“No… I…” She stared straight at him. “You scared me!” Now that the panic passed, hot fury flooded in.
He nudged up his hat as if to get a better look and see if she was joking. Whatever she saw in her expression must have convinced him, because he scuffed a boot on the pavement in the parking area.
“Shit. I’m sorry. I only did what had to be done to catch that horse. If it jumped a fence, it probably wouldn’t stop running until we caught up to it in the next county.”
“I’m finished with this conversation!” She grabbed her door handle and threw the door open, but he stopped it with a hand, keeping her from leaving.
“Sadie, wait. What’s happening? I had to chase that horse.” Confusion pinched his brows, slanting them down and reminding her of how he looked just before he came apart in her arms.
She shook herself and tried to push her door open wider to climb behind the wheel. He prevented her with a palm planted firmly on the metal.
Irritated, frustrated and hating how helpless he’d left her feeling with his show-off-in-spurs antics, she raked her fingers through her hair. “You can scoff if you want, but that scared me. This whole ranch scares me.”
He started to chuckle. “Scares you? Why? It’s only a…”
He cut off.
“Fuck, I am an asshole. Your husband. I’m so sorry, Sadie.”
She had cried all the tears she had in her for a decade, and thankfully her eyes were dry now. She sent Theo a glare.
Taking a step toward her, he hemmed her in against the side of the truck. Her body scorched at his nearness.
Clearly she had no grip on her body at all—in minutes she’d gone from panicked to sick to furious and now aroused.
Why did this man have to drag her through the gamut of the strongest emotions a person could possibly feel?
He hovered over her, lifting her jaw to force her to meet his stare. “You have to believe I’m sorry that I frightened you.”
She balled her fists and readied herself to knee him in the balls if he didn’t back away.
“You came here to ask me for help, and I’m more than willing to give it. We’re going to look at the job right now.”
She didn’t speak.
“And I’m driving. So get in the passenger seat.”
Glaring up at him did no good, and she didn’t have the energy left after climbing off her rollercoaster of the last few minutes.
She walked around the truck and got in.
When he settled, he moved the seat all the way back.
“I’ll never get the seat in the right spot again,” she grumbled, trying not to notice the length of his legs and how he ate up every inch of the leather.
He sliced a smile at her, leaving her warmed from more than anger. “I’m sure you’ll manage to figure it out.”
He backed out and trundled down the driveway leading from the Bellamy Ranch to the road.
She never should have come here looking for him. Her impatience with the slow-moving contractors in the area had led her here, and look what happened. She went crazy, almost puked on her boots and at the moment, she kept thinking about that sunset they shared.
Sometimes while watching a rodeo, she’d get tense enough that she played with her hair as a nervous reaction. She felt herself tugging at the ends and dropped her hands to her lap.
“Tell me more about this schoolhouse.”
She side-eyed him. He was trying to distract her.
“You know where it is?” she asked.
“Yeah. Pretty sure one of the ranch hands attended there in the old days.”
She raised a brow.
“Kidding. Max isn’t that old. We all rag on him for being around since before the first saddle was made, but it’s all in good fun. So, you need new flooring.”
“After I build some walls, yes.”
He cocked a brow. Across the space, electricity zapped, supercharging the air. They were already on a back road and he only had to pull off somewhere and she could be in his arms.
His lap.
Sinking over his thick cock.
Shameless. What is wrong with me?
“I’m capable of building walls,” she defended.
“Since I don’t know you very well, I have no idea of the skills you possess.” He dipped his eyes over her breasts.
“Why did you look at my breasts when you said that? As if they have any special abilities!”
He blinked at her outburst and then cracked up laughing. Swinging his attention to the road, he continued to chuckle for a good half mile before he spoke. “You’re an enigma, Ms. Sadie. I admit I have no idea what you might say or do next.”
No wonder—she’d been a maniac since the minute they met and she jumped him. Since then, she’d run away from him at the outdoor party, tracked him down at the ranch where he worked and so much more that made her unpredictable in his eyes.
“I can’t wait to see this new house of yours.” His tone of voice smoothed over her like silk against bare skin. Like panties being pulled down her hips and off an ankle before he dove between her thighs.
The squeeze of desire in her lower stomach made her wiggle in the seat. Of course, Theo’s heavy gaze latching onto her didn’t make her calm down even the slightest.
When they arrived at the schoolhouse, he cut the engine and sat staring out the windshield at the quaint structure. “It’s pretty great.”
Excitement at her good luck hit all over again. “I know!” She bounced out of the truck and hurried across the grass to the front door.
“You could use a sidewalk.” He looked down at the patchy grass as he followed.
“I haven’t decided if I want stepping stones or a concrete sidewalk.” She unlocked the front door and swung it wide.
He stepped up to the entrance. “Do both doors open?” He touched the double door still fixed in place.
“Yes, they do.” She stepped in to the echoey space which only held the few boxes she’d brought from Texas.
He drank it all in with one swipe of his gaze. “You had some lumber delivered already. Good.”
“Yes, for the walls. Some won’t be full walls, only partitions. Come see my plan.” She led the way to the boxes she had stacked in the middle of the floor, labeled with the contents. On the top box lay a paper plan she’d hand drafted of the schoolhouse including the designated spaces and where walls would go.
He picked it up and then locked his brown eyes on her. “You did this?”
She nodded.
“Dom told me you’re a house doctor but I had no idea this is what you do.”
She smiled. “Did you expect boxes of curtain samples?”
He offered a sheepish grin. “Maybe. And wooden geese you hang on the wall. My grandma had them in her kitchen.”
A chuckle escaped her, softer and throatier than she expected. But standing so close to Theo affected her in ways she didn’t know how to explain. Maybe she’d left her brain back in Dallas and her libido took its place. Or the connection she felt whenever she looked at him was to blame, even if it was loneliness.
His long, capable fingers wrapped around the edges of her plan, which he stood admiring with a small smile, sparked more excitement in her core.
What a terrible idea to have him working in her home. All that maleness, muscle and testosterone.