Shadow Maverick Ranch Box Set Page 24

  Not knowing would make her nuts, but she’d be damned if she sat around waiting for him to show up.

  Her life wasn’t going to change. Whether or not she added sex to the mix, she still had a ranch to run, a garden to tend, a house to clean. Sex with Clay would serve as a distraction, a well-deserved break from the mess she’d found herself in.

  She glanced around the barn. A mess that was now her responsibility to clean up.

  Ainsley cranked the music, grabbed a pitchfork, and got to work.

  #

  Clay parked the truck in front of his parents’ house. He reached over the seat and grabbed the duffle bag he kept on the back seat.

  Ranching was a dirty job. Once his day was done, he liked to have the option of putting on clean, dry clothes for the drive home. It meant more laundry for him later, but that didn’t bother him. A few extra loads a week was a small price to pay for the comfort of a dry shirt.

  While he was here, he might as well run what he had through the wash. He had a washer and dryer at his place, but his mom had a commercial washing machine she encouraged all her kids to use. Clay suspected it was her way to get them to the house for long periods of time. Not that Clay was far away to begin with.

  He’d tried to live away from the ranch once. Got an apartment outside of town when he’d turned twenty-one. A right of passage that came back to bite him in the ass when he figured out he was paying for a place where he barely did more than sleep—and only on the nights when his loud-ass neighbors weren’t either fighting or fucking. After a year of that crap, he gave up his apartment and moved into the fishing cabin his grandfather had built decades ago. The cabin wasn’t fancy, but it was located on Shadow Maverick land and was blessedly quiet. He’d stayed there another year while he saved to buy the trailer he lived in now.

  Clay didn’t figure he’d live in the two-bedroom mobile home forever, but it made for a great bachelor pad. It was small enough he could keep it relatively clean, and private enough that his family wasn’t breathing down his neck at every turn.

  Clay walked around the side of the house, entering through the mudroom where he dumped the contents of his bag into the washer. With practiced ease, he added soap and color-safe bleach, and punched the appropriate buttons to get the whole thing started.

  Breakfast had ramped to full swing by the time Clay walked into the chaos of the kitchen.

  “Sorry I’m late,” he offered. The smell of bacon and eggs made Clay’s stomach growl.

  “Where’ve you been?” Gavin and Erin asked simultaneously—Gavin from his position at the head of the table, Erin from her position at the industrial-sized cooktop.

  Clay shared an eye roll with Paxton, who sat at Gavin’s right. The family joked that Gavin and Erin, twins and the oldest of the siblings, shared a brain. Same with the youngest twins, Jared and Jade. Pax and Clay were stuck in the middle, the “non-twins” as they liked to call themselves.

  “It’s not like you to miss a meal,” Erin added as she filled a large bowl with scrambled eggs.

  “Doesn’t look like I missed anything.” Mounds of food covered the island.

  Erin snorted. “You missed the two skillets of scrambled eggs and three stacks of pancakes Trevor finished off with Jared, Jade, and Amber.”

  Clay looked around the kitchen. Other than Gavin, Erin, and Pax—Gavin’s bride-to-be, Lauren, and Pax’s girlfriend, Reese, were the only other people there. “Where are they?”

  Pax answered. “Jade is saddling Diablo for the first time. She insisted Gavin and I stay away. Said we made her nervous or some shit.”

  “And I said she couldn’t do it without one of us.” Gavin picked up the story. “So she asked Trevor, probably just to spite us.”

  Erin set the fresh bowl of eggs next to platters filled with pancakes, bacon, sausage, and fried potatoes on the enormous center island. “My husband is more than capable of playing watchdog. That man grew up on a horse, as you well know. If Jade needs help, he’ll have her back. Y’all are just pissed she’s not the little girl who worshiped you anymore. Come eat.”

  Clay knew Jade could handle herself, but damn if his boots weren’t itching to make tracks to get out there. Just in case. Knowing Trevor and Jared were on hand was the only thing keeping him rooted in place.

  Jade and Erin had decided a year ago to put their equine knowledge to use, and had begun the business of rehabilitating injured and abused horses. Even at Jade’s tender age of seventeen, there wasn’t much she couldn’t do when it came to horses. The girl had a gift. But… “You let Amber go out there?” Didn’t seem to be the best decision to let his two-year-old niece around an unpredictable situation.

  It was Erin’s turn to roll her eyes. “Her daddy wouldn’t let anything happen to her. Jared promised to keep her back from the training pen. He’ll put her on his shoulders to watch from a distance. If he doesn’t, Trevor will kick his ass. Then I’ll finish off whatever’s left.”

  “Hey, since you’re here.” Reese spoke up, drawing Clay’s attention to the table where she sat. She moved her oversized day-planner out of the way as Pax placed a full plate of food in front of her. “You’ve missed your suit fitting twice now. If you miss it again, I might have to kill you.” She looked at Pax with wide eyes. “Thank you, baby, but do you think I’m going to eat all of this?”

  Pax’s grin was a sight to behold. It had been far too long since Clay had seen his brother smile that way. After Pax’s ex-wife cheating on him, and their subsequent divorce, Clay had worried Pax would grow old as a bitter and lonely man. Had been well on his way, too, until Reese showed up. About damn time Pax found some happiness.

  “Eat what you want, sweets.” Pax bent to peck her cheek. Reese blushed. “I’ll eat the rest.”

  “You’ll have to stand in line for the killing, Reese. I get first dibs on Clay’s hide.” Lauren chimed in as she filled a plate. “If I didn’t think you’d draw all the attention, I’d make you wear your damn boxer shorts to the wedding. You’re stressing me out, Clay.”

  “Who says I wear boxers?” Clay teased.

  Gavin’s head lifted from the document he’d been studying, glancing first at Lauren, then at Clay as his fiancée’s words registered.

  “Get your ass in gear and get fitted this week,” Gavin said. “It’s not as if we’ve asked you to give up a kidney. Lauren has enough to worry about without you not doing something as simple as making sure your suit fits for the wedding.”

  “I’ve been kinda busy taking care of the cattle.” A weak defense, but it was the only one he had. Plus, it was the truth. With Gavin busy working to add land to their holdings, and Pax looking for a new house while trying to sell his old one, Clay had to pick up more than his share of the slack. He hadn’t intentionally missed those appointments.

  “I didn’t have any trouble getting there,” Pax said.

  Clay tossed him a look that promised retribution. So much for having his back. Dipshit. “Since Reese is the wedding planner, I’d say you had ample motivation.”

  “I’ll motivate you,” Gavin warned.

  Normally, Clay would take the bait, dare Gavin to try it. Make some snide remark about his brother getting soft from his years spent in the big city, working for corporate America.

  Not this morning. This morning, he rolled his eyes and let the challenge go, much to the surprise of his brothers if the look they shared was any indication.

  Clay blamed his lightened mood on the tasty little blonde he’d had his hands on less than an hour ago. With any luck, he’d have more than his hands on Ainsley before the end of the day. He’d have his mouth on her, his aching cock buried in her sweet body as he rode them to paradise. Why pick a fight with his brothers when he had more pleasurable things to think about?

  Clay squeezed between Erin and Lauren. He placed a loud smooch on Erin’s cheek before doing the same to Lauren, and then snagged a piece of bacon from the pile. He ate it in two bites.

  “Lauren fried the bacon,
” Erin informed him with a proud smile. When his sister learned Lauren didn’t know how to cook, Erin had taken it upon herself to teach her.

  Clay raised a suspicious brow. “That right?” He grabbed another piece. He took a deliberate bite, chewing slowly. Seriously, was there anything better than freshly cooked, extra-crispy bacon? He hummed with satisfaction. “Looks like those lessons paid off. Next thing you know, she’ll be whipping up BLT’s like nobody’s business.”

  Clay jumped back with a laugh as Lauren’s fist headed for his gut. With five siblings, it paid to have quick reflexes.

  “You’ll go?” Lauren waggled a butter knife in his direction.

  Clay threw his hands up in surrender. “I didn’t intend to stress you out, darlin’. I’ll get it done this week. Promise.”

  “Damn well better,” Gavin mumbled, his attention back on whatever he was reading.

  Clay didn’t take Gavin’s attitude personally. If Clay were in love with a woman, he’d knock the shit out of anyone who made her unhappy. His brothers were no different.

  “Thanks for breakfast, ladies. Everything looks delicious.” Clay grabbed a plate and piled it high before joining everyone at the table. He couldn’t resist reaching for the bowl of orange slices and adding a couple to his plate. He brought a slice to his nose and drew in its sweet scent before popping it in his mouth. The sweet juice of the fruit exploded against his bite, coating his throat with sticky goodness. He bit back a groan as the flavor brought with it an image of a naked Ainsley under his tongue.

  Why couldn’t he get her out of his head?

  He hardly knew her, yet he couldn’t remember when he’d wanted a woman more.

  Pax caught his eye. “Mom and Dad called. They’ll be home on the nineteenth.”

  Thankful for the distraction from his unruly libido, Clay responded. “That the reason we’re all here this morning?”

  Gavin looked up again. “That’s one reason. Jade mentioned having a welcome home barbecue for them. Nothing extravagant. Just the family. I figured we could smoke up enough meat to feed the hands here at the ranch if they wanted to stop by to eat, or take some home for their families.”

  Sounded like a great idea. “Two weeks is plenty of time to get everything together. What time they comin’ in?”

  Erin spoke up. “Gavin will get them from the airport around eleven that morning. I’ll have the big smokers brought up from the warehouse and we can set them up out back.”

  “Clay, could you handle the cattle check that morning?” Pax asked. “I’ll stay here and help get things set up.”

  He’d have to start before the damn sun was up, but what was new? “Yeah, I’ll take care of it. Might be a little late for the festivities, though.”

  “Mom’ll skin me alive if all her chicks aren’t in the nest when they arrive.” Gavin laughed. “Her words, not mine, I assure you. Do what you can that morning, but make sure you’re here no later than noon. Pax and I will help finish up what needs to be done before dark. Right, Pax?”

  “Sure thing. I’ll plan to get up and check the northern herd before I head here that morning. I’ll leave instructions for the crew to check the largest herd to the west. That leaves the eastern herd for Clay. No reason for that to take all morning.”

  The eastern edge of Shadow Maverick bordered Ainsley’s ranch. Provided she hadn’t kicked him to the curb by then, it wouldn’t take much to slide on over to see her. “That’ll work. You said there was another reason you wanted to talk to us?”

  Gavin tapped a finger on the document in front of him. He spun it around and shoved it between him and Pax. “Take a look at this.”

  “What is it?” Clay reached for it, but Pax got there first.

  “It’s our last-ditch effort to purchase the Nelson Ranch.”

  Clay’s spine stiffened. Ainsley’s attitude about selling was perplexing at best, considering she had zero experience with ranching and, from what he gathered, very little help. He had every intention of finding out where her head was, not because of any interest in her land, but because of his interest in her. And wasn’t that just a kick in the pants? He hadn’t been infatuated with a girl since the fourth grade when he’d stolen his first kiss in the schoolyard. “Ainsley won’t sell.”

  Gavin’s gaze narrowed. “Ainsley? Since when is she Ainsley to you? You don’t even know her.”

  I know how she tastes. I know the needy little noises her throat makes when I’m kissing her.

  “Jesus, Clayton.” Gavin groaned. “Please tell me you didn’t…”

  Soon.

  “Relax. I met her at Slick’s last night. We had a few words.” Clay frowned as the fog from remembering her taste lifted. Her words from the night before rang in his ears. “Several of them not so pleasant. She actually asked me if we were all bullies. You been pushin’ that girl around, Gav?”

  Gavin’s brows lowered. “Of course not. Now I’ve gotta ask, what did you do to make her ask the question in the first place?”

  Clay’s cheeks grew warm and he deflected. “I know I voted for adding land to the ranch. But I didn’t sign on to badger a woman who clearly isn’t interested in what we have to say. It’s her right to keep what old man Nelson left her.”

  Gavin snatched the papers from Pax and slapped them on the table in front of Clay. “No one’s badgering anyone, Clay. She has every right to say no. A fact she’s exercised on more than one occasion. We won’t stop offering until we’ve exhausted the possibilities. That is how business is done.”

  Lauren offered Clay a smile. “If Gavin took no for an answer right out of the gate, he wouldn’t have gotten very far in his career.”

  And Gavin’s corporate career had been very successful.

  Gavin tapped a finger to draw Clay’s attention to what appeared to be a land contract. “This is our bottom line. Since you’re all of a sudden so concerned about Ainsley, why don’t you see if you can get her to see reason?”

  “Or we could leave her alone,” Clay argued. He shoved his plate away, his appetite gone. He didn’t like the idea of pushing Ainsley any further than she’d already been pushed.

  “Do you want the land bordering ours to be taken over by some jackass corporation that won’t give a shit about the land, or the humane treatment of the animals raised there? This isn’t just about gaining grazing space for more cattle, Clay. It’s about preserving the land, our community, our way of life. For my future children and yours.”

  Pax cleared his throat.

  “For all of our children,” Gavin amended. He took a breath and settled back into his chair. “Rumor has it Ainsley’s been selling off her herd to cover the debts Nelson left behind. A fair number of her crew have shown up here looking for steady work, which tells me there’s some merit to the rumors she’s in financial trouble. We could leave her alone, Clay. That’s absolutely an option. We could also leave her to the wolves, men who’d just as soon take advantage of her to get what they want than give her a fair price. We could idly stand by while a person in our community suffers through no fault of her own. We could watch as she’s forced to move away with less than she had when she got here—which Pops said was very little.”

  Clay thought back to when he’d been inside her house earlier. He hadn’t remembered seeing any trinkets or a distinctly feminine personal touch to the place. It’d looked much the same as the last time he’d been there years ago, when he’d stopped to offer his condolences and offer his help after Mrs. Nelson passed away.

  “Is that the kind of men we are?” Gavin prompted.

  Clay assumed the question was rhetorical, since he knew damn well the Mathis family had more integrity than that.

  Gavin seemed convinced Ainsley had no choice but to sell. Clay didn’t know the whole story, but he’d damn well find out. He looked up to find Gavin and Pax watching him.

  Clay snatched up the contract and realized Gavin had just given him the perfect excuse to spend more time with Ainsley. “Fine.” He held back a sm
ile. “I’ll talk to her. If I’m going to have to convince her, y’all have to cover me around here while I’m doin’ it. But I’m warning you now. If she cuts my nuts off, I’ll be comin’ for yours.”

  As he left the room to put the contract in his duffle bag for safekeeping, he let his brothers wonder which one of them he meant to be the donor.

  Chapter Six

  The Texas sun was in full force by the time Ainsley finished in the barn. Her clothes were soaked with sweat. She smelled like a horse and probably had hay sticking out of her hair like a scarecrow. And she felt fantastic.

  Her muscles ached, but in the deeply satisfied way only achieved through physical exertion. Not the physical activity she’d hoped for once Clay had shown up unexpectedly this morning, but her work in the barn had done the trick in burning off her libido and filling her with a sense of accomplishment.

  Using the hose, Ainsley rinsed off her arms and shook the excess water from her hands. She locked the paddock gate behind her and started the walk back to the house. Her grumbling stomach convinced her to swing by the kitchen long enough to make a sandwich before she headed into the garden.

  As she neared the house, a soft bang sounded.

  Ainsley stopped, cocked her head, and listened. Nothing. She resumed her walk, only to stumble three steps later when the sound echoed again.

  What in the world?

  Ainsley took off running. When she rounded the house, she came to a dead halt.

  The place where her porch had been was now a mangled mess of discarded, rotted lumber. The steps were gone. The path to the front door? Yeah, gone.

  And there on his hands and knees, shirtless and glistening with sweat, was Clay Mathis. All tanned, bulging biceps, and ropes of muscle undulating as he swung the hammer in his hand.

  Bang, bang, riiiip.

  Another board went flying.

  Ainsley was stunned. A truck bed filled with lumber was parked next to the house. Panic threatened. She’d have to dip into the operational account to pay for that kind of purchase, which meant less money to pay what little help she’d managed to keep.