Rodeo Christmas at Evergreen Ranch (Gold Valley #13)(45)

“Noted.”

“Turn left just up here.”

The cabin was hardly that. It was much larger than he’d guessed it would be, with large windows and a roof with a deep peak.

“Wow, this isn’t exactly the close quarters I was expecting.”

“I told you. They’ve got... Lots of space here.”

“You weren’t kidding.”

They got out of the truck, and he hefted their bags inside.

“There’s at least four bedrooms in here. Feel free to choose which one you want.”

“Sure.”

“The fridge should be stocked. And there should be coffee and everything. So... When you get up to go shooting with the boys tomorrow you should be well caffeinated.”

“Important,” he said.

“Yeah. So I hear. There’s not enough caffeine in the world to do cookies with my mother.”

“You don’t like to bake?”

“No. And more to the point, I’m terrible at it.”

“You’re terrible at it because you don’t care about it.”

“Oh? And you know that for sure?”

“I know you. If you care about something you’re going to become good at it. So, I assume you just don’t care about baking.”

“No. I don’t. But my mom does. So...”

“I get it.” A memory whispered at the back of his mind, and he blinked. “I used to make cookies with my mom sometimes. Logan’s mom... She made the best oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. My favorite. But my mom made the best sugar cookies. The crispy kind. I don’t like them chewy.”

“Well, you’ll have to be disappointed. Ours are chewy.”

“That’s okay,” he said. “I’d rather have them different than... You know, almost the same but not quite right.”

“Yeah,” Callie said. “I’m sorry. It must seem really ridiculous to listen to someone complain about baking with their mom when they can bake with their mom.”

He shook his head. “No. I don’t think of it that way. I can afford to. If my parents were still here... They’d drive me nuts. I’m sure of it. You’re allowed to be irritated by your parents. Just because somebody else doesn’t have them, doesn’t mean you don’t have problems with yours.”

“Thank you.”

“No problem.” And there was something about the way the night had fallen outside the window that reminded him of last night. That made him think of the way they’d kissed then, and the way she’d felt his arms. And his memory was all too willing to cut out the fight they’d had surrounding it. And just imagine that kiss. The way it had felt to slide his tongue against hers. To hold that soft, strong body in his arms.

He took a step back. “I’m bushed. I better head to bed.”

“Okay.”

“See you tomorrow, Cal.”

“See you tomorrow.”

And he walked down the hall, toward the bedrooms, without looking back. Because if he looked back, there was no telling what he might do.





CHAPTER THIRTEEN


CALLIE WOKE BRIGHT and early, and irritated. Jake was already in the kitchen making coffee, and she found her eyes glued to the sight of him. His broad shoulders and back, his narrow waist. His muscular thighs.

And his... Well, his ass.

She had never really been transfixed by a man’s body before. But she couldn’t really move for all the effort it took to take him in. She didn’t like it. It made her feel exposed. Like when he’d kissed her that night, he’d peeled back a layer and left her damn near naked to everything around her.

It was terrible.

And when he turned around, and offered her a cup of the morning brew, she did her best to look casual. To look like she wasn’t just taking a visual tour of his every muscle.

And then a smile curved the corners of his mouth, and her stomach did something weird.

He was beautiful. He was really beautiful.

“I expect you’re about to head out for the shooting.”

“Yep. C-4 is involved.”

She rolled her eyes. “If Boone’s around, it usually is.”

“Why exactly?”

“I don’t know. He likes blowing shit up.”

“I mean, I don’t not like blowing shit up.”

“Who doesn’t like to blow shit up?” Callie asked. “It’s one of the great joys in life. I have to make frosting instead. That is not as much fun.”

“I’ll enjoy eating it later.”

“Bullshit,” she said.

But he smiled, and there was something wolfish about it, and it took that twisting feeling in her stomach and ramped it up even more. And she couldn’t even say she disliked it. Because it was strange and intense and made a pulse echo between her legs. And it felt... Good. Dangerous. Interesting. It was like getting on the back of a horse, not knowing how hard the ride would be. Not knowing how rough. That moment before everything went live.

It was like that, but different. More. Frightening and intimate and... There was something sort of shameful about it, and she found that made it a bit dirty and heated and bright. And she shouldn’t find that to be true, but she did. She nearly didn’t recognize herself. And that made her feel like she was drowning, right there on land, in a kitchen, staring at the man who was supposed to be her best friend in the whole world. Because there was suddenly something more exciting than rodeo. And it was something she shouldn’t even want. And it was something that wouldn’t go anywhere or get her anything. She blinked, and breezed through the moment. Made a conscious decision to let it pass by.