Tackling Summer Part 20

"I do. You've proven it over and over, especially with Seth and then the other night with me. I'm sorry. Change is hard for me, and we barely got settled into being an us before we had to get ready for you to leave." She tipped her head, so she could look up at him.

Her skin was radiant in the moonlight. Maddox lowered his mouth to hers. The kiss started as a gentle reminder of his feelings for her but grew with intensity as his pa.s.sion grew. He pulled back knowing they couldn't go far tonight.

"We're only going to be apart for two and a half weeks since you decided to come back to Doumit early. Yes, I'll be busy with football, but I promise to make time for you." He planted a quick kiss on her nose. "It'll be good for you to have me and Seth around. You need to loosen up."

"I don't know how loose I can get as long as I'm thumping around in this thing." Chanel waved at her cast.

Maddox nuzzled her neck. "Six weeks will go fast. We'll get creative."

She giggled in response and snuggled in closer. They gazed out the windshield at the quiet stillness of the mountain night, both jumping when a branched snapped in the nearby trees. A cow moose emerged with her gangly calf at her side, pausing to study the foreign hunk of metal.

"c.r.a.p! It's her!" Maddox started to push Chanel toward her side of the pickup so they could get the h.e.l.l out of there, but she stopped him with a hand on his chest.

"Shhh, just hold still," she whispered.

Maddox froze, holding his breath. The moose stared at them a moment longer before snorting and continuing on down the other side of the hill toward the creek.

Slumping against the driver's side door, Maddox exhaled. Chanel's belly laugh filled the s.p.a.ce, setting him off too. He couldn't remember the last time he'd laughed so hard. They were going to be all right, he had no doubt.

A warm sunbeam woke Chanel from a deep sleep. She glanced over at the other side of her bed to discover she was alone. Maddox had helped her to her bed around midnight and held her as she fell asleep. It was the first time she'd slept in days between the stress of Maddox's departure and the pain from her leg. She rose up enough to see the readout on her alarm clock. Seven.

After psyching herself up to move, Chanel managed to swing her legs over the side of the bed and reach for her crutches. Bathing was a pain in the a.s.s, but she was determined to look as good as she could this morning. Mitch had stashed a roll of garbage sacks in her bathroom. Chanel secured her cast into its makeshift raincoat and fumbled through a shower. Her leg was throbbing by the time she finished, so she decided to skip blow-drying her hair. At this point clean was as good as she was going to get. She found a gray knit skirt in her closet and slipped it on, pairing it with a black racer back tank top. Simple, but better than the gym shorts she'd been wearing for the last two days.

Mitch had left the coffee on for her when he went to work. Grateful, Chanel poured herself a cup and waited, helpless to get to the bunkhouses. She couldn't drive a stick while wearing this stupid cast, and there wasn't an automatic rig on the place. All the ATVs were down at the shop, which didn't do her any good. She realized it was a good thing Seth was going to Doumit this fall. Someone was going to have to drive her back. G.o.d, she hated being at the mercy of others.

Footsteps on the front porch drew her to attention. Chanel's heart hammered in her chest in antic.i.p.ation of seeing Maddox; yet, her stomach twisted at the thought of goodbye. Then Seth burst through the door.

"Morning, sunshine!" he sang.

"Ugh, what are you doing here?"

"I love you too," he said planting a kiss on her forehead and making his way to the coffee pot.

"You said your goodbyes last night."

"Believe it or not, your dad forgot to grab the pie when he left." Seth nodded to the foil covered pie plate he'd set on the counter. "Mom made me bring it over. Trust me, I wanted to keep it, maybe bring him a new one when we make the trip."

Chanel sipped her coffee, leaning against the bar. She really needed to get off her feet, but she was so restless. "What am I going to do for the next two and a half weeks? It was bad enough when he was going, and I was left here to work."

"I'll rig you up a nest in the bed of the six-wheeler and take you along with me. We'll dope you up with pain meds, so the b.u.mps don't bother you. C'mon, you need to sit." Seth took the mug from her hands and followed her to the couch. "Want me to let Soda in?"

Mitch didn't appreciate animals in the house, but on occasion he let it slide when Chanel was having a rough day.

"Yes, please." Her voice was small.

Seth went out the back door, returning a couple minutes later with a very happy Border Collie. In her excitement, Soda leaped to the couch from halfway across the room landing on Chanel's stomach. "Ooof! h.e.l.lo there. Okay, settle down."

She cuddled the dog until she relaxed into her lap.

"You good?" Seth asked.

"Yeah, thanks."

"I'll be back after lunch to check on you. I think Mitch and the rest of the guy are way out on the mountain today, so they won't be back until late."

Chanel heard male voices outside just as Seth closed the front door. Maddox must be here. A moment later he was standing in the living room grinning at the woman-dog-pillow pile on the couch. In one hand he clutched another bouquet of wildflowers thick with lupine. Next summer she'd have to tell him to stop bringing that. Next summer. It was the first time she'd allowed herself to think of the future with him. His other hand held two Sharpies.

"How'd you sleep?" Maddox asked.

"Better than I have in a week. Thanks for tucking me in."

"No problem." Maddox gave her quick kiss and then moved to the kitchen and started opening cupboards. "Where can I find a vase?"

Chanel laughed. "No vases in this house. You can find an empty quart jar in the pantry."

She coaxed Soda off her lap and hobbled to the kitchen as he finished taking care of the flowers. They stood face to face for a moment. Then Maddox rubbed his hands up and down her arms.

"I have to go, but first, I need to give you my autograph." He held up the Sharpies with a flourish. One was black, the other red.

"Where'd you find those?"

"Christine. Now, let's get you on a barstool." Maddox helped get her situated and dragged over a second stool to prop up her leg.

Chanel laughed. "I can't believe you're going to sign my cast."

"Really, I'm just tagging you as mine," Maddox said with a wink and set to work. In bold, black letters, using the red pen for a heart, he wrote 'Maddox loves Chanel'.

He might as well have carved their names in a tree, Chanel was so moved by the gesture.

"There will be no doubt of my status when people see you stumpin' around with that on your leg."

Laughter rippled through her once again, and Chanel grabbed him by the arm, pulling him to her. "I love you." Moving her hand to his shirt, she tugged him down so she could reach to kiss him.

"We're going to be fine," he said against her lips.

"I know." The doubts she'd been feeling had vanished the moment she made plans to instruct him on proper wildflower picking next summer. "I also know Seth is going to be p.i.s.sed that you took up so much real estate on that cast."

Maddox chuckled. "You just tell him to bring it when you guys get back to town."

Chanel loved how close Seth and Maddox had become. Though she always enjoyed returning to school, in years past it had been hard to leave the ranch. It was where her heart lived. This year, it was going with her.

"I really have to go now." He held out a hand and helped her to her good leg and then handed her the crutches.

Chanel followed him to the driveway where his dusty Miata sat. Taking her crutches and leaning them against the car, Maddox pulled her close. She squealed when he goosed her through the thin skirt.

"The next couple weeks are going to be long," Maddox murmured into her neck.

"Mmmhmm, but it'll just be that much more exciting when I get there. I won't be nearly as fragile." Chanel pulled back, so he'd look at her, and waggled her eyebrows.

"Excellent." He cupped her face in his large hands and lowered his lips to hers. His tongue slipped between her teeth while her hands explored his broad chest. She loved how he felt and longed to lift that shirt over his head exposing all of those glorious muscles. All thoughts of the ache in her leg disappeared as she lost herself in Maddox's kiss. They were the only two people in the world, until a warm hairy body wiggled its way in between them.

Chanel laughed through her nose, pressing her lips together, making Maddox pull back.

"I've got compet.i.tion already," she said.

They looked down to see one blue eye and one brown eye looking expectantly up at them, tail thumping in the dust.

Maddox scrubbed behind Soda's ears. "I'm going to miss you too, Soda. I know I have two ladies in my life now."

Watching him with her dog reminded Chanel of that first day when she took him to the barn to meet her dad. All the dogs had been attracted him, which at the time she'd grudgingly acknowledged was a good sign about his character. "Always trust the animals," Mitch said. "They sense things humans never will."

Well, he was puppy approved, and she was ready to take the risk on love. People had been telling her he was worth it all summer, and Chanel couldn't help but think her mom was looking down on her with an encouraging smile right now. Margo had taken a shot with Mitch, braving the wilderness for love, and they'd had the real thing. No wonder her father was so gun shy to try again. What are the odds of finding it twice in one lifetime? Though Christine proved it was possible.

Their eyes met again, and Chanel realized Maddox was taking a chance on her as well. He was giving up the perks that come with being a college celebrity, and who knew where his football career was going to take him. That was a bridge they'd have to cross together.

"I can see the wheels turning in there." Maddox tapped Chanel's temple with an index finger. "I better get out of here before you talk yourself into dumping me."

He grabbed the crutches, and Chanel slipped them under her arms. "Well, I'm committed for at least another six weeks until this thing comes off." She nodded at the cast with his name emblazoned across the front with the giant red heart.

Maddox shook his head and leaned in for one more gentle kiss. Chanel ran a hand through that s.e.xy blond mane. Never in a million years would she have thought long hair on a man would do it for her.

Next thing she knew, Maddox was folding himself into that tiny car, disappearing as suddenly as he'd appeared in May. And for the first time in her life, Chanel found herself looking forward to football season.

Think twice before you slip off that ring, boys.

Arriving at her parents' house for an impromptu visit, Jenna Ray gets her own surprise when she finds her father lip locked with a strange woman. Then, her brother-in-law defiles her sister's car with a waitress in a parking lot. Jenna Ray snaps the night she discovers her mentor with his receptionist wrapped around his waist and proceeds to dump the guy in nothing but his boxers at his wife's feet. Discovering her hidden talent to seduce, Jenna walks away from her IT career and reinvents herself as a vigilante seeking justice for women who are too tired and hurt to stand up for themselves. Jenna never misses her man, until she comes up against the s.e.xy, unfaithful ad executive, Steven Benson, who leaves her frustrated, humiliated, and losing herself in an unexpected pair of brilliant, blue eyes.

Get the first book in the Jenna Ray Series: http://www.kayladawnthomas.com/narrow-miss/.

When life breaks you, love can heal you...or run you over.

A broken heart and a preference for solitude leads Web Baker to driving a street sweeper on the night shift for Basil City. His mother wants grandchildren, and his sister is intent on fixing him up with every dimwitted beauty she can find. Add that to the late night antics Web encounters on his nightly shifts and he has more than enough excitement to keep him on his toes, but nothing could prepare him for the woman who stumbles into his sweeper's headlights.

Kara Deleray has never learned how to be herself, leading to a lifetime of bad decisions. She hits rock bottom and ends up moving in with her best friend and her husband. With their help, she manages to land a job teaching English at Basil State University. Finally pulling her life together, a whiskey soaked night almost tears everything she's worked for apart.

Get Swept Up: http://www.kayladawnthomas.com/swept-up/.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.

The writing of this book was quite personal. Many people have talked about the power of place in a story, and this one is the most powerful that I've created. I grew up on the OX Ranch in Idaho, and my experiences with the location and the people had a huge impact on who I am today. So first off, I want to tip my hat to all the cowboys, cowgirls, and friends from the ranch who have left their fingerprints on my life. I also want to thank my dad for taking the time to teach me so many things about the land and the ranching lifestyle. I know he doesn't think I was listening, but I was, and even though I very much like living in town, there will always be a part of me that resides in those ruggedly beautiful mountains.

I want to thank Heidi Bigler Cole for being such a patient inspiration to little Kayla. Heidi was writing a book about the rich history surrounding the OX Ranch when I was in grade school. Her enthusiasm for the craft and can do att.i.tude filled my impressionable heart with the gumption to never give up on my dream to write books.

To my writing group, beta readers, and topic specialists, you guys are amazing. Thank you for keeping me honest. You all make sure I'm not lazy, sloppy, or inaccurate. I appreciate all the time you take to read my books while they are still raw and answer all of my questions.

As always, I have to thank my husband and daughter for putting up with me while I write. There are days when the process is euphoric, and then there are the ones full of tears and hair pulling. Yet, the two of you continue to love and encourage me. I couldn't do this without you.

A natural storyteller from childhood, Kayla Dawn Thomas, is living her dream as a full-time writer. When she isn't concocting adventures for her next novel, she enjoys reading and spending time with her husband and daughter. The Thomas family lives in Eastern Washington State.

Keep up with Kayla's latest releases and other exciting news by signing up for her monthly newsletter at www.kayladawnthomas.com.

Also by Kayla Dawn Thomas.

Swept Up.

Narrow Miss: A Jenna Ray Story #1.

p.r.i.c.ked: A Jenna Ray Story #2.

S'NOGGED: A Jenna Ray Story #3.