The Cowboy's Summer Love (8 page)

“Good to know. Here I was thinking the whole thing was going to fall right off,” Travis said, trying to look serious, but the smile that formed brackets at the corners of his lips and danced in his eyes gave him away. “I appreciate the personalized attention.”

“You’re welcome. I better get going or I’ll be late for my next appointment,” Tess said, getting to her feet. Travis had no idea just how much personalized attention she really wanted to give him. It took a colossal effort to stand up and walk away right now. She waved at Cady and Trey. “Thanks for lunch, it was delicious as always.”

Cady waved and told her to come by for a visit sometime soon. Travis walked Tess to her car and held her door while she climbed in.

“I’m really glad you stopped by,” Travis said, leaning against the car while Tess fastened her seat belt.

“Me, too. It was fun,” Tess said, wishing more than anything that Travis would give her a kiss. He’d kissed her three times during the course of their growing up years and the last one was a kiss goodbye that still lingered in her thoughts.

 “Maybe we could do something fun together sometime,” Travis said, thinking he sounded like a 15-year-old working up the courage to ask for a first date. What he really wanted was to lean in the car and plant a kiss to the rosy lips smiling back at him.

“Maybe,” Tess said, thinking she couldn’t take any more brotherly activities with Travis. Not when she wanted so much more.

“I’ll think of some ideas and let you know,” Travis said, stepping away from the car as she started it up and shut the door. She waved goodbye before driving away.

Travis stood watching until he could no longer see her car. He was military trained. He knew battle plans and tactical thinking. He was going about this process all wrong. What he needed to do was wage a full-scale attack if he was going to get Tess to think of him as something besides another brother.

He looked at Trent and Trey, goofy in love, and briefly considered seeking their help but quickly abandoned the plan. Travis didn’t think he could put up with their teasing and no doubt they’d tell Lindsay and Cady and soon the entire population of Sherman County would know he was in love with Tess.

Nope. This was one battle plan he’d have to formulate on his own.

Chapter Five

Love is a game that two can play and both win.

Eva Gabor

Cady maintained her death grip on the kitchen counter while Trey tried to pry her fingers loose.

“Come on, darlin’. We’ll be late if we don’t get a move on,” Trey said, changing tactics and nuzzling her ear. “You don’t want to keep everyone waiting.”

“I think I better stay home. Just in case Cass needs something or…” Cady said, her knuckles turning white.

“Or nothing,” Trey said, kissing her neck and speaking in the soft voice he used with skittish colts. “You can do this, Cady-girl. We’ll keep you safe. Besides, I’ve never known you to be afraid to try something. You learned how to ride, adopted a child, and married me with less fuss, so come on.”

Cady let go of the counter and looked at Trey. His mesmerizing eyes, the color of the Sea of Cortez, sucked her in and she forgot about her fears. Trey took full advantage of the moment and gave her a kiss that made her lightheaded and weak-kneed. As Cady leaned into his strength, he knew the battle was won. When Travis and Trent came through the kitchen with their bags of gear, he nodded his head, inclining it toward the door.

“Ready to go, darlin’?” Trey asked, gently leading her through the kitchen and mudroom.

“Okay,” she said, not quite recovered from his assault on her senses. Married only five months, his kisses still drove her to complete distraction.

Trey propelled her out the door, grabbed their bag of gear and the snacks she’d packed, hurrying out to Travis’ pickup. Trent, Lindsay, Ben and Brice were going down the driveway in Trent’s pickup and Tess was climbing in the backseat of Travis’ truck. Trey helped Cady slide in next to Tess and they were soon on their way.

“Have you done this before, Tess?” Cady asked as they started southwest toward Maupin.

“White water rafting? No, I haven’t,” Tess said, looking as unhappy to be going as Cady. Between Brice, Ben and Travis, Tess didn’t have an option of saying no. Apparently Cady hadn’t been given the option either. “This may be a one-time experience.”

“I think I might be right beside you in that camp,” Cady said, looking out the window at the passing scenery. She didn’t think she’d ever get tired of looking at the fabulous landscapes of Sherman County. She had so far witnessed fall, winter and spring in Grass Valley and loved each of the changing seasons. As summer approached, she thought the area couldn’t get any prettier with rolling fields of hay and wheat, cattle grazing on green pastures and blue, blue sky.

“How about we promise to help each other through this experience today?” Tess asked, reaching across the seat and squeezing Cady’s hand in hers.

“Deal,” Cady said with a warm smile. “If you tell me all about these Thompson rascals. I’d love to hear some stories about what terrors they were as little boys.”

“As little boys? You mean you think they grew out of it,” Tess said with a grin that made both of them laugh. Trey turned around from his conversation with Travis in the front seat and gave the women a quizzical look.

“What’s so funny back there?” he asked, knowing the girls were up to something.

“Not a thing, boss-man,” Cady said, breaking into a round of giggles. “Not a thing.”

Travis rolled his eyes while Trey shook his head. They were going to have to keep an eye on Tess and Cady together. Throw Lindsay into the mix and the guys were definitely in big trouble.

Arriving in Maupin, the eight of them soon found themselves getting into the raft along with their guide. Brice and Ben took the front seats with Trent and Lindsay behind them. Tess and Travis took the next two as Trey and Cady brought up the rear with the guide sitting at the back of the raft. All of them wore helmets, life jackets and wetsuits.

Signing up for a half-day trip that would take them about three hours, Lindsay, who was an outdoorsy-adventure kind of girl, and the guys could hardly wait to get going. The other two females in the raft were not quite as excited.

Tess took a firm grip on her paddle and mentally prepared herself for whatever was going to come. She closed her eyes, convincing herself she could make it through three hours.

Feeling warmth next to her ear, she smelled Travis’ spicy aftershave along with his minty gum.

“How you doing, Tess?” he asked, putting a warm hand on her shoulder.

“I’m doing fine. I think,” she said. “Tell me when we’re done and I’ll open my eyes.”

Travis laughed a deep rumbling sound that created an echo in her heart and a smile tilted the corners of her lips.

“I bet I can make you open your eyes,” Travis whispered while running a finger along what little skin of her neck was exposed above the top of the wetsuit and life jacket. Her hair was stuffed inside her helmet and he kept envisioning the kisses he could press to her neck with her hair out of the way. He watched goose bumps break out on her skin and smiled to himself. Maybe she wasn’t as immune to him as he thought.

“Nope. I’m keeping them closed,” Tess said, trying to keep a straight face.

“All right then. Have it your way,” Travis said and grew quiet. Tess felt something cool and slimy along the skin of her neck under her chin, heading toward her chest. Gasping she opened her eyes and looked down to find Travis trailing a gummy worm along her skin. Slapping at his arm, she snatched the candy from his hand and threw it at him.

“You are so juvenile,” she said, trying to act irritated, but failing. Travis could see the laughter in her eyes as it bubbled up inside and spilled out her rosy lips.

“That’s me, the juvenile. And idiot, right?”

“A certified idiot,” Tess said, staring into his blue eyes and fighting her desire to get lost in them. Just when she thought she might surrender to her longings, they launched into the Deschutes River for their fifteen-mile journey.

The guide called directions and the group followed his orders. The first section of the trip required their full attention. Tess and Cady both were a little scared as they began their journey. The middle section of the adventure was on calm water through a desert canyon. They could see sagebrush, osprey, and the most amazing basalt rock formations from their vantage point on the water.

Enjoying the beautiful scenery, Tess looked back to see Cady relaxed and happy as well. They gave each other a thumbs-up sign that made both Trey and Travis laugh. Continuing on down the river, they hit some rapids that had the women squealing and then they were paddling up to the take-out site for the raft.

Once they were all out of the raft and removed their gear, they stood letting the sunshine warm them from the cool river water.

“That was awesome! When can we do it again?” Cady asked as they walked toward the van that would take them back to their pickups.

“Darlin’ you are something else.” Trey threw his arms around Cady from behind and swung her around, planting kisses on her cheeks. “I thought we were going to have to hog-tie you and Tess to get you on the raft and I think you two had as much fun as anybody.”

“Maybe we can plan another trip later this summer before the big wedding,” Travis said, nodding his head at Trent and Lindsay.

“Sure. We’ll just have to work it in between haying, harvest, the wedding, the county fair and school starting. No problem,” Trent said.

Enjoying the light banter as they rode back to their rigs, they decided to eat lunch in Maupin at a restaurant on the river.

Not quite ready for the day to end, the majority of the group wanted to go up the river to a place they could swim and relax on a sandy beach. Tess would have much preferred going home to swimming but didn’t say anything. Arriving at the location, there were a few other groups, mostly teens, splashing in the water. Travis supposed the eight of them looked ancient compared to the carefree youth.

While the guys went to stake out a spot on the beach with towels and blankets, Lindsay and Cady removed their tops and shorts to reveal bathing suits. Cady wore a sensible tankini top with a swim skirt while Lindsay was more adventurous in a bikini top with boy shorts.

Tess looked at the two women and sighed. She had a swimsuit on beneath her clothes, but it was going to take an act of monumental proportions to get her to strip down to the suit and get in the water.

Cady and Lindsay both looked so lovely and perfect there was no way Tess wanted to be compared to them. Although most of the time, she didn’t think too much about her size, there were days when it still bothered her. Today was one of those.

By the time the girls wandered down to the water’s edge, the guys shed their shirts and shorts, and were standing in swim trunks ready to dive in. Brice and Ben plunged ahead followed by Lindsay and Trent. Trey swept Cady into his arms and charged into the water while Travis stood watching Tess, waiting.

“Aren’t you coming in?” Travis asked, taking a step toward her. Tess took a step back and sat down on the blanket the guys spread out.

“No. I think I’ll just soak in a little sun and watch you all play,” Tess said, trying to keep her voice light.

“Then I’ll sit with you,” Travis said, sinking down beside her.

Not only did his enticing smell envelope her senses, but she couldn’t take her eyes off his broad, muscled chest and shoulders. Tanned and solid, Travis was more appealing than any man had a right to be.

“I don’t want you to miss out on the fun. Go on, Trav. I’m fine here, honest.” Tess needed to put some distance between them before she did something she’d later regret.

“If you’re not going in, I’m not either,” Travis said, stretching out on the blanket and putting his hands beneath his head.

Tess studied him for a few moments, going over every detail from the tip of his sandy hair to his incredibly handsome face, down his muscled neck and shoulders to that magnificent chest. She stopped her visual inventory as she noticed a jagged scar running around his side to his rib cage. About six inches long, the tissue was turning white, a sign that it wasn’t a new injury. Tess knew for a fact the scar hadn’t been there the last time she’d seen Travis without his shirt which was the summer he enlisted.

Without thinking, she ran her fingertip along the scar and looked at Travis. His eyes popped open and melded to hers.

“What happened? How’d you get that?” Tess asked, lightly pressing her hand to the spot.

“Shrapnel. I’m lucky it didn’t do more damage than that. I turned just in time and started to run. As it was, a piece caught me and I had twelve stitches. No biggie,” Travis said, trying to make light of the injury and forcing himself not to remember all the death and destruction that engulfed the day he received it.

“I think it is a big deal,” Tess said, leaning down and impulsively pressing a soft kiss to the scar.

Travis sucked in a gulp of air, trying to keep himself together. Tess’ lips on his skin were branding him like the iron they used on their cattle. The intensity of her touch began to melt his insides and his blood started zinging through his veins. It was all he could do to keep from taking Tess into his arms and kissing her like he’d dreamed of doing for years.