Authors: T. J. Kline
A
S EVERYONE GATHERED
around the table for dinner, Sydney wasn’t surprised to see the blonde bombshell from earlier enter. She saw her frown when she realized the seat beside Scott was taken and the only available chair was beside Sydney, directly across from Scott.
“Sydney.” Mike motioned at the young woman. “This is my daughter, Liz.”
Liz flashed her father a winning smile. “We met at the corral today, Daddy.” She turned to Sydney, her green eyes glinting maliciously. “I believe you’d just taken a nasty spill.” Her tone dared Sydney to join her game of innuendos.
“Are you okay, Sydney? What happened?” Mike’s concern was evident.
“I’m fine, Mike.” Never one to pass up a challenge, Sydney smiled at Liz. “He only spooked because a snake slithered past the corral.”
“Snake?” Jen asked, her face wrinkling in disgust.
Sydney shook her head. “Yeah, ugly but harmless.”
Derek choked on his tea, nearly spitting it onto his plate, and had to cover his mouth with a napkin.
Clay reached over and slapped his back. “You okay?” he asked.
“Yeah,” Derek answered between coughs. “Just went down the wrong pipe.” He cleared his throat again. “So Liz, how long are you planning on staying?”
Everyone but Sydney turned to look at Liz for an answer. Sydney couldn’t care less; she just hoped the woman would stay far from her. She wanted no part in watching Liz and Scott rekindle their relationship.
“I’m not sure. Probably for a while.” She curved her lips into a pout. “I missed you guys and the horses.”
“Liz was a rodeo queen,” Mike explained to Sydney. “She’s a pretty good barrel racer too.” Mike smiled brightly. “Since you’re going to be staying a while, you should help Sydney with the horses.”
Liz grimaced, and Sydney tried to not look horrified at Mike’s suggestion. It was the worst idea she’d ever heard. Before Liz could even protest, Scott interrupted. “I don’t think that would be a good idea.”
Sydney glared at Scott. Was he afraid that they might compare notes on him? Did he worry that she’d ruin his chances at reuniting with her? He needn’t be concerned. As much as she hated herself for still being attracted to Scott, she could see it was one-sided. And she wasn’t about to throw herself at someone who didn’t feel the same in return.
“Why not?” Mike asked. “I think it would be good for Liz to help out while she’s here.”
“Daddy,” Liz protested.
“Don’t ‘Daddy’ me, girl.” Mike shook a finger at her. “It’ll keep you out of Silvie’s hair.”
Yeah
, Sydney thought,
and make my life hell
. She watched as Liz looked around the table for an ally to her argument. She pinned Scott with a stare, giving him a look that spoke volumes, and nodded at her father.
“I can’t tomorrow, Daddy. Scott promised to take me riding with him. Didn’t you, honey?” she purred.
This time, everyone’s eyes swung to Scott, who looked furious. He pushed his plate away and rose from the table. “Sure,” he agreed, pushing the chair in and storming out the kitchen door, mumbling something about checking the horses.
So, that’s why Scott hadn’t liked the idea of Liz helping with the horses? Because it would ruin his big plans for an intimate rendezvous?
A sharp stab of jealousy shot through Sydney as she imagined the two of them at the creek, his lips on hers, his hands . . . Sydney sighed, forcefully pushing the image from her mind.
“No,” Mike insisted. “You and Scott can go ride another time. My mind’s made up. You can help Derek and Sydney tomorrow. Maybe she can even show you a thing or two about breaking.”
Sydney hid a smile behind her napkin as Derek winked at her conspiratorially. She glanced at Liz just in time to see her eyes blaze with emerald fire. Mike may have done it unintentionally, Sydney realized, but he’d just lit the fuse on a powder keg. There was no way this was going to end well.
“Um, can you excuse me?” Sydney rose and loaded her dishes into the dishwasher.
“Don’t worry, honey,” Silvie scolded. “I’ll take care of that.”
“Where are you headed?” Derek asked.
“Just to finish the paperwork from today and check on Valentino.” Sydney laid a hand on his shoulder as she passed. She didn’t really want company and was hoping he would understand. “Go ahead and finish. I’ll only be a minute.”
As she stepped onto the porch, she looked up at the indigo sky. She was tired from the day’s work but pleasantly so. She and Derek had worked the two-year-olds, one right after another, until sundown, but she knew they had accomplished a lot for one afternoon. A full moon lit her way to the office inside the barn, and the horses nickered a soft greeting as they heard her approach. She switched on the office light and pulled out the files of the horses she’d ridden, writing notes about what had been accomplished. After only a few minutes, and several scribbled-out notes due to her wandering thoughts, she gave up.
She couldn’t seem to keep her mind from returning to Scott. She found herself wandering down the dirt path that led to Valentino’s pen just behind the barn. Sydney peered through the pipe fencing to see the familiar gray stallion prancing across the large pen towards her. Valentino swung his head over the fence and nudged her arm for attention. She absentmindedly raised a hand to his forehead.
“How could I be so blind? He’s just using me. It was just a cat-and-mouse game at the rodeo, and I fell for it without even suspecting anything. I’m an idiot,” she whispered. “When am I going to learn?”
Valentino pressed his soft muzzle to her cheek, blowing softly, filling her nose with the scent of sweet alfalfa and horse. She kissed the side of it, grateful for the comfort he offered. “How could I be so stupid after Kurt played that same game?” she asked the stallion, swiping at the tears she’d just realized were creeping down her cheek.
“Kurt . . . Willits?”
Sydney saw Scott’s muscular frame emerge from the shadows behind the barn. Embarrassed he’d heard her most intimate thoughts, she turned her back on him and laid her forehead against Valentino’s. She didn’t want to face him while her feelings were so close to the surface.
S
COTT HAD BEEN
heading back from a walk to try to clear his thoughts when he’d seen Sydney leave the barn and head for Valentino’s enclosure. The pain and regret he’d heard in her voice tore at his heart. He knew he’d been the cause of it and wanted to kick himself for not telling her about Liz sooner. Even if he was able to get her to listen to the truth now, it would seem like he was covering a lie. How could he prove to her that he’d only been trying to protect her from Liz and from himself? And what did Kurt have to do with this?
“How do you know Kurt?” Scott stepped closer, reaching out a hand to pat Valentino’s neck. “I had a feeling you’d end up over here.” He tipped his head to see her face.
She sighed and turned her back to him, ready to walk away.
“Sydney.” She stopped. His voice was low and husky, even to his own ears, as he placed his hands on her shoulders and turned her to look at him. “Please don’t walk away now.”
She remained silent, with only the moonlight glowing on the stallion’s coat. Scott slipped his knuckle under her chin and tipped her face up. He wanted to look into her eyes, to make sure she understood he’d never meant to deliberately hurt her. What he saw instead made him feel like Valentino had just kicked him in the gut. Her tears glimmered in the moonlight as they left silvery trails down her cheeks.
“Oh, Sydney,” he whispered, wiping away a tear with his thumb.
She brushed his hand away and he could see the flash of yellow in her eyes. “Don’t.”
Her anger had returned; the stallion flipped his head as if her anger spurred his own. He could deal with her anger better than he could her pain. He clenched his hands in fists at his side to keep them from pulling her to him. He wanted desperately to bury his fingers into her hair and kiss her into submission so that she would believe him about Liz.
“Don’t what, Sydney?”
“Don’t you dare pretend to care about me.” Her fury spurred her on. “I won’t be the next notch on your belt. Go find someone else.” They both knew she was talking about Liz.
“Is that what you think you are?” This had to be a sick joke. She was now charging him with the same motive he’d accused her of having.
“You told me once that rodeo queens gather their toys, break them, and then toss them away. How is what you’re doing any different?” Her eyes blazed with golden fire and he tensed at her allegation. From her point of view, he realized, he’d simply been using her until Liz’s arrival.
“You don’t understand my relationship with Liz. I should have told you—” he began.
“You’re right,” she interrupted. “I don’t understand. Nor do I want to hear about it.” Sydney brushed past him, turning back toward the house. The stallion spun and raced into the center of the pen, kicking his feet high into the air.
Scott grasped her arm above the elbow and pulled her back into his arms. “Will you listen to me?”
“No, you listen to me.” She pushed against his chest. “I won’t play your games. Just let me do my job and stay the hell away from me.”
Scott let her go. He knew he couldn’t force her to believe him. He watched as she ran back to the house. Somehow, he had to convince her that there was nothing between him and Liz. He could tell her what had happened in the past, but there was no way he was allowing anyone to know what a fool he’d been. He didn’t even want to think about it, let alone admit it to anyone else. And he’d be damned if he ever allowed himself to feel that vulnerable again.
D
EREK WAITED UNTIL
he heard Sydney return to her room. He’d heard the kitchen door slam when she reentered and caught a glimpse of her tear-stained cheeks as she headed down the hall. Damn Scott. She must have run into him while she was in the barn. Derek snuck down the hall to Liz’s room and gave a light tap on the door.
“Come in,” Liz purred.
Derek entered to find her stretched out on the bed in a translucent nylon robe with very little lingerie underneath. Her eyes glimmered like a cat, waiting to pounce on its prey.
“What are you doing?” Derek rolled his eyes. Did she really think she was irresistible?
“I expected you a while ago.”
“Yeah, well, I was busy keeping an eye out for Sydney. Who, by the way, ran into Scott while she was at the barn.” Liz sat up and he knew he had her attention. “You’re not doing a very good job at keeping his attention diverted.”
“Shut up. It’s a lot harder to do when Daddy is thwarting my every attempt to spend time with him.” She slid back against the pillows suggestively. “I’m lonely.”
“Too bad. Get a dog,” he suggested. “What do you want me to do?” He was already tired of her games.
She shrugged. “You’re so smart, figure it out.” When Derek glared at her, she went on. “Just be her friend. There is already tension between her and Scott. She obviously wants nothing to do with him, so just be there to offer an ear and a shoulder to cry on. Hopefully you’ll be man enough to keep hold of her interest.”
“And I hope you’ve got some trick to pique Scott’s at this point.” Derek laughed, knowing exactly how to hit her weak point. “He didn’t seem too thrilled at your suggestion for a ride tomorrow.”
“Ass.” Liz glared at him. “Get out of here and stay away from me. We don’t want anyone to suspect we are trying to massage the situation between them.”
“Oh, I will try to control myself,” he assured her sarcastically. “But it will be so hard to stay away.”
“Get out,” she hissed.
S
YDNEY ROSE THE
next morning and wondered what, if anything, she could do about her swollen eyes. She’d hurried to her room, not wanting to face anyone after her confrontation with Scott. She cursed herself for being a fool. She’d known better than to trust someone like Scott Chandler, but the tears had continued to flow even as she tried to will them away. While exhaustion had finally claimed her, her worthless tears had left their calling card on her eyes this morning. She splashed cold water on them and hoped it would do the job.
Sydney hurried through the kitchen, hoping to avoid running into anyone else—especially Scott. She had just stepped off the porch when she felt an arm slip around her shoulders.
“You look terrible. Are you feeling okay?”
“Thanks, Derek.”
“Come on. You know I didn’t mean it like that.” He stopped and turned her to look at him, his hands on her upper arms. “Maybe you should go back inside and rest. You might be coming down with something.”
Yeah, she thought, a stupid broken heart. She sighed. “I’m fine, Derek.” He looked skeptical. “Really,” she assured him. “I just want to get to work.”
Derek shrugged. “If you say so.”
“So, where’s our little helper this morning?” Sydney looked at the empty corral.
“Who? Liz?” he asked, laughing. “She won’t drag her butt out here before noon.”
“You want to bet?” As much as she didn’t want to work around Liz, she really wasn’t going to be the one to break the news to Mike that his daughter was a spoiled witch.
“Where are you going?” Derek asked, following her back to the house.
“To wake up Her Majesty and get her perfect hide out here to help us.” Derek chased her up the stairs, trying every tactic to convince her to leave Liz alone. Sydney wasn’t about to defy Mike’s orders, and she certainly wasn’t going to give Liz any excuse to pin the blame on her when Mike found out she had ignored him.
She pounded loudly on Liz’s bedroom door. “Go away.” She heard the muffled whine from the room.
“Come on, Your Highness.” Sydney’s voice was sickeningly sweet. “Time to wake up and get to work.”
“Oh, it’s only six-thirty,” Liz complained. Sydney could hear the rustle of blankets and bedding. Finally the door opened a crack, just enough for Sydney to see Liz’s tousled hair and one eye glinting with hatred. “If you enjoy your life in the slightest, I suggest you leave before you lose it,” Liz warned.
“Does that mean you’re refusing to do the work Mike wanted you to do?”
“You could say that.”