes in the west corral. I want the boys to fill them, then search every inch of the property for more.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She hopped down from her horse and headed for the house to see if her daddy was up. They had house-keepers to interview starting at ten.
“When were you planning on telling me about the holes?” Connor asked from behind her. From the tightness in his voice, she could tell he was still angry, but trying hard to hold it in. He’d feel a whole lot better if he just blew up at her and got it out of his system. He was too closed off, too darned controlled all the time.
Knowing she was throwing kindling on the flames, Nita shrugged and said, “You didn’t ask.”
“I shouldn’t have to.”
“Look, Connor,” she shot over her shoulder. “I don’t have time to babysit you today. Why don’t you make yourself useful and go help the men fill the holes?”
“You know I can’t do that.”