Shocked into silence, she stared up at him.
He sighed and gathered her close, holding her with a gentleness that no woman could misunderstand.
“A man has his limits, girl,” he murmured against her hair. “I wouldn’t harm you for the world. But you have the power to drive me crazy and consign my soul to hell. Do you understand?”
She nodded, feeling his stubbled jaw against the skin of her forehead.
“I’ve wanted you from the first time I saw you,” he said. “And after I got to know you—your courage, your passion—I wanted you even more. I thought I had it all under control, but when you walked away, I knew I couldn’t let you go.”
She wrapped her arms around him, holding him tight. “You make me feel things I couldn’t have imagined until now,” she whispered. “If this happens again—and I want it to happen—”
“Will it happen again? Is this what you really want? Hiding out in the barn like a couple of fool kids, probably getting caught? I like this as much as you do. But you deserve better than a roll in the hay, Erin. I want to treat you right—without having anything to hide.”
“What about my father?” She looked up at him.
“I don’t expect he’ll approve. He wants to see you with a proper boyfriend, like the one you just dumped.”
“I wouldn’t go back to Kyle for a million dollars,” Erin said.
“And I won’t stand for making you a girl who sneaks around with the hired help. I’ve got my pride, Erin. And part of that pride is seeing myself as an honorable man. Either I speak to your father about spending time with you, or—”
“Fine, but you don’t know my father. Let me bring it up to him first.”
“All right.” He brushed a kiss along her damp hairline. “But I meant what I said. If we have feelings for each other, I want to know where those feelings will take us. But not this way.”
They broke apart at the sound of voices outside. Two of the cowboys were passing the barn. “We can’t let them see us together. You go. I’ll stay here,” Luke said. “Will you talk to your father?”
“I will. Tonight if I can.” Erin walked out of the barn, trying to look casual to anyone who might be watching. The sooner she spoke to Will the better. She could only hope to catch him in a good mood, but there wasn’t much chance of that. Not these days.
Having an ally in her corner might make things easier. And she knew just the person to ask.
* * *
The cattle auction in Lubbock had taken most of a very long day. Kyle had endured the boredom, swatting away flies as his father watched the animals trot around the ring to the blaring patter of the auctioneer’s voice. In the end, Hunter had bought nothing, claiming that he’d only wanted to see what was available and get a feel for the prices before he put his own stock up for sale.
Kyle suspected his father had other motives for bringing him along—like maybe showing him more of the cattle business, or, more likely, keeping him in suspense, waiting for the ax to fall. Between the wreck and Kyle’s failure to put a ring on Erin’s finger, his father had plenty of cause to be angry. So far Hunter had held his volcanic temper in check. But for Kyle, who knew the explosion was coming, the slow torment of waiting was its own kind of hell.
As they walked out to the truck, after a tension-filled dinner in a noisy, crowded steak house, Kyle braced himself for what was to come. The hour-long drive home was the only time left for Hunter to vent his temper.
It started as they drove out of the restaurant—beginning on a low key, as Hunter’s tirades usually did. “Well, Kyle,” he said in a conversational tone with a slight edge. “What do you have to say for yourself?”
“Not much, I guess,” Kyle said. “I know you’re mad about the car.”
“Cars can be fixed,” Hunter said. “But a million dollars won’t fix stupidity. And that’s what wrecked the car—your damned stupidity. So the girl says she isn’t ready to marry you, and you react by punching the gas and almost getting both of you killed. Hell, that cow in the road had more brains than you. No wonder the girl doesn’t want you. Sometimes I wonder if your mother was fooling around before you were born. You sure as hell don’t act like any son of mine.”
Kyle slumped in his seat, taking the abuse. He’d heard most of it before, including the part about his mother. But that was just thrown in for meanness. His mother was too naive to fool around, and he looked too much like Hunter to be anybody else’s offspring.
“So what’ve you got to say for yourself now?” Hunter demanded.
“I don’t suppose sorry would cut it,” Kyle said.
Hunter lit a cigarette and rolled down the window, driving one-handed while he smoked. “Listen to me, you little shithead. Wrecking the car’s bad enough. But if you let that Tyler girl get away, your whole future—and your family’s—is in the dumper. If she doesn’t want you now, you’re going to have to change your tactics. Whatever you have to do to get her back, you do it. Hear?”
“I hear. But have you got any ideas? Erin is so mad she won’t even talk to me. I can’t exactly break down her door and drag her home by the hair, can I?”
Hunter swore and flipped his cigarette out the window. “You do whatever the hell it takes. For starters, since I knew you wouldn’t think of it, I ordered flowers delivered to her, in your name, with a note. That should at least buy you an opening. But this has got to be up to you. If you’re too dense to figure things out . . .” The words trailed off, diminishing to a growl. “If you can get the right kind of woman into bed, you can get her to the altar. But I don’t think y
ou have a clue.”