I was surprised his memory was so impeccable and he remembered our names. I didn’t know if that was a good thing or bad one.
Mary beamed at us. She wore a flowery shirt and polyester pants. Her body was thick around the middle, making me think they had plenty of food in Hilltop, unlike where I had been.
I felt uncomfortable as she looked us up and down. The difference between her immaculate appearance and our disheveled one was apparent. She clucked her tongue a few times in disapproval at Tate’s scruffy appearance and fluttered nervously around Keely, making comments about her tangled hair and the smudge of dirt on her face. When it came to me, Mary stopped right in front of me, assessing me slowly.
“You’re one beautiful girl. What’s your name?” she asked, eyeing me up and down with a twinkle in her eye.
“Cat,” I said. I didn’t like women judging me. They’re reaction to me wasn’t always nice. In the past, I would pretend it didn’t bother me, but the truth was it always did. I never measured up according to my mom and grandmother. I didn’t expect I would to this woman either.
She reached out and touched my hair. “You have such pretty hair. Anyone ever tell you that?”
“A time or two,” I said, sticking my chin up with boldness.
She chuckled. “I bet the men love you. You got spunk.”
Cash went stiff beside me.
Mary seemed to notice. She turned her smiling eyes on him, dropping her hand from me. “So that’s the way it is. You two married?” she asked, looking from one of us to the other.
“No, ma’am,” Cash said, not at all embarrassed by her question. “But I might have a problem if another man loved her.”
My jaw dropped open. Mary laughed loud and shrill. “I like you,” she said to Cash around a snorting laugh. “I like you a lot.”
Tate looked ready to kill Cash for saying what he did and Keely looked at her brother with surprise. Gavin just smiled that shit-eating grin that I had discovered was his signature smile.
Mary gave my arm a pat. “Well, I’m glad you’re here, deary. I’ve got enough room for all of you, despite who loves whom. Come with me.”
She started to turn, explaining how the hotel was laid out, when David interrupted.
“I’m going to head home,” he announced, smiling broadly. “Miss Mary will take good care of y’all. God bless you and I’ll see you tomorrow.”
With a nod and a quick smile, he moved past us and out the door, motioning for his gun-toting friend, Timothy, to follow.
Mary watched him go, a small frown causing deep creases to appear between her eyebrows. When she looked back at us, the frown was gone.
“Okay kids, follow me.” She turned and started shuffling toward a dark stairway, her pink slippers flapping on the scarred hardwood floor.
We followed her upstairs to a long hallway. Cheap artwork covered the walls. Between them were closed doors, each numbered in brass figures.
“Okay. Here’s one room,” Mary said, heading for the first door. Cold air rushed over us as she opened it. Tate didn’t seem to care. He went inside, trying the light switch and almost smiling when a single light bulb came on in the center of the room.
“I’ll take this one,” he declared, dropping his backpack on the floor.
“Lovely. Next!” Mary led us to a room decorated in browns and blues. Gavin claimed it for himself, dumping his saddle inside the door.
“I want her across the hall from me,” he said, nodding at Keely. His bright blue eyes blazed as they stared at her.
Keely blinked at him, her owl-like glasses accenting the delicate lashes around her eyes. Her mouth formed a small O and her fair skin grew pink.
“You got a problem with that?” Gavin asked, turning his attention to Cash.
Cash shook his head, his light-colored eyes shadowed by the brim of his hat. “Nope. Do I need to have one?”
Gavin glanced at Keely. “I’ll let you know.”
Cash’s eyes went from friendly to dangerous. The tension was almost palpable between the two of them, full of warning and threats.
Keely pulled out her notebook and scribbled something in it, looking furious.
“‘Do I have a say?’” I read when she held it up. “‘I may not have a voice but I have an opinion.’”
Mary chuckled. “The blonde has some spunk too. Better watch it, big boy,” she said, winking at Gavin. “I bet she would eat you alive.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” Gavin murmured, leaning against the doorframe.
I grabbed Cash’s hand and pulled him away before he attacked his friend. The two of us followed Mary further down the hallway, leaving Keely and Gavin to duke it out and Tate to wallow in his new bedroom.
Mary led us to a room decorated in warm mauve colors. It was warm and inviting and felt like home instantly. I went straight to the bed, almost running across the room. My fingers ran over the satin cover, loving the way it felt against my skin. I wanted to crawl underneath it and sleep for twenty-four hours straight. Maybe never leave this room with its heat and lights.
Mary talked about the history of the hotel as she puttered around the room. Cash didn’t seem to care. He kept his gaze on me as he stood in the middle of the threshold, the saddle resting on his hip. With the light of the hallway behind him, he was only a silhouette. His tall frame was relaxed but I knew it was a lie. The gun in his holster and the rigid set of his shoulders told otherwise.
I wasn’t sure how much longer I could survive under his scrutiny. We stared at each other, the air almost bursting with our desire. Mary was forgotten, what she said was ignored. I wanted only one thing and he was standing near me.
Cash never removed his gaze from me as he sauntered into the room. God, the way he moved had the ability to make me drool. He dropped the saddle on the floor and stared at me with a challenge in his eyes. My heart started pounding, his message received loud and clear.
He was staying with me tonight.
Mary interrupted, shuffling over to me and blocking my view of Cash. She fussed over me like a mother hen, looking me up and down then clicking her tongue in disapproval.
“No. No. No. This will never do,” she said, pinching Cash’s dusty jacket that I wore between her fingers. “SARAH!”
I jumped as she shouted, wondering who exactly Sarah was and if I should be worried. But a minute later a red-faced girl rushed past Cash and into the room. She was homey and young with mousy brown hair and washed out pasty skin. A thick book was under her arm and reading glasses were perched on the end of her long nose.
“Yes, ma’am?” she asked.
Mary looked at her with a stern expression. “Our new visitor needs some clean clothes. Check our supplies and find something for her.”
Sarah looked me over quickly. “Yes, ma’am.” She bobbed her head once then turned to rush out of the room, but not before I saw her stare at Cash with curiosity.
He paid no attention to her, keeping his eyes on me. Mary went on chatting, not noticing the sexual vibes being exchanged between Cash and me.
“I’ll just fire up the stove and reheat dinner. In the meantime, the bath is down the hall,” she said, rushing around the room to fluff pillows and smooth out wrinkles on the bedspread.
All the air was sucked out of my lungs, the tingles I got as Cash stared at me forgotten. Mary had just said the magical word.
“Bath?” I asked with a squeak.
Mary smiled a gentle, understanding smile. “Yes, with hot water and soap and everything else, my dear. Enjoy.” With a motherly pat on my arm and a wink at Cash, she left, shutting the door behind her.
I looked at Cash with excitement. “A bath,” I said in wonder as he walked past me. “Can you believe it? I haven’t had a real bath in ages.”
He went over to the window and peeked out between the wooden blinds. “I don’t know. It seems too perfect.”
I wanted to throw one of the bed’s satin pillows at him. He was ruining my good mood, damn hi
m.
He dropped the blind and turned back to look at me. His eyes traveled down my body, taking their time. I grew warm, craving something other than a bath that was guaranteed to get me just as wet.
There was fire in his eyes. He blinked and it was gone like it had never existed.
“Stay here, Cat. I’m going to go check things out,” he said, removing his cowboy hat and tossing it on the bed.
“In case you haven’t noticed, I can take care of myself,” I grumbled, throwing my chin up in defiance. “You don’t have to tell me what to do.”
He swung up his gaze to glare at me. Fire and anger and dangerous emotions played out in his eyes. I backed up when he started strolling toward me, slow but purposeful. I felt hunted. Pursued. Cornered for him to have if he wanted. His hair was disheveled and his eyes were stormy as he looked down at me.
“I know you can take care of yourself, Cat, but I’m here now. Let me do it.”
“Why do you want to?” I asked breathlessly, wanting to see just how far I could push him. “Why you?”
“Well, your guess is as good as mine,” he said, his eyes burning on me. “Let’s just say I’m a sucker for a dark-haired Beauty Queen with a sweet mouth and smartass attitude.”
I harrumphed, putting my hands on my hips. My eyes slid over him and to the saddle on the floor. “I don’t remember you asking if you could stay with me.”
The corner of his mouth lifted in a grin. “I didn’t ask, but you don’t have to worry. We’re only going to sleep, Cat. That’s all. I just want to make sure you’re safe.”
My heart pounded. “And who’s going to protect me from you?”
His smile grew. “Sweetheart, I’m the one who needs protecting. There’s nothing I wouldn’t say or do for you. That will either get me killed or make me fall in love.” He leaned down, putting his mouth right by my ear. “And right now I don’t want to die. Loving you sounds a whole heck of a lot better.”
Without another word, he turned and walked out of the bedroom, leaving me alone to recover from his words and stare at the notorious cowboy hat he had left sitting on the bed.
Chapter Thirty–Eight
Cat
I was in heaven.
I closed my eyes, letting the hot water run over my body. It had been so long since I stood under a steady flow of water that it didn’t feel real. None of it did. The town. Cash. His words to me. It all seemed surreal. I was waiting for the bubble to burst. It always did, it seemed.
Putting my hand against the tile wall, I leaned forward. Hot water drenched my hair and ran down my face. I closed my eyes, letting the drops hit my sensitive skin. I could almost feel Cash against me, sliding into me. I wished he were with me now, sharing the shower and whispering more words in my ear like he had said earlier. I don’t want to die. Loving you sounds better.
Anguish suddenly choked me when I thought about his words. I reached down and touched the tattoo on my hip, the one that reminded me that someone had died because they loved me. Luke. Jenna. Nathan. I was the cause of each of their deaths. I didn’t want Cash to be added to that list. If he died, I died too. I couldn’t let that happen. There was only one way to avoid it.
I pushed wet strands of hair out of my eyes, my mind racing over what I should do. I couldn’t fight the carnal attraction for Cash. That was a given, something I couldn’t fight. It consumed me. Drove my addiction for more. I couldn’t control the feelings I had for him. They enticed me. Dared me to take down the wall around my heart and let myself love him. I couldn’t control any of it, but I could control how he saw me.
I would become that girl again - the one that teased and fucked and didn’t feel one thing. I would do it to protect him this time, not to protect me.
I shut off the water and hurried to dry my body. When every last of water had been rubbed from my body, I grabbed the thin dress that Sarah had found for me. My panties were a lost cause so I wadded them in a little ball and dumped them in the trash, wishing I still owned some of the pretty lacy ones that I had once oohed and awed over long ago.
I pulled the dress over my head and let it cascade down my body. It was a cream-colored shift dress, a little too big for me but it was clean and that’s all that mattered. It fell over my naked breasts and slid down around my hips, the hem ending at my knees.
The mirror above the rusted sink was foggy but I could see enough of me. I pulled my fingers through my wet hair and pushed a curl behind my ear. My skin was squeaky clean and my lips were full and nude, badly in need of some lip-gloss. Since that was a thing of the past, I had to make do. I pulled my teeth over my bottom lip, trying to put some color back into them.
Satisfied I didn’t look too bad, I left the bathroom on bare feet and padded down the hallway. The last thing I wanted to do was put back on the dirty boots I had found a few weeks ago.
A strong aroma of cooking assaulted me as soon as I reached the top of the stairs. It made my mouth water and my stomach grumble with hunger.
I took a deep breath, dragging the smell into my lungs. Muted voices drifted up from the dining room along with the clink of silverware. I followed the sounds and delicious smell, unable to resist one moment longer.
Hazy yellow light danced and flickered over the small dining room as I entered it. The single bulb over the room cast a faint glow on the three people sitting around the table. My eyes went instantly to Cash, seeking him naturally. It was a reaction, an action as normal to me as breathing.
He sat between Gavin and Keely, eating. He put a spoonful of something in his mouth and I felt my insides clench, remembering his lips on me. I almost missed a step as he smiled at something Tate said. The curve of his mouth made him go from a good-looking cowboy to a drop-dead gorgeous sex symbol. I couldn’t resist either. But I could play it cool and try to ignore both.
I walked across the room with more grace than I felt. Gavin looked up at me and grinned.
“Well, well, well. Kitty Cat is here. Meow.”
“Ha. Ha. Very funny. Don’t think I’ve heard that before,” I said with a roll of my eyes. “You are sooooo clever.”
Cash chuckled, glancing up from his bowl to look at me.
I kept my gaze off him and pulled an empty chair back, giving Gavin a don’t-fuck-with-a-hungry-girl look as I sat down.
Gavin’s smile grew wider. “Oh-oh. Cat’s got claws. I bet if she had a tail she would be flicking it right now.”
I cut my eyes over to him under my lashes. “Maybe I would. Want to chase it, Gavin?”
All the blood left his face. The smile died on his lips. I chanced a look at Cash. He was staring at me, a storm brewing in his eyes. He looked like he either wanted to jump across the table and strangle me or demand I explain what the hell I was doing. Good. I needed him confused. Maybe then he’d see that he was better off without me. It might save his life one day.
Gavin cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. He crossed his arms across the table and glanced at Cash.
“Control your pussycat, Cash.”
Cash’s teeth gnashed together like they wanted to rip into someone’s carotid artery.
“Obviously, I don’t control her,” he ground out, glaring at me. “Nobody does.”
Tate and Keely looked from him to me with amusement, taking bites of their food and watching the showdown.
My freshly scrubbed pink skin burned brighter as Cash continued to stare at me. Thick tension flowed between us. He was pissed and I suddenly doubted myself. I couldn’t sit across the table from him without feeling something. How was I supposed to convince him not to?
The silence became suffocating, the heat between my legs irritating. I shifted in my seat, wishing I had on some underwear. Being naked under my dress and sitting so close to him was killing me. Knowing something was still happening between us after all these years was threatening me.
Mary bustled into the dining room right then. She was like a whirlwind of gray hair and wrinkles, saving my day.
“You’re here! I thought I heard you,” she exclaimed, seeing me. “Oh, you look beautiful. Just beautiful.” She wobbled over to the table on arthritis-ridden knees and sat a steaming bowl in front of me. “Here’s some stew, honey. It’ll warm you right up real quick and put some meat on your bones.”
“Thank you,” I said, picking up my spoon. The smell that waffled up from the bowl was heavenly. My stomach growled again. I forgot about Cash. Forgot about sitting here with no panties or bra on in front of him and what he was doing to me. All I cared about was eating.
I dug in as Gavin turned his charm on Mary.
“The food is delicious. Will you marry me, Ms. Mary?”
Mary blushed and laughed, waving away his compliment. A twinkle sparkled in her eyes. “Well, Reverend David does love to perform marriages.”
Gavin smiled, his dark looks adding to his flirty personality. “Well, ma’am, I’ll keep that in mind,” he said, glancing over at Keely on the other side of Cash.
Cash cleared his throat and sat forward, blocking Gavin’s view of his sister.
“So is Reverend David the leader of Hilltop?” he asked Mary, resting his arms on the table and looking at her with interest.
Mary shook her head. “Oh, no,” she said, picking up Tate’s empty bowl and wobbling around the table to get Cash’s. “The Reverend just looks over the town when our leader is gone.”
Gavin went taut. Cash didn’t move. I could almost see the wheels turning in their minds.
“So when will your leader be back?” Gavin asked, seriousness turning his teasing nature into something dark and dangerous.
Mary didn’t seem to notice. She fluttered around the table. “Oh, he’ll be back in a day or two. Him and his men go out scouting for supplies every few days. That’s how we get most of the stuff we have here. Like your dresses,” she said, nodding at Keely and me.
Keely’s face went white and the bite of stew in my mouth suddenly didn’t taste so good. I knew better than anyone that supplies were stolen, found, or traded. I just hoped that I was wearing someone’s traded dress, not one stolen from its owner.