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  He frowned. “Where are you staying? Surely not the Lazy Aces?”

  She smiled. “One and the same.”

  “Damn roach motel.”

  “I’ve stayed in better, but you have to admit there isn’t much of a selection around here.”

  He nodded. “You’ve got that right.” He looked out over the sea of vehicles in the parking lot. “Let me walk you to your car. Where are you parked?”

  “Just a few rows back. I can manage from here, but thanks.”

  Ran tipped the brim of his hat. “It was good to see you again, Lynn. You look amazing.”

  “So do you. Well, um, I guess I’ll see you around.”

  Achingly disappointed, she turned and headed to her car. What had she expected? Just because he was a regular actor in her thoughts and dreams didn’t mean it was the same for him. That was just silly and she’d never been a frivolous person. Trying her best to shake it off and seriously considering leaving Delight altogether and heading back to Dallas, she slipped the strap of her handbag from her shoulder and dug out her keys. What had she hoped to gain from this trip down memory lane, a resolution to a depressing episode from her youth? She was no longer that desperate-to-be-loved teen. She was a respected physician who’d helped countless children. That was far more important than all this misplaced angst over some trivial thing from her past.

  She found her keys and had just depressed the unlock button when she heard gravel crunch behind her. Thinking Ransom had returned and damn glad about that, she turned, but her smile faded away at the sight of the one person she had no desire to see.

  Lynn grabbed her purse and held it against her as if it would protect her from Dusty Granger.

  “Well, well, who do we have here?” He staggered toward her through the shadows and she noted at once the whiskey bottle he held clutched in one hand. It was hard to tell much about him from this distance but he was quite a bit heavier now than he’d been as an eighteen-year-old thug. There was an appalling look of dissipation about him and no, the years hadn’t been kind. “Somebody told me you were back in your old stomping ground.” His gaze took her in from top to toe. “You prettied up some. Never believed that would happen. Whooo, you got some curves on you, girl, and you sure as shit don’t need a sack covering your face now, do ya?”

  Every word from his mouth made her sad youth flash before her eyes. She backed away. Once upon a time, she’d visualize possible conversations she’d have with this guy if she ever saw him again. She’d conjured scenarios of how she’d tell him off and then make him pay for how he’d made her feel but suddenly none of those sharp-edged conversations materialized. Instead she froze, completely tongue-tied, and promptly forgot that she was a mature, well-educated woman who didn’t take crap from anybody, much less a cretin from her youth. Instead she again became that shy, insecure kid who just wanted to fit in but had no clue how to achieve it.

  He reached out and when Lynn realized he actually planned to touch her, she opened her mouth to scream. The sounds of boot heels crunching on gravel caused Dusty to pause, and she saw Ransom come tearing past the rows of cars and trucks as if he were an NFL linebacker. The only thing she could do was move back as Ransom gripped Dusty by the front of his shirt and plastered him over the hood of her car. The bottle of whiskey rolled from his hand onto the parking lot, spilling out over the ground.

  Muscles bunched in Ransom’s arms and his jaw worked furiously as he leaned over Lynn’s nemesis from the past. “I’ve wanted to get my hands on you for a mighty long time, old son,” he gritted. “Now that you’re not a minor but a full-grown asshole, I figure I’d better tell you what’s what. You caused this nice woman a hell of a lot of pain a long time ago and I’m not about to stand by and watch you do it again. Now you get the fuck out of here and don’t mess with Lynn. You don’t get a second chance to cause her grief. Got it?” Ransom Dobbs was proof positive that still waters ran deep.

  Dusty started to whine.

  “Aw, come on, Ransom.”

  Ransom gripped the front of Dusty’s shirt a little bit tighter. “Got it?”

  “Yeah, yeah. Fuck you, man. Let go.”

  Ransom took a deep breath as if to calm himself, then released Dusty, who slid off the hood of Lynn’s car and grabbed his knees as he bent over. Ransom hadn’t hit him but Dusty must have been shaken by the speed with which Ransom got to him. Truthfully she was pretty stunned too. Finally the man stood upright and staggered off to a safe distance before apparently getting his bravado back. “You’re gonna regret this, Dobbs.”

  “I doubt it. Get on down the road.”

  Cursing and mumbling, Dusty took off and Ransom turned to her. “I’m sorry you had to see that, Lynn.”

  She stared at him, gasping for breath. “Wow, I’m not. Anybody ever tell you that you’re a badass?”

  “Not for a day or so.” Ransom seemed to shake himself and Lynn noted that even in the bad lighting his face was set in grim lines. He was still furious but seemed to be trying to calm down, and she sensed there was a wicked temper hidden deep beneath that quiet demeanor. He moved close and rested his hands on her shoulders before giving them a little squeeze. The warmth of his touch, the possessiveness, swept over her. “Are you okay?”

  She nodded and tried to focus. Her pulse raced and, despite the heat, a shiver swept through her, racing over her skin as if it were an army of ants. A heavy, tight sensation curled low in her belly from just his simple touch. “I’m okay. Seriously, Ransom, thanks for saving me. Everything about that man is just creepy.”

  “Too many memories.”

  Lynn looked at him, thrilled that he hadn’t removed his hands from her shoulders. “You remember that?”

  He reached up with his right hand and settled it on the side of her neck. The touch was intimate and unnervingly sexy. She wanted to lean into him to test for herself whether the rest of him was as hot as his touch.

  “Darlin’, I remember everything about that night. Fact is, I don’t think I’ve ever forgotten it.”

  She laughed a little. “I sure haven’t. Looks like this is the second time you’ve saved me from him.”

  “And I’ll do it again if I have to.”

  “My hero.” Lynn had meant to tease but the words came out all whispery and needy. Following impulse and the need to touch him, she moved in and went up on her tiptoes. At five-ten, she wasn’t a tiny woman but he seemed almost a giant to her as she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.” His voice swept low and rough into her ear as his arms moved around her body. A whip of pleasure flicked her skin and when she stepped back, reacting to the contact, she saw his eyes go dark.

  “Ransom, I—”

  “Damn it. Damn it to hell,” he gritted an instant before taking her lips in a hotter-than-hell kiss.

  Even her wildest, craziest and most sensual dreams hadn’t prepared her for how his body would feel pressed against hers or how her nipples would draw up tight, aching for a firmer touch. They pulsed hard against the lace of her bra, the abrasion sending need through her system like a slow-burning fire.

  A low groan swept into her mouth as he sent his tongue deep, taking the kiss to another unexpectedly hot level in roughly two seconds flat. His scent, crisp and clean, wrapped around her as his arms brought her tight against his rock-hard body. Linebacker. Oh yeah. Or maybe a Viking of old. He had the body of a warrior. Lynn melded to him, loving the way he drank each little breath she expelled. Her nipples pearled tighter, aching like the devil. Helplessly lost in his kiss, she dragged her breasts over his chest.

  Touch me.

  As he tasted her mouth and nibbled her lips, he moved his hands over her back until they finally settled at the dip of her spine. His fingers stroked then moved to test the curves of her waist. She sighed when he angled his face, the heavy tasting more than anything she’d ever conjured in the dark of night. The hot, powerful kiss turned her inside out and, low in her b
ody, her pussy throbbed in response. It seemed the most natural thing in the world to rub against the heavy bulge that pushed behind the fly of his jeans. Giving in to her body’s demands, she dragged her pussy over him and reached up to study the savage lines of his face.

  Not a pretty man. Not Ransom.

  Lost in the feel of him, Lynn slid one leg up his thigh, gasping when he filled his hands with her ass. He flexed his fingers over the mounds, his low moan shaking her to her core. His breathing picked up speed as he backed her against the car. Surrounded by vehicles in the dark parking lot, they were virtually alone yet she knew that at any time someone might come upon them and interrupt this moment of madness.

  Like something out of a sexy, forbidden dream, Ransom pressed her needy pussy with his cock, then rotated against her until a little cry broke free only to be swallowed by his mouth. Up and down he moved, dragging his heavy erection over her drenched flesh. Her panties were soaked. Overwhelmed by the sudden burst of lust, she clung to him, writhing against every stroke.

  Wanting to learn every line of his face, she traced his high cheekbones then moved her fingers toward his thick hair. As her touch swept upward, the Stetson tumbled from his head to roll over the ground behind him but it didn’t seem to matter. Filling her fingers with his hair, she held on, absorbing the kiss, the feel of him into her pores. Then, without warning, he broke away and stepped back.

  Random closed his eyes and dragged one hand over his head, the sound of his breath heavy in the air. Finally he opened his eyes and the regret in them was clear. His hands fell to his side and he fisted them repeatedly, a look of intense frustration marking his face. “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t you dare apologize,” she breathed.

  Ransom shook his head and bent down to retrieve his hat. Once he put it on his head, he gave her a single hard look. “I was out of line, Lynn. I’m sorry. I can’t do this. Good night.”

  Without another word, he turned and stalked back to his truck.

  Chapter Three

  “What the fuck?”

  Ransom gripped the steering wheel and leaned his forehead against it, wondering what the hell had possessed him to go all hard-core on this woman. Hell, he hardly knew her. Pain balled tight in his belly and his cock ached so badly he figured he might need to pull over just to jack off on his way home.

  He had kissed her.

  Hell, he’d done more than that but it was the kiss that bothered him.

  Ransom hadn’t kissed a woman since Cassie had slid off an icy country road and crashed into a tree, taking her from him and changing his life forever. Sure he’d fucked a few women in years past but only when he was so desperate for sex, for the touch of a woman that he hadn’t been able to resist. Kissing was personal, though; it was different. Since Cassie, women were for satisfying a temporary ache and for quick goodbyes because he damn sure wasn’t going to risk his heart again…not for anyone.

  He’d never know why he had pulled that damn stunt with Lynn but it was done now.

  Deliberately he removed his Stetson and tossed it into the seat next to him then turned the key in the ignition. When the engine roared to life, he sat broodingly watching Lynn Halstead’s car pull away from the parking lot and onto a side street. He knew exactly where she was going and after what had happened tonight with that fucking Dusty, he knew he had to make sure she made it to that flea-ridden motel okay.

  Just the thought of such a downright classy woman sleeping in that skanky place made him sick, but what could he do? Ask her to stay at the ranch?

  Oh hell no.

  That was just asking for the kind of trouble he didn’t need.

  Damn if she hadn’t grown up to become an absolutely beautiful woman. Talk about a metamorphosis! The minute he’d filled his hands with all those curves, he’d known she was big trouble for a man like him. He didn’t do forever. He’d tried that once and look where he was now.

  Alone.

  And there was no doubt about Doctor Lynn Halstead…she was a forever kind of woman, not a temporary one. A man worth his salt didn’t mess with a girl like her unless he could live with hurting her. Ransom didn’t have that in him.

  He was done with hurting people and Lynn deserved better.

  Ransom pulled out onto the street and carefully stayed several car lengths behind her as she drove through the downtown area of Delight. He knew this place like the back of his hand. He, along with his brothers, had been born here and would no doubt rest in peace in the local cemetery when his time came. Places like Delight didn’t change much and that suited him. Lynn was a city girl now and if there was one thing he was pretty sure of, it was that city women didn’t much care for country living.

  Best he forget all about the way she’d tasted against his tongue and how her body had fit to his as if created by the hand of God just for that purpose. It wouldn’t be long now and she’d walk safely into her motel room and then he could get on with his rat-killin’.

  From a safe distance, he watched her pull into the parking lot of the Lazy Aces and get out of her car. She glanced quickly around, tucked a bit of blonde hair behind her ear and then sashayed her sexy ass up to the door. Once she was inside and a light flashed on behind the curtains he let out a breath.

  Dangerous.

  She was one dangerous woman.

  He’d never forget that first good glimpse of her tonight. The silky black-and-white dress she’d worn felt like butter against the palms of his hands. Her breasts were lush and full, peeking enticingly from the low neck of the dress, and from there? Well, hell. He might not want a serious relationship but he sure as shit wasn’t dead. Everything about her body was made to please a man. Her hips were full and round, and the dip of her waist perfection. He didn’t even want to think about her legs. Jeez Louise. She had long, shapely stems that were showcased perfectly by those sexy heels. Yeah, he’d heard stilettos hurt like hell but damn, they sure did fine things for a woman’s legs. Ransom sat there idling in the street for a second as he imagined those long legs wrapped around his hips while he rammed his cock deep.

  “Fuck this!”

  Determined to get Lynn out of his mind, he headed back into town and drove straight to the Dixie Belle, an open-until-late coffee shop where he was sure to find some company. The sad truth remained, he didn’t need to be alone right now and heading out to the solitude of the Double D wasn’t his idea of a smart move. Ransom was fairly content to be alone with his thoughts but usually his mind didn’t run in such dangerous directions. He slid into a parking spot, donned his Stetson and went inside, relieved to see his old friend Jack McDougal occupying a back booth.

  “Hey, Officer Jack. Keepin’ an eye on those criminals tonight?” Ransom slid into a place across from the county sheriff. He and Jack were roughly the same age and had played some football together at Delight High School many moons ago. Jack had always lived in Delight except for the years he’d spent in the Marines. He had served in Iraq and later Afghanistan before returning home. The whole town was proud of him. He was one tough hombre. Ransom didn’t give his respect easily but he truly respected Jack.

  “Trying to. You know Delight though, a hotbed of crime,” the sheriff drawled. He was definitely on duty tonight and wore his uniform of jeans, crisply ironed black shirt and a star pinned to his belt near his gun holster. “Thought I’d stop in for some breakfast before the rowdies start leaving The Dillo tonight. Might have to round a few of them up after one too many beers.”

  “You might. Just left there myself. I think my eardrums are bleeding.”

  A waitress walked up carrying a pot of coffee and, without even asking, poured him a cup. When she started to set a menu in front of him, Ransom lifted a hand. “No, thanks. Coffee’ll do me.”

  Jack poured cream in his coffee and stirred it before leaning back to take a sip. The remains of what looked to be a hearty breakfast littered the table in front of him. “Why aren’t you back at the ranch? I’ve never known you to be much of a ni
ght owl.”

  “Ah well, Harley June and Melanie bugged the piss out of me all day yesterday. Said I had to go to The Dillo and put in an appearance at the reunion. Reunion, my eye. Most of these folks see each other every day of the year, but suddenly I have to show up. Family unity, they said. Women!”

  “You like ’em though, don’t you?” Jack smiled. Like Ransom, he was a big guy, beefy through the shoulders and strong as a bull.

  Ransom nodded. “Yeah, they’re good women. I’m glad they managed to put the reins on Cooper and T. Those boys needed someone to calm them down. They are all happy and that’s what matters most to me.”

  “Bet it’s pretty lonely out at the ranch these days.”

  “Quiet. I like it.” Ransom took a drink of his coffee and knew he lied. Lonesome was his middle name these days. It was too damn quiet at his place and beeves weren’t much for conversation, but what could he do? Cooper and T had each found a beautiful woman who was crazy enough to marry him and that was what he’d always wished for them. After the death of their parents many years ago, he’d raised the both of them and had still managed to keep the ranch running at a profit. They were his brothers but they were more, too. He had been both mother and father to them.

  He and Jack talked for a while, catching up on enough local gossip to keep conversation interesting, but suddenly Jack’s cell phone trilled. He plucked it from his front pocket and frowned when he saw the number. “Darlene, what’s up?”

  Ransom watched Jack’s frown deepen. “Okay. Tell her I’m on my way.” He stood and tossed a twenty on the table.

  “Trouble?”

  “Yeah, somebody vandalized a car in the Lazy Aces parking lot. Better head over there. Darlene said the woman is really upset and there’s glass all over the parking lot.”