Corralled (21 page)

Almost.

He half listened while Kyle and some other bull rider rehashed every second of Kyle’s ride. He hefted the shoulder strap of his bag.

Those stories could go on forever, and Hank was anxious to talk to Lainie.

He’d made it about twenty steps when Kyle called out, “Hank, wait up.”

He stopped.

“Don’t it just figure that it’s my night to be alone with Lainie and this happens.”

Sad thing was, Hank couldn’t even feel happy about that.

“Think she’s cooled off by now?”

“I don’t know. She ever been mad at you about something?”

“Nope. It’s only been half an hour.”

They walked through the campground. It was eerily quiet. No groups sitting around drinking beer. No kids running about. No teenagers groping in the shadows.

The lights were on in the back of the camper. Hank looked at Kyle, who pantomimed,
After you
.

LORELEI JAMES 9

Lainie was in her pajamas, brushing her teeth. She didn’t acknowledge them besides slamming the bathroom door shut.

Not a good sign.

Kyle dumped his equipment bag and flopped in the chair by the table. Hank stood there like a dumb ass, waiting for her to respond to them.

Screw that. He was a take- charge guy. And as far as he could tell, she liked it when he exerted control. He knocked. “Lainie?”

“What?”

“Can we talk to you?”

The door banged open. Lainie’s gaze zoomed from Hank to Kyle and she snapped, “Nope,” ducking under Hank’s arm.

Hank’s hand blocked the upper doorframe, kept her from slamming the bedroom door in his face. “Why’re you so pissed off at us?”

“Because of what you said to Celia. I watched how all of you—you, Abe, Kyle, and your assorted buddies— treat her. I’ve been treated that way, so maybe I am overly sensitive on her behalf. I know what it’s like to have people who claim to love you try to keep you from doing something you really want. But what bugs me is
you
don’t want to change. You expect
her
to.”

Hank stared at her, openmouthed with shock.

“I don’t want to get in the middle of your family issues. As you know, I have plenty of my own.”

“Then why
are
you getting involved in them?” Hank demanded.

There was the look that indicated he’d gone too far. Shit.

“Back off, Hank. Go to bed and let me do the same.”

“Fine. Let’s go to bed.” They could work out their issues between the sheets. When he started to enter the bedroom, Lainie held up her hand.

“No way are you sleeping in here with me tonight.”

9 CORRALLED

Kyle snickered.

Lainie peeked around Hank’s shoulder. “Don’t know why you’re laughing, Kyle, because you’re not sleeping in here either.”

“What? Where the hell are we supposed to sleep?”

“Not my problem.”

Hank was so stunned by the turn of events that when Lainie put her hands on his chest and shoved him, he stumbled back.

Then she slammed the door in his face.

Unbelievable.

He lifted his hand to knock, when Kyle spoke. “Let her be.”

“Now, why would I do that?”

“Because she asked you to.” Kyle stood and stretched. “She’ll probably cool down by morning.”

“And if she’s still pissed off?”

“I guess we’ll deal with it then. Looks like you ’n’ me are bunk mates.”

“Fuckin’ awesome.”

“Sucks worse for me, Hank. I thought I’d be snuggled up to soft, sweet- smelling curves and instead I’m stuck with you.”

“Ain’t no snuggling between us, hoss. You touch me and I’m decking you.”

“Same goes,” Kyle shot back.

Hank flashed his teeth. “But at least you showered and don’t smell like the ass end of a bull.”

“Ditto, buddy.”

They undressed, Kyle down to nothing but skin. Even as a teen, Kyle had slept naked as a jaybird. After the threesomes with Lainie, it seemed prissy for Hank to ask him to put on a goddamn pair of underwear.

In the upper bunk Hank was wide- awake.

Kyle sighed. “I can hear them damn gears spinning. Whatcha thinking about so hard?”

LORELEI JAMES 9

“The EBS. If my tryout goes good, how it’d leave Abe running the ranch, mostly by himself. Especially if Celia is off running barrels.”

Kyle was quiet. Too quiet.

“What?”

“You’re a damn good bullfighter, Hank. I ain’t just sayin’ that.

But don’t give up what you’ve got to chase something that maybe ain’t worth it in the long run.”

“You don’t think bein’ in the EBS is worth it?”

“Maybe. I know if I had what you already do, I wouldn’t be chasin’ this rodeo life so damn hard.”

He’d always known Kyle wanted a place of his own in Wyoming, around their hometown and their buddies. The only way Kyle could ever scrounge up the kind of money required to put a down payment on a ranch was to keep riding bulls. So Hank already had the dream Kyle was working toward.

“Just . . . be careful. You can get sucked— or suckered— into doin’ things with the EBS you wouldn’t do otherwise. It’s easy to overlook some of the behind- the- scenes stuff when the big paychecks are rolling in.”

“Would you go back? If you switched to the EBS second- tier events and hit the top sixty again?” Hank asked.

“I don’t know. Ask me when I’ve been in the CRA for more than a couple events.”

Silence.

“So what’re we gonna do about Lainie?”

“I say we wake her up with an apology she’ll never forget.”

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9

-
ainie was up and dressed early the next morning. By the time she’d roused the sleeping men, she’d knocked back two cups of coffee.

Hank stumbled down from the upper bunk. He wore the bleary- eyed look of a man whose routine had been interrupted.

Served him right.

“What’re you doin’ up so early?”

“Says the rancher,” she replied dryly.

“Funny. Maybe me ’n’ Kyle had plans for this morning.” He waggled his eyebrows.

“Maybe you and Kyle should’ve gotten up sooner.” She sipped her coffee. “The early cowboy gets to stick his worm in the cowgirl and all that.”

Kyle laughed. “We’ll remember that for next time, sugar.

Hank, hand me my duffel, will ya?”

He tossed it up to Kyle without looking away from Lainie.

“You still sore at us?”

“Nope.” She addressed Hank. “But figure out a different way to deal with Celia. Adult- to- adult would be a good start.”

“That I can do.”

LORELEI JAMES 9

“You guys want breakfast?”

“Lainie. You don’t have to cook for us,” Kyle said.

“I’m already cooking for me. Might as well add a couple more eggs to the frying pan. Scrambled all right?”

“Sounds good.”

“Count me in.” Kyle hopped down wearing a pair of surfer shorts. She had half wondered if he’d arrive at the table naked.

Hank also looked relieved that Kyle had covered up his dangly man bits.

Lainie cracked a half dozen eggs in the electric skillet. Hank set the table and poured Kyle a cup of coffee. Hard to believe they’d never done this domestic scene before. It seemed so routine.

When they finished eating, Kyle flipped open his cell phone and checked the time. “Bein’s I’m on the day driving shift, let’s hit the road and get to Sheridan so I can check in.”

“What’s after Sheridan tonight?”

“Billings has an early afternoon performance tomorrow and Red Lodge has a performance tomorrow night.”

“So we’re not actually camping anywhere for a couple of days?”

Hank shook his head.

“Hank, since you’re driving tonight, you gonna crawl back up in the bunk and get some more shut- eye?” Kyle asked.

A look of challenge passed between them.

“What’s going on with you two?”

“Ask Kyle,” Hank said curtly.

Lainie’s hands stayed curled around her mug. “Kyle?”

Kyle shrugged. “At the ranch Hank had you in his bed all night.

I want equal time. It’ll be you and me alone in the back of the camper on the way to Billings tonight.”

Part of her wanted to ask if she had a say in whose bed she

9 CORRALLED

ended up in. Another part wished they’d spend time together only as a threesome. Then she wouldn’t have to worry whether each man was getting equal time. Or that she was picking one over the other.

“You okay with that, Lainie?” Kyle asked softly.

“Are we being completely honest here?”

Two nods of agreement.

“I’ll remind you that even though I fucked Hank a couple of times and slept in his bed that night, I also messed around with Kyle during the day.” She let her gaze move back and forth between them. “Does that mean in order to be fair I have to mess around with Hank at some point today?”

“
Have
to mess around?” Hank repeated.

“You know what I mean.”

“No, I guess I don’t,” he said brusquely.

“Hank—”

“Have to,” he grumbled. Then he snaked his arm around her waist and brought her onto his lap, one hand curving around her neck as he kissed her.

Boy, did he kiss her. Pressing the rough pad of his thumb against her carotid, gauging every increased beat of her pulse. He teased and nibbled, keeping her off balance with the sensual blitz of his mouth.

Have to mess around
. Right. If Hank kept it up, there’d be no question how she’d spend the traveling time to Sheridan: on her back.

Lainie lost herself in the immediate punch of need Hank’s drugging kisses delivered. Beneath the surface of passion was a sense of comfort. Hank could rev her up and soothe her, all within the same kiss.

On the periphery of her awareness, she heard Kyle get up, walk to the bathroom, and close the door.

LORELEI JAMES 9

Hank released her mouth reluctantly and buried his face in the curve of her throat. “Will you stay back here with me? Let me love on you a little bit this morning?”

She pushed out of his arms. “No offense, but I’m ready to be out of this camper for a spell.”

“Understood.” He pecked her on the mouth and set her on her feet.

Lainie expected him to cajole her, to attempt to change her mind. But he didn’t.

Aren’t you disappointed he didn’t try harder?

“I’ll scrub up that skillet before I get myself ready.” He squirted dish soap in the pan and poured water in.

She turned and smacked into Kyle’s bare chest. His hard, muscular bare chest. Damn. He smelled tempting. A mix of toothpaste, deodorant, and warm male skin. Without thought, she brushed her lips across the delineated line of his pectorals, letting his chest hair tickle her chin and cheek. She kept nuzzling until a chuckle rumbled beneath her roving lips. Lainie tipped her head back to look at him. “What?”

Kyle hooked a chunk of hair behind her ear. “You constantly surprise me.”

“What surprises you?”

He traced the shell of her ear down to the bottom lobe. “You’ve embraced this threesome business wholeheartedly. No inhibitions.

If you want to make out with Hank, you do it. And here you are, just a few minutes later, giving me the sweetest morning kisses. I’ll admit, I didn’t know how you’d react faced with Hank’s and my sexual demands.”

“Have I passed?”

“With an A plus.” He grinned. “But if you’re looking to earn extra credit, I’ll let you blow me right now.”

“Nice try, but I am not a suck- up.”

9 CORRALLED

Hank snorted behind her.

“Well, I’ve planned some good stuff for you and me later tonight anyway, so I can wait.”

Although Lainie was intrigued by his taunt, and she sensed Hank’s curiosity, she waved Kyle off. “Bring it, bull rider. For now, let’s get this rig on the road.”

9

They topped off the tank and hit the RV dump station. Kyle took the wheel for the relatively short trek from Gillette to Sheridan.

The drive was stunning— flat dusty hills, rolling prairie, crested buttes, and the Big Horn Mountains looming west of the interstate. Big, bold, beautiful Wyoming.

She also enjoyed the ease with which the three of them were together. No mindless chattering. No awkward silences. No blathering one- sided cell phone conversations. No fighting over the tunes on the radio. No annoying food consumption. Just peace.

Sheridan was a quaint town with a main- street shopping district that boasted everything from high- end Western clothing boutiques to a bait and tackle shop. Lainie wasn’t much of a shopper on her best day. But she had the strangest compulsion to duck into one of those exclusive stores and buy an outrageously sexy outfit to wear to the rodeo.

Or to wear tonight for Kyle?

Right. She’d be lucky if she kept on whatever she wore for fifteen seconds.

As soon as they’d entered the contestants’ area and found a temporary place to park, Hank’s cell phone rang.

“You have an eagle eye, Arvin; I just pulled in. Uh- huh. Who?

No, I don’t. No problem. Thirty minutes? Sure. See you.”

Kyle cranked his head toward him. “What’s up?”

“I’m bein’ summoned. Evidently the rodeo promoter is requesting me. Says he knows Abe— and me by association.”

LORELEI JAMES 9

“What’s his name?” Kyle asked.

“Renner Jackson. Ring a bell?”

“Vaguely.”

“With me too. Guess I’ll get the scoop on him firsthand and report back.” He clapped his hat on. “Lainie, what’ll you be doin’

while Kyle is registering?”

“I hadn’t really thought about it. Why?”

“Just checking. We wouldn’t want you to get . . . bored.”

Heat curled in her abdomen when she recalled how thoroughly they’d dealt with her boredom.

Kyle choked back a laugh.

“Grab your stuff and come to the sponsors’ tent with me. We’ll see if the promoter is also supplying the medical team. Maybe there’s room for you to help out tonight.”

Any objection to accompanying him died when Hank put it like that. Even Kyle didn’t lodge a protest.

“Do I have to wear a dress or anything?”

“Why’re you asking me? You’ve been to sponsors’ events.”

“At night, the banquet, formal type of events, not during the day. Doc handles all that promotional stuff while I’m prepping the medical room and pimping the Lariat name.”