“We have a cattle sale in the fall. We cull the herd. There’s a sale barn on the north side of the property. I’ll show it to you sometime. It has stalls for the cattle we want to sell, a balcony for the buyers, and a ring for the auctioneer to bring in the merchandise. It usually starts on Friday, and Saturday night when it’s over, we have a huge party for everyone in the community.”
“I’d love to see it, and a cattle sale—it sounds like fun,” she said. “Do folks get to attend whether they buy anything or not?” She finished making the salad and set it on the table.
He slapped the steaks on the grill. “That’s right. Everyone looks forward to the Kramer party every year. We’ve got a couple of hands who smoke a beef, and the women all bring side dishes.”
“Like a huge potluck?”
“Something like that.” He circled her waist with his hands and moved her away from the bar into the kitchen nook.
She was sure that later when she examined her skin, his handprint would have left a mark from the sheer heat that radiated through her entire body.
“I’m glad they didn’t build anything bigger. I like the coziness of a small house.”
She heard every word, but she was more interested in the feelings his hand evoked. She hadn’t felt so alive in years, maybe in her entire life.
She could see two buttery-soft brown leather recliners placed at either end of a long matching sofa facing a huge stone fireplace with bookcases on either side. The room reminded her so much of her father’s study that she got weepy eyed.
“Do you have an office?”
He shook his head. “I pay a CPA to take care of all the financial stuff. Once a month I take her the receipts, and every three months I pick up the paperwork for taxes. This isn’t a huge operation, Kate. Nothing like your oil company. By Texas standards, it’s a hobby farm. I run about two hundred head of cattle. We grow our own hay, and I have one full-time employee who lives in a trailer here—Johnny was born on the ranch.”
“And the rest of your employees?”
“Live in the area and drive to work. I hire a lot of high school and college kids for summer work and for the cattle sale in the fall, which is a small affair when you consider what some sales involve,” he said.
He hit a button on the microwave, and the aroma of cheesy potatoes mixed with that of the grilled steak filled the room. Conrad had not cooked, so this scenario was a first time for her, and she liked it.
When the steaks and potatoes were on the table, Waylon bowed his head and said a quick grace. “Mama insisted on us giving thanks. It was ingrained so deeply into my being that I still do it without thinking.”
“That’s nice.” She smiled.
Maybe she should give him the letters after all. It appeared that he genuinely wanted the case settled, and what was in those letters from Iris to Darcy could help him do that, but she wanted to see what was going to happen with that will before she made up her mind.
“I have ice cream for dessert. Would you like to take it and coffee to the living room?” he said when they’d finished their supper.
“Thanks for the offer, but it’s getting late, Waylon. If we’re going to have a repeat of this day, then maybe I’d better go on home. Besides, I’m too full for dessert. I’ll help you get things cleaned up, though,” she said.
“Not necessary. It’ll all go into the dishwasher. I’ll walk you out to your car. Then I can look for you tomorrow, for sure?”
“Yes, you can,” she answered. “What time?”
“Ten o’clock is fine. We have to wait for the dew to dry so the hay doesn’t mold when it’s stacked in the barns.”
He escorted her through the kitchen and the screened porch with his hand on the small of her back. It was such a simple gentlemanly gesture, but it sent her on a roller coaster of emotions, from worry that this was all staged to draw more information about Conrad out of her to plain old hot desire.
Has he talked about Conrad one time tonight? the voice in her head asked. Has he asked you to confess to anything?
Don’t confuse me, Kate argued. I’ve been conned before.
Kate bent to pick up her sandals and tripped over her own two feet. She reached out for something, anything at all, to break her fall, but all she got was an armful of air. Instantly, Waylon’s strong arms were around her, steadying her and drawing her to his chest. She looked up to thank him, but before she could say a word, he had tucked his rough knuckles under her chin. She barely had time to moisten her lips before his mouth closed on hers in a fiery kiss that glued her feet firmly to the soft carpet under them.
“Wow!” she said when the kiss ended.
“Yes,” he drawled. “I’ve wanted to do that since I met you.”
Common sense said that she should go to the car. Her heart wanted to stick around and see if the next kiss could possibly be as good as the first.
“I have to go,” she whispered as she took a step back.
“You aren’t angry, are you?”
She shook her head. Why would she be upset about a kiss like that? “No, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Will you pay me in kisses? I don’t need the money.
He walked her the rest of the way to her vehicle and brushed a sweeter kiss across her lips after he’d opened the door. “Text me when you get home so I know you made it all right.”