CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Jody straightened up slowly, exhausted from helping repair a sagging bottom line of fencing. Her hands were blistered and she leaned against a post momentarily, looking down the line. Joe and Eric were working on another trouble spot, shirtless in the blazing sun. Men did have certain advantages, she thought wryly. Eric had looked at her tank top with disapproval and Joe with interest, but either way—they were probably cooler than she was.
Her task was finished, so for a minute or two she just admired Joe as he bent and strained, his bare skin glistening. Aware that Eric might look her way at any moment, though, she pulled her phone out to check. She had a missed text, which surprised her, as she hadn’t heard her phone. She looked at it more closely and blinked. Not Their First Rodeo would like to talk to you about horse rescue. Major! Darlene.
When she glanced up the fence line again, Joe was fishing for his phone. She grinned. Either Darlene or Dora, undoubtedly. His look of frustration and headshake verified her hunch as Joe and she walked toward each other. As she drew closer, she bit her lip. If she thought he looked good from behind…but Eric had noticed them. She fought back the urge to kiss his chest. Or stomach.
“Mine was from Darlene,” she announced. “Yours?”
“The other. I thought we made it clear we weren’t interested?”
“Darlene’s convinced they’re legit, and someone named Sheila is your sister’s friend.” She fished her bandana out of her pocket and handed it to him since his was dripping wet. “Joe, maybe we should just listen.”
“We don’t have time,” Joe protested. “We need to run in to town to buy halters and leads. The guys can’t have sixty-three of them, and even if we can turn some of the horses out, we need to be able to deal with emergencies.”
He glanced over his shoulder to where Eric was draining a jug of water, leaned forward, and kissed her quickly. “Besides, everything’s falling into place. We might be done by early Saturday without even breaking a sweat.”
“And then what?” Jody leaned forward and brushed a kiss on his chest. He shivered and salt burned her lips. Behind them, Eric was choking on water. Or anger.
“Maybe we shouldn’t tempt the fates,” Joe murmured, his eyes dancing. “But we can celebrate ahead of time, if you want.”
Jody smiled in answer and headed toward his truck. One more run to the feed store, a quick stop for some notes she’d left at the house, and tomorrow or Saturday, Cowboy would be home. When she turned to find Joe, he was still where she’d left him, talking to someone on the phone.
He came over shaking his head. “Talk about being on you like ticks! Apparently we’ll have company when we pick up the stuff at the feed store.
“Company?” Jody gasped. “Who? Why?”
“I took a call from Darlene. Only she’d loaned her phone to Sylvia from the rodeo show.”
“And you agreed we’d meet them?”
“Not exactly, no.” Joe headed down the drive. “I told them we’d been fencing and weren’t presentable. They said ‘we do reality. Come as you are.’ I’m stopping for a shirt.”
“Shucks,” Jody retorted. “Guess I’ll put something on, too, then.”
“We’ll bore them to pieces,” Joe said. “But that’s a good thing, right? No more helpful family members saddling us with nosy strangers.”
“Exactly,” Jody agreed with feeling.
***
Hours later, Jody closed her bedroom door and locked it, blushing, but determined to be comfortable with what she had told Eric: “We’re together.” Joe had bathed and changed in his room, because, he told her, that would optimize time for everything else.
“So what’s this everything else?” she demanded, scooting across the bed and kissing his neck. He hardened immediately and pulled her close. She relished in the sensations that flooded her when he held her. She felt wanted. Cherished, too, yet brazenly sensual. Awareness made her blush, or maybe it was just the need she had for the man trailing kisses down her throat, making her skin burn.
His hands slid over her, cupping her ass to bring her fully against him. She let him roll with her, straddling him as he moved her over him, and for a second, she wanted to hide.
Then he gave her a lazy smile and began moving, his hands caressing and holding her, and she forgot everything but the need she had for him.
***
“We’ve done a lot in less than a week,” Joe said quietly, then lifted himself on an elbow and peered at her.
“Yes, I’m still awake,” she muttered. “But you sure pick odd times to talk.”
“Well, that’s all that’s left until tomorrow morning. Let’s just be sure we have a plan.”
Jody rummaged under the linens for her phone. “Morning as in two hours?”
“Saturday when the last horse is unloaded and fed, we’ll sleep.”
“We were going to feed all your buddies to thank them. And the two vets.” Jody swung her legs over the edge of the bed and slipped out of his grasp as he tried to catch her.
“Where are you going?” he asked, and yawned.
“To worry. It’s what I do best.” She jerked the rumpled bedspread up to his waist. “Go back to sleep. You’ll be busier than me later today.”
“How do you figure that?” he demanded.
She shrugged. “For all that I love horses, I semi-trained one that still can’t be ridden. You’re the guy who gets to deal with sixty-two others.”
He groaned and rolled over, and she went down to the kitchen to put coffee on and fight her nervousness over the day ahead.