Page 18 of Grissom
She directed the question at Grissom. Was he sure? Oh hell no. He had no idea how to answer or what she wanted him to say. But could he resist the trepidation shimmering in those glistening emerald eyes? Was she afraid of him hurting her or him getting too close? Did she honestly think he’d hurt her? Not happening. Not ever. Or was she just worried, like he was, where this one ride could lead? Going to lunch with his boys seemed innocent at first glance. She’d be on one side of the table. He’d sitwith his boys across from her. No danger of touching, and they could part as friends. Nothing more.
But on a day like this? With Christmas Eve and all the emotions that went with it only hours away? Every shattered childhood dream? All those unrealized expectations? The nasty legacy of his mother screaming because his dad never did anything right? Of Pam screeching at frightened Tanner and Luke because they woke her too early?
This Christmas would be the first without What’s-Her-Name. Grissom had their letters to Santa. He knew what they wanted, and every last item on those wish lists was already bought, paid for, wrapped, and hidden. The shrew who’d ruled their lives for the last seven years was gone. They were finally free to be themselves, just three happy-go-lucky guys who believed in Santa and elves and flying reindeer. They didn’t need anyone else, certainly not someone as capricious as a… a woman as beautiful as… as Tuesday.
Masterfully, and despite his very reasonable misgivings, Grissom replied, “Sure. We’ll ride the loop up to the border of the national park and have you on your way by suppertime.”
There. That set a firm boundary. Tuesday could go for a ride with them, but he’d drawn a line. The McCoy boys didn’t need her. Why take the chance? Why lead her on? He wasn’t what she was looking for, and he didn’t have it in him to sweet talk her and pretend he was. Life had been cruel enough for both of them. What could possibly come out of two damaged people getting together? If that was even what she wanted. Maybe she just wanted to spend another day with his boys. Yeah. That made more sense. What would one innocent horseback ride hurt?
“Smooth move, dickhead,” Maverick muttered under his breath, loud enough Grissom caught it.
A nasty response came swiftly to his lips, but Grissom held it back. No sense returning tit for tat. Swallowing hard—or tryingto—he followed his boys and Tuesday Smart into the barn. Apparently, he wasn’t done playing cowboy yet, but this ride would be quick, sweet, dirty, and...
No. Not sweet and not dirty. Just quick, damn it.
Chapter Nine
She hadn’t planned on running into Grissom and his boys today. Hadn’t known they were here and would never dream of underhanded scheming like that. Hadn’t planned to be riding a broad-backed horse with Tanner riding the bay, also known as Star, on one side, Grissom and Luke on her other. Hadn’t expected she’d be with a man as hot, hot, hot as Grissom McCoy, either. Or as mercurial. One minute he seemed warm and approachable, downright affable, like Luke. But the next, he’d all but pushed her away.
Yet there she was. In the saddle, on a trail through a grove of bare-branched sugar maples, somewhere east of the Shenandoah National Forest. While the easterly breeze now blowing in promised icy rain or snow in the near future, the day was still sunny and the air was sweet with the scents of warmed, fallen leaves and the ruins of summer’s bounty. Tuesday had no favorite season. She loved them all. Like the continents and countries of the world. Everywhere she’d photographed had its own history and appeal, and if forced to decide which country was better than the rest, she’d have to pick them all.
She wished she knew what she’d done, though. Grissom had definitely grown colder since they’d saddled up, and she hadn’t missed the way he’d avoided looking at her when he’d finally agreed to this expedition. Grissom was a puzzle, licking his lips with lust one moment. Staring off into the distance the next.
While Tuesday chalked his change in temperament up to the traumatic events he’d lived through, she didn’t deserve the evil eye he’d given her. The past year had been hard for her, too. She’d gotten caught up in Maeve Astor’s evil web. The psychoticwoman had killed anyone who got in her way, including her own children and Tuesday’s greatest benefactor, Frederick Lamb. Since the moment she’d found herself wrongly accused of not only poisoning Freddie but burning Astor’s husband and children alive, Tuesday’s world had been turned upside-down.
She’d been slandered by the national press, hunted by the FBI, and finally caught by TEAM agents, Shane Hayes and Everlee Yeager. Mayhem and sorrow seemed to be the only constants in Tuesday’s life. The old saying,“If she didn’t have bad luck, she’d have no luck at all,”fit her to a T. Almost made her want to hide from the whole darn world. But she hadn’t and she wouldn’t. That wasn’t how Freddie had taught her to deal with problems.
Being there to defend Shane and Everlee that night in Little Rock had been a privilege, no two ways about it. She’d shoot Maeve Astor again if she could. Astor’s reign of unbridled hatred and terror had needed to end. As much as she’d terrorized Tuesday, it seemed fitting that she’d been there to help put the murderess down.
But then… Shane, Everlee, and Heston had left her to her noble causes and went back to their lives and jobs. Sure, documenting climate change across the planet was a worthwhile endeavor, but she’d been shocked at how much she’d missed them. For those few days, she’d had friends who’d cared about her. Who’d looked out for her. It was Heston’s polite goodbye handshake at the end of their adventure in New York City that made Tuesday acutely aware of how empty her life was. It made her question her priorities. Her plans. Did she have any, other than to be at Robert’s beck and call for the rest of her life? Was being sent to desolate places all she was good for? There was a time after Freddie’s death when she’d craved isolation. But now?
She cast a sideways glance at Grissom. The brim of his cowboy hat was still down, keeping his face in shadow, notthat his beard didn’t already cover most of his face. But his hat kept him from making eye contact with her, which was disappointing. His shoulders were broad and his back was straight. Too straight. Like a wall, as if he meant to exclude her from everything, even just friendly conversation.
Neither Grissom nor his boys wore anything heavier than long sleeved shirts. Western shirts. Just like Maverick’s. That was when Grissom’s mood changed, when Maverick told him to saddle another horse. He must’ve felt trapped into doing something he hadn’t wanted to do, which was her going horseback riding with him and his boys. Tuesday didn’t blame him. She hadn’t come here to ride horses and her idea of a TEAM photo shoot was ill-advised. Harebrained. Frivolous. Real warriors comprised The TEAM. A photo shoot like the one she’d envisioned would turn those warriors into clowns. Was that how she wanted the world to see them? Absolutely not.
“Shush, I’m still here,” Grissom murmured to the sleeping boy in his arm.
Stiffening her legs, Tuesday leaned forward in her saddle to see around Grissom. Was Luke having a nightmare? Did he miss his mom or was he battling separation anxiety? Tuesday stole another quick glance, hoping to catch sight of Luke. She couldn’t, not with that sweet baby boy cradled in Grissom’s opposite arm.
The desperate, bearded, half-crazed man in Puntarenas had changed into a gorgeous alpha male who genuinely adored his boys. There was no more glorious sight on earth than a tough guy tenderly cradling his son. That alone made Tuesday’s heart stall.
To get her flustered mind back on track, she told Tanner to, “Remind me the names of these horses. You’re on Star, but who am I riding, and do they all have names?” She’d eagerly agreedto ride another horse when she’d learned that Star was Tanner’s favorite.
“Yes, ma’am, they all get two names.”
She had to lick her dry lips at the easy way Tanner called her ma’am. These boys had been taught to be respectful. Did they learn that from their mother? Tuesday knew better. No, the moody guy beside her was these boys’ only teacher, and Grissom had done an admirable job.
“They get a legal name when Maverick registers them, but those are really long, and I can’t never remember ’em. The horse you’re riding is a mare. That means she already had a baby and her name’s JeZabel. She’s got a capital Z in the middle of her name, like Z. He named her cuz he wanted his name inside of hers cuz he was the only one with her the night she was born.”
Tuesday cocked her head at Tanner. “Z is a person?”
“Ah-huh, Z and X are both persons,” Tanner answered gleefully. “They’re guys, and their real names are Xavier and Zeke, and they work for Miss China and Maverick. When I grow up, I’m gonna be a hired hand just like them. Maybe I’ll change my name to just T!”
Tuesday grinned at the way his brows spiked. There was a day she’d wanted to be an astronaut, and why not? Childhood was the time for wild, crazy dreams. Heaven knew those dreams didn’t last very long and, too often, they got trashed by what life threw at you. “Great job aspiration,” she replied, encouraging Tanner to achieve whatever he set his heart on. “What horse is your dad riding?”
“Joker,” Tanner answered. “He’s a funny guy, but don’t ever stand too close to him. He likes to step on people’s feet, and I even seen him smile when he did it once!”
“Hmm, I never realized horses have personalities,” she mused.
