Wildcard (7 page)

It’s not over, you double-crossing bitch.

“Shit,” Dee muttered, snapping Trace’s attention from the card and to her sister, who was still pacing the floor. “I bet it’s Forrester.”

“Who?” Trace tossed the card onto the couch like it was contaminated. “And why would he send something like this?”

Dee stopped pacing and explained to Trace how the former deputy sheriff had been caught red-handed stealing cattle from Kev Grand. It had turned out that Ryan had masterminded all the rustling that had been going on in the area for months. Dee had lost thousands of dollars in cattle, as had Kev, the Wilds, and a few other neighboring ranches.

“Only problem was, Ryan got away.” Dee fingered the peridot heart pendant at her throat. “Jake can’t tell me anything, since it relates to a case he’s involved with. But Catie Wilds, er Savage, said she heard that Ryan had used the rustling as a cover for something bigger. Since Jake is Customs, for him to be involved it’s got to be some kind of contraband, like illegal arms or drugs, or even computers.”

“So what’s this got to do with anything?” Trace asked.

Dee shook her head. “My gut says Jake and Savage are very close to something, and Forrester’s concerned we’re going to stumble right over it and him.”

* * * * *

Without bringing attention to himself, Jess hitched one hip against the doorframe of the MacLeod kitchen and folded his arms across his chest as he watched Trace and Dee prepare a taco dinner.

It’d been six days since the night at the hot tub, but he could still taste Trace…the flavor of her kiss and the juices between her thighs. Damn but she had a sweet pussy. His cock grew tight against his jeans and he shifted slightly, hoping that Dee wouldn’t notice he had a major hard-on once she realized he was there.

Grease popped and crackled on the stovetop as Dee dipped a corn tortilla into the hot liquid to make a taco shell. Warm aromas of seasoned meat, Mexican rice, and refried beans made Jess’s stomach growl.

Still neither of the women noticed him, and it gave him a few moments to study Trace as she diced a tomato on a wooden cutting board. Wisps of strawberry blonde hair fell into her eyes, shielding him from her vision, as she slid the knife into the tomato. Jess itched to brush the strands behind her ear, to follow his fingers with his tongue and lick a trail down the row of gold earrings along her lobe. And then he’d bite her just below her lowest earring, a soft nip that would make her moan for more.

Over the past several days they’d talked in passing, whenever he could get a few moments with her. But he hadn’t had a chance to snag her alone since that one night. Jess had been aware of her watching him when he was working out at the corrals, and he’d done his fair share of keeping an eye on her, too.

It’d turned him on to watch her practicing her kickboxing in that storage room she’d converted into a workout center. She’d be one tough little opponent in a fight if she was as good as he thought she was. He liked the way she pitched in around the ranch and helped out wherever she was needed, instead of sitting back and letting everyone else do the work just ‘cause she was on vacation. She was a hard worker, good with horses and people, friendly and considerate.

And damn but he had to have her.

Biding his time wasn’t Jess’s style. When he made up his mind, it was as good as done. It sure it didn’t sit well with him, having to wait for Trace to break it off with her boyfriend. Jess needed to claim Trace, and hell if he was going to wait much longer.

The last few days he hadn’t had much of a choice in staying away. He’d been so busy following up on leads that were bringing him closer to breaking that drug-smuggling operation wide open. Rick McAllister hadn’t been able to get much from Big Tits, but there had been a sighting of Forrester in the vicinity where the cows had been poisoned.

And then the bastard had mailed that threatening note to Dee, and that had really pissed Jess off. He was sure it was Forrester, although he didn’t have proof…yet. Jake had taken the card into Customs and had it dusted, but there’d been nothing but Dee’s and Trace’s prints on it. It was a store bought gag card, and Jake was attempting to track down exactly where it had been sold and then he’d find out if the salesperson recalled who she’d sold it to.

“Hey there, Jess.” At the sound of Dee’s voice, Trace’s head shot up and her cheeks blushed a nice shade of rose as her eyes met his. “You able to join us for dinner tonight, or you heading into town for some Friday night action?” Dee asked.

“Depends.” Jess gave Trace a slow smile. “If Trace here is up for dancing, we could head on over to Sierra Vista.”

Trace’s eyes widened and she blushed a rich shade of red. “I, uh, can’t.”

“Guess I’ll just stay for dinner then.” Jess winked then turned his attention to Dee. “Need a hand?”

“You’re not flirting with my little sister, now are you?” Dee cocked an eyebrow, the corner of her mouth quirking into a smile. “She’s taken, you know.”

Jess gave a slow nod as his gaze moved back to Trace. “You’re right. This woman belongs to only one man.”

And
he
was the man she belonged to.

Dee laughed and gestured with the tortilla she was holding. “You could cut up the onions for Trace. She hates ‘em.”

At the mention of onions, Trace’s freckled nose crinkled and she pointed the knife she was holding at a bunch of green onions on the granite countertop. “Have at it, big guy.”

“Sure thing.” Jess ambled over to the sink and washed his hands. Trace kept her attention focused on the tomato, dicing it into the smallest bits he’d ever seen. “You aiming to turn that into sauce?”

Trace’s cheeks burned as she stopped in mid-chop and stared down at the desecrated tomatoes. “I, uh, like them that way,” she said as she lifted the cutting board and scraped the tomato goop into a bowl with the knife. Darned if she was going to tell Jess that she’d been daydreaming about him the whole time she was dicing the tomato. He was all she’d been thinking about, every darn minute, since that night at the hot tub.

“How would you like to join us for dinner tomorrow night, Jess?” Dee asked from behind them. “Catie and Jarrod are joining us and we’re playing poker afterwards. You’d make it an even six.”

Trace’s gaze shot up to meet Jess’s and he grinned. “Strip poker?” he said with a teasing glint in his eyes and Dee laughed. “Count me in.”

“Just be prepared to ante up, cowboy.” Dee banged the frying pan against a burner as she moved it off the heat. “And keep your clothes on.”

Jess chuckled and gave Trace a look that said he could see right through her blouse. Her body ached so badly for him she could hardly stand it.

“I’m finished with the taco shells,” Dee said, and Trace glanced back over her shoulder to see her sister shut off the stovetop burner. “I’ll let Jake know dinner’s about ready,” Dee added. “Back in a sec.”

The moment she left the kitchen, Jess moved close to Trace, his jean clad thighs brushing against her as he murmured, “Have you told him?”

Jess’s spicy aftershave flowed over Trace, bringing back memories of the Christmas party and of the hot tub, making it difficult to concentrate on his words. She slipped the vegetable knife into the dishwasher and furrowed her brow, barely able to think with him so close. “Ah…told who about what?” she said as she shut the dishwasher door.

He caught her chin in his hand, forcing her to look at him. His touch caused her skin to tingle and her nipples to peak beneath her blouse.

“Your ex,” he said, his blue eyes intent. “About us.”

“Ex…um…” Trace could scarcely breathe the way Jess was looking at her. “You mean Harold?”

His smile was tight. “Unless you’ve got any other boyfriends I need to know about.”

Trace thought about telling Jess that he sure as hell assumed a lot. That it was none of his business what she told Harold. That there was no ‘us.’

But instead she could only think about how badly she wanted to slide her fingers into the thick brown hair beneath his cowboy hat. How she wanted to see his incredible body again, how she wanted to touch him and taste him…to feel his cock deep inside her.

Cripes but she had it bad.

Lust.
A serious case of cowboy lust.

Jess’s smile turned sensual as he ran his thumb along her lower lip. “I can read those pretty green eyes, sugar. We’re right for one another, but for some crazy reason you’re fighting it.”

“You don’t know that,” she whispered.

“It’s the truth.” Jess lowered his head, bringing his mouth inches above hers. “You’re flat out too scared to admit it.”

Trace pressed her palms against his chest and almost groaned out loud. She could feel the play of his powerful muscles beneath his western shirt.

“I—I barely know you,” she finally said.

“Sugar, we already know each other better than some folks who’ve been together for years.”

She shook her head. “We only met a week ago.”

“Doesn’t matter.” He brought his face closer and filled all her senses with his presence. She felt as though she was drowning, losing herself in this virile man, and
wanting
to lose herself in him.

The sound of Dee’s and Jake’s voices snapped Trace out of her Jess-induced trance. Pulling free of his grip, she grabbed the bowl of tomatoes and dodged to the other side of the kitchen just as her sister and brother-in-law entered the room. Jess’s soft chuckle punctuated the pounding of her heart and she didn’t know whether to fling the whole bowl of diced tomatoes at him, or throw herself into his arms.

Chapter Seven

Jess moved beside Trace as she dug out the playing cards from the china cabinet drawer, and she shivered from his nearness. The light cotton dress she was wearing suddenly felt too thin, made her feel too vulnerable, like she was wearing nothing around him.

All evening last night at dinner, and then again tonight, Jess had taken every opportunity to brush against her, to touch her when no one was looking.

“What are we playing?” Catie asked from behind Trace just as she finally located the cards.

“How about five card stud?” Jess suggested, the warmth of his breath caressing her ear.

“Sounds as good as any,” Jarrod said as Trace slipped past Jess and tossed the deck onto the dinner table. Jake had removed the two middle table leaves a few minutes earlier, so that the table was much smaller and cozier for playing poker. Now instead of a long oblong table, it was almost circular.

Catie’s blonde hair bounced against her shoulders as she plopped herself in Jarrod’s lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck and nuzzled his mustache. “You ready for me to kick your ass, Sheriff?”

“Now this I gotta see.” Jake pulled a chair up to the table, his gray eyes glinting with humor as he grabbed the deck of cards. “But you’re gonna have to find a seat of your own, Cat.”

“Watch it, Reynolds.” Catie gave Jake a mock glare then kissed Jarrod before getting to her feet and slipping into the chair next to her husband.

Dee carried in a tray from the kitchen, filled with bowls of pretzels, bottles of beer and wine, along with wineglasses. Blue followed at Dee’s heels, and then settled himself under her chair, his head on his paws.

Trace helped her sister, and after everything was distributed, she took her seat next to Jess, who was dealing out stacks of red, white, and blue poker chips. When she eased into her chair, he paused and gave her that dark, sexy look that made her clit ache. She had no idea how she was going to make it through this night without having him.

Maybe Jess was right. Maybe she should call Harold and tell him it was over.

Why did she keep putting it off?

Because I’m afraid…afraid that I could lose my heart to this cowboy.

Trace sighed and took a long sip of her zinfandel, letting the liquid slide down her throat until it warmed her belly. She could feel Jess’s eyes on her, but she refused to look at him. Every time those blue eyes met hers, she forgot about all the reasons why it wouldn’t work with him…because of her career and her home in England.

Jake finished shuffling the deck. “Deuces are wild,” he said as he dealt each player five cards, the first two face down and the other three face up.

Catie and Dee chatted about the new shooting range that had been opened up several miles west of Douglas, while Trace watched Jake deal the cards. So odd that he was her brother-in-law now. And how nice and comfortable it felt with all six of them having dinner together and playing cards.

Like, maybe she could get used to this.

The longer she was away from Harold, the more she felt that their relationship was not completely open and sincere. With Harold she never knew what he was thinking, what secrets he kept hidden away from her behind that perplexing brown gaze. And she finally realized that he kept his emotions too tightly contained. Somewhere inside him there was a passionate man, but she’d never seen that side of him. And as good of a boxer as she’d heard he’d been in his youth, there was no way he could have been as unemotional as he was now. Something had to have happened a long time ago to have made him shut off that part of him.

But with Jess…yeah, there was lots of mystery in the man, but she knew exactly where she stood with him. He wanted her.

And damn but she wanted him.

It was time…she needed to call Harold. Maybe nothing would come of her relationship with Jess, but she didn’t want to look back and wish she’d done things differently.

“You heading home for Christmas, Jess?” Dee asked as she looked over her cards. “Hey, no peeking,” she added to Jake with a frown as he leaned back in his chair as though he might look at her cards.

Jess gave a non-committal shrug as he discarded one card and drew another. He was deep enough undercover that if a search was done on him, it would come up that he was born and raised in Cheyenne, Wyoming, and had studied agribusiness at Auburn University.

Truth of the matter was that he’d lived on a ranch outside Houston his entire life before heading off to the University of Texas to earn his bachelor’s in Criminal Justice and then going into the academy.

He wondered what Trace would think once she learned that he wasn’t who she thought he was. Well, he’d just have to cross that cattle guard when he came to it.

“You don’t have any place to go for Christmas?” Trace asked after she tossed a card onto the discard pile. Her green eyes were wide, as though she felt concerned that he’d be alone over the holidays.

He smiled as his gaze met hers. Wouldn’t hurt to tell a bit of the truth. “If I don’t show up Christmas Day for some of my mama’s roasted turkey, cornbread stuffing, and her special pecan pie, she’ll never forgive me.”

“And I’ll bet you’d never disappoint her,” Trace said softly, looked to the cards in her hand. “You have any brothers or sisters?”

“Two of each.” He grinned at the thought of his big, loving family. “And between all of them, damn near a dozen nieces and nephews. Miss them all like hell.”

Her eyebrows raised in surprise. “I can’t imagine having such a big family.” She gestured toward her sister with one of her cards. “It’s always been just Dee and me. Our mom died when we were pretty young, and then our dad might as well have been in another state once she passed away.”

“That’s the truth.” Dee nodded. “It’s your turn, Lawless.”

He studied his cards. Two pair, not too bad. “I’ll hold.”

“You’re from Texas, aren’t you?” Trace asked.

He raised an eyebrow. “Why do you say that?”

“Your drawl.” Her eyes focused on Jess. “It’s very Texan.”

The woman certainly had a good ear.

“Is something going on between you two that we ought to know about?” Catie interrupted in her usual direct manner. “It’s your play, Trace.”

Saved by the wildcat.
Jess smiled as Trace’s cheeks flushed again and she studied her cards.

“I’ll hold. I think.” She frowned and looked at them again. “Yes, I’ll hold.”

Before Trace had the chance to repeat her question about his accent, Jake asked Jess something about Imp, that spoiled-rotten bull of Dee’s.

As the night progressed, and more beer and wine had been consumed, the whole evening seemed to take on a surreal feel to Trace. No one seemed to notice the times that Jess would deliberately brush her breast with his hand, or lean close to whisper in her ear.

And then Jess slipped one hand under the table and caressed her thigh.

She froze, her gaze locked on her cards. Afraid to move and afraid to make a sound, like someone at the table might notice that Jess’s hand was creeping up the inside of her thigh under her dress, nearing her mound. Even though everyone seemed wrapped up in the poker game, or tipsy from the alcohol, how could they not notice that Jess only had one hand on the tabletop?

Yet she couldn’t get herself to make him stop.

While play continued, the chatter around the table was nothing more than a loud buzzing noise to Trace’s ears. She stared at her cards, not seeing them at all as Jess’s finger reached the soaked crotch of her panties. If anyone had asked her at that moment what she had in her hand, she wouldn’t have been able to name the cards. No matter that she was staring right at them.

Jess slid his fingers inside the elastic, and touched the soft curls of her pussy, and she almost closed her eyes. Oh, jeez. She had to make him stop.

Mindlessly she tried to play the poker game as his finger entered her creamy wetness and he stroked her clit. If it wasn’t for Jess whispering suggestions throughout each hand, she would have lost everything within moments.

She could smell his flesh, could smell her own arousal. Could everyone else smell it, too?

The sensations in her abdomen grew stronger and tighter, and she knew she was close to climax. “You can’t scream,” Jess whispered in her ear. “When you come, you’re gonna have to hold it in, sugar.”

Trace bit down hard on her lower lip as the orgasm took hold of her body and shook it like a mesquite tree in a summer storm. She braced her hand on her forehead and looked down, shielding her face from everyone at the table as her body trembled, and Jess’s finger drew the climax out even longer.

“You all right, Trace?” Dee asked through Trace’s alcohol and orgasm haze.

Jess slipped his hand out of Trace’s panties and she fought to control her breathing, to let her heart rate slow to a normal pace.

“Too much wine,” Trace mumbled and rubbed her temples with her thumb and forefinger. “I think I’m done for.”

Jess chuckled and murmured so that only she could hear, “Like I’ve already told you, we haven’t even started yet, sugar.”