Lingerie and Lariats (Rough & Ready#7) (2 page)

Jerry squeezed her shoulders with his arm. “It was love at first sight.”

A feeling of unease went through Renee. She found herself pulling slightly away from Jerry and she felt him tense. Anger simmered beneath his calm exterior and she felt it through his hold on her.

Something in Renee’s belly churned. At one time she’d thought she could fall in love with Jerry but lately she hadn’t been so sure.

“So you’re a financial advisor,” Dan said. “Do you have your own business?”

Jerry nodded. “Sure do.”

“What kind of clients do you have?” Dan asked.

With a shrug, Jerry said, “I have several different clients in a variety of trades.”

Renee had wondered about Jerry’s clientele. He was always evasive and never talked about his business with her except in the most general of terms.

Despite his claims of a successful business, his lifestyle was modest, and he never seemed to have much money. He said he invested in the stock market but she often wondered if he had been gambling the nights he stopped by her house late.

The casinos were the only places that permitted public smoking and he would smell like an ashtray when he showed up. She learned quickly though if Jerry didn’t want to give answers there would be none. His quick temper, if pressed, would quickly silence the questions.

When she finished her iced tea, Jessie offered to get her another glass. Renee got up from the couch, slipping out of Jerry’s grip.

“I can get it.” She waved at Jessie to stay down. “We drove so long and so far today that it feels good to stretch my legs.”

“I could use a little more myself.” Dan rose and followed Renee to the kitchen.

She smiled at him as she picked the jar of sun tea off of the counter and poured more into Dan’s glass and then her own. Lemon wedges were still arranged on the plate that had been moved to the counter and she squeezed one into her glass before adding a couple of teaspoons of sugar.

Thoughts of their childhood, during the short time she’d been here with the Camerons, wandered through her mind. As a kid she’d had a crush on Dan, but she didn’t think he’d noticed her in that way.

She spilled a little tea onto the counter and grabbed a napkin, which she proceeded to drop. As it fluttered to the floor she bent to pick it up. At the same time Dan crouched to retrieve the napkin and they bumped heads. They hit hard enough that pain shot through her skull and she swayed.

“Ow.” Renee laughed as Dan grasped her by her upper arms, steadying her.

“That was my fault.” He smiled down at her as he continued to hold onto her arms as they rose to stand.

She looked into his gaze and felt unsteady again. This man made her feel completely off balance in an entirely different way. She found herself wanting to step closer to him and imagined the warmth of his embrace and the feel of his lips against hers.

“What’s going on?” Jerry spoke from the kitchen doorway, jerking Renee’s attention to him.

Face burning, she immediately took a step back from Dan who released her arms. “I dropped a napkin and Dan and I bumped heads when we both bent to pick it up.”

Jerry had a hard look to him. “That wasn’t what it looked like.”

Dan frowned. “That’s exactly what happened.” He picked up his glass of unsweetened tea and handed Renee her glass of tea with lemon and sugar. “We’d best be getting back.”

She bit the inside of her lip as she looked at Jerry. She tried for a smile. “Would you like more tea?” she asked him.

“Yeah.” He handed his empty glass to her. “That’s why I came in here.”

Renee had the feeling that wasn’t the only reason Jerry had come into the kitchen. He’d wanted to check up on her and Dan.

Dan headed back to the living room as Renee set down her tea and filled Jerry’s glass. Jerry narrowed his eyes. “You thinking about screwing that sheriff?” he said in a low, angry voice when they were alone.

She shook her head as her face heated. “Of course not.”

He gripped her by her upper arms and put his face close to hers, causing her to draw back which only seemed to anger him more. He clenched his jaw and started to say something when someone cleared his throat.

Both Jerry and Renee cut their gazes to the kitchen doorway. Dan stood there watching them.

“Is there a problem?” Dan said in a slow drawl that seemed deceptively calm.

Jerry released Renee and she took a step back. She knew her face must have been a dozen different shades of red.

“Of course not.” Jerry narrowed his gaze. “We were having a private discussion.”

Dan studied them but didn’t move.

Jerry picked up both glasses of tea and handed one to Renee. He put his free arm around her shoulders and guided her to the kitchen doorway. When they reached it, Dan stepped aside. Jerry ignored Dan and put on a smile before he and Renee entered the living room. She breathed a sigh of relief as they sat on the couch and tried not to stiffen as Jerry kept his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him.

It wasn’t too long before she relaxed and started to enjoy herself again.

Dan Cooper settled into his seat and let his gaze drift over Renee as she laughed at a story Zane was telling. Something inside of him stirred. He hadn’t felt anything like this for a woman in a hell of a long time. She was fun, intelligent, vibrant, and had a great sense of humor.

Her beauty, charm, and demeanor had him damn near mesmerized. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. She’d grown into an amazing woman and he wanted to get to know her better.

A hell of a shame Renee was taken.

Dan watched Jerry Nelson without looking directly at him. Nelson had joined in on the conversation and on the surface he came off as a nice guy. Yet Dan had a strong feeling something was off about him. The way Nelson had reacted when he saw Renee in the kitchen with Dan and the look in Nelson’s eyes had seemed a little extreme. The way he’d gripped Renee’s arms and had been glaring at her had been enough to make Dan want to step in and set the man straight.

What was Renee doing with a guy like Nelson? The way he’d treated her in the kitchen was a red flag as far as Dan was concerned.

Maybe he was envious of Nelson for having a claim on Renee. But Dan couldn’t help the feeling in his gut that something wasn’t quite right about the man. She sure as hell didn’t deserve the way he’d treated her earlier.

One thing he was certain of was that Nelson had a jealous streak in him. The man hadn’t moved his arm away from Renee from the moment she’d taken her seat beside him. It was as if Nelson thought of her as a kind of possession.

That thought didn’t sit well with Dan. Not one bit.

He studied her as she interacted with everyone. Her long brown hair fell down to her waist and he imagined how it would feel, running his fingers through the silken strands. It was a rich chestnut color with gentle red highlights and her eyes were a beautiful cinnamon brown.

Her skin was smooth and fair, like she didn’t get a lot of sunshine. He thought about the young girl with skin golden from the summer sun as she played tag with the boys long ago. She was a petite package and the gentle swell of her breasts gave way to a small waist.

A baby’s cry jerked Dan from his thoughts. The conversation stopped as the cry caught everyone’s attention.

“That’s Timothy.” Jessie got up from the couch where she’d been sitting just as her and Zane’s daughter, Chelsea, came into the living room.

The little redhead went straight for her daddy and climbed into his lap. She rubbed sleep from her eyes with her fist. If Dan remembered correctly, she was a few months or so over three.

“Timothy was your father’s name, wasn’t it?” Renee asked in her soft, sweet voice as Jessie left the room to get the baby. “And Chelsea was your mother’s middle name.”

Zane gave a nod. “Mom never liked her first name, Maria, so we picked her second name.”

Jessie walked into the room holding Timothy against her shoulder. She had the glow of a proud new mother and Zane had the same proud daddy look about him.

“Can I hold him?” Renee asked.

Jessie smiled and carried Timothy to Renee. “He might get a little cranky. It’s about time for him to eat.”

Renee took the baby into her arms and cradled him. She made soft cooing sounds and he waved his hand and grabbed a handful of her hair and pulled, causing Renee to laugh.

The moment Jessie transferred Timothy to Renee, Jerry removed his arm from around Renee’s shoulders and distanced himself by a few inches. He didn’t seem to want anything to do with the baby.

Renee didn’t seem to notice as she smiled and cuddled the baby close to her.

“That’s my baby brother,” Chelsea said in a clear voice. She slid out of her daddy’s lap and went to Renee and Timothy. The girl stroked the baby’s hair. “He’s only three months old.”

Renee looked at Chelsea and smiled. “I bet you’re a really good big sister.”

Chelsea nodded. “I help Mommy and Daddy all of the time.”

“When I was a little girl, I had tea with my favorite dolls right out there on that porch.” Renee inclined her head in that direction. “Do you like to play with dolls?”

Chelsea gave another vigorous nod. “Mommy makes us sandwiches or cookies and tea. Sometimes my daddy will sit and have tea with me and my dolls, too.”

Renee flashed a smile at Zane. “Funny, but you never had tea with me and my dolls when we were kids.”

Zane laughed and shook his head.

Renee held Timothy close as she paid attention to Chelsea and talked to the girl about her favorite things around the ranch.

Dan leaned back against the couch as he watched Renee with the little ones. Judging by the way she cuddled with the baby and talked to Chelsea, it was obvious Renee would make a good mother.

On the other hand, Nelson didn’t seem to be the least bit inclined to have anything to do with kids. He wore a fixed expression as if he was trying to look engaged when it was the last thing he wanted to do.

Timothy started to fuss and Jessie took him from Renee. “Time to breastfeed.” Jessie sat in a rocking chair and put a blanket over her shoulder, obscuring the baby and her breast from view. She rocked and made soft sounds to Timothy as she fed him.

“Why don’t you join us day after tomorrow?” Jessie said, as she looked at Dan. “We’re putting together a barbeque for the bunch of us in honor of Renee’s visit.”

Dan gave a nod. “Sounds good.”

Renee’s gaze met Dan’s and they held eye contact longer than they should have before Renee turned to watch Jessie feed Timothy. The longing in Renee’s eyes caused Dan’s gut to tighten.

He had to stop thinking about having kids of his own and how attracted he was to a woman he couldn’t have.

Chapter 2

“What the fuck was that all about?” Jerry snarled as he and Renee drove from the Cameron home later that night. “You treated me like shit the whole time we were there.” She shook her head but he went on, “You’re thinking about screwing that sheriff.”

Renee flinched. Jerry wouldn’t hit her, but his words always cut right through to the bone. “Of course not.” She held her hand to her belly as it gave a sick swoop. “Dan is an old friend. That’s all.”

“Don’t give me that bullshit.” Jerry’s knuckles whitened as he gripped the steering wheel and glanced at her. “I saw the way you and that bastard looked at each other.”

Renee’s scalp prickled. “That’s not how it was.”

“We’re not going to spend any more time bullshitting with that bunch of hicks,” Jerry said as the truck hit a pothole and the lights bounced off the grass and bushes. “We’re not going to any fucking barbeque with more of them. It was bad enough having to sit through that crap.”

Her eyes widened. “I already told them we’d go.”

“You didn’t ask my permission, did you?” Jerry glared as the truck shimmied down the dirt road.

Renee straightened in her seat. “You said we could visit for a few days.”

“I changed my mind. And as long as you’re with me, you’ll do whatever I tell you to do.” Jerry ran a stop sign as he headed toward the freeway.

Well, maybe I shouldn’t be with you,
she thought but couldn’t get the words out.

“Damned kids.” Jerry’s scowl deepened. “I hope you’re not thinking of having any screaming brats because we sure as hell are not.”

Renee’s lips parted as she tried to absorb what he was saying. First, they’d never talked about a future together beyond dating. Second, she’d had no idea that Jerry didn’t like children until this moment. She’d noticed that he’d withdrawn when she’d held the baby and talked with Chelsea, but she had just figured that he was uncomfortable around children because he wasn’t used to them.

She couldn’t find any words, couldn’t think of what to say. He could be so cruel sometimes when she did something to upset him, yet he was so attentive the rest of the time. Mostly he would get upset because he was jealous of another man. She’d never given him any reason to doubt her but he still became angry if another man even looked at her.

Jerry had prevented her from making a bad investment with the half million that included what she’d inherited, plus what she had made when she sold her stepfather’s shop. He’d been kind and attentive, and had increased her portfolio by ten percent within two months.

She’d never been so excited sexually as she was with Jerry. At least at first. She had let the intimacy form what she had thought was a bond between them.

Things had been changing over time. Looking back, she realized that he had caught her at a lonely time and she had ignored the obvious signs because she liked his company and attention. He was becoming more and more demanding, possessive, and jealous, and he’d grown almost violent at times. He didn’t trust her any longer and was always calling or dropping in on her to make sure she was where she’d said she would be. She had never done anything to violate that trust and would not.

She didn’t have the slightest idea what to do about any of it. She’d hoped the trip would bring them closer together again, but that wasn’t turning out to be the case.

She felt trapped.