Lucas saw her expression and began to feel terrible. He was overloading her with too many burdens too quickly.
“Do you always look so beautiful after spending all morning in the kitchen?”
She turned back to him in amazement.
“You’re making fun of me, Mr. Holt. You must know this morning was the first morning I ever spent in a kitchen.” She wouldn’t belittle herself by adding that her coloring was too vivid for true beauty.
“Then kitchens must agree with you.” He grinned.
Before she could answer, he steered her around the corral to the large cottonwood. The breeze kept the corral smells at bay, and the shade was welcome. There was a bench that just fit two people, but he didn’t move to sit beside her. He placed his foot next to her on the bench and rested an arm on his knee so that he was leaning over her—looming, actually.
She tilted her head to look up at him. His kiss took her completely by surprise. She moved back to break away, but his hands fell on her shoulders, and she was forced to let him kiss her, forced to stare into those jewel-like eyes and wonder what emotion she saw there.
It was only a few seconds before she began to notice the texture of his lips, how very soft they were. His hands slid along her shoulders to her neck, and a heady feeling came out of nowhere. Her eyes closed. Her lips moved under his provocatively until he met the challenge, his tongue boldly slipping between them.
Sharisse jerked back, gasping. “Mr. Holt!”
Never had she been kissed like that!
She felt so naive. To think she’d come so close to making love with Antoine, yet knew so little about kissing. Even Antoine had never kissed her like that.
Thinking of Antoine brought a quietly sleeping anger to the fore. All men were the same. They never gave anything honestly. They always wanted something in return for their sweet words of flattery. From her, they had always wanted either her money or her body. Now she could add another want to that list—servitude. Lucas Holt was after a lifetime servant, with a convenient body as an added bonus. There was no kinder way to put it.
“I thought we came to an understanding last night, Mr. Holt.” Water would have frozen at the sound of her voice.
“Considering…” He paused meaningfully, grinning like a rogue. “Don’t you think it’s time you called me Luke?”
“I don’t. And we have an understanding,” she reminded him severely, incensed that he was amused. “Which you seem determined to ignore.”
His eyes twinkled merrily. “No, ma’am. As I recall, you wanted time to feel comfortable with me. But you seemed comfortable enough with me just now, so…” He shrugged.
“One day’s grace was not what I had in mind.”
His expression turned carefully blank. “I don’t see what all the fuss is about. Do I frighten you? Is that it?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Well, at least you’re honest, I’ll give you that.”
Oh, if he only knew, she thought uneasily, her temper cooling quickly. She watched him turn and move the few feet to the corral fence. One of the spotted horses came over to his extended hand. Presented with his back, she stared at his lean body, the tight jeans and buff-colored shirt that left little to imagine about his physique. His legs were so long, well-muscled, too, and nicely shaped.
“I just don’tknowyou,” she found herself blurting.
He glanced back at her for a second before returning his attention to the horse. “You want my life story? I guess that’s reasonable. Later, maybe. Right now I better get back to work.”
Was he dismissing her? Yes, he was. How very autocratic! Just like her father, though not in a blustering way. This man had a very quiet arrogance, nothing showy. The worst kind.
Sharisse knew she was arrogant as well and hated that fault. She laid it at her father’s feet. Two arrogant wills would make for war and were not to be considered. It would be just like her parents.
Well, if she were looking for a husband—which she surely wasn’t—Lucas Slade certainly wouldn’t be her choice. Thank God things were notthatdesperate.
Eight
Sharisse placed the last bowl on the, table and stood back, wiping her brow. She had done it, cooked her first meal by herself. It didn’t look like food she had ever eaten before, but she wasn’t going to worry about that. Billy had handed her a country cookbook when he got back from town, and she could only surmise country food was different from city food. She hadn’t understood some of the terms in the book so she’d just skipped over those parts. What harm could skipping one or two little things do? She had prepared enough food for three, since no one had told her if Mack would be eating with them or not.
Sharisse moved to the open door, hoping for a cool breeze. There wasn’t one, but the brilliance of a flaming red sky mesmerized her. Black silhouettes dotted the land like low sentinels: barrel cactus, yucca trees, the giant saguaro cactus. A small animal scurried across the ground. A coyote howled.
Sharisse had to admit she had never seen anything quite so lovely as the scene before her. On the train, the blinds had always been closed against the late afternoon sun, so she hadn’t realized the West offered such spectacular sunsets. If nothing else came of this insane trip, at least she had been able to see this.
