Wild for the Girl Read online

  “No, I mean, I shouldn’t be thinking about you at work, but I couldn’t stop. I was at a meeting, and the head of housekeeping was explaining that we need to buy new mattresses and bedding, and thinking about beds made me think about you. In bed.”

  “That’s better.”

  “Yeah, but that’s not all.” He finished buckling his belt and slipped his arms around her waist, pulling her close. “Maintenance wants to update the showerheads, so naturally talking about showers made me think about you in the shower.”

  She grinned. “Naturally.”

  He kissed her forehead, then her nose. “It was getting hard to pay attention. Then we talked about new carpet for the third-floor hallways.”

  “New carpet made you think of me?”

  “I thought about having sex on the floor with you.”

  She bit her lip thoughtfully. “We’ve never done that.”

  “No, but it’s a good idea, isn’t it? After that, everything we talked about reminded me somehow of making love with you, and I couldn’t concentrate. I called a lunch break.”

  “I’m lunch?”

  “Best one I ever had.”

  “I’d have to agree with that.” She leaned into him for a long, tender kiss. As she drew back, a loud ringing came from his pocket. He pulled out a Nextel phone and answered, “Reese.”

  “Mr. Barringer, this is Kathy at the front desk. A guest is checking in, and asked to see you.”

  He kissed her before responding, “Ask Debra to handle it. I’m having lunch.” He grinned and dropped another kiss on her lips.

  “Yes, sir, I offered to do that, but she didn’t want to talk to Debra.” She sounded hesitant, then added, “Just a second.” They kissed through a moment of silence while Kathy apparently listened to the guest. “Mr. Barringer?” Her voice came back, more confident this time. “She said to tell you it’s your girlfriend from Boston.”

  11

  Girlfriend? Caroline?

  His initial surprise turned to irritation. What kind of game was she playing, coming out here?

  Then the horrible implication hit and his gaze flew to T.J. Her stunned look set panic clawing at his heart. “She’s not, T.J.,” he said earnestly. “She’s not my girlfriend.”

  T.J. stood perfectly still within his arms, but he’d felt her hands relax their hold on his upper arms and fall away, as if her muscles had suddenly gone limp. “You know who she is?” she asked. Her voice was guarded.

  He’d tell her whatever she wanted to know—he had nothing to hide. “Yes, at least I think I do. I used to go out with her but I broke it off before I came out here.”

  T.J. licked her lips slowly, swallowing once. “She doesn’t seem to think so.”

  He’d give anything to know what thoughts were going through her head, but her expression had gone carefully blank.

  He frowned, shaking his head as if it would shake Caroline loose from his life. Or negate the fact that he’d ever known her. “She’s like that. She hears what she wants to hear and creates her own reality. She’s not my girlfriend.” He dipped his head so she had to look at him. “T.J., I don’t have a girlfriend in Boston.”

  She just looked at him. He could almost see her mind whirling behind those deep blue eyes, weighing what he’d said against what she’d heard, and against the fact that she’d only known him for three weeks. He added, “Please believe me, T.J. I wouldn’t lie to you.”

  Her nod was imperceptible, and her gaze was cautious, withholding part of herself. A desperate, sinking feeling stabbed at his chest. Part of him wanted to grasp her arms and shake her until the numb look fled, but he knew he couldn’t force her to believe him. To trust him. She had to come to that decision on her own.

  The phone crackled. “Mr. Barringer?”

  Without taking his eyes off T.J., he lifted the phone. “I’m coming. Five minutes.” He slipped it in his pocket and put his hands on T.J.’s shoulders. “I don’t know why she’s here, but I’m going to make it very clear that I’m not interested and that I want her to leave. Okay?”

  She seemed to rouse herself, offering an emotionless “Okay.”

  Damn it, it wasn’t okay. The sooner he got rid of Caroline, the better. He kissed her forehead. “I’ll find you later, promise.”

  She didn’t respond, which felt like another knife jab to his gut. But he couldn’t begin to fix this as long as Caroline was here. Turning on his heel, he opened the door and started for the main lodge at a fast pace.

  * * *

  T.J. collapsed against the desk and watched him go. His girlfriend.

  Or former girlfriend, depending on who she believed.

  Emotions swirled in her mind—fear, anger, resentment, dread—churning and foaming like the water at the base of Lost Angel Falls. A rational part of her watched the turmoil from a distance, knowing she couldn’t give in to any of it yet. Her feelings didn’t matter. Either he had a girlfriend, or he didn’t. Either he’d been a dishonest cheat, or he hadn’t. Before she jumped into the cataract and let it batter her to pieces, she had to know which it was.

  She’d give him time. Let him confront his friend from Boston and see what happened. Maybe she was the clinging, stalker type—T.J. could almost see how Reese might inspire that. He’d be hard to let go of, especially if they’d once had an intimate relationship.

  She wouldn’t think about that.

  Or maybe the woman was an innocent victim, hoping to pull off a romantic surprise by impulsively flying across the country to see him. The surprise part had sure worked—she’d seen his face go from happy to scared in two seconds flat.

  Whatever the truth was, she’d find out soon enough. By now she knew how to judge men—what they said didn’t matter. It was what they did that counted.

  It was a good thing she’d chosen to keep their relationship physical. She didn’t have to get hurt if he’d never belonged to her in the first place. That had been a smart move on her part. Things were far less messy this way.

  And she wouldn’t think about the details, like the fact that she could still smell him on her skin. Still taste him. Still feel him inside her. Because then the churning waters came roaring at her, threatening to suck her under, where she might very likely drown.

  * * *

  Reese scanned the couches by the huge fireplace and the secluded seating areas around the lobby. Caroline wasn’t there. Striding to the desk, he caught Kathy’s eye. “Where is she?”

  “Miss Milbourne said you should meet her in her room. Suite ten fourteen.”

  The manipulation was obvious—make him come to her. Typical Caroline. And of course he did it, because the sooner she left, the sooner T.J. would know he hadn’t been hiding anything from her. He was still breathing hard, partly from anger, when he knocked on her door.

  “It’s open,” he heard from inside. He gritted his teeth and opened the door, pissed that she couldn’t even manage to meet him at the door. He stomped across the plush wool rug and rustic wood-plank floor, giving the empty sitting room and stone fireplace a puzzled look before he saw the open door to the balcony. He crossed to it and stepped outside, ready to tear into her. And stopped.

  Chaz Milbourne turned from admiring the rushing creek in the gulch below, and favored Reese with his smooth bank-executive smile. “Reese! Good to see you again, boy.” He crossed the length of the balcony while Reese stood frozen in place. Shaking his hand, Chaz clapped him on the shoulder. “Beautiful place your family has here! I’m glad Caroline talked me into coming.”

  “It’s a pleasure to see you, sir.” His eyes darted to a movement behind Chaz.

  Caroline swept past her father to lean in and plant a kiss on his cheek. For a few seconds he was enveloped by her light, expensive fragrance. “Hello, darling. You didn’t tell me what a quaint place this was. And so remote and wild.”

  Quaint? “It’s a four-star luxury resort.”

  Her elegant nose wrinkled in distaste. She looked cute when she did it, and she knew
it. “I guess everyone has different ideas of luxury, don’t they?”

  He refused to give her the smile she wanted. “Actually, there’s a standard definition for hotels.”

  Chaz’s grip on his shoulder tightened as he steered Reese back inside. “Well, it’s obvious your dad knows what he’s doing here, Reese. I’d like to meet him sometime.”

  Sudden suspicion raised the hairs on the back of his neck. Hell would freeze before he introduced Chaz Milbourne to his dad. If Caroline was trying to arrange some sort of meet-the-future-in-laws scenario, things were about to get very unpleasant.

  “I’m afraid Dad’s still suffering a lot of pain from his injury and rarely gets out of bed, but I’ll relay the compliment.” He stopped walking abruptly, forcing Chaz to turn to face him. Time to let the old man know he couldn’t be jerked around. “Mr. Milbourne, I’m afraid your visit has taken me by surprise, and my schedule is rather full, but if there’s anything you need, just let me know.” He’d have someone else provide it.

  Chaz’s eyebrow twitched up, but his voice remained friendly. “Don’t trouble yourself, boy. Caroline told me how seriously you take your responsibilities. Heard the same thing from Brad, you know. Very commendable.”

  Reese knew his boss’s name hadn’t been dropped casually; it was a reminder that Caroline’s father had Brad Cunningham’s ear. The hairs on Reese’s neck bristled again. He would have to tread carefully here if he wanted to keep his job, and not be as blunt as he’d intended.

  “Go back to work, Reese.” Caroline smiled tolerantly at his amusing dedication to a job. “You can join us for dinner. I’m sure even resort managers get to take time off to eat.”

  He couldn’t come up with a good excuse, and ground his teeth for several seconds. “I’ll call you later,” he said, then left the suite before they could sink another hook into him. He had several hours to think up a plausible excuse for skipping supper. He’d find at least three—it was always best to cover all options with the Milbournes.

  * * *

  T.J. wiped arena dust from her fingers onto the thigh of her jeans, then read the text message from Reese: CALL ME. Her stomach clenched into a hard knot despite her efforts not to overreact. A quick meeting time or a suggestion for where to eat dinner would have been more reassuring. Call me implied that something needed to be explained. Explanations were the same as excuses, and rarely good.

  She stuffed the phone in her back pocket, ignoring the ominous tingling that slid across her shoulders. There was no reason to assume something was wrong. But it wouldn’t hurt to put off calling for another fifteen minutes, until she got Black Jack cleaned up and back in his stall.

  The workout had tired them both, but it was a good kind of tired, leaving a satisfied glow. Jack had done well, and the exercise had taken her mind off Reese’s girlfriend. She stroked the horse’s hot neck as she walked beside him, murmuring words of praise as they entered the barn.

  “Hey, T.J.!”

  She turned her head, mouth opening wordlessly when Tad Prescott waved from the far end of the aisle. It wasn’t his presence in the barn hours after his lesson that surprised her. It was the vision in creamy white at his side.

  A young woman with flowing blond hair linked her arm through Tad’s as they walked up the barn aisle. T.J. couldn’t take her eyes off her. Her silky cream-colored blouse dipped low between full breasts. Beneath her white slacks, open-toed pumps clicked on the cement floor. As she got closer, T.J. saw the sparkle of rhinestones on the shoes, glittering as she walked, something T.J. thought would have looked laughable on her but which seemed completely appropriate on the blonde. She had to be from Hollywood. No one in Barringer’s Pass, Colorado, looked like that.

  Tad grinned as they reached her. “I was just showing off your barn and bragging about what a fantastic rider I’ve become, so don’t contradict me.” He winked, turning to the woman. “T.J., this is Caroline. She just got in today and I’m giving her the grand tour.”

  T.J. smiled politely and held out her hand. The woman looked like she was going to take it, then hesitated, looking at T.J.’s fingers. T.J. looked, too. The dust was gone, but horse sweat darkened her fingertips and left black lines beneath her short nails. In contrast, the woman’s hands looked soft and pink, with white tips on her long, lacquered nails. T.J. pulled her hand back with an embarrassed smile. “Sorry, I probably shouldn’t touch anyone right now.”

  The woman smiled in relief. “Nice to meet you, uh . . . T.J., was it?” She pronounced the letters carefully—tee jay—as if she might be unfamiliar with the alphabet, but her voice was soft and cultured. Tad had stumbled on to a classy one.

  “Yes, T.J. And I can confirm that Tad has become an excellent rider. I think the movie studio will be thrilled with what he can do.” A thought struck her as she realized he would be filming soon, and the resort was expecting an influx of preproduction people. “Are you with the production company?”

  She lifted elegant eyebrows in amusement. “Oh, no. I just happened to be visiting here, and I recognized Tad from his movies. I simply had to say hello.”

  “Lucky me.” Tad gave Caroline one of his patented winks, guaranteed to charm. “Caroline’s from back east. Where was it—Baltimore? Brooklyn? The Bronx?”

  Caroline widened her eyes in mock horror and gave Tad a playful slap on the arm. “Please!” She turned to T.J. “It’s Boston,” she corrected, but with the native accent that made it sound like Bahston.

  Boston. The word echoed in T.J.’s mind as the ominous feeling came racing back, prickling like needles across her shoulder blades. It could be a coincidence, she told herself, blinking at Caroline’s blond beauty. Would Reese fall for that?

  Who wouldn’t?

  But a lot of people lived in Boston. Tons of them. Fighting the sinking feeling in her stomach, she said, “I hope you enjoy Barringer’s Pass. The mountains are beautiful in the summer.”

  “Uh, yes.” Caroline’s gaze flicked to the open barn door behind T.J. and the majestic snow-capped peaks beyond. “I suppose they’re pretty. But actually, I’m just here to visit the owner of the hotel. He’s a close friend.” She smiled.

  A knife jabbed into T.J.’s stomach, twisting painfully while she fought to keep her expression serene. She couldn’t resist a jab in return, however small. “You know Mike Barringer? How nice. He’s a friend of mine, too.”

  Caroline didn’t even blush at being caught stretching the truth. “No, I meant his son Reese. He’s an architect in Boston, but he agreed to take over the resort for a few weeks until his father is able to handle it on his own.”

  T.J. didn’t know which emotion to give in to first—her annoyance at Caroline’s making Michael Barringer sound incompetent, or her anger at the easy way Caroline brushed aside Barringer’s Pass and T.J.’s beloved mountains. Or hell, Caroline’s very presence here. But curiosity was stronger than all of them. Steeling herself for what might be coming, she probed at the sore spot. “You said Reese is a close friend?”

  The question must have alerted her female instincts because Caroline paused, giving her a long, assessing look. T.J. was painfully aware of what she saw—brown hair still plastered to her head from her riding helmet, sweat-stained T-shirt, dirty jeans, and scuffed boots—and hated that she flushed under the other woman’s confident gaze. “Very close,” Caroline affirmed, smiling without a trace of malice. T.J. had been dismissed as a possible threat.

  She didn’t sound like a woman who’d been dumped. T.J. managed a faint smile, while inside something crumpled and died. She thought it was hope, but it might also have been trust.

  She saw no reason to stand around, making polite conversation with the woman who was here to exercise her claim on Reese. “Excuse me, I need to untack my horse and wash him off,” she told them. Then, because it had been Reese who’d cheated, not Caroline, she added through gritted teeth, “It was nice to have met you, Caroline.”

  She turned with Jack, forcing Caroline to perform a quick s
huffle backward to avoid rubbing against Jack’s sweat-flecked body. T.J. wished hard for a fly to land on his hind quarters as they passed her, causing a nice swish of his tail that might catch her across her lovely blouse. It didn’t happen, but something better did. Jack raised his tail and with a solid plop deposited a steaming pile of manure on the cement floor.

  Behind her, T.J. heard Caroline gasp, then gag at the pungent odor she’d just sucked in. She pretended not to notice, but hoped it ensured that Caroline would stay away from the barn. She didn’t care to ever see her again.

  That applied to Reese, too. She should be furious with him, but her heart gave a painful twist at the thought of losing him. Apparently hope wasn’t entirely dead, which could only mean she was in for more heartache.

  12

  Reese hadn’t liked the lack of emotion he’d heard in T.J.’s voice when she’d returned his call. At least she didn’t make excuses when he reminded her of their usual supper date. Once they talked in person, he was sure they’d be okay.

  But not sure enough to quiet the nervous feeling in his stomach. It mattered what T.J. thought. She’d been hurt before, and he wasn’t going to be just another jerk who passed through her life and left her in pain. He wasn’t sure what he did want to be, because the thought of being just another fond memory was disturbing, but there was no question she was important to him. More important than Caroline, who was starting to become a distinctly unpleasant memory.

  He raced through the afternoon’s work and was ready to find T.J. even earlier than promised. It might be a point in his favor. He was locking his desk drawer when the office door opened.

  He looked up, eyes widening in surprise. “Dad!” He stood, but his father waved him back down as he settled into a chair and set his crutches aside. Reese eased onto the edge of his chair. “Is something wrong?”

  “You tell me, son. I’ve been invited to have dinner with a Mr. Chaz Milbourne, who’s apparently an acquaintance of yours, and his daughter, Caroline, who’s apparently a very close acquaintance of yours.” His dad’s eyes narrowed, waiting for a response.