Texas Big Man

“I’m Harlan Decker,” he says, reaching out further and taking my hand in his, shaking it. The movement brings us closer together, and his proximity makes it hard to breathe. His voice drops low, and shivers run across my skin despite the heat. “I’m the best ranch hand there is, the person who your brother is relying on to start getting this place in shape, and the man who still plans on making you beg for it, no matter whose sister you are.”

2

Harlan

When I woke up this morning I definitely wasn’t expecting to come face to face with a woman who was basically sex on two feet, but I’m not at all angry about it. Everything about Melena made me want to pull her close, and preferably bend her over the verandah railing and take her hard and fast. That’s the kind of possession and arousal that she made me feel.

I’ve never felt anything like that—almost like a string pulling us together the second that she got out of that car. On this dusty old ranch, she sticks out like a sore thumb. All shiny and polished. Dressed for a day at the beach rather than for working from dawn to dusk covered in sawdust and paint chips. Her long dark hair pulled back into a ponytail cascading down her back.

I’m already having visions of wrapping that ponytail around my hand and using that tiny measure of control to bring us both pleasure. Make her do things that change her from sparkly city girl to a dirty Texas woman.

Honestly, this is an excellent development for me. I wasn’t very excited about taking this gig in the first place. As usual, Trevor talked me into it with his grand plans and his charisma. Painting a picture of the completed ranch in all its glory. Someplace I dreamed of visiting as a kid with my own parents, if only I’d had the type of childhood that included family vacations. But then he told me that I’d be staying here three months with his little sister, and all the visions I had of working hard all day, alone with my thoughts, evaporated, and I imagined working side-by-side with a yapping lady who only wanted to boss me around instead of helping. But when I imagined his little sister, I wasn’t picturing the tall, curvy, woman in front of me.

And she’s looking at me too. Or she was, before she stormed off to her car and immediately made a phone call. Probably to Trevor to tell him to kick me off the property. Which he can’t do. The papers are signed, and I own part of this land.

This ranch is huge—far larger than one person can manage on their own. And even if it were half the size, Trevor still wouldn’t know what to do with it. I don’t think the boy has ever even picked up a hammer and nail. Which is why Trevor hired me in the first place. But if I was going to manage this project and pour my blood, sweat and tears into it, I wanted more than a contractor’s fee. I wanted a part of it. This is a good piece of land, but it is isolated. So I negotiated for a share of the ranch itself. It’s a gorgeous piece of property, and I already have plans to build a house. Staked out the spot already, up on a ridge by the lake where I can appreciate the sweeping views, and far enough from the other buildings to give myself some privacy. And once we get this ranch in order, and it’s ready for guests, I’ll be managing it and collecting a salary. So while I hadn’t been looking forward to the next three months, the payout was more than worth it to me. Now throw in this woman staring daggers at me, talking into her phone with that angry, pert little mouth, and I think I’m about to enjoy the next three months a little bit too much.

Right now the ranch has three horses, a barn that desperately needs attention, and a house that has good bones but needs a lot of TLC if it’s ever going to attract guests. Trevor’s put a lot of thought into this project, and if we can pull off all the improvements, and hire the right staff, this ranch could become one of the hottest vacation destinations in Texas.

For the next few months I’ll be getting things ready. Taking care of some of the smaller repairs and clearing out areas for buildings so we can avoid the extra labor costs when the main building starts. I assumed that his sister was here to babysit me because Trevor didn’t trust me—and it’s certainly clear that Melena doesn’t trust me—but having met her, I know she’s not here for me. She didn’t even know that I would be here.