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“He has a home on the Triple C as long as he wants it,” Chase stated, but the minute he mentioned the word “home,” he was reminded that this wasn’t hers. “I guess you’ll be heading back to your ranch soon.”
“I guess,” she agreed and gave him a sideways smile. “It’s for sure you don’t need anyone to look after you anymore.”
“After being gone so long, you’re probably eager to get back.”
“Not as much as I thought I would be,” Hattie replied. “I don’t know—coming here to a brand-new place, all the work it took to whip the cabin into shape. I enjoyed it. It made me feel young again. Sounds crazy, doesn’t it?”
“Not to me.” And he couldn’t explain why. “It’s for sure I’ll miss you when you go.” He found he wasn’t looking forward to that. Hattie had been the one constant in his new life without a memory.
“Well, you’ll have to wait, because I haven’t left yet,” she retorted.
Chase chuckled. “That’s what I like about you, Hattie. You are never at a loss for a comeback.”
“With a man like you, a woman doesn’t have a choice. She either stands toe to toe with you or gets walked over. And you aren’t walking over me, Duke.”
The smile stayed. “I wouldn’t try.”
“Yes, you would—if I let you.”
“You don’t have a very high opinion of me, do you?” He couldn’t say exactly why that bothered him, but it did.
“That wasn’t a criticism, Duke,” Hattie admonished lightly. “It isn’t even something you would do knowingly. It would simply happen, because you would be too busy to notice. Heaven knows, there are worse faults a man could have.”
“I’ll take your word for it.” Seeking to change the subject, Chase went back to the previous one. “How much longer will your neighbor look after your place?”
“He’ll probably start squawking in another week.”
Chase found himself thinking back to the time he had spent there, the comfort of its old kitchen and the old wooden rocker on the porch. Those thoughts prompted him to recall the old branding iron. Suddenly another memory clicked into place.
Abruptly he swung around and grabbed her by the upper arms. “That old branding iron was a C Bar. That was the brand of Seth Calder’s ranch in Texas. You own his old place.” The certainty of it flashed through him. “My God, I may have slept and ate in the same house he did—and Benteen, too.” A stunned laugh came from him at the incredible coincidence of that.
Hattie looked at him as if he had taken leave of his sense. “What are you talking about, Duke? Who is Seth Calder?”
“My great-grandfather, I think.” He smiled with the realization that he remembered that. “He was Benteen’s father.” In a burst of exuberance, Chase lifted her off her feet and swung her around, ignoring her gasp of surprise.
“You idiot,” Hattie protested laughingly.
But she had no chance to say more. The minute her feet touched the ground, his head swooped down, and he claimed her mouth in a silencing kiss. It wasn’t something he had planned, but the instant he made contact with the soft, giving warmth of her lips, it not only felt right, it felt good, awakening desires that had been long dormant.
What had likely begun as a smack on the lips turned into something more as he explored her rounded curves. His arms wound around her, molding her against him while her hands spread themselves across his back and her body arched, seeking a greater closeness. His blood heated, old needs surfacing with young vigor. He took satisfaction in the discovery that her breathing was as rough as his own.
He was slow to untangle himself from her lips and lift his head to look at her, just for the pure pleasure of it. Her ey
es remained closed, her lips slightly swollen from the demands of his kiss.
“Whew.” Hattie released a shaky breath and opened her eyes to look up at him with a slightly dazed and dazzled look. “You pack quite a punch, Duke,” she declared, the huskiness of her voice telling him that she was still feeling the same disturbances he was. “I’m not surprised, though. I somehow knew you would.”
“Are you saying this is something you have been thinking about?” The possibility pleased him.
“How modest you sound.” A soft laugh bubbled from her. “That was unexpected. Only an immature female would fail to find you attractive and wonder what it would be like to be kissed by you.” She absently straightened the collar of his shirt, a gesture that conveyed a comfortable intimacy. “And I have definitely wondered.” Her gaze lingered a moment on the masculine line of his mouth, then lifted to his eyes. “Or is that something you think I shouldn’t admit? You seem to live by an old code. Maybe you don’t believe a woman should admit she sometimes feels desire, too.”
“You know something, Hattie.” A smile crinkled the lines around his brown eyes. “You talk too much.”
“And you don’t talk enough,” she countered. “For instance, I don’t know if it bothers you that I am a widow. Do you think I’m being unfaithful to Ed’s memory by wanting to kiss you?”
“Shut up,” Chase growled and took steps to make certain she did.
The kiss was a long and deep one, each giving free rein to their passions. Each had felt this heated rush of feeling before, but being new to each other gave it a heady twist.
