Clayton would have fun changing her mind. “I’d better be going. Thanks for the coffee and cake.”
“Thank you for the assistance.” Lucy followed him out of the kitchen and through the living room, where he picked up his coat and hat before heading out the door. He turned on the threshold, meeting her gaze. “I’ll see you when you drop the kids off tomorrow.”
“I have some things to do in the morning. I’ll get Thomas to drive them over.”
Clayton smiled. “Are you afraid of me?”
Lucy trembled involuntarily as that low, soft drawl skittered up her spine. With a momentum of its own it radiated to all points of her body. She raised her chin and tried to ignore the sensation, meeting his steady gaze with what she hoped was a withering glare.
“In your dreams.”
“You will be,” he replied easily. “I’m going to be seeing a lot more of you, Lucy Warner.” He reached out and soft as a whisper stroked the back of his fingers down her cheek, mesmerized by the softness he met and by the way she became immobile with…what was that in her eyes? Panic? Fear? He pulled his hand away, realizing he would have to go slower with this woman that he ever had in his life. He put his hat on and shrugged into his coat.
“It doesn’t matter if you hide out here and try to avoid me, Lucy. We’re going to be good together. That is a promise and a McKinley always keeps his promises.”
Lucy couldn’t look away from him, couldn’t forget the feelings his fingers had elicited. She raised her chin a notch and looked him straight in the eye. “You think I can’t resist you?”
He tucked his thumbs into the belt hooks of his jeans. “I think I’d like you to try. Sounds like it might be fun.” Then he turned serious. “And one more thing. I would never hurt those kids to get close to you. I plan to do that all by myself.”
Lucy shivered but it had nothing to do with the night air and everything to do with the man who threatened to thaw her heart with just a sexy smile. He turned and walked down the steps, the porch light illuminating the path to his truck.
“I’m not getting involved with you.” It had seemed important to get that out in the open so there could be no misunderstandings. But when he turned and looked back at her, one hand on the door of the vehicle, Lucy realized how well this man played the game.
“I’ll make a bet with you that we’ll be dining over candlelight before next Saturday.”
Lucy crossed her arms and leaned back on the door-frame, hiding a small smile at his tenacity. “And when you lose that wager, what do I get?”
He didn’t miss a beat. “If I lose, you’ll get the satisfaction of seeing me fall flat on my backside and an extra pair of hands to help you scrape down this house. But I intend to win, Lucy, and when I do, my payment will be giving you those riding lessons you need…and a kiss.”
Lucy considered herself unshockable after so many years spent around kids for whom shock value had its own rewards, but his suggestion almost caught her off guard. Kissing Clayton McKinley was not a good idea. Just the touch of his finger on her cheek had almost curled her toes…and her toes didn’t curl for anyone!
“It’s a deal.”
He touched the rim of his hat and gave her another one of those dangerous smiles. “Yeah, it’s a deal. But it’s going to be a pleasure, Lucy. You can count on that.”
She stood there and watched him drive off into the night, waiting until she could no longer see his taillights in the distance.
Clayton McKinley had stirred her libido to life again as easily as he breathed. And Lucy was scared. Not because of his striking good looks, not even because of his laid-back charm. But because she’d known the man less than two hours and feelings were waking inside her. He’d stroked her cheek and her insides quivered. He smiled and she could almost hear the barricade around her emotions straining under the force of it. She had never felt anything so consuming and that was her fear. How could she protect herself from something she couldn’t control? Lucy had a feeling she’d just let a major complication into her life.
How much damage he did would be up to her.
Chapter Three
If he was surprised the next morning when she drove her car into the driveway of Cable Downs, he didn’t show it. In fact, he looked downright pleased with himself. The kids wasted no time getting out, though Max was stiff and sore from his injuries and Katie tried to act as if this whole thing was no big deal, when they all knew otherwise.
Lucy followed after a moment or two in which she got her racing heartbeat back under some semblance of control. He’d been hard at it already. Sweat and dust clung to the thin cotton T-shirt that stretched across his chest and shoulders. He was potent. Masculine. Rugged. A down-home original.
Clayton touched the rim of his hat and smiled at Lucy before turning his attention to the kids. “I’ve got hats and sunscreen for both of you up in the house. And it’s good to see you wore sensible shoes. I reckon I’ll make farmers out of you yet.”
Lucy watched them bask in his praise. No matter how she felt about Clayton, this would be good for Max and Katie. They’d been dreading the holidays. Soon enough their farm would be up and running, though not on the grand scale of this one. Until then, the chores were boring, repetitive and uninteresting.
“Go on up to the house,” he said, “and you’ll get morning tea before we head out.”
They didn’t need to be told twice, and when they were gone, Clayton stood face-to-face with the woman who had haunted what little sleep he had managed last night. “So I guess you’re not afraid of me after all.”
If he weren’t so darn charming his words would have almost been arrogant. “I wouldn’t have taken the bet if I was afraid of you.” He smiled and Lucy didn’t even try to shield herself from the effect, taking it as a given when a shiver skittered down her spine.
“Walk with me up to the house before all the goodies disappear with the hungry hordes,” he said, leading the way to the large homestead with its low-slung veranda and jasmine vines clinging to the railing. “I didn’t think you’d go for that bet, but you surprised me.”
“I know I’m going to win.”
Clayton smiled, wondering if he would ever get to see her in anything but jeans. She had a lemon-coloured sweatshirt on today and a pair of worn boots. Granted, she did things to a pair of jeans that would give a corpse palpitations, but he’d wager those legs would look dynamite in a skirt.
“Confidence. I like that in a woman. I find it sexy. You know, wondering if it spills over into other facets of her life.”
His smile had Lucy thinking of crisp cool sheets and Clayton…a combination that would get her in deep trouble, fantasy or not. “Just so we don’t get our signals crossed, are you flirting with me, McKinley?”
He took off his hat as he approached the veranda steps. Damp hair clung to his forehead and he reached up to brush it back with a smooth, long-fingered stroke. “I believe that’s what they call it,” he replied, not the least bit bashful. “Flirting is the basis of any good seduction.”
Lucy took a deep breath. Why couldn’t he just beat around the bush now and again without always having to just come right out with what he was thinking?
“You can’t seduce me.”
“Oh, it might take a while, since you’re not quite sure what my motives are…or whether you can trust me,” he said, never once breaking eye contact with her. “But it will happen.”
“I’m not attracted to you,” she said, wanting it to be true. His expression told her he knew otherwise and darn it if he wasn’t right.
“Then