Raising Kane (Rough Riders 9)
Kane barely moved as they slow-danced. Ginger was truly lost—in the solid heat of Kane’s body, surrounded by his earthy scent, his hard muscles pressed against her softness.
“I like dancin’ with you, counselor.”
“Same goes.”
“Wanna know a secret?”
“Ah. Sure.”
“I love that you’re tall. I don’t have to crouch down to dance with you and wind up with a crick in my neck.”
“Being an Amazonian throwback does have advantages.”
“Wanna know something else?” he whispered, sending a tingle strait to her core.
“What?”
“You don’t have two left feet. You just needed to be with a man who takes the lead.”
“Who takes the lead in all things,” she murmured.
He stiffened. “Complaints?”
“Not on your life, cowboy. You’ve been avoiding me since the blizzard.”
“I’ve been busy.”
“Hayden misses you.” I miss you too.
“Good to know.”
That was it? They weren’t going to talk about the over-the-top, totally domineering sexual encounter in his bedroom? How she’s sensed his regret as he’d untied the ropes and she’d been more pissed off by that than by his intensive use of her body? It’d scared her how much she’d liked it. How much she’d wanted it again. How easily she could give everything over to this man. That was what’d bothered her. Not his rough side.
Tell him.
No. It’d be better to wait. See how things played out.
The song ended too quickly.
Ginger tilted her head back to look at him. “Kane?”
His eyes opened. The sadness was still there. She hadn’t expected that a couple of dances and some sexual teasing would erase the day’s events, but his suffering distressed her nonetheless.
She framed his face in her hands. “Come home with me. Have dinner with us. I’ve already got a roast in the Crock-Pot and I’ll even let tonight be Hayden’s Xbox night. Please.”
Gratitude swam in his eyes before he looked away and kissed the inside of her wrist. “I’d like that, Red. I’d like that a whole helluva lot.”
“Good. I’ve got a couple of hours left at the office…” She stopped talking. “You know something?
Nothing needs to be done today. It can wait.”
That surprised him. “You sure?”
“Positive.”
“So what now?”
“Let’s stay here and dance a little longer.” Ginger pressed a soft kiss to his lips. “But now it’s my turn to pick the music.”
Ginger rode along with Kane as he unloaded the cake. Although many of her clients were ranchers, she wasn’t sure what their daily lives entailed. She appreciated the glimpse into Kane’s life. No wonder the man was so muscle-bound; it appeared everything he did required strength.
They picked Hayden up from school instead of at the bus stop. During the ride home, her son was subdued. Maybe it hadn’t been the brightest idea to tell him about Shep, but Hayden deserved to understand Kane’s melancholy mood.
Her father sat at the kitchen table working on a crossword puzzle. He gave no indication of shock at seeing Kane making himself at home in the living room. Most days Hayden and his grandfather shared an after-school snack, but today, Hayden left his snack untouched.
Ginger watched covertly as her son stood in front of Kane, shifting from foot to foot.
“Hey, buddy. What’s up?”
“Ah, nothin’. I’m sorry about Shep. He was the coolest dog ever.”
“Yeah, he was.”
“You’re gonna miss him, huh?”
“Yeah, I’m gonna miss him. Big time.”
Then without another word, Hayden crawled right onto Kane’s lap and rested his head against Kane’s chest, curling his arms around Kane’s neck.
Kane hugged Hayden back without hesitation. He closed his eyes and they sank into the couch cushions.
Oh God. Ginger had to turn away, lest she start sobbing. Her sweet baby boy had such a kind heart.
Kane knew that. He celebrated it. And it was never more apparent they had a unique bond than when Kane openly welcomed Hayden’s comfort.
She was totally in love with this man.
But she wasn’t quite sure what to do about it. She wasn’t certain if she’d been celibate so long that Kane’s expertise in bed turned her feelings of lust into love. Not only that, if she confessed her feelings, would he think she was no different than the other mothers in the Little Buddies program, angling for a permanent piece of him?
She’d never want Kane to think she prized his potential as a father over everything else that made him such a good man. And she wouldn’t put the weight of her confession of her feelings for him when his day had already been filled with emotional upheaval.
Ginger felt her father’s curiosity as he watched the boy and the man still snuggled on the couch.
Without a word, or even a look her direction, he refocused on his crossword puzzle.
She put her father’s guarded reaction out of her mind and prepared supper. After they ate, her father pleaded a headache and retired to his room. She thought about finishing paperwork in her home office, but she was content to sit between Hayden and Kane as they trash talked, wielding battling game controllers.
When Hayden’s bedtime rolled around, he hugged Kane before skipping off to his room with Ginger following to tuck him in.
She returned to the living room and saw Kane staring out into the darkness, his hands shoved in the front pockets of his Wranglers, his shoulders hunched almost to his ears. She slid her arms around his waist and kissed the back of his neck.
Kane made a pleased-sounding rumble.
She kissed him again. “Stay with me tonight.”
His hands came out of his pockets and he turned around. “What about—”
Another longer, deeper kiss quelled his protest. She eased back to murmur, “I don’t care. I want to be with you tonight. All night. You and me. In my bed. If you’re worried about your virtue, you can sneak out before sunrise.”
He playfully nipped her bottom lip. “You sayin’ my virtue is safe with you?”
“No. But we’ll come up with a cover story if Hayden wakes up.”
“Deal.”
Ginger undressed him slowly, loving the way Mr. Take Charge gave control over to her. She soothed him with a deep tissue back massage, relaxing him to the point he fell asleep. She rested on top of him, her right cheek pressed between his shoulder blades, her pelvis curled over his bu**ocks, their legs entwined.