They ate at the bottom of a canyon, where a narrow stream sustained a few tall cottonwood trees. A light breeze blew some of the leaves into the stream to drift away with the current. It was a spectacular way to spend the day.
They were almost back to the stables when Cain pulled the roan to a stop, turned in his saddle, and pointed to a horse in one of the lush green pastures. “That’s Kitty Cat.” A beautiful sorrel with a gleaming copper mane and tail galloped across the pasture.
“She’s gorgeous.”
“So is King. They would have been a helluva match.”
It was late afternoon by the time they rode back into the barn, the temperature cooling enough that she needed to wear her jacket. Her legs were shaking when she tried to dismount. She felt Cain’s big hands wrap around her waist. Turning, he set her easily on the ground.
“Thanks,” she said. “I’m out of practice.”
“It takes a little time for your muscles to get used to it.”
Billy unsaddled the horses, and Cain led Jenny through the back door into the kitchen. One of the hands, an older man with dark, weathered skin, was busily chopping vegetables on a wooden block on the massive center island.
“That’s Sanchez. He’s not as good a cook as Maria, but he isn’t bad.”
Sanchez grinned.
“So Sanchez is cooking for us tonight?”
“For the hands. Maria had to drive her mother to Prescott for a doctor’s appointment. I’ve seen you eat, so I know you aren’t a vegetarian. I took out a couple of steaks. It’s still warm enough to barbeque. I thought we’d eat later.”
So she would be alone with Cain again tonight. She should ask him to drive her back to Jerome. She needed to make sure everything was okay at the Copper Star. She needed to check on her employees, make sure they were dealing all right with the tragedy that had happened upstairs.
She shouldn’t let herself get more deeply involved with Cain. But instead she lingered, watching the sunset while he grilled, then joining him for a delicious steak dinner.
Afterward, he led her out of the kitchen, watching her with those perceptive dark eyes. “If you want to go back, all you have to do is ask.”
Did she really want to leave? She thought of his kiss. She wanted to feel the heat again. She wanted more than that. It had been years since she’d been attracted to a man. The few men she had been with, including her ex-husband, had all been disappointments.
Today had been one of the best days of her life. Jenny didn’t want it to end. She wanted to stay, wanted to spend the night with Cain. She wanted to know if he could make her feel the fire she had always dreamed of and never really known.
“I don’t want to go back,” she said softly.
His dark eyes heated, turning the rings around his pupils gold. Cain walked over to the wet bar against the living room wall and poured some whiskey into the bottom of a heavy crystal rocks glass, filled another for himself, and carried them back.
He handed her one of the glasses, and Jenny took a sip, hoping Cain wouldn’t notice the tremor in her hand.
“If you stay,” he said, “I won’t stop this time.”
She looked up at him. “I’m staying. And I don’t want you to stop.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“THERE’S A COMFORTABLE SITTING ROOM IN THE MASTER SUITE,” Cain said. “There’s even a fireplace. We can relax there.”
Jenny just nodded. Her heart was hammering, and he hadn’t even touched her. Cain led her down the hall to his bedroom. Relief hit her when he opened the door into a sitting room that matched the Southwest décor of the rest of the house. Jenny crossed the red tile floor toward a small, Spanish-style stucco fireplace and sat down on a sofa covered in bright-striped, woolen fabric.
Wood had already been laid in the hearth. “Cold enough in the evenings now for a fire.” Cain set his drink on the ornately carved coffee table, walked over and picked up a long wooden match, struck it on the box, and set the kindling ablaze. As the fire leaped to life, he joined her on the sofa.
Jenny took a long swallow of her drink. There were liquor bottles on a dresser against the wall, plenty of whiskey if she needed more fortification.
“How long has it been?” Cain asked, taking her hand and bringing it to his lips. Her stomach instantly contracted.
“I’ve been divorced for a while, but we weren’t really together at least a year before that. I stayed when I should have left.”
“You have a new life now,” Cain said, gently stroking her hand, kissing each of her fingers.
