Texas Orchids (The Devil's Horn Ranch Series) Read online

  “I’m not sure I could ever look at her the same way.”

  “It’s just sex. Everyone does it.”

  He gives me a pointed look. “Not everyone.”

  Heat crosses my face and chest. Time to change the subject. “We’re going to miss the sunset if we don’t get up on the ridge.” I look east. “I hope those clouds hold off for a while.”

  We make it up to the ridge, spread the blanket, have a snack, and pour the wine moments before the sky turns an incredible shade of orange.

  “Wow,” he says, mesmerized. “I’m not sure I’ve ever seen one quite like this.”

  “You wouldn’t in the city. Out here, there are no lights and no pollution. Not even the sound of traffic. Call me crazy, but if you try hard enough, you can even hear the sunset from here.”

  “Says the woman who thinks horses understand her.”

  “So you are calling me crazy?”

  “Will you shut up so I can listen?”

  We sit in silence, sip wine, and watch the sky make its transformation. I can’t think of a better fifteen minutes in my entire life.

  When the sun has dropped below the hills, he removes his hat and lies back, fingers laced behind his head. “I think I could stay here all night. I’ll bet when darkness sets in, you can see a lot of stars.”

  “Maybe not tonight. Clouds are rolling in. But on a clear night, you can see the Milky Way. Without all the light pollution, it’s amazing.”

  He leans up on an elbow. “What’s your curfew?”

  “Gee, I don’t know,” I say sarcastically. “Dad usually wants me home by eleven.”

  “Tell me about your father.”

  “There’s nothing to tell. I don’t know him. I’m not even sure my mom knew him. She didn’t have a picture. His name isn’t on my birth certificate. It’s listed as unknown.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be. I had an amazing mother until I didn’t. And then Granddad stepped in. If you never have something, you don’t know what you’re missing.”

  He leans over and runs a finger along the rim of my hat, then looks back at the sky. “I sure as hell know what I’ll be missing when I go back to New York.”

  Holy hell. He might as well have been running his finger across my skin, because I swear I could feel it all the way to my toes.

  “Did you hear it?” I ask, taking in the last moment of orange sky before it gives way to darkness. “The sunset?”

  “I might have.” He sits up. “Then again it could be my pounding heart.”

  I’m certain he’s going to lean in for a kiss, but then a drop of rain hits my cheek. Then another. Before we have time to react, the skies open up, and it’s pouring. Maddox scoops everything up in the blanket and shoves it in my satchel. We get on the horses.

  “Follow me.” I lead him across the nearest pasture and into a run-in shed. We dismount and tie the horses to a pole, then huddle in the center, dripping wet. I shiver. Maddox peels off my jacket and rubs his hands up and down my arms.

  “What about you?” I ask.

  He takes off his wet jacket and gets the blanket from my pack. “There’s only one. We’ll have to share.” He wraps it around me and then steps close. I try to hold it around him, but Maddox is big, and the blanket is so small it barely covers him.

  “Turn around,” he says. “Try it this way.” He pulls my back to his front and wraps us both in the blanket. I lean into him, and my hat collides with his shoulder, making it fall off.

  “Leave it,” I say when he starts to bend down. “Let’s just warm up before we freeze to death.”

  “Who knew it could get so damn cold in Texas in May?”

  We silently stand like this for minutes, watching the rain.

  “I hope it lets up soon,” he says. “You’re really shivering.”

  I don’t tell him I’m warming up. I don’t say he’s making me shiver, not the rain. The way it feels with his arms wrapped around me, I want to stay here forever.

  His breathing quickens. I can feel his chest rise and fall, and his hot breath comes quicker on the back of my neck. I close my eyes and sink into him. Does he know what I’m feeling? What I’m thinking?

  His hand grazes my breast when he adjusts the blanket. A noise bubbles up within me.

  “Sorry,” he says.

  “It’s okay.”

  He pulls me tightly against him. “Is it?”

  I spin around, look up at him, and nod. The blanket falls to the ground as he cups my face and kisses me. Suddenly I don’t care about the rain, the cold, or my wet clothes. All I care about is that his lips are on mine again. All I know is how much I want them there. His hands find a way under my top to caress my bare skin. I untuck his shirt and do the same. His skin is soft, with hard muscles underneath. I trace the small scar on his back that remains from his accident.

  We kiss until Baby Blue shoves her face in my hair. We pull apart, and I run my hand along her mane. “Easy, girl.” I turn to Maddox. “What does this mean?”

  Maddox laughs. “I think it means she wants you all to herself.”

  “That’s not what I meant, Maddox.”

  “I know what you meant.” He wipes a wet piece of hair off my forehead. “And to be honest, I’m not sure. But what I do know is I’m going to want to do way more than stick my nose in your hair the next time you have to kiss Victor. More like stick my fist down his throat.”

  I giggle. “Way to ruin the moment.”

  “Look, it stopped raining. We should head back and get dry.”

  We mount our horses and leave the shed.

  “Andie?” Maddox says. “I think it means something else, too.”

  “What?”

  “That we should do that again. That we should definitely do that again.”

  I smile and trot away.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Maddox

  She wanted to know what the kiss meant. The first time we kissed she said she just wanted to be friends. But last night, her lips were a hell of a lot more than friendly. I was honest when I told her I don’t know what it means. I like her. And although I’m here for the summer, I’ll leave sooner or later. I don’t want to hurt her. With everything going on with Victor and her losing Nana, she has already been through a lot.

  Through the kitchen window, I see Andie running across the yard to the stables. I go out on the back steps. “Where’s the fire?”

  “It’s Baby Blue. Owen said she’s sick.”

  I fetch my boots and hat and run after her, arriving at Baby Blue’s stall just after she does. Owen, Matteo, and Merle are already there, urging the mare to stand up.

  “Looks like colic,” Owen says.

  “Over here,” Miguel calls. “There’s one more.” He’s next to Tadpole’s stall.

  “Don’t make no sense,” Merle says. “Five of the turned-out horses got sick this week. But these two stay in the stable.”

  They get Baby Blue upright, and Andie examines her, then Tadpole. “Let’s get them both out and walking around. I’ll get the Banamine.” She shakes her head. “I’ve never seen so many get sick in so short a period of time.” On the way to get the medicine, she checks a few other horses in the vicinity. They all seem fine.

  Outside, one of the ranch hands, looking upset, slowly walks a mare toward us. Andie is visibly worried. “Not another. What pasture was she in?”

  “Number five.”

  “Not the same as the others.” She turns to me. “We may have a real problem here. If whatever this is affects all the horses, odds are we’re going to lose some and word will get out. People will move their horses. You’ll lose a lot of business.”

  “Then let’s figure out what’s going on.”

  She gets her medical kit, and we return to Baby Blue and Tadpole. She rubs Baby Blue on the back like a mother might rub her child. It would kill Andie if anything happened to her. She whispers something to the horse, then turns her attention to Tadpole. I love the way she talks
to them as if they are humans.

  “What’s going on with you two, huh? You were both fine last night on our ride.” She turns abruptly. “Oh god, our ride. Maddox, we were out by the pastures, but they didn’t eat. They only drank. It has to be the water supply.” She yells for Matteo and Owen. “We have to test the water in the stream by the ridge. Get some of your men out there. Don’t let any other horses drink from it until we have the results.”

  “We’re on it,” Matteo says and yells for half a dozen hands to hop in the truck with them.

  “What do you think it is?” I say.

  “Could be any number of things, from a diseased animal carcass upstream to a poison hemlock outbreak.”

  “Poison?”

  “It’s not poison per se. It’s a plant that grows along streams. If enough of it got in the water, it could potentially make animals sick. Also humans, by the way, so stick to bottled water if you’re out there. We normally don’t see a lot of the plants, but it’s been rainy this year, which can spur growth.”

  “Hopefully they can take care of either of those problems.”

  “They can, but we’ll have to test the water daily for a while to make sure it’s good.” She glances at the barn. “Looks like Miguel is already getting water tanks and troughs ready to take out there to water the horses.”

  “We have water tanks?”

  “You have everything.”

  We take the horses over to the hot walker. It’s only now I realize Andie is wearing a Cornell sweatshirt and sleep pants. It looks like she just rolled out of bed and pulled on a pair of boots.

  “I’ll watch them,” I say. “Get dressed and grab a bite to eat.”

  She shakes her head. “I want to stay with her.”

  “Okay, then. I’ll get you something to eat.”

  “You don’t have to.”

  “Andie, you might have just saved Devil’s Horn Ranch. The least I can do is bring you coffee and eggs.”

  “You cook eggs? I thought all you make was pasta.”

  “I scramble eggs, and I make a mean piece of toast.”

  She laughs. “Sounds great. Thank you.”

  “They’re going to be okay,” I say, watching the horses being pushed along in the hot walker. I thumb toward the house. “I’ll be back in a jiff. Then I’ll sit with you.”

  “What about your dad? Don’t you want to spend time with him? It could be hours before they’re out of the woods.”

  “He flew out at the crack of dawn. Besides, I’ve become kind of attached.”

  She raises a brow.

  “To Tadpole,” I say, smiling as I walk away.

  But as I make breakfast, I know the gelding is not the only one worming his way into my heart.

  When the horses started to show improvement, I helped the barn workers unload the newly delivered hay. I’m leaving the barn when I see Andie heading to the guesthouse.

  “How are they doing?” I ask.

  “Much better.”

  “We don’t have to do this thing with Victor and Katherine tonight. Everyone would understand if you cancel.”

  “The sooner they dig up the grave, the sooner we can be done with this. The horses will be fine. Let’s just get this over with.” She approaches and leans toward me.

  My chest pounds as she gets closer. I’ve thought about her all day, about the walk and the kissing in the rain.

  She brushes hay off my shoulder. “You might want to take a shower.”

  “I’ll see you in about an hour?” As she heads toward the guesthouse, I think about tonight. Then I blurt, “I don’t want him kissing you.”

  She turns. “Just the thought of his hands on me makes me sick to my stomach.”

  I take a step closer. “To be clear, that’s not the only reason I don’t want him kissing you.”

  I watch her chest rise and fall with a sigh before I walk away.

  Forty-five minutes later, I emerge from my bedroom to find Katherine in the kitchen, looking out the window. “Well, come in,” I say sarcastically.

  “As I recall, most ranches have an open-door policy. Besides, Victor and I arrived at the same time. It would have looked weird if I’d knocked. Thank goodness your front door was unlocked.”

  I pick up a bottle of wine. “I thought you were going to outfit her with a microphone.”

  “I am. I have it with me for next time.”

  “Hopefully there won’t be a next time.” We cross the yard to the guesthouse.

  “You mean if they find a body in his backyard? Maddox, don’t pin all your hopes on that.”

  “Are agents at his place now?”

  “Yes.”

  “Are they going to text you when they know anything?”

  “They will.”

  “So we could be having dinner when you find out he’s got a dead body in his backyard?”

  “If that happens, backup will be here before she even knows about it.”

  “But you’ll let me know? How about you give me a signal, like rub your nose if they find a body.”

  She rolls her eyes. “You watch way too much television.”

  I knock, and the front door opens.

  Andie’s there, looking relieved. “Oh, good. You’re here.”

  Victor appears behind her, putting his hand on her lower back. I hand her the bottle.

  “Thanks,” she says. “I thought you were going to bring games.”

  “Damn, I forgot.”

  “That’s okay,” Katherine says. “Come on, Andie. Let’s pick a few out. I know right where they are.”

  She doesn’t, but Andie does. She knows the house like the back of her hand.

  “We’ll be right back,” Andie says. “You boys open the wine.”

  They leave, and I’m left alone with the enemy. Victor steps back, inviting me in. We move to the living room.

  “Andie said you’ve had some sick horses,” he says. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

  I’ll bet he’s not sorry at all. A guy like this couldn’t care less about human life, let alone animals. “They’re much better now.”

  “When do you head back to New York? You’re probably eager to get home.”

  “I’ll be here for the summer at least.”

  “So you like it here?”

  “I do. I’ll miss it when I go back.”

  “Do you think Melina will go with you?”

  “Who knows? We haven’t talked about it. We’re not to the moving in stage yet.”

  “She seems like one you wouldn’t want to let get away. We’re both lucky in that respect.”

  My stomach turns. I go to the bar. “Pour you a drink?”

  “I should be pouring you one.” He puts down the bottle of wine and picks up the whiskey. “I’m not sure if she has any Coke. You good with it straight up?”

  “Sure,” I lie.

  He pours far too much into my glass.

  “How long do you think you’ll be staying around?” I ask.

  He narrows his eyes. “What makes you think I won’t be?”

  I take a drink and try to come up with a reason. “I heard Andie telling Melina about how you like to move around the country and see different places.”

  He looks almost sad. “I’ve never stayed in one place long. Do you think Andie would ever want to leave?”

  I go on high alert. “I don’t think so. She loves it here. Her job, the ranches, her granddad—I can’t imagine her wanting to leave.”

  The women return with armfuls of games. I start toward Andie to relieve her of a few, but Katherine clears her throat, reminding me who my date is. I change direction smoothly. “Let me help you, Melina.”

  Victor laughs, eyeing the stack of games. “How long do you plan on being here? I was sorta hoping I could have some alone time with my girl later.”

  Andie closes her eyes and swallows. I eye Victor’s glass, debating if I should try to get him piss drunk so he’ll pass out. It could backfire, though, and make him more aggressive.
Maybe Andie should slip some horse tranquilizer in his drink or something.

  All through dinner, I notice that Victor doesn’t ask many personal questions. He doesn’t ask about Andie’s family, Vivian, or her past. I’ll bet Katherine would say it’s because criminals don’t want similar questions to be asked of them.

  I’m getting a little drunk, or maybe I’m just stupid, but I say, “Victor, you’re what, twenty-eight?”

  “Twenty-six… uh, seven.”

  I fake laugh and grab the whiskey bottle. “Sounds like you need another drink if you can’t even remember your age.”

  He pushes the glass away. “Maybe that’s why I don’t need one.”

  “You ever come close to getting hitched?”

  Katherine gives me a swift kick under the table. “Babe, that’s not polite to ask with Andie sitting right here.”

  Victor takes Andie’s hand. “There’d be nothing to get jealous about. I haven’t had many long-term relationships. I’m kind of a loner.”

  Katherine puts an arm around me. “It’s a good thing this one’s not. Did you tell them I might be moving to New York with you?”

  I about shit my pants. What is she doing?

  Victor cocks his head. “Is that so?”

  “I thought we were keeping that to ourselves, babe,” I say to Katherine.

  “Oops. Guess our secret is out.” Katherine kisses my cheek. I don’t miss the brief look of jealousy that crosses Andie’s face. I try not to look happy about it.

  Andie clears the table and brings a game over. Halfway through it, I can’t stop looking at the clock on the wall. Surely there’s been enough time to dig up the grave.

  “Is there someplace you need to be, man?” Victor says. “You’re staring at the clock like it’s going to jump off the wall and bite you.”

  There’s a knock on the door. I hope it’s the FBI to arrest him. I’m so ready for this to be over.

  “You expecting someone?” Victor asks Andie.

  “No.”

  He goes to the front door as Katherine discreetly tells us she knows nothing.

  “It’s Matteo,” Victor says.

  Matteo storms past Victor on his way to Andie. “What’s wrong?” she asks.

  “Anticoagulant rodenticides,” he says. “That’s what’s fucking wrong.”