Wild Western Nights

She laughed. “My little house would fit in your dining room and kitchen. It’s small and the decor is far less expensive.”

“That isn’t what I meant.”

“It’s the same style of decor.”

“That’s why you’re so shocked. Just because I love ranching and you’ve always wanted to get away from Texas, you thought we were opposites in everything. What would you like to drink? I have a well stocked bar.”

“How about iced tea?”

“Coming right up,” he said, walking behind a bar.

She climbed on one of the high stools in front of him, crossed her legs and looked around. “You have fancy outdoor furniture, too. Do you spend a lot of time out here?” she asked, turning back and catching him looking at her legs.

“I swim often,” he replied, his gaze holding hers for a long moment. While they talked about his house in a very ordinary conversation, she could still feel the tension and sparks between them. “I enjoy the patio and pool, and I’m sure I will even more as time passes.”

“Except you’ll be working. You’ll work on the ranch and you won’t relax and enjoy this any more than you do now.”

“You might be right on that one. What kind of hours do you have when you’re in Florida?”

“Long,” she remarked drily as he handed her the iced tea. She took a sip, watching him pour his own drink and thinking of how their daughter had Gabe’s coloring. What would he be like with a child? She had never seen him interacting with children.

“Let’s go sit where it’s more comfortable,” he said.

They crossed the patio to a thickly cushioned redwood sofa. She sat in a corner and he moved close to face her.

“Tell me about your life in Miami and how it’s so different from being here.”

“Monday through Friday morning, I go into the office. I show houses, my time fluctuates. It’s an exciting, varied job and I love it,” she said, aware they sat with knees touching. Gabe had stretched out one long arm to play with locks of her hair. Each tug on her scalp made her tingle.

It was difficult to ignore the effect he had on her. Had he noticed the slight breathlessness in her voice? While she wanted to kiss him again, she couldn’t afford to fall more deeply in love with him. She kept busy in Florida, finding it easier as time passed to avoid thinking about Gabe. She remembered now that when she was around him, she had little resistance. It had never occurred to her that he would bring her to his house for dinner where it would only be the two of them. A whole evening with Gabe, while her insides fizzed with excitement. She reminded herself to keep up her guard. Any feelings he created in her now would only disturb ghosts of the past she did not want disturbed.

“There has to be more than that to your life for you to love Florida so much,” he said.

“Often I spend free time at the beach. My family is all nearby and I have friends. I love it. I love the city and the activity.”

“Don’t you still have close friends in Dallas? I remember you used to.”

“Yes, I do. We keep in touch. I’ve even had two excellent job offers from there, one right after I graduated and one more recently.”

“Did you give them any consideration?”

“Not really. I’m happy where I am. I like Dallas, and at one point in time, I would have accepted work there, but not now.”

They sat and talked until Gabe put the steaks on. She strolled to the cooker with him. In minutes, spirals of gray smoke escaped from the covered grill while Gabe put bowls of tossed green salad on the table. Next, he retrieved two potatoes from the oven and they each fixed their own with butter, chives and sour cream. By the time he had steamed asparagus, the steaks were ready. They sat near a fountain on the patio.

“I’m amazed. I’ve never seen you do all this yourself,” she said, waving her hand over the table and the food.

“I still say you don’t know me as well as you think you do. Time changes people. I want to get to know you all over again, Maddie.”

“Sorry, Gabe. There isn’t time for it. We have tonight. That’s all.”

“Maybe,” he said, his blue eyes intent on her.

“I had forgotten you have a stubborn streak in you.”

“I think it might match the one you have,” he replied with a smile. He raised his glass. “Here’s to memories and new discoveries.”

“Here’s to seeing an old friend and wishing you a wonderful future. You’re a nice guy, Gabe Benton.”

One corner of his mouth lifted in a slight smile. “You keep trying to hold me at arm’s length. We’ve been friends too long for this ‘I barely know you’ attitude. I’m getting past it, Maddie.” On the last word, his voice lowered and the look she received made her tingle.

“Maybe. In the meantime, dinner is getting cold.”

After the first bite of steak, she smiled. “This is heavenly.”

“I’d rather watch you than eat,” he stated.

“That’s ridiculous,” she replied, hating the breathlessness that fairly shouted her true reaction to him. “Besides, I’ll bet you said that to the last person you invited out here.”

“Truthfully, I’ve never said that to anyone before.”

She drew in a deep breath. “It’s not going to get you anywhere saying it now,” she stated, glad her voice had gained a note of aloofness.

He smiled at her, shattering any illusion she might have had about him cooling his flirting.

“This is a delicious steak,” she said, hoping to keep the topic neutral.

“Not nearly as delicious as your kisses.”

She closed her eyes and chewed, feeling her face flush because of his remark. “I’m not listening to you. I’m eating this steak,” she said. They were skirting dangerous territory. She had gotten over the past and shut Gabe out of her life. It had taken time, and it had not been easy. Now, with his flirting and charm, he was trying to get back into her life, but she had no place for him there.

“You’re not looking at me, but I know you hear me,” he said, laughter in his voice. “Your kisses are delicious and have taken away my appetite for what’s on this table. If I hadn’t found you on the highway, would you have come to Texas and then gone home to Florida without seeing me?”

As soon as he asked, her eyes flew open. She felt ensnared in his gaze. “Yes, I would have.”

To her surprise, he winced. “Was it because of the way we parted?”

“Since the last summer we were together, our lives have changed. I’m different and you’re different. We’re really strangers now, except for childhood memories.”

He leaned across the table and caught her hand lightly, rubbing his thumb over the inside of her wrist. “There’s no way we’re strangers, and we have a hell of a lot more than ‘childhood memories’ between us. You know better than that. Holding you in my arms, making love for hours under the stars—those were not childish memories,” he said in a husky voice that wrapped her in a blanket of intimacy. “I thought our last summer was fantastic.”

She couldn’t get her breath, and she forgot about dinner. She tried to regain her composure and keep a wall up between them. She slipped her hand out of his and leaned back a fraction.

“What I want in life has changed since I left here,” she said, again glad her voice held a firmness she wasn’t actually feeling. She looked down at her plate blankly and then took a bite, even though her appetite had fled.

“What I want in life is changing, too, Maddie. We’re older. We want different things, have different needs now than we did then. We know each other, and we don’t know each other at the same time. Discovery and reunion are both great.”

“Don’t, Gabe,” she said, shaking her head and placing her fork on her plate.