Your Ranch...or Mine?

Lane’s lips molded to hers and Taylor couldn’t work up so much as a token protest. The truth was, she had wanted him to kiss her the night before and been disappointed when he hadn’t. Her reaction was totally insane, considering that she still wasn’t entirely sure she could trust him, not to mention that it was completely out of character for her. But there was no denying that she felt a level of attraction to him that she’d never felt for any other man. And it appeared there wasn’t anything she could do to keep from giving in to it.

But when Lane closed his arms around her and drew her close, she abandoned all contemplation of her atypical behavior. Teasing her lips with his, he sought entry to deepen the kiss, and his soft exploration, the gentleness of his tongue stroking hers, caused a delightful little quiver deep in the pit of her belly. When she placed her hands on his broad chest, the strength she detected in the hard contours beneath his shirt reminded her of the contrasts between a man and woman and set her pulse to racing. What would it be like to feel those muscles pressed to her much softer body as he made love to her?

The thought stunned her out of her daze. Why was she fantasizing about Lane Donaldson? He was the man who stood between her and having what she wanted—the entire ranch. Quickly she pushed against his chest.

“I...uh, that...shouldn’t have—” Why couldn’t she get her mind and vocal cords to work in unison?

Instead of releasing her, Lane continued to hold her against him. “I’m not going to apologize for something we both wanted,” he said, shaking his head.

“I didn’t want...I mean, I suppose I was curious, but—” She clamped her lips together and rested her head against his chest in defeat when it was apparent that her thoughts were still too scattered to be coherent.

His low chuckle vibrated against her ear, sending warmth spreading throughout her body. “Now who’s being less than honest?”

Not trusting that she wouldn’t make a bigger fool of herself than she already had, she simply shrugged.

“So are we agreed that I’ll call Cole Sullivan tomorrow and have him set up the game for us?” he asked.

“I’m not sure what to do.” How was she going to play a card game with the stakes so high when she had no idea what she was doing?

Placing his finger under her chin, he tipped her head up until their gazes met. “What aren’t you sure of, Taylor? Me? The integrity of the game we’ll play? What?”

As she stared up into his dark brown eyes, she sighed heavily. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to play with you or anyone else,” she finally said, shaking her head.

He frowned. “Why not?”

His gentle tone was playing havoc with her senses and before she could stop herself, she blurted out, “I don’t know the first thing about poker.”

“You’ve never played?” he asked, looking as if he couldn’t quite believe it. “Didn’t Ben at least teach you the basics?”

She shook her head. “I know it sounds bizarre, considering that he was a legendary player and considering how much time I spent here, but I was more interested in doing other things with him, like going horseback riding or fishing down at the creek.”

“Then playing for the Lucky Ace is out of the question,” he said slowly.

“Yes, we are going to play, eventually. While you were away this evening, I’ve been doing some research online and it doesn’t look like the game of poker would be all that difficult to learn. I’m just unsure of how long it will take me to master it,” she said, walking over to the table to open her laptop. “I’m not missing my only chance to get your half of the ranch.”

It irritated her no end when Lane threw back his head and laughed out loud. “You’ve got to be kidding.”

Snapping the laptop shut, she turned to glare at him. “I couldn’t be more serious.”

“Poker isn’t something you learn overnight,” he said, grinning, as he shook his head. “Besides the fact that there are several different card games referred to as poker, you also need to learn the rank of the different hands, when to stay and when to fold, how to bet and how to read the other players. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg, babe.”

“Are you so arrogant you think there’s too much for a woman to learn?” she asked, her anger increasing with each passing second.

“Not at all.” His easy expression was replaced by a dark scowl, indicating that he took her accusation as an insult. “Some of the best and most challenging players I know are women. So don’t accuse me of thinking women aren’t intelligent enough to learn the game, because that’s not the case.”