Holidays on the Ranch (Burnt Boot, Texas #1)(76)

“What are you doing?” she asked.

He rolled the socks into a ball and threw them in the pen. Both puppies sniffed them and then curled up in a ball with their noses close to the socks.

“Works every time.” He put his boots back on. “Let’s go get some sleep. Morning will come fast.”

And Finn meant sleep.

***

Callie undressed, took her hair down, put on a nightshirt and a pair of underpants, and dived beneath the covers. She was absolutely chilled to the bone marrow. The velvet jacket and dress were not meant to provide warmth in an icy-cold barn, but she would have stood in front of a firing squad before she would have admitted she was cold. He was cold, wet, and mad at the whole world. Add that to a healthy dose of jealousy because she’d flirted with other cowboys, and it made for a miserable, lonely night.

She waited for the closet door to open. Hell, she’d even made sure her shoes were tucked under the rocker so he wouldn’t trip over them on his way to her bed. She wanted to cuddle up beside him, to feel his hard, firm body next to hers, to draw warmth from him.

Fifteen minutes passed.

The door didn’t open.

She was still shivering. Only now it wasn’t related to weather but to anger.

She threw the covers off and stormed across the floor, slung open the closet door, pushed her clothing to one side and then his, and opened the door on the other side. Invited or uninvited, she wasn’t through fighting, and if she couldn’t sleep, neither was Finn.

Shotgun growled when the door opened, but when he realized who it was, he flopped his big yellow head back down on the rug and shut his eyes. She crawled right up in the middle of the bed, crossed her legs and her arms, and said, “What is your problem anyway, cowboy?”

He rolled over with his back to her. “I’m tired, Callie. Go back to your own bed and get some sleep. It’s after one o’clock.”

She stood up in the bed and threw off her nightshirt and then her bikini underwear. “The hell I will. I can’t sleep, and we are going to settle this.”

“There is nothing to settle. It’s been a long night.”

She crawled under the covers and hugged up to his back.

“I told you to sleep in your own bed,” he growled.

“How long have you known me, Finn?”

“Long enough to know you never listen.”

“I turned down a dozen dates tonight. One even said right out loud that his ranch was bigger than yours, and I don’t think he was really talking about land and cattle. Another one said when I got ready to get out of a mud puddle and swim in an ocean to give him a call. But none of them turned me on just by touching my fingertips or by a glance across the room. I’ve been in love with you since before I even knew I was in love with you. I’ve said my piece. You can lie there and pout if you want to, but I’m not going anywhere. Since you’re too stubborn to come to my room, I’ll sleep right here where I can feel your skin against mine,” she said.

“Damn it all to hell!” He flipped over and brought her to his chest in a fierce hug. “I love you, too, Callie.”

“Good. Now can we go to sleep? We have to get up in less than five hours, and I’m cranky when I don’t get my sleep.”

He chuckled, and all was right with her world.

Then he kissed her on the forehead and said, “Good night, darlin’.”

And the clouds came close to parting.

***

“You kids put on them new rubber boots and bundle up real good. It’s still spittin’ snow out there, and I don’t want a bunch of sick kids this close to Christmas. You bring the eggs in and then you can build a snowman. My rules say that you can stay out as long as you want. However, when you come inside, you are in for the rest of the day except for evening chores. There’ll be no running in and out. Cold and then hot and then back again is what makes kids get sick,” Verdie said.

As they hurried out into the backyard, the old work truck pulled up and Callie and Finn got out. Finn yelled at the kids that before they started a snowman, they might want to go out to the barn and have a look at what was there.

Like all kids, Martin and the O’Malley children weren’t about to walk when they could run like the wind through half a foot of fresh snow.

He slipped his arm around Callie’s waist. “No matter how much they beg, they cannot bring those things in the house.”

“You are preaching to the choir.”

“Just bein’ sure that we’re on the same page. Have you told Verdie yet?”

“Thought you might want to do that.” She stomped through the snow, picking her feet up high to keep from throwing snow inside her new rubber boots.

“Tell me what?” Verdie opened the door for them.

“This woman was an old bear last night,” Finn said.

“He was the one who acted like a rabid coyote with a sore tooth,” Callie tattled.

“Did you make up before you went to sleep?” Verdie asked.

“Yes, ma’am,” they said in unison.

“Here they come.” Callie pointed.

“Looks to me like you brought home two polar bears from the party last night.” Verdie laughed.

“Someone threw them out on the road right in front of us. Finn got his suit all wet rescuing the second one.” Callie kicked off her boots, set them on the rug beside the door, and headed straight for the coffeepot.