Texas Hot

  Texas Hot

  By

  Regina Carlysle

  Texas Hot

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  Texas Hot

  Copyright © 2015 Regina Carlysle

  Cover art by Syneca

  Electronic book publication May 2015

  This book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the publisher.

  Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the publisher’s permission. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. (http://www.fbi.gov/ipr/). Please purchase only authorized electronic or print editions and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted material. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the authors’ imagination and used fictitiously.

  Dedication

  In our lifetimes, friends come and go. Serendipitous friends are there for a time and a reason and then, like butterflies, they flit away. True friends, lifelong friends, come along rarely. Finding someone with whom to enjoy that first cup of coffee in the morning (albeit via phone), to talk and dream with, one who totally ‘gets’ you is rare. So this one is for you, Syneca. Thanks for taking this journey with me.

  Chapter One

  Finding Buck River Ranch in the heart of the Texas Hill Country had been, despite the GPS system on her phone, a harrowing experience for this city girl. Wilderness, craggy rock covered hills, pickup trucks, lots of trees and cows, for the love of God. Cows! They grazed in green pastures, tucked safely behind fences that stretched for miles.

  Burgers on the hoof.

  Gina Leoni was a heck of a long way from concrete, towering buildings, and buzzing traffic that jammed every street like frenzied ants and right now, it seemed to her, she’d landed on an alien planet where everyone spoke in a slow, lazy drawl and each pair of eyes hid some kind of weird steely determination.

  She’d always heard everything was bigger in Texas and proof of that theory sat across an aged, walnut desk, focused on her with a disconcerting intensity. He was the kind of man who made a woman forget how to breathe.

  Rugged cowboys were the stuff of legend and this big-as-a-mountain rancher had character stamped all over him. From his sun-bronzed skin to the faint pale lines radiating from the corners of remarkable green eyes, Mitch McBride was the kind of man who made women weak in the knees and forget every ounce of common sense they might possess. A shaft of bright afternoon sunlight caught strands of his thick saddle-brown hair painting it with shades of red and gold. She was familiar with city men so nothing in her imagination had prepared her for her first devastating glimpse of a real Texas cowboy. Everything about him sent an equal measure of fear and fascination through her and considering her past, big men held no appeal and, as a rule, she avoided them like the plague. But this one? Gina knew she just might be tempted to break her own rules when it came to him.

  As they say in Texas…hot damn.

  Sitting quietly, valiantly ignoring the way her heart pounded, Gina watched her potential employer lean back, the chair he sat in squeaking a protest against the sheer size of him. His lips kicked up on one side as if he knew a naughty secret that he didn’t plan to share.

  “So Miz Leoni, you’re from Brooklyn, New York,” he said, his voice heavy and so sexily southern. “You’re a hell of a long way from home. Care to tell me what brought you out this way?”

  “Gina, please.” Shocked by the faint quality in her own voice, Gina cleared her throat. “Um…I think I just needed a change of scenery. I’ve never been to Texas and I thought it was past time that I visited. So I hopped in my car and here I am.”

  “You drove here? By yourself?” He narrowed those sharp eyes. “That’s a long haul for a woman alone.”

  “I know how to take care of myself.”

  A slow grin spread across his face. “You’re a little, bitty thing but I’ll bet you do. They raise their women pretty spunky back East. At least that’s what I hear.” He motioned to a man who leaned against the wall, another cowboy, obviously related to Mitch McBride. “The fella holdin’ up the wall over there is my brother, Dawson.”

  Dawson shifted until he stood upright, a long, lean hunk of pure gorgeous, whose eyes bore the same shade of green as his sibling. They sure made their men hot in Texas. Was it something in the water?

  He reached up and tipped his hat just as she’d seen in a couple hundred western movies. “Ma’am.”

  Gina looked from one to the other. “Are you twins?”

  Mitch barked a laugh. “Hardly. He’s the baby.”

  “You must want an ass kickin’. Again,” Dawson said in a low, thicker-than-molasses voice but Gina spotted the hint of humor in his eyes. She had five brothers and this sort of banter reminded her of home. Brothers picked and tormented each other but underneath that was love.

  Mitch shook his head. “He’s a pitiful braggart. Can’t abide cockiness in a man.” He slid a look in her direction. “What do you think about cocky men, Gina?”

  Playing along she pretended to think. “Depends. Maybe they’re okay. I don’t know.”

  “Well now, that’s real decisive of you.”

  Gina laughed and what nerves she fostered began to evaporate. Dawson walked to her chair and studied her. “It was nice to meet you but since you don’t seem the dangerous sort, I think my brother can handle the interview just fine.” He glanced at Mitch. “Think I’ll head into town and see Bobby over at Jackson’s Feed and Seed. Need to pick up that equipment we ordered last week. He called a little bit ago and said it came in.”

  Mitch nodded and when he and Gina were alone again, he focused on her. “So how’d you find out we need help here at Buck River?”

  She thought briefly of her dwindling cash supply and the impossibility of using her credit cards. Desperation at her circumstances ate at her. Remaining calm despite the troubles that might be following her, she shrugged. “I stopped in at a little café in town for some lunch.”

  “That would be the Dixie Pig.”

  “Right.” She smiled a little. “Funny name.”

  “We’ve got a lot of funny around here. You’ll get used to it.”

  Gina loved his humor. There was something about a smiling man that reminded her of home and her big loving, Italian family. A blast of homesickness threatened her composure. She shook her head, smile fading a little. “I doubt that will happen. I’ll only stay long enough to make enough money to continue traveling. Anyway, I found a local newspaper at the um, Dixie Pig, and checked out the classifieds. When I saw your ad looking for temporary help, I knew I had to apply. Since I’m broke at the moment, it seemed the answer to my prayers.”

  Mitch gave her a thoughtful look. “Our cook and housekeeper just had a baby and Dawson and I figured she ought to spend a little extra time with her family right now. Six weeks just doesn’t seem long enough to me.”

  “That’s very nice of you.”

  He shrugged. “She needs to be home bouncing that little boy on her knee for the next three months. Kids grow fast enough as it is. Anyway, my brother and I don’t cook for shit unless you count our tossing a steak on the grill every now and then. I can wrap foil around a potato and throw it in the oven, too, but that’s not going to cut it. We’ve got dust in every corner and twenty hands to feed twice a day. To be quite hon
est with you, Gina, we’re pretty damn desperate. The important question here is….can you cook?”

  Here was a question she could answer in all honesty. “I can. You could safely say the Leonis are a clan who loves to eat and with Mama and I the only females, cooking, and doing a good job at it, is mandatory but I hope you like Italian food.”

  “I can eat noodles.”

  “Pasta.”

  Mitch laughed. “Hell, Gina, I’m just teasing you. Feisty little thing, aren’t you?”

  Never in her life had she been referred to as feisty but it was a folksy term that seemed more than a little endearing to a woman who, at the moment, felt friendless and alone. It had been a long time since she’d felt anything other than beaten down and afraid and it was her hope that some time in Texas would help her re-invent herself or, at least, recapture the spirited girl she’d once been.

  After all she’d endured, it was nice to hear such a word applied to herself. She liked it. For the first time in months, she felt more than just a shell of a woman. Gina felt alive and excited about facing the future…at least the immediate future. Breathing deeply, inhaling the scent of aged leather that permeated the room, taking in the trapping of this purely masculine domain, she felt comfort, safety.

  Safety.

  Yes, that was it.

  Mitch McBride and his brother Dawson were the kind of men who would protect anyone lucky enough to live under the roof of this beautiful, rustic ranch house. Gina not only needed this job; she wanted it.

  It was the perfect place in which to hide.

  Taking another leap and hoping to ensure she got the position, she nodded. “Maybe I am feisty enough to handle this job. What do you think? My family still owns one of the finest Italian bakeries in Brooklyn and I grew up making the best cannolis known to mankind.”

  His gaze slid to her lips and held. The gleam in his eyes was so purely sexual she caught her breath and held it for several long seconds. “You’re making me downright hungry. I like sweet stuff,” he murmured before looking up again. “Always have.”

  A little shiver swept her. It began in her brain, zipped over her breast bone and settled low in her belly where it coiled tight. The unexpected flash of sexual heat made her shift in her chair but then Mitch shook his head and mumbled something low that she didn’t quite catch.

  He stood, all six-three or four of him, and held out his hand. “I’m offering room and board along with a generous salary. Probably wouldn’t buy you much in a big city but it’ll be good enough to get you by until you head out of town again. Do we have a deal?”

  Gina stood to her full, diminutive height and squared her shoulders before placing her hand in his. “You’ve got a deal, Mitch. When do I start?”

  There was that grin again. Purely wicked. Amazingly mischievous. Her heart stuttered then sped. The attraction was impossible to deny and she didn’t need a man, any man in her life, so why the hell was she still here? Money, she lied. It was all about the money.

  He squeezed her hand for a solitary moment longer then walked around the desk until he towered over her. Instinctively she stepped back a little and he studied her quietly. “How about now, Miz Leoni? Come on. I’ll give you a tour.”

  “That sounds perfect. Thanks for giving me the opportunity. I promise to work hard and do a good job.”

  “You’ll manage just fine. Dawson and I aren’t that hard to please. Three square meals and a little cleanliness are all we ask. We don’t demand you jump through any hoops at the Buck River.” Mitch settled a hand at the base of her spine and steered her through the door of the spacious office near the front of the house. Gina was eager to see the rest of this place she would soon call home, recalling her fascination when she’d approached the ranch earlier today. It was a sprawling enterprise that occupied land roughly three miles from the town of Verde Hills, a pair of heavy pale limestone structures marking its entrance. Between the twin pillars stretched the heavily iron-worked words Buck River. From that spectacular point-of-entry, a long winding drive had led her to the house which set like a wide, pale limestone jewel upon a carpet of green. It’s heavy, dark walnut double front doors added color and welcome along with weighty, black urns that spilled over with pink and white peonies.

  The inside of the house was no less spectacular and just as she’d always envisioned the home of a wealthy Texas rancher might be. Together they walked from the office and Mitch pointed down the hallway to a set of doors in the distance. “Dawson’s suite of rooms is here and the room next door is for guests.”

  She nodded and then together she and Mitch walked across shiny hardwood floors through the massive front area that featured a soft leather sofa-and-chair grouping and eclectic, rustic accessories that practically screamed old west. Wide rough-hewn beams traced across the high gables of the ceiling.

  “When Mom and Dad bought the land eons ago, they had a little house here but once they started a family and Buck River became more prosperous, they built this place. I think they’d hoped for more kids than just me and Dawson but hey, it is what it is.” He looked around the room almost as if seeing it for the first time and Gina sensed his pride in the beauty around him. He glanced at her and smiled. They crossed the room and passed through another door.

  “Aha,” Gina said, looking around with a smile.

  “Sorry. Man-cave. Cluttered as hell in here.”

  Sure enough, four empty beer bottles sat atop a big table in front of a sofa that looked worn and comfortable. A couple of tattered recliners flanked the couch on either side. A plastic bowl containing bits of popcorn and kernels rested among other assorted litter along with the empties. These guys loved their snacks. Over a massive fireplace hung a giant flat-screened TV and across the room set a pool table that sported a tiny rip in its green top. Two pool sticks lay across it along with a scattering of colorful balls.

  “I see what you mean about needing someone to clean,” she said with a little laugh. “My brothers would love this room.”

  “How many brothers?”

  “Four.”

  “Now that’s a big family. You’re the only girl?”

  “Yes. I have three older brothers and one younger. I’m sadly outnumbered. They picked on me continually. Still do.”

  “That’s what brothers are supposed to do.”

  She laughed. “As long as they do it with love, I can deal.”

  “There ya go.” Mitch took a rueful look around the room. “Surprised you’re not hightailin’ it out of here right about now.”

  “It takes more than a little clutter to send me running. New Yorkers are bred of stronger stuff.”

  “I can see that. Come on, let’s continue the tour.” He glanced at his watch and frowned.

  “You need to get back to work, don’t you? Hey, I can take a look around on my own and let you get back to business, if you want.”

  Mitch shook his head. “No, that’s okay. Let’s finish up and get you settled in.”

  “That sounds like a good idea.”

  The house was spectacular and a far cry from the small flats where she’d lived with her family and, then later, her ex-husband, Anthony. It was hard to imagine two guys needing so much space but Gina knew she could get used to this kind of living. Mitch led the way to two more sets of doors and when he turned a knob to push one door wide, she had to smile. Obviously this was Mitch’s room and he had the good grace to look a little embarrassed.

  “I shut the damn door so you wouldn’t notice right away what a mess I am,” he said. “Couldn’t afford to have you running off before giving us a chance.”

  “Pfft. What’s an unmade bed here and there? I don’t scare that easily.”

  “That’s good to know. Now that you’ve committed to the job I’ll feel free to show all my dirty little secrets.”

  She moved a few feet into the space and squinted at the wide bank of windows and a pair of French doors along the far wall. “Is that a patio?”

  Mitch nodded. “
Every bedroom has one. I’m of the firm belief that sitting outside with that first cup of coffee every morning is the best way to start the day. Life doesn’t get much better than that.” He took her elbow and steered her across the room. She ignored the dirty clothes littering the floor and went with him straight to the double doors that led outside where a grouping of outdoor furniture sat upon the flagstone patio. Despite the size of the area, it still managed to seem cozy and intimate, stretching from one bedroom to the other. Bright pink bougainvillea grew in wild abandon across the solid stone fence and pots of geraniums and hydrangeas grew in stone or iron urns scattered here and there. The view beyond the patio was no less spectacular. Green hills dotted with bluebonnets and other wildflowers stretched, it seemed, to the brilliant blue horizon.

  “This is so lovely, Mitch!”

  “Glad you like it. There are normally so many cowboys coming in and out that it’s nice to have a private place just to get your thoughts together. Everyone deserves a quiet spot and this is one of my favorites.” He pointed to another set of French doors. “This leads to your room. Want to see it now?”

  “Yes, please.”

  Instead of walking back through his messy bedroom, Mitch led her across the patio and stopped at a second pair of doors. Gina’s face burned as she realized she’d be sleeping right next door to the boss. If he were the kind of man to have wicked ideas about using her body in one-hundred delicious ways, things could get interesting if she were weak enough to succumb to the sex appeal of the handsome rancher. Mitch was about as healthy and red-blooded as it got but for all she knew he had a serious woman in his life. It was for the best that she wasn’t trolling for a new relationship, no matter how tempting the man.

  Mitch opened the door to her room leaving Gina to table her thoughts for another time as they stepped into the spacious room. She caught her breath. The space was decorated in various light, neutral tones and no expense had been spared in furnishings. Along with a lovely four-poster queen bed was a grouping of comfy chairs, a small table and a dresser. Off in the distance, she spotted the open door leading to a private bath that she longed to explore. The Leoni’s weren’t poor, but neither had they lived luxuriously and her marriage to Anthony had certainly not been lavish. Far from it.