At least he had convinced Rachel to move into the ranch house since she was his official housekeeper, and no one would think twice about her living under his roof as an employee. No one except Michael, of course, who sent a curt note to him, reminding him that Rachel was his employee, not his plaything, and he was getting his shotgun readied for a visit.
Damnation, the man needed to use his shotgun on his sister, not on him. But no matter, tonight he was going to talk to her if he had to bind and gag her and drive her into the woods.
He caught her coming out of Will’s room after she tucked him in for the night. Before she could whip past him, he threw his arm around her shoulders. “Time for our chat, darlin’.”
“It’s late, Rusty. I have to do some preparation for breakfast tomorrow, and . . .”
He continued to walk her to the front door, where he snagged her coat off the hook and slung it around her shoulders. “Breakfast preparation can wait.”
“No, the men want—”
He swung her around and cupping her face in his hands, took her mouth in a possessive kiss. All the pent up desire and longing for the last several weeks burst forth, setting him on fire. She attempted to pull back, but he wasn’t letting go, and eventually she let out a soft moan and leaned into him.
Her hands slid up his arms and she encircled his neck, pulling him closer. He moved her head one way and then the other, taking the kiss deep, plundering her mouth like a fine dessert. His thumbs grazed her cheeks, then his fingers slipped into her hair as his mouth continued to sip at her nectar.
He released her mouth and kissed the soft skin under her ear, nibbling on her ear lobe, then sucking it.
“Rusty, the children.”
“Are in bed.” He pulled back and regarded her with piercing look. “Where I want us to be.”
She shook her head. “No. I’m not that type of woman. I can’t behave that way.”
“Come with me.” He gripped her hand and led her outside. He tugged her all the way up the path to the small house that she and Will lived in for years. He opened the door and allowed her to pass through.
She turned and crossed her arms over her chest. “We can’t do this. It’s not right.”
He leaned his wrists on her shoulders and touched his forehead to hers. “If we go to bed tonight, it will be because you want it. I brought you here to have a long overdue conversation.”
Her arms dropped to her side and she straightened. “Very well. As long as we both keep our clothes on.”
“Darlin’, if we take our clothes off it will be our mutual decision.”
She snorted and walked to the sofa. She pulled her coat closer around her as she sat.
“Are you cold, sweetheart? I can start a fire.”
“No. We won’t be here that long.”
Rusty took a deep breath and joined her on the sofa. “We have a few things to discuss, but first I want to repeat what I said once before. I love you, Rachel Stevens.” He held up his hand as she started to speak. “No. Allow me to finish. I love you, I want to marry you, and help raise your son. I also want you to be a decent mother for Amelia. She’s never had one.”
“Oh, no. You’re not going to drag the children into this.” She hopped up and rested her hands on her hips. “If memory serves, it was your vile and contemptible accusations that drove me away. I cannot even consider marrying a man who doesn’t trust me.”
“Come here.” He held out his hand. She hesitated at first, then joined him once more on the sofa.
“I wasn’t completely honest when I told you about Beatrice, the woman I was planning to marry.”
She tilted her head, giving him a questioning glance.
“I told you I returned to the bunkhouse because I needed to get another pair of gloves. Well that part was true, but I believe I purposely left my good gloves there because somewhere deep inside I knew Beatrice was cheating on me. Things she said, looks she cast at the other men. Finding her like that only proved what I had suspected for some time.”
“I don’t understand what you’re trying to say.”
“Honey, with love comes trust. You can’t love someone you don’t trust. I didn’t love Beatrice, because something in her behavior told me I couldn’t trust her. But for some reason, I turned that experience into believing all women were the same way. And I reacted the way I did when I found you with Michael because I had just realized I loved you, and because I did, I needed to trust you, and that scared me.”
He hopped up and ran his fingers through his hair. “I’m making a mess of this. I know exactly what I mean, and what I feel, but I can’t tell you, because it all comes out wrong.”
“What do you feel?”