The Last One (19 page)

“Yeah, here I am.” I reached over my sister’s shoulder and snagged a cucumber slice. “I thought I was going to be late for supper, but it’s not even ready. What’s up with that?”

Ali smacked my hand away. “Stop it. Yes, we’re running a little late. Bridge and I went over to Fred’s with Meghan, to paint his horses.”

“I didn’t know they needed a touch-up.” I traded my dirty shirt for a clean one in the laundry room, aware of Meghan’s eyes following me. The tip of her tongue shot out to wet her upper lip, and my stomach turned over. I had to focus hard to avoid walking across the room and pulling her against my body. I wanted every inch of her touching me.

“Smartass.” Ali shook her head. “You know what I mean. Meghan gave Bridget a lesson on scale and proportion. And they painted on canvas, too. The pictures are in the living room. You should go check them out.”

Getting out of the kitchen seemed like a very good idea. I turned my back on the women and went to examine two canvases propped against the sofa. It was apparent which one my niece had painted, though I noticed an improvement over her other horse drawings. But Meghan’s made my jaw drop. It was like I was standing in my neighbor’s pasture, and I half-expected Rummy, the horse in the foreground, to lift his head and whinny at me. This girl’s talent blew me away.

“Okay, we’re ready to eat.” Meghan leaned through the doorway to call me. She smiled, brushing an escaped strand of hair behind her ear, and pointed at the paintings. “So what do you think?”

“Freaking amazing. How do you get it to look so real?”

She shrugged. “Years of training and hard work. And trade secrets. If I told you, I’d have to kill you.” She winked at me. “Bridget did a good job, too, didn’t she? I think she’s got talent. I know she has a good eye.”

“Yeah.” We stood for a minute, staring at each other, neither of us moving. I let my gaze sweep down her, taking in the clinging white T-shirt and cut off denim shorts that made her legs look endless. I pictured them wrapped around my waist, and breathing became an issue.

“Hey, are we eating or what?” Ali stood behind Meghan, the salad bowl in her hands. “I know it’s a cold dinner, but I’m starving. Come on, you two.”

Bridget chattered through most of the meal, telling me about everything she had learned from Meghan that afternoon. I saw the gleam of hero worship in my niece’s eyes and thought I’d been right on with what I’d told Meghan the night before. If Bridge thought I was dating her beloved art teacher, she’d start imagining weddings and new cousins. This was a kid who craved a big family, and I couldn’t deal with the inevitable disappointment I knew she’d suffer.

Dinner finished, Bridget cleared the table and ran outside to do some sketching before the sun went down. After the screen door slammed behind her, Ali leaned back in her chair and studied me.

“So, big brother, I have to say I was kind of shocked you weren’t waiting up for us last night. I expected a full interrogation when we got home.”

I folded my napkin into a small square, not meeting her eyes. “You’re both adults. I’m not your father or your husband.” I was both surprised and relieved that Meghan hadn’t told her that I had in fact been waiting on the porch to make sure they made it home alive.

“Hmmm.” Ali tilted her head. “And you’re not at all interested in what happened at the bar?”

I lifted one shoulder. “I figure if it’s something I need to know, you’ll tell me. You came home, so obviously you didn’t get picked up by some drunk cowboy.”

“Well,
I
didn’t.” Ali smiled at Meghan, one eyebrow raised. “I mean, don’t get me wrong. I had fun. But Meghan ... she’s the one who made the conquests. The guys were all over her.”

I glanced across the table in time to see a flush cover Meghan’s face as her eyes dropped. Suspicion, heavily laced with jealousy, snaked into my chest. I pictured her coming home last night, straddling my lap, primed and ready for whatever I did to her. I’d thought it was her attraction to me making her so eager, but was it maybe someone else who’d gotten her hot, and I was just convenient.

My mouth tightened. “Yeah? Guess it was good to have some real fun finally, huh? Get away from this boring old farm.” Temper simmered in my gut. “Did you leave a trail of broken hearts? Or did you just get them riled up and then leave them thinking they were going to get lucky?”

“Sam!” Ali’s expression was incredulous, her mouth gaping and brow furrowed. “What the hell?”

“You’re the one who said she had guys all over her. I’m just drawing logical conclusions.”

“You mean stupid conclusions. If you want to know the truth, there was really just one man Meghan paid any attention to. They danced together all night, and I think he would have gone home with us, if she’d given him the green light. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him coming around here. He’s from Atlanta, and he couldn’t keep his eyes off her.”

My heart pounded. Why was I surprised? I’d predicted this. She was a city girl, no matter what she claimed, and she liked to have fun. I was just a stupid farmer in a backwater town, and she’d been messing with me.

“Good.” I swung around to glare at Meghan. “If it’ll keep you out of my way, I don’t care how many guys come sniffing around here after you. Do ‘em all. Screw your way through the rest of the summer. It’s what you do, right?”

I knew I’d gone too far, hit too many tender places that she’d shared with me, but I couldn’t help it. Rage and frustration spilled into my growled words.

Meghan met my eyes, and hers were filled with hurt. With a sound deep in the back of her throat, she pushed back her chair and ran from the house, the door slamming again. In the shocked silence of the kitchen, I heard the sound of her car starting up and gravel flying.

“What in the goddamn hell were you thinking?” Ali hissed at me. “Why would you say those things to her?”

I ran a hand through my hair, regret and guilt beating back at the jealousy now. “I don’t know. There’s just something about her that sets me off.” I glared at my sister. “But you don’t know the whole story. She came home last night, all soft and wanting to kiss me, and then you tell me she’d been making out all night with some guy at the bar—”

“It was Alex.” Misery clouded Ali’s face. “Alex is home, and he hung out with us last night. I was just messing around. I thought if you were a little jealous, you might make a move for Meghan. But she wasn’t with anyone else last night but Alex and me. And you know you don’t need to be threatened by either of us.”

“Fuck.” I dropped my head into my hands. “Ali, why the hell would you do that? You can’t play with people like this.”

“I didn’t know about last night. I mean, whatever happened when we got home. She didn’t say anything to me. The only thing I knew was that you were kissing her yesterday morning. I saw you from my bedroom window, but then it seemed like you pulled back, and I thought maybe you needed a little nudge.” She closed her eyes. “I didn’t mean to go so far.”

“Yeah.” I stood up, shoving away my chair, and grabbed my keys from the hook. “I’m going after her. Any idea where she might go?”

Ali shook her head. “No. She wouldn’t go back to Savannah, would she?”

“I doubt it. I’ll drive around and see if I can find her.” I shot a finger at my sister. “If she comes back or you hear from her, call me right away, you hear? And get ready to grovel when Meghan comes back. You owe it to her.”

“What about you?” Ali rose, her hands on her hips. “I may have gone a little too far, but I’m not the one who basically called her a slut.”

I clenched my jaw. “I already know what I have to do.”

I PRESSED THE GAS pedal to the floor of the Honda, ignoring the trees flying by me as I swiped at tears that ran down my cheeks. My hands shook as I gripped the steering wheel.

I had no idea where I was going. Burton was surrounded by two-lane roads that led north to South Carolina, west toward Macon, east to Savannah and south to Florida. I wasn’t sure which one I was driving on at the moment, but I knew eventually I’d have to stop and figure it out. The only important information right now was that I was driving away from Sam Reynolds.

Even thinking his name wrenched another sob from my throat. I thought I’d been mad and hurt that day at Boomer’s, but I hadn’t really known Sam then. He’d been a virtual stranger making judgments on me, which was annoying and infuriating. But over the last weeks, Sam and I had opened up and gotten to know each other. Our porch talks had been surprisingly intimate, and especially after last night, when it seemed we’d come to some kind of understanding about this irresistible pull between the two of us.

I didn’t have any idea that Ali was going to tease him about what had happened last night at the Road Block. When she’d begun talking about me dancing with one particular guy, I figured she was talking about Alex, using him to make Sam jealous. I kept waiting for her to explain, but before she could, Sam was saying the most horrible things I could imagine. Each word stabbed into my heart, cutting me until I couldn’t breathe. I could only think of getting away.

The road curved sharply, and my car skidded on the shoulder, kicking up dirt until I got it under control. I eased up a little on the gas as I came to a crossroads. A familiar pick-up sat at the stop sign on the right of the intersection, and my heart skipped a beat. I floored it again, blowing past Sam’s truck. There wasn’t a chance he hadn’t seen me, given that there weren’t any other cars on the road. The sun was setting, but it was still light enough to make out my Honda. I could only hope that he’d choose to leave me alone.

I should have known that was too much to wish for. Moments later, his headlights were in my rearview mirror, flashing on and off. I ignored him, pressed my lips together and gave the car a little more gas. Sam kept up with me, laying on his horn. I hit the button on my window and stuck my arm out of the car, flipping him off. But taking my hand off the wheel made it harder to control at this speed, and I swerved onto the shoulder again. For a dizzying minute, I thought I was going straight into the trees, but I managed to tap the brake enough that the car only did a ninety-degree spin and ended up facing the opposite direction as I was slammed against the door.

Sam’s truck screeched to stop about twenty feet ahead of me—well, actually behind me now, since I was situated the wrong way. I heard a door slam, and I fumbled to unlatch my seatbelt. I had just opened my own door and put my feet on the ground when he reached me.

“What the
fuck
do you think you’re doing?” He seized my arm, almost shaking me before he stopped himself. His hand gentled, and he scanned me up and down. “Are you okay? Did you hit your head? Does your neck hurt?”

I leaned back against the car. “No, I’m fine.” I shrugged his hand away, and his mouth clamped down.

“You’re goddamned lucky you’re not dead. Are you fucking crazy?” Sam scraped his hand through his hair. “I swear to God, Meghan, you make me insane. You could’ve killed yourself.”

“Why would you have cared? I’m just in your way, remember? I was heading off to find some guy to screw since that’s all I’m good for—”

“Would you shut the hell up?” He grabbed me again, this time by both arms, and before I could maneuver away, he pulled me against him and covered my mouth in a bruising kiss.

I fought him for the span of two heartbeats, and then a tidal wave of want overwhelmed me. I clawed at his back, trying to get closer. Sam slid his hands from my arms down my back until he gripped my ass and held me tight against him. I felt his hardness at my hip and ground into it so that he moaned.

His mouth was aggressive and demanding, lips moving against mine and tongue demanding that I open to him. When I did, he explored the inside of my mouth, stroking and coaxing. I circled my tongue around his, matching his desperate need with my own.

When I brought my hands up to his face, cupping his jaw, he spread his hands on my butt and lifted me. Instinctively, my legs circled his waist, putting my pulsing center even with the ridge beneath the fly of his jeans. I rocked, needing that friction more than I needed my next breath. Sam tore his mouth from me and stared down into my eyes.