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  That made her laugh. “Better watch your step. Since they opened for guests, all three McAllister brothers have fallen hard and fast. Even Cole, the oldest. Shocked everyone for miles.”

  “Jesse and Shea? She was a guest?”

  Melanie nodded. “Those boys broke the heart of every single woman in the county.”

  “Huh. Yours included?”

  Surprise flickered in her eyes. “In high school I kind of had a thing for Trace. But so did every girl I knew.” She shrugged, glancing toward the house. “It was nothing. Just an adolescent crush.” She turned back to look at him. “If he’s here, don’t you dare tell him.”

  Lucas grinned, but it bothered him that she might still be interested in the guy. “He hook up with a guest, too?”

  “No, he’s with Matt’s sister. Nikki’s from Houston and Trace only met her this past February.”

  “And what about you, Melanie? How many hearts have you broken?”

  She laughed. “Please.”

  The unmistakable sound of grinding gears grated on his ears and had him checking the rearview mirror. A woman driving a white compact pulled up behind them, then attempted to squeeze her car between his pickup and a silver sedan.

  Melanie swiveled around, then just as quickly turned back to face him. “I can’t look,” she said, cringing. “Your poor truck. I don’t think she’s going to make it.”

  “This Ford and that tin can? Worry about her.”

  “Um, I managed to inflict some damage.”

  “Not much. And you tried with a whole bus.”

  “Hey, I wasn’t trying....” Melanie bit her lip and peeked at him from under her thick dark lashes. “Is it safe to look? Did she make it?”

  “Not yet.” He had no idea what was happening with the compact. He was too interested in that lush lower lip of hers.

  “Come here,” he said, reaching across the console for her. “I’ll protect you.”

  With a nervous laugh, she met his eyes, then slowly reared back.

  “Yeah. Sorry.” He plucked the grimy T-shirt away from his body. Since he’d waited in town to bring her back with him, he hadn’t cleaned up yet. He needed a shower bad. But not bad enough that he’d been willing to give her the opportunity to stand him up.

  “You’re fine. I just didn’t want—”

  Their new neighbor slammed her door.

  Melanie turned and watched the blonde wiggle out between cars, then start toward the house, stopping briefly to tug at her short denim skirt and fluff her hair.

  Already Lucas was regretting the whole dinner thing. He’d had to push her to agree. Stupid of him not to have suggested they go someplace away from Blackfoot Falls. “You were saying...?”

  Turning back to him, she took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders. “I think it’s too warm for this shirt.”

  He watched her indecisively fidget with the unfastened buttons. “Probably,” he agreed, trying not to sound too hopeful.

  “If it gets chilly, I can always come get it.” She let the shirt slip down her back but her arm got caught in it.

  “Need help?”

  “Would you?”

  He reached over as she leaned forward, and he guided her elbow clear of the sleeve. It was easy after that. The shirt slid right off.

  The blue top wasn’t a tank. It had straps and dipped low in the back, showing off lots of creamy skin. She didn’t have freckles, only a tiny mole by her left shoulder blade. The urge to touch her was so powerful that he jerked back as quickly as if he’d been burned.

  “Thanks.” She took the shirt and folded it in half. “Wait,” she said when he started to open his door.

  She calmly set the shirt aside, placed his Stetson on top, then got up on her knees so she could reach across the console and press her mouth to his.

  8

  MELANIE WISHED SHE could’ve been more graceful or at least not been trembling. But his lips were warm and gentle, reassuring her that she hadn’t just made a fool of herself. She felt his hand close around her upper arm. His other one cupped the back of her neck, and he slanted his head, coaxing her lips apart.

  Feeling the slightly rough texture of his tongue sent a shiver of pure longing down her spine. She leaned into him, or maybe he’d tugged her closer—she wasn’t sure. Her heart pounded and her fingers itched to work their way under his shirt and touch his chest. But this wasn’t the time or place.

  There was only so much risk she was willing to take to shut out Gertrude’s hurtful words. Melanie wasn’t a child or completely inexperienced. And she sure wasn’t a saint. She was, however, a normal red-blooded woman who was starting to melt under Lucas’s practiced mouth.

  He moved his hand down her back, his strong fingers a soothing hypnotic caress. His kiss grew more urgent, more demanding, more thrilling...until she realized he was trying to pull her onto his lap.

  Heaven help her but she almost let him. Reluctantly, she drew back, her breath catching at the hungry look on his face. “No,” she whispered, miserable because she was the one who’d started this. “I’m sorry, but not here.”

  It took a few moments for his breathing to even out, a few more for him to let go of her arm. “You’re right.” His mouth curved in a faint smile and he brushed the hair back from her face. “Not out here.”

  She wondered if she’d shocked him. She’d only mildly surprised herself. Gertrude’s words had simmered inside Melanie the whole afternoon. Admittedly, she wasn’t exactly daring when it came to men, but she had more than her own reputation to worry about.

  “We should go inside.” She sat back, put her sandaled feet on the floorboard and smoothed her hair.

  When he didn’t say anything, she looked over at him. He didn’t look happy, and she could feel his tension as intensely as if it were trying to drag her over the console.

  He let out a strained laugh. “I’m gonna need another minute,” he said and shifted against the seat.

  She glanced at his fly. “Oh. Right,” she murmured, turning away to hide her pleased smile. The Stetson had slid to the floor along with her shirt. She picked up his hat and tossed it on his lap. “Here you go.”

  Lucas chuckled and groaned at the same time. He tried to grab her but she plastered herself against her door until she could get it open and slide out. “Okay, I’ll remember this,” he muttered, setting the Stetson on his head.

  Melanie laughed. She felt fifteen again. No, not fifteen. High school hadn’t been much fun. Thirteen had been good. She’d still had friends back in the eighth grade. Boys had no longer had cooties, and she’d gone to her first coed dance. Never mind that it was with Laura and Rae Ann. They’d had a blast. It was the following year that Melanie had been dubbed male repellant.

  He climbed out of the truck, pausing a moment before he walked around the bed toward her. His lazy smile and loose gait didn’t fool her. If she gave him an opening, he would retaliate. She backed up, bumping into the white compact.

  “What are you going to do while I take a shower?” he asked, adjusting the Stetson and pulling the rim low enough to shadow his eyes.

  “See if Rachel needs help.”

  “You’ve done enough good deeds today. How about you come join me instead?”

  Melanie moved quickly to avoid being trapped against the car. “In the shower?”

  “You can scrub my back.”

  “Thought I met my good-deed quota.”

  Lucas laughed. “What if I promise to make it worth your while?”

  “You’ll have to be more specific.” She kept her tone light, casual, even as her racing pulse pumped he
r full of adrenaline.

  “Well, now...” He used his forefinger to push up his Stetson. His eyes glittered with challenge. “Tell me what it would take and I’d be happy to oblige.”

  This wasn’t at all like her, to be brazenly flirting. “Hmm, I suppose I should make it up to you for denting your fender.”

  “Better not be getting my hopes up for nothing.”

  The sound of excited chatter carried from the porch. Melanie turned and saw that a dozen or more women had come outside, along with Hilda, who had just set down a tray of tortilla chips and bowls of what had to be her prized salsa. Rachel poured frothy green margaritas into waiting glasses.

  “I doubt you’ll have a problem finding someone to scrub your back,” Melanie said, picking up the pace, Lucas at her side. She nodded at the porch just as he caught the eye of a tall willowy brunette, who turned her smile on him. “You’ll have them lining up.”

  Ignoring the woman, he leaned close to Melanie so that their shoulders touched. “You chickening out on me?” he whispered, his voice softly mocking.

  She didn’t dare look at him. “You knew I was joking.”

  “I wasn’t.”

  Swallowing, she lifted a hand when Rachel glanced their way.

  “Second floor, fourth door on the right,” Lucas murmured when they reached the first step. “If you change your mind.”

  * * *

  MELANIE HELPED RACHEL carry trays of food out to the picnic tables they used when the temperature was pleasant and the pests were minimal. Cole’s girlfriend, Jamie, had already scouted out the grassy area butting up to a grove of rogue aspens, making sure the tables and benches were wiped off and free of unwelcome critters.

  “This place looks like a mini park. Has it always been here?” Melanie asked, then laughed at Rachel’s deadpan expression. “I don’t mean the aspens.”

  “When was the last time you were out here?” Rachel set the bowl of potato salad next to the basket of corn bread.

  “To the Sundance?” She thought for a moment. “Last year at your welcome-home party.”

  “Ah, before we opened for guests.” Rachel nodded. “I promised my brothers I’d try to keep the women as separate as possible, so I spruced up this area for alfresco dining.” She grinned. “That’s how I describe it on the website.”

  Jamie had brought a bag of plates, silverware and napkins and stacked them at the end of the buffet table. “Problem is, the ladies only want to hang out where the guys are. I told Rachel we should make life-size cutouts of her brothers and post them at each table.”

  Melanie laughed.

  Rachel glanced over her shoulder, then glared at Jamie. “Would you shut up?”

  “They’re too far away. No one heard.” Jamie snorted. “Like you don’t say stuff like that all the time.”

  “And by the way, quit butting into my welcome speech and telling them Cole is off-limits.”

  “I saw you making a ‘taken’ sign to put around Matt’s neck when he comes over.” Jamie filched a piece of corn bread and popped it into her mouth. Her appreciative moan stretched the limits of decency. “Damn, that’s good.”

  “Wow, pretty convincing,” Rachel said, looking impressed. “You must have to fake it a lot. Do I need to have a talk with my brother?”

  Jamie grinned. “I’d like to hear that conversation.”

  Melanie had known Rachel her whole life and she didn’t have that sort of easy camaraderie with her. Even while she enjoyed listening to the two of them, she felt envious and quite sad. Rachel hadn’t been one of the girls who’d shunned her in school, but they’d never really been friends, either. At least Rachel never acted as if she had to watch her language or what she said around Melanie, so that was something.

  And Jamie—she was someone Melanie would love to know better. But she’d moved to Blackfoot Falls only in January, and being a travel blogger, she was gone a lot. Luckily, Melanie got along well with Shea, though they really didn’t socialize. Shea was an introvert with an IQ so high it would give most people nosebleeds. She was the first to admit she was socially awkward. That she’d ended up with Jesse still stunned Melanie and probably a lot of other people, including Shea. But the match also gave Melanie hope. Maybe there was a man out there for her, too.

  Second floor, fourth door on the right.

  Good grief—her head was about to explode. How many times were Lucas’s words going to blindside her? Or worse, get her so worked up.

  Both women were staring at her, so obviously she’d let something slip. A cuss word, maybe. A frustrated sigh? It didn’t matter. She didn’t see shock in their faces, mostly amusement. Had either one of them been in her place, they would’ve jumped all over Lucas’s offer.

  “Um, earworm,” she murmured. “The stupid song’s driving me crazy. Should I go get more food from Hilda?”

  Grinning, Jamie looked past her. “I think your man’s got that covered.”

  “My what?” Melanie turned to find Lucas coming from the house surrounded by four women, all of them balancing bowls and platters.

  He barely smiled, just enough to be polite. Clearly he wasn’t thrilled with the attention. And that made her a lot happier than it should have.

  “I hadn’t planned on putting you ladies to work,” Rachel said when the group got closer. “Well, not your first night here, anyway.” Reaching to take the platter of grilled meat from Lucas, she tried to hide a grin. “Good job.”

  “My pleasure,” he said in a tone that indicated it was anything but. “You got this?”

  “Got it,” Rachel said, and he let go of the platter. Then she moved close enough to him to privately murmur, “Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” before she turned her smile on the guests.

  If Rachel weren’t engaged to Matt, Melanie would have been jealous. She hated the thought. Hated that she was still a little jealous anyway. Rachel had purposely spoken loud enough to include her in the joke, but that wasn’t the point. Melanie wasn’t the jealous type. Yet she wanted Lucas all to herself. She wanted to be able to exchange a private look with him, share a joke no one else understood.

  “May I borrow you for a moment?”

  She blinked at the warm hand on her arm and then met his gaze. She could smell the freshness of his shower on his skin, saw that he’d shaved. Without thinking, she lifted her hand and touched his smooth jaw.

  The outside corners of his eyes crinkled with his smile. Before she could snatch her hand back, he caught and held it to his face, turning his head so his lips dragged across her palm. Then he slowly brought his gaze back to hers. They were standing in the middle of a bunch of strange women. She didn’t know who’d just sighed or which one said, “Hubba-hubba.”

  Someone else said, “Dammit, I thought he was here alone.”

  “Well?” he said, paying no attention to anyone but her. His eyes remained on her face and his hand stayed pressed to hers as she lowered it.

  Not for the life of her could she recall what he’d asked.

  “If she’s not interested, you can borrow me,” the blonde said, getting a laugh from the others.

  Melanie glanced around, searching out Rachel.

  “Go,” she said, before Melanie could ask if she needed help.

  Lucas took her hand and led her into the aspens. She felt the stares burning into her back, and it was horrible to acknowledge the deep sense of satisfaction at knowing some of those women were jealous of her. Truly horrible. Her father would be appa
lled. Melanie was appalled. Or at least, she was trying to be.

  “Where are we going?” she asked, too breathless for such a short walk.

  “I only wanted to pull you aside, but this is better.”

  “Better for what?”

  He took them another few feet, then framed her face with his hands. For a long heart-stopping moment he did nothing but look into her eyes. “I was hoping you’d surprise me.”

  “The shower? I couldn’t.”

  His gaze lowered to her mouth. “I know,” he said, moving his hands to her shoulders. “I shouldn’t be teasing you.”

  “Of course you should.”

  A lazy smile started slowly, curving his mouth and making her pulse race. “I should be kissing you instead.”

  And that was exactly what he did. She tipped her head back, softening her lips as he moved over them. He didn’t try to coax her mouth open but seemed content learning the taste and shape of her lips as if this were their first kiss. She was the one who touched her tongue to his and got him worked up. He slid his hands down her back, stopping just at the curve of her backside. Slanting his head to deepen the kiss, he pulled her against his aroused body.

  She shoved her hands up his chest, lightly digging into hard muscle with her short nails, and moved her hips against him. He shuddered. Then stopped kissing her. Just stopped. He pulled his arms from around her and caught her wrists, holding her hands still, trapping them so she couldn’t touch him.

  Melanie reluctantly looked up at him.

  His nostrils flared and his eyes were hooded.

  Muted laughter came from the picnic area. Probably nothing to do with them. No one could see this deep into the trees. But if anyone had come looking, she doubted she would’ve heard anything.

  Lucas stroked the wildly beating pulse at her wrist. “I shouldn’t have pulled you away,” he said, his breathing ragged. “But I’ve been thinking about kissing you all day.”

  When she finally found her voice, it spilled out a husky whisper. “Me too.”