The Rancher's Second Chance (18 page)

“Mel,” he repeated in that voice, before he lowered his head. She met his lips halfway, desperate to have his mouth on hers. She tasted, accepted, and molded herself into the man she’d been waiting for. He was the faceless, nameless hero she dreamed up as a teenager.

He crushed her against him, until her body melded with his and all she could feel were the hard plains of his body pressing against hers. His hands were in her hair and then suddenly roaming the length of her, tracing the sides of her body. His mouth left hers, and her gasp of disappointment was replaced by pleasure as he captured her earlobe between his teeth, nipping softly. He caught her against his body as her knees buckled. His lips traveled the length of her neck, his hand moving her hair aside. She let her neck fall back, wanting to give him as much access as he needed to continue his exploration.

“God, you’re sweet,” he rasped as he drew her sweater over her head. He bent his head, stubble pricking against her sensitive skin as he grazed her collarbone. “I gotta tell you something,” he said, moving his mouth up to hers again. “You know that night at the ranch, when I said you were short?”

She frowned. “That’s not really the type of thing a woman wants to hear when—”

“I was thinking how beautiful you were. You caught me off guard.” His eyes darkened and he reached out to capture her mouth against his. “And I was thinking how I wanted to do this.”

He moaned deep in his throat, the sound so raw and real that it intensified the desire pulsing through every nerve ending of her body. He wanted her as much as she wanted him. She could feel it in the way he kissed her, treasured her. She could feel the emotion in each kiss.

His eyes sparked with desire and one of his hands cupped her face. This time the kiss was harder, filled with a building passion she knew would not end until they’d both found their release together.

“You make me want to spend every day with you,” he said, his body pressing into hers. He stood between her legs, his hands moving behind her to unclasp her bra. He captured the gasp that escaped her throat when their bare skin made contact. “Why does it feel like I will never get enough?” he murmured, the weight of his body pinning her against the door. His lips moved from her mouth, to her collarbone, his hands moving up and down her sides. Her knees gave out when he kneeled in front of her, his head at her stomach. He braced her hips with his hands. “I’ve got you, sweetheart,” he said against her flesh and then tugged her jeans and underwear down over her hips in one strong, fluid motion.

She squeezed her eyes shut and forced out the words that needed to be said before it was too late. “Thank you,” she whispered.

“I haven’t done anything yet,” he rasped against her flesh.

Somehow she managed to smile even though she was teetering precariously between crying with the depth of her feelings for him and whimpering from the need to be with him.

“Thank you for proving men like you exist. Before I knew anything about men or love or desire, I dreamed of you.” Her eyes shut and Cole was still, his breath warm on her navel. She held her breath, hoping she hadn’t said too much.

But then Cole moaned low in his throat, the sound raw and primitive, ripping through every inch of her body and leaving her without any walls. She surrendered herself, trusting him completely.

“This bed is too damn small,” Cole said, his voice muffled as he spoke against her neck. Early morning sunlight filtered through the cabin window. She smiled at the sound of his voice, at the lazy movement of his hand against her bare arm. A shiver ran through her when he placed a small kiss against her neck.

He gave her a delicious, slow smile. Cole in the morning was possibly even more gorgeous than Cole last night. His firm jaw was covered in dark stubble, and he was perfectly naked. This was a man she could wake up to for the rest of her life. This was the man she’d dreamed up.

He groaned out loud when his iPhone buzzed on the nightstand. He gave her a quick kiss and then reached out to grab the phone.

“Do you think it’s Cori?” she asked, sitting up beside him.

He was grinning at the display. “It’s not Cori, but it’s good news. I just received confirmation that a business deal is going through.”

She leaned back down on the bed, resting her head against the pillow. She shut her eyes, needing to block the image of the man behind the business deal. After the most incredible night with Cole, after he’d fallen asleep, she’d stayed awake torturing herself with the knowledge that she’d been lying to him. But her only other alternative was telling him the truth and risking everything he’d worked so hard to achieve and she knew how much this meant to him because of Sarah. She was gone, and Melanie was here, with Cole; the least she could do was step aside and let them have that last dream.

Melanie forced her eyes open and forced her lips upward. “That’s great. Sounds like something big.”

He nodded, smiling at her and lying down beside her. She tried to concentrate on how sexy he looked, all disheveled and naked in bed, and not on the details about her father. “I was going to tell you the night at The Loft that I ran into the owner and his future son-in-law and daughter. They’re in town for a few days. Really nice people. I think with the distribution agreement we made, I’ll be able to take the business to a whole new level,” he said, settling his arm under his head.

“That’s great,” she said, trying to sound thrilled. It took every ounce of self-control to maintain a normal expression.

“Yeah. Apparently, they are really a family business at heart. Phillip kept emphasizing family was the most important thing.”

Melanie couldn’t blink. She was afraid if she made one move, she’d give everything away.
Family business. Family is the most important thing.
Her father would say anything to score a dime. Family was so important to him if he was able to control them. If he couldn’t control them, he’d just pretend they didn’t exist. Not once since she left their home had either her father or mother attempted contact with her. Not once. And as much as she wanted nothing to do with her father, it did hurt. To think that her mother could allow him to remove every piece of her existence from the house made her ache.

She studied the perfectly chiseled lines, the strong plains of Cole’s face, remembering the warmth in his voice when he spoke of Sarah. Or of Cori. She couldn’t imagine him ever being able to turn someone out of his life so coldly.

“It’ll be a good way to secure steady, long-term business. And it was one of Sarah’s dreams,” he said, his voice dipping. Melanie wrapped the covers around herself, feeling cold.

“Sarah loved the ranch, didn’t she?”

He nodded once. “Sarah was involved in the business every step of the way; and she believed that if we could get our quality organic beef into chain restaurants not only would we be supplying the public with nutritious food and raising awareness for ethical, sustainable farming, we’d also be securing our company a place in a competitive industry.”

Melanie nodded, still unable to form a sentence. She tried to smile. Cole went on, clearly passionate about the subject, clearly very proud of Sarah.

“Anyway, I don’t know if this is interesting or if it’s really boring…” His voice trailed and Melanie looked up at him. Guilt hit her. He looked almost looked boyish for a moment as he waited for her to reply.

She shook her head. The last thing she wanted was for him to think she wasn’t interested in his livelihood, that she couldn’t care less about his business. She did care. But it was probably just about the worst possible situation. Of all the companies out there, it had to be tied to her family’s? It had to be tied to Sarah’s dreams?

She searched his brown eyes, and her stomach fluttered at the pride she read in them. This man was loyal, hardworking, and passionate, and the love he had for his late wife was written all over his face, and she heard it in every syllable he spoke. But she couldn’t keep lying. Cole mattered to her and if she really wanted to face all of her fears, she needed to tell him.

“It’s not boring at all. But you were right the other night when you said I was hiding something.” She sat up, gently tugging the sheet along with her and looked at Cole. He reached out to grab her hand and she smiled at him.

“You can tell me anything, Mel.”

She nodded, trying to force the words from her throat. “Phillip Anderson is my father.”

Cole sat up, the sheet falling and resting on his lap as he leaned against the headboard. His eyes held hers, as they sat in silence. “I use my mother’s maiden name.”

He squeezed her hand gently. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

She shrugged slightly. This was more difficult than she’d imagined. She knew she had to tell him, but she didn’t know how much. She didn’t know if she could face whatever would happen, how he would look at her when he knew everything. “I didn’t know what to say; I didn’t think I needed to say anything except now, we’re…together and I can’t keep hiding. I don’t want to lie to you.”

“So Phillip is your father. Maybe this is a way for you to be able to work things out with your family?”

Melanie’s stomach rolled uncomfortably at the suggestion. “No, no that’s not going to happen. You don’t understand, Cole. I never want to see my father again. Ever. And if I’m being completely honest, the thought of you going into business with him makes me sick.” She held her breath as Cole’s mouth dropped, his hand slipping from hers. She shouldn’t have blurted that out, but if she hadn’t, she never would have had the courage to do it again. Meredith’s words about being a coward echoed over and over again as she waited for Cole to answer her.

“I know what you’ve told me about him isn’t good. Sometimes people like that, the power gets to their head. Just because I’m doing business with him doesn’t mean you have to reconcile with him. I’d never force you or pressure you. This is my deal; you don’t have to be involved.”

She bit her lip until it was too painful to be silent. “That’s not good enough for me.”

“Sweetheart, you’ve got to give me more than that. I can’t just drop a deal like this for a family quarrel.”

“It’s not just a quarrel,” she whispered.
Tell him. All of it.

“Then what? You gotta give me something more. That deal we worked out basically gives me security in an industry where there is none. I have people who depend on me, on the salary that comes from this ranch being profitable.”

She clutched her stomach and nodded. “I know, I just. Maybe there’s another way.”

“Tall Pines has been in my family for generations, and now I’m the only one left and it’s me on my own. I can’t afford to gamble with that. And this isn’t just a mediocre deal. It’s something Sarah and I envisioned. I’d be responsible for making one of her dreams come true.”

She looked down at her lap, hating herself and her weakness, hating her family and her father. Hating that Meredith was right about her. But more than anything, she hated herself for ever giving in to her childhood dreams. “Of course. I understand,” she said. Her voice scraped painfully against the tears in her throat. She reached for the quilt, aware Cole just sat there, not saying anything. She wrapped the quilt around her cold body and stood, needing physical space from him. “Go ahead, do the deal. Fulfill your obligations. Do it for Sarah.”

He reached over to grab her hand, but she pulled it from him slowly. “Hey, Mel, we can find a way to work around this.”

“There is no middle ground. I cannot be with a man who does business with my father,” she choked, inching away from him. Her sister was right; her principles didn’t keep her warm at night, but they were all she had.

Cole raked his hands through his hair and let out a rough sigh. “What?”

She stood, slowly forcing herself to move away from him, from the illusion of security. There would never be security with Cole if her father was part of their lives. “I have spent years trying to get that man out of my head, and I can’t go back. I can’t.”

He leaned forward and held out his hand, tension etched in every hard line of his frame. “You’re going to end our relationship because of an old family—”

Melanie shook her head and backed up another step, knowing she was so close to breaking. But she couldn’t. She couldn’t give in, or she’d be like Meredith and her mother. This was all her fault. She never should have gotten this close to Cole. “You don’t know what you’re talking about…it’s not, I told you. It’s so much more.”

“Tell me, dammit. What? Give me something. More, anything to make me understand how you could end this!” The harshness in his tone was softened slightly by the crack in his voice, the sheen in his brown eyes.

Her chin wobbled as she stared at him. “Don’t yell at me.”

His features relaxed, and she could read the confusion in his eyes as he stared at her. “Sweetheart, I’m trying to get where you’re coming from, but it’s pretty damn hard. That night at your apartment, you said your father was domineering, he was strict, right? What else? The horse? Is he the reason you’re afraid of horses?”

Melanie rolled her lips inward, already retreating.
Tell him about the horse. Tell him.

She opened her mouth and wished the right words would come out. But these were all secrets that were stuffed way down, buried under blankets of shame. What good would it do to share it all with Cole? If she exposed herself, she would have nothing left when he still chose her father over her.

“Melanie, you are not going to end this. You know how much you mean to me. You are the first woman since Sarah.”

“I know; I’m sorry,” she whispered and swiped at the tears that began to fall. “But I can’t be around here. I can’t have my father around here or listen when you talk about him and your business. I’m sorry, Cole.” She scrambled, hastily grabbing her clothes, trying to see even though she was blinded by tears. Melanie walked away from Cole, her past, and her future.

Chapter Thirteen

Cole squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block the image of Melanie’s face as she cried in front of him. But nothing worked, because when he shut his eyes, her soft voice was in his head, and the feel of her body was still imprinted on his.