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Instead she folded her arms and stared out the window.
“If you were a Texan,” she said, each word bearing a coating of ice, “you’d know how ridiculous that question is. Barbecue, of course.”
Tyler grinned, took out his portable phone and punched a button. “Get out those ribs,” he said.
Then he stepped harder on the gas and the SUV flew into the night.
* * *
She was angry.
Tyler took his eyes off the road just long enough to take a fast look at Caitlin.
Angry didn’t do it. Angry was the understatement of the century. From the set of her jaw and the rigidity of her posture, he was pretty sure that “furious” was a much better bet.
And he couldn’t much blame her.
He’d come on to her with all the subtlety of an octopus, told her he wanted to take her to bed, and while she was still trying to come to terms with that, he’d picked her up, tossed her over his shoulder like a sack of dirty linens and walked off with her.
He shifted in his seat.
Well, not exactly. He’d never describe Caitlin McCord as a sack of laundry, not with all those soft curves. She was all woman, every inch of her—and if he didn’t stop thinking that way and get his mind back on the winding, dark road, they were going to end up a statistic.
“—a date?”
He looked at Caitlin again. She was staring fixedly at the road ahead, her arms still folded across her chest and her chin up so high he wondered if she could see out the window.
Damn, she was beautiful.
“I asked you a question, Mr. Kincaid. Is this the way you normally get a date?”
She certainly had a point there. What in hell had gotten into him?
“And if it is, do you ever wonder why the woman in question is always busy when you ask her out again?”
Dammit, what had gotten into him? He’d asked her out the day he’d had his confrontation with Baron. No. No, that wasn’t quite accurate. He hadn’t “asked” her, he’d told her. What difference did it make? The bottom line was that he’d shown up tonight, knowing she’d never agree to spend the evening with him.
“Dragging a woman into your cave by her hair may go over well wherever it is you come from but somebody should have warned you that it’s frowned upon here.”
“Okay, you’ve made your point.” Tyler looked at her. “I don’t normally drag my women off by their hair.”
“I am not ‘your’ woman.”
“Not yet.”
Caitlin decided not to rise to the challenge, the same as she decided to ignore the little shiver of excitement his words sent zinging down her spine.
“Look, if I came on a little strong…”
“A little strong? You came on like a tank, Kincaid. And I don’t like it.”
“Really? You could have fooled me.” He looked at her again. Her face was difficult to read in the muted glow of the dashboard lights. Still, he thought he could see the rise of color in her cheeks.
“Ditch the sarcasm, Kincaid. It doesn’t work.”
“It wasn’t sarcasm, baby, it was the truth. You want me as much as I want you. And I’ve wanted you since the moment you damn near rode me down with your horse.”
She swallowed dryly, put her hands in her lap and folded them tightly together.
“Well, here’s another truth, Kincaid. You’re wasting your evening.”
Tyler gave a soft laugh. “Really.”
“I have no intention of—of sleeping with you.”
“I’m glad to hear it, because I have no intention of sleeping with you, either.” His voice roughened. “When I take you to bed, sleep will be the last thing either of us will do.”
“My God, you’re insufferable! You’re so damned sure of yourself!” He heard the angry hiss of her breath, then the rustle of her skirt as she sat up even straighter. “I hope you enjoy your evening, Mr. Kincaid, because I promise you, it will be the last one you spend in my company.”
Tyler smiled. “When you know me better, Ms. McCord, you’ll know that it’s always a mistake to offer me a challenge.”
“And when you know me better, you’ll know that wasn’t a challenge, it was a promise.”
“Call it whatever you like.” He glanced in his mirror, turned on a signal light, and swung onto a narrow, unlit road. “What I heard was a challenge.”
“This is a really stupid conversation,” Caitlin said coldly, though her thoughts were anything but cool. The road was endless, easily as long as the one leading to Espada. Tree branches whipped by overhead, blocking out the moon. Where was he taking her? She knew every inch of this country. There wasn’t a restaurant within miles.
All at once, lights studded the darkness ahead. She sat forward and focused on the dim outline of a building.
“Is this place new? I know just about every barbecue pit in Texas,” she said warily. “And I’ve never heard of one out here, in the middle of nowhere.”
She could see the building clearly now, in the glare of the headlights. It was long and low, and if it was a restaurant, it certainly wasn’t doing very much advertising. There was no sign out front, no parking lot…
No other cars.
Caitlin swung toward Tyler.
“Okay, that’s it.” Her eyes narrowed as she looked at him. “Take me home.”
“Certainly.”
He pulled up before the building and shut off the engine. Night sounds crowded around them, the buzz of a billion insects, the keening yip of a coyote.
“Kincaid.” Stay calm, she told herself. Stay calm, sound as if you’re not afraid, and he’ll take you home. Tyler Kincaid might be an enigma, but he wasn’t a barbarian. “I want to go home.”
“You are home.” He stepped from the car, went around to her side and opened the door. “Well, to be specific, you’re at my home.”
She jerked away when he reached for her but he caught her hand and linked his fingers through hers.
“Cait,” he said softly, “I live here.”
Her gaze flew to his. “Here? But when I asked Jonas, he said—”
She clamped her lips together, but it was too late. The words were already out of her mouth, he’d heard them, and the look on his face told her what a mistake she’d made.
“You asked your stepfather about me?”
“No. Of course not. Well, yes. I mean, you and he obviously had a row, and then you left, and I—and I…” Dammit! The more she said, the worse it sounded. She took a deep breath and stepped from the car. “All right,” she said briskly. “I admit, I was curious.”
“Aren’t you curious now?” He jerked his chin toward the enormous house behind them. “I am, if you’re not. I saw this place for the first time this morning.”
“You what?”
“I asked the realtor to show me some ranch property. She took me to half a dozen places but when I saw this one, I knew it was right.” He grinned. “At least, I think it’s right. It comes furnished.”
“How nice for you,” she said lamely.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought. So—I put a deposit on it but I’d like an honest opinion before I sign the papers tomorrow.”
“An honest opinion.” Caitlin cleared her throat. “That’s why you brought me out here? To ask me what I think of this house before you buy it?”
“Sure. What do I know about Texas ranches? I’m just a Georgia country boy, myself.”
She looked at him through narrowed eyes. Tyler Kincaid was as much a country boy as she was the queen.
“Cait? Do me a favor. Take a look.”
He wasn’t a man who asked favors of anybody, either. There was something wrong with this entire setup…but damn, she was curious. And now that she’d taken a better look at the house, that curiosity was growing.
“Is this the Wilson place?”
Tyler nodded. “Do you know them?”
“No. Well, not exactly. I came here with Jonas once, when Charlie Wilson was raising money for
his Senate run.” She sighed, tugged her hand free of Tyler’s and stepped from the car. “I don’t know what I can possibly tell you that the realtor couldn’t.”
Tyler led the way to the front door. “Well,” he said, as he opened it and turned on the lights, “for starters, you can tell me if there’s some law that says those things have to hang at the windows.”
Caitlin stared at what looked like yards and yards of deep crimson, scalloped and fringed and festooned with heavy gold fringe.
A laugh bubbled up in her throat. She bit it back and took a quick look around her. Not just crimson drapes and gold trim, but cupids and shepherdesses and naked cherubs, too.
“I’d heard that Charlie’s second wife had the place redone,” she said, and then she couldn’t help it. She snorted, snorted again, and hooted with laughter. “Oh my gosh, it’s awful!”
Tyler breathed a sigh of relief. “You can’t imagine how relieved I am to hear you say that. The realtor—”
“Who is she?”
“Lady name of Pru Barnes. Do you know her?”
“Oh, yes. I certainly do. The woman acts as if she has a stick up…” Caitlin colored. “She’s stiff-necked. Folks lay bets on what will happen, the first time she smiles.”
“Yeah, well, she’s not gonna smile around me, I can tell you that.” He crossed the room and tugged at the drapes. “I told her the place looked like a world-class bordello. For a minute, I thought she was going to faint dead away.”
Caitlin threw back her head and laughed. “I love it! I just wish I’d been here to see…Kincaid? Kincaid, what are you…”
