Dustin chuckled as Shannon ran out the door, her long brown hair swinging wildly with each step. A man could drown in those big green eyes of hers. He‟d waited fourteen years for her to come home. At eighteen he‟d been too young to understand why she left, why she refused to believe he could take care of her. It sucked that she‟d been right. What had he known of the responsibility of being a husband at that age?
So, he‟d done what any self-respecting man would do and pretended to forget about the love of his life.
Somewhere inside, he knew Shannon would come home. Even Gran had told him to give her time to find herself. Not that he knew what that meant at eighteen. Being Gran‟s companion kept Shannon close—mentally anyway. Now that she was home, could he convince her Texas was where she belonged? He was going to try his damndest.
This weekend, while she was captive on the ranch, courtesy of her cousin‟s bachelorette party, he was going to take every opportunity to get close to her, to remind her of what they once had. If it took physical seduction… His cock jumped at the idea and the memory of her soft cheek pressed against his short and curlies. Poor Shannon wouldn‟t stand a chance against his Texas charm.
His cell phone vibrated in his pocket. Roused from his Shannon-fog, he yanked it out. “Yeah?”
“You planning on doing any work today? Or am I supposed to pick up your slack?” Dane, his youngest brother, bitched in his ear.
“Let me guess, Dillon‟s ridin‟ your ass again?” Dane snorted. “Good guess. So?”
Dustin sighed. His oldest brother could be a bit of a hardass when it came to getting work done on the ranch. Though with this bachelorette shindig this weekend, he couldn‟t blame Dillon.
But his plans for Shannon would have to be put on hold for a few hours longer. “Tell him I‟ll be there in five.”
****
The dinner triangle rang promptly at five. Shannon had yet to see her cousin, though she imagined Bridgette was wandering around somewhere. Had her other cousin, Sara, arrived at the ranch?
As Shannon opened the heavy wooden door of her assigned cabin, Bridgette‟s high-pitched laughter reached her ears. Shannon stepped outside and headed toward the sound.
The scent of burning wood wafting from the picnic area tickled her senses. Bridgette had demanded the staff have a fire burning every night, and she was probably policing the activity to make sure everything was perfect. Shannon wasn‟t sure what could go wrong—light wood, put marshmallow on stick, toast and eat. How hard could that be? Still, her cousin was known for being a bit of a control freak. She hoped Adam knew what he was getting into.
“Shay!” Bridgette cried, running from the fire pit and launching herself into Shannon‟s arms.
She laughed and returned the hug. “Well, hi to you, too.”
Bridgette stepped back and gave her the once over. “You are way too skinny. You‟re a stylist. You shouldn‟t have to keep up with the same non-eating habits of all those models you hang around.”
Shannon looked down at her thin frame. She had lost a good amount of weight in the last three months, what with the stress of work and Gran‟s illness. With good home cooking and fresh Texas air,
she was certain her body would return to a healthy weight in no time. She missed her boobs.
Bridgette eyed her critically, that assessing gaze travelling from the top of her head to her flip-flop clad feet. “Dear cousin, for being a top notch stylist, you can‟t dress yourself worth a crap. Maybe you and Sara should put your heads together to discuss wardrobe. I saw the moving van drop off her stuff at Gran‟s yesterday.”
Shannon rolled her eyes. “I‟m on a dude ranch. There is no way I‟m traipsing around in stilettos and diamonds. I‟m finally home, Bridge, and I‟m going to start dressing the part of country girl.”
“Since when do country girls wear flip flops? Shouldn‟t you be in boots?” Bridgette circled her. “I will say, skinny or not, your ass looks fantastic in worn, faded denim.”
“I would have to agree,” rolled a sexy Texas drawl behind her. Dustin cocked his cowboy hat and folded muscled arms over his button-down shirt. His gaze raked over her breasts. “Wouldn‟t mind seeing more.”
Shannon‟s cheeks flamed, and she covered her chest with her arms. “You have no say in what I do or do not show off.” She glared at his cocky expression. “What do you want?”
He gave a mock bow. “Dinner‟s ready for whenever the princesses would like to join us.”
Stomping down the urge to kick him, she lifted her chin. “Fine.”
What was up with his flirty attitude? And why did she automatically start acting like a bratty kid when he was around? She‟d left him without a backward glance, broke his heart, and here he was, acting like it‟d never happened?
Or maybe he really hadn‟t been as affected as she‟d thought all these years. Was it possible she‟d been projecting her own feelings onto him? Seeing
him again, all grown up and sexier than she could have imagined made her realize how much she‟d missed him and how much she still loved him.
Dammit! This was one more complication she just didn‟t need.
Dustin winked again, turned, and strolled off, whistling.
Bridgette hooked her arm around Shannon‟s. “Come on, cousin. Let‟s go get some food.”
They followed Dustin into the dining hall. The room was separated from the check-in area by large wooden pillars. A dozen tables—some long, some oval—were scattered around the room. The food was set up buffet style, and a line of women waited their turn.
All through dinner, she couldn‟t keep her attention off Dustin. It didn‟t matter where he was in the room, or what he was doing, her whole being tuned in to him. Even the most innocent look from his green, cat-like eyes wreaked havoc on her hormones.
And then there were the touches—a slight bump of the hip when he moved behind the buffet, the brush of his fingers on her arm while he served her dinner. Desire bubbled in her body from the heated influx of sex vibes humming from him. Needing to get her emotions under control, she strolled to the dessert table. Chocolate. That sugary delight always seemed to do the trick when female wants and needs started to intrude. She picked up a brownie. The treat was still warm. She broke off a piece and popped it in her mouth.
“Mmm, brownies,” Dustin murmured behind her, standing just close enough so his heat radiated from his chest down her spine. He leaned around her to grab a brownie. “There are so many other uses for chocolate frosting,” he whispered, his hot, moist breath breezing past her ear and jawbone.
