Page 20 of Rein in the Night

Mirabelle jumped to her feet, fidgety, like she was the one who had let Ryan’s secret slip out. “I have to get back to the kitchen. I just came to say, whether Ryan is the owner of Luna Mountain Ranch or not, the reason you need to leave him alone is . . .” She swallowed.

Keena waited for her to blurt it out, not wanting to move or breathe in case she spooked the flighty woman into saying nothing, yet hinting at so much.

With her hand on the door and her back to Keena, she said, “It’s not for me to say why you should just go home. He’s never been into any woman like he’s into you. Never. Sure, he’s had affairs, but not with guests. He goes off on trips, and Kate, who cleans his house, says there is always a woman’s scent on his clothes when he returns. So we know he’s not celibate.”

When she didn’t say anything more or leave, Keena stomped over to her and pulled her around to face her. “What are you getting at, Mirabelle? What’s the big deal?”

The older woman’s eyes narrowed on her face, determination sparking in her glare. “We love him. He’s always been good to us, but it is better that things stay like they are. Better for him.”

The door clicked with too much finality after Mirabelle left. Keena sank into a chair staring at the empty fireplace. Someone had cleaned it out, although she knew guests were responsible for doing it themselves. In fact, since she had become closer to Ryan, there were a lot of privileges she enjoyed that the other guests didn’t. She didn’t know why it never occurred to her before that he must be important here.

Booted feet echoed on her porch, and the knob turned at her door. She didn’t have to see him to know it was Ryan, but she didn’t look his way or get up. “Your girlfriend all settled?”

He didn’t answer.

“Are you mad because I snatched her off Annabel and basically shoved her in the dirt?”

Ryan still didn’t say a word. She turned to look at him but couldn’t read the expression on his face. He crossed the room, picked her up, and sat down in her chair before placing her on his lap. Keena shivered against his solid chest, encircled in his arms. What did Mirabelle mean when she said it was better for Ryan if he remained as he was? Not that they were in danger of falling for each other. She knew that she wouldn’t let herself go. Mirabelle telling her that Ryan went out to meet women on a regular basis served to reinforce it for her, and the fact that he had such a healthy appetite for sex. More often than not, she was worn to a frazzle, and he was raring to go, waiting for her to recover so they could make love again. No, she could never satisfy a man like him.

He pressed his nose into the hollow at the base of her throat and kissed her there a few times. “What did Mirabelle want?”

“To tell me to stay away from you.”

He drew back, anger darkening his eyes. “What? I’ll have a talk—”

“Why didn’t you tell me you own the ranch? This is the business venture you were talking about that time we were discussing your background, isn’t it? Why didn’t you say so?”

“Does it matter?”

She leaned back into his arms and rested her head on his shoulder. “Not that you own it but that you felt you couldn’t tell me. I guess you like your privacy. No one pays you any mind as you come and go, but if they knew you were the man in charge, they would, wouldn’t they?”

He nodded. “Yes.” He played with the end of one her braids, twirling it about his finger. “Besides that, most of the women I know hear I own a profitable ranch, and they see dollar signs. With Jeb’s help and experience, this place pulls in a tidy sum every year. The guests on vacation are just giving back in a way, but the cattle is where my money comes from. I think that’s why Anne stayed with me at first, maybe why she got involved with me in the first place.”

Rather than cater to his self-pity, Keena tried to tease him out of it. She wiggled her hips on his lap. “Don’t sell yourself short, baby. You have certain tricks that make a woman keep coming back for more.”

Ryan grew thick and long in seconds. His eyes widened, and a slow grin spread over his face. He squeezed her hips. “Tell me you can take me after that stunt, woman!”

Keena laughed. She pushed his hands away and jumped up to run into the bedroom. Ryan followed like a dangerous predator, and she, his delicious prey. He pounced, but she slipped away on the far side of the room. The bed lay between them, and Ryan raised a dark eyebrow at her. He tore the blankets from the bed.

“Ryan! I just made that.”

“And I’m unmaking it.”

He stood up straight and, to her delight, began to undress. He kicked his boots off, tossed his hat on a chair, and unbuckled his belt. Just the sound of his zipper descending had her wet and squirming while she watched. When his shirt was unbuttoned, she licked her lips remembering how good his smooth, salty skin was under her tongue.

With his clothes in a pile on the floor, Ryan climbed on the bed and stretched out, an inviting expression on his face. Keena shook her head. The man was not ashamed of his body in the least, and why would he be? She let her gaze travel over the hard planes and enjoyed the way his muscles contracted and rippled with his movements. Too tempted to stay where she was, she peeled off her clothing and walked up to the edge of the bed, with hands on her hips. Ryan had admired her body enough by now that she wasn’t self-conscious either.

“You think you can handle all this, cowboy?” she asked him with deliberate sass.

He pretended to consider her body, her heavy breasts, her too-curvy hips, and her thighs thicker than she liked, but still passable. When his gaze stopped at the small patch between her legs, she resisted the impulse to put her hand over it. He looked ravenous.

“Do you know how beautiful you are?” he asked and reached out to her.

Keena touched her fingertips to his palm. He guided her to turn to the side, and shivered when he grabbed her ass, stroked it, and squeezed.

“I can’t get enough. I think it might not be possible. Lie down. I’m starving.”

She did as he asked, embracing the flutter of anticipation in her belly. No man she’d met savored her like Ryan. “What are you going to do?”

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