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Bryn and Trent sat with Mac until almost eight o’clock that evening. Trent brought cafeteria food up for Bryn and him to eat. In some ways, it was almost like old times, the teasing, the laughter. They avoided any and all topics that might be upsetting to Mac.
But finally, it was time for Trent to leave. He touched Bryn’s shoulder. “Walk me out to the car.”
She did so reluctantly, unwilling to be alone with him but unable to think of a good excuse. They stopped off in the gift shop and Bryn bought a toothbrush and toothpaste. She tucked them in her purse with the sales slip and followed Trent outside. “Call my cell,” she said, “and I’ll let you know when the doctor says he can be dismissed.”
Trent leaned a hip against the car. “Okay. I doubt you’ll get any sleep tonight. Are you sure you don’t want to keep the hotel room and let us take turns?”
She shook her head. “Mac will feel better about the ranch this way.” A suddenly gust of wind sent her hair flying. The skies were darkening as storm clouds built. “You should go,” she said. “So you won’t have to drive in what’s coming.”
Trent smoothed her hair behind her ears, both of his hands cupping her cheeks. His gaze was troubled. “I want to believe in you,” he muttered.
The husky words went straight to her heart. Was she imagining the caring and tenderness in his voice? She stepped away from him, gathering her courage, though all she wanted to do was rest in his arms. “But you can’t,” she said, the words barely audible.
He thrust his hands in his pockets. “You expect a lot.”
She forced herself to say the words. “I can’t be intimate with a man who despises me.”
For a split second, he stood, poleaxed, before his face closed up and a mask of arrogance cloaked his inner emotions. “I don’t despise you, Brynnie. That’s the problem.”
She shifted from one foot to the other, wincing as thunder rolled in the distance. “Perhaps in light of Mac’s most recent incident, we need to concentrate all our focus on him.”
Trent’s black scowl sent a shiver down her spine.
She held out a hand. “Let’s face it. We have nothing in common, Trent. You’re leaving very soon…as soon as Gage gets here. Mac might get the wrong idea if he realizes we’ve been…”
“Screwing?”
His deliberate crudity hurt. “You were always special to me, Trent. And what we did this afternoon was—”
He grabbed her wrist. “If you say fun, so help me, God, I’ll shake you, Bryn. But don’t worry, sweetheart.” A sneer curled his perfect lips. “I get the message. You have a short attention span when it comes to men. Maybe Jesse was right about you after all.”
He lowered his mouth to hers, giving her no time to protest. But his lips were gentler than his mood, less combative, coaxing rather than demanding her submission. His tongue invaded her mouth, devastating, as he mimicked the sex act. Her knees went weak. She clung to his arms for support. Even now, with intense emotion radiating from his big frame, she felt no fear, no urge to run.
His hips were melded to hers, leaving no doubt about his state of mind. His erection pressed insistently against her lower abdomen. He was giving her what she craved…perhaps for the last time. And all she wanted to do was meet his raging hunger with her own desperate need for him.
It was over too soon. He shoved her away, his chest heaving. “We’re not done with this, Bryn. Not by a long shot.”
He got in the car, slammed the door and sped away, leaving her on the sidewalk.
Trent swore violently. How in the hell had she done it to him again?
Was she scared? Or was this part of a Machiavellian plan? Did she think she could turn him into a sex-starved, drooling idiot?
How dare she throw their lovemaking in his face? He’d begun to trust her, to believe in her. And she was deliberately trying to drive him away. He sent the car careening down the road, mile after mile, until reason prevailed and he eased his foot off the accelerator. He’d be no good to anyone dead. Mac was depending on him, and Trent didn’t have the luxury of letting his temper reign.
Back at the ranch, he dealt with the various chores on autopilot, his brain racing madly to understand Bryn’s behavior. The storm struck with a vengeance, drenching him as he ran from barn to stable to house. When he was finally done for the night, he showered and prowled the halls, wandering from room to room, the electricity in the air keeping him on edge.
