“Congratulations,” Wade echoed, though his tone was flat. He sipped his tea, then stood up. Without so much as looking at Lauren, he said, “I’ve got to be getting back down to my place.”
“I’ll go with you,” Lauren said.
He seemed about to protest, but the words died on his lips. Relieved by that, she followed him to the door.
“Good night, you two. I really am happy for you,” she said to Grady and Karen, who were watching her and Wade uneasily.
“Thanks,” Karen said, then added pointedly, “See you in the morning.”
There was no mistaking that it was anything other than a command.
“First thing,” Lauren agreed.
Wade was silent as they walked toward his place. More important, he was also very careful to avoid so much as brushing up against her. She could feel the anger or tension or whatever it was practically radiating off him.
“Okay, just go ahead and say it,” she said finally.
“Say what?”
“Whatever’s on your mind.”
He whirled on her. “Okay, fine. I want to know why that man is still calling you.”
“I can’t control what Jason does,” she replied reasonably. “I’m not calling him. And you’ve heard me tell him that I’m not interested in anything he has to tell me.”
“You insist there’s nothing between you, but how am I supposed to buy that when he hasn’t given up?”
“Because I’m telling you the truth,” she said flatly. “Are you saying you don’t trust me?”
He frowned at the challenge. “No,” he said eventually. “But if he continues to harass you, I think you should tell the sheriff. There are laws about that kind of thing.”
She almost chuckled, but then she realized he was dead serious. “Wade, I can’t do that.”
“Why not? Unless he means more to you than you’re admitting.”
“I don’t know how else to say this, not when you’re being as pigheaded as he is. Jason doesn’t mean anything to me, not personally anyway. He’s a former business associate for whom I still have a great deal of respect. That’s it.”
“What kind of business associate keeps on calling after he’s been told to give up?”
“The kind who’s persistent,” she said, aware that Wade couldn’t understand any man pestering a woman unless it was because he wanted her. He had no frame of reference for a man in a business where persistence was not only a virtue but a necessity.
He scowled down at her. “You claim he’s not after you. Then what the hell does he want?”
Lauren weighed her reply carefully. This was a chance to tell Wade everything, but if she did it now when he was already irritated, he was likely to blow it all out of proportion. No, she decided, it would be better to wait until he was in the right frame of mind—whatever that was. At least, she could tell him a part of the truth.
“Jason wants me to come back to work. That’s it.”
Wade seemed to chew over that explanation for a bit, then finally nodded. “And you’re sure that’s all it is? He’s not harassing you or stalking you or something?”
“Absolutely not.”
“And you can handle it?”
She grinned at him. “I can handle the likes of Jason any day of the week. You’re the one who’s giving me fits.”
His lips twitched then. “Oh, I am, am I?” He seemed very pleased with himself. “In what way?”
“You’ve kept me out here wasting time talking about a man who means absolutely nothing to me, when I could be inside making love with a man who does matter.”
He slid his hand into her hair and tilted her head up. “And that annoys you?”
“Frustrates me,” she corrected.
“Would a kiss help?”
“It would definitely be a start in the right direction,” she confirmed.
With tantalizing restraint, he slowly lowered his head until his lips were just above hers. She could already feel the promised heat, but he refused the contact she was craving.
“Has anybody ever told you that you’re a tease?” she murmured.
“Not nearly often enough,” he whispered just as his mouth settled on hers.
There was something greedy and raw and needy about the kiss. The sensations exploded through her. Suddenly Lauren felt as if she were falling…falling from the topmost peak of a mountain…falling in love.
She rocked back on her heels and captured Wade’s face in her hands. She gazed deep into his eyes.
“We have some unfinished business,” she told him.
“You bet we do,” he said.
“Not that,” she said with a quick smile. “From earlier. I love you, Wade Owens.” She saw his eyes go dark, saw the quick flash of heat. “Just so you know.”
“It’s a darn good thing,” he murmured. “I’d hate to be in water this deep all by myself.”
She searched his face. “Then you meant what you said up at the house? You do love me?”
He grinned at her. “It scares the hell out of me, but yes, darlin’, I do.”
Lauren’s heart soared. And as long as she didn’t let herself think about the secret that could destroy them, it would keep right on soaring.
Chapter Twelve
“So, did you and Lauren patch things up last night?” Grady inquired when Wade rode out with him the next morning to check fence lines.
Wade thought of the raw passion that had kept them both awake for half the night. “You could say that.”
“After you agreed not to sell Midnight, I assume.”
Wade realized that they’d never gotten to that topic the night before, but he could read the gloating expression on Grady’s face. “Yeah, she convinced me it was a bad idea.”
Grady chuckled. “I’ll just bet she did.”
“Hey, I won a couple of concessions from her,” Wade protested. “She’ll only work with him when I’m around, and if something looks too risky, she’ll stop when I say so.”
“She actually agreed to that?”
“You bet,” Wade said, then shrugged. “I imagine it won’t take her more than a couple of days to forget all about it, though.”
“Yep, you know Lauren, all
